When parents meet U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, one concern comes up time after time.

"The most common question parents ask me is: 'Is social media safe for my kids,' " Murthy said. "The answer is that we don't have enough evidence to say it's safe, and in fact, there is...

Summer jobs can give teens valuable life experience that help them transition to adulthood -- not just a paycheck, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Benefits of summer jobs include:

• Career exploration: Summer jobs and internships help high school students explore different careers that might interest them. They also provide opportunities to netwo...

As kids prepare to return to school, a new poll warns that the many children who found the last school year challenging are likely to be apprehensive this time around.

The online survey, conducted by the Harris Poll on behalf of the nonprofit On Our Sleeves Movement for Children's Mental Health, found that 71% of American parents say their children experienced challenges last school year....

Many parents in the United States aren't installing child car seats correctly, a new study finds.

Errors in car seat installation are common, even for seats that have a 5-star rating for features like ease of use, researchers found. The study found that fewer errors were detected when parents installed seats that had higher ratings, but researchers recommend that parents seek out safety ...

It's not only a mother's mental health that is tied to the risk for preterm birth — the father's matters, too.

New research found that the risk of premature birth was higher for infants whose mothers or fathers had a psychiatric diagnosis than for those whose parents did not.

Researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden analyzed data on all live births to Nordic parents in ...

Competitive sports can be a lot of fun for kids and teens, but starting a new season requires some planning.

Nemours TeensHealth offers some suggestions for kids and teens who are taking up a new sport or beginning a new season.

• Start by getting into shape. That will make it easier when you begin your sport.

You can do this by writing down an e...

If your child is in sports camp this summer, you'll want them to have fun and stay safe.

The National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) offers some tips on dealing with existing medical conditions, staying hydrated and heat safe, avoiding weather dangers and protecting skin from the sun.

“Just as parents don't drop off their children at a pool without a lifeguard, they shouldn...

Whether your child attends a year-round school or one on a traditional calendar, parents can take steps to make classroom reentry healthier for kids with asthma.

Asthma causes an estimated 13.8 million missed school days each year, according to the Respiratory Health Association. That's more than any other chronic illness.

Having an inhaler on hand at school is one important step fo...

Shootings are the leading cause of death among U.S. children, surpassing even car crashes. But a new study suggests there may be a sensible way to reduce those firearm tragedies.

Researchers found that kids who had watched a one-minute gun safety video were more likely to make a safe choice when they came upon an unlocked gun than children who had not been taught about gun safety.

Teens who use stimulant medication like Ritalin to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) do not have an increased risk of illicit drug use later, a new study finds.

This study looked specifically at cocaine and methamphetamine use. High school seniors who used stimulant therapy were no more likely to use cocaine or methamphetamine as young adults (ages 19 to 24) than thei...

Less than half of all children treated by emergency medical services receive the right amount of medication during out-of-hospital emergencies, a new study found.

In some cases, these incorrect doses can have serious consequences.

“If you don't give the appropriate dose of the anti-seizure medication for a patient with an ongoing seizure, the seizure will not stop,” said study c...

Pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Erin Okawa works in a wealthy Los Angeles neighborhood and sees many parents worried about their kids' height.

“I have a clinic in Manhattan Beach, which was apparently settled by ex-volleyball players and ex-soccer players,” she said. “So there are a lot of very tall parents ...

Enjoy that summer sun, but keep some safety tips in mind, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) advises parents.

“It's great to see children enjoying nature and reaping the benefits of outdoor activities,” Atlanta-based pediatrician Dr. Rebecca Philipsborn said in an AAP ne...

Children with disabilities are discriminated against in health care settings -- to the detriment of their health, according to their parents.

Thirty in-depth interviews with parents of children with disabilities revealed a disturbingly common thread.

“They mistreated her and treated her like a robot. Every single time a nurse walked in the room, they treated her like she was not ...

Young children may be fascinated by electronic devices, but a new study suggests that old-fashioned reading may help them grow into better adjusted middle schoolers.

The study, of more than 10,000 U.S. "tweens," found that those who'd begun reading for fun early in childhood tended to be faring better in several ways: They scored higher on tests of skills like memory and speech developmen...

Growing numbers of young people are expressing a sense of a "mismatch" between the gender on their birth certificate and the one that they "feel" inside, particularly those assigned female at birth.

