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Strollerderby
You've got more than just groceries in your cart
When I pop my two-year-old in the front of a shopping cart at the grocery store I do feel a little squeamish. I’m also known to run slightly anxious in this way, though — with personal rules like never make skin contact with hotel duvets.
But a study by researchers at the University of Arizona now tells me that my germ-a-phob radar is spot on: the scientists took swabs from store carts in four states and found that 72 percent had a marker for fecal bacteria. E-coli was found on 50 percent of the carts, along with a host of other bugs.
As msnbc reported, “That’s more than you find in a supermarket’s restroom,” according to Charles Gerba, the lead researcher on the study and a professor of microbiology at the University of Arizona. “That’s because they use disinfecting cleaners in the restrooms. Nobody routinely cleans and disinfects shopping carts.”
And kids who ride in carts have been found to get sick more often with bacteria like salmonella and campylobacter.
So is this something we should worry about? Besides the yuck factor, are our little shopping cart riders at risk? Continue reading »
Today's nurser, tomorrow's future Olympic weight-lifter?
A new study appears to have found yet another marvelous benefit of breastfeeding: a great set of gams.
(For the future teen, not the nursing mom, alas.)
Among the kids in the study, who were between 12 and 17 years old, those who nursed as newborns until at least three months had more lower-body strength than their formula-fed or early-weaned counterparts.
Unlike another recently published study that concluded breastfeeding benefits boys but not really girls, this one concludes breast is best for feminine legs, too.
Are child vegetarians on the rise?
There is debate over a study earlier this year put out by the Vegetarian Resource Group that claims that more kids are opting for a vegetarian lifestyle.
According to the group’s nutrition advisor, Reed Mangels, children are increasingly saying no to eating meat. Mangels says that vegetarianism “is definitely a more mainstream choice than ever before.”
The organization’s nationwide survey found that 3 percent 8- to 18-year-olds never eat meat, poultry or seafood, which would account for an estimated 1.4 million young vegetarians. Out of that number, Mangels claims that two-thirds of those kids are vegans, who never consume dairy or eggs.
Not so fast, says Greg Henderson, Editor of Drovers/Cattlenetwork who believes that the statistics are skewed.
A new study links A students to better health as they age
As if high school students weren’t under enough pressure in high school to excel so they could get into college, a new study published in the December issue of the Journal of Health and Social Behavior suggests a correlation between grades and health later in life.
The study shows that the higher a person’s class rank, the less likely they were in their early 60s to report chronic conditions and more likely to claim excellent or very good health, reports Time magazine.
The professor who ran the study admits to not being 100 percent clear why the link exists, but hypothesizes that good students are just as conscientious about their health as their studies, and that things like self-discipline required to study also works in avoiding vices like tobacco.
How parents will choose to interpret the study is another matter. Knowing good grades can affect future good health is important to know, but should kids study more now in lieu of more exercise, which affects their current health? And will a student with all Bs on their report card who also exercises really fare that much worse at the doctor’s office later in life than a straight A student who eschews exercise?
Daycare Germs May Be a Good Thing
It’s generally assumed that kids in daycare get sick more than other kids their age. A new study confirms the anecdotal evidence, but it also shows that all of those germs may help build up immunity against future colds and infections.
The study, published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, found a higher illness rate predominantly in children who are placed before age 2-1/2 in child-care centers with relatively large groups of 8 to 12 children. Compared with children who were at home, these kids had more respiratory and ear inflections during early preschool and the same risk of infection between ages 3-1/2 and 4-1/2, based on the eight-year study of 1,238 families with newborns in 1998. But here’s the catch: these kids also had lower rates of infection between ages 5 and 8.
The research “provides reassuring evidence for parents that their choices regarding child care shouldn’t have a major effect” on their kids’ long-term health, says Sylvana M. Cote of Ste-Justine Hospital and the University of Montreal, Quebec., who led the study. Continue reading »
Will lifting weights stunt her growth? No!
When I think of fit kids and youth sports, I think of games like tag or sports like soccer. I think organized teams or free play at recess. What I don’t think of is gyms, barbells and resistance training. I don’t think of kids lifting weights.
Most people don’t, it turns out. And there’s been a long-standing reluctance to allow kids to lift weights, the received wisdom being that it would cause injuries at best and stunt their growth at worst. The former is a reasonable risk but the latter? A new study says it’s totally unfounded.
In fact, the latest issue of the journal of Pediatrics, researchers have found weight-training to be beneficial, even for kids as young as 6. (Six!)
Gretchen Reynolds writes about the findings over at the Well blog on The New York Times. In addition to finding zero evidence of stunted growth, some of the other assumed drawbacks of weight training weren’t found. Kids through their teens rarely “bulk up” when in a weight training program. But, indeed, those in the study increased their strength. Also, girls increased their strength just as much as boys, even during the super testosterone-charged adolescent years. Even Kindergarteners, who lifted dowel rods with balloons (balloons, for goodness sake!) increased their muscle strength. Continue reading »
Talk about Puberty
My Strollerderby colleague, psychotherapist and science writer Heather Turgeon recently wrote an excellent story about why 7- and 8-year-old girls are entering puberty.
As Turgeon points out, there have recently been a slew of studies detailing possible reasons for early onset puberty — the obesity epidemic seems largely to blame.
But various studies have suggested that other factors include: absent fathers, divorce, a high-meat diet, family stress, and exposure to bisphenol-A (BPA) and phthalates.
Turgeon concludes that “the most likely culprit of precocious puberty is the obesity epidemic.” She cites the fact that overweight girls are 50 percent more likely to enter puberty early. Obese girls have an 80 percent chance of developing breasts before they turn nine.
So what can parents do to prevent early puberty?
In a post on Girlology (from the authors of Girlology: There’s Something New About You), Melisa writes that there are many things we can do to help our daughters. Here are just 5 of Melisa’s suggestions:
1. Avoid cosmetic products with chemicals in them.
2. Battle obesity through healthy eating and exercise.
3. Serve hormone-free, antibiotic free food whenever possible.
4. Limit exposure to media – especially highly sexualized content.
5. Help your daughter understand puberty (whenever it begins) and create an open line of communication.
Are you concerned about early puberty in girls?
More posts:
Will Formula Recall Fuel Breastfeeding Wars?
Schools Are “Waiting for Superman”
Breastfeeding Moms Boycott Old Navy
Dad Threatens Bullies. What Would You Do?
Six-year-old Cheerleader Cut from Team Due to Lewd Cheer
100 Best Companies for Working Mothers
5 Ways to Unspoil Your Child Fast
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