Super Safe Summer
May 28, 2024 | Episode 17
Producer’s Note: The following is an AI-generated transcript of The Wellness Conversation, an OhioHealth Podcast
SPEAKERS: Dr. Jennifer Middleton, Marcus Thorpe, Lindsey Gordon
Marcus Thorpe 00:13
Welcome back to the wellness conversation at OhioHealth Podcast. I'm Marcus Thorpe
Lindsey Gordon 00:18
And I'm Lindsey Gordon. We have pushed through winter, enjoyed the rains and blooms of spring, and now it's time to get into summer. It can be the best time of year, but with summer comes some health challenges and a need to make sure safety is part of your routine too.
Marcus Thorpe 00:34
And we have the perfect guest to help move us through our checklist for summer safety, it's Dr. Jennifer Middleton Associate Program Director at OhioHealth Riverside Family Practice. Dr. Middleton very much a Jane of all trades, a go-to for me on any and all topics when it comes to OhioHealth. Dr. Middleton it's good to see you, thanks for joining us.
Dr. Middleton 00:51
Oh, it's a pleasure. Thank you for the invitation.
Lindsey Gordon 00:55
Thanks so much for being here. Tell us a little bit about your journey to becoming a physician. Why did you decide to take the road of family practice? And how did you arrive here at OhioHealth?
Dr. Middleton 01:05
Yes, well, I don't want to take up the entire podcast with my life story to date. But I will say that I had become interested in medicine at a pretty young age and that kind of persisted throughout childhood into college. So, I really was privileged to have a lot of opportunity to explore a lot of STEM education in my childhood. So thank you very much Kettering City public schools outside of Dayton, Ohio. I really love Family Medicine, because I get to have longitudinal meaningful relationships with patients and families throughout the lifespan. And we have really good science, telling us that those kinds of relationships are associated with better community health. So it's really rewarding to enjoy those relationships over time and know that you are contributing to better community health. Plus, I love the variety, I'm not going to lie, there is never a boring, dull day in family medicine every day is different.
Marcus Thorpe 02:10
Well, we certainly knew we wanted you on for a number of reasons. But we all have kids at different ages and stages. And while we want this podcast to be for everyone, Lindsay's got really young kids, I've got teen and preteen and then you're kind of in the middle. So how much as a physician, but also as a mother, do you think about safety, especially as we head into kind of the summer months, and you know, they're going to be outside even more,
Dr. Middleton 02:33
A lot. And to be completely transparent. Our kids have two family physicians for parents. So we think about this all the time. But yes, summer does feel like it carries an increased risk, just because there is more time outdoors, which is wonderful and good for kids. But also carry some risks, as I know we're going to talk about and supervision for kids. Sometimes it's a little bit decreased in the summer. And we'll talk about when that might or might not be safe for kids here.
Lindsey Gordon 03:09
I was just talking this morning about how it's finally nice out, I can let the kids air out in the backyard, I can get dinner going and you know, keep an eye on them out the window. You mentioned the supervision. I try not to be a helicopter parent, but sometimes it's unavoidable. Let's really dive into some of those, you know, concerns that we have about being outside of course, the sun is an obvious one. But there's one I want to start with that's sort of become more prevalent in recent years. And that's air quality. Last summer, we had air quality alert days, how do I know when it's safe for my kids to be outside breathing in those particles?
Dr. Middleton 03:46
So that's a great question. And thankfully, we can access really easily nowadays, daily and almost even hourly measures of how safe the air outside is. So that air quality index or "AQI" is available everywhere. So whatever weather app that you're using on your smartphone, or I have a smartwatch, that one of the complications on my smartwatch in the summer is the outdoor AQI. And the important numbers to know for AQI for most families and most kids, when that AQI goes over 100 should start to think twice about spending extended periods of time outside. I think little breaks of time outside at that point might be okay. Watch your kids to make sure they're not having symptoms of coughing, sniffling once we get over 150 game over nobody really should be spending extended time outside. And if you or any of your children have respiratory lung problems like asthma, boy that number might drop to as low as 50. So that would be a good topic to discuss with your family physician is, is 100 a reasonable spot for my kids it is for most. But again, kids who have asthma probably should be looking closer to staying inside once it hits 50.
