Sample Room Purchase: CalChews

I’ve heard of Calchews in television commercial for many times already and though I find this product interesting, I did not pay much attention until I found it was offered for FREE in Sample room.

I am not a milk person so I just get my calcium needs from other sources like cheese products, seafood and etc. I do drink milk, but not regularly. At my age, I know how important it is to get a steady source of calcium since it is at mid to late 20’s that the bones are already beginning to show signs of aging. I don’t want to develop osteoporosis or other calcium deficiency related diseases now and even when I get older that is why I already have to increase my calcium intake.

There are also some people who do not drink milk, not because they do not like it, rather because they cannot tolerate it. Lactose intolerance most commonly occurs in infants and children, but there are also cases of lactose intolerance in adults (best example: My older sisterJ) and I guess Calchews can be a good alternative as a calcium source.

So far, this is the only calcium supplement that comes in a chewable form I have ever heard of. Eating a chewy bar of Calchews is just like eating a delicious candy. You cannot discern that it’s a supplement because there really is not a medicine-like taste or after taste. I can eat all the all the 15 chews inside the box in one seating, but of course, I can’t, as I might get hypercalcemia. One chew, which is about the size of regular candies we can buy from stores, is already enough as a source of your daily calcium needs.

Aside from calcium, Calchews also contains:

1.    Vitamin K

This vitamin prevents the occurrence of calcium deposits in the heart minimizing the occurrence of heart diseases.

Pregnant moms, nursing mothers and those who are in the anticoagulant therapy (those who are taking blood thinning meds like aspirin) should never source out their calcium from Calchews because of this content. Vitamin K thins the blood, so it can be potentially dangerous. Babies also have greater risk of developing jaundice (yellowish discoloration of the skin in newborns) when moms have higher intake of Vitamin K. If you belong to the populations above and want to take Calchews, it’s much better to consult your doctor first.

2.    Vitamin D

Calcium is better absorbed in the body with the help of vitamin D. Our body is body is a

natural source of vitamin D, so aside from getting vitamin D in supplements; it can get activated with the help of the sunshine especially in the morning.

Calchews is available in 2 flavors, Caramel and chocolate, and I personally prefer the caramel calciumJ. One box which costs around php180 contains 15 soft chews, so the cost is around php12 per piece. Not bad, though this price may be slightly higher than other calcium supplements (in capsule or tablet form) in drugstores. But the good thing about this is, you can enjoy chewing, while getting the benefit of calcium from it.

Attention Moms !!!:Manage your Babies Skin Asthma ASAP

 

Skin discoloration in the Tummy area due to Skin Asthma

In any way I look at it, I can really say that pregnancy and motherhood as a whole is life changing. It will change your priorities, your outlook in life, your decision making process. It will modify how you look at yourself and how you look at life…it will change you as a person! It will change you forever, for the better.

Pregnancy is a time wherein a woman is given the chance to better take care of herself, not because there are a lot of discomforts which could be felt during this time, rather it is because there is already another human being developing inside her womb, who is totally dependent on her for its continued existence. A baby is best protected if it’s still inside the mom’s womb, but once it comes out, mom’s cannot anymore offer the same protection the baby gets when it’s still in the protective environment inside. No matter how a mom takes care of her body, there will always be some unexpected things that could happen, beyond her control. Therefore, it is still best to be informed so that she will not be caught unprepared and so that she can manage her expectations.

One of the difficult things I have to deal with is when my second child developed skin asthma. I can say that it’s difficult to deal with since we already consulted his doctor so many times for his meds, we already changed his infant formula, we changed his detergent, we used purified water for his bath, we had him take meds, we already put a lot of creams on his skin, but still it did not lessen his symptoms plus he is only more than one month then. I can see him get irritated and wake up from sleep scratching his eyes, rubbing his cheeks, because it might be very itchy and that hurts me as a mom!

It may not look serious at first, but then don’t wait for things to get serious. Atopic dermatitis, most commonly known as skin asthma occurs when someone becomes hypersensitive to ANY irritant. Its occurrence can be triggered by anything, like in the case of Matthew; he gets rashes whenever his skin (particularly in the chin, neck and face) comes in contact with his saliva. Since the irritant can be anything, a mom or the primary care giver of the child should be watchful in order to know the triggering factors of skin asthma specific to the child so that measures can be done as early as possible to avoid it.

Prevention is always better than cure, but conditions like skin asthma cannot really be prevented especially if you do not have enough knowledge about it. So what are the things which serve as indication skin asthma/atopic dermatitis? Here are some of the things that you should watch out for:

 

1.   Seborrhoeic dermatitis or cradle cap – characterized by white or yellowish flaky and greasy scales in the scalp, also in the face, neck, ears and even in the diaper area. According to studies, around 10 percent of infants who are less than one month old have Seborrhoeic dermatitis. This condition can be resolve in a few weeks to months even without medical intervention, but if it persists and continues to get worse, it can also lead to the development of atopic dermatitis and that’s the time that you already have to call your doctor.

