Cow Bell Won't Help

The best course for kids with a fever is to let it do its own thing - that's why we have the fever.

What I normally do is wait at least 24 hrs with the child having a fever then give them minimum doses of a fever reducer as needed simply to keep them comfortable. The exception was my oldest daughter who seemed to have asthma-like symptoms triggered by a high fever.

See NPR: Pediatricians Caution Parents Against 'Fever Phobia'

Speaking of body temperature, research indicates 98.6 is ideal for preventing fungal growth [SciAm].

Dirt - It Is Not Just For Boys

More hygiene hypothesis to explain why girls appear to be less healthy than boys. See NPR: Why Keeping Little Girls Squeaky Clean Could Make Them Sick

The converse of this topic was recently on the Diane Rehm Show: "Cinderella Ate My Daughter"

Crazy For You

The Freedom to Learn blog at Psych Today has this advice: How to Advise and Help Your Kids Without Driving Them (or Yourself) Crazy (see the linked article for the full list)

1. When your child asks for help or advice, give only what was asked for...
2. Before offering unsolicited help or advice count to ten...
3. Before trying to protect your child from danger, think of the potential benefits as well as the potential costs of the "dangerous" behavior...

Can Parents Affect Teenage Alcohol Abuse?

Yes.

See NPR: Parenting Style Plays Key Role In Teen Drinking

The parenting style that led to the lowest levels of problem drinking borrowed something from each of the extremes. From the strict parents: accountability and consequences for bad behavior. From the indulgent parents: warmth and support

Stimulation Does Not Equal Playing

The importance of open environments and investing in play capital at FastCoDesign: The Four Secrets of Playtime That Foster Creative Kids

More On The Importance Of Kindergarten Study

Covered previously in Where To Focus Your Resources

The research was recently in Harvard Magazine: Kindergarten Matters

[Via 3QD]

iPhone App For Paranoid Parents

Seems a little creepy to me though, on multiple levels, yet this has utility.

Via TheAtlantic: Finding Sex Offenders Using Your iPhone

From a technical standpoint this is a fascinating use of augmented reality technology.

Confirmation Of The Praise Paradox

If you are not familiar with the downside of too much praise for your child then stop what you're doing because I'm going to ruin what you used to know.

First read at NYMag: How Not to Talk to Your Kids: The inverse power of praise.

Via TheAtlantic comes confirmation from an extensive study: Be Wary of Calling Kids 'Gifted'

The Berenstain Bears Were Right

You have to teach kids to defend themselves against bullying.

The CSMonitor carries an opinion piece arguing that the way kids should deal with bullies is to teach them the art of the comeback.

See: Bullying: The advice you got is wrong. Here's what really works.

Perhaps my children's bedtime reading should be Oscar Wilde so they can learn the art of quipping.

Jaundice And Autism

Correlation or causation?

A Danish study simply links the two. See PhysOrg: Newborns with jaundice more likely to develop autism: study

My first reaction is that this is an example of correlation and there's nothing here to indicate a shared causal agent in autism and jaundice.

Except for this part: "the risk of autism was higher... if the child was born between October and March."

Is this another argument for Vitamin D? Research is indicating this vitamin is a super-agent for health. Hopefully further studies of the jaundice-autism link will be forthcoming.

The Story of ChopChop

ChopChop is a new food magazine for kids.

The story of how it came to be is at TheAtlantic: Secret Weapon Against Childhood Obesity: A Magazine

Sleeping Babies

I know of parents who would not let their baby sleep more than 15 minutes at a time during the day in the belief that it would promote better night time sleeping. No, that isn't how it works. Sleep begets sleep.

And it is accepted that good sleeping promotes overall health. New research indicates babies can also learn while sleeping.

See PhysOrg: Study shows newborns learn while asleep

So do whatever it takes to get your baby to sleep. If it means driving around or walking in the stroll for two hours then that's what you do.

Recent Parenting Reads At The New York Times That I Found Interesting

INCONCEIVABLE! Exercise is good for kids: Phys Ed: Can Exercise Make Kids Smarter?

An Explanation For Why Dads Toss Their Babies: Why Mothers and Fathers Play Differently

Re-defining Maslow’s Hierarchy: Living to Be a Parent

Amazon Mom

It just isn't for moms.

Site: Amazon.com/mom

Amazon Mom is a free membership program aimed at helping parents and caregivers, from the prenatal days through the toddler years, use Amazon to find all the products their family needs

Fishy Kids

My 11 month old had her first whitefish recently. I completely support the idea of having kids eat plenty of fish. I've even read that there are old-timers in the nordic countries who attribute their mental acuity in their advanced age to the amount of fish they ate as youngsters

See PhysOrg: Salmon baby food? Babies need omega-3s and a taste for fish, scientist says

Play Is Not The Same As Violence

There have been studies showing that physical play with kids stimulates the release of beneficial brain chemicals.

Last week I was fortunate to have a lot of play time with a 4 year old boy which was much different than play time with a 4 year old girl. But they both seemed to benefit and enjoy what we called "wrestle time", or as they liked to say "wrastle".

The boy and girl were clearly different in how they spent this wrestle time. The boy appeared to want to test the limits and the girl in pinning me and getting pinned back.

What is clear to me that the time I give my girls for roughhousing would be inadequate for a boy - if I had a boy I'd want to dedicate periods of time where he could have physical play (with rules to keep it from being violent) and get out his aggression with the understanding that outside of "wrestle time" physical play was not appropriate.

And so it seems like fortuitous timing when returning to civilization I came across this in the news. Via MSNBC: Bring it: Boys may benefit from aggressive play

IIHS Booster Seats Test Results

Booster evaluations for 2010

Also includes which booster seats to avoid.

On Breastfeeding - Do Your Best

The benefits of breastfeeding are well documented but mothers who try yet still can't get it to work need to understand that is okay too.

See NYT Motherlode: A Breast-Feeding Guru Who Uses Formula

“Did you hear the one about the woman who wrote the book about breastfeeding who isn’t breastfeeding?” she asks.

Yes. And I admire her — as an example of a mother who is doing the best she can.

Barefoot Kids

I remember when I was a kid I preferred going barefoot because I felt like I was faster without shoes.

Now on the heels of the barefoot running movement comes a story from the GuardianUK: Why barefoot is best for children

[Via Rebecca]

Where To Focus Your Resources

Yes, The Children's House may cost more than the parents' college did. See NYT: Child Care Costs More Than College

But, as reported in the CS Monitor: Why kindergarten is key to financial success in life and other studies indicate the importance of the first six years in a child's life in getting them on the right footing for later in life.

So I have no problem putting resources into child care as I want my kids to be with a professional staff in an environment tailored to their own self-discovery.