Showing posts with label child health. Show all posts
Showing posts with label child health. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Medical News: Supreme Court Sides With Vaccine Maker - in Washington-Watch, Washington Watch from MedPage Today

The Supreme Court has ruled 6-3 that a federal law shields drug companies from being sued over injuries caused by childhood vaccines.

The case was brought by the parents of Hannah Bruesewitz, now a young adult, and charges that she developed a seizure disorder after receiving her third dose of the diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTP) vaccine when she was 6 months old. She has suffered developmental problems ever since, and will likely require medical attention for the rest of her life, her parents say.

The dose of the vaccine in question, TRI-IMMUNOL, came from a lot that generated 65 reports of adverse reactions, including 39 emergency room visits, six hospitalizations, and two deaths, according to documents from the U.S. appeals court that heard the case in 2009.

The National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986 created a so-called "vaccine court" to address safety claims in an attempt to ease the threat of lawsuits in state courts against pharmaceutical companies and insure against them pulling out of what they claim is an unprofitable vaccine marketplace completely.

Under the law, people injured by vaccines are eligible for compensation for medical care, rehabilitation, counseling, special education, and vocational training expenses; diminished earning capacity; pain and suffering; and $250,000 for vaccine-related deaths.

Click on the "via" link to read the rest of the article.

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Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Fewer pediatricians, higher risk for kids’ appendix ruptures | Johns Hopkins University - The Gazette

Children who live in areas with fewer pediatricians are more likely to suffer life-threatening ruptures of the appendix than those in areas with more pediatricians, even when accounting for other factors such as the number of hospitals, imaging technology, insurance coverage and the number of surgeons in an area, according to a study from the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center.

The study’s findings, based on an analysis of nearly 250,000 hospital records of children with appendicitis, are published online in the December issue of JAMA–Archives of Surgery.

“Our analysis shows that the most potent predictor of outcome in children with appendicitis was the number of pediatricians available in an area, emphasizing the pivotal role they play as the point of first contact in the care of a sick child,” said lead investigator Fizan Abdullah, a pediatric surgeon at the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center and an associate professor in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

The appendix is a small tube extending from the large intestine, and infections and inflammation of the organ can be dangerous. Each year, 77,000 children develop appendicitis, and an estimated one-third of them suffer a ruptured appendix, a serious complication that often results from delays in diagnosis and surgery to remove the inflamed or infected organ.

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Andrew Lopez, RN
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Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood Home

Screen-Free Week

Order Your Organizer's Kit Today!
Go Screen-Free with CCFC: April 18-24, 2011

This April, children and families around the world will turn off their TVs, video games, and computers and turn on life. Will you organize a Screen-Free Week in your school or community?  It's easy and fun and we'll walk you through the process with our brand-new Organizer Kit.  Organize your own Screen-Free Week > | Visit the Screen-Free Week store > | Become a Facebook fan >

Take Action
Shape Up, Scholastic!

Are you tired of Scholastic exploiting its unique access to schoolchildren and marketing everything from sugary beverages to television programs to cleaning products and medications in classrooms?  Are you fed-up with “book” fairs and “book” clubs that are chock-full-of toys, videogames, and other commercialized fare? We created this page to help you communicate your concerns directly with Scholastic's CEO. Take action>

 

Take Action
Tell the FCC: Sneaky New Nick Toon is Nothing but a Skechers Ad

The FCC has opened an inquiry into CCFC's petition urging the the Commission to rule that the upcoming broadcast of Zevo-3 on Nicktoons is not in the public interest.  Developed by Skechers, Zevo-3 is the first kids' program to feature characters known to children only as commercial spokescharacters and will violate longstanding policies designed to protect children from overcommercialization. But the FCC will only act if there is signification public pressure, so please submit a comment in support of our petition today. Submit a Comment to the FCC> |  Read the Petition> | Read the Press Release> | Read the AP Story>

How much television and computer time have your kids had this week?

