Parenting

Toddlers with only four toys in their environment played longer and more creatively than toddlers with 16 toys in their environment, suggesting that having fewer accessible toys encourages more focused and creative play.

Parenting

The amount of cotinine (a molecular marker for nicotine) in children's saliva is a better measure of tobacco exposure and predictor of hospitalization rates for severe asthma than caregiver reports, suggesting that caregivers tend to underestimate children's environmental tobacco smoke exposure.

Archives of Disease in Childhood

Compared to children of non-smokers, high school children who had at least one parent who smoked had more favorable attitudes towards smoking, and were more likely to smoke if they viewed it favorably.

Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy

Mothers with depression had blood tests with higher levels of a protein associated with inflammation and expressed more negativity towards their children. Their children also had blood tests with elevated levels of this protein and were more socially withdrawn.

Girls aged 4 to 6 were more likely to be overweight or obese if they had a TV in their bedroom.

Science & Sports

In a group of mostly young, low-income mothers, tobacco and marijuana use during pregnancy were associated with maternal stress and aggression before and after giving birth, as well as negative birth outcomes such as lower birthweight and greater infant emotional reactivity.

In young newly-licensed drivers, self-reported inattention and impulsivity were associated with more errors on a simulated driving test.

Three-year-old children had better executive function (focus, planning, and self-control) when their fathers supported their success and independence instead of criticizing or controlling their actions.

Journal of Experimental Child Psychology

Parenting

Children were more likely to have behavioral issues and mental health problems when their parents, particularly their mothers, had four or more severe negative childhood experiences, like abuse or parental divorce.

Kids learning to read improved more when they read alongside an audio rendition of the text, compared to those who read silently.

System