Our Parents Guide

Welcome to our Parents Guide

Here we try to answer some of your common queries, questions and concerns.

Head Lice

How do children catch head lice?

Head lice are transferred by close hair to hair contact. Head lice do not jump or fly, but they do walk from one hair to another. Children can catch head lice by sharing combs and brushes. Head lice prefer clean hair and skin and have no preference for long or short hair.

Are there any symptoms to look out for?

There are usually no symptoms. Sometimes those affected do get an itchy scalp, however this reaction can take up to three months to develop. Bites from head lice are impossible to see and occasionally bites from head lice are almost impossible to see. The head lice usually lay eggs close to the root of the hair near the scalp and are quite small but are silver in colour. The head lice are like small insects, are usually black and do get bigger if they go untreated.

What do I do if my child has got head lice?

You should comb your child’s hair with a specialised comb and visit a pharmacy and see what they advise. There are many lotions and potions on the market at the moment to help with this problem and ensure you sterilise all combs and brushes. To ensure you reduce the risk of your child getting head lice again then they should only use their own brushes and combs and be checked with and use the specialised comb weekly.

 

Fussy Eaters

Good tips for parents to prevent fussy eaters and deal with a child who is food refusing.

• Introduce a good range of tastes from the introduction of first foods.
• Introduce a range of different coloured foods - green, red, yellow etc. into your infant’s diet.
• Encourage your child to experiment with food of different textures to hold and feed themselves.
• If your child does not like the taste of a new food try it again at a later time. If they continue to dislike it then stop trying.
• Set a good example - your children will copy your eating patterns.
• Never force feed a child this can cause phobias of food.
• Some children are more sensory-sensitive than others, and for these children getting enough calories should be more important than a well-balanced diet, especially at that difficult toddler stage.
• Let your children get messy - from an early age children need sensory sensitive play when eating.

 

Bedtime Routine

My child will not sleep without a drink at bedtime - what can I do to try and stop this?

Many children become accustomed to a comforting sweet bedtime drink such as sugary tea or hot chocolate. At first, gradually reduce the amount of drink offered and when it is finished, do not give in to cries for more. Try a bedtime routine that does not involve drinking. Find other ways to comfort your child, such as reading a book, telling a story or having a cuddle - with all cups and bottles out of sight.

 

Potty Training

All my friends who have children the same age as my child seem to have encouraged those children in to pants. I am feeling anxious – should my child be in pants too?

Don’t feel pressured to train your child even if you have time limitations. Resist the pressure: your anxiety about toilet training can create anxiety in your child. Toilet training is not a competition. Wait until your child is ready for it - there is no set age range to start. The readier your child is when you start toilet training, the quicker it will actually progress once it commences.