I cultivated my sweet tooth at a young age, born into a family where Hostess Sno Balls and Twinkies were the preferred after-school snack. I could have/should have washed down the crumbly treats with a glass of milk, but chose instead an ice cold Coke—21 teaspoons of sugar, the equivalent of 90 grams or 450 calories. Is it any wonder that my siblings and I struggle with weight gain?

The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends that women consume no more than 6 teaspoons of added sugar a day (100 calories or 25 grams). For men the recommendation is no more than…

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The day will come when U.S. mothers can truly feel safe breastfeeding their babies and young children anywhere, anytime, anyplace. I likely won’t live long enough to see the culmination of the cultural transformation that is currently underway in America, but I am confident that my children will one day view breastfeeding not as best, optimal, perfect, or ideal, but simply as normal. And I know that ultimately their children, my grandchildren, will reap the benefits.

While many find the slow pace of change frustrating, age confers a level of patience and confidence in knowing that measured, thoughtful change is more often…

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First Lady Michelle Obama put eliminating childhood obesity at the top of her To Do list with the launch of Let’s Move, her much anticipated anti-obesity campaign. Mrs. Obama is hoping to reverse a dangerous and costly trend. Currently, one out of three U.S. children is overweight or obese. Among black children the rate is even higher, affecting one out of two children. For the first time since 1968, life expectancy is projected to decline.

Several high profile organizations and industries have agreed to join forces with the First Lady. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) announced that from now on its…

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Perhaps Andrew Wakefield, MD didn’t realize that his 1998 study erroneously linking vaccinations to autism would ignite a decade long controversy. But he should have. If not for the media frenzy fomented by high profile celebrities, the scientific method might have triumphed long ago. Journalists should know better. Yet given the scope of the damage, any claim of vindication would ring hollow. In the end, science prevailed, but at what cost?

After the United Kingdom General Medical Council (GMC) described the actions of Andrew Wakefield, MD, and two of his colleagues as dishonest and irresponsible, The Lancet, a respected medical journal,…

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Breastfeeding keeps babies healthy, but breastfeeding can also make babies sick. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in 2008 estimated that 430,000 children under the age of 15 were newly infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Most infections were transmitted from mother-to-child during pregnancy, labor, birth, or while breastfeeding. It is estimated that breastfeeding may account for one-third to one-half of all cases of mother-to-child-transmission.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend that HIV-infected women in the United States not breastfeed. However, in countries where safe alternatives to human milk are scarce and the risk of infant death from…

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Whenever my Dad came home from work to find my siblings and me glued to the television, he would call us a bunch of “vidiots,” turn off the TV, and usher us outside to run around until dark. For much of my childhood, TV was limited to one hour per night – with Saturday morning cartoons or a movie on the weekends if we were good – and that was it.

Although I find it slightly ironic that I am writing this on my laptop (equipped with high-speed wireless internet) while listening to a CD (through the TV, which is hooked…

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Haiti needs a lot of things right now. But for some, nothing is more important or more needed than human milk.

The Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA), United States Breastfeeding Committee (USBC), International Lactation Consultant Association/United States Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA/USLCA), and La Leche League International (LLLI) are jointly issuing an urgent call for human milk donations for premature infants in Haiti, as well as sick and premature infants in the United States.

A press release announcing the need for milk noted that this week the first shipment of human milk from mothers in the United States will be…

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Cadmium is the new lead. As covered earlier in babygooroo, both the federal government and some U.S. retailers (most notably Toys R Us and Wal-Mart) set restrictions on the amount of lead allowed in children’s products. According to a recent Associated Press (AP) investigation, Chinese manufacturers are now substituting cadmium for lead. Unfortunately, cadmium is no less dangerous.

What is cadmium?
Like lead, cadmium is a heavy metal. Since it occurs naturally in soil, most people are exposed to microscopic amounts of cadmium. Without direct exposure, most adults will suffer no ill effects.

Children, however, are particularly vulnerable to the toxic metal. Their bodies…

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Mother Nature often knows best, but she can also be deadly. Herbs, natural remedies, and dietary supplements have become increasingly popular as treatments for a wide range of conditions. Many consider these natural, non-traditional therapies harmless, but natural doesn’t mean safe, especially for pregnant women.

While expectant moms know that smoking or drinking alcohol during pregnancy can be risky, few realize that herbal medicines, natural remedies, and alternative therapies can actually harm pregnant women or their unborn babies.

Unlike traditional medicines, herbs and other natural supplements are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, so there are no set standards for…

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A young mother sat at a table in the far corner of a public picnic area in a state park. She held her baby close to her breast, but it took me a minute to realize she was breastfeeding. I decided to politely approach her, because I wanted to thank her for setting an excellent example for other mothers, especially those reluctant to breastfeed in public. As I walked closer to her, the young mother appeared fearful and quickly began to gather her belongings. I was shocked and embarrassed, and only after I explained to her that I had the…

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If this holiday season is the first one ever for your baby (or even the second or third), there are certain safety measures every parent should take before the celebrations begin.

Other People and Your Baby
As always, keep a close eye on infants and young children during shopping trips and in crowded places such as the airport, movie theaters, and public event spaces; the extra hustle and bustle in high-traffic holiday hot-spots makes young children and even stroller-bound infants easier targets for predators. Abductions often occur in such places, so avoid leaving children unsupervised even for a moment.

Do not assume that your…

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Two weeks to go. If you’re like me, you haven’t finished your Christmas shopping, but before you buy another toy check out Trouble in Toyland: The 24th Annual Survey of Toy Safety. The free online guide is a quick reference providing safety guidelines on toys for small children and examples of available toys that may be hazardous.

Even with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) supposedly watching out for our kids, there’s been a flood of recalls issued for toys and other children’s products over the past couple of years. Since its inception decades ago, the CPSC had a small budget and…

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