The newborn cannot control his head at all, and you have to support his head with your hand or elbow while carrying him. By four to six weeks, his control over his head matures gradually till he is three to four months old and can hold his head up by himself. If he is lying on his abdomen, he can …

Bumps in the head are quite common in young children and may scare you too. Usually they look serious and can be. But often, they are not. If your child’s head is bruised, hold a cloth wrung out in very cold water or an ice pack wrapped in a damp cloth over the bruise. This may stop it from swelling …

Monday morning, 9 am, time to get to work. As you hastily down a sandwich, your three-year-old daughter rushes toward you. You know what’s going to happen next. As you sit with her, talking to her about all the interesting things that she will do during the day, she lets out a scream and begins to cry. The moment she …

It’s been a long day for Anu. As she relaxes with her evening coffee, she feels a jab of pain close to her anus. A trip to the gynaecologist the next day confirms her fears. It is piles. Piles, which look like soft purple lumps protruding through the anal ring, are actually swollen veins. They are caused by the increased …

Grown-up children living at home is not an uncommon phenomenon and there are many cases where a child still lives at home, even when he or she is 21. This is especially the case when the children study or work in the same city as their parents and still don’t have a family. However, they may not move out even …

Grandparents play a unique role in children’s life. They not only provide unconditional love but also symbolize the continuity and stability that are so important for a child. Grand-parents play a vital role in establishing the child’s basic mind set, beliefs and cultural ideas. They are the roots of the tree of life on which the child gleams like the …

There is a sharp rise in the number of children who are being raised by persons other than their parents and in majority of the cases, these persons are none other that the grandparents. However, bringing up your grandchildren is no easy task. Even though grandparents are experienced parents and are quite aware of the developmental needs of children, there …

 Soon, I would have to move back to plain old tobacco – the no-nonsense smoke of a familiar, down-to-earth routine. I threw the butt away. The prospect of the familiar journalistic routine was paralysing: wading through innumerable takes of news, cleaning, polishing and making them suitable for public consumption… Then, for a moment, the depression lifted. There was a new …

After parents and teachers, it is the child’s friends who play a vital role in shaping his character. As parents, we should give due importance to his choice and pay attention to those he calls friends. Apart from family, the first relationship that a child forms in his own  right is with his peers. At a very young age itself, …

Do you want to get high? Go sniff a deodorant. Yes, a deodorant. According to a recent report by Alcohol and Drug Abuse Organisation, United States, deodorants are one of the many domestic products that people sniff for their mood altering effects. Inhalants range from gasoline, kerosene, lighter fluid, typewriter correction fluid to antifreeze, paints, glue, cleaning fluids, and nail …