Dr Nivedita Kapoor -Newborn & Child Specialist.Care Clinic.Pediatrician

Today's children are growing up with screens at their fingertips. They have never had to live without smart phones, tablets or the internet. But studies show that too much screen time can have a negative impact on children's health. Their brains can actually change, according to The American Academy of Pediatrics. Negative impacts of too much screen time on child health: OBESITY: When children are inactive, staring at their screens, they are not burning calories. This sedentary lifestyle can cause them to gain weight and acquire diseases like diabetes and hypertension at early age.  SLEEP DISTURBANCES: Looking at screens before bed can disrupt sleep cycle and therefore cause irritability and mood disturbances, also poor concentration span and poor learning abilities. Academic performance also suffers.  BULLYING AND BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS: especially in adolescents leading to more aggressiveness, combativeness and increase in suicide and hom...

It's not always easy to encourage your children to eat a balanced diet. Here are ten tips for helping them to develop healthy habits at a young age . 10. Eat breakfast Eating breakfast, even if it’s just a banana and a glass of milk, kick-starts the body and makes it easier to maintain lasting energy throughout the day. If you can get your kids to establish the habit of eating a good breakfast at a young age, it should stay with them as they get older. 9. Choose healthier snacks It’s easy to reach for chips or biscuits when you and your children feel like nibbling on something, but these snacks tend to be low in nutrients and high in calories.  Instead, try to keep your cupboards stocked with healthier snacks such as fruit, air-popped popcorn, unsalted nuts and unsweetened yoghurt. 8. Drink water Make water the drink of choice at meal times, and keep juice and sweet drinks as occasional treats. While juice has valuable nutrients and gives a c...