Health Tip: Children Need Exercise, Too

(HealthDay News) -- Exercise is important for everyone, even children. Kids should spend at least one hour each day exercising, whether it's playing tag, swimming, walking or jumping rope.
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10 Diseases Linked To Soda

Statistics shows that Americans drink more soda than ever before. They account for more than 25 percent of all drinks consumed in the United States. More than 15 billion gallons were sold in 2000 -- about one 12-ounce can per day for every man, woman and child. Read more

Health Tip: Check Your Baby's Feet

(HealthDay News) -- A baby's feet grow quickly. During the infant's first year, it's important to check the feet regularly to be sure they are developing normally.

The American Podiatric Medical Association offers these suggestions:

• Examine your baby's feet carefully. Report anything that looks unusual to your pediatrician.
• Allow the baby's feet to move. Let baby lie on his or her back without a blanket or cover, to allow the feet to kick.
• Don't wrap or cover your baby's feet tightly -- leave covers loose so that your baby can move the feet freely.
• Move your baby frequently, and don't let him or her stay in the same position for too long. Frequent position changes put less strain on the legs and feet.

Children's Bath Products Contain Contaminants

(HealthDay News) -- Many baby and child-care products contain the chemicals formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane, both of which have been linked to cancer and various skin conditions, a new report contends.

But the chemicals aren't listed on the labels of bubble bath, shampoo and other common products, according to the report from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetic Use.

"Companies can obviously do better, and we need to demand that they do better," said Stacy Malkan, co-founder of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetic Use and co-author of the report, released Thursday. "Many companies are already making great products that don't have any of these chemicals [and] many companies in the natural products industry have reformulated to get rid of that problem. We also know many companies are using preservatives that don't use formaldehyde."

According to the authors, the report, called No More Toxic Tub, is the first to document contamination of children's products with these chemicals. The Environmental Working Group was involved in the analyses.

Both formaldehyde and dioxane are considered "contaminants," Malkan said.

A contaminant "is a chemical that is not intentionally added to the product but is a byproduct," she said. "Those are all exempt from labeling laws ... Companies don't even have to know themselves."

Dioxane is a byproduct of chemical processing and formaldehyde is released from some of the chemicals that are used as preservatives, Malkan said.

John Bailey is chief scientist for the Personal Care Products Council, a national trade association for the cosmetic and personal care products industry. Responding to the report, he said, "These are issues that have been around for many, many years, so it's not new news. The thing that impressed me was the low levels of dioxane that were found in these products, which indicates to me that the industry is doing its job in keeping this potential contaminant down to a low level."

Bailey also said there were wasn't enough information in the report to gauge how accurate the determinations of formaldehyde levels were.

Malkan and her co-authors tested 48 bubble baths, shampoos and other baby and children's products for dioxane and 28 of those products for formaldehyde. The testing was done by an independent laboratory, Analytical Sciences in Petulama, Calif.

Among their findings:

• Almost two-thirds of the 28 products contained both chemicals, including Johnson's Baby Shampoo and Huggies Naturally Refreshing Cucumber & Green Tea Baby Wash.
• Eighty-two percent of products tested contained formaldehyde; the highest levels were found in Baby Magic Baby Lotion.
• American Girl shower products had the highest levels of dioxane among products tested.
  "The good news is that there are great products without any of these chemicals," Malkan said. "The challenge is you have to do some research to find them. It's not a simple matter of looking at the label."

According to Malkan, the U.S. Department of Agriculture "organic seal" indicates that none of these chemicals are present.

"The best advice for consumers is that simple is better, products with fewer ingredients overall," she said. "There are things consumers can do to make better choices at the store but we also need to change regulations and require companies to list all ingredients in the products and to make the safest products they can, especially products for babies."

Harmful chemicals and contaminants in children's products is a subject of continuing controversy. Earlier this week, it was announced that baby bottles made with the controversial chemical bisphenol A (BPA) will no longer be sold in the United States by the six largest manufacturers of the products.

