Arbor Pediatrics provides high-quality, personalized medical care for infants, children, and adolescents in Southlake, TX.

Cold and flu season is here, but simple habits can help limit the spread of germs.

Encourage frequent handwashing, cover coughs and sneezes, clean high-touch surfaces, and keep children home when they are sick.

Adequate sleep, good hydration, and balanced meals also help support their overall health.

Annual flu vaccination is recommended for most children ages 6 months and older.

Contact Arbor to discuss vaccination or if your child develops concerning symptoms, has trouble breathing, shows signs of dehydration, or is getting worse instead of better.

Cooler weather is the perfect time for warm, comforting meals, and healthy does not have to mean complicated.

Try turkey and bean chili, chicken and vegetable soup, sheet-pan chicken with roasted sweet potatoes, or pumpkin oatmeal topped with apples and cinnamon. Frozen vegetables, canned beans, precut squash, and rotisserie chicken can make fall meals even easier on busy nights.

What is your family’s favorite fall recipe? Share it with us in the comments.

Turn your fall pumpkin into a fun, hands-on learning activity! 🎃

Try one or more of these ideas together:
• Predict how many seeds are inside, then count them
• Measure the pumpkin’s height and circumference
• See whether it sinks or floats
• Explore and describe the different textures
• Compare the sizes, shapes, colors, and weights of several pumpkins
• Use the pumpkin to bake muffins, bread, or another fall treat

Younger children can practice counting, sorting, and describing. Older children can record their predictions, measurements, and results.

A little curiosity can turn an ordinary pumpkin into a family science experiment, and a whole lot of fun.

Flu season is coming, and vaccination is one of the best ways to protect your family.

Children younger than 5, especially those under 2, and children with certain chronic medical conditions are at higher risk for serious complications from influenza.

The flu vaccine can reduce your child’s risk of getting sick and, importantly, reduce the risk of severe illness, hospitalization, and complications if they do get the flu. Fewer sick days can also mean fewer missed school and work days for the whole family.

And one myth worth clearing up: the flu shot cannot give you the flu. The injectable flu vaccine does not contain live influenza virus capable of causing flu illness.

Don’t wait until the flu is spreading through the classroom.

Ask about scheduling your family’s flu vaccines and help protect everyone before flu season gets into full swing.

Why do we ask so many questions about what your child can do?

Developmental screenings help us understand how your child is growing, learning, moving, communicating, and interacting with others.

These screenings are a routine part of pediatric care and help us recognize strengths while also identifying areas where a child may benefit from additional support. Finding developmental concerns early can help connect children with resources and services when they can make the biggest difference.

We encourage you to complete your child’s developmental screening before their well visit, and don’t hesitate to share any concerns you have. You know your child best.

Energy drinks may look like another flavored beverage, but they can contain large amounts of caffeine along with other stimulants.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that energy drinks should not be consumed by children or adolescents.

Too much caffeine can cause a racing or pounding heart, shakiness, headaches, stomach upset, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, and disrupted sleep. And that lost sleep can create a cycle: your teen is tired, reaches for more caffeine, sleeps poorly again, and needs another energy boost the next day.

Energy drinks can be especially concerning before or during sports. They are not the same as sports drinks and should not be used for hydration. Water is usually the best choice for routine activity.

Talk with your teen about what’s actually in their favorite energy drink.

When energy is running low, encourage the basics first: adequate sleep, regular meals, physical activity, and plenty of water.

If you think your teen is addicted to energy drinks, bring it up at their next visit so we can provide further education.