Inside Fatherhood

News roundup: smoking mothers, cough syrup and autism screening

by Bill on October 30th, 2007

Smoking mothers lead to fat children: Japan study

A recent Japanese study found that mothers who smoke during pregnancy are more likely to have heavy children.

Children whose mothers smoked even in the early stages of pregnancy are nearly three times more likely to struggle with obesity later in life, according to a Japanese study.

Wyeth recalls cough, cold, brands with faulty cups

Robitussin and Dimetapp brand cold medicines have apparently been shipping with measuring cups which lack proper dosage marking for kids under two. There is nothing wrong with the medicine itself, however.

Wyeth (WYE.N) said on Monday it was recalling several of its Robitussin cough, cold and congestion products and its Children’s Dimetapp Cold & Chest Congestion medicine because their dosage cups lack a measurement mark for young children.

U.S. pediatricians urge more autism screening

A group of U.S. pediatricians are urging that autism screening be increased to twice before the age of two.

Children should be screened for autism twice by the time they are two years old to look for symptoms such as babies who don’t babble at nine months and one-year-olds who don’t point to toys.

That’s the advice from the American Academy of Pediatrics in two reports the group presented at its annual meeting in San Francisco Monday.

The advice is meant to help both parents and doctors spot autism sooner so that therapy can begin as soon as possible. While there is no cure for autism, experts say early therapy can lessen its severity.

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