Vitamin D Thwarts winter colds and flu in children

A study about to come out in Pediatrics (and noted by NIH's Medline web site) shows that giving daily Vitamin D supplements to children with LOW levels of Vitamin D reduces their susceptibility to winter colds and flu.  Conducted by Mass General Hospital researchers, but in Mongolia where there is an ample supply of  non-sunlight in winter.  Also, lots of kids deficient in Vitamin D in the winter.  Perhaps Mongolian milk isn't fortified with Vitamin D. (This last sentence reveals my utter lack of knowledge of modern life in Mongolia.) So, American kids might do better in winter on Vitamin D levels even without supplements.
But, what if your kid doesn't like milk and doesn't drink enough --4 glasses a day at the very least --to keep levels up?  Has your  pediatrician  tested his/her Vitamin D  levels? If not, you might gently suggest at the next visit (especially one in the winter time) that you'd like the doctor to test Vitamin D, or at least ask him or her whether it has been tested in the past (in the winter time).

Quick access to ratings of nursing home quality

Over the years I've had plenty opportunities to observe nursing homes in action, not only for my parents' generation, but also for my own post-surgical rehab.  And, recently I've spent a good amount of time visiting an older friend who spent a lot of time in several nursing facilities in the Maryland suburbs.  This nursing home rating tool, made available through ProPublica, is an excellent summary source of information, and the information you can get by clicking on an individual home's profile dovetails with my own impressions of the various places I've recently seen.
So, I'm entering this post into my "citizen portals" label, recognizing that I (and you) may have plenty of reason to research information on potential nursing homes.  If a friend asks for advice, all you have to do is remember my blog's name:  www.theviewfrombethesda.blogspot.com  and they will be able to get to this applicaiton.