Welcome to the penultimate Hubbub for 2003. Almost Christmas!!! We would like to thank all 2,500 of you who visited us at the Parents Babies and Children’s Expos and subscribed to this enewsletter. We congratulate all our winners and in particular Nina Barrie who won the six nights at Couran Cove. Scroll to the footer of the newsletter to view all the winners. We hope you continue to find our Hubbub’s a useful publication each month.
 
This year we will once again be having a Christmas Hamper to thank our subscribers for their support and feedback! We have invited businesses to provide prizes with a minimum value of $40. Winners will be drawn at random from our list of subscribers. We expect a prize pool of more than $2,000 and you are already entered! Look out for the Christmas Hamper details in mid November in the 'Prize Draws & Special Offers' section of the site.
 
From now on, all Bub Hub advertisers will have an symbol at the start of their listing which identifies them as a Bub Hub advertiser. The symbol is a direct link to that company's 'profile' which provides more information about their products and services. There is a new complete Index of Advertisers in the ‘Product Search’ section of the site. We encourage all our viewers to support the ‘A’ team when they can and we welcome new and renewing advertisers since 1 August who are detailed further on in this newsletter.
 
This month our features are:
 
Maternity Leave
 
How Toys Aid Development from Early Learning World;
 
Chiropractors, Babies & Colic Relief

Are you happy with your maternity leave arrangements?. Did you have to return to work earlier than you wanted because you just couldn’t afford to live without your salary?
 
These are contentious issues that are a regular political battlefield. The recent introduction of the Baby Bonus (see our July 2003 Newsletter for more info) has gone some way to providing new parents with income in lieu of salary, but many are finding it not enough.
 
So just what are you entitled to?
There is currently no statutory obligation for employers to offer paid maternity leave. You do, however, have the right to take upto a year of unpaid ‘parental’ leave where your employer must keep your original job open for you to return to, providing you have worked for your employer for at least 12 months continuously before the birth due date. This leave may be taken by either the mother or the father, providing they are the primary carer of the child. (ie only one parent is entitled to ‘parental leave’ at any one time).

Your employer may ask for proof of pregnancy – your GP or obstetrician will be able to supply suitable certification for this purpose. You must also advise your employer of your requirement for maternity leave at least 10 weeks before your due date and discuss your intentions for your leave arrangements at that time.
 
In Australia, just 34 per cent of workplaces offer paid maternity leave and the type of leave offered seems to vary widely from employer to employer both in terms of the level of pay and the length of leave allowed. If your employer doesn’t have a paid maternity leave policy – particularly common in small or new businesses - be proactive in helping set a reasonable policy up. The Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency has some useful statistics and case studies available on their website. These may assist in presenting, or agreeing, a leave policy with your employer.

In the lead up to Christmas we thought it was worth highlighting the important developmental benefits of toys. We have asked
Early Learning World for a brief outline of options. Visit your local ‘Where to buy Toys’ page for more information.

How your child can develop by having good toys
Play is one of the major ways that a young child learns. Through play, children discover and practice the physical, mental, social and language skills they will need to become independent beings.
 
Parents should never underestimate the importance of the early years. The first five years of a child's life are the formative years. During this time a young child is like a sponge for information, given the right input. Approximately 85% of the child's brain connections are being made in the formative years. Stimulation to these brain connections are crucial to a child's learning as it provides the thinking foundation for all later intellectual development.

Here are a few classic toys considered by Early Learning World to be the best developmentally for these age groups and an idea of how much you would expect to pay.
 
Take-along arch for the pram  newborn – 10 mths  $33.95
Babies first mirror  2 – 10 mths  $28.95
Skwish elasticized rattle  4 – 12 mths  $37.95
Rainbow activity stacking tower  4 – 24 mths  $32.95
Hit a ball   12 mths  $29.95
Noahs Ark sound shape sorter  12 – 24 mths  $39.95
Bead frame  12 – 24 mths  from $22.00
Wooden velcro cutting Veggies  12 – 36 mths  $34.95
Humpty Dumpty learning blocks  2 – 4 years  $43.95
 
It makes sense, both economically and developmentally, to buy the right toy at the right time. A safe, durable multi-purpose toy bought at the beginning of a development stage is much higher in play value than a single-function toy that may be played with for a limited time and then ignored, which is often the case of licensed or fad products.
 
