Tag Archives: Infants

Vegan Infants: Growing at Comparable Rates to Omnivore Babies

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Meat and dairy products are not essential for a child’s development.

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Research indicates that infants born into vegan or vegetarian families may initially have slightly lower birth weights. However, by age two, they typically catch up to their omnivorous peers.

Official dietary guidelines suggest: A well-balanced vegan diet, rich in vegetables, legumes, whole grains, and fortified foods, can satisfy nutritional needs. Nonetheless, ensuring adequate nutrition for children’s growth can be challenging on a vegan diet, due to potential protein and amino acid deficiencies.

Small-scale studies have yielded inconsistent results regarding the advantages and disadvantages of a vegan diet for young children. To address these issues comprehensively, Kerem Avital and researchers from Ben-Gurion University in the Negev, Israel, analyzed data from 1.2 million infants recorded at Israel’s National Family Care Center between 2014 and 2023, monitoring growth parameters such as height, weight, and head circumference during their first two years.

The researchers compared these growth metrics to reported dietary habits of parents when the infants reached around six months old. The majority of families identified as omnivorous, while only 1.2% reported as vegetarian and 0.3% as vegan.

This still reflects approximately 18,000 infants in vegetarian and vegan households. “The size of this study is significant enough that even these small percentages represent a substantial number of children, ensuring statistical reliability,” notes Tomer Avnon, a professor at Tel Aviv University who did not participate in the research.

During the first 60 days after birth, growth measurements such as height, head circumference, and overall development were comparable across all dietary groups. However, infants from vegan households were found to be slightly more likely to be underweight. Conversely, being overweight was rare overall but less common among vegan and vegetarian households.

By the time they reached 2 years of age, developmental benchmarks appeared to converge across all three dietary groups. While growth restriction was more prevalent in vegetarian and vegan families, the differences were minor and not statistically significant. Researchers accounted for various influencing factors, such as income, maternal age, and breastfeeding practices.

“The findings are quite encouraging,” stated Avnon. “It provides robust evidence that children of vegetarian and vegan parents can have healthy developmental trajectories.”

The analysis aligns with medical insights that babies born smaller than average typically “catch up” in their growth later, Avnon added. It should reassure parents that a meat-free diet can support healthy early childhood development, although the researchers point out that dietary habits were self-reported by parents, potentially affecting result accuracy. “This study lacks continuous assessments of children’s actual nutritional intake, an important element in long-term development,” he explains.

Zulfikar Bhutta, a researcher at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada, expressed concerns regarding the minor growth discrepancies noted among the groups. “The subtle differences in growth may have long-term implications, particularly since other studies indicate that vegan diets could lead to lower bone density and micronutrient levels,” he warned.

He encourages caution against assuming that a vegan or vegetarian diet is universally suitable during early childhood, especially in regions where malnutrition is a critical issue.

While the study was conducted in Israel, Avital believes the findings are applicable to countries with similar economic conditions and healthcare access, such as the United Kingdom. Bhutta advocates for larger studies to capture more precise data on dietary habits and parental characteristics.

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Source: www.newscientist.com

Nurturing Your Infant’s Microbiome: A Foundation for Lifelong Mental Health

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Families that garden together have more diverse microbiomes

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New parents often juggle numerous worries like sleep schedules, breastfeeding, and even the color of their newborn’s poop, but the baby’s microbiome might not top their list of concerns. Experts suggest it shouldn’t be a priority just yet.

“The initial 1,000 days of life are vital for establishing the microbiome. Once established, altering it is quite challenging,” says Federica Amati from Imperial College School of Medicine. Early microbial colonization plays a significant role not just in physical health, but also in brain development, mental well-being in adolescence, and even in reducing the risk of dementia in later life.

During a meeting I attended, this point seemed crucial for new parents. Goodwood Health Summit held this month in Chichester, England. However, after speaking with nutritionists, microbiologists, and doctors, I became convinced that the importance of introducing microbes early in a child’s life is paramount. There are straightforward, cost-effective strategies to navigate your child’s microbiome in a beneficial direction.

Why early microbiome health is essential

We’re frequently reminded that the trillions of microorganisms comprising our microbiome influence our bodies in various ways, from safeguarding our gut lining to controlling inflammation. But they also impact the brain.

Microbial byproducts influence the formation and adjustment of brain connections during early childhood, a pivotal process for healthy brain growth. Bacteria also communicate with the brain through the vagus nerve, affecting mood and stress levels. Persistent inflammation due to an unbalanced gut microbiome may contribute to depression and neurodegenerative diseases.

