The pandemic's focus on vaccines may have had a big downside: While kids have long been required to get certain shots to attend public school, a growing number of their parents now oppose these requirements, a new poll finds.

About 35% of parents now say childhood vaccines for measles, mumps and rubella should not be mandatory, up from 23% in 2019. Overall, 28% of adults nationwide say pa...

Nearly one-quarter of all American adults who care for an elderly parent also care for a child at the same time, a new study reveals.

And when compared with those who only have a parent under their watch, members of the so-called “sandwich generation” — namely caregivers of both the old and the young — are much more likely to struggle with money problems, emotional trouble an...

Black children and teens drown in swimming pools at rates seven times higher than white children, but a new survey suggests that special swimming programs could make a difference and help save lives.

The survey, from the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, found that only 25% of Hispanic parents and 28% of Black parents were comfortable with their own swimming ski...

Shortages of the ADHD drug Adderall are expected to continue for months, forcing families to scramble for ways to deal with their children's attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

The shortage has caused headaches and hassles for parents like San Diego mom Jackie Meader, who has been "flustered, rushed and out of sorts" since her 16-year-old son's prescription ran out about a mo...

An attempt to block California's flavored tobacco ban was stopped Monday when the Supreme Court declined to hear the case.

That now means the ban will go into effect on Dec. 21.

The ban includes everything from candy flavors to menthol in a wide range of tobacco products including vape ...

Babies born prematurely who are fed formula may need iron supplementation like their breastfed counterparts, new research suggests.

“Just because a baby is on iron-rich formula, we should not assume all of their iron needs are being met, since iron from the formula may not have the same absorption as iron from breast milk,” said researcher Grace Power. She is a third-year medical stu...

It's an all-too-familiar scenario for many parents: Your preschooler starts to act up just as the phone rings or you start dinner.

Maybe you hand over an iPad or smartphone to soothe the child so you can get down to business.

And this probably does the trick. But if this is your go-to strategy, your child may be at risk for developing longer-term behavioral issues — especially boy...

The updated bivalent COVID-19 boosters are now approved for use in children as young as 6 months of age, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced today.

Children can receive either a Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent booster shot, although the rules differ depending on their age and what type of vaccine they got as their primary series, the FDA said.

Kids 6 months to 5 year...

A high number of preteens and teens in the United States have viewed pornography and many have also sent or received nude or seminude photos -- sexting -- over their smartphones, a new study reveals.

“The prevalence rates we found in this study suggest that school counselors must be prepared to talk about sexting and pornography use with students, and to change the narrative about the...

Researchers have discovered a link between access to welfare payments and foster care.

As many as 29,000 fewer children may have entered the foster care system during the 12-year study if U.S. states had made it easier for poor families to receive cash through the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program.

"The relatively small amount of income provided through...

American kids are drinking to excess less and abusing marijuana more, a new study finds.

Marijuana abuse among 6- to 18-year-olds has increased 245% since 2000, while child alcohol abuse has steadily declined over those years, say researchers who analyzed poisonings over two decades.

"This dramatic increase does coincide with this huge wave of decriminalization in the U.S.," s...

Young girls tend to babble their way to bigger vocabularies earlier than boys, and researchers now think they might know why.

It has nothing to do with gender, and everything to do with parental interaction, researchers assert.

Parents tend to talk more to young children who have started talking and can respond to them, regardless of gender, according to data derived from more than ...

Getting toys for some of the tots in your life this holiday season? Experts at Penn State Health offer tips on making safe choices.

Each year, about 200,000 U.S. children end up in the emergency room with a toy-related injury, ranging from poisoning to choking hazards, according to Jen Lau

An early surge in cold and flu cases has created shortages in key antiviral and antibiotic drugs needed for the annual “sick season,” pharmacists report.

The antiviral flu drug Tamiflu is in short supply for both adults and children, in both its brand name formulation as well as the generic version, said Mich...

Millions of Americans will enjoy a hot, nutritious Thanksgiving meal thanks to their local food pantry, often staffed by volunteers. Now, new research spotlights just how important these charities are.

Families who rely on pantries for food assistance come away with $600 to $1,000 in free meals and produce every year, after taking into account time, transportation and other costs associ...

It's a common dilemma when your child seems sick: Do you call the doctor, make a trip to urgent care or head straight to the emergency room?

If it's not an emergency, a call to your child's pediatrician may help guide you. The doctor's staff may recommend bringing your child in for a visit or going to urgent care -- particularly after hours when the pediatrician's office isn't open.

With U.S. health officials calling childhood obesity a public health crisis, conversations about weight are important. But what you say to your kids can be challenging, and even counterproductive, a new study found.

"Body weight is a sensitive issue and the way we talk about it matters," said lead author