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Mental health warning labels prompt young people to limit screens

Pop-up messages that warn of the harms of social media - such as mental health consequences - have potential to reduce young people's social media use, a new Stanford Medicine study has found.

4 Sep 2026

Childhood obesity prescriptions for GLP-1 drugs surge in the U.S.

Although the number of US children under age 12 with obesity being prescribed the weight loss drugs Saxenda, Wegovy, and Zepbound remains low, the number is 310 times higher in June 2026 than it was in 2019, when the drugs were initially prescribed, a new study shows.

4 Sep 2026

Oral drug offers promising advance for children with achondroplasia

A phase 3 trial is showing "a potentially giant step forward," in treating children with achondroplasia, UCLA Health's Dr. Isidro B. Salusky wrote in a new editorial published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

4 Sep 2026

Prednisone may impair bone health in children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy

In a new study published in Scientific Reports, an international and multidisciplinary research team including Binghamton University researchers identified a set of blood proteins that may explain why the corticosteroid prednisone, although beneficial in treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), can interfere with childhood growth and bone health.

4 Sep 2026

Early autism identification faces gaps beyond screening

A Pediatric Investigation study finds that early autism identification can fail after screening, with gaps in referral, diagnosis, service capacity, and support.

4 Sep 2026

Some fertility treatments may raise Kawasaki disease risk in children

A large-scale study in Japan, led by researchers from the University of Osaka and the Osaka Women's and Children's Hospital, has found that certain fertility treatments are associated with an increased risk of Kawasaki disease before age five, although the association differed by treatment type.

3 Sep 2026

The obesity-microbiome story is more complicated than ‘good’ and ‘bad’ bacteria

This review finds that obesity is linked to reciprocal interactions between diet, the gut microbiome, microbial metabolites, and host metabolic pathways that influence appetite, insulin sensitivity, inflammation, and energy balance across the lifespan. It highlights diet as a particularly tractable way to influence this system, while emphasizing that microbiome changes associated with GLP-1 therapies remain difficult to separate from weight loss and that functional multi-omics approaches may help enable more personalized interventions.

3 Sep 2026

What your genes can, and cannot, tell us about your personality

A meta-analysis of 46 cohorts involving 611,037 to 1.14 million participants identified 1,260 lead genetic variants associated with the Big Five personality traits, including 824 in previously unlinked genomic regions. The associations were broadly consistent across cohorts and measurement contexts, while polygenic analyses linked personality-related genetics to health, behavior, psychopathology, and life outcomes, although effects were modest and could not predict individual behavior.

3 Sep 2026

Same foods, different timing, very different glucose patterns

In a randomized crossover study of 22 healthy, normal-weight Chinese men, consuming canola oil alone or with spinach before a high-glycemic mashed-potato meal produced flatter post-meal glucose and insulin responses than spinach alone or no preload. The effects were associated with increased GLP-1 signaling and slower gastric emptying, with the findings indicating that the unsaturated oil was the primary driver of the metabolic response.

3 Sep 2026

Alpha-1 antitrypsin identified as potential target for preventing spontaneous preterm birth

Researchers at the University of Oulu have identified alpha-1 antitrypsin as a potential target for preventing spontaneous preterm birth.

3 Sep 2026

Cerebral palsy may be a trait rather than a disease

Historically, cerebral palsy (CP) was linked largely to events at birth, including prematurity or temporary loss of oxygen to the brain, but research over the past decade has suggested that genetic factors contribute to CP in many children.

3 Sep 2026

Targeting KV7 proteins could help delay preterm labor

Scientists have found that targeting a particular group of proteins in the uterus muscle (myometrium) can suppress human uterine contractions in laboratory studies and delay preterm birth in a preclinical model.

3 Sep 2026

Maternal illness may reshape fetal brain development through epigenetics

Neurodevelopmental conditions, which include autism spectrum disorders, ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder), and more, impact around ten percent of the American population.

2 Sep 2026

Mount Sinai researchers discover new radiation option for childhood brain cancer

Children with one of the deadliest forms of brain cancer may benefit from an additional course of radiation therapy after their disease returns, according to new research from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

2 Sep 2026

Study shows ending free school meals increased elementary student hunger

A recent study in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior (JNEB), published by Elsevier, explored elementary school teachers' experiences before and after the end of the federal universal free school meals (UFSM) policy.

2 Sep 2026

Cellular atlas offers clues to childhood Crohn’s treatment response

Researchers have created a detailed map of childhood Crohn's disease before and after treatment to help understand progression of the disease.

1 Sep 2026

Researchers found one childhood behavior linked to folic acid use before pregnancy

Researchers analyzed 646 children aged 2–8 years and their 563 mothers to examine whether maternal folic acid supplementation before conception was associated with childhood behavioral difficulties. Preconception supplementation was associated with a 34% lower risk of peer relationship problems, while no significant associations were found for total behavioral difficulties, emotional, conduct, hyperactivity/inattention, or prosocial problems.

1 Sep 2026