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Good health is a great foundation upon which to build a great life. The press is filled with scary news about how our children are obese and unhealthy. So as a parent what can you do to help your kids learn about how to be healthy? One important part of child development is instilling knowledge and good habits around eating and exercise. What kids learn about health when they are young will help them throughout their whole life. Eating well is a key part of good health. If you think back to what you regularly ate as a child you’ll probably find that’s pretty much what you’re eating today. At a presentation I gave on teaching kids health one mother said “my husband still takes peanut butter and honey sandwiches to work every day…he was a fussy eater and that’s what he ate as a child”. If what your child eats as a child plays a big part in what he or she will eat as an adult, it is so important to take a good look at what you’re mainly feeding your children right now. Are they basically eating a balanced diet with items from each of the five food groups or do they mainly eat processed, fatty and sugary foods? Do you talk to your children about nutrition explaining what’s good for the body like fresh fruits and vegetables and what’s not so good like sweets, processed biscuits and cakes? This can be a great support! To be healthy kids also need to exercise. Being fit improves both their physical as well as their mental health and of course, it’s FUN too! Parents can encourage their children to be active by helping them understand the benefits of fitness but most importantly parents need to create the opportunities for their kids to exercise. Team sports are a great way to do this. I recently read a great blog written by Agata Mrva-Montoya, at Sydney publishing that “the development of local sports clubs and junior teams is vital to the future of team sport, and it is beneficial to the wellbeing of young players, far beyond the obvious issues of health and fitness. Long-term participation in sport and club membership enables children to learn the ideas of fair play and teamwork. They also develop self-motivation and a sense of belonging to a community. At the same time, they can have fun and meet new friends, which according to Richard Light, the author of Sport in the lives of young Australians, are the most important reasons for joining a sporting club and ongoing participation”. So what can you do to support positive behavior development around health and well being for your kids? Eat a ‘mainly’ healthy diet at home (but sweets and treats are great sometimes), share nutrition tips when he opportunities arise, encourage outdoor exercise activities and maybe even get your kids involved in a team sport…the many benefits make it worth the time

One of the most important gifts a parent can offer their child is to prepare them for life. Imagine how good you’ll feel when it’s time for your children to leave home, if they have good self esteem and are resilient. We all know that life can bring so many different experiences and life lessons - some wonderful and others really challenging - while we have no control over this - with the right help, your children can develop the life skills to be able to respond positively to anything that life brings. Parents are the most important influence when it comes to developing a positive sense of self and good self esteem.  Self esteem develops over time from when children are really young. Here are two parenting tips that will help your child develop good self esteem and feel good about who they are. Children learn by mirroring what their parents do and say…you know that right? This becomes painfully obvious when you hear your own words or see your actions played back to you by your child. So, it makes sense then that the most powerful way to help your children develop good self esteem is to live it yourself. Your children will watch and learn from you if you offer them a good example. Spending time with your children will also make a world of difference. Children know that if you make the take time be with them - this shows them that they are important to you and that goes a long way to helping them feel good about themselves. A strong sense of self goes a long way when times are tough, but having a resilient child goes even further. How do your children handle life’s downs? Are they OK if they lose a race, fail a test, fall over and hurt themselves or have a disappointment? Resilience is the ability to get up and move on when things are tough. You can help your children learn this skill from a really young age. For example, if your child falls over and they are not too hurt, do you rush over to rescue them or do you guide them so they can help themselves. You can use words like “oh dear you’ve fallen over, roll over onto your tummy and push yourself up with your arms…that’s right darling come over here…”. In that way you are helping them to help themselves as you won’t always be there to pick them up. Do you allow your child to win every game? Can you see how helpful it would be to allow them to lose sometimes so they can learn how to cope with loss? There are so many ways you can help your child develop good self esteem and resilience and it does not have to take a lot of time…it just takes care and know how.

