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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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Johnson & Johnson's planned vaccine trials to include infants |
Johnson & Johnson plans to test its coronavirus vaccine in infants and even in newborns, as well as in pregnant women and in people who have compromised immune systems.
The bold plan for expanded clinical trials met with the approval of Dr. Ofer Levy, director of the Precision Vaccines Program at Harvard’s Boston Children’s Hospital and a member of the FDA advisory committee that reviewed the company’s vaccine data. When Levy saw the outlines of the planned trials, “they turned my head,” he said. (Yahoo!)
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Disruption of lung biological clock may explain flu risk in adults who were preemies
Ex-preemies can face several long-term side effects of the life-saving care they received. A recent study suggests disruptions in the circadian rhythms in lung cells may explain why adults who survived premature birth are often more at risk of severe influenza infections. (News-Medical)
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Decrease in peanut allergy among infants after guideline changes
Changes to food allergy guidelines has led to a 16 per cent decrease in peanut allergy among infants, according to new study.
The research also found a significant increase in parents introducing peanut into their babies' diet since the guideline changes. (EurekAlert)
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EARLY CHILDCARE & EDUCATION
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Science and society are failing children in the COVID era |
Much has been written arguing for and against urgent school reopening, and this latest round of debates reflect a year’s worth of very public debates.
Leaving aside these discussions, we think it is worth pausing and reflecting on the failures these very debates have brought into bold relief.
Simply put, the arguments about school openings during COVID-19 reflect, to our mind, an ongoing failure of science and society, in which academics and policy makers share responsibility. (Scientific American)
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Newsom, legislators, strike deal to reopen California schools
Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democratic legislative leaders announced an agreement Monday to give school districts $2 billion to open schools for students in transitional kindergarten through second grade by April 1, focusing on California’s youngest children after almost a year of distance learning. (Bakersfield Californian)
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Santa Barbara Zoo becomes first ‘Zoo Preschool’ in California
Preschoolers in Santa Barbara can now receive a 'wild' education at the Santa Barbara Zoo.
The zoo's Early Explorers program has been given approval to operate full-time, becoming the first full-time preschool to operate out of an AZA accredited zoo. (KEYT)
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Should kindergarten be mandatory in California? |
The vast disparity in skills that students bring with them when they first go to school is one of the key factors that struck Sen. Susan Rubio, D-Baldwin Park, in her 17 years as a public school teacher and principal. She also discovered that the gaps tended to widen over time.
“One of the things that really made me sad was watching a first-grade student not know how to hold a pencil, while the student next to him is writing in complete sentences” said Rubio.
That inequity is one of the key reasons Rubio introduced Senate Bill 70, which would require all students in California to complete one year of kindergarten before entering the 1st grade, beginning with the 2022–23 school year. (EdSource)
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Map: Here are the states where pregnant women can get the Covid vaccine now
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In recent weeks, pregnant women have been prioritized for coronavirus vaccinations across the country.
Washington, D.C. and 15 states — most recently including Kentucky, Illinois and Florida — have added pregnancy to their lists of eligible high-risk conditions, according to NBC News' research. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers Covid-19 an acute threat during pregnancy. Eight states are not following the CDC's recommendation to prioritize pregnant women over the general population. (NBC News)
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Mother's diet may boost immune systems of premature infants
In a recent study, a research team reports that pregnant mice fed a diet rich in a molecule found abundantly in cruciferous vegetables—such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower—gave birth to pups with stronger protection against necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), one of the leading causes of mortality in premature infants. (MedicalXpress)
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What to make of the dreaded faint line on a pregnancy test
Couples hoping for a positive pregnancy test can have their patience tested while waiting for results. And when the result does show, there’s always the fear of false positives, false negatives, and faint lines on the pregnancy test. So it’s helpful to understand how pregnancy tests work, how to read them correctly and boost confidence in a positive pregnancy test result. (Yahoo!)
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Read 1,000 books before kindergarten? It can be done. |
A new early literacy program adopted by local libraries is challenging parents to read 1,000 books with their children before they enter kindergarten.
With the help of a kindergarten readiness grant from the Idaho Commision for Libraries, the Latah County Library District will be able to support a handful of new early literacy programs, including the 1,000-book challenge. (Daily News)
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With one move, Congress could lift millions of kids out of poverty |
The COVID-19 relief bill working its way through Congress is full of big ideas to help people. But there's one idea that's so big, it was politically unthinkable not that long ago.
Lawmakers want to fight child poverty by giving U.S. families a few hundred dollars every month for every child in their household — no strings attached. A kind of child allowance.
If this proposal survives the wrangling in Congress and makes it to Biden's desk, experts say it could cut child poverty nearly in half. The idea even has some bipartisan support. (NPR)
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The power of family-friendly and inclusive cities
In the United States, more than one-third of parents have yet to return to jobs they lost, largely because there is no one to look after their kid. Yet, it does not have to be this way.
In fact, many working parents from around the world were able to rely on their governments’ childcare support. (Forbes)
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15 Tips for rejoining
the workforce after
raising kids
Parents who take time away from the workforce to raise their children often face an immense challenge when it comes time to jump back into it. However, there are ways to position yourself as a valuable asset for any organization that needs someone with a strong work ethic, a sense of responsibility and lots of transferable skills. (Forbes)
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ACEs AND TRAUMA-INFORMED CARE
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Eviction ups risk of low birth weight and prematurity |
Mothers who received an eviction notice during pregnancy had a higher risk of adverse birth outcomes, according to a case-control study based in Georgia.
The study found that the association between eviction and birthweight was strongest in the second and third trimester, underscoring how changes in maternal behavior, disruptions in prenatal care, and increased maternal stress in the later stages of pregnancy impacts newborn health. (Medpage Today)
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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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