Online chat with Dr Rob Hicks, Friday 7 March 2008 between 1-2pm

[OliviaMumsnet]

Dr Rob Hicks will be here for an online chat with Mumsnetters this Friday 7th March.

Dr Rob is a practising GP, health writer and medical journalist with a specialist interest in family health and child development.

A regular contributor to Prima Baby magazine he is also the Classic FM radio doctor and frequently appears on television in the role of medical expert. He is also dad to a 4 year old daughter.

Dr Rob will be joining us for an hour at 1 o'clock to answer any of your questions about children's health and diet, so get your questions ready, grab a cuppa and join us then.

But if you won't be here during the chat itself, then do please post any advance questions for Dr Rob here.

Thanks, MNHQ

not THIS rob hicks? i think his advice may be to do wiht grog and 20 lashes/

Hi, I'm new to mumsnet and find juggling work and family commitments chaotic. I have 2 questions for Dr Rob Hicks. What are your experiences of work and family integration? In your opinion how does work and family integration influence health and wellbeing?

I would like to know if he feels there is a way of tying together the advice from the medical health professionals. The thing that has confused the majority of first time parents is being told a)incorrect b)out of date c)conflicting advice from people who are meant to know the right thing to do with a baby.

My question for Dr Hicks is this: what is the relative value of fruit and vegetables? specifically:

1 - if you want to give them a good diet, I assume that 100% fruit and 0% veg would not work, however varied the fruit. what is the balance?

1. what is the min amount of veg you need to get your 1 year old to eat? and the min amount you need to get your 5 / 6 year olds to consume?

Can I ask a question?

I have one child - a son who was diagnosed with pyloric stenosis and had the corrective operation at 8 weeks old. I am currently trying to conceive again - could you tell me what the chances are of having another baby with the same condition? Is the likelihood increased because we have already had one baby with it?

Thanks

My sister, who is single, had a son three years ago via IVF. Last week when someone asked James at the playground where his daddy was, James answered with a long story about how his Daddy was at home. He's done this before - Daddy's on holiday - and it's heart-breaking that he feels he has to make up stories about it. He's been told from the start that he doesn't have a Daddy but he's so little and obviously really wants a Daddy and so I wondered what we could do to help him? I don't want him to feel ashamed or embarrassed or that it's in any way his fault and yet just saying 'You haven't got one' or promising that he might get one in the future seem wrong too. If you could recommend a strategy or some books to read I'd be very grateful.

Can I please ask about execema and food? is there a link? my daughters diet is fairly consistent, she eats pretty much most things. but occasionally she flares up on her arms/groin & legs with itching - usually at 11pm (odd) at night. shes 5. i use 1% cortisone when it s intense but sporadically, i wouldnt repeat the appication 4 hrs later, should I?
i also mositerise her when she lets me - this is verytricky.
tia

Can you recommend anything to boost my son's immune system? He's two-and-a-half and has just had one illness after another this winter (chicken pox, coughs and colds, rash caused by 'a virus', and currently bronchitis I think). He's coping with a lot as he's recently dropped his daytime nap so is often tired, and has a new baby sister (and started nursery last autumn). He has a pretty good diet with lots of veg and fruit. Thanks in advance.

My totally breastfed daughter (16 weeks) keeps getting constipated on and off but I am constantly told this doesn't happen in breastfed babies - clearly it does ! The only solution I have been offered is to give her diluted fresh orange juice - would this not just negate all the efforts of breastfeeding? Are there any other solutions? Also, how long should I leave her - she's never gone longer than 5 days but seems quite distressed by then.

Just wondering what 7 things you would advise parents to include in the weekly diet for children under 7. Or, maybe, list 7 super foods for kids. Also, if I can add another one, what do you think of supplements for kids - multi vitamins and also Omega 3/ 6. would eating sardines on seeded bread once a week give them enough Omega 3?

I have a ds 2.3years old, he is a "good" eater. He eats a huge amount of food a day, but he has a very limited diet. He distrust any kind of hot or cooked foods and lives of wholemeal bread, fruit, weetabix, porridge, yoghurt's and about 500-600ml of milk per day. I'm in total panic that I'm raising a freaky eater and don't know how to get him to try other foods. Is there a practical way to broach this. I've been offering him the same food we eat everyday for 13 months now and he still refuses to try it up to a point of hysteria if you try to get him to just taste it. I suspect an incident at about 14 months when he burnt his mouth slightly on chicken has started this off as since then he has not touched any food prepared by me (except veggie muffins and the food mentioned). How long can I leave it before it will be seen as a problem and not just a fad?

Hi Dr Rob

I have a daughter of 2 yrs 9 months, she has never been a great eater, but is still happily going days without eating a full meal of any description.

