Category: Family

Pets and Medication Errors

Your dog or cat is sick, and you head to the animal hospital. The veterinarian prescribes medications that you hope will make your pet better. But with pets, as with people, medication errors can happen. Just as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) monitors medication errors that affect people, the agency watches out for mistakes… Continue reading Pets and Medication Errors

13 Tips to Help Children and Teens Avoid Technology Overuse During COVID-19

Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development has brought together leading international experts in the fields of media addiction, parenting, education, child psychology and psychiatry to present helpful advice for avoiding problematic technology use during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. PARENTS HAVE THE POWER Setting limits on screen use—both in regards to… Continue reading 13 Tips to Help Children and Teens Avoid Technology Overuse During COVID-19

Virtual School Means Extra Screen Time – and Added Eye Strain for Kids

This school year is continuing in much the way the last one ended, with many districts opting for virtual learning, which means children sit at home in front of computer screens rather than in a classroom in front of teachers. But that extra screen time – mixed with the screen time many children and teenagers… Continue reading Virtual School Means Extra Screen Time – and Added Eye Strain for Kids

Racial Differences and Pregnancy Care

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that it will fund new research examining racial and ethnic disparities in pregnancy-related complications and deaths. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 700 women die each year in the United States from pregnancy-related complications. The grants to six institutions are expected to total… Continue reading Racial Differences and Pregnancy Care

We Are Allowed to Be Irritated

It is Month Number 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 . . . (what difference does that make anymore?) of being cooped up with our spouses in the Pandemic-Protective isolation units of our homes. We are not doing the things we used to do as a matter of course—the things we did and called “life”. It’s hard… Continue reading We Are Allowed to Be Irritated

How to Connect with Your Teen – despite COVID-19

Embracing the new normal of today can be daunting and stressful, especially for teens. So much has changed in their life. Many teens are feeling overwhelmed and disconnected from the world around them. So, how can parents work to reconnect and build up their relationships with tweens and teens struggling during COVID while promoting positive… Continue reading How to Connect with Your Teen – despite COVID-19

Avoiding Halloween Candy Overload

Ah, Halloween, the festival of costumes  – and candy. Most people have fond childhood memories of traipsing through neighborhood streets and coming home with as much candy as they could eat, and a lot more than they should have consumed. But the holiday looks very different from a parent’s point of view. They’re concerned about… Continue reading Avoiding Halloween Candy Overload

A Promising Discovery for Childhood Cancer?

Researchers have devised a new plan of attack against a group of deadly childhood brain cancers collectively called diffuse midline gliomas (DMG), including diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), thalamic glioma and spinal cord glioma. Scientists at the National Institutes of Health (NIH); Stanford University, California; and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, identified two drugs that worked… Continue reading A Promising Discovery for Childhood Cancer?

Most American Kids Lack Cardio Fitness

Nearly 60% of American children do not have healthy cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), a key measure of physical fitness and overall health, according to “Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Youth – An Important Marker of Health,” a new Scientific Statement from the American Heart Association (AHA), published in the Association’s flagship journal Circulation. CRF, also referred to as… Continue reading Most American Kids Lack Cardio Fitness

How to Prevent Childhood Drownings

Drowning is one of the leading causes of childhood deaths. In children under the age of four, only birth defects claim more lives. In accidental deaths of children under the age of 15, it’s second only to car accidents. Knowing these sobering statistics is the first step in battling these preventable tragedies. I spoke with… Continue reading How to Prevent Childhood Drownings

5 Tips for Sudden Home Schoolers

Many parents around the country are settling into a new role — substitute teachers for their school-age children. As an assistant professor and chair of the Department of Education Studies at Seton Hall University, I work with new teachers who are getting their sea legs in the classroom.  A parent myself, I offer these tips… Continue reading 5 Tips for Sudden Home Schoolers

Quarantined with Your Partner? 3 Common Relationship Struggles to Watch Out For

Through many years of helping couples and studying the nature of relationships, I’ve seen my fair share of relationship struggles. And let me tell you, no one’s relationship is perfect. Here are the three most common issues I see repeatedly with the couples I counsel. If any of these describe what you’re currently going through or have… Continue reading Quarantined with Your Partner? 3 Common Relationship Struggles to Watch Out For

Keeping Kids Safe in the Information Age: Caution Regarding Some Apps

With schools currently closed, kids and grandkids are home with more time than ever to be on the Internet. Here are some words of caution. The last decade has seen a boom in social media. We’ve seen the rise and fall of once-popular apps like Vine. We watched Google Plus shudder after it was projected… Continue reading Keeping Kids Safe in the Information Age: Caution Regarding Some Apps

Coronavirus: How Adults Can Help Children Navigate the Anxiety

As Americans adapt almost minute-by-minute to keep up with evolving information regarding the coronavirus, we must pay careful attention to our families. To keep children as anxiety-free as possible, adults must practice and demonstrate self-management and self-awareness of their own anxiousness and be conscious of how this may be unintentionally transferred to children. Daily self-reflection… Continue reading Coronavirus: How Adults Can Help Children Navigate the Anxiety

Parking Lot Safety for Kids

A study from the University of Alabama at Birmingham shows an alarming need for adult supervision in parking lots, with 67 percent of children observed not having supervision at some point between the vehicle’s parking and the child’s entering the building. “Children are unpredictable,” said David Schwebel, Ph.D., associate dean for research in the UAB… Continue reading Parking Lot Safety for Kids

Immunotherapy Better than Chemotherapy for Some Kids with Leukemia

Researchers have found that treatment with an immunotherapy drug is superior to standard chemotherapy for children with leukemia that has relapsed. The findings, based on a clinical trial, focused on the immunotherapy drug blinatumomab. Subjects in the trial were children and young adults with high- or intermediate-risk B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) that has relapsed.… Continue reading Immunotherapy Better than Chemotherapy for Some Kids with Leukemia

Peanut Allergy: A New Medication for Children

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first drug to treat peanut allergy in children. The remedy, Palforzia, mitigates allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis, that may occur with accidental exposure to peanuts. According to an FDA news release, treatment with Palforzia may begin in individuals ages 4 through 17 years with a confirmed… Continue reading Peanut Allergy: A New Medication for Children