Marcus Thorpe 05:11
Skin safety is so important when the sun is blaring down I mean, I go outside and it takes almost no time for me to start feeling the burn, I have such light skin. And I'm kind of looking at our group. I think it probably affects us all the same. But let's talk about when you need to make sure that you're really paying attention to that, obviously sunscreen, thank goodness people are really wised up to that and putting it on on a regular basis. But from a physician's perspective. Let's talk about skin safety. Let's talk about making sure we're protecting ourselves.
Dr. Middleton 05:41
Yeah, absolutely. So I agree sunscreen has become really popular and commonly used in a way that it wasn't at least when I was a kid. Available a lot of different price points a lot of different formulations, it's not hard to find something that is going to be acceptable for you and for your kids to use. I can't overstate how valuable a wide brimmed hat can be also. And the other important thing to remember is that even on a cloudy day, you can burn. So don't just look outside and say, Oh, it's cloudy, we're good. We don't need sunscreen, especially in the summer where we live here in central Ohio. If your kids are going outside and it is daylight time, they probably should have sunscreen. And we and our family are big fans of hats. My kids when they go outside to play in the summer, they have a wide brimmed hat on.
Marcus Thorpe 06:53
I used to play baseball when I was a kid. And they would have those super thin jerseys in Texas. And if I would play two or three games in a day, I would still get a burn on my shoulder. So just pay attention to the kind of quality of clothing your kids are wearing. Or even yourself if you're going for a long run. I think that's really important too.
Lindsey Gordon 07:12
Yeah, when it comes to sunscreen too. I always wonder what's better for my kids the spray sunscreen that's a little easier to apply, or the lotions and then you have the mineral lotions. And as a consumer like as the mom buying the sunscreen, it's overwhelming. How do you pick?
Dr. Middleton 07:28
Absolutely. So spray can be easier. The trick to remember with spray is that you still need to rub it in. So maybe not so easy after all of that for some families because there's almost a two step to it. So again, know your kid know what they are more or less likely to be interested in. I love that you're bringing up fabrics, Marcus, there are a lot of companies that market UPF clothing now. So that is basically clothing that is sun protective. My kids have swimsuits that are UPF rated and that are short sleeved when it's really hot, but long sleeved for the rest of the summer time. So that also minimizes the amount of sunscreen, I have to slather all over them all the time, and my kids are both very fair as I am. So it's, it's a little bit of give and take in terms of what do you know your kids are going to accept some kids won't accept wearing long sleeves when it's warm. Well, then you need to choose a sunscreen product in general. And this is a little bit of personal bias. So I want to be transparent with that. I prefer mineral sunscreens over chemical especially for children. Mostly because we don't have tons of safety data on some of the chemicals in those chemical sunscreens on young skin. Also, kids tend to have more sensitive skin and the chemicals in those chemical sunscreens can cause allergic or skin irritation reactions. So I am a big fan of mineral sunscreens for kids. The downside to mineral sunscreens is that they can leave that little bit of a white cast. If that is going to be an issue. I would rather some sunscreen but none at all. But if you're thinking how do I choose high quality mineral sunscreen usually SPF at least 25 Ideally 50 If you can afford it and apply every two hours when you're outside and don't be shy with how much you apply.
Lindsey Gordon 09:41
That's good. I'll remember that. I love a good saying that's great. I want to switch gears to and talk about water safety. This is something that actually keeps me up at night and terrifies me a little bit because you know we do have access to a pool. My kids do swimming lessons but having worked in news for so long I just know that these accidents can happen and they can happen quickly. What advice do you have?
Dr. Middleton 10:06
Well, even for kids who have had swimming lessons, when kids are in or around water, adult supervision is a must. And adult supervision 100% of the time, do not step away like you said, Lindsay, this can happen in a heartbeat. For kids having a trip or fall even kids who are good swimmers who lose their balance or fatigue in the water can get into trouble really quickly. So rule number one adult supervision, eyes on the child the entire time they are in or around water. I love that your kids are doing swimming lessons. If you know that water is an important part of your family's life in the summer or any time of year, swim lessons are have been shown to dramatically improve kid's chances of safety in the water. So yay for swim lessons. The other thing if boating is in your family's activities, the summer life jackets. And yes, I know it gets hot out and it's not as cool. But life jackets save lives. And importantly, kids pay attention if the adults on the boat are not wearing a lifejacket they're not going to be as inclined to and adults should be wearing life jackets too. So life jackets for everybody if you're going to be out on the water, please.
