Stamford Pediatrics Associates

Research looks at prevalence of choking game play in youths

admin — Fri, 18 May 2012 12:33:38 +0000

More than 6% of almost 5,400 eighth-graders in Oregon said they have participated in the choking game at least once and 64% of those had done it more than once, according to a study in the journal Pediatrics. Researchers also reported that boys and girls were about equally likely to have tried the game.

4 States Report Pertussis Outbreak

admin — Fri, 11 May 2012 17:33:32 +0000

Public health officials in Northern California, Oregon, Vermont and Washington state are reporting increasing rates of whooping cough. The cases are due in part to children not being vaccinated and adults not receiving boosters. New England Cable News (Boston)/NBC News

More middle schoolers are exposed to dating violence

admin — Fri, 04 May 2012 13:24:59 +0000

Data on more than 1,400 seventh-graders in a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation program showed than 37% of them were victims of psychological dating violence and 15% were physical dating-violence victims. The survey also found 49% reported having been a victim of sexual harassment in the past six months. Almost 75% of the respondents said they “sometimes or often” talk with their parents about dating and relationships.

Measles Cases Reach Highest Level in 15 years

admin — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 13:50:49 +0000

The number of measles cases in the U.S. in 2011 more than tripled from the approximately 60 cases per year between 2001 and 2010, to 222 cases in 31 states, a CDC report found. Of these cases, 200 involved patients who caught the virus overseas or from someone who traveled abroad. The surge of measles cases was largely attributed to people who didn’t receive the MMR vaccine, mostly children and teens who were exempted from vaccination requirements in school, researchers wrote in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Survey highlights parental influence on youth drinking behavior

admin — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:15:19 +0000

A Century Council survey showed that the number of youths who considered parents as the leading influence in their drinking behavior increased by 28% from 2003. The data show 83% of youths rank parents as the main influence on their decision to not drink, while 33% cited friends/peers and teachers.

Many preschoolers don’t get daily outdoor playtime

admin — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 12:11:47 +0000

Nearly half of 9,000 preschoolers in the U.S. are not taken outside daily to play, according to a study in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. Researchers noted that mothers are more likely than fathers to take their children outside and that preschool boys had more opportunities for outdoor recreation than did girls.

Babies May Be Smarter Than You Think

admin — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 12:47:15 +0000

Researchers examined babies’ responses to pictures and phrases and found that 6- to 9-month-olds looked more frequently at the picture named by their parents than at other images. They reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science that the performance of 8- to 9-month-old babies was similar to the 6- to 7-month-old babies.

U.S. leads developed countries in teen pregnancy rate

admin — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 13:33:36 +0000

The teen pregnancy rate in the United States remains the highest of any developed country, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with about 400,000 teens ages 15 to 19 giving birth each year between 2004 and 2008.

High fruit sugar consumption may put adolescents at heart risk

admin — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 13:20:21 +0000

Researchers have found evidence of cardiovascular disease and diabetes risk in the blood of adolescents who consume a lot of fructose, or fruit sugar.

Puzzles boost learning math-related skills

admin — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 15:31:50 +0000

Children who played with puzzles between 26 and 46 months of age had better spatial skills at 54 months, according to a study in the journal Developmental Science. Although puzzle play improved both boys and girls’ spatial skills, researchers found that boys had a tendency to play with more complex puzzles than girls. United Press International (2/16)