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Ultra-Processed Foods Linked to Brain Differences in Young Children
Greater consumption of ultra-processed foods in early childhood is associated with lower volumes of several brain regions by age 6, according to new research led by Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
The study, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that a 10% higher cumulative intake of these foods was associated with a nearly 2% lower volume of subcortical brain structures, including the accumbens, amygdala, pallidum, putamen, and thalamus — which are involved in functions such as reward processing, emotion, and motivation.
The study did not find a link between ultra-processed food consumption and cognitive performance. The research was led by first author Jonatan Ottino-González, PhD, and senior author Michael I. Goran, PhD, and supported by the National Institutes of Health.
“Our findings suggest that what children eat early in life may shape brain development in ways we’re just beginning to understand,” says Dr. Goran, Director of the Nutrition and Obesity Program in The Saban Research Institute at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. “Even without differences in cognitive performance, we’re seeing measurable changes in brain structure.”
When Diets Don’t Work: Parents Turn to Wegovy for Elementary School Kids
The Wall Street Journal reported:
Ayden Gatlin-Wright lay down on the living room sofa and pulled up his shirt to expose his stomach to get an injection of a weight-loss drug. “Ow,” Ayden yelped, cartoons playing in the background. He is 9 years old. Ayden and twin brother Kayden are part of a growing epidemic of childhood obesity.
Traditional weight-loss methods don’t work well for many children, particularly those with severe obesity. Now, even elementary schoolers are being put on popular weight-loss drugs such as Wegovy. By prescribing GLP-1 medications early, doctors say they aim to prevent lifelong obesity and complications such as Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, which are showing up in teens and even younger children.
These drugs aren’t yet approved for obesity in patients this young. And without further studies, it isn’t certain that young children can safely use the medications for weight loss without compromising a critical period of growth for their bones and brain.
U.S. House Passes Youth Online Safety Legislation
The U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation on Monday that would require online platforms to provide some safeguards for children, setting up a potential clash with the Senate where lawmakers support more stringent standards. Congress has taken increasing interest in preventing harm to youth online, as social media companies have faced a backlash.
The House passed the Kids Internet and Digital Safety Act in a 267-117 vote with support from both Democrats and Republicans. The legislation would require companies to offer ways for kids to limit addictive features and put in place policies to protect children from some harms including sexual exploitation.
The bill is the House’s first attempt to regulate online child safety since the Senate passed the Kids Online Safety Act in a 91-3 vote in 2024. The Senate bill would impose a “duty of care” on social media companies when it comes to young users. U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn, a Republican from Tennessee, has been negotiating with the White House to gain support for a package that would include the bill.
Kids With Autism Are Prone to Drowning. Florida Is Trying to Prevent That
Mackenzie Wesley sports a big grin and bright blue Lilo & Stitch swim gear as she runs into her weekly swim lessons. It’s fitting, because the 5-year-old has something in common with movie character Lilo: She adores water.
“Whether it’s the pool or beach, she enjoys it fully,” says her dad Steven Wesley.
Mackenzie isn’t alone: Many kids with autism share a natural love for water because it can be sensory bliss — the feeling on their skin, the pressure and the sparkle of the water can all be soothing. Lucky for her, Mackenzie lives here, less than an hour outside of Miami in a state that’s dotted with bodies of water.
But there’s a tragic reality tied to that fact, as Mackenzie’s mom, Brittany Bucknor, is all too aware. “In Florida, there’s water everywhere, and also with kids her age, and also just being on the spectrum, it’s a very — way higher — rate of having an incident of drowning.”
The Parents Movement That Banned Cellphones Has a New Target
First came the cellphone crackdown. Now, parents are trying to bring back paper and pencil to the classroom. Following a successful wave of school cellphone bans across the country, a bipartisan movement to restrict screen time for young children has emerged as the next front in the push to create distraction-free classrooms and tackle youth mental health.
The new battleground is rapidly moving from school board debates into state capitols. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are expanding their focus beyond smartphones in high schools to the ubiquitous presence of tablets and digital learning tools in elementary schools.
Six states — including Alabama, Tennessee, Virginia and Utah — enacted screen time laws this year, and at least 10 others introduced legislation. The Los Angeles Unified School District, which educates nearly half a million children, became the first major school district to mandate limits after the school board voted Tuesday to restrict screen time before second grade.
Why Social Media Destroys Self-Image: Understanding the Real Connection
Almost half of young adults aged 18-34 feel unattractive when scrolling through their social media feeds. This reveals how social media affects self-image. Around 60% feel their achievements don’t match what others post. Adolescents spend an average of 9 hours on social media platforms each day, so this makes sense.
The effects of social media on self image go beyond temporary dissatisfaction. If you have been using social media for more than 2 hours each day, you are more likely to report mental health problems. We’ll discuss how social media disrupts self image through constant comparison and unrealistic standards that create lasting psychological effects.
Platforms invest heavily in features that manipulate visual content. Instagram and Facebook attract 600 million users monthly who apply increased reality filters, while 76% of Snapchat users rely on these tools every day. These filters don’t just add fun accessories. They reshape faces with up-to-the-minute processing and enlarge eyes, plump lips, smooth skin, and create angular jawlines that don’t exist in nature.
This digital manipulation creates what researchers call “selfie dysmorphia.”
Press Notice: Over a Million Children Referred to Mental Health Services, With Highest Annual Referrals as Demand Rises Faster Than Systems Can Respond
Children’s Commissioner for England reported:
Demand for children’s mental health services is rising — and rising faster than in previous years — the Children’s Commissioner has warned, as for the first time more than a million children in England had active referrals to mental health services in England last year — leaving increasing numbers of children waiting for months or years for support.
In her fifth annual report on children’s mental health services, Dame Rachel de Souza sets out how the growing demand for services is placing growing pressure on support for children. New data for 2024-25 shows that 1,048,965 children had an active referral to Children and Young People’s Mental Health Services (CYPMHS) — almost double the number recorded in 2018-19, and almost 10 per cent rise on the previous year.
Today’s report reveals demand for services rose most sharply among children referred for suspected autism, neurodevelopmental conditions and anxiety, with anxiety remaining the most common referral reason to CYPMHS — accounting for 16 percent of overall referrals.
