Halloween Humor: Did Jimmy Kimmel Go Too Far Encouraging Parents to Deceive their Kids?

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AppId is over the quota

Late-night shows are, by definition, irreverent, but Jimmy Kimmel may have taken it a bit far last week when he challenged parents to record themselves telling their kids that they'd binged on all their Halloween candy.

Last Monday, I took issue on Healthland with the mean parents who scheme to deny their kids of their Halloween loot: they collaborate with neighbors to hand out only healthy snacks, they let them trick-or-treat only to force them to hand out their stash to kids who ring their doorbell later in the evening; they whisk it away and leave books and toys in its place.

But Kimmel elevated the “trick” to a whole new level, instructing parents to title their kids' reaction, “Hey, Jimmy Kimmel, I Told My Kids I Ate All Their Halloween Candy!” and upload the protests to YouTube.

As a third-party viewer, the footage was hilarious — the dire parental declaration predictably followed by tears and wails. My fave: the toddler at the end who chastises his mother (who reveals her good taste in candy by saying how much she enjoyed the peanut-butter cups): “You sneaky mom!” he cries out. Babble delighted in the dad who upped the reality quotient by strewing candy wrappers all over the dining room table. And TIME's Newsfeed warmed to the “adorable pair of brothers at the end who turned the tables and lectured their parents for the faux-transgression.”

I think I have a pretty good sense of humor, but I found the vigor with which parents delighted in deceiving their kids a little jarring. Cruel might be another word for it. It's kind of hard to imagine intentionally trying to make your kids cry — even for a few minutes of late-night glory. As a Huffington Post reader noted, “breaking your kids' trust for your amusement at their reaction and hurt feelings…is not cool.” Others dubbed it “emotional bullying" and “sadism masquerading as humor.”

What the parents didn't film was their rapprochement with their kids, post-lie. What must that have been like? I asked my kids if they would have forgiven me had I answered Kimmel's call. It wouldn't have come to that, they assured me. Said my 8-year-old: "We never would have believed you."

Guess the joke's on me.

Bonnie Rochman is a reporter at TIME. Find her on Twitter at @brochman. You can also continue the discussion on TIME's Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIME.

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Going veggie young: Parents don't worry

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
It's important to have enough variety in your diet that you can be well-nourished, experts say.Parents worry whether vegetarian or vegan children will receive adequate nutrition Such diets may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseasesNumber of vegetarians in the United States is expected to increase over the next decade

(CNN) -- Niki Gianni was 11 or 12 when she found a video on YouTube called "Meet Your Meat." Saddened and disgusted by the footage from a slaughterhouse, the Chicago girl announced she was no longer going to eat meat. Her parents were less than thrilled.

"When she first said she wanted to be a vegetarian, we were just looking at each other and we said, 'We can't be switching meals for you. You are not going to get your protein.' We were not educated in the health benefits," said Gianni's mother, Julie Gianni.

While many parents worry whether their vegetarian or vegan children will receive adequate nutrition for their growing bodies, the American Dietetic Association says such diets, as long as they are well-planned, are appropriate for all phases of life, including childhood and adolescence. "Appropriately planned" vegetarian or vegan diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases, the dietetic association says.

"You can really feel the difference when you are eating something from the ground and something from a factory," said Niki Gianni, an animal activist who became a vegan shortly after embracing the vegetarian lifestyle.

10-year-old: Why I became vegetarian in first grade

Now an 18-year-old college freshman, Niki Gianni said her eating habits expanded her palate and turned her away from processed foods. Her food choices also influenced her family: Her mother is now a vegan and her father and sister are vegetarians.

The number of vegetarians in the United States is expected to increase over the next decade, according to the dietetic association. A vegetarian diet is associated with a lower risk of death from ischemic heart disease, and vegetarians also appear to have lower overall cancer rates, lower blood pressure and lower rates of hypertension than nonvegetarians.

Vegetarianism is more than just not eating meat, said Roberta Anding, a registered dietitian at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital and a spokesperson for the dietetic association.

"It's really embracing more of that plant-based lifestyle and having enough variety in your diet that you can be well-nourished," Anding said. "You can be unbelievably well-nourished on a vegetarian diet if you choose your foods wisely and appropriately."

Lilian Cheung, director of health promotion and communication at Harvard School of Public Health's Department of Nutrition, agreed. Teens who abstain from eating animal-based foods but who take in refined and sugary foods such as French fries and sodas are not doing themselves any favors, she said.

Eating a variety of vegetables and fruits of all colors and eating the purest form possible is vital in these diets, Cheung said. Beans, legumes, nuts, tofu and seeds all are excellent protein sources, said Cheung, who said veganism and vegetarianism are becoming more mainstream among young people.

"I think the reason why veganism is getting more and more popular is there are more celebrities like President Clinton," embracing the lifestyle, said Cheung, editorial director of the department's nutrition website, The Nutrition Source.

Niki, left, and Julie Gianni are vegans and actively participate in animal rights events.

Julie and Niki Gianni said they have encountered a lot of people who had misconceptions about vegans and vegetarians, including that they are weak or that they are not getting the vitamins and minerals they need.

"(People) asked, 'How are you going to get your protein?' They just look at you like you are abusing your children," Julie Gianni said.

In the beginning, the Giannis didn't quite know what to serve their daughter. Niki Gianni ate a lot of vegetarian burger patties and chicken nuggets.