Marcus Thorpe 11:29
Dr. Jennifer Middleton is our guest. She's the Associate Program Director at OhioHealth. Riverside family practice. This podcast has kids and summer swimming safety is certainly important for adults as they kind of go out, you know, you see all those signs when you go around pools or into like whirlpools or spas that say, don't swim alone. Make sure you have somebody with you. Can you talk about the importance of those things? Especially if you're going swimming in open bodies of water you want somebody there? You never know when you catch a cramp. My son has epilepsy I think about all the time of like, what if somebody's out there by themselves and they have a seizure? And there's nobody there that can help them? Can you talk us through adult safety too, because there's folks that are listening that maybe just don't have kids, but still want to go out there and enjoy safely?
Dr. Middleton 12:18
Yeah, absolutely. As you said perfectly, do not swim alone, there is just no circumstance where that is safe. Even if you are in good health, you never know when a health emergency will happen. Sometimes when you're in the water, recognizing that you're beginning to fatigue isn't as intuitive as it is when you're out on the land. You never know if you're especially in an open body of water when the conditions are going to change. And that can happen really quickly. You never know when you're going to have some sort of a health emergency. You know, heaven forbid, you're out there alone. And you have a seizure, you have a heart attack, you have some other problem. Please, please, please do not go out and swim by yourself.
Marcus Thorpe 13:07
Yeah, it's really important.
Lindsey Gordon 13:08
Really important. Definitely. Good to consider that as well. And then something that you know is important for all of us as well. Bug bites, ticks, poison ivy, those outdoor threats that we're up against. I feel like in the last couple of years, we've heard more and more about ticks, and Lyme disease and even allergies that you can develop having been bitten by a tick, you know, there's that red meat allergy that you can develop in some rare scenarios. So what should we be keeping in mind with those types of threats?
Dr. Middleton 13:39
Yeah, absolutely. If you know that you are going to be out in a wooded area. And outdoor wooded areas are one of my favorite places to be year round, but especially in the summer. If the temperature permits it long sleeves, long pants, pants tucked into socks tucked into boots or shoes is a really great way to help protect yourself. Also, DEET is safe even for younger children. Children over the age of two can safely wear DEET as long as it is washed off. So bug repellents are also really powerful. One of my favorite places to vacation is where I'm originally from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and it is bug paradise up there. And I always bring a couple good bottles of DEET bug repellent when I am up there.
Marcus Thorpe 14:35
Kids and hydration. Holy cow is it hard to push fluids to your kids when they're out having a good time and maybe you're on the beach, maybe you're going for those long walks. I can't tell how many times I have to pull my kids away to try to get them to even take three swallows. Can you talk about hydration in general as we start to kind of hit in these really hot summer months?
Dr. Middleton 14:54
Yeah, I think that's a great point. And kids unlike adults, are not always as aware of their body signals that they're starting to get dehydrated. So first and foremost, I would say role modeling. Again, it shouldn't be something that only the kids have to do to stay hydrated. You can also as the parent or if you don't have kids as an adult yourself, in the summertime, you should have a bottle of water on you pretty much all the time. If you start to feel thirsty, it's, you're already a little bit behind the dehydration game, go ahead and drink. And you can encourage kids to take breaks at a pretty regular interval. If they're only going to do three sips at a time, Marcus, I might take more frequent breaks. Yeah, that's right. You know, sometimes we'll make a game out of it with our kids. My youngest kid is enamored still of Peppa Pig. And I'll say, hey, I need three big Peppa Pig drinks. And by kind of making it fun, I can get more, you know, kind of into her. And I said, we're going to do it together. And again, kids are really sensitive. And they can tell when there are different standards for what you're expecting for them than what you expect for yourself. So parents and adults seem to role model that's for kids, whether it's hydration, sunscreen, water safety, all of this. Let's do it together as a family.
