**Latest News** - The Office of Minority Health

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	Taking the Pulse of Progress toward Preconception Health This journal article provides a preliminary assessment of A Healthy Baby Begins with You, the national infant mortality prevention program launched by OMH in 2007, and takes a look at the peer-to-peer education component fueling the program.
	Effects of Depression during Pregnancy Researchers at the University of Michigan have found that higher levels of depression during pregnancy seem to be associated with decreased muscle tone in newborns and higher levels of stress hormones.
	Autistic Vocal Patterns Tracked Scientists at the University of Kansas used a device to analyze the vocal patterns of young children to determine if they have autism. They found that the device was able to correctly identify children with autism 86 percent of the time.
	Pesticide Exposure linked to ADHD A new study out of UC Berkley has found that children exposed to pesticides while still in the mother’s womb have a greater chance of developing attention disorders.
	It Takes Two to Tango: Defining the Role of Fathers [PDF \| 616.2KB] National Healthy Start organization released this brief about the role of fatherhood in child development and the impact involved fathers can have when it comes to encouraging healthy outcomes for mom and child and discouraging negative outcomes, such as infant mortality. The brief also takes a look at what it means to be a father and how maternal-child-health policies could be modified to include men.
	Infant Mortality Rates Linked to Prematurity CDC's National Center for Health Statistics released findings showing that the high rates of infant mortality in the United States are fueled by premature birth rates of one in eight children.
	Fetal Memory Recorded in Study A Dutch study has recorded short-term memory in fetuses at 30 weeks, according to a study in the July/August issue of Child Development. Short-term memory recollection seemed to increase as weeks passed, with a recall of about to four weeks
	Study Pinpoints FASD Traits A study from a mental health team in Toronto has found that the characteristics of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder are similar to traits for attention deficit disorder. The study will appear in the October 2009 of Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.
	Preeclampsia May be linked to Pollution A study appearing in the July issue of Environmental Health Perspectives points to the possibility of air pollution in southern California being linked to women experiencing preeclampsia and preterm births.
	Study Shows Alcohol Consumption Persists A 15-year CDC study found that, on average, one out of eight women consumes alcohol during pregnancy and that number has not decreased, despite warnings from the surgeon general.
	Air Pollution may stunt Fetal Growth An article in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health finds that air pollutants may curb the normal growth of the fetus.
	The study of Epigenetics An article in the FASEB journal explains the science of epigenetics or the study of genetics across life spans, finding that a lack of nutrients for a pregnant mother results in smaller offspring predisposed to being undernourished.
	B-12 May Impact Neural Tube Defects A study out of Trinity College Dublin found that a woman’s lack of the vitamin B-12, around the time of conception may contribute to the development of neural tube defects in their child.
	Hormone Therapy Produces Miracle Growth Growth hormones have been proven to increase a child’s final height regardless of whether the child is hormone growth deficient, according to a study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. An average of three inches were added to final heights and seemed to work better in children of parents with average heights.
	Diabetes linked to Language Delays in Children According to an article in Pediatrics, children of women with pregnancy-related diabetes are twice as likely to experience language development problems.
	Intervention Key [PDF \| 2MB] Scientists believe early treatment of cystic fibrosis can begin in infants, who have shown signs of disease progression, according to an article in the second December issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
	Down's symptoms May be Treatable in the Womb Experiments conducted on mouse pups that have a chromosomal abnormality similar to that of Down syndrome in humans, showed improvements in developmental delays after receiving treatments of nerve-protecting chemicals before birth.
	Place of Birth Contributes to Asthma Disparity A person’s birthplace seems to play a role in whether or not asthma develops, according to researchers from Tuft University who compared rates between American-born and foreign-born individuals. The study appears in the Journal of Asthma.
	Eating Eggs during Pregnancy Affects Offspring Biologists at Boston University have found that eating eggs while pregnant seems to protect and alter the offspring’s future. In the study, choline, a nutrient in eggs, seemed to delay the growth of tumors in the offspring of mice who received choline, according to the article in the FASEB Journal.
	Exposed Newborns More Difficult to Soothe Research from the Miriam Hospital in Providence, RI found that the same babies who experience low birth weight and a higher risk of SIDS because of exposure to cigarette smoke while in the womb, are also less likely to be self soothe and are more irritable. The study, which looked at 56 babies, is published in the online edition of the Journal of Pediatrics.
	Vitamin D found to fight placental infection UCLA researchers have found that Vitamin D can promote immune responses in the placenta, according to the online article in the Biology of Reproduction.
	U.S. Prematurity Rate Close to Failing The March of Dimes slapped the U.S. with a grade of D Wednesday, Nov. 11 after comparing states premature birth rates with the goals for Health People 2010.
	Mother’s Mental Health Linked to Pregnancy Results A study out of the University of Manchester found that women who had a history of serious mental illness were more likely to have a stillborn birth or give birth to a child that dies within the first few months.
	The Effects of Caffeine on Unborn According to a research paper published in the British Medical Journal, caffeine consumption at any time during pregnancy can restrict fetal growth.
	Shifting the Vaccine Schedule A study out of Wake Forest and Vanderbilt universities suggests vaccinating newborns a couple of weeks earlier to prevent the possibility of complications from pertussis or whooping cough.
	Extra Pregnancy Weight Raises Risks Women who gained 40 pounds or more during their pregnancy are more likely to have a heavy baby, according to an article published in the November issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology. Heavy babies can lead to complications during the birth and the likelihood of obesity later in the child’s life.
	Aggressive Phototherapy Improves Babies' Odds In the Oct. 30 New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found that aggressive phototherapy led to decreased rates of premature babies developing blindness, deafness or cerebral palsy.
	Study reveals Importance of Treating Jaundice A study by NIH found that treating severe jaundice in premature infants decreased their rate of brain injury, according to the article in the Oct. 30 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
	Breastfeeding and Obesity Link Temple researchers conducted a study to find out how breastfeed is linked to lower obesity rates in children. They found that children who are breastfed were able to tell when they were full, while children who were bottle fed were less likely to know they were full and had a higher BMI rate.
	Bred for Obesity Researchers have tested which factors determine fetal overgrowth and whether or not a child will have a greater chance of being obese based on a pregnant mother’s food consumption.
	Disparities in Cardiovascular Health Linked to Race An article published in the American Journal of Human Biology suggests that the likeliness of cardiovascular problems later in life may be linked to low birth weight and that a baby’s low birth weight may be attributed to social factors instead of genetics, making it possible for a great-grandmother’s health to affect her great-grandson.
	New Test for Down syndrome A test developed by researchers at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute is being touted as a possible replacement to standard tests for Down syndrome in the unborn. The test has yet to be performed on a larger group of women, but if successful, would be a likely alternative that would not pose the risk of miscarriage. By testing the mother’s blood, which contains small amounts of the baby’s DNA, scientists were able to tell if the baby would have Down syndrome within a couple days.
	Tracking Your Child’s Developments The CDC is offering information and interactive tools to help parents monitor their child’s development beyond the usual signs parents look for, like height and weight. Although the site provides information for parents who may be concerned about autism, developmental signs are available to any parent who desires to see if their child’s behavior corresponds with his or her age.

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