"I think this happens to a lot of vegetarians: I doubled up on eating eggs and dairy because my parents weren't sure what to feed their 12-year-old who didn't eat meat," she said.

Now, Julie Gianni makes her own goulash and noodles and frequently cooks with seitan, a high-protein meat substitute made from wheat. Niki Gianni said she has yet to find a vegetable she won't eat. She loves portobello mushroom and artichoke sandwiches, and dines in the vegan cafeteria at college.

Niki Gianni and her family have done copious research about their lifestyles, becoming educated about meeting their nutritional needs through an array of fresh foods.

Such vigilance and education is vital, experts said, because adolescence is characterized by the second and final period of rapid growth and development. Those growing bodies need nutrients, including calcium, vitamin D, B12 and iron.

Teens or children who are vegetarian and who then also decide to give up dairy products need to find an alternate source of calcium, Anding said. While calcium can be found in almonds and in green leafy vegetables, the amount is small.

Vitamin B12, found in animal protein, can become a concern if dairy or eggs leave the diet, Anding said. Vitamin B12 deficiencies manifest over time. The vitamin, which can be found in fortified cereals, is stored in the liver and when levels are low, the body withdraws the vitamin from the organ.

"Sooner or later you are going to run out," Anding said. "It's not going to be instant."

Anding said she treated four young women with vitamin B12 deficiencies that showed up about a year into their veganism.

"You can end up with permanent cognitive issues. I applaud you for looking at this from an environmental perspective but I don't want to save the planet and sacrifice you," she said. "You have to take a B12 supplement."

To aid iron intake, Anding recommends using a cast iron skillet for cooking; some of the iron will leach into the food. Vitamin and mineral supplements also provide a way to get adequate iron and other essential nutrients, she said.

"Clearly, there are some big benefits of a plant-based diet, so I'm not objecting to that. I think the more restrictive the diet becomes, the more exclusive the diet becomes, the harder it becomes for the average person to execute those diet changes," she said.

Heather Lazaro, whose family lives in Orange County in Southern California, said she was concerned when her daughter, then 11, came home from school and announced she didn't want to eat meat.

"We didn't think it was going to last," said Lazaro, whose daughter Alyssa is now 16. "To this day, I always worry if she is getting the right amount of protein and vitamins" and nutrition she needs, she said.

Alyssa Lazaro is a pescatarian; she doesn't eat land animals or birds but eats fish. She said she just wanted to try giving up meat. In addition to consuming plenty of vegetables and fruit, she eats soy products, protein shakes and eggs. She said she feels better staying away from meat.

"Whenever I eat vegetables I just feel a little bit more energetic and ready to go through life with a big smile on my face," the high school student said.

Anding and Cheung said young people and their parents should get information from reputable websites such as eatright.org, kidseatright.org and thenutritionsource.org.

Vegetarians and vegans have to be willing to explore new foods and Anding said she would discourage such lifestyles for children who like only a handful of foods, including meat.

Anding, who for decades has worked with children and teens with eating disorders, said parents also need to make sure their children are eating. She has seen veganism used to mask those disorders.

"It's really unfortunate because it is taking a lifestyle that is unbelievably healthy and using it to perpetuate an eating disorder," she said.

Cheung recommends that parents talk to their children's pediatrician about a vitamin supplement and have them see a registered dietician so they have a good overview of what they should be eating every day.

"It can be a very unhealthy diet if the choices are unhealthy," she said. "But it is very possible to have a very healthful vegan diet as well if you choose wisely.

"We just need to get more literate, get more knowledge. I don't think we should basically just categorize one way or another," Cheung said. "It just depends on what foods are chosen."

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Risky things that parents do

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
Julie Perrault shares a moment with her kids, clockwise from top, Claire, David, Cate and Edwin. Experts: Parents should slow down when it comes to car seats and stay in right size Sleeping too long in sitting position makes it hard for a baby to get enough oxygen, they sayPediatricians' group warns parents not to heat baby bottles in microwaves

(CNN) -- Julie Perrault shudders when she remembers some of the dumb things she did when her kids were babies.

The mother of four recalls in horror how she used to put her twin babies, David and Cate, in chairs and then put the chairs on top of the dining room table to feed the kids. She thought it was the right thing to do because it kept their older brother and sister from bothering the babies.

"It never occurred to me that the twins could have fallen off the table, but I later found out it happened to a friend of mine," she says. "You don't think they can move around enough to worm their way off the table, but of course they can."

Perrault, who's so open about her mommy transgressions she blogs about them, says there's no way to be a perfect parent. With warnings on nearly everything, and news every day about what's safe and what's not, it's not always easy keeping up.

"It's hard to know what to pay attention to and what not to pay attention to," says Perrault, who lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Just this week, for example, the American Academy of Pediatrics told parents to get rid of a staple in nearly every nursery: crib bumpers. Twenty-seven children died over a 20-year period when the bumpers caused suffocation or strangulation.

According to pediatricians, here's a list of five don'ts that many parents do.

Moving baby to a bigger car seat too early

Parents often like to move babies up quickly to the next stage, whether it's a new diaper size or room in day care. But Dr. Jennifer Shu, a spokeswoman for the American Academy of Pediatrics, says parents should slow down when it comes to car seats and stay in the right size until the child is large enough to move up.

