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Having pets helps protect infants against allergies

Having siblings, keeping a pet, or living on a farm helps protect infants against the development of atopic (allergic) diseases, but early infections increase the risk, according to new research from Denmark. This study will be available on bmj.com on Friday 30 May 2004.

29 Apr 2004

Millions of poor and minority children in America's cities likely will suffer higher rates of asthma

Millions of poor and minority children in America's cities likely will suffer even higher rates of asthma as the result of a "powerful one-two punch" of higher levels of pollen and changes in the types of molds spurred by global warming, along with unhealthy urban air masses caused by the burning of fossil fuel by cars, trucks and buses, according to a warning issued today by Harvard researchers and the American Public Health Association (APHA).

29 Apr 2004

Pediatric thyroid cancer is most common amongs teenage girls

Thyroid carcinoma is the third most common tumor malignancy in children. This pediatric cancer shares several characteristics with adult thyroid cancer patients including common cellular subtypes that are papillary, follicular and medullary; a female to male ratio is approximately 6:1; and a cervical nodal disease that can be observed at the time of presentation in 30-60 percent in both papillary and follicular malignancies.

29 Apr 2004

88 percent of children who drown are under the supervision of another person

New research revealed today by the National SAFE KIDS Campaign and Johnson & Johnson shows that 88 percent of children who drowned were under the supervision of another person, usually a family member. Supervision was defined as being in the care of another individual, not necessarily in their direct line of sight.

28 Apr 2004

Russia's housing conditions linked to high rates of asthma amongst children

Scientists from the University of Birmingham, UK, have worked with the Harvard School of Public Health and universities in Russia to look for the first time at environmental factors causing breathing problems in Russian children.

28 Apr 2004

Children don't understand physical activity and health messages

Parents who want their children to be fit and active should be encouraging them to go out and play rather than telling them to exercise, a study of more than 200 children aged 4-12 years shows.

28 Apr 2004

Researchers to create tool for diagnosing children with apraxia of speech

A new National Institutes of Health grant will enable Oregon Health & Science University researchers to create a tool for diagnosing children with apraxia of speech -- a neurologically based speech motor disorder.

27 Apr 2004

How big should your child be?

Each time you take your child to an annual checkup, most likely the first thing the doctor or nurse does is record your child's current height and weight. The two numbers are then plotted on separate gender-specific graphs to indicate what percentile your child falls into.

27 Apr 2004

Indiana promotes National Infant Immunization Week

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that each day 11,000 babies are born in the United States who will need to be immunized against 12 serious diseases before the age of two years.

26 Apr 2004

Learn to control your child's asthma with new book from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

While asthma can’t be cured, it can be treated and controlled so that your child can enjoy a healthier, more active life. In this important guide, Children's Hospital experts clearly explain what asthma is and how parents, caregivers and young patients can manage it successfully.

26 Apr 2004

Focusing on soft drinks is the next logical step in the war against pediatric obesity

According to a year-long study of 644 children aged between 7 and 11 in six primary schools in Christchurch, England – outlined this week on the website of the British Medical Journal – a one-year campaign to curb soft drink intake led to a decrease in the percentage of those children who were overweight or obese.

23 Apr 2004

Avoid feeding infants fluoridated water, researchers caution

Infant formulas prepared with fluoridated water increase dental fluorosis risk, according to the April 2004 Journal of the American College of Nutrition(1) and other studies. To prevent this tooth staining, researchers caution against mixing infant formulas with fluoridated water.

23 Apr 2004

Fizzy drinks cause obesity in children

Discouraging children from drinking fizzy drinks can prevent excessive weight gain, according to new research available on bmj.com.

22 Apr 2004

Expert calls for standard epinephrine doses when treating children in cardiac arrest

Medical personnel attempting to resuscitate a child in cardiac arrest should abide by epinephrine dosing levels outlined in the Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) guidelines rather than giving larger amounts of the drug, says a nationally recognized pediatrician from UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.

22 Apr 2004

Supplements help prevent cavities in children where water quality and fluoride content is poor

Primary care clinicians who practice in areas where the water supply is deficient in fluoride should prescribe oral fluoride supplements to preschool children over the age of 6 months, according to a recommendation from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.

22 Apr 2004

Prediction of adult diseases in infancy

A new way of predicting which young children are most at risk of eventually contracting diabetes and heart disease in adult life is being developed by researchers at Cambridge University - with help from Bristol’s Children of the 90s.

22 Apr 2004

Common anemia drug may protect hearts of infants undergoing surgical repair of congenital defects

Medical College of Wisconsin researchers may have promising news for the many infants who are born with a congenital heart defect serious enough to require surgery before their first birthday.

21 Apr 2004

Soy infant formula recalled

The Food Standards Agency today warned that small fragments of metal have been found in some tins of SMA Wysoy milk formula powder.

21 Apr 2004

New book to examine the many issues of child maltreatment

A book to be launched tomorrow examines the many issues surrounding the social problem of child maltreatment and the response to it – child protection.

21 Apr 2004

Daycare and siblings increase likelihood of contracting respiratory syncytial virus and rhinovirus

Daycare attendance and siblings are associated with viral-induced wheezing in children. Pre-existing immunologic factors may influence the expression of viral infections in infancy, and in turn, recurrent infections may influence the development of immune responses.

17 Apr 2004