Data from the federal Center for Mental Health Services indicate that one in every 33 children and one in eight adolescents may be suffering from depression. Up to 70% of children with diagnosable mental, emotional, or behavioral disorders are not receiving mental health services, according to the U.S. Surgeon General's Report on Mental Health.…

Children can be exposed to dangerous chemicals and toxins in the most unlikely of places: Their schools. This brief article describes the types of threats that school environments pose to students' health, including such pollution and chemical exposures as lead, mercury, arsenic, molds, and poor indoor air quality. The article provides tips for…

Parents and grandparents, just like everyone else, are ready to extol (maybe even exaggerate) the attributes and accomplishments of their offspring. The need to respond to accomplishments is essential for the sake of the special child and his/her parents. In their zeal to reassure and encourage one's own special child, it is easy to deny the…

The childhood immunization schedule includes at least 17 scheduled immunizations prior to the age of 24 months. Immunization laws require childcare centers to maintain immunization records and enforce immunization standards for children who attend these centers. Childcare providers generally receive little formal education about infectious…

Health assessments are required for entrance into child care, Head Start, and preschool programs. However, state and federal screening and documentation mandates vary, and programs create their own forms for keeping required data on file. Inconsistent recording formats present challenges for primary care providers who must document each child's…

We examined the factor structure of the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) among a sample of 523 African American children (m age = 12.76) and a sample of 564 European American youth (m age = 12.43). Previous investigations have produced discrepant factor structures among samples of predominantly majority-culture children, but fewer…

Migrant children are considered one of the most at-risk populations in the United States. They face multiple obstacles of poverty, poor health, mobility, and limited English proficiency, which contributes to the difficulties that migrant children may encounter in the educational system. Limited research has been conducted regarding migrant…

During the past 20 years, depression has been recognized widely in children and adolescents. However, even with what is known today about depression, many children and adolescents remain undiagnosed. Early recognition is imperative to prevent further episodes that may continue into adulthood. Depression in children and adolescents affects social…

This article profiles Grace Abbott, one of the earlier 20th century American women leaders in Progressivism. Abbott's heritage influenced her lifetime commitment to social improvement. She was born on November 17, 1878 in Grand Island, Nebraska into a family of activists. Her Quaker mother, Elizabeth Griffin Abbott, came from an abolitionist…

There is a great deal of research revealing how asthma is influenced by psychological variables such as symptom perception and negative emotions. Psychologically based treatments including biofeedback, yoga, hypnosis, stress management, relaxation and guided imagery, and written-emotional expression have all been effective in improving pulmonary…

Background: The aims of present study were to study sickness absence among Swedish parents of children with Down's syndrome (DS) and to compare their rates of absence with those of control parents. Sickness absence data for 165 DS parents were compared with those for 174 control parents; all data were for the period 1997-2000. Sickness absence…

This article by the editors of this issue describes key elements of high-quality services for teen parents and their children. Programs for teen parents and their children can promote dual development by: a) acknowledging the role of multiple risk factors in the lives of the children of teen parents; b) integrating services from a variety of…

This paper examines the availability of soft drinks in schools ("pouring rights contracts") and its effects on the growing nutritional problems of American youth. Of special concern is the prevalence of overweight youth, which has been increasing at alarming rates. There has been a direct relationship found between soft drink consumption and…

Recurrent pediatric headaches are increasingly understood to be a function of both respondent and operant processes. In particular, the environment is thought to elicit internal autonomic instability and to evoke external maladaptive pain behavior. While medical interventions often provide an appropriate first line treatment, behavioral…

A randomized controlled intervention tested the effectiveness of a community health worker (CHW) program in increasing compliance with annual preventive exams among uninsured Hispanic women living in a rural U.S.-Mexico border area. During 1999-2000, household surveys were administered to women aged 40 and older. Uninsured women not receiving…