The American Academy of Pediatrics and CPSafety have guidelines on when to move from infant to toddler to booster seat.

Letting baby sleep in swing

It's understandable: Your baby falls asleep in the swing, and the last thing you want to do is risk waking him or her up with a move. But in its new recommendations to combat sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS, the American Academy of Pediatrics says sleeping too long in a sitting position may make it hard for a baby to get enough oxygen.

The same goes for car seats. Of course, keep babies in car seats if they fall asleep while you're driving, but once you get home, take them out of the seats and put them in their cribs -- don't bring the car seat into the house and let the babies continue napping. Staying in a sitting position might make it hard for your baby to breathe, plus it might contribute to a flat spot on the back of your baby's head and worsen reflux, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Letting your baby watch 'educational' videos

Your baby isn't going to turn into Einstein by watching a video, no matter what the label might imply. This week the American Academy of Pediatrics urged parents to keep children under age 2 as "screen-free" as possible.

In a recent survey, 90% of parents said their children under age 2 watch some form of electronic media. The pediatricians' group says videos are educational only when the child can understand the content and context and only those older than 2 have that ability.

"I explain to parents that watching TV or videos hampers the development of good speech, because the more time your baby is watching TV, the less time you're speaking to your baby and interacting with them," says Dr. Lance Goodman, a pediatrician in Boca Raton, Florida.

Keeping babies off their tummies

There's no question: Babies belong on their backs to go to sleep. Going "back to sleep" cuts down on the chances they'll die from SIDS.

But while babies are awake, give them "tummy time" so they'll develop upper body strength to push up and crawl. Plus, time on the tummy helps prevent skull deformities.

Microwaving your baby's bottle

Perrault winces when she remembers how she heated bottles for her oldest daughter, Claire, in the microwave.

"Later I heard all the terrible things about BPA and chemicals leaching out from the plastic, so I didn't do it with my other three children," she says.

The American Academy of Pediatrics tells parents not to heat bottles in the microwave due to concerns about BPA, or Bisphenol A, a chemical used in some packaging materials, and the uneven warming of liquids, which means a baby's mouth might get burned by a hot spot.

CNN's Aaron Cooper contributed to this report.

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Going veggie young: Parents don't worry

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
It's important to have enough variety in your diet that you can be well-nourished, experts say.Parents worry whether vegetarian or vegan children will receive adequate nutrition Such diets may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseasesNumber of vegetarians in the United States is expected to increase over the next decade

(CNN) -- Niki Gianni was 11 or 12 when she found a video on YouTube called "Meet Your Meat." Saddened and disgusted by the footage from a slaughterhouse, the Chicago girl announced she was no longer going to eat meat. Her parents were less than thrilled.

"When she first said she wanted to be a vegetarian, we were just looking at each other and we said, 'We can't be switching meals for you. You are not going to get your protein.' We were not educated in the health benefits," said Gianni's mother, Julie Gianni.

While many parents worry whether their vegetarian or vegan children will receive adequate nutrition for their growing bodies, the American Dietetic Association says such diets, as long as they are well-planned, are appropriate for all phases of life, including childhood and adolescence. "Appropriately planned" vegetarian or vegan diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases, the dietetic association says.

"You can really feel the difference when you are eating something from the ground and something from a factory," said Niki Gianni, an animal activist who became a vegan shortly after embracing the vegetarian lifestyle.

10-year-old: Why I became vegetarian in first grade

Now an 18-year-old college freshman, Niki Gianni said her eating habits expanded her palate and turned her away from processed foods. Her food choices also influenced her family: Her mother is now a vegan and her father and sister are vegetarians.

The number of vegetarians in the United States is expected to increase over the next decade, according to the dietetic association. A vegetarian diet is associated with a lower risk of death from ischemic heart disease, and vegetarians also appear to have lower overall cancer rates, lower blood pressure and lower rates of hypertension than nonvegetarians.

Vegetarianism is more than just not eating meat, said Roberta Anding, a registered dietitian at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital and a spokesperson for the dietetic association.

"It's really embracing more of that plant-based lifestyle and having enough variety in your diet that you can be well-nourished," Anding said. "You can be unbelievably well-nourished on a vegetarian diet if you choose your foods wisely and appropriately."

Lilian Cheung, director of health promotion and communication at Harvard School of Public Health's Department of Nutrition, agreed. Teens who abstain from eating animal-based foods but who take in refined and sugary foods such as French fries and sodas are not doing themselves any favors, she said.

Eating a variety of vegetables and fruits of all colors and eating the purest form possible is vital in these diets, Cheung said. Beans, legumes, nuts, tofu and seeds all are excellent protein sources, said Cheung, who said veganism and vegetarianism are becoming more mainstream among young people.

"I think the reason why veganism is getting more and more popular is there are more celebrities like President Clinton," embracing the lifestyle, said Cheung, editorial director of the department's nutrition website, The Nutrition Source.

Niki, left, and Julie Gianni are vegans and actively participate in animal rights events.

Julie and Niki Gianni said they have encountered a lot of people who had misconceptions about vegans and vegetarians, including that they are weak or that they are not getting the vitamins and minerals they need.

"(People) asked, 'How are you going to get your protein?' They just look at you like you are abusing your children," Julie Gianni said.

In the beginning, the Giannis didn't quite know what to serve their daughter. Niki Gianni ate a lot of vegetarian burger patties and chicken nuggets.

