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 Families Page Archive
Babies and Families Love Skin-to-Skin Kangaroo Care!Once viewed simply as a nice way for babies and parents to cuddle, skin-to-skin contact, also called Kangaroo Care, is now recognized as offering benefits to both babies and their parents. Several recent randomized clinical trials showed Kangaroo Care is associated with improved temperature, more quiet sleep and less time crying as well as improved exclusivity and duration of breastfeeding following discharge. Furthermore, Kangaroo Care has been linked with enhanced breast milk production, improved parent-child relationship, and slightly better test scores on developmental tests at 6 months. Although further studies are needed, this early work suggests that skin-to-skin holding (Kangaroo Care) might offer substantial benefits to babies and mothers. Chwo MJ, Anderson GC, Good M, Dowling DA, Shiau SH, Chu DM. A randomized controlled trial of early kangaroo care for preterm infants: effects on temperature, weight, behavior, and acuity. Journal of Nursing Research 2002 Jun; 10(2):129-42. Feldman R, Eidelman AI, Sirota L, Weller A. Comparison of skin-to-skin (kangaroo) and traditional care: parenting outcomes and preterm infant development. Pediatrics 2002 Jul;110:16-26. Hake-Brooks SJ, Anderson GC. Kangaroo care and breastfeeding of mother-preterm infant dyads 0-18 months: a randomized, controlled trial. Neonatal Network 2008 May-Jun; 27:151-9 Kostandy RR, Ludington-Hoe SM, Cong X, et al. Kangaroo Care Reduces Crying Response to Pain in Preterm Neonates: Pilot Results. Pain Management Nursing 2008; 9:55-65. Plastics Chemical May Raise Risk of Low Birth WeightResearch found that pregnant women exposed to phtalates, a chemical found in plastics, may have a higher risk of delivering babies with low birth weights. Researchers said they found notable levels of phthalates in cord blood and first stools of more than 70% of infants in the study, with higher levels of the chemical found in babies with low birth weights. Read the full article »Whooping Cough is Making a Comeback, Risking Serious Illness or Death Among NewbornsWhooping cough, also known by the medical term pertussis, is a vaccine-preventable disease that is caused by a bacterium (germ). It is highly contagious and newborns are at highest risk of being seriously ill with the infection. A baby begins to develop immunity to whooping cough (also called pertussis) after his or her first set of immunizations but is not fully immune to whooping cough until the immunization series is complete (at 6 months of age or more). This low immunity that is normal in early infancy, in addition to a baby's very small lung and airways, make babies with the infection very vulnerable to its most serious effects. Whooping cough lasts for many weeks, causing spasms of severe coughing, often with a whooping sound at the end of the cough. In newborns, the breathing problems caused by whooping cough can be very severe and can even interfere with breathing in air and cause blue spells, pauses in breathing, vomiting, fainting (passing out), or even death. It can be spread from child to child or from an adult who typically is only mildly sick and seems only to have a cold or bronchitis. The number of cases of whooping cough in the United States has been steadily increasing since the 1980s, making more babies each year vulnerable to this life-threatening infection. Learn more about whooping cough (pertussis) » Learn more about whooping cough prevention » Hear a baby with whooping cough » Check out Silence the Sounds of Pertussis » Surgeon General's Conference Sets Agenda for Preventing Preterm BirthIn June 2008, The National Institutes of Health for the Office of the Surgeon General convened a group of experts to describe the magnitude of the problem and evaluate strategies that might lead to prevention of preterm birth. Panels of experts evaluated a number of dimensions relating to preterm birth: quality of care and health services, psychosocial and behavior aspects, public communication and outreach, biomedical and epidemiological research, and professional education and training. Following this meeting, the Office of the Surgeon General released an agenda for activities in the public and private sectors to reduce the nation's rate of preterm birth. The agenda calls for a national system to better understand the occurrence of preterm birth and a national education program to help women reduce their chances of giving birth prematurely. The agenda also calls for improved methods for estimating the age of the fetus, and studies to identify biomarkers which would signal the beginning of preterm labor. Learn more about the Surgeon General's Conference » 
Chemical Found in Baby Bottles Might Cause Health ProblemsBisphenol A is one of the most widely used chemicals in the plastics industry. Environmentalists and some scientists claim it causes reproductive and developmental problems and prostate cancer. In August, an expert panel reported on the safety of Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical used to make some plastics such as baby bottles, sports bottles, water jugs and children's dental sealants; it's also found in other plastics. The panel called many of those fears unfounded. The National Institutes of Health panel ruled that BPA is unlikely to cause reproductive problems, birth defects, or prostate cancer, yet it might affect nerve development and behavior. Therefore, questions remain - especially about how BPA affects the nervous system and behavior of babies and young children. Further research is needed to answer these questions. Learn more about BPA and the review process » 
Near-Term Babies May Face a Higher Risk of ProblemsBabies born just three to six weeks before their due dates are more likely than full-term babies to have disabilities or developmental delays in kindergarten, a study (published in Pediatrics) has found. The children also are slightly more likely to be suspended or held back in kindergarten and to require special education. Read the full article » |
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