Marcus Thorpe 16:19
That's smart. Because my younger one will drink like crazy. And my older ones like I'm good. He's 13. He knows everything already. So he's like, I'm good. I'm good. I'm like, no, no, no, you're not good. We've got to come back. Let's all do this. That's good advice. I don't drink enough water myself. So maybe if I did it, my kids would do it. There you go.
Lindsey Gordon 16:37
Let's talk about sports physicals and getting ready to get back into a new school year, a new season. I know schools and sports teams, their preseason start in August. So getting those physicals done should it be something that's top of mind as you head into the summer. So you're not stressed at the last minute.
Dr. Middleton 16:54
Absolutely. I love that this topic was on our list for today. Because August in the family physician's office is physical season. And it is a common occurrence to be getting phone calls from panicked parents. My kid needs a physical filled out by tomorrow. And it's really hard sometimes to find appointment slots to fit those in at the last minute. June, July is not too early. And if you know your physician's office is booking routine, well visits out a couple of months in advance, it is not too early to be calling to get on the schedule. The other thing that I love about sports physicals as a family doctor, is it's an opportunity to get an age group into the office where we don't think as much and as frequently about a wellness visit. So we're all used to when our kids are young when they're babies, those early preschool years having those frequent doctor visits. But keeping that on the agenda when kids hit school age and the teenage years often falls off our to-do lists. But an annual wellness visit has so many benefits for child and for family. And we can do both of those easily at the same time. So yes, please schedule, please schedule. Now. It's not too early.
Marcus Thorpe 18:16
Does that break down some of the barriers for you as a physician to connect with the young people in a different way than them having to be in there when they're so sick? And they think they might have to get medicine? Or they think they might have to get a shot or something like that? Do you find this as a good time for you to go see coming to the doctors not so bad?
Dr. Middleton 18:33
Yes, absolutely. And it also gives us the opportunity to talk prevention with kids and with families and to tailor that prevention advice to what we know about that child and that family.
Lindsey Gordon 18:47
Well, I wanted to ask this question before we wrap up and get into the fun round. This was the most when Marcus and I were brainstorming about this podcast in this episode, I was like okay, this is going to be my self-serving question, but one that I think other parents could find value in as a parent I feel like especially since the pandemic I have this strong arm out against airborne threats. I kind of mentioned that with the air quality a little bit but we know so much more. Now the average person knows more about airborne viruses than ever before. And now we know that RSV knows no season. It can happen in July. How do I know when my kids who do go to daycare and are constantly sick. How do I know when it's time to take a closer look at that cough?
Dr. Middleton 19:32
Yeah, I think that's a fantastic question and I agree with you it is a confusing and overwhelming time for a lot of parents myself included as we come out of the pandemic but with RSV pair influenza COVID Lots of other viruses that have shifted a little bit their seasonal patterns as we all kind of start to re congregate in you know hanging out with each other again So first and foremost, I want to stress, if you are concerned about your child, please call us. It is never the wrong choice for you to have a concern to call us and to bring your child in. And for us to say with our years of training and experience, I'm so glad you brought them in they're, okay, that's never a bad thing. We're never going to be upset about that. So if you are worried, please call us more specifically things to watch out for: symptoms that are interfering with your child's daily life. So they're coughing so much, they can't keep up and play with other kids. Their energy level is so low that they're just kind of punked out on the couch and not interested in doing things. They seem to be getting short of breath easily. Fever that is lasting past a couple of days. Those are all really good reasons to reach out to us and get arranged to have your child seen right away. Symptoms should not in general, for most common colds lasts more than 10 to 14 days. The trick with that, as you said, Lindsey, is we have so many of these atypical previously atypical viruses circulating the summer now, that can sometimes have persistent cough for several weeks. But again, still a good idea for us to evaluate that child, if you have symptoms going on for more than a couple of weeks, even if it's not interfering with their life to make sure we're not missing anything else. Telling the difference between a cold and allergies is challenging. I just dealt with this with some of my patients in the office yesterday, to be honest with you some of the keys that I use to help me tell the difference with patients. Number one, the presence of itching, if your eyes are itching, your ears are itching your throat or itching, that's a lot more likely to be allergy than it is common cold. If you're having fever and body aches, that's a lot more likely to be cold or virus than allergy. So a couple of ways to kind of tease that apart. But sometimes it's tough. And until I can get more information from a patient and look in their ears, nose mouth, check for lymph nodes. Sometimes it takes a physical exam, even for me to be able to tell the difference. So again, if you're not sure, and the symptoms are bothering you, please schedule an appointment come in, we would love to take a look and help you to feel better.
