Worried About Your Child's Eating Habits?

rediffGURU Dr Deepa Suvarna, a paediatrician with over 25 years of experience, offers expert advice on how you can protect your child from common ailments and keep them healthy.

• Dr Suvarna will answer questions about your child's health HERE.

Is your child addicted to junk food?

Or regularly catching a cold?

Are you worried about your teen's menstrual health?

rediffGURU Dr Deepa Suvarna, a paediatrician, with 25 years of experience, offers expert advice on how you can protect your child from common ailments and keep them healthy.

• Dr Suvarna will answer questions about your child's health HERE.
  
  

Kapil: My kid is 10 years old and he is 5.2" and 59 kg.
Is this normal for 10 year old?
What can we do to reduce weight?

The weight is more than expected for his age.

His BMI falls in the overweight category.

He needs physical activity every day, plus restrictions on processed and fast food.

K: Jai Hind Madam. My daughter got her first menstrual cycle this year.
Will she gain height after her first period?
What changes she need to bring in her lifestyle to keep healthy and gain height?

There is a growth spurt around puberty which slows down after a girl's periods start.

An active lifestyle with aerobic exercises, swimming, cycling and sports can increase her final height by a couple of inches.

She needs to have a healthy diet with green leafy vegetables, eggs, meat and nuts; reduce processed foods or junk foods.

Ramachandra: My daughter is getting itching over her back and on her hands.
We have shown it to a skin specialist and he said that it is a food allergy.
But even after avoiding the foods there is itching please suggest some remedies

A good moisturiser after a bath and oral antihistaminic drugs may help.

Anonymous: Hi Dr Deepa, is painkiller Meftal safe for kids below 10 years of age for fever and pain relief?
The government has issued an alert on using the drug.

It should be avoided. Either paracetamol or, if not responding, then Ibuprofen can be used.

• You can post your questions for Dr Deepa Suvarna HERE

Dr Deepa Suvarna is a practising paediatrician with over 25 years of experience.
She completed her MD in pediatrics from Mumbai's TN Medical College and BYL Nair Hospital, MBBS from the King Edward Memorial Hospital and Seth Gordhandas Sunderdas Medical College.
She has a diploma in child health from the College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Disclaimer: All content and media herein is written and published online for informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice. It should not be relied on as your only source for advice.

Please always seek the guidance of your doctor or a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition. Do not ever disregard the advice of a medical professional, or delay in seeking it because of something you have read herein.

If you believe you may have a medical or mental health emergency, please call your doctor, go to the nearest hospital, or call emergency services or emergency helplines immediately. If you choose to rely on any information provided herein, you do so solely at your own risk.

Opinions expressed herein cannot necessarily provide advice to fit the exact specifics of the issues of the person requesting advice.