2.   Cluster of reddened and itchy rashes which can usually be found in face but also in the neck, ears, palm of the hand and other parts of the body. The baby would usually rub their mittens to their cheeks or eyes because of itchiness and itchiness tend to become more intense during the night.

3.    Itchiness and dryness in the skin creases. I particularly observed this in my son’s wrist, back of his elbows and back of his knees.

4.   In the case of my son, eyelid dermatitis coexists with atopic dermatitis. Whenever the rashes become worse, his eyes become watery and I can also see some very obvious clusters of red, inflamed and itchy rashes in his eyelids.

One of worst effect of atopic dermatitis to my son can be seen on his skin…until now thought it’s already getting better. His atopic dermatitis did not subside until he was 4 months and during those times, I observed that his skin in the legs starts to discolor. His skin becomes uneven and I can see some white patches all over. I did mind about it at first, but when I observed that the skin in torso is also becoming uneven, I was alarmed and of course got worried. Even if we already controlled his rashes and inflammation, the skin discoloration remained. I was afraid that it might turn into vitiligo, but our allergist assured me that it will go away in 2-3 months. Six months after his skin asthma was controlled, the skin discoloration in his tummy area is still there, but it also shows some improvement as the skin becomes more even and there are no more new white patches.

As moms, we should always be “all-eyes” on our children, especially if they are sick, ‘cause moms know best! That’s proven…

Stay happy mom-e!s…

Angry Birds Craze

My sons Matt and Jeru and their favorite Angry Birds

My two sons, one ten month old and one 3 years old likes...no not just like, rather loves +Angry Birds so much. I can't remember anymore how it all started and  I  am not really sure what is with Angry birds that they get to like it so much, but every time they play the game, or even just watch the videos or take a look at the pictures of angry birds, they get mesmerized. You can leave them, especially my 3 year old son for many hours, without looking for milk just by playing angry birds.

As a mom, I am also concerned about the bad effects of this to them. My first concern is with their eyesight, this is in particular with my first son, since he's the one who plays a lot. He would just take a look at the computer /tab at a longer times and who knows what the long term effect of this to him . At first, I just let him play as much as he can, but hen I realized that was wrong. I know I still have to be in control of the situation even though he get tantrums every time I ask him to stop playing. Electronic games also discourages the child from having physical activities. They just tend to sit and let their hand, and even their mind work ( they also need to have strategies for them to get to the next level). As we all know, lack of physical activities can also be a health risk since it can lead to many health problems likes obesity. Another issue that I can see is that, being addicted to electronic games may affect their studies. My son will enroll in his kindergarten this coming June and have worries that I might find it difficult for him to get study habits. I know that at his age, play should be his main activity, that's why I am still giving him now all the time in the world to play. We also study at times, but I can't say that we do it regularly. 

But even though I have lots of worries about my son liking angry birds so much and playing their electronic games, I still support him fully for his angry birds craze. In fact, on his birthday which was held February 16, 2014, it was an angry birds themed party just like when he was 2 years old. I just can't resist my son, seeing him so happy with whatever Angry birds item I give him, may it be expensive or cheap.

This was Jeru's (my fist son) birthday invitation during his 2nd Birthday. I got this free invitation template from the internet

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I got this template from angrybirds.365.com. I have downloaded the images and just customized the content.

To make it a "real" angry birds party, we made everything angry birds including his balloons. We made a DIY angry birds balloons using the template we got from this site.

We also had our shirts printed with angry birds.

Party bags, game prices and back draft are all angry birds too!

 On his third birthday, Jeru already has a favorite bird: The red bird, which is why we make his invitation in red. I got the image by searching the web again, but this time, I already had to make the additional design. It may not be the best invitation in the world, but upon seeing that my son is so delighted about it, I am already satisfied with my work.

Jeru's 3rd Birthday Party Invitation

 His cake is also a Red bird. We ordered the cake in one of the best local bakeshop in Iloilo (Tinapayan). It's chocolate flavored and it tasted good. The kids and even the older ones who attended his party liked it.

 

The Red Birds cake

We ordered the square one which cost php 650, but they also have the circle shaped which costs php 500. (the frosting at the side was however damaged slightly since we need to travel from the city to our house).

Someone (tita Anj) has to carry him so he can finally blow his candle :)

Jeru blowing his birthday candle

 Since it was also Matt's baptism, we also ordered him an angry bird cake, but it was the Blue bird cake.

The Blue bird cake

  This blue bird cake is mocha flavor and I guess I prefer this taste better than the chocolate.

I have lots of concern about my son getting hooked to angry birds so much, but then again I can also see some of positive things this addiction has bought to him:

1. He was able to recognize colors better because of Angry birds. I guess as early as one year and 8 month, he can already distinguish colors because he always play angry birds. 

2. You can make him do anything (eating nutritious foods, making him draw shapes, study alphabet and numbers, behave well), by just bribing him with any angry birds items. ;)

It's really hard to say no to kids, because you I love them so much, but then again...we need to know the limits.

Stay happy mom-!es