Moreover, research has linked microbial imbalance to conditions such as Parkinson’s disease and autism. Early studies suggest that children with autism may present unique microbiome profiles, and fecal transplants from non-autistic donors may offer improvements in both gastrointestinal and behavioral issues.

Ways to nurture the ideal microbiome

Once a microbial ecosystem is set up, overhauling it can be quite difficult, making initial seeding vital. “It’s akin to changing an English garden into a rainforest,” comments Amati, who also serves as the head nutritionist for the Zoe health app.

So how can we foster the ideal growing environment? The gut microbiome begins to flourish even before birth. Bacteria and fungi present in the uterus are consumed by the fetus, and additional microorganisms are transferred during passage through the vaginal canal at birth.

Babies delivered by C-section generally have different gut bacteria, linked to a heightened risk of asthma and eczema, though these discrepancies typically diminish by 6 to 9 months of age.

The advantages of breastfeeding are even more pronounced, as breast milk contains sugars that promote the growth of beneficial bacteria like Bifidobacterium, which is absent in formula. If we liken the microbiome to a garden, these bacteria act as a protective barrier against harmful microbes.

Antibiotics can severely disrupt early microbiome seeding, eliminating both beneficial and harmful bacteria. While antibiotics are often essential, it is crucial for healthcare providers to prescribe them judiciously to safeguard the developing gut, states James Kinross, a colorectal surgeon at Imperial College London.

Post the first year, dietary choices have the most significant impact. Amati emphasizes that variety is crucial, stemming from whole foods rather than ultra-processed snacks commonly provided to young children.

As many parents are aware, young children are notoriously picky eaters. “Prenatal meals are simply a luxury,” explains pediatrician Nancy Bostock, who highlighted that young children don’t need extensive amounts of food. Persistence is key afterward; “Make 20 offers,” she advises. I implemented this approach and despite initial refusal, I continued to serve salmon every Monday for half a year, and my children now love it.

Introducing whole foods doesn’t have to break the bank either. “Canned lentils and frozen raspberries are excellent choices,” adds Amati.

The benefits of getting dirty

Is there a simple and overlooked way to enhance early microbial diversity? Embrace dirt! Research indicates that soil, plant, and human microbiomes are more interconnected than previously understood.

Kinross states that healthy, undisturbed soil is teeming with microorganisms that support the growth of nutrient-dense food for our microbiome. “Our health is inherently linked to the well-being of our soil. The soil microbiome shapes our food, which subsequently influences our health,” he notes.

Additionally, it appears that interacting with soil might directly introduce beneficial microorganisms into the gut, potentially enhancing immune function. Research on the Amish community, for instance, reveals that those who practice traditional farming methods exhibited stronger immune systems compared to Hutterite groups that utilize industrial agriculture. In animal studies, inhaling dust from Amish households (but not from Hutterite homes) showed protective effects against asthma through enhanced microbial immune signaling.

Families who garden together also show seasonal variations in intestinal soil bacteria, implying that microorganisms are introduced via home-grown produce or direct soil contact. Although the long-term influence on children’s microbiomes is still unclear, various studies indicate that families engaging in gardening tend to have greater microbial diversity and higher nutritional quality than those who do not.

You don’t even need a garden to reap these benefits. Spending time outdoors, tending to potted plants, and consuming home-grown produce are all advantageous for your microbiome, according to Amati.

It’s essential not to conflate getting dirty with the outdated “hygiene hypothesis,” which erroneously attributes inflammatory diseases to maintaining a clean home. What we truly require is exposure to beneficial microorganisms, rather than childhood illnesses that can be minimized by proper hygiene.

The old friend hypothesis suggests that humans evolved alongside beneficial microbes from soil, animals, and each other. Changes in our behavior have diminished contact with these beneficial organisms, potentially contributing to the rise of chronic diseases by reducing outdoor activity.

Promoting healthy dietary habits for your child’s mental well-being

Even after the crucial first 1,000 days, the microbiome remains malleable. That’s why fostering a passion for healthy foods in children is crucial, asserts Amati.

Bostock, who specializes in pediatric mental health including eating disorders, warns against limiting specific foods. “Repeatedly, I observe parents struggling to get their kids to eat certain things unless they consume this or that,” she notes. Emphasizing “good” versus “bad” foods can promote eating disorders and obesity, she asserts.

Instead, she advocates for continuous exposure to a range of foods, shared family meals, and celebrating the unique benefits of each food item (whether it be quick energy or bone-strengthening properties).

