Cleaning Tips • Laughter and Health • Toothbrushing Danger? • Paper Plate Masks • and more
Edited by Sara Chana Silverstein
Communicating With Pre-Teens And Teens
The teenage years can be difficult for both kids and their parents. Often each party feels the other is not hearing what is being said. Here is a wonderful idea to begin to open those lines of communication.Purchase a spiral notebook or attractive journal. The mother or father should begin the process by writing a note in the journal with some message they feel the teenager might respond to, and place the journal under the teenager’s pillow. The ending of the message should say, "If you’d like to continue this discussion, please write me back in the journal and place it under my pillow." It may take a couple of attempts to get the teenager to begin to open up, but this is a nice way to begin to solve problems without the yelling, crying and conflict that sometimes accompany direct communication. Great care must be taken to accept the teenager’s writing without judgment or criticism so that she will look forward to sharing her thoughts.
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Before washing a painted surface, dust it with a broom covered with a flannel cloth. Be sure to change the cloth when it gets dirty.
Paper Plate Purim Masks
You will need:White paper plates
Scissors
Crayons or markers
Glitter, felt, sequins (optional)
String, ribbon or yarn
Yes, it’s true—white paper plates can make fun Purim masks (and they are easy for young children to construct).
Method:
Draw eyes, a nose, ears and a mouth on the paper plate. Cut out the eyes and nose to match the approximate size and location of your child’s. Decorate with markers, crayons, glitter or yarn. Make a pinsized hole on either side near the ears and place the string, ribbon or yarn through the holes. Tie behind the child’s head, and "ta-da"—a fun Purim mask!
Allergy Sufferers Beware
Spring Is on The Way!
Bothered by a stuffy nose or sinus pain? Try this recipe to decrease the swelling and pain. According to Dr. Firshein, D.O., "Take a mixture of 1 teaspoon pure aloe vera gel and half a teaspoon of sea salt in 4 ounces of water. Aloe vera gel is a documented anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial agent. Salt is anti-bacterial and is known to reduce swelling. It can be gently inhaled into your nostrils—first tilt your head back to let the fluid fill your nasal passages and reach the back of your throat, and then blow it out. Do this twice daily." (Note: If you pre-make this mixture, refrigerate after use and remake solution every couple of days.
For more information, or to order Dr. Firshein’s book Reversing Asthma, you can contact him at (212) 860-0282.
Sleep Without Snoring
Stop the Snoring, written by Ralph Schoenstein, is a charmingly written paperback with a lovely sense of humor about a very difficult topic: snoring. Schoenstein’s book explores the many options of treatment currently available. In his book he states, "The last word on snoring is cure." Yes, there are different kinds of snoring and they all call for different treatments.
Schoenstein teaches the reader that "In adults, there are two basic causes of snoring: relaxed muscles in the throat and masses partially blocking it. In sleep, particularly in deep sleep, the throat muscles relax and the tongue falls back, causing vibration…."
Snoring, of course, can be bothersome (to say the least), but it can also be dangerous, such as in the case of apnea (a state of snoring where there is actually a stop of oxygen flow). Schoenstein has found that apnea tends to run in families; and if someone has a pattern of it in his own family, he should have an examination at a sleep disorders center, especially if the sufferer is a man and getting older.
About 80% of the people with apnea are unaware they have a condition that can drain their energy, cheerfulness, wakefulness and concentration.
This book is highly recommended for all people who snore—(and especially for all those who live with these wonderful nighttime musicians). To order, call (800) 759-0190.
Health Questions & Answers
Q. Can cranberry juice help prevent urinary tract infections?A. According to Environmental Nutrition (Vol. 20, Num. 2): "Studies have shown that regular cranberry juice drinkers have fewer urinary tract infections than non-cranberry juice drinkers. Researchers think it’s due not to the acidity of the juice, but rather to a special compound in cranberries that prevents bacteria from adhering to the bladder lining."
Q. I’ve heard that the thymus gland in breast-fed babies is a different size than the one in formula babies. Is this true?
A. The answer appears to be yes. According to the Infact Canada Newsletter, "The thymus gland, known to play an essential part in the development of the immune system, was shown to be smaller in artificially fed infants. Noting in a previous study that the thymus of exclusively breast-fed infants was larger than in other infants, the authors of this study compared the thymus size of 47 infants. Forty-five of the infants had initiated breast-feeding (they started or attempted breast-feeding without necessarily continuing). The authors divided the test group into exclusively breast-fed, partially breast-fed and formula-fed. The thymus size was measured at five days and again at four months. Initially there was no difference in the thymus size among the three groups.
"By four months of age, the thymus of exclusively breast-fed infants was larger than the partially breast-fed infants and twice as large as the artificially fed infants. The authors did not determine the impact of breast-feeding on thymus size, but they suggest that anti-infective or anti-inflammatory factors in breast milk better protect against illness and create optimal growth conditions for the thymus."
Can Chiropractic Care Relieve Colic in Babies?
Yes, according to research from Denmark! As stated in La Leche International’s publication, in Denmark, "where chiropractic has been used since the early 1900’s to treat infant colic," one study "indicates that chiropractic adjustments may help reduce or eliminate colic in some babies. One study of 316 babies with colic found that within 14 days and three chiropractic adjustments, 94% of their mothers reported that the colic had improved or that the colic was gone. The researchers estimate that between 20-40% of all Danish infants with colic are treated by chiropractors."Note: There are some chiropractors who specialize in newborn care; please check with your chiropractor and inquire as to his/her experience with newborns.
Toothbrushes Can Carry and Transmit Infection
According to Drs. Schmidt, Smith and Sehnert in their book Beyond Antibiotics, "Researchers in Japan have recently discovered that toothbrushes act as a breeding ground for some very pesky germs. When they examined the toothbrushes of 150 children, they observed that most contained over one million bacteria! A thorough rinsing of the toothbrush only cut the number of bacteria in half. Thus, the toothbrush may be a source of transmission of germs among families. One solution is to thoroughly clean the toothbrush with soap and water followed by hydrogen peroxide after someone has been ill. Replace toothbrushes every 2-3 months."
Laughter and Health
Back in 1928, Dr. James Walsh wrote a book called Laughter and Health, in which he states, "Laughter, which is particular to man and is shared by none of the animals, is a process very difficult to understand from its mental aspect, for no one has ever been able to explain satisfactorily just why our diaphragm goes into a series of convulsive movements whenever we hear or see anything funny. While laughter is a mystery from its mental aspect, it is easy to appreciate its far-reaching physical effects. The diaphragm, the principal organ involved in it, is in intimate anatomical relations with all the organs in the body that carry on physical life. As laughter always makes us feel better for having indulged in it, it is evident that the effect of the movements of the diaphragm and the large organs in its neighborhood is beneficial."
He continues: "Hearty laughter stimulates practically all the large organs, and by making them do their work better through the increase of circulation that follows the vibratory massage which accompanies it, heightens resistive vitality against disease. Besides, the mental effect brushes away the dreads and fears which constitute the basis of so many diseases or complaints, and lifts people out of their despondency into which they are so likely to fall when they take themselves too seriously.
"When we are young, laughter is almost entirely instinctive, and we laugh at almost nothing, so that it is very evident that nature intended that this function should be exercised without the necessity for much provocation."
So this Purim, let yourself go — have fun and laugh! When the Passover cleaning appears to be overwhelming, have a seat, pick up your feet, and have a good laugh—it will benefit both your body and your mind!