Study Highlights Costs of Not Breast-Feeding
A new study finds that poor adherence to breast-feeding guidelines causes close to 900 child deaths in the U.S. each year, the Associated Press reports. They estimate that the nation incurs $13 billion in healthcare costs as a result. Experts advise women to breast-feed infants exclusively for six months, but only 12 percent of mothers do so, according to the findings. Lead author Melissa Bartick of Harvard Medical School told the AP that breast-feeding's health benefits are underappreciated. Breast milk may prevent infections as well as asthma and sudden infant death syndrome, among other conditions. The study is published in the journal Pediatrics.
[Read Many Women Quit Breast-Feeding Early and Breast-Feeding Lowers Breast Cancer Risk for Some.]
Teenage Turmoil? Not So Much, Says Author of 'Teen 2.0'
Are teenagers obsolete? That's the provocative question raised by Robert Epstein, a psychologist in San Diego whose new book, Teen 2.0, challenges the presumption that teenagers are immature and irresponsible. U.S. News contributor Nancy Shute asks Epstein, a father of six and former editor of Psychology Today, how his research changed how he raises his own children.
He told Shute that parents can do a lot to bring out the adult in their teenager. For one, parents have to stop calling their offspring "kids," or "boys" and "girls," once they are past puberty, Epstein says. They are young adults. It's a matter of respect. Parents can also give teenagers real responsibility that is meaningful to them as adults. In other cultures they'd almost be married, and they'd be working side-by-side with adults. Finally, Epstein says, don't be an adversary. If your daughter tells you she's so in love with some guy, the moment you say "Don't go near him, he's bad for you," you drive the life of your teen underground. You create a gap you may never close. Instead be a guide, bringing your teen as fast as you can up into the adult world. I'm not talking about being a buddy. And that doesn't mean you can't penalize or punish them. Read more.
[Read How to Deploy the Amazing Power of the Teen Brain and 3 Ways to Help Teenagers Get More, Better Sleep.]
Keeping Your Child Safe in the Hospital: Avoiding Medical Errors
Hospital officials say that a heparin overdose may have contributed to a 23-month-old's death last week, the Associated Press reports. Following multiple transplants in late 2009, the Texas girl was readmitted to The Nebraska Medical Center for an infection where she received the blood thinner.
In every 15 hospital visits, one child is harmed by a medication error, according to a 2008 study by the National Initiative for Children's Health Care Quality. Research shows that keeping a close eye on care and questioning decisions that don't seem quite right really do reduce the risk of dangerous medical errors. Last year, U.S. News offered tips for parents on how to avoid medical errors—medication errors being the most common medical mistake. When your child is given medicine, check to make sure that it's the medicine that was prescribed and that the dosage and frequency are correct. Never assume it must be right just because medical professionals are administering it. Read more.
[Search America's Best Children's Hospitals. Read Your Child Needs the Hospital? 12 Tips for Parents and Preparing Kids—and Yourself—for Their Hospital Visit: 11 Tips.]
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