Lastly, Amati encourages educating children about their microbiome, stating, “Help them understand the role of these beneficial bugs. They find it fascinating and enjoy nourishing the good bacteria.”

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Source: www.newscientist.com

Maternal Voice Enhances Language Development in Premature Infants

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Premature babies may face language challenges later, but simple interventions can assist.

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The first randomized controlled trial of this straightforward intervention suggests that playing recordings of a mother’s voice to premature infants could expedite their brain maturation processes. This method may eventually enhance language development in babies born prematurely.

Premature birth alters brain structure, leading to potential language disorders and affecting later communication and academic success. A mother’s voice and heartbeat can foster the development of auditory and language pathways. Unfortunately, parents may not always be able to physically be with their infants in the neonatal units.

To explore whether this absence could be compensated for through recordings, Katherine Travis and her team at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York conducted a study with 46 premature infants born between 24 and 31 weeks gestation, all situated in the neonatal intensive care unit.

We recorded mothers reading from children’s books, including selections from A Bear Named Paddington. Half of the infants listened to a ten-minute audio segment twice every hour overnight between 10 PM and 6 AM, increasing their daily exposure to their mother’s voice by an average of 2.7 hours until they reached their original due date. The other infants received similar medical care but were not exposed to recordings.

Upon reaching their due date, these infants underwent two MRI scans to evaluate the organization and connectivity of their brain networks. The results indicated that those who heard their mother’s voice at night exhibited more robust and organized connections in and around the left arcuate fasciculus, a crucial area for language processing. “The structure appeared notably more developed,” said Travis. “The characteristics matched what one might expect to find in older, more mature infants.”

The scans also suggested that this maturation could be linked to increased myelination— the creation of a fatty sheath that insulates nerve fibers, enhancing the speed and efficiency of signal transmission within the brain. “Myelination is crucial for healthy brain development, especially in pathways that support communication and learning,” noted Travis.

Previous studies have indicated that delayed development of these brain areas correlates with language delays and learning challenges. The latest findings imply that targeted speech exposure could improve these outcomes.

However, is it truly vital for infants to hear their mother’s voice rather than others? While this study did not address that, earlier research explains the phenomenon. Babies start hearing around the 24th week of pregnancy, and continue to recognize their mother’s voice after birth due to early exposure in the womb. Travis explained, “This voice is biologically significant and may be especially appealing to the developing brain.”

Nonetheless, Travis emphasizes that language exposure from other caregivers is also critical for language development, and future studies will explore this aspect further.

The intervention is straightforward and can easily be integrated into care protocols. However, David Edwards from Evelina London Children’s Hospital cautioned against overinterpreting the findings. “Given the small sample size, additional control groups, including different audio sources and forms of auditory stimulation, should be evaluated,” he suggested.

Travis and her research team aim to validate these results in larger trials involving medically vulnerable infants. They will continue to monitor current participants to determine if the observed brain differences result in tangible improvements in language and communication skills as these infants grow.

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Source: www.newscientist.com

Philip Sunshine, 94, Passes Away; Doctors Innovate Treatments for Premature Infants

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Philip Sunshine, a physician at Stanford University, significantly advanced neonatal theory as a medical specialty, transforming the care for premature and severely ill neonates, who previously faced little hope of survival. He passed away on April 5 at his home in Cupertino, California, at the age of 94.

His daughter, Diana Sunshine, confirmed his death.

Before Dr. Sunshine and a few other dedicated doctors took an interest in caring for infants in the late 1950s and early 1960s, more than half of these incredibly vulnerable patients died shortly after birth, often without insurance coverage for their treatment.

As a pediatric gastroenterologist, Dr. Sunshine believed that with proper attention, many premature babies could be saved. At Stanford, he assembled a multidisciplinary team to treat these infants in specialized intensive care units. Alongside his colleagues, he developed innovative feeding methods and breathing assistance techniques using ventilation.

“We managed to keep babies alive who would have otherwise not survived,” Dr. Sunshine recounted during an interview in 2000 with the Pediatric History Center at the American Academy of Pediatrics. “And now, this progress is often taken for granted.”

The early 1960s marked a pivotal moment for the care of premature babies.

As noted by the Oxford English Dictionary, the term “Neonatology” first appeared in the 1960 book “Isises of Newborn” by pediatrician Alexander J. Schaffer from Baltimore. By that time, Stanford’s Neonatology School, one of the nation’s earliest schools for this field, was already functional.

In 1963, Patrick Bouvier Kennedy, the second son of President John F. Kennedy, was born nearly six weeks prematurely and sadly passed away just 39 hours later. This tragic event captured the attention of newspapers across the nation and spurred federal health officials to begin funding research focused on newborns.

