Winter is here, which means the season of sickness too is here. While viruses and sickness run throughout, winter is when the chilly weather further makes it worse for those prone to sickness. Especially, if they are kids, as their immunity is not fully developed.

Does that mean it is inevitable for kids to be sick?

Anytime a child is exposed to another child, they will fall sick. This is because germs are transferred in the air or by touch, and children, being curious, always touch things, including their own faces, mouths and easily pick up germs and spread them. While prevention is impossible, there are steps that can be taken to reduce this.

Experts and medical professionals recommend to follow the vaccine schedule by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Vaccines have be proven to protect people, children, and infants from serious and deadly infections.

While sicknesses like a common cold do not have a vaccine, good hygiene can help prevent the spread of germs. Teaching your kids to wash hands after touching toys, or any other surface and other people is a great way to start it.

Exposure to germs at an early age strengthens child's immune system

Is there really any truth in the statement? When we encounter infections, our immune system creates antibodies that either prevent future infections or help the body fight them off more effectively, often leading to milder illness. The "hygiene hypothesis" proposes that living in an overly clean environment might hinder the immune system's development, potentially increasing the risk of allergic conditions like asthma.

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Although research has explored this idea, many immunologists (experts in the immune system) have raised concerns and expressed disagreement with the hypothesis.

In reality, most children don’t grow up in sterile environments. They are naturally exposed to a variety of germs, providing ample opportunities for their immune systems to strengthen and adapt.

Sanitizing Child's Toys

It is a good practice to regularly disinfect your children's toys and anything they share with others or take to school.

It is important to know the difference between cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting. While cleaning removes visible dirt, sanitizing decreases the number of germs on the surface, whereas disinfecting kills germs.

Also make sure to read the labels correctly and prevent any toxic toys to make its way to your kids, so it cannot be inhaled or ingested.

How to disinfect toys?

You can start by cleaning all the toys that has come in contact with your child's hands and mouth with soap and water. Then, use a sanitizer to clean everyday items, things that remain in your child's environment. Then use disinfectant, especially if your child is sick or if someone sick has touched your child's toys.

If you are wondering which sanitizers to go for, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) website has come up with a list of approved sanitizers and disinfectants that are effective.

Sleep training is a key to a good night's rest. This is especially true for the parents who are still new with handling their babies. One such method of sleep training, famous in Denmark is called the 'cry it out' method.

However, this method has been long in debates, Especially with one side saying that allowing babies to bawl does no harm, whereas, other sets of research and studies suggest that it impacts babies' emotional quotient. In fact, research suggest that leaving the babies to cry could have knock-on effects including damaging the bond between parent and child and raising the infant's stress levels.

However, recently, 723 Danish psychologists signed an open letter stating that cry it out sleep method, known as the "good night and sleep well" method in Denmark should be discouraged, as such methods may risk the attachment and child's development.

What Exactly Is The 'Cry It Out' Method?

This is also known as the extinction method, where rather than answering your little one's crying call as soon as it goes out, you give them the opportunity to independently work it out and nod off. This method is not intended to be cruel, it is meant to be used as an intentional tool to teach your baby self-soothing techniques that will stick with them for life.

Some also call it same as going cold turkey on your child. Parenting experts say that you put your baby in their crib, say goodnight and shut the door.

Also Read: 'Biased' Danish Parenting Test Has Separated Babies From Their Mothers; Parents Are Now Fighting Back

The Debate Of Those In Favor Of Cry It Out And Those Against It

A study led by researchers from the University of Warwick and published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, followed 178 babies and their mothers in the UK from birth to 18 months. Mothers regularly filled out questionnaires explaining how often they let their baby “cry it out” shortly after birth, and again at three, six, and 18 months.

Researchers also observed mother-infant interactions through video recordings at three and 18 months. At 18 months, they assessed children’s behavior and attachment using parent questionnaires, psychologist reports, and observations of play.

The results showed that most mothers rarely let newborns cry. However, by 18 months, around two-thirds allowed their child to cry sometimes or often. Importantly, babies who were occasionally allowed to cry as newborns tended to cry for shorter periods by 18 months.

No Clear Evidence of Harm

The team found no negative effects on the child’s emotional attachment, behaviour, or the mother’s sensitivity by 18 months. Based on these findings, researchers concluded that the practice does not appear to cause harm.

Professor Dieter Wolke, a co-author of the study, said parents may have worried unnecessarily about the issue. He suggested that debates around crying may have been exaggerated.

The Ones Against The Cry It Out Method

Not everyone agrees that the findings settle the debate. Professor Amy Brown from Swansea University, who was not involved in the research, warned that the results should be interpreted carefully. She noted that very few mothers in the study regularly used the “cry it out” approach, and the study did not examine how long babies were left to cry or how distressing parents found the experience.

She also emphasized that the research does not prove controlled crying is beneficial, nor does it address the emotional toll it can take on caregivers.

The Developing Infant Brain

Some researchers highlight concerns about stress in early life. A baby’s brain grows rapidly in the first year, and intense distress triggers the release of cortisol, a stress hormone. In high levels, cortisol may harm developing neural connections. While the effects may not be immediate, some experts question whether repeated distress could have long-term consequences.

Stress, Self-Regulation, and Trust

Infants rely on caregivers to learn how to regulate emotions. When caregivers respond quickly and consistently, babies learn calmness and trust. Comforting a distressed baby helps build the foundation for self-soothing later in life.

Critics argue that leaving babies to cry may teach them to shut down emotionally rather than truly self-regulate. Over time, this could affect how children respond to stress and relationships.

