Turns out there may be some truth behind the old adage that kids these days are growing up way too fast. Increasing numbers of girls are hitting puberty early.

Puberty normally starts between ages 9 and 16; girls may not notice any physical changes until 11 to 16 years of age. Today, however, some girls are starting to see changes as early as age 6 or 7.

A research team backed by the Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Centers (BCERC) originally set out to more clearly categorize girls into pubertal maturity stages. What they found was that among roughly 1,200 girls aged 6-8, many showed early breast and pubic hair development.

Ten percent of white girls at age 7 had “breast development to some extreme”, as did 23 percent of black and 15 percent of Hispanic girls. These numbers jumped to 18, 43 and 31 percent for 8-year-old participants. Authors agreed that these rates were much higher than 10 and 30 years ago.

Possible explanations include increased exposure to hormones, such as estrogen. Another hypothesis is that environmental pollutants such as BPAs and parabens may be pushing young girls into puberty. Genetic mutations, endocrine disorders and other health concerns are also on the list, but researcher Dr. Abby Hollander of Washington University’s School of Medicine says we can expect to wait for any real answers.

“If puberty happens earlier because girls are heavier, and gaining that weight is sending hormonal signals to start puberty earlier, is that really normal, or a sign of obesity, which is abnormal?” Hollander asked in an interview with ABC News. “It’s going to take a lot of follow-up to say whether this is really puberty."

Hollander and colleagues plan to further investigate ways the environment may affect the onset of puberty. Until then, read more from ABC News or see the study’s abstract in Pediatrics.

Improper child safety seat use is one of the top causes for child disability and death. Although statistics indicate that seven in 10 car seats are used or installed incorrectly, most parents are unaware.

The good news is proper installation doesn't have to be cause for distress. Begin with the basics—make sure all straps are secure and fastened, however size is important, too. Here's what you need to know:

INFANTS

From birth to age 1, children should remain in rear-facing safety seats. Rear-facing seats provide greater protection against back or spinal cord injury in case of a frontal crash. A child who is at least 1 year of age may graduate to a forward-facing seat at 20 pounds, but experts recommend waiting as long as 30 or 35 pounds.

TODDLERS&PRE-SCHOOLERS

When children graduate to the forward-facing seat, usually at age 1-4 or when they weigh 20-40 pounds, the preferred model of safety seat for toddlers is the convertible or the combination seat. These seats protect taller, heavier children who have outgrown their booster seats but are too small for an adult or booster seat.

CHILDREN

The final stage of safety seat before the lone seatbelt is the booster seat. Booster seats are great for children between the ages of 4 and 8, and who weigh between 40 and 80 pounds. Booster seats help seatbelts fit appropriately—straps should cross over the chest, and the lap belt should lay over the upper thighs.

LATCH

In any case, remember to use your car’s LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children) feature. This federally mandated safety feature is found in most cars manufactured after September 2002. The system makes proper installation easier with “child-size” safety seat straps and anchor attachments that can help prevent seatbelt strangulation.

When in doubt, refer to the user’s manual or consult a professional to check the safety of your car seat. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will locate the inspector nearest you.

Visit the NHTSA site for safety seat guidelines, and don’t forget about Child Passenger Safety Week in September.

Melinda Gates, wife of Microsoft chairman Bill Gates and co-chair of the Gates Foundation, has generously pledged $1.5 billion to help stop maternal death, or death after childbirth. Although rates are decreasing, Gates says it's time for the world to come together to save women's and children's lives.

“It’s not that the world doesn’t know how to save the 350,000 mothers and 3 million newborns that die every year,” she told The Seattle Times. “It is that we haven’t tried hard enough.”

These numbers have dropped by about 30 percent since 1980, but according to this year’s Countdown to 2015 report by the World Health Organization nearly 2 million deaths occur each year as a result of childbirth and labor complications alone. For many countries, maternal and infant mortality rates remain unchanged.

Hemorrhage and hypertension top the list of causes for maternal death, followed shortly by HIV/AIDS, malaria, and heart disease. Infection after childbirth also presents a threat to mothers, while pneumonia, malaria and diarrhea pose the greatest threats to newborns.

Women Deliver, the advocacy group that received the donation, has set goals to help increase maternal survival. Methods include greater access to family planning tools, prenatal care and access to better healthcare. They also hope to change attitudes about maternal death.

