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2 Million Fisher-Price Infant Swings Recalled After 5 Deaths
The Fisher-Price company is recalling more than 2 million of its Snuga infant swings, after the suffocation and deaths of five infants who went to sleep while in the swings.
“The swing should never be used for sleep and bedding materials should never be added to it,” according to an alert from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), which announced the recall.
“If the product is used for sleep or bedding material is added, the headrest and body support insert on the seat pad can increase the risk of suffocation,” the agency explained.
The CPSC’s advice to parents who already have one of the Snuga infant swings at home: “Consumers should immediately remove both the headrest (by cutting the tether) and the body support insert from the seat pad before continuing to use the swing for awake-time activities.”
A full list of the 21 recalled Fisher-Price infant swing models, with photos, can be found at the CPSC.
Maternal Exercise During Pregnancy May Protect Child Against Asthma
A child’s risk of asthma can be reduced by nearly half if the mother engages in active physical exercise at least three times a week during pregnancy, compared to a child of a mother who is less active, a new study by the University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio University Hospital and the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare shows.
The researchers utilized data from nearly 1,000 mother-child pairs in the Kuopio Birth Cohort study, KuBiCo, followed from pregnancy until the child was 7 years old.
Maternal exercise during pregnancy is known to have positive effects on the health of both the mother and the child. In a previous study, maternal exercise during pregnancy was also associated with strengthened newborn lung function.
“This is the first time we are observing an association between maternal exercise and the development of asthma in the child,” says Doctoral Researcher Emma-Reetta Musakka, BM, MSc, of the University of Eastern Finland.
Researcher Discusses Companion Animals’ Impact on Child Development
Professor Carri Westgarth, Chair in Human and Animal Interaction, University of Liverpool is an author of a recently published article in BMC Pediatrics on companion animals and child development outcomes.
We designed the study to assess the association between pet ownership and developmental outcomes in children such as emotional health, behavioral and cognitive development, language skills and educational attainment.
Our study was designed to address gaps in our understanding of the impact of social relationships on childhood and adolescent health and well-being as previous studies have mainly focused on interactions between humans. We had an opportunity to build on the growing research into HAI and the impact of pet ownership, specifically adjusting for many potential confounders — where previous research has been limited.
Language development: We looked at a range of communication scores to assess language acquisition and development. One finding was that children with pets had a higher comprehension score at age five. This could suggest that owning animals may stimulate communication and vocabulary building within the home.
Our findings support previous observations that owning animals may facilitate language acquisition and the presence of dogs has also been shown to influence reading ability in school-age children.
Prosocial behavior: Owning a dog or “other type of pet” (such as small furries or fish) was associated with improved positive social behaviors at age three, such as sharing, co-operating and considering others.
The Digital Hustle Is Hurting Our Teens | Opinion
America’s youth are facing a mental health crisis unlike any we’ve seen before — one that’s not just fueled by academic stress or peer pressure, but also amplified by an increasingly complex and demanding digital landscape.
From social media algorithms that capture their attention to a culture of pressure that can leave them feeling like they’re never enough, our kids are being pulled in endless directions. The cost? Their mental health.
A new study by the Center for Digital Thriving at Harvard Graduate School of Education, Indiana University, and Common Sense Media paints a sobering picture. More than a quarter of American teens are struggling with burnout — a term once reserved for overworked professionals. Today, it’s a reality for millions of kids who are just trying to balance school, friendships, parent expectations and their futures.
The warning signs have been there. Last year, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued an advisory on youth mental health that detailed the academic, financial, and societal pressures that teens face, which has contributed to a pervasive sense of loneliness. In fact, most teens today feel more disconnected from their peers than they did 20 years ago.
CDC Confirms Link Between Teen Social Media Use and Mental Health Struggles
Social media has been a part of Americans’ lives for well over a decade and, in part because of its newness, some people argue that there is a dearth of research about its effect on us — particularly its effect on young people.
For the first time ever, the Centers for Disease Control’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey assessed the frequency of social media use among U.S. high school students.
Using that data, the organization drew some conclusions on the relationship between high school students’ social media use and bullying, feelings of hopelessness and suicide risk. The findings show that most students use social media frequently and it significantly affects their mental health.