“Kennedy’s situation was a significant turning point,” Dr. Sunshine remarked in 1998 to Aha News, a publication of the American Hospital Association.

Serving as the Newborn Dean at Stanford from 1967 to 1989, Dr. Sunshine played a crucial role in training hundreds, if not thousands, of doctors who went on to work in neonatal intensive care units worldwide. Upon his retirement in 2022 at the age of 92, the survival rate for babies born at just 28 weeks had surpassed 90%.

“Phill is one of the pioneers in neonatology—an exceptional neonatologist and one of the finest in our field’s history,” stated David K. Stevenson, the head of the neonatology division at Stanford, who succeeded Dr. Sunshine, in a 2011 graduate journal.

Dr. Sunshine understood that providing care for young children involves both technical skills and personal connection. He advocated for allowing parents to visit the neonatal intensive care unit to hold their newborns, noting that skin-to-skin contact was highly beneficial.

He also encouraged nurses to exercise their judgment and express concerns when they felt something was amiss.

“Our nurses have always been invaluable caregivers,” Dr. Sunshine recounted in oral history. “Throughout my career, I collaborated with nursing staff who often recognized baby issues before the doctors did, and they continue to do so.”

A newborn nurse who worked alongside Dr. Sunshine for over 50 years shared in a blog post for Stanford Medicine, “Phil exuded a deep kindness—towards the babies, us, and everyone around him.”

“He viewed everyone as equally important,” she commented.

It was a challenging journey, and the pressure was immense.

“He had a calming, encouraging presence and was completely unflappable,” Dr. Stevenson said in an interview. “He would often say, ‘If you’re going to be up all night in the hospital, what better way to spend your time than by giving someone 80 or 90 years of life?'”

Philip Sunshine was born in Denver on June 16, 1930, to parents Samuel and Molly (Fox) Sunshine, who owned a pharmacy.

He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado in 1952 and graduated from medical school in 1955.

After his first year of residency at Stanford, he was drafted into the US Navy, where he served as a physician. Upon returning to Stanford in 1959, he trained under pediatrician Louis Gulac, later developing a modern neonatal intensive care unit at Yale University.

“He inspired my passion for caring for newborns and made the field so fascinating,” Dr. Sunshine recalled. He stated.

Since there was no neonatal fellowship available at the time, Dr. Sunshine pursued advanced training in pediatric gastroenterology and pediatric metabolism fellowships.

“This was a really thrilling period,” he commented in a Stanford Medicine Children’s Health blog post. He remarked. “People from diverse backgrounds were contributing valuable skills for newborn care—like neonatal specialists, cardiologists, and those with interests in gastrointestinal issues with infants. I learned a wealth of information and enthusiasm from them.”

Dr. Sunshine married Sarah Elizabeth Vryland, dubbed Beth, in 1962.

He is survived by his wife, daughter Diana, four other children—Rebecca, Samuel, Michael, and Stephanie—and nine grandchildren.

In many ways, Dr. Sunshine’s surname aptly captured his essence; it resonates perfectly with his profession and approach.

“Beyond being a pioneer in neonatology, he truly brought light to every environment he entered,” Susan R. Hintz, a neonatologist at Stanford University, shared in an interview. “He was a soothing presence, especially during incredibly stressful times. Nurses frequently remarked, ‘He is someone everyone remembers.’

Source: www.nytimes.com

Who is providing care for infants with HIV in other countries?

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The Trump administration has rejected the remaining few health officials who oversee the care of some of the world’s most vulnerable people. There are over 500,000 children and over 600,000 pregnant women with HIV in low-income countries.

The specialized team that managed the management program to prevent newborns from acquiring HIV from their mothers and provide treatment to infected children was eliminated last week in a chaotic reorganization by the Department of Health and Human Services.

Some of the outcomes of the termination are only now clear.

While it was known that some staff dedicated to HIV prevention in other countries have been lost, the New York Times has learned that all such experts have been fired or are waiting for reallocation at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the State Department, and the International Development Agency.

These mothers’ health programs are still funded by the President’s emergency plan for AIDS relief or Pepfarr. However, it is not clear how work will continue without anyone managing the initiative or paying for it.

The Department of Health and Human Services did not respond to requests for comment.

“I hope this is no longer important to treat mothers and children, and this is not a sign that this is a correctable mistake,” the federal health department spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.

The stakes are high. AIDS under the age of 15 dies every seven minutes in sub-Saharan Africa.

