Childrens Health: Kids and robots learn to write together ♦ Pregnant women with asthma need to curb antibiotics ♦ ADHD + childhood trauma heightens risk for self-harm ♦Plus More

Kids and robots learn to write together  Who is the teacher: the student or the machine? By showing a robot how to write letters, children improve their writing skills and gain self-confidence. Continue Reading

Pregnant women with asthma need to curb urge to ask for antibiotics  Twice as many children born to mothers who took antibiotics during pregnancy were diagnosed with asthma by age 3 than children born to mothers who didn’t take prenatal antibiotics, a new study has shown.Continue Reading

Examination of prior authorization policies for antipsychotic prescribing to children  With a concern about inappropriate prescribing of antipsychotic medications to children, 31 states in the U.S. have implemented prior authorization policies for atypical antipsychotic prescribing.  Continue Reading

ADHD plus childhood trauma heightens risk for self-harm, suicide  Young women with ADHD who have been exposed to abuse, neglect or other traumas in childhood and adolescence are at greater risk for self-injury, eating disorders and suicide than those with ADHD who were not mistreated in early youth, according to new research. Continue Reading

Preventing metabolic disease may start in the womb; of your grandmother  No one wants to have child who is born underweight, but for numerous reasons, this may be unavoidable. An intriguing research report involving rats suggests that helping fetuses achieve optimal weight before birth is of even greater importance than currently believed. Continue Reading

2/10/15 Health News:Psychedelic drug prevents asthma ♦ Five babies at Chicago daycare center have measles ♦ doctors over prescribing painkillers ♦ Microbiome linked to type 1 diabetes

Psychedelic drug prevents asthma development in mice Researchers have found that a psychedelic drug, (R)-DOI, prevents the development of allergic asthma in a mouse model. The effects are potent and effective at a concentration 50-100 times less than would influence behavior. Continue Reading

Five babies at suburban Chicago daycare center have measles:

A KinderCare Learning Center in Chicago underwent a deep cleaning February 4 and officials urged all unvaccinated children and staff who may have been exposed to the measles to keep away from the center Continue Reading

Opioid and heroin crisis triggered by doctors over prescribing painkillers

Researchers say policymakers must look beyond painkiller abuse in their efforts to reduce opioid overdose deaths. New research reframes the heroin and prescription drug abuse problem as a wave of opioid addiction caused by over prescribing of painkillers by doctors.Continue Reading

Carnivorous mushroom reveals immune trick: How we punch into cancer cells

Edible oyster mushrooms have an intriguing secret: They eat spiders and roundworms. And they do so using proteins that can punch their way into cells, leaving tidy but deadly holes. It's a trick that our immune cells also use to protect us, destroying infected cells, cancerous cells, and bacteria Continue Reading

Microbiome linked to type 1 diabetes: Shift in microbiome species diversity prior to disease onset

In the largest longitudinal study of the microbiome to date, researchers have identified a connection between changes in gut microbiota and the onset of type 1 diabetes. The study, which followed infants who were genetically predisposed to the condition, found that onset for those who developed the disease was preceded by a drop in microbial diversity -- including a disproportionate decrease in the number of species known to promote health in the gut.Continue Reading