And the age when these people are seeking help and gender-affirming medical care is dropping, according to a new study of more than 66 million people. Those assigned female at birth seek such ...

When a child unintentionally shoots and kills another child in the United States, they've likely been playing around with an unlocked, loaded gun, new research reveals.

Analyzing a decade's worth of data, researchers also found that 4 out of 10 such gun deaths involve kids 2 to 4 years old. About two-thirds of the unintentional fatal shootings happen at the victim's home, and both victim ...

Summer's here and the Mayo Clinic says babies need protection from the sun's damaging UV rays, too.

It only takes one severe sunburn during childhood or adolescence to nearly double the risk for a deadly melanoma later in life, according to the American Academy of Dermatology Association.

Babies are far more vulnerable to sunburn than older kids, so it's essential to protect them ag...

Cancer affects families in numerous ways, and kids whose parents have had cancer are more likely to be hungry and to go without everyday essentials than their peers, a new American Cancer Society study reveals.

“Cancer is a life-threatening disease, and parents with a history of cancer are often saddled with worry about paying for food, the rent or mortgage, and other monthly bills,” ...

The number of cases of vape product-related poisonings reported to America's poison control centers doubled between 2018 and early 2023, a new report finds.

The bulk of those cases were in kids under the age of 5.

“The public should be aware that e-cigarettes have the potential to cause poisoning exposure and are a continuing public health concern,” warned a team of resea...

Screening newborns for severe combined immunodeficiency -- SCID, sometimes referred to as "bubble boy disease" -- significantly increases survival rates, researchers say.

Infants with SCID appear healthy at birth, but have no immune defenses, making them highly susceptible to severe and often fatal infections. The 1976 TV movie “The Boy in the Plastic Bubble" promoted awareness of ...

Could popular TV medical dramas jump-start a discussion about vaping among teens and almost teens?

A recent experiment using clips from "Grey's Anatomy,” “New Amsterdam” and “Chicago Med” suggests the answer is yes. Watching the clips appeared to help kids open up and talk about the health impacts of using electronic cigarettes.

Along the way, researchers learned more abou...

Kids get a lot of tummy aches.

How a parent responds to it can vary, just as the causes can, according to the University of Michigan Health's C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health, which looked more closely at the issue.

About 1 in 6 parents said their child has tummy pain at least monthly, according to the poll, but many don't call the doctor. One-third...

It is already known that getting enough sleep is vital to good health, but now new research suggests that having a sleep disorder is linked to suicidal thoughts in children, teens and young adults.

Treating these sleep issues could be an inroad to improving their mental health, the study authors suggested.

“People so often think of sleep disorders as being a symptom of other menta...

Jeremy Davis made sure his wife, Chloe, got lots of support when she was breastfeeding each of their three sons.

“When she'd been up nursing all night, I'd take over with the baby in the mornings so she could get extra sleep,” the Wilton, Conn., man recalled. Davis also learned to give special breastfeeding massages to help with milk flow and took on middle-of-the-night diaper duty.

Could high-quality child care for young children translate into better grades in math and science?

Yes, says new research that found children with caregivers who provided both warmth and mental stimulation go on to do better in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) in high school.

“Our results suggest that caregiving quality in early childhood can build a strong foundat...

About one in every seven American kids aged 5 to 17 underwent some form of mental health treatment in 2021, the latest year for which statistics are available.

So finds a new report from researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which pegs the percentage of kids who got mental he...

Going to bed earlier is one way for teens to get the sleep they need, new research suggests.

That may be easier said than done, the researchers admitted. But their study shows that if you can get teens to go to bed earlier, they will increase their time asleep by 41 minutes for each additional hour in bed.

"The idea that there's a circadian phase delay that prevents teens from going...

Drowning is the leading cause of death among children aged 1 to 4 years old in the United States, and too many older children continue to die in the water, according to a new report from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

A child can slip underwater in the seconds it takes a parent to send a text message. Or while a caregiver turns away to pick up a smartphone.

“...

Understanding different parenting styles can help you pick the right one as you navigate the challenges of child-rearing.

Here, experts explain what an authoritarian parenting style is, examples of authoritarian parenting techniques, and what authoritarian discipline looks like. You'll also discover how this style compares to authoritative parenting.

What is authoritarian pa...