The Role of Caregiver Responsiveness

Decades of developmental research show that caregiver responsiveness plays a crucial role in positive outcomes such as emotional regulation, social skills, empathy, and even intelligence. When caregivers are sensitive to a baby’s signals, it supports healthy brain and emotional development.

Because responsiveness is so influential, experts stress that any parenting approach should prioritize attentiveness to a child’s needs. While occasional crying may not be harmful, consistent care and emotional availability remain central to healthy development.

A 16-year-old mother in Peru delivered a baby who was in placenta that attached to her liver.

This is a rare milestone as the baby has been safely delivering from an abdominal ectopic pregnancy in which the placenta was attached to the mother’s liver.

The case involved 19 year old Valeria Vela, whose pregnancy continued to 40 weeks and resulted in the birth of a healthy baby girl. Health authorities in Peru say this is the first documented case of its kind in the country and only the fourth reported worldwide in which both mother and baby survived.

Understanding the Rarity of Ectopic Pregnancies

Ectopic pregnancies occur when a fertilized egg implants outside the uterus. In most situations, they develop in the fallopian tubes.

Around 96 percent of ectopic pregnancies happen there and only a very small number occur in the abdominal cavity. These pregnancies cannot safely continue because the organs where the egg may attach are not designed to support a growing fetus. In this case, the egg implanted directly on the liver, which meant the fetus relied on the liver’s arteries for blood supply. This created a situation that demanded extremely careful monitoring, as even small shifts in blood flow could have been dangerous.

The Challenges Doctors Faced

For doctors, the biggest challenge was the placenta. Removing a placenta that has attached itself to the liver can cause severe bleeding that can quickly turn fatal. Peru’s Health Minister Luis Quiroz Avilés explained that any attempt to detach it without preparation could have caused life threatening hemorrhage in the mother.

To manage this, the medical team used a technique that closes the arteries feeding the placenta by blocking their blood flow. This approach helped prevent massive bleeding during surgery and gave both mother and baby a chance at survival.

Another extraordinary aspect of this case was that the pregnancy reached 40 full weeks. Previous live abdominal ectopic pregnancies that resulted in birth reached only up to 36 weeks. Doctors followed Valeria closely through her pregnancy and relied on advanced imaging and interventional radiology techniques to keep the situation stable. According to local reports, the clinical management required constant coordination among specialists from obstetrics, radiology, surgery and intensive care.

A Baby Born Against All Odds

The baby, named Aylin, was born on November 30 and weighed 7.9 pounds. Officials revealed the case only after both mother and child were safely discharged from the hospital. Valeria is now in stable condition and recovering well, while Aylin is reported to be healthy.

Why This Does Not Change Standard Care

Although the case has been described as a medical milestone, specialists emphasize that such pregnancies are exceptionally rare. Most ectopic pregnancies cannot continue and trying to carry them comes with severe risks that include hemorrhage, organ damage and even death. For this reason, early diagnosis and timely intervention remain the safest and most widely recommended approach. This case highlights what is medically possible under very specific circumstances, but it does not change established guidelines for managing ectopic pregnancies.

Do you feel like your attention span has gone down? Thanks to multiple social media platforms and its shorter duration content, we find ourselves losing attention and cannot keep up with anything that goes a little bit over a minute. This has not just affected us, but children are now being diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) more.

A latest peer-reviewed study by Karolinska Institutet, which monitored more than 8,300 US-based children from age of 10 to 14 noted that social media use has lead to increased inattention symptoms.

The researchers of the aforementioned institute in Sweden, along with the Oregon Health & Science University in the US found that children spent an average of 2.3 hours a day watching television or online videos, 1.4 hours on social media and 1.5 hours playing video games.

The study found no connection between ADHD-related behaviors, such as distractibility, and activities like playing video games or watching TV and YouTube. However, long-term social media use was linked to rising inattention symptoms in children. ADHD is a neurodevelopmental condition marked by impulsiveness, trouble focusing and frequently forgetting everyday tasks.

. According to the researchers, “We identified an association between social media use and increased inattention symptoms, interpreted here as a likely causal effect.” They noted that while the impact on each child may be small, widespread behavioral shifts could have a meaningful effect at the population level. The study also suggested that growing social media use may be contributing to the rise in ADHD diagnoses.

Why Social Media May Disrupt Focus

Torkel Klingberg, a professor of cognitive neuroscience at the Karolinska Institute, said the findings pointed specifically to social media as a factor affecting children’s ability to concentrate. He explained that platforms bombard users with constant notifications and messages, and even the anticipation of receiving one can interrupt mental focus. “This affects the ability to stay focused and could explain the association,” he said.

The research also showed that socioeconomic background and genetic risk for ADHD did not change the observed link, suggesting that the distraction-rich environment of social media itself may be responsible. Klingberg added that increasing social media use could partly explain the rise in ADHD diagnoses among children, which grew from 9.5 percent in 2003–07 to 11.3 percent in 2020–22, based on data from the U.S. National Survey of Children’s Health.

Early Social Media Exposure Raises Concerns

The authors stressed that the study does not imply all children who use social media will develop concentration problems. However, they pointed out that many children begin using these platforms well before age 13, the minimum age for apps such as Instagram and TikTok. The report called for stronger age verification measures and clearer guidance from tech companies.

How Much Time Children Spend Online

The study tracked a gradual rise in social media use, from around 30 minutes a day at age nine to about two and a half hours by age 13. The children were enrolled at ages nine and ten between 2016 and 2018. The full findings will appear in the journal Pediatrics Open Science.

Samson Nivins, a postdoctoral researcher at the Karolinska Institute and one of the study’s authors, said the team hopes the results will help parents and policymakers make more informed decisions about healthy digital habits that support children’s cognitive development.