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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Both you and your baby are going to sleep terribly, possibly for months, so you might as well get used to the idea.

But don’t freak out—this is totally normal. All you have to do is make sure everyone lives through this tumultuous time. Pretend there’s a zombie war going on outside and your priority is basic survival. Do whatever it takes to stay alive. Believe that this too shall pass.

For those of you in the midst of intense sleep deprivation, you would probably like to take your computer and throw it at my head right now. No one wants to…

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Although the incidence of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) decreased significantly after the launch of the Back to Sleep campaign in 1994, SIDS is still the leading cause of death in children 1 month to 1 year of age. While the cause of SIDS remains a mystery, researchers recently identified a defect in the brain of infants who died of SIDS that may eventually lead to early detection of babies at risk for SIDS.

Published in the February 3, 2010 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), researchers compared the brainstems of 41 infants who died of SIDS with 7 infants who died…

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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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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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I was a fearful father before my son was even born. I was afraid of everything. Should we roll up the windows while driving to avoid toxic fumes? Is this tap water I’m giving to my wife filled with lead and aspartame? Am I reading the right books to my unborn child or should I just pick up the Holy Bible and put down this Tolkien nonsense?

Now that Willard has been welcomed into the world—alive, healthy and with all his fingers and toes—I’m even more afraid. And it goes far beyond rolling up windows and reading the Bible. Every little shiver…

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I’ve never been one to be materialistic when it comes to the holidays. Sure, there have been things I’ve wanted for Christmas. Mostly, those hopes and dreams came when I was a kid who wanted the Atari, the He-Man figures, the Star Wars ships, the R2-D2 toy box to put everything in. But as I grew into a teenager and started to work, I realized that gifts from other people didn’t matter as much as the idea that someone would think of me enough to get me something they thought I would appreciate.

And the gifts changed from being collectible items to…

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It’s rather inspiring that Amanda Soule—one of the craftiest and deservedly popular mamas of the Mom Bloggers set—did not consider herself a crafty or artistic child when she was growing up.

“For me, my creative spirit was awakened—and awakened loudly—through the presence of my shining children and the lessons I’ve learned from them,” writes Soule in her recent book, “The Creative Family” (Trumpeter Books, 2008).

In her book, Amanda—that’s SouleMama in the blogging world—not only gives the reader a generous helping of craft ideas for little ones, but also a gently encouraging nudge to pursue their own artistic natures. Even if a lifelong…

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Katie Powers is a wife, mother, nurse, lactation consultant, and friend. She writes a column titled, Baby Talk in which she responds to questions from expectant and new parents. Katie was kind enough to allow me to share one of her recent columns.

Becoming a Great Father by Katie Powers

Question: We are expecting our first child soon. I want to be a great father. Do you have any suggestions?

Answer: First of all have patience with yourself, your wife, and your baby. Having a baby is not just an event, it is the beginning of a process. That process is how you develop…

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I remember when I was lying in my hospital bed after the birth of my fourth child, Coleton. I had endured a full day of labor and a difficult delivery (who says the fourth one comes easily?), and I was tired beyond explanation. After the relief of seeing my precious new child came an uncontrollable feeling to close my eyes and sleep. As my husband cradled newborn Coleton, I drifted off; my parting thoughts were, “I can’t do this. I don’t have the energy. How will I ever take care of a baby?” Luckily for me, a few hours of…

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Cheers!

It’s been more than a decade since I had a child under the age of 21, but I haven’t forgotten the countless discussions aka  lectures I had with my two sons in an effort to keep them safe.

The rate of underage drinking has declined steadily since its peak in the mid-1900s. However, alcohol continues to be the drug of choice among young people. According to the 2007 Monitoring the Future (MTF) study, an annual survey of U.S. youth conducted by scientists at the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research, 44 percent of 12th grades, 33 percent of 10th graders, and…

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It seems peculiar to me that many new mothers are reluctant to ask for help when they get home from the hospital or that new fathers think they are limited to “diaper patrol”. A life changing experience has just occurred and yet some mothers feel that they must still go it alone, especially when it comes to breastfeeding. Granted, it is about the mother, the breast, and the baby but fathers play a very crucial role in coaching the mother-baby team towards breastfeeding success.

All professional athletes have coaches. Even amateur athletes have them. Mothers-to-be have labor coaches who are there…

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