Dr. Trisha Rafferty, MD

WEDNESDAY, May 22 (HealthDay News) -- Children who are physically, sexually or emotionally abused or neglected are at greater risk for obesity later in life, a new review suggests.

British researchers found that abused children are 36 percent more likely to be obese as adults. They conclu...Full Article

WEDNESDAY, May 22 (HealthDay News) -- Children and teens exposed to radiation during CT scans are 24 percent more likely to develop cancer, according to a large, long-term study.

The risks, however, are still low: Among a group of 10,000 young people who each ha...Full Article

TUESDAY, May 21 (HealthDay News) -- The risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is five times higher when parents sleep with their infant, a new study finds.

British researchers noted that bed-sharing increases the risk for SIDS even if parents do not drink, use illegal drugs or smoke...Full Article

SATURDAY, May 18 (HealthDay News) -- Children who swallow high-powered magnets often need surgery and other invasive procedures to remove the objects, according to a new study.

The researchers, from the Louisiana State University Health Center in New Orleans, found that more than 79 perce...Full Article

TUESDAY, May 14 (HealthDay News) -- About one in every 20 U.S. teens has used "smokeless" tobacco products such as chew or snuff, and that rate hasn't budged since 2000, a new report finds.

Researchers led by Israel Agaku of the Harvard School of Public Health compared data from the 2000 ...Full Article

TUESDAY, May 14 (HealthDay News) -- Even children with low levels of lead in their blood score lower on reading-readiness tests when they begin kindergarten, a new study found.

"We now know that poorer scores on reading-readiness tests are associated with low lead levels," said researcher...Full Article

MONDAY, May 13 (HealthDay News) -- A person's math and reading abilities in early childhood influence how successful they are as adults, a new study contends.

Researchers examined data from more than 17,000 people in England, Scotland and Wales who are part of a...Full Article

MONDAY, May 13 (HealthDay News) -- Giving small amounts of infant formula to newborns who experience significant weight loss can increase the length of time that they are breast-fed, according to a new study.

New mothers do not immediately produce high volumes of milk and their babies can...Full Article

FRIDAY, May 10 (HealthDay News) -- When teens start dating, parents' worries grow -- and experts say that dating violence should be on their list of concerns.

"Dating violence happens, and it's more common than we think," said Dr. Yolanda Evans, an assistant pro...Full Article

THURSDAY, May 9 (HealthDay News) -- Infants' early growth is influenced by the types of bacteria in their digestive system, a new study says.

A variety of bacteria quickly populate the sterile digestive tract of a newborn. Norwegian researchers identified connections between specific type...Full Article

WEDNESDAY, May 8 (HealthDay News) -- Many pre-term babies suffer recurrent episodes of wheezing. Now, researchers say a common infection is a likely culprit and they may be able to prevent the breathing problems.

Wheezing episodes in late pre-term babies often are caused by infection with...Full Article

TUESDAY, May 7 (HealthDay News) -- Magnesium may be as crucial to children's bone health as calcium, according to a small, early study.

While it's known that magnesium is important for adults' bone health, few studies have examined the nutrient's role in children's bones. This study found...Full Article

TUESDAY, May 7 (HealthDay News) -- Only a handful of children have ingested gasoline or other toxic household chemicals that contain hydrocarbons on his watch. But Dr. Vincenzo Maniaci, now a pediatric emergency room physician at Miami Children's Hospital, remembers them all -- including a toddle...Full Article

MONDAY, May 6 (HealthDay News) -- Exposure to flame-retardant chemicals in the womb is associated with hyperactivity and lower intelligence in children, a new study indicates.

Researchers examined the effects of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), which were used for decades as fire ...Full Article

SUNDAY, May 5 (HealthDay News) -- Significantly more U.S. children have a neurodevelopmental or mental health disability than did a decade ago, according to new research.

Disabilities that impair a child's day-to-day living have risen 16 percent, with the greatest increase seen in richer ...Full Article