Walmart to Pull BPA Bottles

Walmart has decided to pull plastic bottles (including sippy cups) made using Bisphenol A (BPA) from it’s shelves beginning early next year; citing health concerns and the recent news that Canada is moving to declare BPA as a dangerous chemical.

We are still putting away all the generous gifts we had from our baby shower and there were only one or two BPA created products. We registered for the Born Free baby bottles which are BPA free since we have been following this story for a few weeks.

This excerpt from the article sums it up:

BPA is good for making hard, clear, nearly unbreakable plastic containers — just what you want on the trail or in the nursery. But concerns have been floating around for a while that the chemical could present long-term cancer risks, especially to infants.

While the data are still unclear, a few key dominoes fell this week: Canada moved toward declaring the chemical a dangerous substance, and a draft version of a U.S. government report said BPA might present risks.

Photo credit: swruler9284

Deal with the Bully

Bullied children show signs of depression, anxiety, isolation and are at risk of suicide. Researchers in England have set out to prove that bullying alone is responsible for these feelings and not the social settings (poverty and poorer neighborhoods) in which these children live.

The research team looked at over 1,000 twin pairs from a nationally representative group of children in England and Whales and found just over 100 where one child was bullied and the other was not. In that subsection of twin children, the bullied child showed significantly more signs of internalized issue. Read more on the study here.

Here are some great resources for dealing with bullies:

• Dealing with Bullies
• How Kids can put Bullies in their Place - without force of violence
• Dealing with Bullies and How Not to be One

Music for Young Ears

Portable music players have advanced so much in recent years that we are listening to them a lot more frequently and for longer periods of time. Improved battery life, rechargeable batteries and increased storage space allow us to listen for hours on end. This can lead to irreversible hearing loss if the listening volume is set too high.

This is especially important for children to realize as they may not understand the damage that can happen. As well, they are listening to music in noisier atmospheres which leads to increased listening levels to overcome the background noise.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has adapted the government standards for workplace noise to say that the safe listening levels is 90 decibels for 8 hours a day. If the listening level is raised by 3 decibels, the safe exposure time drops by half. By contrast, research has found that an iPod at peak levels is 115 decibels which is equivalent to sandblasting or a loud rock concert.

Apple provides a volume limit control on their iPod product line to allow you to set the maximum volume for your child’s iPod and lock it with a combination so they cannot change it. Also, Apple has applied for a patent that will further help control the volume level on their iPods by reducing the volume over time during a listening session.

Noise canceling headphones will help offset the need to increase the volume while listening in noisy surroundings. Combined with setting the max listening volume, you can help protect the young ears in your household.

Family Mealtime Matters

Sitting down for a family meal most evenings during the week has some obvious benefits. It’s a perfect time to talk to your kids about what is going on at school and any activity that fosters togetherness is a win-win. But, did you know there are health and mental benefits for your children?

According to a August 2004 survey conducted by the University of Minnesota that appeared in The Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, frequent family meals led to better nutritional intake, and a decreased risk for unhealthy weight control practices and substance abuse.

Another University of Minnesota study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association found that children who ate family meals consumed more fruits, vegetables and fewer snack foods than children who ate separately from their families.

A Harvard study published in the March 2000 issue of Archives of Family Medicine showed that families eating meals together “every day” or “almost every day” generally consumed higher amounts of important nutrients such as calcium, fiber, iron, vitamins B6 and B12, C and E, and consumed less overall fat, compared to families who “never” or “only sometimes” eat meals together.

Children who frequently eat meals with their families tend to do better in school as well. A 1994 Lou Harris-Reader’s Digest national poll of high school seniors showed better grades among students who frequently shared meals with their families. And a survey of high-achieving teens showed that those who regularly eat meals with their families tend to be happier with their present life and their prospects for the future.

Here are some tips to help you make family mealtime happen:

Plan some easy meals (20-minutes start-to-finish) and make sure the ingredients are in the house. On hectic days, make these quick meals instead of doing take-out.

If you have some picky eaters, have choices so everyone doesn’t have to eat the same thing.

Keep the conversation positive. Ask questions like “What was the best part of your day?” or “Mom told me you helped with the laundry today, I think that’s very grown up of you.”

Cold Medication and Kids

It is estimated that over 7,000 children are admitted to the emergency room each year due to overdose or adverse reactions to over-the-counter cold medication according to the CDC. According to this Reuters article two thirds of the cases involved children that took the medication without supervision.

Strangely, the article describes that these medications have not been proven to benefit young children:

Evidence suggests parents want to give these drugs, including cough suppressants, antihistamines and decongestants, to their children, even though they have never been shown to benefit young children.

The fear is that even if these medication are taken off the market, that parents may try to substitute adult medications in their place according to the CDC. The issue, then, is with the packaging. The article goes on to say:

Companies that make the drugs might consider changes to packaging to keep small children from getting into the medications, which are often flavored and colored to make them more appealing, Schaefer’s team said.

Another measure is that parents should not encourage their children to take the medication by describing it as tasting like candy. This may lead to children taking the medication unsupervised. And, obviously, you should keep all of your medication out of the reach of children.

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