The human body goes through various physical, emotional, and hormonal changes, especially during puberty. It is the stage when children’s bodies experience several changes to become adult bodies, enabling the individual to reproduce sexually.
Bodily changes experienced by teenage girls are usually quite challenging and make them uncomfortable too. So, it becomes important for parents to educate them about puberty. Here are some measures that should be followed by your child during puberty.
5 Healthcare Habits To Follow
Menstrual Hygiene
It is important to inform your child about menstrual hygiene to maintain vaginal health and prevent the diseases related to it. Changing menstrual products every four to six hours, not using soap on the vagina, learning the right washing techniques, etc are part of maintaining menstrual hygiene. Click here to learn about menstrual hygiene.
Physical Changes
Teenage girls witness several physical changes, which may even be embarrassing for them. It becomes crucial to teach her about these changes and how to handle them. It is even better to discuss puberty with your daughter before they enter that stage to avoid body image issues. It can be frustrating for girls to deal with acne during their adolescence. If they have painful acne on the face, neck, or chest, see a dermatologist who can analyse their skin and recommend a treatment plan based on their skin type.
Also Read: Precocious Puberty: Symptoms, Types, Causes, And Complications, Expert Explains
Exercise
Exercise helps you stay active, strengthen your body, improve concentration and sleep, and keep your hormone levels in check. You can even engage your child in fun physical activities like dance, swimming, and cycling. Regular exercise encourages the brain to create endorphins, which are believed to improve mood.
Healthy Diet
A healthy diet is important to provide your body with essential nutrients and minerals, especially in your growing years. You should include foods rich in protein, fibre, vitamins, minerals, fats, and carbohydrates. During puberty, the body needs more iron to maintain normal growth and compensate for blood loss. Therefore, include iron-rich foods like nuts, leafy greens, beans, cereals, etc. If you plan to follow a diet, you should contact an expert to understand your body and the foods that are best for you.
Also Read: Parenting Tips To Raise A Teenager
Sleep
Most teenagers are addicted to electronic devices and binge-watching, which disrupts their sleep cycle. It is essential to get enough sleep to support brain development and overall body growth. During puberty, girls can experience some emotional changes, and not getting enough sleep can also affect their mood. In addition, PMS can be challenging, and sleep plays a significant role in dealing with it. In addition, if she doesn't get enough sleep, there will be no motivation to learn and remember things as quickly. According to the National Library Of Medicine, sleep disturbances are linked to worsening physical health and cognitive and psychological functioning impairments.
Takeaway
You should conduct regular checkups of your daughter for early diagnosis of health conditions like PCOS or PCOD. Rapid changes in breast size, painful periods, bloating, a sharp increase or decrease in body weight, skin discolouration, etc, can all be signs of diseases that should be investigated sooner rather than later to treat them when they are still treatable.