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Andrew Lopez, RN
Nursefriendly, Inc. A New Jersey Corporation.
38 Tattersall Drive, Mantua New Jersey 08051
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856-415-9617, (fax) 415-9618

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Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Children's Health Products, Nursing Entrepreneurs, Nurse-Owned Businesses

Mary Ann Bernard, RN, CIC, Healthy Attitudes:"Provide options for health and wellness through use of a Wholefood Nutritional Supplement. A children's research study currently in progress and children 6-15 can get on free for up to a year if parent or grandparent, etc. setting the example of health for them. Capsules, chewables and gummie form available. Also provide a protein/carb drink mix, plant based for a meal replacement, pre and post workout drink or healthy snack."
http://www.nursingentrepreneurs.com/bernard/

Children's Health Council:"Mission: to make a measurable difference in the lives of children who face severe or complex behavioral and developmental challenges by providing interdisciplinary educational, assessment, and treatment services and professional training."
Children's Health Council
650 Clark Way, Palo Alto, CA 94304
(650) 617-3820
http://www.chconline.org/

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Children's Health Development Foundation (Australia):"The Children's Health Development Foundation was established by the South Australian Government in 1983 as a result of community concerns about children's fitness and eating habits, and increasing levels of childhood obesity. It followed a series of successful research studies which showed that school based intervention strategies through the health and physical education curriculum could positively impact on children's physical and emotional health."
Children's Health Development Foundation
8th Floor, Samuel Way Building Women's and Children's Hospital
72 King William Road North Adelaide, South Australia, 5006
Phone: +61 8 8161 7777 Fax: +61 8 8161 7778 Email: chdf@wch.sa.gov.au
http://www.chdf.org.au/

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Children's Health Systems:
1600 7th Avenue South Birmingham, Alabama 35233
(205) 939-9100
http://www.chsys.org/

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Harvard Center for Children's Health:"The Harvard Center for Children's Health was created in 1995 to translate what we know about children's health into what we do to improve children's health and well-being. The Center serves as a vehicle through which knowledge, gained through research, can be communicated to larger audiences. Our mission is use this information to influence policy and practice in order to improve the lives of children. The Center also promotes interdisciplinary research and community collaboration."
(617) 432-3222 / fax (617) 432-3755
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/children/

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KidsHealth!:"KidsHealth is the largest and most visited site on the Web providing doctor-approved health information about children from before birth through adolescence. Created by The Nemours Foundation's Center for Children's Health Media, the award-winning KidsHealth provides families with accurate, up-to-date, and jargon-free health information they can use. KidsHealth has been on the Web since 1995."
http://kidshealth.org/

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Children's Health, MEDLINEplus:"Welcome to MEDLINEplus, a goldmine of good health information from the world's largest medical library, the National Library of Medicine. Health professionals and consumers alike can depend on it for information that is authoritative and up to date. MEDLINEplus has extensive information from the National Institutes of Health and other trusted sources on over 500 diseases and conditions. There are also lists of hospitals and physicians, a medical encyclopedia and dictionaries, health information in Spanish, extensive information on prescription and nonprescription drugs, health information from the media, and links to thousands of clinical trials. MEDLINEplus is updated daily and can be bookmarked at the URL: medlineplus.gov. There is no advertising on this site, nor does MEDLINEplus endorse any company or product."
U.S. National Library of Medicine
8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20894
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/childrenshealth.html

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My Baby And Me Exercise:"Corinne L. Becker, R.N., B.S.N., certified by the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America, is the prenatal and postnatal exercise specialist at Memorial Hospital West Fitness and Rehab Center in Pembroke Pines, Florida. Since 1992, over ten thousand moms and babies have graduated from her "Mommy and Me" Fitness Program. Corinne also teaches "Daddy and Me" and "Grandparent and Baby" classes along with her husband Scott."
My Baby And Me Exercise
1689 N. Hiatus Rd. PMB 173
Pembroke Pines, FL 33026
1-888-741-BABY (2229), corinne@mybabyandme.com
http://mybabyandme.com/

