Kids and teens are already struggling to learn outside the classroom during the pandemic, but lockdowns and quarantines are also making it hard for them to control their weight, child health experts say.

Lost routines, economic insecurity and grief are making things more challenging for children who struggle with their weight, whether it's with obesity or anorexia, according to doctors at...

In a move that should make reopening schools an easier task, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday lowered its social distancing recommendation for most classrooms to 3 feet.

That should enable many schools to keep all students enrolled in a class within the same room.

"[The] CDC is committed to leading with science and updating our guidance as new evidence...

Preschoolers who spend a lot of time watching movies and shows on TVs and other screens are more likely to develop emotional and behavioral problems by age 5, a Finnish study warns.

But despite their reputation, video games did not appear to promote any emotional problems in youngsters, researchers concluded.

"We found that high levels of screen time at the age of 1.5 years is relat...

A new government report confirms what many moms and dads already know: Parents and kids are struggling mightily to cope with the stresses of distance learning.

A survey conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of parents of children aged 5 to 12 found that parents of kids receiving in-person instruction were less likely to suffer from stress than those whose school...

Calls to U.S. poison centers about incidents involving children and high-powered magnets surged more than 400% after a court overturned a ban on the magnets, a new study finds.

"Regulations on these products were effective, and the dramatic increase in the number of high-powered magnet related injuries since the ban was lifted - even compared to pre-ban numbers - is alarming," said Dr. Le...

School-based dental care cut cavities in half among thousands of elementary students, a new study says.

"The widespread implementation of oral health programs in schools could increase the reach of traditional dental practices and improve children's oral health -- all while reducing health disparities and the cost of care," said senior author Dr. Richard Niederman. He's chair of the depar...

Like many people this past year, teenager Tyona Montgomery began experiencing a sore throat and a loss of sense of smell and taste in November that suggested she might have COVID-19.

A positive test confirmed it, but she quickly felt better.

Then, just two weeks later, new symptoms surged. She was disoriented, with a headache that was so bad she called an Uber to take her to a hospi...

Could endless hours spent scrolling through social media and watching TV trigger binge eating in preteens?

Apparently so, new research suggests.

"Children may be more prone to overeating while distracted in front of screens. They may also be exposed to more food advertisements on television," said study author Dr. Jason Nagata. He is an assistant professor of pediatrics at the Unive...

As if attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) isn't already tough on a child, new research suggests the condition might also raise the odds for a psychotic disorder later in life.

But parents should not panic.

"I would say that this finding should not be an alarm for parents and people who have ADHD, because the absolute risk for psychotic disorders remains low," sa...

For Morgan Compton, 7, who has attended school remotely for nearly a year, the stress of the pandemic manifests itself in meltdowns.

On one particular day, Morgan "threw a fit and decided to go upstairs," said her mother, Tracy Compton. Hearing the sound of his daughter's tears, Compton's husband, John, who also works from home, got involved.

Meltdowns are familiar to any paren...

The link between heart-lung fitness and brain health may begin at an early age, new research shows.

The study revealed that 4- to 6-year-olds who could walk farther during a timed test also scored higher on tests of thinking abilities and other measures of brain function.

Most studies of the link between brain health and heart-lung ("cardiorespiratory") fitness have focused on older...

Children have largely been spared severe COVID-19 infection, and new research hints at why.

In the study, children's immune systems attacked the new coronavirus faster and more aggressively than adults' immune systems did, the findings showed.

The researchers analyzed blood samples from 48 children and 70 adults who lived in 28 households in Melbourne, Australia, and who were infect...

As if suffering from a mental illness as a child isn't tough enough, new research suggests it could predict higher odds for physical ills in later life.

There was one silver lining to the findings, however.

Knowing that childhood mental illness is a factor, "you can identify the people at risk for physical illnesses much earlier in life," explained study lead researcher Jasmin Wertz...

In a finding that suggests heart health starts in the womb, a new study shows that the state of a woman's heart during pregnancy may predict her kids' health by the time they reach adolescence.

Researchers found that when mothers' weight, blood pressure and cholesterol levels were less healthy during pregnancy, their children were at heightened risk for those same issues.

The reason...

If you've put off or skipped needed medical care during the COVID-19 pandemic, you've got plenty of company.

More than a third of U.S. adults say they have delayed or gone without care either because they fear exposure to the virus or because health care services are harder to come by, two new surveys found.

