Children's Health

Sleep More, Sneeze Less: Increased Slumber Helps Prevent Colds

8:54am September 02, 2015

by Allison Aubrey

Just a couple extra hours can make a real difference, a study shows. Adults who slept only five or six hours were four times more likely to get sick when exposed to a common cold virus.

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Detweiler was surprised to learn she wasn't eating enough to fuel her training regimen. As an athlete, doctors and nutritionists say, she needed more food variety and more calories — three snacks daily, as well as bigger meals.

To Thrive, Many Young Female Athletes Need A Lot More Food

7:52am September 01, 2015

by Patti Neighmond

Doctors and parents often miss the signs of female athlete triad syndrome — low energy, low bone density and irregular menstruation in an otherwise healthy-looking girl or teen.

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Dr. Bill Mahon says a gorgeous coast and the chance to practice a more personal style of community medicine lured him to remote Fort Bragg, Calif., 35 years ago.

Help Wanted: Last Pediatrician On Mendocino Coast Retires

8:27am August 31, 2015

by Farida Jhabvala Romero

For 35 years, Dr. Bill Mahon has tended newborns and broken bones, given kids checkups and spinal taps. But luring new doctors with big debt and urban dreams to the redwoods is harder than it sounds.

A screenshot of fire conditions on AirNow.gov, with orange icons showing fires and gray representing smoke.

Wildfire Smoke Becomes The Health Threat That Won't Go Away

2:44pm August 26, 2015

by Nancy Shute

Cities and towns across the West are warning residents that high levels of smoke from forest fires threaten their health, with no sign of abating. That means indoor recess and no vacuuming.

Logan Kovach, 6, Matthew Kovach, 2, and Allyson Kovach, 5, eat a lunch distributed by the YMCA in Hopkins County, Kentucky.

Summer Program For Hungry Kids Gets Creative With Food Delivery

11:08am August 25, 2015

by Pam Fessler

Around the U.S., food assistance agencies are trying to come up with new ways to feed hungry kids in the summer. In Hopkins County, Ky., they're using mobile vans to take food to where kids live.

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These two Portuguese language posters are pro-inoculation. The one at left, produced in 1977, says, "Vaccinate and protect the children." The one at right, from '87, sends a similar message, noting that vaccination offers an opportunity for every youngste

Posters, Bullhorns And Skirts Help Spread The Word About Vaccines

3:05pm August 23, 2015

by Francesca Lunzer Kritz

One in five children in the developing world misses out on routine immunizations. How do you recruit them? With town criers, public notices — and even a call to action emblazoned on a garment.

To make dental care more accessible, some schools are bringing dentists to students.

Health & Safety

Kansas Town Takes Dental Care To School

10:38am August 21, 2015

by Andrea Muraskin

When parents register their kids at schools serving the poorest students in Olathe, Kan., they are asked an unusual question: Does your child have a dentist?

Can playing the Project Evo game really improve the brain's ability to deal with distractions? Its manufacturer thinks so.

'Play This Video Game And Call Me In The Morning'

4:57pm August 18, 2015

by April Dembosky

Developers at Akili are working on a game they hope might one day be prescribed to treat mental health conditions like ADHD and depression. But first, they must get past the FDA.

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The Underage Girls Of Mexico's Sex Trade: Hope Amid The Horror

2:55pm August 18, 2015

by Nadia Whitehead

A new study finds that one in four of the sex workers in Tijuana and Juarez started as minors. A safe house is helping some of them find a new life.

I'm An Obstetrician And I Failed At Breast-Feeding

9:20am August 17, 2015

by Maliha Sayla

She knew that breast is best. So when she couldn't breast-feed her children, she felt she had failed as a mother and a doctor. Until a wise pediatrician gave her permission to stop.