I do try to give her 6 small meals a day so she does not get overfaced, but am wondering if this is how she will be for life now, a grazer, and if this is ok?

she is not underweight although she is petite. and does drink a decent amount of milk and likes fruit and veg

thank you

hi dr rob

my daughter is 2 and a half and is a very fussy eater!!
often doesnt have a full meal. prefers to snack on fruit and biscuits during the day!
she is small for her age and has always had problems gaining weight.she tends to only like certain foods, wont eat meat or veg but has plenty of fruit

My one year old has a diet that includes fish but no other meat. I'm concerned that he gets enough iron and other nutrients. He's not keen on lentils, although he will consume one tiny finger of bread (1cm x 2cm)with a thin spread of lentil mush. He likes fish and eats a chunk a day not much more than about 25g (I think about that). He eats some veg (mostly peas) and is still breast fed. Any suggestions? Are there nutritional concerns about babies not eating meat?

Hi Dr Rob,

Ds has a pretty good diet - proper breakfast (porridge or Cheerios), good quality cooked lunch at school, good dinner at home. He hates the texture of a lot of fruit so we struggle on that front but he will eat most veg. He also eats red meat a couple of times a week, and gets protein from dairy and lentils etc too. Carbs include Vogels bread and wholemeal pasta, plus brown rice. So I'd honestly say it's a pretty good diet.

My concern is the quantity he typically eats. He eats only as much as 4 year old dd, and is not a big snacker. He is small for his age (nearly nine but still in age 7 Gap and Boden clothes) and I am starting to get a bit concerned about this. He gets two long slots of PE at school, plus an after school tag rugby session, plus tennis and sometimes a swim at weekends, so his stamina is OK, but he's not really sporty tbh.

I know deep down I needn't worry - I'm only 5'2", his dad is 6', my dad is only 5'7", but is there any point in trying to stoke him up a bit to aid growth? He is slim but not thin. But dd is growing like Topsy and seems far more energetic than him...on the same diet.

Hi Dr Rob

My son is almost 2 and for at least the last 6 months has become a very fussy eater. He doesn't eat any protein (meat, fish, cheese) or any vegetables. He survives on toast, cereal and crackers. The only way he will eat fruit is if I make smoothies which I do. He is not underweight and has lots of energy. I am trying to stay relaxed about the whole thing having read a couple of books for advice but find it hard not to worry. Any advice or reassurance would be much appreciated. Thanks

I have a six month old who has been weaning since 18wks on baby rice and home made fruit/veg purees. I am now looking at baby porridge and cereal products but there seems to be a lot of sugar in them, sometimes as much as 30g per 100g. How much sugar is okay, I don't want to give her a sweet tooth or rot her teeth when they arrive?

rob, have you ever given your daughter a fruit shoot?

For Dr Rob Hicks. I have a very fussy 5 year old eater who will not touch vegetables at all, she will eat herbs and fruit which is a relief, but her diet is very unvaried. I cannot hide things in sauces or soups, she wont touch them and would rather go hungry (but ends up in tantrums when her blood sugar dips). I realize it is my accidental parenting of not being stricter when she moved from purees to finger food and was rejecting all foods as a toddler, but I dont know how to remedy the situation in a calm, relaxed and peaceful way now. Any suggestions you have would be incredibly helpful. Treats dont work, she would rather go without than touch something she doesnt want to even try (a very spirited strong willed girl). Ultralife do a fruit & veg drink (5 a day the easy way) which she happily drinks as it tastes nice (luckily the picture on the front only shows fruit) but obviously this way she isnt getting fibre. Help please! Jo

My daughter has them "calcium" white marks on her nails. But she drinks milk three or four times a day. She is on Cow & Gate formula. She is ten months. Plus I live abroad as an expat so any information will be helpful. thanx

Sorry I have another question. My husband has kerataconus. Is heriditary? In other word what are the chances my baby girl may have this ... sorry

Sorry I have another question. My husband has kerataconus. Is heriditary? In other word what are the chances my baby girl may have this ... sorry

Hi another food related question here. My daughter is just over 3 and does not like hot meals. I am lucky if I can get her to eat 2 "hot meals" a week. She is fine if I do her a cold platter, is this anything I should be concerned about or will she grow out of it?

Thanks

Hi Dr Rob, welcome to mumsnet

I have a question for you. What do you think about Cranial Osteopathy for babies? I ask because there is a HUGE amount of anecdotal evidence here on mn in favour of it, parents have really good results with anxious, colicy babies but they seem to only find their way to it through word of mouth. Would it be helpful if gp's or health visitors could refer babies for Cranial Osteopathy, in your opinion, and can you ever see that happening in the future?

Thanks

Carmenere

Dear Dr Rob

Please, please please can you help me with my 9 year old? She is overweight - may be verging on obese but since she won't let me weigh her I can't be certain.

I know all about what she should eat, but the problem is she won't. She was fine as a toddler but her food intake has gone from bad to worse. She will eat:

Bread and butter
bacon
Spaghetti with butter
Cream crackers
Yorkshire pudding
Fruit juices
some fruit
and of course all manner of anything sweet and bad for her.

I am at my wit's end, to the point of wondering if we could go anywhere where those things aren't available. I wonder if there's an underlying issue here - for example, she won't eat pizza because it has cheese on it, and yet, despite her protestations that she doesn't like cheese, she's never actually tried it. Anything new/different won't get tried, so there's no chance of putting her on a healthy diet. And if the above foods are witheld she'll hang out until she's starving and then fill up on bread.

Please can you give me some advice?