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Acetaminophen (paracetamol) Use, Measles-mumps-rubella Vaccination, and Autistic Disorder: The Results of a Parent Survey

Link: Acetaminophen

The present study was performed to determine whether acetaminophen (paracetamol) use after the measles-mumps-rubella vaccination could be associated with autistic disorder. This case-control study used the results of an online parental survey conducted from 16 July 2005 to 30 January 2006, consisting of 83 children with autistic disorder and 80 control children.

Study Shows Breast-fed Babies Do Better On IQ Tests

Link: IQ

Babies who were exclusively breast-fed scored higher on intelligence tests than did infants who drank formula. The study in Belarus of 14,000 babies over six years found those in a group in which mothers were encouraged to breast-feed longer and did not mix in formula scored about 5% higher in IQ tests and performed better academically.

About 14% of U.S. Adoptees Develop Behavioral Problems

Link: Adoption

Adopted children are twice as likely to be diagnosed with behavioral or emotional problems, possibly due to poor prenatal care or birth parents' genetics, according to a new University of Minnesota study. "The deleterious effects may quite possibly have come before the adoption ever took place," said lead researcher Margaret Keyes.

Parents with Psychiatric Problems Double Child's Risk of Autism

Link: Autism

A study examining the health histories of parents of more than 32,000 Swedish children found a significant new genetic component, according to a study published in the journal Pediatrics. "Our research shows that mothers and fathers diagnosed with schizophrenia were about twice as likely to have a child diagnosed with autism," said Julie Daniels of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. "We also saw higher rates of depression and personality disorders among mothers, but not fathers."

Preterm Babies at Higher Risk for Birth Defects

Link: Preterm

Researchers tracking some 7 million babies born in 13 U.S. states between 1995 to 2000 found premature infants are more than twice as likely to have a major birth defect compared to full-term babies. They also found very premature babies, born from 24 to 31 weeks gestation, had a fivefold increased risk of a birth defect, with the most common being central nervous system problems and cardiovascular defects.

Mom's Stress Can Predispose Baby to Allergies, Asthma

Link: Stress

Harvard researchers report pregnant women who are stressed about money or relationships have a higher risk of giving birth to babies predisposed to allergies and asthma. Infants of women with high levels of stress during pregnancy had higher levels of immunoglobulin E -- an immune system compound -- even if they had low exposure to allergens during pregnancy, the study found.

Eliminating Some, But Not All, Vaccinations May Ease Parents Fears

Link: Vaccinations

As more parents express concerns about childhood vaccines, more pediatricians are being flexible by offering alternative schedules in an effort to allay some fears. "It shouldn't be my way or the highway," said Dr. Kenneth Bock, a clinical family-medicine instructor at New York's Albany Medical College. "We can't say one size fits all. One size doesn't fit all."

Parenting Tip of the Week: Supporting Children with Learning Disabilities

Link: Learning Disabilities

This parenting column discusses ways to support your child, including understanding their disability, finding their strengths, and identifying ways to work with the disability.

Cincinnati.com: Love for child turns into business

Link: The Community Press

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That's what this first line looks like if you suffer from dyslexia.

It was this suffering that caused Shelley Dannenberg to leave her teaching job and go full time into helping those suffering from dyslexia overcome the neurological malady.

Dannenberg is the founder of Dyslexia Testing and Information Services.

AL.com: Parents of children with slow development say Early Intervention program a godsend

Link: AL.com - Everything Alabama

There was a time when Nikko Holloway's 22-month-old daughter couldn't crawl like other children her age. She didn't speak. She couldn't stand or sit. But thanks to a round of therapies paid for through the state's Early Intervention program, which provides free care to children not developing normally, the Mobile girl can move on her own and is trying to walk. "And now she's making sounds, and getting words out," her mother said. "She can identify pictures she didn't know at all." Holloway and other parents praised the work that therapists do with the children, but some are worried about proposed cuts to the program.