Total Teen Health and Wellness: A Doctor's Guide for Parents Shanna Garza, MD

Therapy is an important part of mental health care for teenagers. Patients improve  more when they are connected to a therapist who helps them build healthy coping skills, work on relationship issues and improve their self esteem. There are many different approaches to therapy in teens. Today, Dr. Shanna Garza, Adolescent Medicine physician and expert explains why therapy is helpful for her patients and why she refers them for therapy. Parents, listen to learn more and to see if therapy might help your young adult child.

Parents are the ultimate teachers for their kids and can be role models by showing balance with food, body and exercise. Following up Episode #23 on Why Diets are Not Good for Teens, this episode reviews how parents can help their teen and young adult children see food, nutriton and exercise in a more balanced way. Dr. Shanna Garza, Adolescent Medicine physician and expert, provides parents pearls to guide these discussions and cautions on talking about diet, weight loss and body image with their children.


Here are few books to guide healthy discussions around these issues:

The Intuitive Eating Workbook for Teens: A Non-Diet, Body Positive Approach to Building a Healthy Relationship with Food
by Elyse Resch


Health At Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight
by Linda Bacon

Anti-Diet: Reclaim Your Time, Money, Well-Being, and Happiness Through Intuitive Eating
by Christy Harrison MPH RD

The diet industry targets teenagers during this time of new years' resolutions through social media and marketing. Dieting is never a good idea for teenagers who are still growing and developing. Dieting, which is essentially restrictive eating and weight suppression, increases the risk of developing eating disorders. There are many medical concerns with weight loss and restrictive nutrition in adolescents. Parents, listen to this episode to learn more! Dr. Shanna Garza, Adolescent Medicine physician and host of Total Teen Health and Wellness, explains the risk of dieting on teen health and wellness.

Parents hear scary stories in the news every week about drug overdoses in teens related to prescription pill misuse. 10% of teenagers report misusing a prescription drug in the last six months. Now, the risk is even greater given how many pills are counterfeit and laced with fentanyl. Dr. Shanna Garza, Adolescent Medicine expert, reviews the risks of prescription drug abuse in teenagers and how parents can help their teens stay safe.

To learn more about the risk of marijuana use in Teenaager and young adults, check out my last episide: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1751064/episodes/11439820

Find and follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/total-teen-health-and-wellness-a-doctors-guide-for-parents/id1561803110

Teenagers and young adults have easy access to marijuana, and many are using cannabis frequently and heavily. Chronic use of marijuana has higher risks to young people due to the developing teen brain. Dr. Shanna Garza reviews medical and mental health risks that are more significant in adolescents. Parents, listen to learn more about the possible effects heavy marijuana use can have for your teen and young adult children. There are higher rates of depression, anxiety, psychosis and schizophrenia, leading to a very significant negative impact on adolescent mental health. 

In honor of September being National Suicide Prevention Month, Dr. Shanna Garza discusses risk factors and warnings signs for suicide in teenagers and young adults. There are many mental health and medical risk factors for which patients need to get care. In Adolescent Medicine, we treat patients for all types of mental health issues which helps prevent the risk for suicide. Parents want to know the warning signs for suicide in their teen children. Dr. Garza, Adolescent Medicine physician and expert, provides helpful guidance for parents to be informed and know when to get their children help.