A survey in the Lancet on Tuesday estimated that suspending Pepfer could lead to around 1 million new HIV infections by 2030, killing about 500,000 AIDS among children, and an additional 2.8 million orphans.

After the early Trump administration froze all foreign aid, Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a waiver that allowed them to provide “core life-saving medicine, health services” and other US-funded activities.

The Pepfar-specific exemption later prevented the transmission of HIV to mothers and children, and continued explicitly and continued support for programs intended to provide care for infected women and children.

Documents that allow aid to prepare resumes take several weeks after the exemption is issued, and some organizations are just beginning to receive the federal funds needed to run the program.

“We can dismantle something very quickly, but now we’re trying to build it with just a small portion of our staff and a potentially 5% of our institutional knowledge,” said a federal official who is not allowed to speak to news media.

All pediatric HIV experts participated in the USAID eruption and left a single unit at the CDC with expertise to advise international programs. That team was lost in a reorganization last week, along with another team that handles payments for funds for 300 grants in more than 40 countries.

Given the State Department’s exemption, these layoffs were a surprise to federal health workers and the organizations that rely on them.

“We had a clear understanding that HIV services for mothers and children fall under that waiver,” said Dr. Anja Gifert, vice president of medicine and science at the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

The foundation relies on approximately 60% of the CDC’s budget. “We completely blinded that the entire CDC unit was finished,” she said.

The organization has been promised funds until September. However, only a few were allowed to use the payment system on CDC

“Everyone is screaming to find a way to pay for their country teams and partners,” said a CDC official who called for anonymity in fear of retaliation.

Other experts said they were not surprised to see the screaming from the CDC HIV team despite the waiver.

“What we saw is that there is no rhyme or reason for any of the actions the administration is doing,” said Gilea Lethobosian, chief of staff for the Biden administration’s Pepfer.

Care for children with HIV and pregnant women is complicated.

Infants require a different HIV test than those used in adults, and infected babies must take another medication. If treatment is interrupted, they will succumb to complications immediately.

“Time is essential, especially when you think about children,” Dr. Gifert said. “That doesn’t seem to be taking into account all of these changes actually happening.”

In low-income countries, pregnant women with HIV are usually treated at prenatal clinics. Without treatment, one in three pregnant women can give HIV to the baby.

Treatment decreases Risk of infection to less than 1%. I have Pepfer It prevented nearly 8 million This type of infection has been occurring in newborns since its founding in 2003.

The freeze on foreign aid imposed in January caused shortages of pediatric HIV drugs in many countries, causing delays in new HIV drug treatments.

The dismissed CDC experts were helping low-income countries prepare for this transition, track inventory and directing drugs to places with the most urgent needs, said an official who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.

“This adjustment is especially important for now, as we are in an age of immeasurable change,” the official said.

Source: www.nytimes.com

Infants may begin acquiring language skills in the womb

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Newborn babies seem to recognize the language their mother speaks

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Experiments with newborn babies suggest that they are already aware of their native language, suggesting that language learning may begin before birth.

“We’ve known for some time that fetuses can hear towards the end of pregnancy.” judith jarvan at the University of Padua, Italy. “[Newborn babies] They can recognize their mother’s voice and prefer it to other women’s voices, and can even recognize the language spoken by their mother during pregnancy. ”

To investigate further, Gervain and his colleagues studied the brain activity of 49 infants between one and five days old who had French-speaking mothers.

Each newborn was fitted with a small cap containing 10 electrodes placed near areas of the brain associated with speech recognition.

The team then played a recording that began with three minutes of silence, followed by a seven-minute excerpt from the story. goldilocks and the three bears They took turns speaking in English, French, and Spanish, then there was silence again.

When the babies heard French sounds, the researchers observed spikes in a type of brain signal called long-range temporal correlation, which is related to the perception and processing of sounds. These signals decreased when babies heard other languages.

The researchers found that in a group of 17 infants who last heard French, this spike in neural activity persisted during the subsequent silence.

These findings suggest that babies may already perceive their mother’s native language as more important, Jarvan says. “This is essentially facilitating the learning of their native language,” she says.

The researchers now hope to conduct experiments with babies whose mothers speak different languages, particularly Asian and African languages, to see how generalizable their results are. They also want to investigate how the development of speech perception changes in the womb in infants who have less typical prenatal experiences, such as premature infants.

“Of course, it’s good to talk to your stomach,” Jarvan says. “But we have shown that natural everyday activities, like shopping or talking to neighbors, are already vocal enough to serve as scaffolds for babies’ learning. ”

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Source: www.newscientist.com