BPA, which is found in a wide range of products, mimics the hormone estrogen and may disrupt the body's endocrine system. The chemical poses a particular threat to fetuses, infants and children because it can interfere with cell function when their bodies are still developing, public health experts say. The chemical has been linked with diabetes, heart disease, cancer and developmental delays in children.

More information
Get more information on what's in a product, or information on products containing no chemicals at all, at the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep Database.

Bill Clinton, Health Groups to Tackle Childhood Obesity

(HealthDay News) -- In what they called a "landmark agreement," former President Bill Clinton and the American Heart Association announced Thursday the launch of a national initiative on childhood obesity, aimed at getting up to 6 million American kids covered for routine visits to both primary care physicians and dietitians.

"I think we want the children of America to know, No. 1, that we want them to be healthy, we want them to grow up healthy, and we want them to start now," Clinton told reporters at his foundation's headquarters in New York City.

The new collaboration, which Clinton called "a really big deal," links medical organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Dietetic Association with insurance companies such as Aetna, WellPoint, Blue Cross of North Carolina and of Massachusetts and private companies like PepsiCo, Owens Corning and Paychex. This, Clinton said, is "the first time our three stakeholders have come together to tackle childhood obesity in a comprehensive way."
The current initiative aims to address the obesity-related healthcare needs of almost 1 million children in the program's first year, by reimbursing doctors and registered dietitians for providing health care and in-depth nutritional counseling to kids on an ongoing basis. In addition, participating companies will offer their employees access to the initiative's benefits. The new alliance will also offer parents educational and nutritional information on tackling childhood obesity.

The planned coverage is set to ratchet up to approximately 6.2 million children (25 percent of all overweight American children) by the end of three years.

Observing that millions of American families simply don't know where to turn for help on their child's weight issues -- or just can't afford the help when they find it -- Clinton said he hoped that the new initiative would address what for many parents is "somewhere between a problem and a nightmare."

The new effort, called the "Alliance Healthcare Initiative," is the latest venture of The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, created in 2005 by the AHA and the William J. Clinton Foundation. In 2006, the Alliance helped shepherd an agreement among soft drink manufacturers that established sweetener, calorie and fat guidelines, and limited the sale of sodas in elementary, middle, and high schools attended by 35 million American students.

For his part, AHA president Dr. Tim Gardner described the new initiative as "a very historic moment" and one that is needed as the nation's medical system becomes increasingly burdened by obesity-related costs amid growing economic hardship.

He noted that the direct health care costs for the treatment of children who are already overweight or obese currently tops $14 billion annually, and, overall, obesity costs the nation an estimated $117 billion annually in both healthcare costs and lost productivity.

"We're here today because there is an obesity epidemic in this country," Gardner said. "One in three teens in this country are overweight or obese."

And, he added, "there's a risk that this generation will be the first in our history to have a shorter lifespan than their parents."

More information
For additional information on childhood nutrition, visit the American Heart Association.

Health Tip: Check Your Child's Car Seat

(HealthDay News) -- Use of a car seat can save a child's life, but it must be installed correctly.

The U.S. National Safety Council offers this checklist for making sure that a car seat is properly located and secured:

• Make sure the car seat is installed in the backseat -- never in the front.
• Children less than 1 year old or less than 20 pounds should ride facing the back of the car; older or heavier children can ride facing the front.
• Make sure the safety belt is securely holding the seat. Ensure that the seat is snugly strapped in and that the belt has been placed correctly.
• The harness must fit snugly, too. The clip should fit at about the level of your child's armpits.
• If your child is 40 pounds or under, continue using the car seat. Switch to a booster seat once your child weighs more than 40 pounds. The child probably will need a booster seat until he or she is about 4'9" tall and weighs about 80 pounds.

