Toddler TV Watching May Trigger Autism, Study Says
“Too much TV time for toddlers may trigger autism, according to a study by Cornell business professors. Over the past few decades, there’s been an amazing increase in the number of children diagnosed with autism. Some experts think this is due to broader diagnostic criteria for autism. Some point to vastly increased services for autistic children. Others think that something in the environment is triggering an autism epidemic.”

Autism Linked To Inefficient Communication Between Different Parts Of The Brain
“Brain cells in some parts of the cerebral cortex of people with autism have too many connections, while other parts do not have enough, say researchers from the University of Washington, USA, at a meeting of the Society for Neuroscience. The cerebral cortex is a part of the brain that processes complex thought.”

Ped Med: Confounding autism counts
“One of the confounding factors that make it difficult to get to the bottom of autism’s causes, counts and consequences is the high rate of co-existing conditions in children with the disorder.”

Well, some people, including women, feel that they couldn’t start the day without a cup of coffee.

But, if you are pregnant, is drinking coffee safe for you? Well, there have been some studies about coffee and pregnancy.

They say that the high intake of caffeine can lead to the risk of miscarriage and low birth weight in babies. Thus, it is recommended that pregnant women avoid caffeine/coffee in their diets.

Not only it leads to the negative results previously mentioned but it also disrupts the absorption of iron and calcium, which are absolutely needed by pregnant women’s body.

Pregnant women need iron to prevent them from getting anemia. In the meantime, even a higher amount of calcium is needed to prevent a calcium loss in their bones (because the baby needs a great amount of calcium as well).

Caffeine works as a stimulant. It can increase your heart rate, cause insomnia, headaches, and nervousness. Moreover, caffeine can make you pee frequently. This would not be good for pregnant women as they can get dehydrated easily.

So, how much coffee is safe?
The moderate amount of coffee per day is 300mg - it’s the equivalent of about three cups a day.

However, it’s wise to reduce the amount of caffeine intake if you can. You should also remember that caffeine does not only contain in coffee but also in tea, chocolate, and soft-drinks.

Why not forget coffee for a while (hopefully you can) and change your diet into a healthier one? Fresh fruits and vegetables are very good and important for your body. Moreover, fruit juice and soy milk are definitely good options to change the coffee habit during your pregnancy.

Keep in mind that you are not only feeding yourself but also your baby!

Do you know what to do if your baby is sick? Do you have any guidance already?

If you are a first-time parent, you probably will find it hard to decide whether your baby is really sick (needs to be examined immediately by a doctor) or it’s just a mild illness.

Below you will find the situations when your baby really needs to go to an emergency room or to see a doctor:

- Choking (is not able to breathe, face turns red then blue)
- Poisoning
- High fever
- Repeated seizures
- Suddenly becoming lethargic
- Refusing feedings
- Continuous diarrhea for the last 12 hours
- Vomiting over and over again
- Dehydration (the signs include not urinating for 6-8 hours, no tears, and dry lips)

However, it is not wrong if you just follow your instinct. If you feel that your child needs emergency treatment no matter what happen, just call a doctor and ask for his/her advice.

Don’t forget to make a list of emergency numbers. Put it in the place where it’s easy for you and anyone else in the house to see. The list of numbers includes 911, your family doctor’s, your child pediatrician’s, a local hospital, and close family and friends’.

Your kid feels weak and tired and has a sore throat, high fever, headache, and dry cough. Those are the signs that she has flu.

Flu is caused by viruses. Thus, there’s no particular medical treatment for it. You cannot heal flu with antibiotics since they are used to kill bacteria, and not viruses.

How to treat the flu then?

1. Tell her to take a lot of fluids: water, fruit juice, hot soup. This will keep her from dehydrated caused by the high fever.

2. Give her acetaminophen to relieve her pain and fever.

3. Suggest her to have a lot of rest. Sleeping is a very good help. But, if she is tired of sleeping, tell her to stay in bed and provide her with things she likes, such as her favorite magazines, books, a music player, movie, or anything.

However, if these symptoms get worse, such as your kid has a prolonged high fever, a breathing trouble, and changes in behavior, it is recommended to take your child to a doctor.

If you are pregnant, you probably already know that walking gives many benefits for your pregnancy. But, how good it is, that’s what you probably do not recognize.

It is recommended that you read the article first, The Benefits of Walking for Pregnant Women. When you are finished, let’s move on to this one.

Things to consider before choosing walking as your exercise:

1. Consult with your obgyn first about the most suitable exercise for your pregnancy. If he agrees with walking, you can ask how you should do the exercise properly and safely.

2. Choose the correct shoes for walking; not too loose or too tight. Don’t forget to wear socks during the exercise.

3. Before starting, have a warming up and stretching to avoid injuries.

4. After you have done the primary activity, always do a cooling down and stretching, too.

5. Beware of dehydration. You should drink as much water as you can.

6. Do not exercise when it’s hot outside.

7. Stop exercising when you experience headache, shortness in breathing, rapid heartbeat, or pain below your tummy and chest. Check it out with your doctor if you have one or some of these symptoms.

Remember that exercise is very good during pregnancy, but you must be careful with your own condition. Always pay attention to your body changes if something happens during the practice and consult it with your doctor for the best of your pregnancy.