Marcus Thorpe 22:32
Sick is sick. I mean, whether it's the summer or the winter, you're feeling cruddy, the best way to do it is to go see somebody and find out what's truly going on.
Dr. Middleton 22:40
You know, and by doing that sooner rather than later also, especially for symptoms that are interfering with life. A lot of times we can help you get back on track feeling better, a little bit faster.
Marcus Thorpe 22:52
We took a summer vacation last year. And my then 10 year old got COVID. Oh my gosh, it's just, you know, it's just the way it works sometimes and you just roll with the punches, and we had a vacation. Thankfully, it was at a beach we could separate from everybody else.
Lindsey Gordon 23:09
Social distance from your own family.
Marcus Thorpe 23:13
That's the way it goes
Lindsey Gordon 23:13
Oh, gosh.
Marcus Thorpe 23:15
Well, I tell you what, this has been really informational. I know as the summer comes in, people do think about safety more and more. And so we knew you'd be the best person for that. We do want to have a little fun with you, Dr. Middleton,
Dr. Middleton 23:27
All righty, I'm ready.
Marcus Thorpe 23:27
As we always try to do with our guests to get to know you a little bit more on a different stage a different level. Since we're talking about summer, let's talk about maybe your favorite summer trip as a family yourself or maybe you growing up.
Dr. Middleton 23:39
Yeah, so I think as I mentioned earlier, I was born in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. And that is still my favorite vacation spot regardless of the time of year, but especially in the summer, because I being a northern Michigan-der under do not enjoy super, super hot weather. And typically it does not get super super hot up there. So very pleasant 80s You can still swim and enjoy things, but it's not going to be as oppressively hot and humid as it is here in Ohio and it's just beautiful. I just I love the peace and the quiet and trees and nature.
Lindsey Gordon 24:18
Do you prefer the lake or the pool or the ocean?
Dr. Middleton 24:21
I am not a very good swimmer. I'm a competent swimmer. But I enjoy looking at water more than being in it,
Lindsey Gordon 24:30
Same
Dr. Middleton 24:31
So I am very happy to sit on the shore of a lake and just enjoy. Enjoy that view.
Marcus Thorpe 24:40
If that family practice, which I know you love and you're passionate about where would you want to be practicing, what would you want to be doing? And then if you weren't a physician, what would you be doing instead?
Dr. Middleton 24:51
So this is a tough question because I really can't imagine any other specialty of medicine that I would want to be in other than family Medicine, though I do have a very soft spot in my heart for public health. I do have a master's in public health as I know, you know, Marcus. And if I was going to do anything else in medicine, I could easily see myself enjoying a career, you know, doing that kind of big picture or community health. Yeah. Your second question. You might laugh at a little bit. But when I was little, I wanted to be a doctor who was an astronaut taking care of other astronauts. I am a sci-fi geek. And I wanted to be Dr. McCoy taking care of the other people in space. Unfortunately, for me, I have some pretty significant motion sickness that I've inherited from the Middleton side of the family. And yeah, it became pretty clear pretty early in life. That was not going to happen for me, but a girl can still dream.
Marcus Thorpe 25:56
Yeah, you never know. It's not too late for you to change careers. If it ever pops open. You probably could step right.
Dr. Middleton 26:02
So if anybody from NASA is listening right now, and you need a doctor for a long term space voyage, please give me a call information will be in the show notes.
Lindsey Gordon 26:11
And will you give us the scoop with the story when you land that?
Dr. Middleton 26:13
Oh, my God. Yeah!
