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Nine tips from doctors for parents of toddlers

News Desk (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Sat, November 11, 2017

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Nine tips from doctors for parents of toddlers New research suggests intervening early can at least boost the words at-risk tots hear, and maybe influence some school-readiness factors. (Shutterstock/File)

P

arents have always been hard on themselves and their babies, but they should always remember that this approach may not be the best.

After interviewing several doctors, Parents.com has compiled nine tips that parents can use to take care of their toddlers:

Don’t complicate your child’s diet

Parents may want to make their child eat set amounts of greens or proteins. Parents may even limit their child’s diet because of the child’s weight, but as long as parents are giving the child a good amount of fruit and vegetables and a moderate amount of everything else, the child is likely eat everything on the plate.

They must use the potty independently

Babies are not the fastest learners, but parents may be worried when their child stops wearing his or her diaper.  

Author of Toddler 411, Dr. Ari Brown, said that your child will take his or her time, up to the age of four. Parents just need to teach them that their constant urges mean that they need to go to the toilet.

Read also: Parenting in the era when the millennials rule

Let them be somewhat free

A child wants freedom; a parent wants safety. So a good parent must give them that, right? Well, only a little bit.

A parent should give a little freedom for their child but also learn to compromise. Dr. Gwenn Schurgin O'Keeffe says, ”So for dinner, offer up turkey or pasta--and let her decide which one to have. This way, she feels like she has some say in what she's eating, but you're still making sure she's getting something healthy for dinner.”

Praise them when they do well

Parents discipline their children when they are naughty, but most of them usually ignore them when they do something good.

Spend some time to praise a child when they do positive activities. This will increase the chance the child will keep doing activities similar to that again.

Check their teeth

Parents may be very strict with kids about brushing their teeth. Their strictness is warranted. Baby teeth keep the place of adult teeth, which is an important role in the child’s development.

Parents should also be wary of cavities and of when a tooth is starting to get loose. 

Regulate their sleep

Toddlers sleep on their own, but it is important for parents to create a nap schedule for their child.

The toddler’s nap should be around 30 minutes; this could be after a bath or telling a story, which makes the child sleepier.

Read also: Parenting is never easy and this is what I've learned so far

Ignore them during tantrums

If the child is in a safe environment and is having a tantrum, parents should ignore their child. Why? The child is safe and is probably searching for attention.

When children don’t get attention, they will quickly be quiet or be distracted by a toy or game nearby.

Talk to them

Parents want their child to have a wide breadth of vocabulary and a faster rate of speech development than the average child, so the simplest way to make the child gain both of those skills is to have the parent speak to them.

When the parent and the child start to communicate, the parent is also familiarizing their child with words and sentences. Parents should try pointing out things when they are out on the road as well.

Relax

“Trust your parental instincts,” Dr. Heather Lubell says. There are two key skills every parents should already have: instinct and love for their child. Parents should stick with what they feel is right and ignore what they feel is wrong. It is really that simple.

And when the parents are the ones frustrated and cranky, they should put their child in a safe place, like the child’s crib, and go to a quiet room to cool off. (ezr/kes)

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