Coughing serves an important purpose — to help you expel mucus, microbes and other foreign particles from your respiratory tract. This helps protect the lungs from infection and inflammation, Harvard Medical School says. A cough becomes chronic if it lingers for at least three to eight weeks, the school adds. Its list of reasons for… read on >
It’s a scene played out in many homes across America — parents place their baby on a bed or sofa, thinking the child is safe while Mom or Dad slips away for a few moments. But new research finds that falls from beds and sofas pose a greater risk to children than many parents believe.… read on >
Good sleep helps speed young athletes recover from a concussion, a new study reports. The study included 356 athletes from Texas, age 19 and younger, who suffered a sports-related concussion. At their first clinic visit, 73 percent of the athletes had good sleep quality and 27 percent had poor sleep quality. Those with good sleep… read on >
Many kids love a quick bowl of instant soup or tasty noodles, but these fast foods cause almost 10,000 scald burns in children each year in the United States, a new study estimates. What’s more, researchers found that two out of every 10 scald burns that send kids to the ER are caused by microwavable… read on >
Kids are safer in states with strict gun laws, a new preliminary study reports. Researchers found that the stringency of a state’s firearm legislation has a direct impact on the number of kids killed by guns. Twice as many child gun deaths occur in states with the most lenient gun regulation, compared with states where… read on >
An “alarming” number of American parents save unused antibiotics and give them to family members and other people, a new study finds. This type of misuse helps fuel antibiotic resistance, the study authors said. Their report is scheduled for presentation Monday in Orlando, Fla., at the national conference of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).… read on >
Children face an increased risk for sleep problems if a parent suffers a serious injury, especially if the parent has a brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a new study reveals. Researchers used U.S. Military Health System records to identify more than 485,000 children of more than 272,000 parents who were seriously injured in… read on >
When stroke patients get an infection while in the hospital, that may raise the chances they will wind up back in the hospital later, new research suggests. Researchers examined data on more than 319,000 U.S. patients who had an ischemic stroke (blocked blood flow to the brain) who were readmitted to the hospital within 30… read on >
Price Woodward was the picture of health at age 52. He lived an active lifestyle and ran marathons. He was definitely not the type of person you’d expect to have a stroke. But one night, his wife, Tammy, heard a strange noise coming from the other side of the bed. She turned on the light… read on >
Social stigma may play a large role in the depression, anxiety and other mental health woes experienced by many people with autism, a small new study indicates. British researchers found that 72 percent of the psychological distress reported in 111 adults with autism was linked to social stigma, including discrimination and rejection. Many people with… read on >
