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Topical Issues

Kids Don't Get Enough Playtime with Parents

Are you the parent of a preschooler? Do you struggle to prioritize work, play, discipline, chores, bedtime, meals, tantrums, and more? Does outdoor play time often get left off the list? Findings of a Seattle-based research team suggest that you’re not alone: Only half of preschool age children in the United States spend at least an hour playing outside with a parent every day.

Excess Vitamin D Linked to Heart Problems

Vitamin D levels higher than the low end of normal do not provide any benefits and may actually increase the risk of heart attack and other heart problems, according to new research from a Johns Hopkins University research team.

Resolve to Skip the New Year's Resolutions this Year

Are you among the thousands of people pledging to lose thirty pounds, quit smoking, eat healthier, run a marathon, save money, go back to school, or any of the thousands of other pledges people make to themselves every January 1? Do your resolutions usually last much longer than January 15?

Choose the Right Children's Toys this Holiday Season

With Christmas right around the corner, many procrastinating parents, aunts, uncles, grandmas, and grandpas are madly scrambling to find last-minute gifts for the kids on their holiday gift lists. Should you choose educational toys? Video games? Electronic gadgets? Old-fashioned toys? If you’re one of those procrastinating parents, don’t despair. Here are some guidelines for choosing the right toys this holiday season.

Ten Holiday Gifts for Family Caregivers

Is there a caregiver on your holiday gift list this year? If so, you’re not alone. With an estimated 65 million informal and family caregivers in the United States, representing about 29 percent of the U.S. population, there are plenty of caregivers out there who need some caring themselves this holiday season.

Kids Drink Just as Much Soda when Sugar-Sweetened Drinks are Banned in Schools

Kids drink as many or more sugary drinks when schools ban only soda – and not other sugar-sweetened beverages – as in schools that do nothing to decrease children’s access to high-calorie beverages. Even more discouraging, comprehensive policies banning sugar-sweetened beverages such as soda in school are only slightly more effective. Schools that ban all beverages with caloric sweeteners – including soda (sometimes referred to as soft drinks or pop), sweetened tea, sport drinks, energy drinks, juice and juice beverages, and others – reduce kids’ access to the drinks during school hours.

Your Guide to a Safe and Healthy Halloween

Halloween is the night of costumes and jack o’ lanterns, scarecrows and goblins, candy and stomach-aches. Yet far too often, it is also a night of tragedy.

Flu Vaccine Could Have Prevented Many Children's Deaths Last Year

Influenza and its complications killed 115 children and teens in the United States during 2010-2011, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported on September 16. Many of those deaths could have been prevented if the children had been vaccinated against the flu, the CDC said in a separate press release.

Every Five Days, A Child Drowns in a Portable Swimming Pool

Every five days during the summer months, a child drowns in a portable, above-ground swimming pool. These findings from a retrospective study published online June 20 in the journal Pediatrics, suggest that portable swimming pools are more dangerous than most parents realize.

Women who Sleep Less May Live Longer and Have Fewer Strokes

New research suggests that women who sleep less may live longer than their well-rested counterparts – and as an added bonus, reduce their risk of stroke.

A Soda a Day Invites Diabetes to Stay

Study shows people who drank one sugary beverage per day were 25 percent more likely to develop type-2 diabetes, and 20 percent more likely to develop metabolic syndrome than were to people who drank one or fewer beverages per month.

New American Heart Association CPR Guidelines: Call a C-A-B

On Monday, October 18, the American Heart Association (AHA) released new guidelines for performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Secondhand Smoke Harms Genes in the Lungs

Being exposed to secondhand smoke may harm genes in the lining of the lungs. These genetic changes may increase the risk of developing lung diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Acetaminophen (Tylenol) Linked to Asthma in Teens

Teens who regularly use the popular over-the-counter drug acetaminophen (brand name Tylenol) may be more than twice as likely to develop asthma as those who don’t.