The same reasons led nearly as many parents to avoid care for their kids.

Could the COVID-19 pandemic be taking a toll on kids' teeth?

A new, nationwide poll found the pandemic has made it harder for parents to get their kids regular dental care. But on the other hand, many say their youngsters are now taking better care of their teeth.

The C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health at Michigan Medicine surveyed almost 1,900 parents ...

Getting bitten by a dog or wild animal is frightening, especially for kids, but a new study may help relieve some of the worry about catching rabies.

The rabies prevention treatment KEDRAB is safe and effective for patients 17 and younger, a groundbreaking pediatric clinical trial has shown.

The trial included 30 kids with suspected or confirmed rabies exposure who were treated with...

For parents with questions about COVID-19 vaccines and children, Johns Hopkins Medicine experts offer answers.

While vaccinations for adults are underway in the United States, clinical trials for the first U.S. Food and Drug Administration-authorized COVID-19 vaccines haven't yet been completed for children and teens younger than 16.

Before that age group can receive a vaccine, the ...

Too much coffee during pregnancy could lead to kids with behavior problems later on.

That's the key takeaway from new research that examined 9,000 brain scans from 9- and 10-year-olds as part of the largest long-term study of brain development and child health.

"The goalposts are moved by caffeine, and there are subtle, but real changes in behavioral outcomes in most kids who were e...

Latisha Wilborne was excited. She and her husband had tried for a year to get pregnant, and now, 20 weeks pregnant, she was at a doctor's visit with her two sisters where an ultrasound would determine if she was having a girl or boy. A party to celebrate the news was just days away.

The happy mood changed when the doctor told Latisha they detected a problem with the baby's heart.

"I...

Spina bifida is a diagnosis no parents-to-be want to hear as they await their child's birth, and the idea of performing surgery on a baby while it is still in the womb can be terrifying. But new research shows that performing the delicate procedure before the baby is born, and not after, is worth it.

The findings showed that children with myelomeningocele (the most severe form of spina bi...

Day camps could be considered breeding grounds for coronavirus infection, but a new study shows that when social distancing measures are followed, few illnesses result.

Researchers analyzed data from more than 6,800 children and staff members who were at 54 YMCA day camps in the greater Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area of North Carolina from March through August 2020, when community cases ...

Most parents know that child behavior experts recommend against spanking, but new research suggests that so-called "positive" discipline methods don't always work either.

For example, the common tactic of "verbal reasoning" with an unruly child "was associated with a mixed bag of outcomes, some positive and some negative," said study author Andrew Grogan-Kaylor. He's a professor of socia...

It only takes a second.

Experts are warning that unsecured televisions, bedroom dressers and other heavy furniture can crush, maim and even kill curious children, and the issue may only worsen during stay-at-home lockdowns.

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), between 2000 and 2019, 451 kids aged 17 years and younger died in tip-over accidents, the CPSC s...

Black and Hispanic children who land in the emergency room are less likely than white kids to receive X-rays, CT scans and other imaging tests, a new study finds.

Looking at more than 13 million ER visits to U.S. children's hospitals, researchers found that white children underwent imaging tests one-third of the time.

That was true for only 26% of visits made by Hispanic children, a...

Black American children have higher rates of shellfish and fish allergies than white children, a new study finds.

The research confirms the important role that race plays in children's food allergies, the study authors said.

"Food allergy is a common condition in the U.S., and we know from our previous research that there are important differences between African American and white ...

There have been good and bad changes to U.S. children's diets during the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers say.

"Providing healthy meals and snacks to our kids can be a challenge even when we're not experiencing a pandemic," said senior study author Susan Carnell. She's an associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, in Baltimo...

As many as one in five U.S. children has special health care needs, and some of their caregivers are struggling to get them the support, care and services they need, new research shows.

Kids with special health care needs may have physical conditions (such as asthma or diabetes), mental health issues (including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder or anxiety), developmental disorders ...

Too much screen time can make your toddler more distractible, British researchers warn.

The use of smartphones and tablets by babies and toddlers has soared in recent years.

"The first few years of life are critical for children to learn how to control their attention and ignore distraction, early skills that are known to be important for later academic achievement," said lead autho...

With most in-person classes curtailed or canceled in schools across the United States since last spring, kids and their parents have had a really tough year.

However, new studies suggest a return to in-person classes could be warranted, according to officials at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Writing in the Jan. 26 issue of the Journal of the American ...