Prescription opioids taken during pregnancy are not associated with a substantial increase in risk of developmental disorders like ADHD in children, a new study has found.
“A slightly i...
The pandemic caused only “modest” delays in developmental milestones for infants and toddlers, a new study has found.
Previous research has reported that pandemic-related lockdowns disrupted the lives of many people, including families with young children.
Day-...
More than two-thirds of Chicago kids younger than 6 live in homes with tap water tainted by lead, a new analysis says.
There are detectable levels of lead in the drinking w...
Certain drugs used to treat multiple sclerosis appear to be safe for babies if taken by breastfeeding moms, a new study finds.
Breastfed babies whose moms received monoclonal antibody treatments for MS did not develop any more developmental delays than babies not exposed...
Using TVs and tablets as "e-babysitters" really cuts down on the time toddlers spend interacting with parents or other caregivers, new research shows.
The Australian team of investigators are calling the phenomenon "technoference" -- a scenario where "young children's ex...
Children exposed to anesthesia in the womb when their pregnant mom has surgery are more likely to suffer from behavioral issues later, a new study finds.
Exposure to general anesthesia before birth was associated with a 31% increased risk of diagnosis with a behavioral d...
The eyes may have it when it comes to the early diagnosis of autism in children, a new study finds.
Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), have pinpointed a gene that affects how kids' eyes react when they turn their heads.
Typically, pe...
According to the advocacy group Autism Speaks, one in every 36 U.S. children has an autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Early diagnosis is crucial to helping to treat the condition, but how is a diagnosis done?...
Toddlers who are really into their food might have a higher risk of developing an eating disorder once they enter adolescence, a new study shows.
Kids ages 4 and 5 with a strong urge to eat when teased with tasty food appear more likely to report a range of eating disord...
Talking about the “good old days” might elicit eye rolls from teenagers, but it could be the key to boosting a preschooler's language skills, a new study finds.
Reminiscing about past events with preschoolers presents young kids with high-quality speech as good as or...
Television has been wryly referred to as the “electronic babysitter,” but a new study argues TV or other media could stunt a child's language development.
Children plopped in front of videos for hours on end tend to use phrases and sentences with fewer words, researc...
THURSDAY, Feb. 15, 2024 (Health Day News) -- Schools that want little girls to get plenty of exercise might want to rethink their dress code.
A University of Cambridge study of more than 1 million kids in 135 countries found that in countries where most students wear sch...
School districts could be severely underestimating how many kids are homeless in their communities, allowing those children to fall through the cracks, a new study warns.
Schools around the United States report that more than 1.2 million students are homeless every year....
Babies born even slightly early have a higher long-term risk of developmental difficulties that could affect their behavior and learning ability, a new study finds.
Infants born moderately (32-33 weeks) or late preterm (34-36 weeks) are more likely to have epilepsy or pr...
Kindergarten might seem like child's play, but embracing the adventure can play a key role in a kid's future educational success, a new study finds.
A successful early transition to kindergarten -- what the researchers called the “big little leap” -- can put a child ...
Expecting moms who often turn to acetaminophen for their aches and pains are more likely to wind up with kids who have behavioral issues, a new study warns.
Children between the ages of 2 and 4 were more likely to have attention and behavioral problems if their mothers f...
Exposing babies and toddlers to TV and other digital media could be linked to a heightened risk for dysfunction in what's known as "sensory processing," a new study warns.
Kids with "atypical sensory processing" are often hypersensitive to the touch, sound, taste or look...
Ear infections are common for kids, but they can lead to long-term developmental problems, a new study finds.
Temporary hearing loss caused by recurring ear infections can lead to delays in language development and sound processing years later, researchers reported recen...
Paxlovid might help shorten and diminish a COVID infection, but the antiviral doesn't reduce the risk of developing long COVID, a new study shows.
About 16% of COVID patients treated with Paxlovid wound up with long COVID symptoms, compared to 14% of those not given the ...
Acetaminophen, best known as Tylenol in the United States, is a go-to pain med for millions.
However, a new study is raising doubts about its safe use by women who are pregnant.
The researchers found kids born to women who used acetaminophen while pregnant had dela...
The fluid-filled spaces around the brain's blood vessels need proper waste "clearance" every few hours. When that fails to happen, a baby's risk for autism appears to rise, new research shows.
It's too early to say that trouble within these "perivascular" spaces causes a...
Doctors report they are seeing what they think is a new syndrome in babies who are exposed to fentanyl while in the womb.
All of the infants have cleft palates and unusually small heads, and all were born to mothers who said they'd used fentanyl and other drugs while pre...
THURSDAY, Nov. 30, 2023 (Healthday News) -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday that it plans to require the removal of all lead pipes from the country's water systems.
The proposed rule, an ambitious effort that will cost up to $30 billion over t...
University of Louisville researchers say they've developed an artificial intelligence (AI) system with a near-perfect record of diagnosing autism in toddlers.
Using specialized MRI scans of the brain, the tool diagnosed toddlers with 98.5% accuracy, according to findings...
