Other stories we’ve been reading:
Read one father’s story on how he became an advocate for safer teen driving. Check out these safe driving tips for your teen. [Read about the dangers of drowsy driving.]
Advertising guilt doesn’t curb binge drinking. Teen alcohol and marijuana use is on the rise. [A recent teen drug survey predicted this.] Young people who smoke marijuana for long periods of time are more likely to risk psychosis. [click to continue…]
Children’s Brian Fligor, ScD, CCC-A, director of diagnostic audiology, is quoted in a recent article by The New York Times about the importance of protecting your children’s hearing.
Hearing loss from exposure to loud noises is cumulative and irreversible; if such exposure starts in infancy, children can live half their lives with hearing loss.
Learn more about the signs of hearing loss in your children and how to care for children with hearing loss.
Actress Geena Davis’s recent speech to the United Nations highlighted a concern that researchers of children and media have been speaking about for many years. The programs on the screens our children view – on television, computers, movie theaters or even their mobile phones – portray a world of gross gender inequality: Girls still appear marginal to society. [click to continue…]
It’s the fastest growing developmental disability in the United States—and in the majority of cases, no one knows what causes it. According to the CDC, the prevalence is now one in 110 kids—an astounding 57 percent increase since 2002.
Despite the lack of concrete answers about autism, which is now seen as a spectrum of neurological disorders, characterized by deficits in social interaction, impaired language, and/or repetitive or restricted behavior, there is a consensus among clinicians that treatment should begin as early in life as possible. (Many experts suggest that there’s a crucial window of plasticity in the child’s developing brain when interventions are most effective.) That’s why getting a diagnosis as early as possible is important. [click to continue…]
Aimee Lyons instructs a mother on how to care for her baby after he leaves the Intensive Care Unit on the Comfort.
When I got the call from Project Hope to go to Haiti, I didn’t think twice. They called me on a Monday and the next day, Tuesday, I was on a plane, heading towards devastation unlike any I’d ever seen. [click to continue…]
Children’s Hospital Boston’s Facebook fan page was recently given the honor of being named one of the “Best Hospital Facebook Pages” in the children’s hospital category by the social media and e-commerce blog Alert Presence.
Here’s what they have to say about Children’s Facebook fan page:
Children’s Hospital Boston has created a Facebook page by which all other hospital pages should be judged. It’s so impressive it inspired a future Alert Presence article, “The Anatomy of a Great Hospital Facebook Page.” The expertly designed profile picture, beautifully presented tab pages and even their own viral marketing Facebook applications have all contributed to the page attracting over 90,000 fans.
If you have a minute to browse the page, we suggest you view the “interact” tab which contains the Flu Fighter, I Saved a Life and Get Well Soon applications.
We are approaching 100,000 fans. So, if you haven’t already, please show Children’s your support by becoming a Facebook fan.
We’re constantly told that if we eat less and exercise more, the pounds will come sliding off. Not true. According to a recent study, small caloric changes have almost no long-term effect on weight.
While this news is disappointing, Children’s obesity expert – David Ludwig, MD, PhD, tell The New York Times that there is hope, especially for children. Small changes made during childhood lead to a much healthier adult lifestyle.
You can read more of Ludwig has to say on topic of childhood obesity here on Thrive.
Joanne Wolfe, MD, MPH
For parents already dealing with the sadness, anger and guilt of having a child with a terminal illness, watching that child experience pain in her last days is excruciating.
In a study led by Children’s Hospital Boston and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s Joanne Wolfe, MD, MPH, which was covered today in The Boston Globe and Time magazine, more than one out of eight parents who were surveyed considered hastening the death of a child with terminal cancer, with their child’s suffering increasing the likelihood of such thoughts. Five parents said they actually asked a caregiver to speed up their child’s death. “The fear of pain is the critical factor for parents with regard to hastening death,”said Wolfe in the Time article. [click to continue…]
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