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Office of Children's Health Protection:"EPA established the Office of Children's Health Protection (OCHP) in May 1997 to make the protection of children's health a fundamental goal of public health and environmental protection in the United States. OCHP supports and facilitates Agency efforts to protect children's health from environmental threats. Learn more about OCHP by selecting from the topics below."
Office of Children's Health Protection
U.S. Environmental Protecton Agency Office of the Administrator
1200 Pennsylvania Ave, N.W. Mail Code 1107A
Room 2512 Ariel Rios North Washington, DC 20004
Fax (202) 564-2733 Telephone (202 564-2188
http://yosemite.epa.gov/ochp/ochpweb.nsf/

Nursingentrepreneurs.com is a networking and resource directory for Nurse-Owned businesses and nurses looking for an alternative to working at the bedside.

If you explore the site a bit, you'll find profiles of hundreds of nurse entrepreneurs around the country. We encourage you to browse around, find a business category you are interested in, then contact the nurse directly. We're available for questions as well. This website is Owned-Operated by Andrew Lopez, RN a Medical/Surgical/Telemetry nurse.

Has your Nurse-owned business been written up in the news? Do you send out a newsletter or regular press releases? We'd like to hear about it!

Our Newest article is from an Arizona Nurse Entrepreneur:

Should You Incorporate Your Registry Business? By Joseph Caracci, RN:"The short answer is yes! When starting a new nurse registry business, you are entering into a legal business environment that requires you to take steps to protect your personal assets, such as your home, your savings, and your retirement. With this in mind, you need to determine which legal form you are going to take for your new registry. Some of the common choices are a sole proprietorship, a partnership, a limited liability partnership (LLP), a limited liability company (LLC), and a corporation."
http://www.nursingentrepreneurs.com/incorporate

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The #1 question, we've been receiving lately is about Starting A Nursing Agency, resource sites & manuals

Please choose from the following:

Interesting Reading For Nurse Entrepreneurs, Actual or Soon To Be:

Nurse Entrepreneurs: Tales of Nurses in Business:"This book is vey inspiring! Learn how 50 different nurses brought their vision to reality! Learn some great tips on starting your own business. Nurses don't have to just work at the bedside. Read this book and you will be thinking of how you can make your dream a reality!"

Own Your Own Corporation: Why the Rich Own Their Own Companies and Everyone Else Works for Them:"Rich Dad's-"Own your Own Corporation" is a must read for anyone comtemplating a new business-or someone who already owns their own business. Garrett's direct yet simplistic explanations of the different business entities,the proper and best suited entity for your business-is followed by real-life scenarios which helps drive home the importance of corporate ownership in today's business world. Use Garrett's legal expertise to establish a successful, legally responsible and fiscally protected business...And understand the why's and how's of that ownership."

21 Success Secrets, Success Secret #4- "Do What You Love to Do." Get your FREE CD and find out the other 20 secrets of self-made millionaires.:"Order your FREE CD ($4.95 S&H) from Brian Tracy's acclaimed 21 Success Secrets series. Start with 21 Success Secrets of $elf-Made Millionaires - full of techniques practiced by all men and women who go from rags to riches in one generation. Brian Tracy is a noted success expert. He's trained over 2 million people in 23 countries how to achieve their financial goals faster than ever before."

  • Business To Business:
    • Subscribe to our newsletters to learn how to make any site sell! Please enter your e-mail address into the box and click on the "Subscribe" button.

    • Click Here To Start accepting credit cards online! Surefire Premium Processing ($100,000 and over)

    • Make Your Knowledge Sell!:""Make Your Knowledge Sell!" makes it possible for Y-O-U to develop and sell your infoproduct! My co-author Monique Harris started out pretty much like you. She didn't use rocket science to achieve her tremendous e-publishing success."