"I think this happens to a lot of vegetarians: I doubled up on eating eggs and dairy because my parents weren't sure what to feed their 12-year-old who didn't eat meat," she said.

Now, Julie Gianni makes her own goulash and noodles and frequently cooks with seitan, a high-protein meat substitute made from wheat. Niki Gianni said she has yet to find a vegetable she won't eat. She loves portobello mushroom and artichoke sandwiches, and dines in the vegan cafeteria at college.

Niki Gianni and her family have done copious research about their lifestyles, becoming educated about meeting their nutritional needs through an array of fresh foods.

Such vigilance and education is vital, experts said, because adolescence is characterized by the second and final period of rapid growth and development. Those growing bodies need nutrients, including calcium, vitamin D, B12 and iron.

Teens or children who are vegetarian and who then also decide to give up dairy products need to find an alternate source of calcium, Anding said. While calcium can be found in almonds and in green leafy vegetables, the amount is small.

Vitamin B12, found in animal protein, can become a concern if dairy or eggs leave the diet, Anding said. Vitamin B12 deficiencies manifest over time. The vitamin, which can be found in fortified cereals, is stored in the liver and when levels are low, the body withdraws the vitamin from the organ.

"Sooner or later you are going to run out," Anding said. "It's not going to be instant."

Anding said she treated four young women with vitamin B12 deficiencies that showed up about a year into their veganism.

"You can end up with permanent cognitive issues. I applaud you for looking at this from an environmental perspective but I don't want to save the planet and sacrifice you," she said. "You have to take a B12 supplement."

To aid iron intake, Anding recommends using a cast iron skillet for cooking; some of the iron will leach into the food. Vitamin and mineral supplements also provide a way to get adequate iron and other essential nutrients, she said.

"Clearly, there are some big benefits of a plant-based diet, so I'm not objecting to that. I think the more restrictive the diet becomes, the more exclusive the diet becomes, the harder it becomes for the average person to execute those diet changes," she said.

Heather Lazaro, whose family lives in Orange County in Southern California, said she was concerned when her daughter, then 11, came home from school and announced she didn't want to eat meat.

"We didn't think it was going to last," said Lazaro, whose daughter Alyssa is now 16. "To this day, I always worry if she is getting the right amount of protein and vitamins" and nutrition she needs, she said.

Alyssa Lazaro is a pescatarian; she doesn't eat land animals or birds but eats fish. She said she just wanted to try giving up meat. In addition to consuming plenty of vegetables and fruit, she eats soy products, protein shakes and eggs. She said she feels better staying away from meat.

"Whenever I eat vegetables I just feel a little bit more energetic and ready to go through life with a big smile on my face," the high school student said.

Anding and Cheung said young people and their parents should get information from reputable websites such as eatright.org, kidseatright.org and thenutritionsource.org.

Vegetarians and vegans have to be willing to explore new foods and Anding said she would discourage such lifestyles for children who like only a handful of foods, including meat.

Anding, who for decades has worked with children and teens with eating disorders, said parents also need to make sure their children are eating. She has seen veganism used to mask those disorders.

"It's really unfortunate because it is taking a lifestyle that is unbelievably healthy and using it to perpetuate an eating disorder," she said.

Cheung recommends that parents talk to their children's pediatrician about a vitamin supplement and have them see a registered dietician so they have a good overview of what they should be eating every day.

"It can be a very unhealthy diet if the choices are unhealthy," she said. "But it is very possible to have a very healthful vegan diet as well if you choose wisely.

"We just need to get more literate, get more knowledge. I don't think we should basically just categorize one way or another," Cheung said. "It just depends on what foods are chosen."

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Risky things that parents do

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
Julie Perrault shares a moment with her kids, clockwise from top, Claire, David, Cate and Edwin. Experts: Parents should slow down when it comes to car seats and stay in right size Sleeping too long in sitting position makes it hard for a baby to get enough oxygen, they sayPediatricians' group warns parents not to heat baby bottles in microwaves

(CNN) -- Julie Perrault shudders when she remembers some of the dumb things she did when her kids were babies.

The mother of four recalls in horror how she used to put her twin babies, David and Cate, in chairs and then put the chairs on top of the dining room table to feed the kids. She thought it was the right thing to do because it kept their older brother and sister from bothering the babies.

"It never occurred to me that the twins could have fallen off the table, but I later found out it happened to a friend of mine," she says. "You don't think they can move around enough to worm their way off the table, but of course they can."

Perrault, who's so open about her mommy transgressions she blogs about them, says there's no way to be a perfect parent. With warnings on nearly everything, and news every day about what's safe and what's not, it's not always easy keeping up.

"It's hard to know what to pay attention to and what not to pay attention to," says Perrault, who lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Just this week, for example, the American Academy of Pediatrics told parents to get rid of a staple in nearly every nursery: crib bumpers. Twenty-seven children died over a 20-year period when the bumpers caused suffocation or strangulation.

According to pediatricians, here's a list of five don'ts that many parents do.

Moving baby to a bigger car seat too early

Parents often like to move babies up quickly to the next stage, whether it's a new diaper size or room in day care. But Dr. Jennifer Shu, a spokeswoman for the American Academy of Pediatrics, says parents should slow down when it comes to car seats and stay in the right size until the child is large enough to move up.

