News & Updates

NICHD issues Releases and Media Advisories to the news media. Science Updates and Spotlights explain NICHD research findings and public health issues to the general public. An Item of Interest is a short announcement such as an initiative launch or a notable staff change. Director’s Corner posts are monthly updates from the NICHD director.

Science Update: No serious adverse events from COVID-19 vaccine in breastfeeding women or their children, NIH-funded study suggests

No serious adverse events were reported by 180 breastfeeding women receiving either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, either among themselves or in their infants, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. For the mothers, adverse events included muscle and body aches, fever and vomiting, pain, redness, swelling, or itching at the injection site.

Science Update: Pandemic changes in screen time, physical activity may increase kids’ obesity risk, NIH-funded study suggests

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, American children may have adopted a range of behaviors that increase their risk for obesity, an NIH-funded study suggests. Compared to before the pandemic, children 7- to 12-years old increased their sedentary behavior, screen time, and food intake, while reducing their level of physical activity and adopting a later sleep schedule—all behaviors that increase obesity risk.

Science Update: Foreign-born Minnesotans more likely to die of COVID-19 at a younger age than U.S.-born residents, NIH-funded study suggests

Working-age immigrant men—particularly Latinos—were more likely to die of COVID-19 than their native-born counterparts, according to a study of Minnesota death records funded by the National Institutes of Health. Because COVID-19 data on immigration status is not collected on a national level, the findings provide insights into how COVID-19 mortality trends differ between U.S.- and foreign-born residents.

Director's Corner: Going Back to School Safely

NICHD Director Dr. Diana W. Bianchi discusses NIH efforts to generate robust scientific data to inform policies to return children to the classroom safely and equitably during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Release: NIH COVID-19 testing initiative funds additional research projects to safely return children to in-person school

The National Institutes of Health is funding five additional projects to identify ways of safely returning students and staff to in-person school in areas with vulnerable and underserved populations. The awards are the second installment of the Safe Return to School Diagnostic Testing Initiative, launched earlier this year as part of the NIH Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics Underserved Populations (RADx-UP) program. The new awards will provide up to $15 million over two years for five projects in California, Arizona, Hawaii, Nebraska and Florida. The 8 initial awards, totaling $33 million over two years, were made in April 2021.

Science Update: NIH-funded study raises possibility that outermost placental cells may halt spread of SARS-CoV-2

Trophoblasts—the outermost fetal cells of the placenta—may be able to contain SARS-CoV-2 and prevent it from spreading to the fetus even though these cells appear to be susceptible to infection by the virus, a study by NIH-funded researchers suggests. Further research into how trophoblasts might contain the virus could lead to ways to prevent COVID-19 in children and adults. The findings may also lead to insights on why fetuses are only rarely infected with SARS-CoV-2.
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