Lindsey Gordon 26:17
I want to ask about your childhood. When you heard the ice cream truck coming around. What was your go to treat?
Dr. Middleton 26:23
Oh, man, that's hard. Because let me tell you the ice cream truck always stressed me out a little bit because they all had different things. Yeah, you had to make a decision so fast. And you had to count the coins in your pocket to make sure. But for me if they had it had to be the orange creamsicle pop. Totally the go to.
Marcus Thorpe 26:43
I still like the I can't even remember what it was like kind of like a Mickey Mouse or something. But it had eyes. But the eyes were bubblegum, but they were so hard when you would bite into them. I always thought I was going to break my teeth. Everybody can relate to that, I think.
Dr. Middleton 26:55
Oh, of course. I think the challenge with that too is you got to eat it fast or else you have a mess on your hands.
Marcus Thorpe 26:57
Do they still have ice cream trucks? I never even know anymore.
Lindsey Gordon 27:04
They do! We have one come around our neighborhood. And if we've ever been to like the beach during the summer, sometimes you know you hear it near the water. And we had to be on our best behavior in order to enjoy the ice cream truck. That was good collateral for my parents. Yeah.
Dr. Middleton 27:19
I may have used that myself.
Lindsey Gordon 27:22
I wanted to ask too speaking of these tricks, and you know negotiating tactics with a little one with you mentioned Peppa Pig, taking the sips of water. I loved how you said that because it told me that okay, you guys also spend some time watching screens sometimes. And even as a doctor. I mean, that was just that kind of made me feel a little bit better as someone who turns to TV sometimes when we need quiet time, what's your go to family show with you and your kids.
Dr. Middleton 27:50
So, it's been shifting a lot recently, especially with my oldest who is school age now and hearing about things from other kids. They both still are really into Disney. So one of the smartest things I ever did three months before the pandemic started was get a Disney plus subscribe. So we've been rotating through several Disney movies, but they recently heard about the Emperor's New Groove, which was one of my favorites from a long time ago. So that's what we were watching this last weekend. You know, screens are part of everyday life, I don't think it's realistic to say never watch a screen. The most important thing with screens is having intention about how and when you are using them. So I love hearing you say that's what we kind of do to wind down you know, that's kind of our quiet time to relax and knowing what your kids are watching and talking about it with them, I think is so, so important. And I'll be honest with you in our house, we use screens as collateral too so the rule in our house now that our kids are old enough to help with cleaning up is that bedrooms have to be clean and the play area has to be clean. Before we're going to entertain screens.
Marcus Thorpe 29:13
I love it. That's very smart. And it works. It even works with a 13 and 11 year old.
Dr. Middleton 29:18
Oh. I'm taking notes here, Marcus. Alright!
Marcus Thorpe 29:22
You going keep going. Because it does work. If my kid wants his phone, clean your room.
Lindsey Gordon 29:27
Marcus is up there changing the Wi Fi password daily. Must make bed for Wi Fi password.
Marcus Thorpe 29:33
If only I knew how to change it. I'm not smart enough to figure that out. Dr. Middleton, you've been great. As I mentioned in the beginning of this, you've always been kind of that go-to person for really a topic on anything. So we appreciate your smarts and knowledge and passion on summer safety and I hope people got a lot out of this because I know even we did as parents so thank you for joining us.
Dr. Middleton 29:54
it's such a privilege. You're so welcome. Thank you for the opportunity. It is such a joy way to be able to share the things that I love in my job as a family physician with a wider audience. So thank you.
Marcus Thorpe 30:08
It was great. And of course you the listener, we thank you for joining us for this episode of the Wellness Conversation, and OhioHealth podcast. Before we wrap up, we do invite you to follow us on all major social channels. We want to make sure you stay up to date on any new episodes and other health and wellness topics that are coming your way. And if you're looking for more information on OhioHealth services and locations, you can go to ohiohealth.com.
Lindsey Gordon 30:29
The information in this episode will also be available in written form on the OhioHealth wellness blog, you can find that@blog.ohiohealth.com Thank you for joining us and be sure to subscribe as we continue our exploration of important health and wellness topics with OhioHealth experts