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An Australian paediatric doctor has shared 10 things she believes all parents should know.

Dr. Nelu is passionate about informing parents and where possible, tries to highlight the little things that might help caregivers understand what’s going on with them or their child.

‘It is all general advice, mostly drawn from evidence and experience. And of course every child and circumstance is different so please seek help from a medical professional who can assess you/your child in person for any specific concerns,’ she said.

Daily Mail shared some important messages Dr. Nelu has for parents:

1. A fever is NOT an emergency

‘Fever itself is not an emergency! Your child can have a fever of 40C with a simple virus,’ Dr. Nelu said.

‘It is the cause of the fever that is more important than the actual number itself.

‘Fever is 38C or above. And any fever in a baby less than three months should be seen by a doctor fairly urgently.’

Dr. Nelu said doctors should be seen if children have a fever for more than two days (if there are no other viral symptoms), if irritability doesn’t improve with medications, if they are having less than half normal fluids or if they have vomiting and diarrhoea that doesn’t improve.

‘See a doctor urgently if your child has a fever and the rash has dark red or purple spots that don’t disappear when you push it, is complaining of a headache and is not moving their neck as much or having trouble looking at lights or is so lethargic they are having trouble waking up,’ she said.

Heavy breathing (sucking in at the throat, between the ribs, underneath their ribs or using their stomach to breathe rapidly) is also a sign to see a doctor urgently.

2. Antibiotics do not treat viruses

‘The absolute majority of infections in children are viral (fever, cough, runny nose, red ears, red throat, diarrhoea and vomiting etc) which need to be cleared by the body itself,’ Dr. Nelu said.

3. SUPERVISE!

‘Always always watch young children in water. Drowning is one of the most common causes of preventable deaths in children,’ Dr. Nelu said.

‘It can take just a few seconds for a child to drown. For example popping in to the next room to get something is enough for a child to drown in a shallow bath.

‘Also, if your child can roll, they can fall! I’ve seen too many broken bones and head injuries to not stress how much a mobile child can get up to! Change tables are the most common and dangerous culprit.’

4. Introduce allergenic food early

‘Early introduction to allergenic foods (e.g. Peanuts, all nuts, egg, dairy, fish etc) is crucial to reduce the risk of kids becoming allergic,’ Dr. Nelu said.

‘We’re seeing soaring rates of allergy because of delayed introduction to foods. We do not do screening test for allergies, we only trust the test after the food has been introduced, so there is no value in waiting for appointments to introduce a food.

‘If you’re concerned you can do gradual home introduction. This isn’t particularly necessary but so much better than waiting years without introducing. This message desperately needs to get out there.’

5. If they can reach it they can put it in their mouth

‘Keep all medications and poisons out of reach of these curious hands,’ Dr. Nelu said.

‘Can’t stress enough how many eucalyptus oil or accidental medication ingestion related admissions we have.

‘Oh and PlayStation button batteries can be life threatening if swallowed.’

6. Don’t question the need for two Xrays!

Quite often a break in a child can be hard to see

7. IMMUNISE, IMMUNISE, IMMUNISE! 

‘Not only does it protect your children, but newborns or kids undergoing cancer treatments,’ she said.

‘Vaccine preventable diseases sadly still cause death and severe illness.’

8. Follow SIDS Guidelines

‘Babies still die from these preventable causes,’ Dr. Nelu said.

‘Seeing one is enough to make you change what you do forever.’

9. Road safety is crucial!

Always make sure your children wear helmets, seat belts, use recommended car seating and practice checking both sides of the road before crossing. I can’t tell you how many (often serious) injuries are avoidable by these simple measures. Always do the same yourself – kids learn by example.

10. Trust your gut

‘No one knows your child better than you.’

For more info visit Dr Nelu on Facebook.

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  • Fevers are not so simple. It also depends how quickly your childs fever goes up. If it is jumping very quickly the child is at risk of having a seizure especially if you cant control or slow the temp from going up. This can be very serious. i know this very well as my middle child spent time in hospital on more then one occassion with uncontrolled temps….her highest was 42

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  • Fevers can be life threatening if they go too high and are unable to be lowered using the methods suggested. Rehydration may be needed if extra fluids do not bring high temperature down.

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  • These are all great and fantastic tips. And at the end of the day, absolutely go with your gut. You know your child best.

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  • Some very wise and wonderful advice here.

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  • Great advice. One of my children fell off a bouncy baby horse toy thing and broke her arm. We took her to the hospital and they said she wasn’t distressed enough to have broken her arm, said it was probably a sprain. She was 3 and they sent us home. The next morning I took her to our local GP who said the same but said he will take an Xray as a precaution (which I would have asked for if he didn’t suggest it anyhow) and alas, it was broken. He was so surprised as she wasn’t crying. I just knew it, in my gut! Yep, always trust your gut.

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  • Great advice – and in the old days we knew our children very well – sometimes I wonder if current parents are as aware of their children as we were before social media.

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  • This doctor looks a little young to have lots of experience. Some of the advice is good but not all, just go to your own doctor if in doubt. No need to feed your baby eggs and nuts, we already had that discussion before, too hard to digest. You don’t become allergic to things because of what you don’t eat early, ask a specialist in allergies if you are concerned.

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  • Yes!! I see the Royal Children’s Hospital quite often post things on their page like these

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  • This needs to be said more often. I know of some parents that everytime their child gets sick, they end up in Emergency before they even see a Doctor. I don’t know how many times I’ve told them to call 13 HEALTH first and they can tell you what you can do from home and whether you need to book a Dr appt or go to emergency.
    Hospitals are for genuine emergencies, which is being clogged up by too many people who could just make an appt with a GP or wait it out.

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  • This is a great article. New parents would mostly benefit from this information . Maybe it could be made into a booklet?

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  • Great advice and tips

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  • Thank you for the helpful tips.

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  • Seems like a lot of common sense in this book – maybe it will help all the helicopter parents

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  • These are great tips, but also fairly obvious and we pretty much live by them. However, our sno had a febrile convulsion with a 40 degree fever, so there are instances where these rules don’t apply. But… I absolutely agree to go with your gut. Observe your child, you know them best, then manage their symptoms in your best way.

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  • The seizures can be life threatening too. Even giving a child in a cool bath (not cold) may not be enough to prevent a seizure. They can be quite common for some children – including newborns. They get a few cases from roller skating and skateboards. Many parents don’t think about or enforce the wearing of helmets, elbow or knee protection. It seems some radiologists find cracked ribs hard to detect – both in children and adults.

    Reply

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