"In many countries the belief that death is inevitable, and therefore acceptable, hasn't yet changed," Gates told MSNBC. "We don't have to tolerate fatalism.”

Read more from MSNBC and The Seattle Times, or learn how you can help by visiting Women Deliver online.

Keeping the kids home from daycare when there's a bug going around won't necessarily stave off sickness, according to an article on Health Day. Guidelines from AAP and APHA say it's safe for children to go to daycare despite minor illnesses.

Kids share everything, including germs. When there’s something going around at daycare, the temptation to kids home can be too much. Daycare providers often choose to send mildly ill children home so they don’t spread it to others, but their extra efforts may be useless.

“By the time (children) start showing symptoms, the cat’s already out of the bag,” study author Dr. Andrew Hashikawa of the Medical College of Wisconsin told Health Day. By then, chances are the bug has already spread.

The survey included responses of 305 directors of metro daycare facilities in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Surveyors from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American Public Health Association (APHA) briefly described five different illnesses—a cold, conjunctivitis (pink eye), stomachache, fever, and a scalp infection—to directors of childcare facilities to test their knowledge of excluding sick children from daycare.

Based on AAP/APHA guidelines, none of these situations should result in exclusion from daycare, but directors would send as many as 4 out of 5 children home. Although the state has promoted exclusion guidelines to childcare facilities since the nineties, only 38 percent of these directors were aware of the AAP/APHA’s exclusion guidelines.

“If the directors of child care facilities and centers are well-educated and understand the recommended guidelines, then it’s fairly clear which children should stay and which should go home,” Hashikawa said. “This study highlights the need for ongoing training.”

Read the original story on Health Day, or check out AAP/APHA’s book of guidelines on managing ill children in a daycare or school setting.

Today is Save a Spider Day! These eight-legged little creatures will be making their way out as the weather gets warmer, so keep an eye out for them. Spring and summer are prime time for spiders, and this is when people experience bites the most.


Spider bites resemble mosquito bites—swelling, redness and irritation—unless they are from the black widow or brown recluse spiders. Venom from these types tends to cause more severe reactions.

Black widow venom causes fever, severe pain and stiffness, but these symptoms may not appear for a few hours. A brown recluse bite has similar symptoms, but is most distinguished by a large, fluid-filled blister. When the blister drains, it leaves the victim with a gaping ulcer. These bites have been known to cause death in very rare cases, but are otherwise easily treated. Contrary to popular belief, most spider bites are harmless.

Use these tips from Mayo Clinic to minimize spider bite discomfort:

Identify the Spider
Knowing what type of spider bit you will help you properly treat the bite. Some spider bites, such as those of a recluse, are more serious than others and may require immediate medical attention.

Clean the Wound
Infection is one of the most common complications of a spider bite, and can be worse than the bite itself. Use soap and water or a cleansing solution to disinfect the area. Applying antibiotic ointment will provide further protection against infections.

Keep It Cool
Applying a cold compress can help ease some of the discomfort of a bite. It will reduce swelling, as well as soothe itchiness or burning. A cold, wet cloth or bag of ice will also do.

Isolate the Area
In the event of a black widow or brown recluse bite, cut off circulation from the affected area by cinching with a belt or tie. This will help stop the spread of venom until medical assistance arrives.

Stay Alert
On rare occasions, a person may experience a severe allergic reaction to spider bites known as anaphylactic shock. Shock can cause the throat and nasal passageways to close, making it difficult to breathe. Nausea, rapid heartbeat, dizziness and low blood pressure are other symptoms. Call 911 as soon as possible. In most cases, doctors will administer an injection of epinephrine to stop the reaction.

While bites and cobwebs are at the top of our list of gripes against spiders, they do play an important role in human wellbeing. In addition to keeping disease-carrying insects at bay, the common house spider has been known to eat more dangerous varieties.

Spider venom is also used to produce medicine for treating stroke. Keep that in mind the next time a spider gives you a case of the creepy crawlies and save a spider!

Parents-to-be everywhere may have another reason to jump for joy. A new, highly accurate blood test may be able to tell you the sex of your baby earlier in your pregnancy.

Most couples have to wait until the second trimester of pregnancy (4-6 months), but the simple test could cut that time in half—as early as seven weeks. The test is highly accurate, too. Of the 201 women who were tested between 2003 and 2009, researchers were able to obtain sufficient samples from 189 and produce 100 percent accurate results.