    • Make Your Net Auction Sell:"As a business, Net auctions are truly a whole new kind of opportunity. To sell at auction just a few years ago, you had to be a Sotheby's, a business liquidator, a car dealer… or some other kind of "traditional" business. Or pay them to do the job."

    • Make Your Price Sell:"Know Your Perfect Price™ in 50 Minutes "Why is the Perfect Price™ so important?" That depends on whether you are considering a new product concept, launching a new product, or managing existing ones... Considering a new product concept? Not sure if it will fly? Imagine if you could know how much people would pay. You'd know if this new idea was worth pursuing... or not (think of the dollars and time saved)."

    • Make Your Site Sell:"Starting a major new business on the Net? Want to improve upon results from an existing Web presence? Or merely looking to build a solid second income stream? Whatever your e-commerce goals, we'll OVERdeliver, no matter how lofty your expectations are. As you will soon see, SiteSell.com products are globally acclaimed by major authorities as best of breed. Yet they are priced so that you can afford them... easily."

    • Make Your Words Sell:"What Do YOU Sell? Want to Sell More? Selling software on the Net? Infoproducts? A service? Million dollar cables for suspension bridges? If you want to sell more... Use the right words. Because words sell, not graphics. If you have any doubts, try this simple experiment."

    • Site Build It :"Site Build It! is the complete, all-in-one traffic-building system. It builds income by giving you all the software, tools and techniques that you need to build targeted traffic... all tied together into a terrific, time-saving, step-by-step process."

    • Please select from the following, see also Doing Business Resources:

      Make Money From Any Type of Website! Webmasters will want to check out our Paid Link Affiliate Programs Directory

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      If your website is not listed here, we encourage you to submit it: Add Your Website/URL.

      See also:

      Nursing Topics, A to Z:

      Nursing Degrees, LPN-RN, RN-BSN, RN-MSN, Online/Offline College, University and more!:"Higher income. Career mobility. Now, no matter where you live or what your schedule, you can earn your Associate or Bachelor Degree to take your professional life to the next level — without putting the rest of your life on hold!"

      If you do any Browsing or Windowshopping online, please visit our online Mall:
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      Gifts For Nurses:
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      4nursinguniforms.com:"Choose from Top Nursing Uniform Companies. All sizes, styles and popular name brands available. Large selection of accessories as well: Accessories Blood Pressure Cuffs, Sphygnomanometers Nursing Tote Bags, Carry-Ons, Medical Bags Clinical, Medical Supplies, Nurses Discount Outlet: Angels, Books, Clothing , Equipment, Figurines, Holidays, Home Decor, Jewelry, Nurses, Office Decor, Scrubs, Shoes, T-Shirts Footwear, Shoes, Sandals, Discount, Bargains Gifts For Nurses (Nurses Week) Hosiery, Socks, Stockings Hats, Jackets, Jumpers Jewelry, Earrings, Necklaces, Watches Luxury Spas, Facials, Manicures, Pedicures Perfumes, Fragrances, Phermones Shoes, Boots, Sandals, Footwear, High Heels, Slippers Stethescopes, Nurse Kits, Replacement Parts Swimwear (Tan-Through) Women's Lingerie "
      4nursinguniforms.com

      Nurses' Station:"The idea for the Nurses' Station Catalog was conceived in 1989. After searching the marketplace in response to customer inquiries, it became obvious that there were no catalogs of this type serving the nursing profession. To be sure, there were several catalogs offering nurse's uniforms and a smattering of professional items. But there weren't any catalogs at the time offering a range of gifts, clothing, professional items, name badges, shoes and scrubs for nurses. It took two years of hard work to gather samples and put a together a catalog of the most unique and high-quality items for nurses."
      Nurses Station P.O. Box 388 Centerbrook, CT 06409-03881
      http://www.nursefriendly.com/station/

      Choose Nursing Uniforms, Shoes, Scrubs, Accessories By Brand:

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    Sincerely,

    Andrew Lopez, RN
    Nursefriendly, Inc. A New Jersey Corporation.
    38 Tattersall Drive, Mantua New Jersey 08051
    http://www.nursefriendly.com info@nursefriendly.com ICQ #6116137
    856-415-9617, (fax) 415-9618

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    Monday, January 10, 2011

    Preventing Heart Ailments at Their Roots - Childhood - NYTimes.com

    Two studies published Monday suggest that the road to hypertension and heart disease starts in childhood and that prevention should start there, too.

