Shishu and Vriddha Svasthya
Do Not Frighten or Threaten
Atmosphere is the most important factor, which is responsible for health. There is a very popular fable. A female goat tied in front of lion's cage. The goat was given plenty of nourishing food to eat, but the goat did not put on any weight. Every time the lion roared, the goat vomit all the food it had eaten.
A child cannot get nourishment in the atmosphere of fear. Parents do worry about the health of their children. They should always be careful not to create for them an atmosphere of fear and do not frighten or threaten them. The modern child psychology says that the child can develop by leaps and bounds if he is provided atmosphere, which is pure and free from fear. Even in the ten-year span of childhood, it is very important to be particularly alert and give attention to the child. First five years are very significant from the point of view of inculcating good samskaras in the mind of the child. That is the first stage of inculcating good samskaras in him, after which the second stage begins. If the parents are fully alert for the first five years, the child can maintain perfect health. If the child is healthy, his parent do not have to worry much about him. If the child does not maintain good health, all types of probproblems arise.