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Immune Health
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Immune Health
A child’s immune health can vary. Even with the best nutrition and healthiest home life, things like environmental factors, illnesses, and stress can impact the body and cause illnesses and chronic conditions. At Wellness Pediatrics in Birmingham, MI, Dr. Suhad Yaldo looks at the whole body in making diagnoses and delivering treatment.
Alopecia
People who suffer with hair loss often develop the problem in childhood or adolescence. Pediatric alopecia can be caused by a contagious fungal infection on the scalp, an immune system problem that attacks the hair follicles, anxious hair pulling, extreme stress, nutritional deficiency, hypothyroidism, or non-medical reasons like pulling the hair too tightly.
Asthma
Most children who have asthma will develop symptoms by age 5. This serious, chronic lung disease causes a child’s airways to become sensitive to certain triggers and narrow, making it difficult for them to breathe. Asthma is often thought to be hereditary, but it can also be influenced by the child’s environment and infections they develop.
Autoimmune Disease
Autoimmune diseases in kids are rare, but when it seems like the body is attacking itself and other conditions have been ruled out, an autoimmune problem may remain. A malfunctioning immune system can attack nearly any part of the body but typically fall into organ-specific disorders (type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease) or non-organ-specific disorders (lupus, scleroderma, juvenile idiopathic arthritis).
Celiac Disease
A child who has negative digestive reactions to foods like cereal, bread, or pizza may be diagnosed with a gluten intolerance or celiac disease. Gluten is found in grains like wheat, rye, and barley, which are in many everyday foods. When someone cannot tolerate gluten, their body is unable to absorb the vitamins and nutrients from food.
Food Allergies
When your child has a bad immune reaction to a certain food – meaning they develop hives, have trouble breathing, suffer stomach pains, or experience vomiting or diarrhea – they likely have a food allergy. Common foods to which kids are allergic include peanuts, tree nuts milk, eggs, wheat, fish, shellfish, and soy.
Food Sensitivities
Food sensitivities or intolerances may be diagnosed when a child has difficulty digesting certain foods or has an unpleasant reaction to eating them (nausea, bloating, stomach pain, headaches, skin rash, and more). The digestive system is to blame, though symptoms can mimic food allergies.
Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis
Joint swelling, inflammation, and stiffness that affects one or more joints in a child may be diagnosed as juvenile idiopathic arthritis. The causes of this condition are largely unknown, but it is suspected that genetics could play a part as well as environmental factors or infections that affect the immune system.
Psoriasis
This chronic patchy skin condition commonly begins in the teen years, but younger children can develop psoriasis which can make the skin dry, crack, bleed, and itch. A bacterial infection may trigger psoriasis for the first time, as well as obesity, certain medications, weather, sunburn, and high stress levels.
Recurrent Ear and Respiratory Infectionsis
Persistent ear infections are caused by a build-up of fluid in the inner ear. Respiratory infections are more complicated and could be caused by airway problems, nasal polyps, deviated nasal septum, pollen, lack of sleep, and more.
Seasonal Allergies
Seasonal allergies can masquerade as a common cold, but they also have telltale signs besides a stuffy, runny nose and sneezing. Allergies in kids can present with itchy eyes and nose, a cough, sore throat, and even dark circles under the eyes.
Visit Your Pediatrician in Birmingham, MI
If you have concerns about your child’s immune system or any other health problems, contact Wellness Pediatrics in Birmingham, Michigan to schedule an appointment.
