With implications for research around postpartum depression and other health issues, scientists have tracked the changes pregnancy brings to the female brain. These changes weren’t subtle: Big shifts in what’s known as the brain’s “white matter” versus “gray matter” were observed, according to a team from the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). “The maternal…  read on >  read on >

Many parents worry that their kids aren’t popular enough, or that they aren’t making the right friends, a new survey finds. About 1 in 5 parents say their child aged 6 to 12 has no friends or not enough friends, according to the results of the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National…  read on >  read on >

Florida’s six-week abortion ban caused the state’s abortion rate to drop dramatically, new research shows. Abortions in Florida dropped to an estimated 5,630 in May and 5,200 in June, a 30% and 35% decrease from the average between January and March, data released Thursday shows. “Our data paint a vivid picture of the chaos and…  read on >  read on >

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday that it will launch an independent review into any possible effects of toxic metals found in tampons. The announcement follows the release of a study in July that found traces of lead and other metals in 30 tampons from 14 brands obtained from major online retailers and…  read on >  read on >

In the two years since the March of Dimes’ last report on the state of U.S. maternity care, more than 100 hospitals nationwide have shuttered their obstetric units, leaving more new moms with literally “Nowhere to Go” for care. The March of Dimes’ 2024 report, titled “Nowhere to Go: Maternity Care Deserts Across the U.S.,”…  read on >  read on >

It’s natural for a parent to want to protect their children and keep them from harm. But sometimes this understandable desire crosses over into “helicopter parenting,” an overbearing need to be part of a child’s every decision and dilemma. “A helicopter parent is often fueled by anxiety, and that anxiety can come in different flavors:…  read on >  read on >

New research uncovers a possible reason why teenaged girls struggled so mightily with their mental health during the pandemic: Scans showed their brains aged far faster than expected during that stressful time, even faster than the brains of their male peers. In the study, published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, scientists…  read on >  read on >