The American Academy of Pediatrics and CPSafety have guidelines on when to move from infant to toddler to booster seat.

Letting baby sleep in swing

It's understandable: Your baby falls asleep in the swing, and the last thing you want to do is risk waking him or her up with a move. But in its new recommendations to combat sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS, the American Academy of Pediatrics says sleeping too long in a sitting position may make it hard for a baby to get enough oxygen.

The same goes for car seats. Of course, keep babies in car seats if they fall asleep while you're driving, but once you get home, take them out of the seats and put them in their cribs -- don't bring the car seat into the house and let the babies continue napping. Staying in a sitting position might make it hard for your baby to breathe, plus it might contribute to a flat spot on the back of your baby's head and worsen reflux, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Letting your baby watch 'educational' videos

Your baby isn't going to turn into Einstein by watching a video, no matter what the label might imply. This week the American Academy of Pediatrics urged parents to keep children under age 2 as "screen-free" as possible.

In a recent survey, 90% of parents said their children under age 2 watch some form of electronic media. The pediatricians' group says videos are educational only when the child can understand the content and context and only those older than 2 have that ability.

"I explain to parents that watching TV or videos hampers the development of good speech, because the more time your baby is watching TV, the less time you're speaking to your baby and interacting with them," says Dr. Lance Goodman, a pediatrician in Boca Raton, Florida.

Keeping babies off their tummies

There's no question: Babies belong on their backs to go to sleep. Going "back to sleep" cuts down on the chances they'll die from SIDS.

But while babies are awake, give them "tummy time" so they'll develop upper body strength to push up and crawl. Plus, time on the tummy helps prevent skull deformities.

Microwaving your baby's bottle

Perrault winces when she remembers how she heated bottles for her oldest daughter, Claire, in the microwave.

"Later I heard all the terrible things about BPA and chemicals leaching out from the plastic, so I didn't do it with my other three children," she says.

The American Academy of Pediatrics tells parents not to heat bottles in the microwave due to concerns about BPA, or Bisphenol A, a chemical used in some packaging materials, and the uneven warming of liquids, which means a baby's mouth might get burned by a hot spot.

CNN's Aaron Cooper contributed to this report.

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Parents warned over 'cell banks'

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8 October 2011 Last updated at 23:46 GMT By Adrian Goldberg Presenter, 5 live Investigates A growing number of UK parents are paying private firms thousands of pounds to store stem cells taken from their new-born baby's umbilical cord in the hope it could cure future illnesses, but experts warn they could be wasting their money.

"You think you've done everything correct. You've taken out all the insurances you think you need.

"You've ticked all the boxes and then despite all of that, a non-sterile sample has ended up meaning that it's not going to be able to be used."

San Sanghera and his partner Parmjit paid a UK-based company £1,900 ($3,000) to store stem cells taken from the blood of the umbilical cord of their young son, Rowan. Mr and Mrs Sanghera hoped that these stem cells could be used to help their son if he became ill in the future.

They were told the sample was contaminated, but were given the option for it to remain in storage, which they accepted.

But when, at the age of 10 months, their son was diagnosed with cerebral palsy, Mr and Mrs Sanghera discovered his stem cells could not be used.

"You feel you've done everything correct and it ends up being useless."

"That was a huge kick in the teeth," Mr Sanghera told the BBC's 5 live Investigates.

'Not enough evidence'

But some experts argue even perfectly clean samples are very unlikely ever to be used and are warning parents against using private companies to bank stem cells.

Continue reading the main story When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the potential to either remain a stem cell or become another type of cell with a more specialised function. Scientists believe it should be possible to harness this ability to turn stem cells into a super "repair kit" for the bodyScientists believe stem cell therapy may eventually help treat Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, stroke, arthritis, diabetes, burns and spinal cord damage Embryonic stem cells are especially desirable because they are "pluripotent" - that is they have the ability to become virtually any type of cell within the bodyEmbryonic stem cell research is very controversial, and opponents argue that all embryos, whether created in the lab or not, have the potential to go on to become a fully fledged human, and as such it is morally wrong to experiment on themSome researchers fear that it is possible that stem cell therapy could unwittingly pass viruses and other disease-causing agents to patients who receive cell transplantsLast month the Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists restated their concern about the practice in a joint statement:

"There is not enough evidence at present to recommend routine private cord blood collection and banking unless there is a medically-indicated reason."

It is a view echoed by the charity Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research:

"We've looked at the medical literature - and our conclusion has been that there is a very strong consensus that says it's not a rational case to be made for [the practice]," says Ken Campbell, the charity's clinical information officer.

Despite the warnings, business is booming.

According to the regulator, the Human Tissue Authority (HTA), last year UK-based labs processed more than 16,000 cord blood samples, of which 6,886 were sourced in this country.

Advocates believe stem cells stored in this way could eventually be used to alleviate numerous serious medical conditions.

Diseases like leukaemia are already treated with stem cells from public banks.

But Ken Campbell of Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research is clear to distinguish between the merits of public and private banking:

"There is no case convincingly made for storing a child's stem cells in a bank for that child's own use, or even for a sibling's use."

Mr Campbell says there is one exception which concerns families where there is already a child with a condition which may be treated with cord blood cells - but he says there would be no need to go to a private company because it could be arranged with the NHS.

Car park collection

There are also concerns that some cord blood is being collected unlawfully.