Scans Show Sound-Processing Deficits in Autistic Kids

(HealthDay News) -- Children with autism spectrum disorder process sounds a fraction of a second slower than other children, an abnormality that offers insight into listening and language issues linked to the condition, a new study says.

Researchers used magnetoencephalography (MEG), which records minute magnetic fields associated with electrical brain activity, to detect the slight delay in autistic children who were exposed to beeps, tones in pairs, vowels and sentences at different speeds, tones and frequencies.

The findings were expected to be presented Monday at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), in Chicago.

"This delay in processing certain types and streams of sound may underpin the subsequent language processing and communication impairment seen in autistic children," researcher Timothy Roberts, vice chair of research in the department of radiology at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, said in a news release issued by the RSNA.

This signature of autism found in brain activity may eventually become a biomarker to improve classification of the disorder and aid in treatment and therapy planning, he added.

"We hope that in the future, these signatures will also be revealed in the infant brain to help diagnose autism and allow earlier intervention," he said.

Autism inhibits the brain functions that govern the development of social and communication skills. About one in every 150 American children, mostly boys, is affected by the condition, according to the Autism Society of America.

More information
The U.S. National Library of Medicine has more about hearing problems in children.

Texting Food Diaries Helps Kids Stick With Diets

(HealthDay News) -- Experts hope that letting kids have their fingers do the texting will increase compliance with the food diaries that are such a critical part of successful dieting.

As a first proof that such a method might work, a new University of North Carolina study shows that kids aged 5 to 13 are almost twice as likely to text daily records of their food intake, exercise and screen time as those using the old-fashioned kinds of diaries. The research was published in the November/December issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.

Previous studies have shown that dieters who keep these types of records are more likely to lose weight and to keep it off, according to study author Jennifer Shapiro, an assistant professor in the department of psychiatry.

"What we're looking for is a fun way for people, particularly children," to keep these diaries, Shapiro said. "If people enjoy doing it, they're more likely to do it and more likely to lose weight."



The eight-week study following 31 families with children aged 5 to 13 showed that those kids who used text messaging were almost twice as likely to comply with the program than kids who used paper and pencil.

The popularity of this approach was demonstrated by the fact 100 percent of the participating children and parents initially said they hoped they would be selected for the text-messaging group.

In the study, an immediate text message responded to the children's report on how well they met their goals. Children who used the paper-and-pencil diaries had to wait a week to report to their nutritionist for a response to their progress.

"Feedback is very important," Shapiro explained. "It makes them feel like there is someone on the other line paying attention, and they need to be more accountable."

The study's goal was to measure adherence to the dieting diary process and did not measure weight loss, Shapiro said. Because it was such a small study, the results did not reach statistical significance, but the researchers hope to repeat the study with a larger population and for a longer time.

"The idea of text messaging is really interesting, particularly to communicate with a new generation," added Dorothy Teegarden, a professor in the department of foods and nutrition at Purdue University.

But Teegarden agreed further research needs to be done on the effectiveness of this approach, given the wide gap in the age range and the fact that parents also were involved. She explained that some research shows that it's easier to modify behavior within the context of a family environment. "So, just that part of the study might have contributed to better compliance," she added.

The fact that all of the kids wanted to be part of the text-messaging group also may have biased the study, said Lona Sandon, an assistant professor of clinical nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. The children who were assigned the paper-and-pencil diary might not have been as compliant, because they didn't get the tool they wanted, she explained.

Research has shown that 19 percent of kids aged 6 to 11 are overweight, and 80 percent of those kids become obese adults, according to the study.

More information
For more on children and obesity, go to the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

Family Halloween Safety Can Be Fiendishly Simple

(HealthDay News) -- With Halloween right around the corner, many parents are wondering how they can help keep their kids safe.

According to Meridith Sonnett, director of pediatric emergency services at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of New York-Presbyterian, taking a few precautions can help make Halloween a happy and safe occasion for everyone.

She particularly recommends limiting trick-or-treating to familiar neighborhoods and neighbors.