MONDAY, Nov. 20, 2023 (Healthday News) -- Expert advice and self-help books are officially passé: Social media is where nearly all new parents now go for guidance on potty training, sleep issues and toddler tantrums, a new poll shows.
Four in five turn to forums like Ti...
Air pollution could be harming the development of children, reaching into the womb to alter their healthy growth, a new study reports.
Researchers say certain air pollutants appear to negatively alter a specific measure of prenatal exposure to hormones.
“These fi...
An adolescent starts thinking like an adult right around the age of 18, according to new research.
That provides some of the first definitive evidence that executive function matures by that time.
Executive function is a set of mental skills that include the abilit...
Experts have long wondered whether diagnoses for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in the youngest children in a class would hold.
A new study suggests that being the youngest, and possibly most immature, did not appear to make a difference.
“We kno...
Severe inflammation very early in childhood might hamper the development of key brain cells, perhaps setting the stage for conditions such as autism or schizophrenia, new research suggests.
The origins of many neurodevelopment disorders remain mysterious. But the new stu...
Young children who are close to their parents are more likely to grow up to be kind, caring and considerate. These kids may also have fewer mental health problems during early childhood and adolescence, a new study finds.
By contrast, children whose early relationships w...
Not all children diagnosed with autism as toddlers continue to have that diagnosis once they reach elementary school, a new study shows.
While some past research has suggested this could be true, the new research backs that up, finding that a large percentage -- about 37...
As many as 1 in 4 teens with autism may be undiagnosed, new research suggests.
“Autism is much more prevalent than people assume,” said lead researcher Walter Zahorodny
In yet another reminder of the psychic toll the pandemic has taken on young people, new research shows spending on mental health services for U.S. children and adolescents has risen sharply since 2020.
It climbed 26% for youths aged 19 and younger between March 2020 and ...
Exposure to ubiquitous chemicals known as PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, may delay puberty in girls, new research indicates.
The study is the first to consider the role hormones play in the delay, according to researchers from the University of Cincinnati....
What a baby eats, or how the baby eats, may have an impact on future weight and health, research has shown.
A new study backs that up. It found that 9-...
Most parents want to help their kids do well in school, and for dads the answer may be found in something simple and fun.
A new study from the United Kingdom finds that kids do better in elementary school when their fathers regularly spend time interacting with them thro...
Having safer neighborhoods, where families feel less stress, can help prevent child abuse, according to new research that supports this long-suspected theory.
When parents feel higher levels of stress or hopelessness about their surroundings, they may have a harder time ...
Advisors to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will weigh the possibilities and parameters of experiments with artificial wombs for premature human babies.
Scientists have already had some success with the concept in animals.
Low-carb diets may be all the rage, but they're not for kids with diabetes, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
In a new report, the AAP says that low-carbohydrate diets cannot be recommended for children or teenagers with either type 1 or type 2 diabe...
For parents worried about how Disney princesses might impact their child's self-image, a new study is saying, “Let it go.”
“In children's media, about 60% of the characters are men and boys, they're male. And Disney princesses are probably one of the more visible a...
Certain combinations of bacteria found in dust in children's day care settings may have an impact on their young lungs.
Researchers are trying to understand whether attending day care can affect children's lung health. Their aim is to lower the risk of asthma.
“...
So much for the powerful feminist messaging in the new Barbie movie.
Director Greta Gerwig's feminist interpretation of Barbie depicted the fashion dolls as judges, surgeons, naval officers, astronauts and U.S. Presidents in Barbie World, and it resonated. The Barbie mov...
Just like adults, kids face daily stressors.
Luckily, a new study suggests that teaching them creative thinking can help them manage it all.
Researchers found that when school-age children learned some "narrative creativity" techniques -- such as shifting your pers...
Just 1 in 4 children with autism is diagnosed before age 3, but a new eye-tracking technology may allow for earlier diagnosis and intervention, according to three clinical studies of more than 1,500 kids.
Autism is a disorder marked by difficulties with communication and...
A stressful or traumatic childhood experience — anything from parents divorcing to a sibling's drug problem — may have long-term effects on a woman's sexual health.
These adverse childhood experiences may be linked to sexual inactivity and dysfunction in women later ...
Phthalates are commonly used in plastics, and researchers have now tied them to developmental issues in toddler boys who were exposed to the chemical in the womb.
Lots of children and adolescents have the condition known as ADHD, or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
What should parents know? A number of treatments exist to help with functioning, including medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
<...Along with having to deal with the social stigma of having a parent who is incarcerated, young adults in that situation may be more likely to develop signs of heart trouble, a new study finds.
The health impacts of having a parent who spent time in jail have been underst...
Infants born three to six weeks early -- considered late preterm -- are at risk for learning problems, but they can be overcome, researchers say.
Preschool attendance and sensitive parenting can help them bridge the gap academically, a new study shows.
"Our findin...
If your child is acting out and you're looking for solutions, researchers at the University of Georgia's Youth Development Institute suggest better sleep might be the answer.
Getting more hours of slumber could reduce impulsive behavior in kids, their new study showed.