Children's Health Resources

Nutrition/Exercise/Movement

Parenting in Ottawa - Healthy Eating (+ School Lunch Tips!)

Feeding the kids healthy food can be a challenge; especially if they are picky eaters! Packing school lunches adds a whole other challenge. Ottawa Parenting has pulled together some great information & tips all in one place including:

 

  • Link to the new Canada’s Food Guide
  • Lunch box tips
  • Peanut free lunches
  • Info on food labels
  • Preparing food with your kids
  • Gardening with your kids
  • + other resources!

KidSport - Ottawa

KidSport™ is a grass roots Canadian non-profit organization that provides support to under-resourced children and youth 18 years of age and under across the country by removing financial barriers that prevent them from playing organized sport.

Check out what’s happening at the Ottawa chapter!

Ottawa Circus School

We LOVE that there’s a circus school right here in Ottawa!

“Recreational circus arts are a great way to stay active while having fun, meet new people and challenge your body and mind at your own rhythm, develop and express your creativity, build self-confidence, build strength and flexibility and feel good in your body. Most of all, circus arts are fun and when you find an activity that is fun, you will want to do it over and over.

Aerial silks, static trapeze, partner acrobatic lifts, juggling, hula hooping, unicycle, tight rope and tumbling are all part of our programming for adults and for children.”

Allergies and Me

Whether you struggle with a picky eater, food sensitivities or intolerance, or overall nutrition for your family, Allergies & Me has you covered!

Through events, consultations and lessons, Lori Preshing (registered holistic nutritionist), is on a mission to “Helping families find health in evolution of food choices, one meal at a time… one step at a time!”

Lori is an invaluable resource to families in the Ottawa area.

A Parent’s Guide to Swimming Pool Safety & Hygiene

As the government allows more indoor and outdoor swimming facilities to open up, it’s crucial to remind people about the importance of pool hygiene safety (especially during COVID-19)

Here is an in-depth guide on how kids can stay healthy and hygienic in and around swimming pools.

The guide covers important topics such as:

Basics of pool hygiene – how parents can help kids maintain good health and hygiene practices in and around the swimming pool.
Understanding and mitigating the risks of recreational water illnesses (RWIs) and other water-borne infections.
Important pool safety knowledge – understanding water safety signs, and helping kids recognise when it’s unsafe to swim or dive.
Other essential swimming and water safety advice and best practices for parents and their children.

Mental Health/Meditation/Mindfulness

MindMasters 2 (CHEO)

MindMasters 2 (MM2) is a mental health promotion resource that helps children to develop social and emotional skills through relaxation, positive thinking and mindfulness.

Peace Out Meditation Podcast Series for Kids (Bedtime FM)

This podcast is a collection of short stories that help children calm down and relax by guiding them through visualization and breathing exercises. Perfect for parents or teachers who want to teach mindfulness and self-regulation.

Health/Medical

Life Therapies

Life Therapies can assist with the management a number of conditions in infants, children, and adolescents, including:

  • Irritability, difficulty settling, or excessive crying;
  • Digestive troubles (e.g., colic, excessive vomiting, reflux, or gas);
  • Feeding complications (e.g., difficulties latching and/or sucking);
  • Issues with sleep patterns;
  • Jaundice;
  • Head shape changes or asymmetries;
  • Difficulties with movement;
  • Hip dysplasia;
  • Chronic ear infections, and;
  • In children and teenagers:
    • Postural issues, breathing and asthma, repetitive strain, or ADD/ADHD, as well as;
    • Growth-related injuries (e.g., Growing pains or Osgood-Schlatter disease).

Services provided by Osteopaths, Physiotherapists, Registered Massage Therapist, Accupuncturist.

Opticalm

If you have a child with attention, learning or reading difficulties, Opticalm may have solutions that help! They offer a wide range of assistive tools, technologies and services:

  • Visual stress assessment services

  • Specialty lenses and coloured filters

  • Coloured overlays, paper and pens

  • E Ink (ePaper) non-LCD computer monitor and tablet

  • Screen tinting software

  • Lighting solutions for home or office

While it may seem strange to think that a simple coloured item can help, once you understand that it isn’t about colour but about filtering light, it really does make sense.

Health Care Resource for Parents (Ask Dr. Sears)

As quoted on their website: AskDrSears.com is intended to help parents become better informed consumers of health care. The information presented in this site gives general advice on parenting and health care. Always consult your doctor for your individual needs.

A Substance Abuse Guide for Parents (DrugRehab)

If you are parenting teens & have concerns about drug use, this is a great website! It provides relevant & up to date information, as well as tips on how to have positive conversations with your teen about drugs. 

Cerebral Palsy – What is Cerebral Palsy? (Cerebral Palsy Group)

The Cerebral Palsy Group is an online resource offering FREE support and useful resources to individuals and families who have been diagnosed with cerebral palsy and other disabilities.

Healthy Child Development

Ottawa Forest & Nature School

We are incredibly lucky to have a forest & nature school readily available to us right here in the national capital! With programming running from preschool to school-aged, to day camps, and even family drop-ins, there’s something for every family. It’s a magical place!

And if you’re curious to know why we felt so compelled to add this to our Children’s Health Resource page, well… according to the Child Mind Institute, it is not only beneficial but also necessary for kids to get out into nature.

  • It builds confidence
  • It promotes creativity and imagination
  • It teaches responsibility
  • It provides different stimulation
  • It gets kids moving
  • It makes them think
  • It reduces stress and fatigue

Sound of Sleep Consulting

“Sound of Sleep was created through a strong belief that healthy sleep habits make for healthy children. A well-rested child is curious, energetic, happy, playful, and eager to learn. The Sound Of Sleep Program places much of the emphasis on accommodating different parenting styles.”

Learn more about their services for babies, children & even teens/adults!

10 Ways to Enrich Your Child's Pretend Play (& Why)

Imaginative play has so many benefits on cognitive development for kids including:

  • Sustained attention& memory
  • Logical reasoning
  • Language and literacy skills
  • Imagination & creativity
  • Understanding emotions, how to act on emotions & how to be more aware of other’s perspectives (aka empathy building)

This post by One Time Through talks about the “why” of encouraging imaginative play in your children’s lives & provides inspiration on how to enhance these opportunities for them!

Seasonal

Colds, the Flu & You (Sci Show Kids)

When the weather starts to get cool, a lot of people start to get sick. So what’s making people sick and how can you avoid falling ill? Join Jessi and Squeaks to find out!

Heat Exhaustion and Heat Stroke (KidsHealth)

An easy to follow instruction sheet to avoid and/or manage heat exhaustion or heat stroke with your kids.

Healthy Schools Resources (Ontario Ministry of Education)

A curated list of websites that “provide a wide range of information to help make Ontario’s schools healthier places for students to learn and grow”.