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Well-Child Visits and Your Children's Health

Most parents understand the importance of well-child visits to the pediatrician. Well-child visits allow a doctor to monitor your child's growth, ensuring that your child's progress is as it should be with respect to physical and intellectual development. Any deficits that are caught can be managed to limit long-term effects. These visits are also important for keeping children up-to-date with their vaccinations. The routine immunization of children has spared countless children from debilitating diseases such as polio, smallpox, and rubella, to name a few.

Examples of conditions that can be picked up by a routine examination of children are autism and celiac disease. Most children with autism are diagnosed by three years of age. Autistic children's behavior varies widely. Some children appear withdrawn and aloof, while others engage in self-injuring behavior such as head-banging or hand-biting. Other children may be aggressive, hyperactive, or display attention deficits. Early diagnosis and intervention may help to improve the social abilities of a child with autism.

While autism affects a child's behavior, a condition such as celiac disease affects a child's physical growth. Celiac disease is often diagnosed following an assessment of a child's growth curve. A child that shows a sudden drop in growth rate may be suffering from malnutrition. Celiac disease is intolerance to gluten, a protein found in wheat products. Children with celiac disease, who continue to eat foods with gluten, will not be able to absorb enough nutrients to grow normally. Once diagnosed, treatment with a gluten free diet can restore normal growth in your child.