    Related

    One analysis found that parental smoking increases the risk for high blood pressure in preschoolers, and the other that excessive sugar consumption in teenagers is associated with multiple factors known to increase the risk for cardiovascular disease. Both reports appear in the February issue of the journal Circulation.

    The first study looked at 4,236 children in Germany, where 5-year-olds undergo a compulsory physical and cognitive assessment before starting school. During the period of the study, 2007-8, more than 28 percent had at least one parent who smoked. Even after correcting for body mass index and parental hypertension, having a smoker as a parent substantially increased the likelihood that a child would have blood pressure readings in the top 15 percent of the sample.

    Parental smoking was not the only association, or even the strongest. Being overweight and having a parent with hypertension were also associated with high blood pressure in the children. But the lead author, Dr. Giacomo D. Simonetti, said smoking was probably the easiest risk to modify.

    Click on the link above to read the rest of the article:

    See also: Cardiac Resources:
    http://www.nursefriendly.com/nursing/directpatientcare/cardiac.htm

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    Sincerely,

    Andrew Lopez, RN
    Nursefriendly, Inc. A New Jersey Corporation.
    38 Tattersall Drive, Mantua New Jersey 08051
    http://www.nursefriendly.com info@nursefriendly.com ICQ #6116137
    856-415-9617, (fax) 415-9618

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    http://www.nursingexperts.com

    Wednesday, December 15, 2010

    What Causes ADHD? 12 Myths and Facts - Health.com

    Because attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms—inattention, impulsivity, and/or hyperactivity—affect a child's ability to learn and get along with others, some people think an ADHD child's behavior is caused by a lack of discipline, a chaotic family life, or even too much TV.

    In fact, research suggests that ADHD is largely a genetic disorder.

    However, some environmental factors may play a role as well. Here, we separate fact from fiction about the causes of ADHD.

    Next: Pesticides

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    Sincerely,

    Andrew Lopez, RN
    Nursefriendly, Inc. A New Jersey Corporation.
    38 Tattersall Drive, Mantua New Jersey 08051
    http://www.nursefriendly.com info@nursefriendly.com ICQ #6116137
    856-415-9617, (fax) 415-9618

    150,000 + Nurse-Reviewed & Approved Nursing Links

    http://www.4nursing.com
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    Tuesday, December 14, 2010

    How adult smoking affects behavior in children, KevinMD.com

    by Nancy Walsh

    Both maternal and paternal cigarette smoking can contribute to adverse chronic conditions — physical and psychological — in children, two large studies found.

    Writing in the July issue of Pediatrics, Marie-Jo Brion, PhD, of the University of Bristol in England, and colleagues reported that children in two cohorts whose mothers smoked were more likely to have conduct/externalizing behavior problems than were those who had no prenatal tobacco exposure:

    * British cohort, OR 1.24 (95% CI 1.07 to 1.46, P=0.005)
    * Brazilian cohort, OR 1.82 (95% CI 1.19 to 2.78, P=0.005)

    In a second study in the same issue, Chinese researchers found that daily paternal pre- or postnatal smoking was associated with increased mean body mass index (BMI) Z-scores in offspring at seven years, with a mean difference of 0.10 (95% CI 0.02 to 0.19) and also at 11 years, when the mean difference was 0.16 (95% CI 0.07 to 0.26).

    These studies “tighten the evidence around tobacco smoke exposure and chronic conditions of childhood,” observed Jonathan P. Winickoff, MD, of Massachusetts General Hospital for Children in Boston, and colleagues in an editorial accompanying the studies.

