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Study reveals impact of human breast milk on infant microbiome and respiratory health

Human breast milk regulates a baby's mix of microbes, or microbiome, during the infant's first year of life. This in turn lowers the child's risk of developing asthma, a new study shows.

19 Sep 2024

Scientists investigate the rise in early-onset cancers and propose new strategies to combat growing epidemic

Researchers explore the global rise in early-onset cancers, linking environmental exposures and lifestyle changes to the surge, and advocate for tailored prevention and treatment strategies.

18 Sep 2024

Natural probiotic present in gut shortly after birth

Findings on neonatal gut microbiota reveal key Bifidobacteria species driving microbiome assembly and their potential in developing personalized probiotics.

10 Sep 2024

UCSF researchers move closer to predicting sudden infant death syndrome

Researchers at UC San Francisco are getting closer to being able to predict sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS.

9 Sep 2024

Study links environmental pollutants to increased risk of autism spectrum disorder

Research reveals significant associations between environmental pollutants and Autism Spectrum Disorder, emphasizing the importance of identifying risk factors.

5 Sep 2024

Maternal fish consumption linked to lower likelihood of autism diagnosis, study finds

Eating any amount of fish during pregnancy was associated with about a 20% lower likelihood of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis, particularly in females, and a slight reduction in autism-related traits in offspring, according to a new study funded by the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program at the National Institutes of Health.

3 Sep 2024

Study reveals slight increase in ADHD risk from prenatal cannabis exposure

A new study reveals nuanced findings on the neuropsychiatric risks of prenatal cannabis exposure. The research found a slight increase in the risk of ADHD and a heightened vulnerability to cannabis use in offspring.

3 Sep 2024

Smoking during pregnancy affects children’s academic achievement

Smoking harms almost every part of your body. But if you smoke when pregnant, the toxic chemicals in tobacco will also harm your unborn baby, with new research showing that it could lead to reduced academic outcomes at school.

30 Aug 2024

Maternal prenatal smoking linked to poor academic outcomes in children

27 Aug 2024

Light smoking during pregnancy linked to major newborn health risks

Even light smoking of just 1-2 cigarettes a day either before or at any time during pregnancy is significantly associated with major health problems in the newborn, finds research published online in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.

20 Aug 2024

Maternal heart rate variability tied to postpartum mental health and infant brain development, study reveals

Researchers find that lower maternal heart rate variability postpartum is linked to higher anxiety and depression, affecting both mother and infant neurophysiology.

14 Aug 2024

Study suggests maternal adverse childhood experiences may become biologically embedded

Researchers investigated the transfer of biological embedding of life experience across generations by evaluating traumatic childhood experiences of mothers and epigenetic clocks in pregnant mothers and their newborn offspring.

13 Aug 2024

Prenatal BPA exposure tied to autism risk in boys

Study reveals that prenatal exposure to BPA disrupts aromatase activity in male brains, potentially leading to autism-like symptoms. Treatment with 10-HDA shows promise in reversing these effects.

11 Aug 2024

Inflammation during pregnancy impacts child neurodevelopment

When a person experiences an injury or infection, the body's immune system responds with inflammation to start the healing process. However, inflammation can occur in much less helpful circumstances – for example, when a person experiences psychological stress or consistently eats a poor diet high in sugars, fats, and processed foods.

9 Aug 2024

Prenatal famine exposure tied to higher risk of Type 2 diabetes

Researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine used the setting of the man-made Ukrainian Holodomor famine of 1932-1933 to examine the relation between prenatal famine and adult Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

8 Aug 2024

Researchers identify distinct molecular profiles in Down syndrome

A new study published in Nature Communications by researchers from the Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome (Crnic Institute) at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus reports a significant breakthrough.

7 Aug 2024

Higher BPA levels in pregnant mothers linked to autism in sons

Florey researchers have found evidence of higher levels of the plastic chemical bisphenol A (BPA) in pregnant mothers who gave birth to sons with autism.

7 Aug 2024

Study finds fourfold increase in risk of overt hypothyroidism after diagnosis of gestational subclinical hypothyroidism

A new study has shown that subclinical hypothyroidism diagnosed before 21 weeks of pregnancy is associated with more than fourfold higher rates of overt hypothyroidism or thyroid replacement therapy within 5 years of delivery.

2 Aug 2024

Advanced technology and AI used to diagnose rare diseases and birth abnormalities

Researchers at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) and Lawson Health Research Institute are using advanced technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to diagnose rare diseases and prenatal exposure-related birth abnormalities in two studies published today in American Journal of Human Genetics and Genetics in Medicine.

31 Jul 2024

Maternal immune response to flu linked to fetal brain changes

A bad case of the flu during pregnancy can increase the risk for fetal neurodevelopmental disorders such as schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorder. But it's not the virus itself doing the damage; it's the mother's immune response.

29 Jul 2024