When a woman is pregnant, her body will circulate her blood with blood from the fetus. For this test, a sample of the mother’s blood is screened for genes unique to the Y-chromosome of males. If these genes were present, researchers predicted a boy.

Early testing can also help doctors detect conditions such as Down’s syndrome and Rhesus-D disease (RhD). This method of testing has several advantages over invasive methods, such as fetal blood sampling (FBS), that can cause amniotic fluid leaking or miscarriage.

RhD sometimes results from a blood incompatibility between, for example, an Rh-positive mother and an Rh-negative child. If the mother’s body detects this difference, it may send antibodies against the baby. If it goes untreated, it can lead to jaundice, anemia, brain damage or stillbirth.

 “Noninvasive prenatal diagnosis of fetal Rhesus D genotype is sensitive and accurate and has been widely validated in Europe,” authors noted. “The United States should begin to undertake clinical trials to bring this technology to patient care as soon as possible.”

This test is currently not available to the general public, but continued success could mean it’s on the horizon. Its adoption into general health practices could help cut the risk of fetal complications of RhD.

The study was published in Obstetrics&Gynecology.

There are likely to be plenty of ghosts and ghouls about this Halloween, but one thing that may have parents spooked this time of year is candy and dental health. Roughly 30 percent of 5-year-olds in Plymouth, England, were found to have some form of tooth decay, according to a newly released review.

The review examined the 2007-2008 dental records of U.K. children, 211 of whom were Plymouth five-year-olds. This number was just under the national average of 30.9 percent, but other regions were significantly worse.

The United States had similar rates. Almost half of children ages 12 to 15 and about one in four American children aged 2 to 5 is affected by tooth decay. Overall, it affects 4 million children in the U.S. alone. Americans consumed an average of 23.8 pounds of candy each in 2008, and with the holiday season approaching, parents should be on the watch for cavities.

As Halloween approaches, candy consumption is likely to skyrocket, but there are plenty of ways to protect trick-or-treaters from tooth decay. Try these five tips to help reduce the amount of sugar:

1. Choose reduced-sugar or sugar-free candies. Most stores carry equally tasty sugar-free or reduced-sugar versions of Halloween favorites, including chocolate, peanut butter cups and various filled or hard candies. These options won’t completely eliminate the risk of tooth decay, but they can significantly cut sugar intake.

2. Give out unconventional goodies. When it comes to candy, sugar-free gum is your safest bet. Candies that can melt and/or stick to teeth are the worst. Other ideas might include stickers, press-on tattoos, plastic rings, or other small toys.

3. Go to a Halloween program or event. Choosing alternatives to trick-or-treating significantly cuts the candy haul. These events are a great place for adults and children to socialize while enjoying snacks and fun activities.

4. Set a limit. Put a limit on the amount of candy a child is allowed daily. This helps prevent candy binges while reducing sugar consumption. Candy can also be used as a reward for good behavior.

5. Donate excess candy. Many communities have programs that will send it to troops or donate $1 for every pound of candy donated. Candy can also be donated to fire stations, schools (for rewards), or other offices in the community.

Regularly brushing teeth and reducing sugar intake can help prevent cavities. Consuming fewer sweets can also help decrease children’s risk for obesity and diabetes. Dentists and parents alike recommend that candy be consumed in moderation.

Parents often give their infants acetaminophen (Tylenol) after immunizations and booster shots. As it turns out, this may do more harm than good. The medication may actually weaken infants’ immune systems, according to research from the Czech Republic.

Acetaminophen is sometimes given to infants and small children following shots to prevent fever, a common reaction to vaccinations. This study examined the effects of acetaminophen on immune response after initial and booster vaccinations.

Two hundred twenty-six children from 10 different medical centers were randomly selected to receive three doses every six to eight hours for 24 hours after immunizations. Just 42 percent of these children experienced fevers (100.4 degrees F or above), compared to 66 percent of a control group of 233.

When it was time for booster shots, parents were asked to repeat the process. There was a lower incidence of fever in both groups—36 percent for those who took acetaminophen and 58 percent for those who did not.

Children who received acetaminophen , however, had fewer antibodies, indicating more susceptibility to disease. In the studied children, pneumonia, hepatitis B, whooping cough, polio, diphtheria and tetanus antibodies were fewer following vaccinations and boosters with acetaminophen use.

