As parents, we do everything we can to help our kids grow up healthy. But the reality is health conditions can occur no matter how much you care for your child. Chromosomal abnormalities that occur in utero can lead to a variety of ailments. Environment, lifestyle choices, and exposure to toxins can also adversely affect a child’s health.
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New or expectant moms may worry about having a pet with a new baby in the house, but a recent study on the effects of a furry pet on a baby’s health shows that Fido may just be a baby’s best friend when it comes to health.
A new study suggests that having a family dog or other furry pet may help your baby avoid allergies and obesity later in life. The results of the study by researchers at the University of Alberta in Alberta, Canada were recently published in the journal Microbiome.
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Congratulations, you’re pregnant. As the count-down to the birth of your new child approaches, you should consider finding a pediatrician who will work the best with your soon to be expanding family. Having a pediatrician on-hand though the formative weeks and years of your child’s life is in the best interests of both you and your child. Waiting until your child gets sick or needs a check-up is absolutely not the time to be going through the selection process, which can be stressful even when everything is going according to plan.
There are several sources you can tap into to locate qualified pediatricians in your community.
Increasing numbers of couples are experiencing infertility problems these days, finding that they are unable to conceive, or that the mother is unable to carry a pregnancy to full term. Though estimates vary, most fertility experts say that 10 percent or more of all couples in the United States experience infertility problems.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other sources, about one-third of all cases of infertility involve only the woman, one-third of cases involve only the man, and the remainder of cases involve both partners or are of unknown cause.
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Something for men to take note of: a new Harvard study has found a connection between consumption of fruits and vegetables with high pesticide residue and lower sperm counts, a lower percentage of normal sperm and less ejaculate, compared to men who ate produce with lower residue, and even men who ate almost no produce at all.
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The controversy over Bisphenol A, or BPA, continues, as heated as it was in 2008, when reports about possible health consequences to humans from long-term exposure followed reviews of many scientific studies.
What Is BPA?
BPA is a solid, colorless chemical used to make many kinds of plastics, and to make the sealant or liner on the inside of food and beverage cans. BPA is used to harden plastics, though it’s also found in some plastic sandwich bags and plastic cling wrap.
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A Chinese study has found that breastfeeding may be linked to lower risk of rheumatoid arthritis in women who nursed their infants.
The study reviewed data from more than 7,300 women aged 50 and older from China, who filled out questionnaires asking about their health and lifestyles, including whether they had breastfed their children. Most of the women had at least one child, and more than 95 percent of moms had breastfed for at least one month.
Read MoreMild to moderate iodine deficiency during pregnancy can result in a child developing a lower IQ and diminished reading ability and comprehension later.
The findings are from a study by the University of Surrey in England, and they were published online in late May, 2013 in the medical journal The Lancet.
Read MoreA study in Japan has shown that a crying baby’s heart rate drops very quickly if the infant is picked up and carried by a familiar caregiver. Just holding the baby won’t do; the infant has to be picked up and carried.
Lead researcher and neurobiologist Dr. Kumi Kuroda, of the Riken Brain Science Institute, theorized that this is the same response that we see in other mammals, including puppies, kittens and lion cubs, all of which relax and go limp when picked up and carried with their mothers’ mouths.
Read MoreAccording to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), asthma is the most common chronic condition affecting children in the United States. In 2009, an estimated 10.2 million U.S. children — almost 10 percent of Americans under 18 years of age — have been diagnosed with asthma.
And it is increasing at an alarming rate; up 75 percent from 1980. A rise in asthma cases among infants and toddlers accounts for a large part of the overall increase. One of the difficulties of diagnosing asthma in this group is that it is difficult to safely measure lung function at that age.
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