Collections should only take place on licensed premises or under a third-party agreement with a licensed establishment, such as a private blood bank.

In March 2010, the Human Tissue Authority wrote to 150 organisations to warn that unlawful collections compromised safety and quality standards.

In one case, cord blood was collected in a car park and the sample had to be disposed of because it was contaminated.

And the HTA says it is aware of at least two other occasions where parents have been given the option to remove the placenta and cord from hospital premises to carry out a collection.

The HTA told 5 live Investigates that it had taken regulatory action against 22 establishments - 21 of which were hospitals.

Even though Rowan Sanghera's stem cells could not be used to treat his cerebral palsy, his father still believes medical advancements may one day mean his money was not wasted.

"I still hold out hope that at some point in the future we may be able to find somebody clever enough, or they may have found some technique to try and clean out this bacteria they found."

But critics remain concerned that hope, rather than evidence, may be persuading parents to part with their money needlessly.

You can hear the full report on 5 live Investigates on Sunday, 9 October at 21:00 BST on BBC Radio 5 live.

You can listen again on the BBC iPlayer or by downloading the 5 live Investigates podcast.

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More than 1 in 10 parents skip, delay kids' shots

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AppId is over the quota
CHICAGO (AP) — By age 6, children should have vaccinations against 14 diseases, in at least two dozen separate doses, the U.S. government advises. More than 1 in 10 parents reject that, refusing some shots or delaying others mainly because of safety concerns, a national survey found.

Worries about vaccine safety were common even among parents whose kids were fully vaccinated: 1 in 5 among that group said they think delaying shots is safer than the recommended schedule. The results suggest that more than 2 million infants and young children may not be fully protected against preventable diseases, including some that can be deadly or disabling.

The nationally representative online survey of roughly 750 parents of kids age 6 and younger was done last year and results were released online Monday in the journal Pediatrics. They are in line with a larger federal survey released last month, showing that at least 1 in 10 toddlers and preschoolers lagged on vaccines that included chickenpox and the measles-mumps-rubella combination shots. That survey, also for 2010, included more than 17,000 households.

The Pediatrics survey follows other recent news raising concerns among infectious disease specialists, including a study showing the whooping cough vaccine seems to lose much of its effectiveness after just three years — faster than doctors have thought — perhaps contributing to recent major outbreaks, most notably in California. Also, data reported in September show that a record number of kindergartners' parents in California last year used a personal belief exemption to avoid vaccination requirements.

Kandace O'Neill is a Lakeville, Minn., mom whose views are shared by many parents who don't follow federal vaccine advice. Her 5-year-old son has had no vaccinations since he turned 1, and her 7-month-old daughter has received none of the recommended shots.

"I have to make sure that my child is healthy, and I do not want to put medications in my child that I think are going to harm them," said O'Neill, who was not involved in the survey appearing in Pediatrics.

O'Neill said she's not an extreme anti-vaccine zealot. She just thinks that parents — not doctors or schools — should make medical decisions for their children.

Study author Dr. Amanda Dempsey, a pediatrician and researcher at the University of Michigan, said vaccine skepticism is fueled by erroneous information online and media reports that sensationalize misconceptions. These include the persistent belief among some parents about an autism-vaccine link despite scientific evidence to the contrary and the debunking of one of the most publicized studies that first fueled vaccine fears years ago.

Some parents also dismiss the severity of vaccine-preventable diseases because they've never seen a child seriously ill with those illnesses.

But vaccine-preventable diseases including flu and whooping cough can be deadly, especially in infants, said Dr. Buddy Creech, associate director of Vanderbilt University's Vaccine Research Program. Creech has two school-aged children who are fully vaccinated and a newborn he said will be given all the recommended vaccinations.

"From being someone in the trenches seeing children die every year from influenza and its complications ... I would not do a single thing to risk the health of my kids," he said. Creech has served on advisory boards for vaccine makers and has accepted their research money.

Dempsey, the survey's lead author, has been a paid adviser to Merck on issues regarding a vaccine for older children but said that company made no contributions to the survey research.

Knowledge Networks conducted the survey, which had an error margin of plus or minus 5 percentage points.

Dr. Larry Pickering, an infectious disease specialist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the new survey is important and well done, and indicates that doctors need to do a better job of communicating vaccine information to patients.

Pickering said he supports the idea of parents being actively involved in medical care for their children, but cautioned: "If they're going to do that, they need to be fully informed about the risks and benefits of vaccines and need to obtain the information from a valid source."

The CDC, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians are among groups that provide online vaccine information based on medical research.

___

Online:

American Academy of Pediatrics: http://www.aap.org

CDC: http://www.cdc.gov

American Academy of Family Physicians: http://www.aafp.org

___

AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/LindseyTanner

Associated Press

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Parents delaying, skipping recommended vaccines

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

A health worker prepares a vaccine against measles at the Benito Juarez international airport in Mexico City July 22, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Bernardo Montoya

By Genevra Pittman

NEW YORK | Mon Oct 3, 2011 9:30am EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - More than one in 10 parents use an "alternative" vaccination schedule for their young children, including refusing vaccines altogether, according to a U.S. survey.

Based on the findings, researchers worry that more parents may be refusing vaccines in the future, raising the risk that diseases like measles and whooping cough will spread in schools and communities.