As your child gets older and may be influenced by TV, they would possibly have their own ideas of what they want, or possibly peer group communication has suggested what they might need.
 
In conclusion, it is not the toy, but the way the child interacts with it that decides if the toy is a success. Parents can now select toys that will meet the unique development needs of their children. Be guided by trained staff in a quality toy store and don't be influenced by packaging, brands or licensed products.

Colic is a disturbing condition for both infants and parents, resulting in persistent crying and sleeplessness for all. Paediatric Chiropractors have had great success in treating colic, as well as other conditions including breastfeeding problems, constipation and asthma. We've asked two Chiropractors to tell us more…

Why should I take my baby to a Chiropractor?
Chiropractic is a conservative and natural healing art and science that concentrates on keeping people well. Chiropractors attempt to get to the root cause of a health problem rather than just treat the symptoms. The primary focus of chiropractic is the correction of spinal misalignments and nervous system dysfunction.
 
A Chiropractor should examine your child during that all-important first year of life when spinal trauma can occur during birth as well as from tumbles when learning to sit up or walk. Improper lifting and carrying your child can also contribute to spinal stress. Your child’s spine grows almost 50% in length during that first year. It’s

this kind of tremendous growth and developmental change, which makes a complete chiropractic examination so important in the early stages of your child’s life.
 
The goal of the chiropractor is to help allow the body to best function and repair itself. Signs to watch for include postural signals such as:

• Tilting the head
• Neck sensitivity
• Inability to lie on their back or side
• Difficulty in breast-feeding or only preferring to feed from one breast
• Limited motion (perhaps with an arm or leg)
• Bent body position
• Unusual differences in one side of the body to the other
 
The Chiropractor will examine the child to identify poorly functioning joints of the spine (called subluxations.) A baby’s spine is very supple during the first few months of life, and the chiropractor applies only a slight pressure to make spinal adjustments. Under normal circumstances chiropractic adjustments are painless and will not hurt your child. Chiropractors have been providing safe and effective care for children for nearly 100 years.
 
Article provided by:
Dr Genevieve Dharamaraj - Cannon Hill Family Chiropractic Centre
location: Shop 6, 936 Wynnum Rd, Cannon Hill, Qld 4170
ph: (07) 3899 8840

Chiropractic Relief for Colic

In infants colic refers to uncontrollable, persistent crying combined with abdominal pain which appears to have no apparent cause. Often there is high-pitched crying and the baby may draw its knees up and arch its back and neck. Otherwise the infant seems healthy and puts on weight.   How can Chiropractic Help Although a specific cause for colic has not been found, research has associated infantile colic with poor spinal function. The poor functioning occurs because of physical stresses placed on the baby’s body during the

birth process. These stresses may cause subluxation of the baby’s spinal joints (areas of the spine that aren’t moving correctly), which in turn triggers changes in the nerves controlling the gastro-intestinal system, often resulting in pain and colic. The problems may be located in the neck, mid or lower back.   Correct of spinal stress and the reduction of interference with nerves can have a positive effect on baby’s with colic. A Danish University study found that chiropractic care was very safe, effective and worked quickly. As few as 3-4 chiropractic consultations over 2 weeks reduced most colic symptoms by 66%.

 
Extract from an article written by:
Dr Neil Davies - Kiro Kids
location: 28 Drummond St North, Ballarat, VIC 3350
ph: (03) 5331 8555
 
To locate a Chiropractor in your region (request a chiropractor with paediatric interest), contact the:

Chiropractors' Association of Australia
ph: Freecall 1800 075 003 (National Office)
website: www.chiropractors.asn.au
 
 

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Competition Winners Parents Babies & Childrens Expos Grand Prize - Nina Barrie Melbourne Expo • Major Prize - Alida Williams • BabyBuds - Maria Gonzalez • Baby Express - Bronwen Davenport • Milipod Enterprises - Heidi Ryan, Cristina Pase, Sharnie Clifford, Carolyn Bernat, Deanne Jenkins October Newsletter Pinky McKay Giveaway • 100 Ways to Calm the Crying Book - Liza Pengilly, Rowena O'Toole, Kim Chambers • Parenting by Heart Book - Deb Carroll, Judy Dolan • Parenting by Heart Book + $75 Infant Massage Course Voucher - Lu Forbes   Congratulations to all! Your prizes will be winging their way to you in the post shortly. For those of you who missed out, look out for our Christmas Hamper Draw in next month's newsletter!

 

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