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A decade of neglect has weakened UNICEF and threatened the future of child survival

As a high-level forum assessing the progress on global health in relation to the millennium development goals concludes its meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, today, the rhetoric of success repeated by those charged with ending the needless deaths of millions of the world's children masks their own deep-seated failure to grapple with critical institutional weaknesses in their own ranks.

4 Dec 2004

Landmines are a deadly attraction for children

Saying that landmines are a deadly attraction for children, UNICEF has called for all countries that care about children to stop producing landmines.

3 Dec 2004

Tougher action needed to stop cigarette sales to children

Retailers should be licensed to sell cigarettes, and the licence revoked if they are caught selling tobacco to children, the Australian Medical Association (WA) said today.

29 Nov 2004

British parents admit responsibility lies with them to tackle childhood obesity

More than 80% of parents say that they intend to be more accountable for their child's weight and four in five believe that measures set out in the Government's White Paper last week would go a long way to help them combat obesity in their children.

29 Nov 2004

Parents are failing to recognise obesity

Researchers surveyed the parents of 277 children and found that only a quarter recognised when their offspring were overweight. Where children were obese, a third of mothers and 57% of fathers thought their sons and daughters were "about right".

29 Nov 2004

Parents are not happy about television food advertising directed at their children

Responses from parents of school aged children found that while parents were sceptical about claims made by food advertising, they considered it to exert a strong influence on their children.

24 Nov 2004

Weight gain beginning in childhood can lead to an enlarged heart

Weight gain beginning in childhood can lead to an enlarged heart by early adulthood, researchers reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

24 Nov 2004

Stress quadruples the risk of an asthma attack in children

Stress quadruples the risk of an asthma attack in children, and gives them a double bout of acute symptoms within 48 hours and around six weeks later, finds a small study in Thorax.

24 Nov 2004

Covering up reduces exposure to cancer-causing ultraviolet radiation, according to a systematic review of evidence

Educating children in primary school and adults at the beach about the benefits of wearing sun-protective hats and clothing can effectively motivate them to cover up and reduce their exposure to cancer-causing ultraviolet radiation, according to a systematic review of evidence.

23 Nov 2004

Premature infants with lung disease may continue to require replacement substance to ease breathing

Physicians have known for decades that many premature babies suffer respiratory problems stemming from insufficiency of a lung substance called surfactant during their first few weeks of life.

20 Nov 2004

Smacking legislation is unworkable for doctors

The recent Commons' decision not to outlaw the physical punishment of children means that the law will offer its most vulnerable citizens (children) less protection from assault than is offered to adults, says an editorial in this week's BMJ.

18 Nov 2004

Children get their dose of violence from nursery rhymes, not TV

The amount of violence depicted in children's nursery rhymes is 10 times greater than what is broadcast on British television before 9pm, suggests a study in the Archives of Disease in Childhood.

17 Nov 2004

Dummies increase likelihood of crooked teeth

Babies who are given pacifiers/dummies and bottle fed are twice as likely to have misaligned milk or "baby" teeth as babies who are breastfed, suggests research in Archives of Disease in Childhood.

17 Nov 2004

Children throughout the world are increasingly being prescribed antidepressants

Children throughout the world are increasingly being prescribed antidepressants and other drugs designed to calm or stimulate the brain, finds research in Archives of Disease in Childhood. Prescription rates increased the most in the UK, the research suggests.

17 Nov 2004

Early infection in low-birth-weight infants linked with poor neurodevelopmental

Extremely low-birth-weight (ELBW) infants who have an infection during their hospitalization following birth are more likely to have adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes than those infants who do not have an infection, according to a study in the November 17 issue of JAMA.

17 Nov 2004

Prenatal alcohol exposure has effects far beyond fetal alcohol syndrome

Numerous studies have documented IQ deficits in children with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). Little research, however, has found IQ deficits in children with alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder (ARND), who generally exhibit less severe neurobehavioral deficits than children with FAS.

14 Nov 2004

Scientists and clinicians are pioneering the diagnosis and treatment of children's brain tumours

The University of Birmingham, England, is working with Birmingham Children's Hospital to use high-tech science to make a difference to children's lives.

11 Nov 2004

Kids who outgrow peanut allergy need to eat peanut products at least once a month in order to maintain tolerance

Kids who outgrow peanut allergy have a slight chance of recurrence, but researchers from the Johns Hopkins Children's Center report that the risk is much lower in children who frequently eat peanuts or peanut products.

11 Nov 2004

All newborn babies in South Australia are to get access to comprehensive hearing testing in the first few weeks of their lives

All newborn babies in South Australia are to get access to comprehensive hearing testing in the first few weeks of their lives.

8 Nov 2004

Treatment sometimes absent for children of mothers with mental illness

Children who have a mother diagnosed with a mental illness are at risk of psychiatric and behavioral problems, yet these children often fail to receive needed services, a new University of Michigan study indicates.

2 Nov 2004