Updates

Well, this site has been quiet, but I've been pretty busy.  We moved in July and kid 3 came in early August.  Aside from parenting, the thing keeping me busiest is my new website dedicated to families with milk and soy protein intolerance (MSPI).  All three of our kids have or had it, and there are very few resources out there.  I tried building a wiki, but I used a public hosted service and I didn't put in the time.... so now I've built http://milkintolerance.org as a resource for families like ours.  If you or anyone you know has kids with MSPI, please send them along. 

More regular philosopherdad updates are on their way too.

Magic Ingredient In Breast Milk Protects Babies' Intestines

Researchers Queen Mary, University of London have discovered that an ingredient in human breast milk protects and repairs the delicate intestines of newborn babies.

The ingredient called pancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor, or PSTI, is found at its highest levels in colostrum - the milk produced in the first few days after birth.

The lining of a newborn's gut is particularly vulnerable to damage as it has never been exposed to food or drink. The new study highlights the importance of breastfeeding in the first few days after the birth.

Read more (ScienceDaily)

This Week in Science

1. Growing Years Cut Short For Toddlers From Poor Families

Continuous poverty during toddler years can curb the height of children by the time they reach kindergarten, even in industrialized countries, according to new research from the Université de Montréal. Regardless of hereditary factors such as maternal height and education level, according to the finding published in the Journal of Epidemiology Community Health, children from poor families are more likely to be shorter than their peers.

N Z Ehounoux, M-V Zunzunegui, L Séguin, B Nikiema, and L Gauvin. Duration of lack of money for basic needs and growth delay in the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development birth cohort. Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, 2009; 63 (1): 45 DOI: 10.1136/jech.2007.072157


2. Breastfeeding May Prevent Breast Cancer

 Dr. Michael Lisanti and colleagues at Thomas Jefferson University found that extended lactation protects again mammary tumor development.

Sotgia F, Casimiro MC, Bonuccelli G, Liu M, Menezes DW, Er O, Daumer KM, Mercier I, Witkiewicz AK, Minetti C, Capozza F, Gormley M, Quong AA, Rui H, Frank PG, Milliman JN, Knudsen ES, Zhou J, Wang C, Pestell RG, Lisanti MP. Loss of Caveolin-3 Induces a Lactogenic Microenvironment that is Protective Against Mammary Tumor Formation. Am J Pathol, 2009, 174: 613-629

3. School-based Physical Activity Has Benefits Even If It Doesn't Help Lose Weight

School-based health and exercise programs have positive outcomes despite having little effect on children's weight or the amount of exercise they do outside of school, say Cochrane Researchers who carried out a systematic review of studies on physical activity programs in schools.

Dobbins M, De Corby K, Robeson P, Husson H, Tirilis D. School-based physical activity programs for promoting physical activity and fitness in children and adolescents aged 6-18. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2009, Issue 1. Art. No.: CD007651 DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD007651