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May 6th, 2013
05:40 PM ET
5 things we learned about kids' health this weekFrom cyber-bullying that could threaten your teen’s self-esteem, to dangerous distractions that could cause you to crash while driving your kids, here’s a look at five important studies about the health of children being presented this week at a large pediatric conference in Washington. 1. Moms and dads are distracted while driving kids Researchers asked 600 parents what distractions they encountered while driving their most precious cargo: Their children. Among the interruptions: Talking on the phone, texting, surfing the Internet, checking a navigation system, and changing a CD or DVD. Almost 90% of parents admitted to doing at least one of these technology-based distractions. 
May 6th, 2013
01:15 PM ET
Study finds baby's spit-cleaned pacifier is OKAs a parent, there are undoubtedly a few things you do now that before you had children you thought were gross: Changing diapers, wiping up vomit and using your own spit to clean off a child's pacifier, just to name a few. Though it's hard to admit, most parents have done the latter. You're out at the mall when your kid drops his pacifier and there's not a place to clean it nearby. So you pick it up, suck on it a bit and hand it back to your baby. What's the harm? Turns out cleaning a recently dropped pacifier with your saliva - meaning you put it in your mouth before inserting it back into your baby's - may actually help strengthen your child's immune system and keep him from developing certain allergies, according to a new study in the journal Pediatrics. When parents cleaned pacifiers in this way their children were significantly less likely to develop eczema, a skin condition considered to be the most common early form of allergies. 
May 3rd, 2013
10:48 AM ET
Suicides almost double among 50-somethingsTeen suicides often get the most media attention - tragic stories like that of Canadian teen Amanda Todd remind us that depression is a serious mental health issue for adolescents. But a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows more attention needs to be directed at preventing suicide in adults as well. Between 1999 and 2010, suicides in the 35-to-64 age group increased 28.4%, according to the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Suicides among people aged 50 to 59 years old specifically almost doubled during that time period. More than 38,000 Americans killed themselves in 2010; that's more than double those who were killed in a homicide that same year, according to the CDC. In 2009, the number of deaths from suicide in the United States surpassed the number of deaths from motor vehicle crashes for the first time. FULL POST 
May 2nd, 2013
02:39 PM ET
Childhood food, skin allergies on the riseFood and skin allergies are becoming more common in American children, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Both have been steadily increasing for more than a decade. Food allergy prevalence increased from 3.4% to 5.1% between 1997 and 2011, while skin allergy prevalence more than doubled in the same time period. That means 1 in every 20 children will develop a food allergy and 1 in every 8 children will have a skin allergy. According to the CDC, respiratory allergies are still the most common for children younger than 18. The new report, which looked at data from the National Health Interview Survey, found that skin allergies decreased with age, while respiratory allergies increased as children got older. 
May 2nd, 2013
07:02 AM ET
Kids’ brains can predict math tutor benefitKids don't all learn at the same pace, or in the same way. Extra tutoring doesn't always help either, but for some it helps a lot. Why? Researchers, publishing this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, believe the answer is in the brain. By looking at the structures and wiring of children's brains, they've developed a method of predicting who will benefit most from tutoring. This doesn't mean, however, that you will be seeing brain scans in every school. "What we’ve done is much more modest, in terms of trying to understand what are the systems that underlie individual differences in response to math tutoring," said Vinod Menon, professor at Stanford University School of Medicine and senior author of the study. 
May 1st, 2013
02:40 PM ET
Thousands of kids hurt yearly on amusement ridesFrom carousels to roller coasters, part of summer fun for many kids is a trip to the local carnival or a nearby amusement park. But experts are warning parents their children need to be supervised on rides because of the risk of injuries. Researchers from Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, looked at Consumer Product Safety Commission information on youngsters who were taken to emergency rooms for amusement ride injuries during a 20-year period. Their study, published in the May issue of the journal Clinical Pediatrics, looked at fixed-site rides, such as those at major amusement parks, as well as mobile rides, which included rides at local carnivals, state fairs and mall rides like those found in shopping mall arcades. The rides "included anything from coin-operated rides to Ferris wheels, carousels, bumper cars, roller coasters, and any type of ride like that," said Tracy Mehan, lead researcher of the study. 
April 30th, 2013
03:32 PM ET
Breast-fed babies need Vitamin D supplementsMost new moms aim to breast-feed their babies - a practice encouraged by experts who tout the many health benefits of breast milk. But breast milk is not perfect when it comes to vitamin D. A new study published Tuesday in a special edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association focusing on child health reiterates that breast-fed babies also need a vitamin D supplement. The current recommendations to give babies being fully or partially breast-fed 400 IU, or International Units, of vitamin D each day "is quite satisfactory," said lead study author and registered dietitian Hope Weiler of McGill University in Canada. FULL POST  In an ischemic stroke, a blockage in a blood vessel stops essential oxygen and nutrients from reaching the brain.
April 30th, 2013
01:12 PM ET
Stroke victims don't call 911, delay crucial treatmentDespite public outreach campaigns, a third of all stroke patients don’t call an ambulance to get them to the hospital, leaving them vulnerable to delayed treatment and worse outcomes, according to a new study published in the journal Circulation. The authors analyzed data on more than 204,000 patients, seen at 1,563 U.S. hospitals between 2003 and 2010. Patients who arrived by ambulance were about twice as likely to arrive at a hospital quickly, and were about 50% more likely to receive intravenous TPA – a clot-busting drug – within the recommended three-hour window, when it’s most effective. “Time is the essence,” said Dr. O. James Ekundayo, the study’s lead author and an assistant professor at Meharry Medical College in Nashville. “The earlier to the hospital, the better – the earlier you’re evaluated and given treatment.” FULL POST 
April 23rd, 2013
03:03 PM ET
Would you like 2 hours of exercise with that?You walk into a fast food restaurant and examine the menu. You could get a salad with grilled chicken and dressing on the side. Or you could get a double cheeseburger. Seeing the calories listed next to each item isn't likely to affect your decision, according to a new study being presented at the Experimental Biology 2013 meeting this week. But seeing the amount of time it would take you to work those calories off at the gym just might. The study Researchers at Texas Christian University asked 300 men and women aged 18 to 30 years to purchase food from one of three fast food menus. All of the menus contained the same options, including burgers, chicken tenders, salad, French fries and desserts. One group's menu had no labels of any kind. The second group's menu was labeled with the total calories in each item. The third group's menu was labeled with the number of minutes of brisk walking it would take someone to burn off the calories in the meal. 
April 22nd, 2013
12:05 AM ET
Pushing kids to eat may cause obesity laterWhile growing up, many children may have heard "clean your plate" or been denied candy. But how do parental attitudes toward food affect a child's weight? Denying certain foods to children or pressuring them to eat every bit of a meal are common practices among many parents. But researchers at the University of Minnesota found parents who restricted foods were more likely to have overweight or obese children. And while those who pressured children to eat all of their meals mostly had children of normal weight, it adversely affected the way those children ate as they grew older, according to the study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics. FULL POST |
  About this blog
Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love. Recent Comments
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