    Winickoff and colleagues wrote that these studies contribute to a growing body of research findings linking tobacco smoke exposure and multiple childhood morbidities and mortality, ranging from miscarriage, stillbirth, and sudden infant death syndrome to decreased lung function and obesity.

    Brion and colleagues sought to determine if maternal smoking also could be causally related to the widely reported psychological problems seen in offspring.

    Their study included 6,735 children residing in southwest England born between April 1991 and December 1992, as well as 509 children from the city of Pelotas in southern Brazil who were born during 1993.

    The prevalence of maternal smoking was almost twice as high in the Brazilian cohort (29.4% versus 15.9%), but consistency was observed otherwise in the two groups.

    In unadjusted models, maternal smoking was associated with behaviors in children at four years of age including inattention/hyperactivity, conduct/externalizing problems, and peer/social difficulties, but not with emotional/internalizing problems.

    After adjusting for multiple potential confounders, however, such as birth weight and gestational age, socioeconomic factors, and maternal-paternal smoking, only conduct/externalizing problems were seen in both cohorts.

    These findings support the concept that these children’s behavioral problems may be mediated by the influence of intrauterine tobacco exposure, and particular

    ly nicotine, on neurodevelopmental pathways, according to the investigators.

    They acknowledged that the study had shortcomings. Information about potentially important confounders, such as maternal antisocial behavior, was not available, and different instruments were used to assess child behavior in the two cohorts.

    Also, parental smoking was measured by self-report, which may represent an underestimation.

    In the second study, C. Mary Schooling, PhD, and colleagues from the University of Hong Kong, examined the effects of secondhand smoke on 6,790 children born during 1997 whose mothers did not smoke, stratifying them according to degree of paternal smoking.

    They found that children of daily paternal smokers were from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, had mothers not born in Hong Kong, and were less likely to be breastfed.

    Unlike BMI, the children’s height was not affected by paternal smoking.

    At age seven, the difference in height Z-scores was −0.01 (95% CI −0.08 to 0.06), and at age 11 the difference was 0.02 (95% CI −0.05 to 0.10).

    “To date, most of the evidence for the association between parental smoking and offspring overweight comes from Western or long-term developed settings, where smoking and childhood BMI are socially patterned and usually associated with low socioeconomic position,” the investigators wrote.

    They noted that in Hong Kong, few women smoke and about one-quarter of men do, and although the prevalence of overweight in childhood is comparable to that in Western countries, it may be less socially patterned.

    “Therefore, currently developed Hong Kong may serve as an ideal, non-Western social laboratory in which to verify associations from Western societies that are potentially confounded by [socioeconomic position],” they wrote.

    In this study, the data were collected prospectively but there still were limitations. Secondhand smoke exposure was determined by parental report, so underreporting was possible, and childhood adiposity was measured by proxy using BMI, which does not differentiate between body fat and lean mass.

    Nonetheless, the study suggests that paternal smoking may contribute to excess weight in offspring. Possible explanations for this include the fact that infants in households of smokers were less likely to be breastfed, and parents may have been generally less health-conscious.

    “Alternatively, our findings might reflect the physiologic effects of paternal smoking and perhaps prenatal [secondhand smoke] exposure,” they wrote.

    For example, while nicotine exposure from secondhand smoke might not be sufficient to cause intrauterine growth restriction, it might lead to restricted brain development and changes in appetite and metabolism.

    In the editorial, Winickoff and colleagues urged continuation of efforts to curb smoke exposure in workplaces, restaurants, homes, and cars, recommending that clinicians utilize office systems, family-centered approaches, and community outreach to further minimize exposures and improve the health of both parents and children.

    “Parental tobacco dependence, itself a chronic condition, begets other chronic conditions of childhood,” they wrote.

    Nancy Walsh is a MedPage Today contributing writer.

    Originally published in MedPage Today. Visit MedPageToday.com for more smoking news.

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