For adults only: things that a child should not use
Take your time to accustom your offspring to the attributes of the adult world, no matter how convenient they seem. Anything that makes life much easier for parents can have a detrimental effect on children’s health and psyche.
This innovative medical device has many advantages – it takes less time to brush your teeth, and the result is much better. But there are also many contraindications, and among them is this: “It is not recommended to use the brush by children under the age of 7-8 years.” The reason is in the peculiarities of the structure of the child’s tooth enamel, which is still delicate and sensitive, easily amenable to aggressive action.
Electric brushes operate at high speeds (for example, sound brushes make from 24 thousand revolutions per minute, and ultrasonic brushes more than a million), so they can injure the child’s weak enamel and gums. Now they produce special children’s electric toothbrushes. To use it or not, it is up to the parents to decide, but only after consulting a dentist. And in any case, the child should brush his teeth under the supervision of an adult.
Advocates of early development argue that you need to familiarize the baby with different smells, so the habit of cleanliness and tidiness will form faster. But pediatricians insist that there should be as little artificial flavors as possible in a baby’s life: it is better to choose fabric conditioners without odor, thoroughly ventilate the room, do not give bottles of eau de toilette in the child’s hands for at least three years. Until this age, a protective skin is formed in the child’s body, which protects it from the aggressive effects of the environment. If you ignore the recommendations of pediatricians, the protective functions of the shell may be impaired.
A convenient moment will be at the age of 4-5 years – children are actively interested in the world around them, then you can get acquainted with the natural aromas of flowering plants. By the way, there are perfumes specially adapted for children’s sense of smell, with a low alcohol content and with a natural perfume composition. But remember: perfumery can cause allergies, and obsessive odors can permanently discourage the desire to use perfume.
Now even babies, who have not yet learned how to speak properly, already know how to use a tablet and are ready to watch cartoons from a digital device for hours. But pediatricians warn: remove all gadgets away, protect the child from harmful influences for at least a few years.
Lack of movement during prolonged viewing at an early age affects both physical and mental development, even changes the structure of the child’s brain. The flow of fast information reduces concentration of attention, the blue color of LED screens affects the retina of the eye, and addiction is formed. A teenager, keen on games, runs the risk of getting a lot of psychological problems: anxiety, aggressiveness, isolation. The list goes on, but TVs and smartphones cannot be completely removed from life either. The way out is to control your kids and limit the time spent with the tablet. It is recommended, for example, that educational applications for children over 3-5 years old should be watched no longer than 30 minutes, for teenagers from 13 years old no more than 2 hours a day.
The most common opinion among ophthalmologists is that it is better not to use lenses for vision correction for children under 10-11 years old. Of course, each specific case is discussed only with a specialist, but in general, it is only by this age that a child learns to correctly use optics for vision correction, put on and take off, store it, taking into account the recommendations of specialists.
It is a common thing for teenagers to isolate themselves from others and immerse themselves in their world, where they have their favorite music. It seems that neither day nor night, they do not take the “earbuds” out of their ears. We will not say now how many incidents happened due to the fact that the child simply did not hear the warning sounds while listening to loud music. These cases are fatal, but, fortunately, not so frequent.
And there are health consequences even when children wear headphones and are completely safe. Firstly, acoustic devices reduce the level of concentration, secondly, with loud sounds, the load on the inner ear and nervous system increases, and thirdly, dizziness, weakness, ringing in the ears, a feeling of fatigue or, conversely, increased excitability may appear. As a result – chronic hearing problems, which are now noticeably “younger”. A few decades ago, hearing loss most often suffered from elderly people, about 70 years old, and now cases of the disease have become more frequent even in 40-year-olds.
Cutlery, stationery, and hobby supplies should be kept out of the reach of children’s eyes and hands. This rule is known to every parent, nevertheless, thousands of children around the world lose their eyesight, injure themselves due to parental oversight with stabbing, cutting objects. The interest of kids in forks and knives can be mitigated by buying silicone or special safe tableware for children, and pencils and brushes can be “given out” only under your careful supervision.
Probably everyone had a piggy bank in childhood. Many parents teach their offspring to manage their finances from an early age by giving out pocket money or rewarding them for academic success. Of course, the issues of upbringing are an individual matter, but I would like to warn you that the bills, which have probably been shoveled by more than one thousand hands, are the source of many infections.
Several years ago, employees of Goznak and the Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology conducted a study with an interesting conclusion: more than 30 species of pathogenic microorganisms, fungal spores, E. coli, Salmonella and Staphylococcus aureus were found on banknotes. To be absolutely precise, the list will turn out to be impressive – which just does not happen on paper bills, up to particles of prohibited substances or animal DNA. True, the risk of contracting tuberculosis or pneumonia is small. But all the same, after handling money, it is better to wash your hands and teach children to do this.
And do not think that the warning applies only to girls: boys at children’s parties also like to put different types of face and hands on their faces and hands. So, it is easy to find children’s decorative cosmetics on sale, and young beauties enthusiastically smear their cheeks with blush, put gloss on their lips and paint their nails.
To begin with, any cosmetics can cause allergic reactions. And if a child wants to apply face painting on a big holiday, then it is worth considering whether the hygienic requirements for cosmetics and tools are observed, what quality and shelf life the products are from the make-up artist. If you buy your daughter a set of eyeshadows and glitters in a store, choose the most famous brands, take into account the recommendations for use (at what age, how to apply and wash off cosmetics, etc.), look at the composition and expiration date.