News & Updates

A team of researchers reports that infants who are placed to sleep on their backs are not at increased risk for health problems, and they are less likely to develop fevers, get stuffy noses, or develop otitis media (ear infection).

Infants who share a bed with other children are at a higher risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) than are other infants, according to the most recent analysis of a study of predominantly African American SIDS deaths in Chicago.

The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) will conduct a large study to determine whether a new surgery to correct spina bifida in the womb is safer and more effective than the traditional surgery to correct the disorder, which takes place a few days after birth.

Bullying is not just a normal, if unpleasant, part of growing up, according to Federal researchers. Rather, children who bully other children appear to be at risk for engaging in more serious violent behaviors, such as frequent fighting and carrying a weapon. Moreover, victims of bullying also are at risk for engaging in these kinds of violent behaviors.

The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) has selected the first eight research units for the Global Network for Women's and Children's Health Research, an international research network to improve the health of women and children throughout the world.

Teens-particularly girls-with strong religious views are less likely to have sex than are less religious teens, largely because their religious views lead them to view the consequences of having sex negatively.

The Women in the NAACP (WIN) and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development have joined forces with two national African American women's organizations to reduce Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) in the African American community.

Mothers' transition from welfare to employment did not seem to have any negative effects on preschoolers or young adolescents, according to a study by researchers at Northwestern University, Johns Hopkins University, and Boston College.

Infants accustomed to sleeping on their backs who are then placed to sleep on their stomachs or sides are at an increased risk for SIDS-greater than the increased SIDS risk of infants always placed on their stomachs or sides.

America's young children may not be getting enough vigorous physical exercise through their schools' physical education (PE) programs, suggests the latest analysis by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development.

In a first-of-its-kind collaboration, the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) has joined forces with three national African American Women's organizations in a year-long program to reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) among African American infants.

NIH scientists have shown that a common gene variant influences memory for events in humans by altering a growth factor in the brain's memory hub.

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin have found that low-income children who receive pre-school and early-grades learning assistance, coupled with services for parents, are less likely than those who do not receive these services to be victims of child maltreatment.

Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have discovered how an embryo initially attaches to the wall of the uterus-what appears to be one of the earliest steps needed to establish a successful pregnancy.

Bed sharing-the practice of letting babies sleep in an adult bed with a parent or caregiver-is increasing in the United States, according to a study by researchers at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).

Having involved parents-those who know a lot about their children's friends, activities, and how they're doing in school-can help children overcome peer influence to start smoking, according to a study by a researcher at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).

A study of Northern Plains Indians found that infants were less likely to die of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) if their mothers received visits from public health nurses before and after giving birth.

Researchers confirmed that a daily, combined dose of estrogen and progestin increases breast cancer risk in post menopausal women, but added that this risk begins to return to normal about six months after women stop taking the hormones.

A program that teaches parents how to set limits on their teens' driving greatly reduces the teens' chances of risky driving behavior that could lead to accidents, according to a recent study by researchers at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).

Pregnant women who have low blood levels of the vitamin folate are more likely to have early miscarriages than are pregnant women who have adequate folate levels, according to a study of Swedish women by researchers at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).