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THIS WEEK'S
HEADLINES
NEWS IMPACTING CHILDREN 0-5 AND THEIR FAMILIES
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Here is a quick look at some headlines from this week impacting the lives of kids 0-5 and their families. The purpose of these stories is simply to share information, and do not necessarily reflect First 5 Kern's areas of support, opinions or efforts towards these issues.
Follow First 5 Kern on social media (@First5Kern) for more kids news, as well as information about our funded programs and initiatives.
Now for the headlines...
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I'm pregnant and a doctor: This is why I got the
COVID-19 vaccine
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Dr. Nayeli Rodulfo-Zayas, an emergency medicine physician in San Antonio, Texas, was 35 weeks pregnant when she received her second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine earlier this month.
Rodulfo-Zayas, also the mother of a 2-year-old, is speaking out about her decision in hopes of inspiring other pregnant women to have important, educated conversations with their health care providers about getting the vaccine.
Rodulfo-Zayas said knowing the science of mRNA technology -- which does not enter the nucleus of the cells and doesn’t alter the human DNA -- helped inform her decision to get vaccinated against COVID-19. (GMA)
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COVID-19 and pregnancy: finally some hard data
This commentary, featuring Dr. F. Perry Wilson from the Yale School of Medicine, looks past anecdotal horror stories of pregnant women and the coronavirus and analyzes a recent study.
The study looked at a whopping 20% of all deliveries in the United States between April and November, 2020 - over 400,000 deliveries. (Medscape)
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Hypertension during pregnancy tied to later cognitive decline
Women who develop gestational hypertension — high blood pressure during pregnancy — may have reduced cognitive abilities later in life, a recent report suggests.
“These are women with only mild hypertension. They’re healthy. But even at age 45 they have impaired cognition,” said the lead author of the study. (New York Times)
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Why do breastfed babies have healthier immune systems? There's a new explanation. |
From the moment we're born, our body develops a delicate protective coating made entirely of microbes.
Knowing which bacteria, viruses, and yeast to keep, and which to reject, is a complex process that can make the difference between a healthy immune system and life-long allergies and auto immune disorders.
Just how we manage this system isn't entirely clear. But a recent study has now provided new insights into the process, finding that mother's milk promotes the growth of important immune cells that help manage inflammation. (Science Alert)
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EARLY CHILDCARE & EDUCATION
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Biden outlines plan to solve child care crisis |
President-elect Joe Biden outlined a sweeping plan Thursday to address the country's child care crisis.
"We are facing an acute, immediate child care crisis in America, which is exacerbating our economic crisis," he said in a statement.
Biden's plan would create a $25 billion emergency stabilization fund to help the hardest hit child care providers that are in danger of closing stay afloat, as well as assist those that have had to shut down meet various financial obligations incurred during the pandemic so that they can reopen. (US News and World Report)
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How one Fresno preschool program is helping kids learn math
Teaching math remotely to kids who might literally throw a tantrum onscreen would be laughable in a typical year. But California preschool providers are attempting the seemingly impossible.
Early education providers at the Lighthouse for Children Child Development Center are piloting distance learning techniques for toddlers and even infants by focusing on ways to provide families with guided activities that they can do at home. (EdSource)
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Facing declines in reading proficiency, rural libraries step in
The two-year Rural Library Fellowship, funded by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Save the Children, is attempting to boost the capacity of libraries and “activate libraries around third grade reading” according to Dreama Gentry, executive director of Partners for Education at Berea College.
“In rural places, the library and the school are the hubs,” Gentry said. “Our focus is really how can libraries accelerate outcomes for kids.” (Hechinger Report)
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Zika virus being used to help with childhood cancer
The Zika virus, spread by infected mosquitos, can cause birth defects in the children of infected pregnant women. But researchers are now using the Zika virus to bring hope to young children battling cancer.
One of those types of cancer is neuroblastoma, cancer that starts in the early nerve cells of children.
"Approximately 90% of the neuroblastoma is killed with a single injection of the Zika virus." (WMC5)
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US childhood cancer survivors have higher long-term risk for death than UK counterparts
U.S. childhood cancer survivors had worse long-term survival outcomes than U.K. survivors, which suggests they may have undergone more intensive treatment, according to a new study.
“Our study suggests that children in the U.S. may be treated more intensely compared to children in the U.K., which led to an increased risk for death due to a health condition likely caused by the cancer treatment,” said one doctor. (Healio)
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Exposure therapy also helps patients with childhood trauma process the past |
Research has now shown that exposure therapy can be helpful for people who experienced childhood trauma and suffer from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder because of it.
A recent study found that exposure therapy can be of great benefit to these vulnerable patients. With this treatment method you return—in mind and if possible in body—to the place(s) where the trauma occurred. By repeating and reliving these difficult moments time and again, the patient learns that nothing disastrous happens if the terrifying memories surface. (MedicalXpress)
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A simple plan to get your family outside more often |
The brainchild of a Michigan mom named Ginny Yurich, the premise of 1000 Hours Outside is simple and straightforward: if your kids can spend four hours a day in front of screens, they can spend a roughly equal amount of time outside.
“My kids don’t do anything for four hours,” Yurich said. But the first day, her toddlers played the entire time at an urban park in Detroit, pausing only for snacks, and Yurich took what felt like her first deep breath in years. She was hooked. After two years, she added it up and realized that her family had spent some 1,200 hours a year outside. (Outside)
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At CES 2021, baby tech keeps booming
As a pregnant woman, I went into CES 2021 eager to see technology that could make the childbearing experience easier. I want data to help predict if things have a chance of going wrong, I want surveillance of the health of my pregnancy, and I want all the technology possible to make raising a newborn easier.
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Horrifying video shows
a baby pull a blanket over its face
A heart-stopping video of a baby pulling a blanket over its face during the night is a dire warning for parents to never leave anything loose in their little one's cot.
The clip has attracted 2.2 million views. It suggests using the ABC method, which advocates putting them down alone, on their backs, in a safe crib with nothing in it except the baby. (DailyMail)
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First 5 Kern was established in 1998 when California voters passed Proposition 10, which levied a 50-cent tax on tobacco products. Revenues generated from the tobacco tax are used to fund local programs in the areas of health and wellness, early childcare and education, and parent education and support services that promote early childhood development for children ages zero to five.
For more information on First 5 Kern and the agencies we support, please visit www.First5Kern.org and follow us on social media.
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Special thanks to Vecteezy for assistance on graphics
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