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Educating parents and grandparents - as well as improving physical activity and the food provided at school - could hold the key to solving China's obesity pandemic, according to one of the largest trials of childhood obesity prevention in the world. Over 30 million Chinese children, aged between seven and 18, are overweight or obese - placing them at greater risk of an early death and this number is set to rise to 50 million by 2030, caused in part by the role grandparents play in childcare.

New research examining the effect of being raised by a single mother reveals lower income and resources has the greatest impact on a child's development, not poor parenting skills. The study, published today [20 November] in the journal Child Development , found children who lived with a single mother before age 11 had lower verbal ability than children whose parents stayed together.

Children who identify as the gender matching their sex at birth tend to gravitate toward the toys, clothing and friendships stereotypically associated with that gender. Transgender children do the same with the gender they identify as, regardless of how long they have actually lived as a member of that gender.

Young dads consider paid parental leave and childcare to be as important to their future success at work as mothers. And it's the same trend in attitudes to shared household work, according to new research. However, young men without children are least likely to consider supportive work and care policies and shared domestic work at home as important to their future.

Women and men experience a 'large divergence' in their career paths in the years following childbirth, according to a study following more than 3,500 new parents. Only 27.8 per cent of women are in full-time work or self-employed three years after childbirth, compared to 90 per cent of new fathers.

The number of malnourished children in West and Central Africa rose by three million in the space of five years, a study shows. Academics from Cardiff University say the research, the first of its kind in the region, also shows no reduction in the number of children experiencing multiple forms of malnutrition and that this multiple burden is much more prevalent than previously thought.

A new, Yale-led study examines shifts in fertility behaviors among Generation X women in the United States - those born between 1965-1982 - compared to their Baby Boomer counterparts, and explores whether the fertility of college-educated women is increasing more quickly across cohorts in Generation X than the fertility of their less educated counterparts.

Increased equality has a positive effect on mothers and fathers. Thanks to greater freedom to strike an individual balance between caring for children and working in paid employment, mothers and fathers today are happier with their lives than parents were 20 or 30 years ago, a study by sociologists at the University of Zurich has shown.

A study that prompted an editorial in a prestigious journal yesterday highlights leading causes of the brain disease in children and the importance of monitoring, lead authors Dr Philip Britton and Prof Cheryl Jones explain. Encephalitis, which means inflammation of the brain, is a severe disease. Sometimes the inflammation can involve the lining of the brain (the meninges) as well, and is referred to as meningo-encephalitis.

A new app allows parents to playfully support their children as they explore their surroundings. They can record important motor, cognitive and linguistic milestones and receive scientifically sound information on each step. The app was developed by psychologists at the University of Zurich, who are researching the individual development of children.

Parents will be pleased to know that more is not always better when it comes to play equipment for their children. A study by researchers at The University of Queensland found children who have access to fixed play equipment like swings and slides and fewer electronic devices were more likely to meet national physical activity guidelines.

In Erik Thiessen's Infant Language and Learning Lab , Carnegie Mellon University students are taking their first steps into research. The studies are simple and fun for the subjects. While babies sit on parents' laps, they watch a computer display and listen to words or tones. But for the researcher, the work is more intense as they watch the infants' eye movements and code the findings.

Research on adoptive family life in Wales has revealed the levels of adversity many children have experienced. Academics from Cardiff University analysed social services records of a cohort of children in Wales who were adopted in the same year. Adoptive parents also completed surveys about the children over a four-year period after the placement began, commenting annually on any difficulties the child was having and their parenting.

This story was originally published by the American Educational Research Association. Latino children are likely to enter elementary schools this year with fewer white peers than a generation ago, judging by data reported in a new study published today in Educational Researcher , a peer-reviewed journal of the American Educational Research Association.

Experts are urging parents to brush up on national guidelines following a rapid rise in screen time on electronic devices for children under two. A University of Queensland study found some young children might average 50 minutes per day, where the national guidelines called for zero screen time in children under the age of two.

A new report highlights the need for better data on migrant deaths and disappearances, particularly those of missing migrant children. This year's Fatal Journeys 4 report , by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and co-edited by University of Bristol academic Ann Singleton , focuses on missing migrant children, giving the growing number embarking on dangerous migrant journeys.

Too little sunlight - and specifically UVB exposure - in pregnancy has been linked with a higher risk of learning disabilities. In a new study looking at more than 422,500 school-age children from across Scotland, researchers found that low UVB exposure during pregnancy was associated with risk of learning disabilities.

As GCSE exam season starts this week, new research has found a positive Ofsted rating can have a surprising negative impact on students. Parents with kids in schools that received a better than expected Ofsted report are much more likely to reduce help with homework and this can have a damaging impact on GCSE results.

Early childhood education programs can impact life outcomes in ways that span generations, according to new research from Nobel laureate James Heckman. In a pair of companion papers released this week , the pioneering University of Chicago economist found that the children of those who participated in a landmark 1960s study still saw improvements in education, health and employment.

Toddlers who are picky about their food are not deficient in essential nutrients compared to their peers when they are teenagers. However, the few children who were persistent picky eaters, those who were less able to change and adapt their eating habits, showed pronounced differences in food intake at the age of 13, including a higher intake of sugar, according to new research published in Nutrition.