Health

In a thought-provoking piece for The New York Times, columnist KJ Dell’Antonia wonders what effect her and her partner’s choice to move to the countryside may have had on their children’s independence. She quotes Dr. Richard Jackson, a professor of environmental health sciences at the University of California: “Children who grow up in suburbia can’t meet their life needs without getting a ride somewhere.” For many expat families living in Beijing, this sentiment is likely to hit home. 

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Protecting and maintaining children’s health and well-being is the number one priority on every parent’s list. Childhood immunization is one weapon that helps prevent our children from getting devastating diseases like meningitis, pneumonia and polio. However, navigating the immunization process while living in another country or moving between countries can seem like a daunting process.

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In Beijing, we discuss food safety with the zeal of hardened sports fans. Every week seems to bring some fresh scandal about the things we eat and the products we use. But what about the dangers that lurk in our homes? One of the biggest culprits is the kitchen. For example, did you know that kitchen sinks are dirtier than public bathrooms? With that in mind, here’s how to thwart eight common food-borne illnesses.   

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Numerous times in the last four years that we’ve lived here, questions about the authenticity of jug bottled water has been a topic of debate. Those of us expats with water coolers in our homes – most of us -- generally use the reliable Nestle or Watson’s brands of water. Occasionally, a person might question the taste of the water, or simply the look of the bottle that has been delivered. Is it real? Is it fake? What are we really drinking?

Because we’ve had no problems or concerns in our household, I haven’t really been too concerned with proving that what we have is real. That is, until I saw the water bottles pictured above behind our neighborhood Jenny Wang’s. My head wanted to justify what these were all doing there, but I couldn’t come up with anything. So I started to go back to those information posts I had previously ignored. I wanted to know.

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As a nutritionist, one of the questions I get asked the most around this time of year is how to lose those few extra pounds (or, in some cases, kilograms) put on over the holidays. And this year, as with every year, the perpetual discussion about fad diets and quick weight loss programs is back in full force. Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve had friends ask me about the cabbage soup diet, the South Beach diet, the HCG diet, and the Hollywood diet. Some of these are simply strange and unsustainable – no one can (or should) eat just cabbage soup for any prolonged period of time – while others, like the HCG (Human Chorionic Gonadotropin hormone) diet are unproven and even quite possibly dangerous.

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Holiday travels peak during festive periods. With the Lunar New Year around the corner, overseas assignees are making their way back to their hometowns to celebrate with their families while leisure travelers are departing for their holiday destinations. Some are also taking advantage of the long holiday to catch up with their loved ones based overseas. With so many travelers on the road, there is an increased chance that plans, schedules, and travels can go awry. 

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New parents know that feelings of intense isolation can emerge when they bring home that “tiny, needy, crying, confusing” baby. Add a set of powerful language and cultural barriers, and that isolation can seem even more daunting. The good news is, the Internet can help. According to a research study led by a new father, blogging can help overcome those parenting blues.

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Slate is on fire this month! Hot on the heels of a feature about C-sections, the magazine published a story called “The truth about epidurals” last Wednesday. Author Melinda Wenner Moyer says that women face a slew of conflicting statements when it comes to epidurals. On one hand, the injections contribute to “the over-medicalization of motherhood.” On the other, pregnant women must face the prospect of squeezing “a head the size of a grapefruit through [their] much-smaller-than-a-grapefruit-sized vagina.” What’s a smart, informed, and totally not panicked future mom to do?

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In a Slate article called “Cesarean Nation: Why do nearly half of Chinese women deliver babies via C-section?”, author and journalist Mara Hvistendahl looks at the reasons behind China’s skyrocketing cesarean rates. Between 2007 and 2008, a whopping 46 percent of Chinese babies were born via C-section – the highest documented rate in the world. This number is three times higher than the World Health Organization’s recommended 15 percent threshold.

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