Doctors’ Tips for Keeping Your Kids Healthy

Read Books About Sleep

What the doctor wants you to know: “Parents spend a lot of time reading about pregnancy and childbirth but don’t pay enough attention to what happens afterward,” according to Alexandra Barzvi, a child psychologist in private practice in New York City. “That’s understandable, given the time limitations. But learning about sleep―and coming up with a sleep plan early on―will make life much easier. I recommend Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, by Marc Weissbluth (Ballantine, $25, amazon.com).”
 
 Where she slacks off: “Even though I specialize in behavior issues, I admit that I sometimes laugh when my daughter does something she shouldn’t do, despite the fact that I know that’s just reinforcing a bad behavior.”