news 2011

ANN ARBOR, Mich.-It's no surprise that TV viewing has an effect on our eating habits, but a new study shows that even pre-schoolers planted in front of the set are more prone to eating sweets and salty foods instead of fruits and vegetables. University of Michigan and University of Illinois researchers conducted a three-year study using data from 423 parents and 354 children-ages two to four-in the Midwest.

The first ever comprehensive report on people's experiences of the adoption process in Victoria reveals that many found the current system to be inflexible and focused almost exclusively on administrative tasks and bureaucratic formalities. For many prospective applicants, the mismatch between their emotional experiences and the bureaucratic processes caused tension and anxiety the report found.

For the first time, researchers from Oxford University will work with NCT, the UK's largest charity for parents, to conduct an academic study into how fathers feel about the new baby, both before and after the birth. The study, funded by the British Academy, will focus in particular on the bonding process between new fathers and their babies.

Parents should look towards behavioural interventions, not medication, as the first step in treating preschoolers at risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, says new research from the University of Toronto , the Hospital for Sick Children and McMaster University.

CHAMPAIGN, lll. A study of more than 400 children diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder has found a link between the children's routine play settings and the severity of their symptoms, researchers report. Those who regularly play in outdoor settings with lots of green (grass and trees, for example) have milder ADHD symptoms than those who play indoors or in built outdoor environments, the researchers found.

Media Inquiries news [a] uwhealth (p) org Related Information Department of Psychiatry Stay Connected Follow UWSMPH on Twitter Follow UWSMPH on Facebook Madison, Wisconsin - Parents who are stressed during their children's early years can leave an imprint on their sons' or daughters' genes - an imprint that lasts into adolescence and may affect how these genes are expressed later in life, according to a study by researchers at the University of Wisconsin and the University of British Columbia.

Aug. AUSTIN, Texas — Despite the fact that middle-aged parents are no longer responsible for their grown children, the parents' emotional well-being and life satisfaction remain linked to those children's successes and problems — particularly their least-happy offspring, research from The University of Texas at Austin shows.

The best looking people earn an extra $250,000, on average, during their careers than the least attractive people and are more likely to remain employed, get promoted and even secure loans, according to a new book economist Daniel Hamermesh.

(07/28/2011) —Children in a school that uses corporal punishment performed significantly worse than those in a school that relied on milder disciplinary measures such as time-outs, according to research conducted by a professor in the University of Minnesota's Institute of Child Development and Canadian colleagues.

Study suggests non-corporal discipline aids children's executive-functioning ability Children in a school that uses corporal punishment performed significantly worse in tasks involving 'executive functioning' ' psychological processes such as planning, abstract thinking, and delaying gratification ' than those in a school relying on milder disciplinary measures such as time-outs, according to a new study involving two private schools in a West African country.

When young children learn a second language, it strengthens their ability to pay attention to the right stuff, reports a new Cornell study. "Our study showed that bilingualism in young children strengthens what is known as executive attention, which helps orient individuals in the sea of information coming in," said Sujin Yang, Ph.D.

The rise of Internet search engines like Google has changed the way our brain remembers information, according to research by Columbia University psychologist Betsy Sparrow published July 14 in Science . "Since the advent of search engines, we are reorganizing the way we remember things," said Sparrow.

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—A new study from the University of Michigan and the University of Pittsburgh shows that even if a child isn't crying, frowning or displaying other negative emotions on a consistent basis, another warning sign is when a child shows fewer positive displays, like hugging a parent or smiling and laughing.

Cognitive scientists find that when teaching young children, there is a trade-off between direct instruction and independent exploration. CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Suppose someone showed you a novel gadget and told you, 'Here's how it works,? while demonstrating a single function, such as pushing a button. What would you do when they handed it to you? You'd probably push the button.

Proposed legislation to introduce and enforce a presumption of shared parenting time for separating couples is not in the interests of children, according to a briefing paper published by the Department of Social Policy and Intervention at the University of Oxford. The term 'shared parenting' has no legal status but generally refers to a child spending an equal amount of time with each parent.

Preschool children seem to grasp the true concept of counting only if they are taught to understand the number value of groups of objects greater than three, research at the University of Chicago shows. "We think that seeing that there are three objects doesn't have to involve counting. It's only when children go beyond three that counting is necessary to determine how many objects there are," said Elizabeth Gunderson, a UChicago graduate student in psychology.

The number of single-father households in Wisconsin is increasing, according to Census 2010 figures released in mid-May. The census data show the number of households with children under age 18 headed by single fathers has risen by 35.2 percent since 2000. The largest growth among family households in the state was reported for single-father households with children.

Hershey, Pa. Obese, asthmatic, anxious or depressed children are more likely to experience excessive daytime sleepiness, or EDS, according to Penn State College of Medicine sleep researchers. "Although EDS in children is commonly assumed by physicians and the public to be the result of sleep-disordered breathing or inadequate sleep, our data suggest that EDS in young children is more strongly associated with obesity and mood issues as it is in adults," said Edward Bixler, professor of psychiatry and vice chair of research at the Sleep Research and Treatment Center.

A groundbreaking new study by Jesse Helton, a faculty member in the Children and Family Research Center in the School of Social Work, indicates that the risk and degree of physical abuse varies according to the child's type and level of disability - and those at greatest risk of maltreatment may be those with average functioning or only mild impairments.

In a world-first study University of Sydney researchers have found six-year-olds who spent the most time watching television had narrower arteries in the back of their eyes, increasing their chances of heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes in later life. The study, reported this week in Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology: Journal of the American Heart Association , showed the increased health risks from each hour a day of television was similar to that associated with an increase of 10 mm HG in systolic blood pressure, researchers said.