|
Head Cases: Stories of Brain Injury and Its Aftermath by Michael Paul Mason This collection shares a dozen strange but true stories of people whose lives have been altered by brain injury. Read Hard knocks.
Guts: The Digestive System by M. Gillian Houghton Guts may sound gross, but this book teaches younger readers all about the organs that break down nutrients and provide energy for the body. Read Stretching the limits.
The Young and the Digital by S. Craig Watkins Watkins looks at how technology is changing the lives of young people, from the way they learn to the way they spend time with their friends. Read Online overload.
Angel's Choice by Lauren Baratz-Logsted This journal-style novel for young adults addresses the hard choices surrounding teen pregnancy. Read Lessons from a teen mother.
Check out Children's Hospital Boston's blog, Thrive. It features Children's experts addressing timely health topics; stories from and videos about our patients, their families, clinicians and researchers; and the latest health information from around the world. Among recent highlights:
-
Obsession and risk-taking: What the Twilight saga's: New Moon, tells us about how teens think romance should be.
-
David Ludwig, MD, MPH, ponders the potential dangers of artificial sweeteners in our foods and drinks.
- Ask the Mediatrician: Michael Rich, MD, MPH, answers weekly questions about children and media use (also check out the story Online overload.
While you're visiting Thrive, click on the right side of the screen to follow us on Twitter, watch our videos on YouTube, and friend us on our ever-growing and dynamic Facebook site, which now has more than 50,000 fans. Check out our fan-submitted photos and share your experience at Children's with fellow patients and families.
Despite what your parents might have told you, this isn't true. Acne is caused by overactive oil glands trapped under the skin. During adolescence and times of stress, hormonal changes can cause these oil glands to overact, resulting in pimples, whiteheads or blackheads. The best way to prevent breakouts is to wash your face twice a day with a gentle facial cleanser.
—Marilyn Liang, MD, Dermatology
Everywhere you look, cereals, sports bars and even bottled water are marketed with added vitamins and minerals that claim to boost your immune system, give you energy and help you conquer the world (well, not literally). So how do you know if you're getting enoughóor too manyóvitamins in your diet? We talked to Children's John Watkins, MD, to understand why our bodies need vitamins, which ones are the most important and whether you can accidently ingest too many.
Q: If my children eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, do they need to take vitamins?
A: That's a very important question. If your child eats a healthy and well-balanced diet, and are active, they probably wouldn't. But, due to the way our food is processed, which depletes the vitamin supply in fresh foods, and the fact that we spend most of our days indoors, we often need to take supplements to meet our vitamin requirements. Also, children can be very picky about what they will and won't eat, and taking vitamins can help ensure they are still ingesting the vitamins they need to thrive.
Read the rest of the Q&A about vitamins
Anxiety and depression are the two most common mental health problems in teens and college students, well above ADHD and eating disorders. Healthcentral.com
more students are being diagnosed with depression today than 10 years ago. NIH
students are dealing with mental health issues on college campuses. NIH
The statistical change in suicide rates that the Surgeon General attributes to suicide prevention hotlines. www.surgeongeneral.gov
Kansas City Royals pitcher Zack Greinke's earned run average in 2009. He won the Cy Young Award last season after taking time off from baseball to seek help for anxiety and depression. MLB.com
Thrive blog post about what the Twilight book and movie phenomenon might say about teen girls' views on romantic relationships.
|