{"id":1173,"date":"2011-03-20T18:06:00","date_gmt":"2011-03-21T01:06:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dev.mainelyseo.com\/cdi-upgrade\/parenting_today\/?p=1173"},"modified":"2019-07-23T16:59:06","modified_gmt":"2019-07-23T23:59:06","slug":"adolescent-health-visit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/childdevelopmentinfo.com\/child-health-news\/adolescent-health-visit\/","title":{"rendered":"Adolescent Health Visit"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"This fall thousands of adolescents and young adults are starting middle school, high school and college.\u00a0 Before they start school, they should visit their Pediatrician or Family Practice provider.\u00a0 Adolescents go through physical and emotional changes that can be distressing to them and their parents.\u00a0 Many times adolescents are afraid or embarrassed to ask their parents questions about these sensitive issues like pubertal changes and sex.\u00a0 I encourage the parents to speak to their children about these issues but the reality is that most parents are not sure how to even start the conversations.\u00a0 Unfortunately most teens get their information and misinformation from their friends and the Internet.\u00a0 There are many studies that show that if parents are more actively involved with their teens there would be less likelihood of drug use, high-risk sex, and pregnancy.\u00a0 As parents our children look to us for guidance and even though they appear to not listen, they really are paying attention.<\/p>\n

To make your visit to your Pediatrician or Family Practice provider as productive as possible, we recommend that the parents and the teen write down all the questions they have before the visit.\u00a0 In addition, we have the parents step outside for a few minutes so that the teen can have some privacy to ask questions they may feel uncomfortable asking in front of their parents.\u00a0 We tell the parents and the teens that the questions brought up are private and will not be shared with the parents.\u00a0 This helps build trust with our teens and gives them a chance to open up.\u00a0 Most of the time parents respect this rule but occasionally they ask what we discussed in private but we have to decline.\u00a0 When appropriate we discuss issues such as sex, abstinence, sexually transmitted diseases, STD prevention, and birth control.\u00a0 A useful tool that parents can use to start the discussion is a DVD <\/a>on sexuality.\u00a0 In addition to these issues, we discuss topics such as school, study habits, and future plans.\u00a0 We are surprised that many teens just \u201cgo through the motions\u201d of school and really don\u2019t know what they want for their futures.\u00a0 Most of the Pediatricians in our office encourage the parents to discuss these issues with their children.\u00a0 One book that I recommend to parents of teens is Your Adolescent<\/a>.\u00a0 It is written in a simple straight-forward manner and offers great advice.\u00a0 I have noticed that parents who are actively involved in their children\u2019s academics often have high achieving students regardless of their economic status.<\/p>\n

Recently there are new vaccine recommendations outside the routine Tetanus booster.\u00a0 Immunization is the single most important method of preventing disease today.\u00a0 Now we have vaccines that can prevent cancer in women as long as they are vaccinated early enough in life.\u00a0\u00a0 Today\u2019s vaccines have been extensively tested for safety and efficacy.\u00a0 Pseudo-science advocates have perpetuated many of the concerns like autism; research has shown no link, in fact studies are pointing to a genetic link for the cause of autism.\u00a0 Teens and young adults frequently miss their annual physical exams because for the most part they are very healthy.\u00a0 But this is an important time to discuss important developmental changes with their physician such as sexual behaviors, drug experimentation, and physiologic changes in the body.\u00a0 Vaccines are often overlooked because these important visits are missed.<\/p>\n

Before visiting your Pediatrician or Family physician, make sure your child are up to date with the following vaccines:<\/p>\n