Stressed Out Dads May Influence Toddler's Development

A new study suggested dads who stress out about parenting could negatively effect their toddler's development.

The study involved 730 families and concluded that families in which the fathers experienced high levels of stress over parenting had sons with lower language skills at 3 years old than other families. Both girls and boys tended to score lower on cognitive tests, which involve skills such as learning, reasoning, and paying attention.

This study's findings add to a growing body of research explaining how fathers influence the development of their children. Most studies regarding kids' well being focus primarily on the mothers' influence, rather than the fathers'. More recent studies have begun looking into the influence of both parents or that of the father.

This study found that dads involved in their child's upbringing affect their preschoolers' emotional development and language skills, in addition to older children's risk for depression and behavioral problems.

Gender roles are shifting as times change. There are more fathers sharing responsibility for raising kids, as well as more fathers acting as stay-at-home parents. The study focused on lower-income couples in the United States, with a focus on their parenting related stress in particular. Participating families filled out a standard questionnaire for researchers to assess stress levels. They had to agree or disagree with statements such as "Sometimes I feel my child doesn't like me" or "I feel trapped…"

The study overall concluded the fathers' level of parenting stress influenced cognitive development and language development in young children. In addition, the study concluded kids more often had behavioral problems throughout their childhoods if the father experienced depression symptoms or was chronically stressed.

The researchers noted that the fathers' influenced seemed independent of the mothers; in other words, the fathers were not stressed because their wives were stressed.

The study established an association, not a cause-and-effect relationship, but nonetheless either parents' stress could influence a child's development. For example, if a parent's mind is racing, frantic, or busy, they may be less responsive to cues from their child, including words and behavior.

This study supports growing research on the importance of fathers in children's behavioral and cognitive development. In general, fathers can provide unique encouragement. For example, fathers are generally more likely to encourage young children to take risks, explore, and be clearer with their words.

This study underlines the importance of a father's wellbeing to the development of their child. As with many care-giving situations, it is very important to care for yourself in order to better care for your family. 

Summer Strong: Keeping You Kids Active While School’s Out

A local Physical Education teacher has been working with UCLA on a study that encourages children to stay active during summer months while school is out.

Martin Wurmlinger is that physical education teacher and he is working with the University of California in Los Angeles’ Sound Body Sound Mind organization. He has stressed that “getting out and finding an activity that keeps [kids] moving and raises heart rate levels” is the most important thing a child can do to keep healthy during the summer months.

While the simple task of raising heart rate levels is important in Mr. Wurmlinger’s opinion he offers a five-pronged approach to maximize a child’s athletic performance. The five important areas to focus on are: muscle strength, heart endurance, muscle endurance, flexibility, and body composition.

There are various ways to tackle these areas of athletic performance.

To fight the summer heat Mr. Wurmlinger suggests that children exercise in a pool, if they have access to one. Swimming can activate more than one of these five core areas of athletic competency.

Another full-body exercise that the organization from UCLA suggests is the burpee. With these exercise your child will start in a standing position, squat into a plank position, then jump into the air from that plank. You can find out more how to do a burpee in THIS YouTube video.

Finally, one of Mr. Wurmlinger’s most unique ideas is to give your child a pedometer. You and your child should sit down at a map and find a location that is far way that your child might like to travel to. This could be Disney World, China, or maybe even around the world. Determine how far in miles these locations are from your front door and have your child try and travel this distance on his or her pedometer over the course of the summer, or even year. This gives children a goal, something to strive towards.

It’s easy to let your kids stare at the TV screen or play video games all summer long. This summer we suggest that you take some of the advice that the Sound Body Sound Mind organization have presented in this new study and get your kid moving.

To learn more about Mr. Wurmlinger’s project and the Sound Body Sound Mind organization you can find their website HERE.

Smart Advertising May Mean Healthier Food Choices for Kids

If your child is an unhealthy eater – the key to getting him or her to eat more fruits and veggies may lie in a little bit of strategic marketing.

According to a study that was recently published in the journal Pediatrics, advertising methods such as television commercials and banners can triple the chances of a child choosing healthier options during lunchtime.

The study, which took place in New York, experimented with 3 different advertising approaches in public elementary schools over the course of six weeks. A control group was first established (this group was not exposed to any marketing tactics). The first approach utilized vinyl banners, displaying animated characters in the form of vegetables with super powers. Brian Broccoli, one of the characters, is shown flexing his arms, while Colby Carrot shoots laser beams out of his eyes.

The second marketing approach involved quick video segments narrated by the characters regarding health-related topics, and the third combined both the video and the banners.

Results concluded that, when exposed to the banners alone, almost 100% more students chose vegetables from the salad bar during lunchtime. Before seeing the banners, 12% of students put veggies on their plates; after seeing the banners this number jumped up to 24%.

The third approach proved to be the most successful – by combining both the banners and the videos, there was a 239% increase in students who visited the salad bar. (The number of students who took vegetables jumped from 10% to 34%)!

Surprisingly, the video clips did not affect students’ choices. Andrew Hanks, an assistant professor of human sciences at Ohio State University and the study’s lead author, believes the banners were most successful as they were front-and-center at the salad bar and served as an easy reminder for students to make wise choices.

A similar and separate study conducted by Canadian researchers analyzed 26 previous studies regarding the link between advertising and children’s food intake. The study concluded that children who were exposed to marketing of unhealthy foods consumed more; they ate about 30 calories more of junk food than children who were not exposed.

Children under the age of 8 are very impressionable when it comes to marketing, and advertisements for low-nutrition, sugar-filled foods and beverages are essentially putting them in danger for obesity and diseases later in life. While it’s suggested that parents lead by example through eating and cooking healthy foods with their children, researchers would love to see what would happen if marketing focused on healthy foods instead of low-quality treats.