"The vaccines that we recommend have been so effective in largely eliminating the vaccine-preventable diseases that most parents don't have first, second or even third-hand experience with these diseases," said Dr. Amanda Dempsey, one of the authors of a new report based on the survey from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

(For an abstract of the study, see: here)

Whether or not to get their kids vaccinated "is more of a theoretical concern or concept for them," Dempsey told Reuters Health. "These are really real risks that are out there. None of these diseases are completely eradicated."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccination schedule for kids six and younger includes MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) shots, and vaccines to protect against whooping cough, chicken pox, hepatitis and seasonal flu, among others. (The full recommended schedule is on the CDC website here: 1.usa.gov/k23A6d)

The Internet survey included 748 parents of kids between the ages of six months and six years. Of those, 13 percent said they used some type of vaccination schedule that differed from the CDC recommendations.

That included refusing some vaccines or delaying vaccines until kids were older -- mostly because parents thought that "seemed safer."

Dempsey said there is no evidence for the safety or effectiveness of such alternative schedules.

In addition, two percent of parents refused any vaccination altogether, according to findings published in Pediatrics.

Even among parents who did follow the recommended schedule, about one-quarter said in the survey they thought delaying vaccines would be safer or that the expert-backed schedule wasn't the best one to follow.

Dempsey said there's extra concern that those parents will stop getting their kids the recommended vaccines. "It's really quite worrisome to me," she said. Vaccine refusal and delay, she added, "is not likely to go away anytime soon, and is likely to get significantly worse over time. We may just be seeing the tip of the iceberg right now."

NOT A BENIGN CHOICE

Parents who skip or delay vaccines typically cite safety concerns, researchers said, including the now debunked idea of a link between vaccines and autism.

What they miss is the risk of the disease they aren't vaccinating against, said Saad Omer, an infectious diseases researcher at Emory University in Atlanta.

"Parents often have this perception that it's a benign choice, whether to vaccinate or not," Omer, who was not involved in the new research, told Reuters Health.

He said parents who refuse vaccines tend to cluster together in certain areas -- increasing the risk of a local disease outbreak, even in kids who have been vaccinated.

Because no vaccine protects 100 percent of kids who get it, epidemiologists rely on "herd immunity" to make sure enough kids are well enough protected to keep a disease from spreading. But that immunity gets thrown off when there are more youngsters who haven't had their recommended vaccines.

"Infectious diseases are somewhat unique in a way in that others' behavior directly influences you or your child's risk of disease," Omer said.

He said vaccine refusal already has increased the risk of whooping cough spreading in communities, for example.

"We're seeing schools having to close because of pertussis," Dempsey said, adding that measles cases have also spiked recently.

With some diseases, such as polio, the risk of getting sick in the United States, even if you aren't vaccinated is pretty low. But "when a bad outcome happens to your family, it's 100 percent," Dempsey said. "You can't ever say it's not going to be your kid."

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More than 1 in 10 parents skip, delay kids' shots

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
CHICAGO (AP) — By age 6, children should have vaccinations against 14 diseases, in at least two dozen separate doses, the U.S. government advises. More than 1 in 10 parents reject that, refusing some shots or delaying others mainly because of safety concerns, a national survey found.

Worries about vaccine safety were common even among parents whose kids were fully vaccinated: 1 in 5 among that group said they think delaying shots is safer than the recommended schedule. The results suggest that more than 2 million infants and young children may not be fully protected against preventable diseases, including some that can be deadly or disabling.

The nationally representative online survey of roughly 750 parents of kids age 6 and younger was done last year and results were released online Monday in the journal Pediatrics. They are in line with a larger federal survey released last month, showing that at least 1 in 10 toddlers and preschoolers lagged on vaccines that included chickenpox and the measles-mumps-rubella combination shots. That survey, also for 2010, included more than 17,000 households.

The Pediatrics survey follows other recent news raising concerns among infectious disease specialists, including a study showing the whooping cough vaccine seems to lose much of its effectiveness after just three years — faster than doctors have thought — perhaps contributing to recent major outbreaks, most notably in California. Also, data reported in September show that a record number of kindergartners' parents in California last year used a personal belief exemption to avoid vaccination requirements.

Kandace O'Neill is a Lakeville, Minn., mom whose views are shared by many parents who don't follow federal vaccine advice. Her 5-year-old son has had no vaccinations since he turned 1, and her 7-month-old daughter has received none of the recommended shots.

"I have to make sure that my child is healthy, and I do not want to put medications in my child that I think are going to harm them," said O'Neill, who was not involved in the survey appearing in Pediatrics.

O'Neill said she's not an extreme anti-vaccine zealot. She just thinks that parents — not doctors or schools — should make medical decisions for their children.

Study author Dr. Amanda Dempsey, a pediatrician and researcher at the University of Michigan, said vaccine skepticism is fueled by erroneous information online and media reports that sensationalize misconceptions. These include the persistent belief among some parents about an autism-vaccine link despite scientific evidence to the contrary and the debunking of one of the most publicized studies that first fueled vaccine fears years ago.

Some parents also dismiss the severity of vaccine-preventable diseases because they've never seen a child seriously ill with those illnesses.

But vaccine-preventable diseases including flu and whooping cough can be deadly, especially in infants, said Dr. Buddy Creech, associate director of Vanderbilt University's Vaccine Research Program. Creech has two school-aged children who are fully vaccinated and a newborn he said will be given all the recommended vaccinations.