I recently came across a research paper by Elizabeth Gershoff published in the journal of Law and Contemporary problems in 2010 entitled: More harm than good: a summary of the scientific research on the intended and unintended effects of corporal punishment on children. The aim of this blog post is to summarise the main findings of the 25 page research paper which explores the findings of hundreds of research studies from many disciplines including: psychology, medicine, social work and education. Main finding: “The social and medical sciences report that the risks for substantial harm from corporal punishment outweigh any immediate benefit of immediate child compliance.” (P32) Read on to find out the many forms of ‘substantial harm’ that can result – I was shocked! Definition: Basically, corporal punishment is hitting, smacking, spanking or physically punishing a child with the intent of changing their behaviour rather than harming them (it is not about physical child abuse). Do you smack your children? Statistics for the United States for parents physically punishing their children are as follows: 50% of parents of toddlers 65-68% of parents of preschoolers 85% percent of middle and high school children Why parents use physical punishments? Do you smack your children? Were you physically punished as a child? Tradition–parents who were spanked as children and adolescents tend to be more supportive of corporal punishment then children who were not. History – criminals were historically punished by public floggings or other physical punishments. Religion – some religions advocate corporal punishment It is interesting to note that while it is no longer legal for courts to sentence criminals to corporal punishments for crimes, it is still legal for parents (and teachers in some states) to physically punish their children as a method of discipline – with the exception of New Zealand where it is now illegal to use corporal punishment on a child. Intended effects of physical punishment: Do you think smacking is helpful and it is basically ‘harmless’? Parents have both short-term and long term intentions when it comes to choosing to hit their children.   Short-term In the short term they may want to get their child’s attention, make them comply or change their unacceptable behaviour (eg: hitting, biting, stealing, lying or playing with matches) An aside: it seems contradictory and disingenuous to hit a child for hitting another child while saying ‘hitting is bad’… doesn’t make sense right? Numerous research studies show that in the short term, physical punishment is NO more effective than other methods such as time out with a barrier preventing the child from leaving. In other words physical and non-physical punishments are EQUALLY as effective at modifying the behaviour in the short term and non-physical punishment does not have all of the negative consequences like increased child aggression and risks of physical injury among the many others outlined below. Long-term In the long term, parents intend for the corporal punishment to act as a deterrent to the child repeating unacceptable behaviours and encouraging them to continue to act in more socially acceptable ways. “A consistent body of research evidence reveals that more corporal punishment by parents is associated with less long-term compliance and less pro-social behaviour and more aggression and anti-social behaviour” In other words the more children are physically punished the less they comply with their parents wishes, the less they behave in socially appropriate ways and the more aggressive they become and the more they behave unacceptably. Put simply smacking makes children’s and adolescent’s behaviour worse, not better, in the long term! The paper then goes on to talk about the many unintended consequences of corporal punishment – this was a shock to me. Unintended consequences of physical punishment Physical injury and abuse. Most importantly, a parent’s risk of physically harming and abusing their child increases the more frequently they use physical punishment as a means of discipline. Child abuse often starts out with the intention to discipline and escalates to harm. Mental health problems. The more frequently children are hit or the more severely they are hit the more likely they are to have emotional and psychological stress as well as metal health problems like depression and anxiety. Harms parents’ relationships with their children. Children who are physically punished tend to avoid their parents, dislike them, want to run away, don’t develop closeness and become distrustful of their parents. Increased aggression and anti-social behaviour. The more physical punishment the more aggressive the child and the adult become. Often times the aggression is directed towards their own children and spouses as well as others. This is the one unintended consequence I didn’t expect that shocked me: Reduced cognitive ability. Studies have shown that children who are physically punished have lower IQ scores and lower results on standardised tests of mental abilities. To conclude: While not every child will suffer the many serious negative consequences due to physical punishments as summarised in this blog post, the evidence is compelling that physically punishing your child does more harm than good. Do you want to take the risk of harming your child and your relationship with your child for some short-term compliance, when you could use other methods that are equally effective but don’t carry the many unintended negative consequences? If you though spanking your child would make them a better person, think again, the research shows that in fact, they are more likely to become aggressive and behave in more anti-social ways.

Want to know more about raising teens? Join parenting expert Dr Rosina as she interviews Ray Erickson who has over 30 years experience working with teenagers. In his new book  Ten Tips to Tame Your Teen  - Ray explains his time tested ways to help parents raise socially conscious, self-assured and productive young adults. Ray’s Ten Tips are supported by the latest research on teenage brains such as featured in the October, 2011 National Geographic.  Since humor is a cornerstone of Ray’s work whether he is working with teens, parents or speaking to a group, get ready to be educated and entertained!

Parenting expert Dr Rosina interviews the very dynamic parenting expert Dr Yvonne Sum. Yvonne will share her insights based on her ideas that parents are leaders and that parenting is a learning partnership between parents and kids. Learn more about her program - the 7R's of parenting which includes: Role modeling, Respect, Rules, Routine, Review and Reflect, Reorganise, Running-it- Response-ability Dr Yvonne Sum  www.dryvonnesum.com  Please join us for another informative and fun interview as we learn more about parenting and child development.

Parenting expert Dr Rosina interview's Jan Roberts from Wellness Centre and author of several books, including The Natural Way to Better Babies; The Natural Way to Better Pregnancy and The Natural Way to Better Birthing and Bonding. Topics include preconception, conception and healthy babies.

Article in Wellbeing Magazine written by parenting expert Dr Rosina Parents have many different approaches to raising children and these differences have been stereotyped with labels such as attachment parenting, helicopter parenting, free-range parenting, conscious parenting and even good-enough parenting. Read the full article here

RAISING A GENERATION WHERE DISRESPECT IS NOT TOLERATED Parenting expert Dr Rosina was asked to participate in the government campaign "Stop it at the Start"

As parents, our role is to love, protect and to help our children prepare for life. The research shows that teaching children life skills is the key to helping them have a happy, successful and fulfilling life. For example, if your child is a good communicator, they’ll be able to make friends easily. If your child has good self-esteem, they’re more likely to go for their dreams and are less likely to succumb to negative peer pressure.

Parenting expert Dr Rosina interviews Vivien Sabel about her groundbreaking research into infant communication. "Babies communicate from day 1" Vivien's research has revealed. She helps parents understand their baby's body language and shows them how to communicate and bond with their baby. Vivien was raised by a deaf mother so she developed a heightened sense of awareness of non verbal communication which has supported her work in this very important new field of infant communication. The key thing is that when parents consistently recognise and respond to their baby's needs, strong brain connections that lead to healthy emotional development and optimal learning take place. This early childhood development provides the foundation for a happy and healthy life into adulthood. Vivien's book is called The Blossum Method and is available on  Amazon

Parenting expert Dr Rosina interviews Dr Monique Robinson on the effects of stress during pregnancy on the unborn child. Dr Robinson is a researcher at the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research. Her  findings indicate that stress in pregnancy can lead to behavioural or emotional problems in babies which can extend, not only into childhood, but right up into adolescent years. Learn what you can do to nurture a healthy and happy baby.

Parenting expert Dr Rosina interviews Sue Anderson from  Good2Gr8  Transformational Coaching about an innovative  new approach towards understanding and managing bullying in schools.