Antibodies are proteins in the immune system (immunoglobulins) that bind to harmful pathogens (viruses) to keep them away from healthy white blood cells. Without these antibodies, the body’s immune system is more susceptible to disease.

When vaccines fail to protect against diseases, the health of the entire community is at stake because viruses are more easily spread.

“This point has implications, especially for Haemophilus influenzae, for which higher and sustained antibody concentrations are needed (to reduce transmission),” says Dr. Robert T Chen of the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, “…and for pertussis, the bacterial vaccine-preventable disease that is least controlled.”

Although they’re not entirely sure why children taking acetaminophen had fewer antibodies, doctors plan to explore the issue further. They stress the importance of this information, and advise against unnecessary acetaminophen use.

“(A)dministration of antipyretic drugs at the time of vaccination should nevertheless no longer be routinely recommended without careful weighing of the expected benefits and risks,” wrote lead author Dr. Roman Pryula of the University of Defense in Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic.

The study appears in this month’s online issue of The Lancet.

Prescription drug sharing among teens is becoming a great concern in the United States, where 1 in 3 self-reportedly loan or borrow medication.
According to a survey funded by the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD), 20.6% of teens reported loaning drugs, most commonly pain relievers and allergy medications, and 19.4% reported borrowing them. Girls were almost twice as likely to give away prescription medications than boys (27.5% of girls, compared to 17.4% for boys).

Information for the study was gathered in malls, parks and public streets, in eleven urban and suburban locations in the United States. Researchers obtained data from 594 teens—289 male and 305 female—ages 12-17.

“Prior to our study, no one had asked adolescents how often they shared prescription medications,” said lead author Richard Goldworthy, Ph.D., director for research and development at Academic Edge, Inc.

Researchers first asked participants whether or not they had ever loaned or borrowed prescription medications. Those who responded positively were then asked what type(s) of drugs were borrowed, whether they gave or received written or verbal instructions, and whether or not they had shared to avoid a doctor’s visit—74% of borrowers said yes.

Of the 86 teens trying to steer clear of the doctor’s office, 32.4% ended up going anyway when the problem persisted. Herein lies the danger: 43 of them reported experiencing an allergic reaction or other side effect, but less than half of borrowers (about 40%) reported telling their doctors they had used the medication.

Drug sharing has a number of negative consequences. Conditions often worsen when not taken care of in a timely manner, and using medications improperly only increases the danger. Sharing antibiotics, for example, unnecessarily increases bacterial resistance to treatment.

“Other researchers have studied people selling prescription drugs,” said co-author Chris Mayhorn, an associate professor in the Human Factors and Ergonomics Psychology Program at North Carolina State University. “ but we looked at people with good intentions, trying, for instance, to help a friend who lacked money or transportation.”

Taking a friend’s acne medication may seem innocent to a teen, however, drugs such as Accutane increase risk of depression and can cause serious birth defects in he event of an unplanned pregnancy.

The study has provided a greater incentive to boost educational programs, pushing efforts to reduce the growing drug sharing problem by training both patients and providers about proper drug use.

Melissa Haddow, executive director of the Community Partnership of the Ozarks, says, "This work highlights the diversity of medications being abused this way, which had not been recognized (before)."

More about child health.

It’s not always easy to find time to eat together, but a study published in the May issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health found that frequent family meals improve the eating habits and attitudes of middle school-aged children. Students who dined with their families six or seven times a week consumed fewer soft drinks, ate breakfast more often, ate more healthfully, and exhibited less concern about undue weight gain.

Researchers at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada surveyed more than 3,000 Canadian sixth, seventh, and eighth graders during the 2004-2005 school year. The students completed the web-based Food Behaviour Questionnaire, which included questions about dining frequency, 24-hour food intake, and family meals.

The results showed that family meals became less common as children grew older, and families in rural areas were more likely to eat together than families in urban locales. Children who frequently dined with their families had significantly higher-quality diets than children who rarely ate with their parents and siblings. Diet quality declined when meals were purchased outside of the home or when meals were skipped.

The study also showed that most of the students surveyed had suboptimal diets. The researchers encourage dining as a family to promote healthful eating habits.

Share your healthy family dining tips on the Healia Diet and Nutrition Community and Support Group. Try testing your nutrition knowledge by taking the Healia Diet and Nutrition Quiz. Need more information on healthy eating? Visit the Diet and Nutrition Health Guide.

_{Photo: S Baker, Flickr, Creative Commons}