In a welcome piece of good news from Washington today, the Department of Health and Human Services has proposed major new regulations to help protect children in child care centers and family child care homes. “Many children already benefit from the excellent care of high-quality child care providers who are meeting or exceeding the proposed requirements,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “However, too many children remain in settings that do not meet minimum standards of health and safety. These basic rules ensure that providers take necessary basic steps to shield children from avoidable tragedy.”
I met recently with parents whose children had died in child care because these types of regulations did not exist. These parents have been working to help make sure that a similar tragedy wouldn’t happen to other families, and their advocacy has paid off. Child Care Aware of America has led the charge for safety and quality improvements, and we’ve been privileged to partner with them on their efforts. Most parents would be shocked to learn about the current minimal standards.
For all child care providers who accept federal funding through the Child Care and Development Fund, the new regulations would require:
Health and safety training in certain areas
Compliance with state and local fire, health and building codes
States would also have to post information online for parents about health, safety, and licensing. The proposed regulations will be open for public comment for 75 days.
Looking for a unique Mother’s Day gift this year? Consider making a difference by giving to charity in Mom’s name. While there are certainly many worthy organizations out there, we are particularly excited about IMA WorldHealth’s Safe Motherhood Kits. For $25, a kit provides a woman in a developing country with clean and sterile childbirth supplies, training on how to prevent infection, and warm clothes for newborns. In countries where childbirth in unsanitary conditions often leads to death, these supplies can save lives. To donate a kit, call 1-877-241-7952 or designate your online contribution for a “Safe Motherhood Kit” (use the “If Other, Please Enter Designation” box). And don’t forget: while Mother’s Day is an ideal time for this gift, donations for these kits are accepted all year round.
We all know it’s important to form healthy hygiene habits from an early age — and a specific one is tooth care. According to the CDC, tooth decay (or cavities) actually “affect children in the United States more than any other chronic infectious disease.”
Dental experts recommend that kids see the dentist by their first birthday, when their teeth are starting to grow, though waiting until they’re 2- or 3-years old is also okay. Parents should help their children brush and floss until they are old enough, or have developed the fine motor skills, to hold a toothbrush and dental floss on their own.
A great many moms are sailing down streets and highways when we’re desperately sleep deprived, distracted and futzing with our phones (a habit that’s twice as dangerous as drunk driving). All the while, the lights of our lives—our babies!—are in the backseat (often in a carseat that’s installed wrong). And it’s happening all the time—moms log an average of 150 miles a week.
These are just a few of the alarming habits revealed in a study of more than 2,000 mothers with children under age 2 that American Baby conducted with Safe Kids Worldwide, an organization aimed at preventing childhood injuries. In fact, nearly 10 percent of new moms have been in a crash while driving with their baby. That’s almost three times higher than the rate among the general population, and rivals the crash rate of teens. One of several possible culprits: 64 percent of moms turn around in their seat to tend to their child instead of looking at the road ahead. For more eye-openers, check out this infographic.
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I’ve been guilty of careless driving myself. When my firstborn, Julian, was nine months old, I missed a stop sign while heading to Costco. I was newly transplanted in the suburbs, rusty at driving after a decade in the city, and beyond delirious. I realized my mistake and screeched to a halt a few feet later, causing another car to rear-end us. No one was hurt—massive sigh of relief—but the accident shook me. I signed up for refresher driving lessons and vowed to be more aware on the road, especially while chaffeuring my most precious passenger.
It’s time to STOP, think and hit reverse on these risky habits. This year, let’s all resolve to be more mindful and focused each time we leave our driveway. We owe it to the little people strapped in behind us, and to every other driver on the road.
To learn more about slip-ups moms make behind the wheel, and simple ways to protect your family when you head out, read the feature about our exclusive survey in the January issue of American Baby, and watch our video below on the driving rules every mom should follow. The keys to a safer year are in your hand.
Editor’s Note: Parents.com has partnered with LearnVest.com to bring you a monthly series of posts about money-related topics related to moms. These guest posts will be shorter, edited versions of longer features from LearnVest.com.
As a mom, you know just how accident-prone and fragile kids can be. Cuts, scratches, scrapes, skinned knees, and bumps to the noggin’ are all frequent players on your “must fix” list. And there’s nothing worse than having to play Dr. Mom without having all of the needed medical supplies to heal your little patient.
Setting up a first-aid kit now for your home and your car will save time (you can quickly attend to injuries), money (no middle-of-the-night runs to the insanely expensive convenience store), and a whole lot of tears.
Keep these drugstore staples on hand and you’ll be ready for anything your active kid can throw your way.
1. Bandages and Gauze Pads
Your kit should include bandages in a variety of sizes. These little stickies help protect wounds from reinjury, hide scary-looking cuts, and magically make tears disappear. Before you spring for the more expensive character bandages, a little DIY craftiness can save money. Buy plain bandages and then decorate them with your child’s name, silly drawings, or stickers once they’re in use. Gauze pads will come in handy for more serious wounds (don’t forget the tape). You can also use them when applying ointments or cleaning agents. When purchasing gauze pads, bigger is better. You can always cut the pad if you need a smaller size.