"From being someone in the trenches seeing children die every year from influenza and its complications ... I would not do a single thing to risk the health of my kids," he said. Creech has served on advisory boards for vaccine makers and has accepted their research money.

Dempsey, the survey's lead author, has been a paid adviser to Merck on issues regarding a vaccine for older children but said that company made no contributions to the survey research.

Knowledge Networks conducted the survey, which had an error margin of plus or minus 5 percentage points.

Dr. Larry Pickering, an infectious disease specialist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the new survey is important and well done, and indicates that doctors need to do a better job of communicating vaccine information to patients.

Pickering said he supports the idea of parents being actively involved in medical care for their children, but cautioned: "If they're going to do that, they need to be fully informed about the risks and benefits of vaccines and need to obtain the information from a valid source."

The CDC, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians are among groups that provide online vaccine information based on medical research.

___

Online:

American Academy of Pediatrics: http://www.aap.org

CDC: http://www.cdc.gov

American Academy of Family Physicians: http://www.aafp.org

___

AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/LindseyTanner

Associated Press

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HEALTH MANAGEMENT. Back to the coast, Mom. Parents come hinder activity Kids'

Parents, if you want your children to get more exercise, you would be wise to get out of their way.
In a new study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, researchers attempted to observe how the children play in the parks. Their main purpose was to help Park designers to create public spaces that would be better encourage children to run and exercise. But along the way, we found something: the biggest barrier to physical activity of children has less to do with the design of the park itself and more to do with the presence of hover of a parent.
Children whose parents hung around their follow-up closely only about half were likely to engage in high levels of physical activity as the children whose parents gave more freedom, the researchers found.
"It's a catch-22 for the parents of today situation, unfortunately." "Many parents are worried about the safety of their children, so that they tend to float," said the co-author of the study Dr. Jason Bocarro, Associate Professor of tourism management at North Carolina State University, in a statement, the recreation and parks.
The problem is that parents most "helicopter" - persistent anxiously on the jungle gym or admonitions their child, not too high!, on the swings - less their children are likely to run and play with their friends.
Ward leads also activity that the concerns of parents about safety home watching television, or the place of the video games. For a country in which the child obesity has reached epidemic proportions, which is not a good thing.
For the new study, the researchers spent eight weeks in the summer 2007 collection of data on 2 712 children by observing play in 20 parks selected randomly around Durham, N.C. In General, researchers have found children younger (5 years or less) are more active than older and boys overall were more active than girls.
Researchers have seen higher levels of activity in the parks to play courts such as basketball and tennis courts, even if it was boys who were more likely to be with them; girls, on the other hand, generally found in playgrounds.
The positive influence more powerful when it comes to vigorous, researchers found, was the presence of other energetic children. "Other active children in the area of the Park increases the chances of the levels more high physical activity 3.67 times," wrote the authors.
And nothing seems to put the brakes on a kid Frolic as a ubiquitous parent (and, to a lesser extent, the two adult guardians as a teacher or a coach). No one is suggesting that parents let their children run off to the park only, of course. But the authors recommend that the Park designers keep concerned parents in mind.
"If children's play environments are designed for the whole family with comfortable seats and shaded to sit and observe children playing remote, parents may be less inclined to"helicopter"and hinder the spontaneous play," said co-author Robin Moore, Professor of landscape architecture and Director of the N.C. State natural learning Initiative.
Thus, the next time that you take your child to the Park, try to take a seat on the bench and let your child figure on his own things. It is O.K. If it struggles or even falls down. His faux pas can help prevent you from making your own.
Meredith Melnick is a journalist in time. Find him on Twitter at @ MeredithCM. You can also continue the discussion on the time Facebook page and Twitter time @.

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HEALTH MANAGEMENT. Lose a baby increases risk of early death for parents, mothers in particular

Losing a child during his/her first 12 months of life can considerably raise the parents' risk of dying early, researchers from the University of York, England and Stirling University, Scotland reported in BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care.
Dr Mairi Harper and team examined 5% of UK death registrations of parents who had lost a child aged 1 year or more, as well as parents who had lost a child aged less than 12 months. They were randomly selected from data from 1971 to 2006. Stillborn babies were included in the study
The data obtained from Scotland found that parents who lost a child under 12 months of age ran twice the risk of dying early or becoming widowed compared to parents who lost no children.
The impact of child bereavement was found to be greater on mothers, although fathers had a higher risk of early death too, the authors wrote.
In England and Wales, mothers who lost a child run four times the risk of dying within 15 years of the child's death, compared to other mothers. Even 25 years after the loss of a child, the risk of early death was 1.5 higher.
Dr. Harper said that "dying of a broken heart" does not only apply to the loss of a spouse or partner, it also happens to people who lose a young child.
The investigators had not had enough data to determine what impact, if any, suicides had on the figures. They believe bereavement may have a biological effect on the parents, such as undermining their immune system.
Dr. Harper said:

"Bereaved parents may also be more likely to use maladaptive coping strategies, such as alcohol misuse."

Harper explained that alcohol misuse may raise the risk of developing alcohol-related illnesses, or accidental injuries.
The authors added that perhaps some parents whose child is stillborn or dies early may themselves have poor health.
Dr. Harper said:

"It is imperative that cause of death be further investigated in order to establish the factors leading to increased mortality in bereaved parents."

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