The purpose of this study was to determine the amount of physical activity in which children engage during physical education classes and factors that mediate their participation. Third and 4th grade students wore pedometers during each 30-min physical education class for one school year. Steps per class were collected daily during structured and…

Native American Indians and First Nations are predisposed to obesity and diabetes. A study was done to understand Cree schoolchildren's diabetes awareness and body size perceptions in two communities that had diabetes awareness-raising activities in the Province of Quebec, Canada. Children (N = 203) in grades 4-6 were classified into weight…

The preschool years are a critical period for the development of food preferences and lifelong eating habits. Between the ages of 2 and 5, children become increasingly responsive to external cues, such as television commercials that use popular cartoon characters to advertise foods, candy in supermarket checkout aisles, and fast-food restaurants…

President Barack Obama is wasting no time in unfolding his plan to provide health coverage for all Americans. He started in February by signing legislation to reinstate the State Children's Health Insurance Program, which expands eligibility criteria to provide 4 million more children access to health care. This first step is one of many needed to…

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that between two and three million non-melanoma skin cancers and 132,000 melanoma skin cancers occur globally each year. In the event of further depletion of the ozone, these cases will increase dramatically (WHO, 2004). Within the United States, cancers of the skin are the most frequent type of…

Pediatric acquired brain injury (BI) not only affects the child with the injury, but also greatly impacts their family. Studies suggest there are higher rates of caregiver and sibling psychological distress after a child in the family has sustained a BI. Also, family functioning after BI impacts the child's recovery. In reviewing the literature,…

Background: Obesity prevalence is unusually high among adults with intellectual disability (ID). There is limited and conflicting evidence on obesity prevalence among ambulatory children and adolescents with ID. The present study aimed to estimate obesity prevalence in this group and to compare with population prevalence. Methods: Survey of nine…

Background: Asthma is a chronic health condition that has a disproportionate effect on low-income minority children who reside in large urban areas. African American children report significantly higher rates than the general population of children and have more-severe asthma and poorer outcomes. This article describes the prevalence of asthma in…

The authors collected data from 48 states and the District of Columbia regarding state policies that affect the participation of children with medical needs in licensed childcare. They began with a more narrowly focused agenda of identifying policies affecting children with medically complex needs, but because few regulations are directed to this…

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has had a devastating impact on the children of Africa. In Uganda, over 100,000 children are infected, mostly through vertical transmission of the disease from their mother. With recent improvements in medical treatment, children are now surviving longer and reaching school age, but there is limited research…

For the nearly 2 million children in the United States whose parents are in prison, caretaking necessary for optimal development is disrupted. These vulnerable youth--a population that has shot up 80 percent in the last 20 years--are more likely to experience learning difficulties, poor health, and substance abuse, and eventually be incarcerated…

School-based health centers (SBHCs) and school nurses know that healthy students learn better. They share an important mission: providing preventive care for all students they serve, with the goal of keeping students in class learning. They both: (1) Educate students and families about healthy behaviors and nutrition; (2) Enroll students and…

Rising rates of nonmarital childbirth in the United States have resulted in a new family type, the fragile family. Such families, which include cohabiting couples as well as single mothers, experience significantly higher rates of poverty and material hardship than their married counterparts. Ariel Kalil and Rebecca Ryan summarize the economic…

The American College Health Association estimates that three out of every 10 college students are overweight or obese. Both terms denote ranges of weight that are greater than what is considered healthy for a given height and have been shown to increase the likelihood of diseases. Over the past two decades, the number of American children who are…

It is the position of the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) that students whose healthcare needs affect or have the potential to affect safe and optimal school attendance and academic performance require the professional school nurse to write an Individualized Healthcare Plan (IHP), in collaboration with the student, family, educators,…