Children's Health

The first vaccine to protect infants from respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, moved a step toward approval by the Food and Drug Administration with positive votes Thursday from a panel of experts.

Health & Safety

FDA advisers support approval of RSV vaccine to protect infants

5:53pm May 18, 2023

by Scott Hensley

At least 58,000 childern younger than 5 years old are hospitalized each year with RSV infections. A Pfizer vaccine given to pregnant people could help protect their infants from severe RSV illness.

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A girl poses for a portrait in a camp for internally displaced people on the outskirts of Baidoa, Somalia, on Dec. 14. As people flee their homes because of drought, famine and fighting, camps have sprung up this year around the Somali capital and other cities.

This is what displaced Somalians want you to know about their humanitarian crisis

1:02pm December 23, 2022

by Jason Beaubien

Dusty camps of displaced people have sprung up on the outskirts of cities. They ran from their homes because of drought, famine and fighting that involves the militant group al-Shabaab.

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Twin sisters Tripti and Pari, who lost both their parents to COVID-19, play at a relative's home in Bhopal, India on May 11, 2021. A new study estimates that 8 million kids lost a parent or primary caregiver to a pandemic-related cause.

Health & Safety

Nearly 8 million kids lost a parent or primary caregiver to the pandemic

4:09pm September 06, 2022

by Rhitu Chatterjee

A new study finds numbers far higher than previously thought. India has the greatest number of kids affected. The U.S. has 250,000 kids in this category but lags behind in aid for bereaved families.

Packaging for an electronic cigarette and menthol pods from Juul Labs is displayed on Feb. 25, 2020, in Pembroke Pines, Fla. In a deal announced Tuesday, Juul will pay nearly $440 million to settle a two-year investigation by 33 states into the marketing

Health & Safety

Juul will pay nearly $440 million to settle states' investigation into teen vaping

2:01pm September 06, 2022

by The Associated Press

The electronic cigarette maker has agreed to settle a two-year investigation by 33 states and Puerto Rico into the marketing of its vaping products, which have been blamed for a surge in teen vaping.

Newborn baby Amina is treated for the gun wound in her right leg incurred during the May 12, 2020 attack on a maternity hospital in Kabul. After being rescued, she was brought to the French Medical Institute for Children for surgery.

Health & Safety

Whatever happened to the baby shot 3 times in the Kabul maternity hospital bombing?

1:18pm September 06, 2022

by Ruchi Kumar

The child incurred severe injuries in her right leg in the 2020 attack, which killed 24, including her mother. Complications mean a need for more surgeries. But it seemed impossible in Afghanistan.

Gearing up for fall, health officials are recommending a new round of booster shots.

Omicron boosters: Do I need one, and if so, when?

2:54pm September 05, 2022

by Allison Aubrey

Updated COVID boosters are now available for anyone age 12 or older. The CDC is urging anyone who is eligible to sign up but some vaccine experts say some people might want to wait.

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As kids return to school this fall, educators are prepared to deal with the continued mental health fallout of the disruptions of the pandemic.

As school starts, teachers add a mental-health check-in to their lesson plans

4:39pm September 02, 2022

by Rhitu Chatterjee

After the disruption and trauma of the pandemic, educators say kids still need added support this year. In some schools, they're making emotional wellness part of the curriculum.

The U.S. food system makes junk food plentiful and cheap. Eating a diet based on whole foods like fresh fruit and vegetables can promote health - but can also strain a tight grocery budget. Food leaders are looking for ways to improve how Americans eat.

Health & Safety

The U.S. diet is deadly. Here are 7 ideas to get Americans eating healthier

1:41pm August 31, 2022

by Allison Aubrey

The way many Americans eat is fueling chronic disease. Here are seven big ideas from the White House's upcoming nutrition conference for how to improve Americans' diets.

Minda Dentler handcycling at mile 32 of The Kona Ironman in Hawaii, 2013. She's the first female wheelchair athlete to complete the Ironman World Championship. When she was an infant, her legs were paralyzed by polio. "I wish all people who may be on the

Health & Safety

Striving to outrace polio: What's it like living with the disease

5:00am August 29, 2022

by Ari Daniel

As polio makes a comeback, Minda Dentler reflects on her life with the disease. Paralyzed as an infant in India, she's gone on to become a champion wheelchair triathlete and an immunization advocate.

Boston Children's Hospital said it had received "threats of violence toward our clinicians and staff" after false claims were made online that the hospital provides genital surgeries to minors.

Children's hospitals are the latest target of anti-LGBTQ harassment

10:47pm August 26, 2022

by Shannon Bond

The harassment campaigns are organized online, raising questions about what role social media platforms should play in preventing abuse.

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