Is fame more important to tweens than it used to be? A new study suggests that young kids of this decade are vastly more familiar with and are more likely to value individualistic personality traits like fame, achievement and …
Childhood
TV, Video Games at Night May Cause Sleep Problems in Kids
Watching television or playing video games close to bedtime can act like a jolt of caffeine to young children, making them more likely to experience difficulty falling asleep, nightmares, and daytime fatigue, a new study in the …
Study: Portable Kiddie Pools Kill a Child Every Five Days
Colorful kiddie pools look innocuous enough, but a new study finds that a child drowns in an inflatable, portable pool every five days in warm-weather months.
For Little Girls, Kate Middleton Pales Next to Pretend Princesses
Little girls love princesses. With royal wedding coverage everywhere — TIME.com alone had more than 10 related stories on Friday morning’s homepage — it would seem the perfect opportunity for diminutive ladies-in-waiting to …
Jenny McCarthy, Vaccine Expert? A Quarter of Parents Trust Celebrities
Jenny McCarthy is a former Playboy bunny, not an academic expert, a doctor or a vaccine researcher. Yet 24% of parents surveyed recently by the University of Michigan say they place “some trust” in information provided by …
Millions Watch Twin Baby Boys Babble: Are They Truly Talking?
One of my favorite children’s books, Before You Were Born, recounts the legend of the angel Lailah, whom rabbinic lore has accompanying babies in utero, sharing the history of their souls. When they’re born, Lailah touches …
Psychological Problems in Childhood Affect Earning Power and Relationships Later
In a 50-year study of more than 17,000 British people who were followed since birth, researchers from the RAND Labor and Population program found that psychological problems during childhood were related to measurable social and …
Toddlers’ Junk-Food Diet May Lead to Lower IQ
The human brain develops rapidly in early life — transforming helpless infants into walking, door-opening, question-asking, willful little people. And now a new study suggests that a toddler’s diet may have some impact on his …
The Key to Health, Wealth and Success: Self-Control
Self-control may be the secret to success, according to a persuasive new study that followed 1,000 children from birth to age 32: children who showed early signs of self-mastery were not only less likely to have developed …
Using Brain Scans to Diagnose Dyslexia Better
Dyslexia, the underlying biology of which is not well understood, affects somewhere between 5% and 17% of the population.
Study: Making Pornography More Accessible May Curb Child Abuse
Whether pornography is an expression of free speech or a form of exploitation remains a hotly debated issue, and new research may only stir up the controversy further.
Dosages for Children’s Liquid Medications Confound Parents
When your kid spikes a fever in the middle of the night, have you ever found yourself, bleary-eyed, puzzling over the correct dosage of liquid meds?
Universal Children’s Day: Poor Kids Speak
Saturday, Nov. 20, is Universal Children’s Day, as declared by the United Nations, and a new survey of children illuminates the wants and needs of kids living in poverty.