2. Scissors
Speaking of cutting, a good pair of sharp scissors is a necessity. In addition to cutting gauze, you may also need to cut other material, like clothing, during an emergency. Regular scissors are fine, as long as they’re sharp enough to cut gauze, clothing, etc.
3. Cold/Hot Packs
Hot and cold packs can relieve swelling and reduce the pain of minor injuries. Because you’re not guaranteed to have access to ice or hot water or a heating pad, stock up on the instant cold and hot packs (like this one) that you squeeze to activate.
4. Pain Medication/Fever Reliever
Pain is a big deal to little kids, so it’s always a good idea to have a children’s pain reliever around to reduce fevers and calm headaches, teething pain, and minor sprains and strains. Remember, aspirin isn’t recommended for kids, so the best choices are children’s acetaminophen and ibuprofen.
5. Antihistamine
For kids with food allergies, it can be difficult to make sure no forbidden foods ever slip through. If your child does consume something she has a slight allergy to, an oral antihistamine can reduce a potential reaction, says Emily Tuerk, M.D., assistant professor of pediatrics at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. Even if your kid doesn’t have food allergies, it’s still a good idea to have an antihistamine on hand. “Oral antihistamines and topical antihistamine creams can lessen the reaction to insect stings or bites,” says Dr. Tuerk. They can also decrease symptoms of hives, poison ivy, and other skin reactions.
6. Tweezers
This standard beauty supply isn’t only for plucking stray hairs from your eyebrows. Tweezers come in handy to remove splinters, glass, insect stingers, ticks, or even candy. (You know, for when your 3-year-old decides to put a piece of candy up his nose.)
Plus: Don’t forget to also sign up for the Baby on Board Bootcamp newsletter, a free newsletter that helps moms budget and manage family finances better over a course of 10 days.
Faster DNA Testing for NICU Babies Means More Accurate Diagnoses
A new genetic test can rapidly screen the DNA of babies in intensive care for about 3,500 diseases. (via Time)
New Child-Proof Spray Bottle Designed to Prevent Chemical Injuries
A new type of spray bottle could prevent thousands of chemical injuries that occur yearly when children get their hands on household cleaners and accidentally spray themselves. (via MyHealthNewsDaily)
Mom’s Blood Pressure May Affect Baby’s IQ
Hypertension isn’t just risky for a pregnant woman, as it can also have lasting consequences for a child’s cognitive ability, a new study suggests. (via CNN)
Do Exercise Programs Help Children Stay Fit?
A new review of the outcomes of a wide range of different physical activity interventions for young people finds that the programs almost never increase overall daily physical activity. (via New York Times)
Common Solvents Tied to Birth Defects
Pregnant women with frequent exposure to solvents at work may be at higher risk of having babies with birth defects, French researchers have found. (via Reuters)
Nearly 13,000 kids under the age of 21 are diagnosed with cancer every year and, according to the American Childhood Cancer Organization (ACCO), nearly 25 percent of kids diagnosed per year will not survive the disease. This is why September is dedicated as Childhood Cancer AwarenessMonth.
Even though President Obama’s proclamation this year revealed that ongoing research and treatment has led to outstanding progress (the five-year survival rate for all childhood cancers has increased from less than 50 percent to 80 percent over the past several decade), there is still much work to be done.
Below are ways to learn more about the disease and to engage with affected communities:
This September marks the third annual Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, first proclaimed by the Obama administration in 2010 to highlight the alarming epidemic in the U.S. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), childhood obesity nearly tripled in the past three decades. That means more than 23 million children and teenagers are currently affected, putting them at higher risk for such conditions as Type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
To kick off the month, the United States Tennis Association (USTA), in collaboration with the Partnership for a Healthier America and Let’s Move! (the program spearheaded by First Lady Michelle Obama), will announce its youth tennis initiative at the U.S. Open this weekend. On hand to launch the initiative will be actress and tennis mom Christine Taylor, as well as fitness expert Bob Harper and Olympic gold medalists Dara Torres and Cullen Jones.
Read more about childhood obesity and healthy living on Parents.com:
In a welcome piece of good news from Washington today, the Department of Health and Human Services has proposed major new regulations to help protect children in child care centers and family child care homes. “Many children already benefit from the excellent care of high-quality child care providers who are meeting or exceeding the proposed requirements,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “However, too many children remain in settings that do not meet minimum standards of health and safety. These basic rules ensure that providers take necessary basic steps to shield children from avoidable tragedy.”
Looking for a unique Mother’s Day gift this year? Consider making a difference by giving to charity in Mom’s name. While there are certainly many worthy organizations out there, we are particularly excited about IMA WorldHealth’s 
We all know it’s important to form healthy hygiene habits from an early age — and a specific one is tooth care. 
Editor’s Note: Parents.com has partnered with 
Nearly 13,000 kids under the age of 21 are diagnosed with cancer every year and, according to the American Childhood Cancer Organization (
This September marks the third annual 