Here are more tips parents should keep in mind for Halloween:

• Accompany your children when they go trick-or-treating.
• Examine all candy before letting your children eat it
• Have your children discard any unwrapped foods.
• Make sure your children's costumes are non-flammable and short enough so that they don't trip.
• Make sure the eye holes in masks are the right size and in the right place for clear vision.
• If your children are old enough to trick-or-treat without a parent, have them go in groups.
• At night, make sure your children wear costumes that are bright in color, or have them wear reflectors.
• If the streets are dark, have your children take a flashlight.
• Accompany your children in apartment buildings.
• Have your children use proper street-crossing safety.
• Do not allow your children to enter a stranger's home; have them ask for treats and wait outside the door.

More information

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has more about Halloween safety.

Autistic Children Make Limited Eye Contact

(HealthDay News) -- While poor eye contact has long been a suspected sign of possible autism, researchers at Yale University have used "eye-mapping technology" to prove that children with autism don't make eye contact like normally developing children do.

Published in the August issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry, the new research found that children with autism spent more time looking at an adult's mouth instead of gazing into the eyes.

"Just as the eyes are the window to the soul, the eyes are also a window into social development," said study senior author Ami Klin, director of the autism program at Yale University School of Medicine.

Klin said that by using eye-mapping technology, it's possible that a vulnerability for autism could be identified much earlier than is currently possible. And, he said, "The earlier we are able to identify children, the better it is, because early interventions make a difference in optimizing children's outcomes."

It's estimated that autism, a developmental disorder that disrupts communication and social interaction, affects about 3.4 out of every 1,000 children between the ages of 3 and 10, according to the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Parents are generally the first to notice early signs of autism. The NIMH says that some known early signs that may indicate an autism spectrum disorder in a child include:

• By age 1, doesn't babble, point or gesture.
• Doesn't speak a single word by 16 months.
• By age 2, hasn't combined two words.
• Seems to lose language skills.
• Interacts poorly socially.
• Doesn't respond to his or her name.
• Doesn't smile.
• Makes poor eye contact.
• Doesn't appear to know how to play with toys and may repeatedly line up toys or other objects.

For the new study, Klin and his colleagues, including Warren Jones, compared 15 children with autism to 36 typically developing children, and to another 15 children who were developmentally delayed but not autistic. All of the children were 2 years old.

The children were shown 10 videos of adults looking directly into the camera and mimicking caregiving and playing with the child. While the videos were running, the researchers used eye tracking to assess the child's visual fixation patterns.

They found that children with autism spent significantly less time looking at the eyes than did typically developing children or the developmentally delayed group. Autistic children looked at the eyes about 30 percent of the time, compared to nearly 55 percent for both of the other groups.

Children with autism spent almost 40 percent of the time looking at the mouth area, while children in the other groups only spent about 24 percent of the time looking at this area.

Eye fixation in children with autism also appeared to predict the level of social disability. Those who had greater social disabilities spent less time looking at the eye area, according to the study.

"We've always had a sense that children with autism don't make eye contact, but this study confirms it in a higher-tech way," said Cynthia Johnson, director of the autism center at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.

Johnson said she'd like to see this study confirmed in a larger group of children. Klin added that he and his colleagues are currently conducting a prospective study in children at a higher risk of autism to see "if there's a derailment in the process of social engagement," and if so, when that happens.

More information
To learn more about the early signs of autism, visit the American Academy of Family Physicians' FamilyDoctor Web site.

Health Tip: Teens and Sleep

(HealthDay News) -- Teenagers need to get plenty of sleep -- between 8 1/2 and nine hours every night -- to feel good and keep their bodies healthy.

Pay attention to these warning signs, courtesy of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, that you may not be getting enough shuteye:

• Difficulty getting out of bed in the morning.


• Problems focusing.


• Falling asleep at school during class.


• Feeling depressed, irritable, moody or sad.