My father used to play with my brother and me in the yard. Mother would come out and say, ‘You are tearing up the grass.’ ‘We’re not raising grass,’ dad would reply. ‘We’re raising boys.’ Harmon Killebrew, former American baseball star, now a philanthropist Most mothers want their baby’s father involved in their child’s life right from conception. They…

Weaning can be a daunting task especially for a first time and busy mum. It may prove quite difficult for the baby to adapt to solid food because for the first four to six months of his life, he has been getting food continuously from one source — the breast. There are a number of…

The sight of blood-can be scary even to the strongest of us. Children too get scared of nose bleeding. The truth is most nose-bleeds are actually not as bad as they look, and a panicky child will only make the bleeding worse. Most nosebleeds occur in the front part of the nose and last only a few…

Most countries, Kenya included, have achieved the United Nations goal of reducing deaths from measles by 90 per cent between 2000 and 2010. The World Health Organization (WHO) attributes this to vigorous vaccination campaigns. However, experts fear that there might be a resurgence in deaths from measles if the vaccination efforts are not sustained, because…

It was a warm, sunny day-perfect for the outdoors. Pete went out to play soccer with his friends. In Pete’s neighbourhood, it was common to see young boys playing with no protective gear, and parents even thought that this would toughen them up. However, for Pete, that was no ordinary day and a few playful…

What is Omega-3? These are groups of fatty acids characterised by the presence of double-bonds in the alpha carbon chains. The two important groups are the Omega- 3 and Omega-6, due to the location of the double- bonds in the molecule. They then constitute the polyunsaturated fatty acids (pufa) Source They are not synthesised and…

When Cathy Karen was born, her father was optimistic he would buy her an insurance cover that would guarantee her good education. However, while Karen’s cover ended smoothly in 2010 after 25 years, her father feels itchy about advising anyone going for a similar product. Peter Odongo, the father, says when he bought the cover, not…

The disease is named for the characteristic sound of a whoop produced when affected individuals attempt to inhale; the whoop originates from the inflammation and swelling of the airways. Once the airways swell up, they become narrower than usual. As a result, the breathing becomes difficult, which causes the ‘whoop’ sound as you gasp for-breath after…