Girls Playing Sports in Record Numbers But Barriers Remain

A new report from the University of Minnesota’s Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport shows that girls are participating in sports in record numbers, but their participation in physical activity outside organized sports is declining, especially as they move from childhood into adolescence.

The report, “Developing Physically Active Girls: An Evidence-based Multidisciplinary Approach,” summarizes the most recent research on the physical, psychological, social and cultural benefits girls get from participating in sports and physical activity, the  barriers that prevent them from reaching their full potential and the kinds of environments in which girls learn how to develop and foster the best parts of themselves on and off playing fields.

Click here to read the complete story from the University of Minnesota.

Parents Wise to Keep TVs Out of Kids’ Bedrooms

While kids may beg to have a TV in their bedrooms, new research indicates this can not only lead to more time spent watching TV, but also less time spent with the family and on exercising, lower fruit and vegetable intake, more consumption of sweetened beverages and lower grades.

“The big take-home message from our study is that TVs should be removed from kids’ bedrooms, and it could have a positive effect on kids’ health,” said the study’s lead author, Daheia Barr-Anderson, at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health in Minneapolis.

Read more on the Healthfinder.gov website.

EPA Issues Rules to Protect Kids From Lead-based Paint

To further protect children from exposure to lead-based paint, the EPA is issuing new rules for contractors who renovate or repair housing, child-care facilities or schools built before 1978.

“While there has been a dramatic decrease over the last two decades in the number of children affected by lead-poisoning, EPA is continuing its efforts to take on this preventable disease,” said James Gulliford, EPA’s Assistant Administrator for Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances.

Click here to read more on the EPA website.

Are Cavities in Kids Related to Weight?

You might think overweight children would have more cavities than normal weight friends, but that isn’t necessarily so, and they might even have fewer, according to the results of two national studies.

Researchers who reviewed the results of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys say results are inconclusive and raise a lot of questions.  ”Are overweight children eating foods higher in fat rather than cavity-causing sugars?” asked researcher Dorota Kopycka-Kedzierawski. She says more study is needed.

Click here to read the story from WebMD.com.

Poll Finds Most Americans Don’t Know How to Report Bad Drug Reactions

A new “Consumer Reports” poll shows that one in six Americans who have ever taken a prescription drug experienced a side effect serious enough to send them to the doctor or hospital, but the majority of consumers don’t know how they can report them to the FDA, which is responsible for tracking drug safety problems.

To help make the public aware of the FDA’s reporting program for drug side effects–known as MedWatch–Consumers Union recently gave the FDA a petition signed by nearly 56,000 consumers asking that a toll-free number and website be included in all TV drug ads so people can easily report serious side effects to the agency.

Click here to read the complete story.