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Mercury in fish may not increase heart disease risk: Study

According to a new study Americans' level of exposure to mercury from sources such as fish is not associated with a higher risk of heart disease, stroke or other cardiovascular disease. This is in spite of the repeated proofs of neurological deficits in children and unborn babies due to mercury exposure.

24 Mar 2011

Mother's gene variation can influence alcohol-related disorders in fetus

Exposure to alcohol in the womb doesn't affect all fetuses equally. Why does one woman who drinks alcohol during pregnancy give birth to a child with physical, behavioral or learning problems -- known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder -- while another woman who also drinks has a child without these problems?

24 Mar 2011

Iodine 131 exposure during childhood increases risk of developing thyroid cancer

Alan H. Lockwood, MD, professor of neurology and nuclear medicine in the University at Buffalo's School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences calls the Japanese Health Ministry's advice not to give tap water to infants "prudent."

24 Mar 2011

Obesity during pregnancy endangers both mother and unborn child, but little being done to address the issue

Being seriously overweight during pregnancy increases dangers for both mother and unborn child, but little is being done to help obese mums-to-be, says a leading researcher in the field.

24 Mar 2011

Oral contraceptive use before pregnancy does not pose respiratory problems in children

A new study by researchers at RTI International, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health refutes previous findings that oral contraceptive use before pregnancy is linked to respiratory problems in children.

24 Mar 2011

High sugar, high fat diets during pregnancy may cause infants to become junk food junkies

A new research report published online in The FASEB Journal suggests that pregnant mothers who eat high sugar and high fat diets have babies who are likely to become junk food junkies themselves. According to the report, which used rats, this happens because the high fat and high sugar diet leads to changes in the fetal brain's reward pathway, altering food preferences.

24 Mar 2011

New study to provide better diagnoses for children with developmental disorders

A new UK study will provide better diagnoses for children with developmental disorders caused by changes in their genetic makeup. Scientists and clinicians will build a new national resource of genetic information and symptoms, based on data from 12,000 children who have a serious delay in their physical or mental development or are born with multiple malformations.

23 Mar 2011

Death of parents can impact child's health

The death of parents entails an increase in their children's risk of dying. This is shown in a new study performed by Mikael Rostila, a researcher at the Center for Health Equity Studies in Sweden, and Jan Saarela, a researcher at Åbo Akademi University in Finland.

23 Mar 2011

Toddlers who played with fewer toys show improvement in communication skills

Toddlers who played with a limited number of toys showed more improvement in their communication skills following parent-guided treatment than those receiving other community-based treatments.

23 Mar 2011

U-M professors recommend certain steps to reach research equipoise

In 1998, a study linking the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine to autism in children appeared in a respected medical journal. For a decade, the study grabbed headlines worldwide.

23 Mar 2011

Obese teens have inflammation, insulin resistance, and high homocysteine levels despite feeling healthy

Obese teens may feel healthy, but blood tests show they have inflammation, insulin resistance, and high homocysteine levels, researchers report at the American Heart Association's Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism/Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention 2011 Scientific Sessions.

23 Mar 2011

Mary Bridge, Seattle Children's partner to focus on pediatric cardiac surgery services

Seattle Children's Hospital and MultiCare Mary Bridge Children's Hospital today announced the formation of a new 10-year collaboration that will expand pediatric specialty services in the Puget Sound region. Initially, the new partnership will focus on providing cardiac surgery services for infants and children.

23 Mar 2011

WHO releases first list of 30 priority medicines for women, children

The WHO on Monday released a list of 30 medicines that "are essential for treating common diseases of mothers and children," Ghana News Agency reports (3/21).

23 Mar 2011

Children have a hard time spotting biased information or exaggerated claims

A UT Dallas researcher is examining how children evaluate information to solve problems and learn how to think critically, with the aim of combating misleading advertising aimed at young people.

23 Mar 2011

Iron deficiency during pregnancy may impact child's brain development

A mother's iron deficiency early in pregnancy may have a profound and long-lasting effect on the brain development of the child, even if the lack of iron is not enough to cause severe anemia, according to a University of Rochester Medical Center study published in the scientific journal PLoS One.

23 Mar 2011

Northwest Russian women breast milk consists of more POPs than Norwegian

Russian women living in Northwest Russia are more exposed to environmental toxins than Norwegian women. In spite of this, PhD candidate Anuschka Polder urges Russian women to breastfeed their babies.

22 Mar 2011

Britax supports AAP updated guidelines for children riding in car seats

Britax Child Safety, Inc., among the world's largest manufacturers of car seats, today supported the American Academy of Pediatrics updated guidelines for children riding in car seats.

22 Mar 2011

Oral desensitization with omalizumab may treat milk allergy in children

Some 3 million children in the United States have some form of food allergy, ranging in severity from mild to life-threatening. Milk allergy is the most common, affecting 2.5 percent of children under age 3.

22 Mar 2011

Telecommunication engineer creates new child arrhythmias database

Ventricular Fibrillation is a series of intense and disordered contractions of the ventricles. In 40 % of respiratory arrests suffered outside a hospital, it was shown that the first cardiac rhythm corresponds to VF, and the only manner to combat it is with electric discharges provided by defibrillation.

22 Mar 2011

Victoria tackles underage drinking

Experts are happy with the Victorian Government’s strict attitude towards under-age drinking. The Baillieu Government will introduce legislation into Parliament this week, providing for $7,000 fines for adults who give alcohol to children without parental permission.

21 Mar 2011