Experts Say Recession to Blame

The U.S. birth rate has dropped for the second year in a row, and experts think the wrenching recession led many people to put off having children. The 2009 birth rate also set a record: lowest in a century.

Births fell 2.7 percent last year even as the population grew, numbers released Friday by the National Center for Health Statistics show.

The U.S. birth rate has dropped for the second year in a row, and experts think the wrenching recession led many people to put off having children. The 2009 birth rate also set a record: lowest in a century.

"It's a good-sized decline for one year. Every month is showing a decline from the year before," said Stephanie Ventura, the demographer who oversaw the report.

The birth rate, which takes into account changes in the population, fell to 13.5 births for every 1,000 people last year. That's down from 14.3 in 2007 and way down from 30 in 1909, when it was common for people to have big families.

On August 12, Clarissa Bradford and her family, including her 5-month-old son, were asked by an assistant manager to leave a Phoenix AZ McDonald’s restaurant because she was nursing her baby. On Saturday, dozens of mothers protested the eviction by staging a “nurse-in” at the same restaurant. Although the restaurant owner has offered Bradford an apology, she hopes the news of the protest will educate business owners on public breastfeeding.

“A mom needs to be able to nurse her baby wherever she goes,” said Rachel Starchman, a mother who participated in the nurse-in. “You are giving them the best you can do as a mother,” said Alisa Ilardo, another demonstrator.

They estimate that about 100 people were in the restaurant at the time, and no sign of resistance from restaurant employees. Starchman said that the atmosphere was relaxed and a few even purchased food.

Breastfeeding is a right

Public breastfeeding laws differ from state to state. Arizona is among 44 states that have laws with language that specifically allows women to breastfeed in any public or private location. Arizona statute 41-1443 states that “A mother is entitled to breast-feed in any area of a public place or a place of public accommodation where the mother is otherwise lawfully present.” In addition, many states have added legislation that exempts public breastfeeding from “indecent exposure” laws.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) vowed yesterday to pursue a vote on banning bisphenol A (BPA) from children's food and drink containers after negotiators reached a bipartisan deal on food safety legislation that lacked limits on the controversial chemical (Agreement Reached on Senate Food Safety Bill; August 11, 2010).

The food safety agreement paves the way for Senate floor debate on the measure, which would broadly expand the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) powers to inspect products and remove tainted items from the market. The debate over how to address BPA, a man-made chemical added to pliable plastics and shown to mimic estrogen in the human body, is one of several politically volatile issues that had slowed progress on the bill after its House passage last year.

Feinstein participated in talks on the BPA issue, she said in a statement, but after senior members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee released the text of an agreement without language on the chemical, she decided to move forward with an amendment.

"I believe that we need legislation to protect consumers, especially babies and toddlers, from harmful chemicals," Feinstein said. "Because of their smaller size and stage of development, babies and children are particularly at risk from the harmful health effects of BPA."

A number of studies have linked BPA to developmental and behavioral problems in children, driving campaigns by environmental and public-health advocates to ban the chemical from food containers from which it might be in danger of leaching. While several states have taken up proposals to ban the chemical from packaging of children's consumables, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) has yet to announce whether he plans to sign his state's version of such a measure (California State Assembly Passes BPA Bill; July 1, 2010).

Buying school supplies is an annual end-of-summer tradition. It's also an opportunity to look for safer products for your children and their classrooms. The good news is that with a little time and attention, a backpack full of non-toxic school supplies is in reach. Purchase your back-to-school supplies (and any other item, for that matter) through EWG's link to Amazon. Amazon will donate part of your purchase to EWG! Or download the PDF to take with you to the store.

This year, think greener when you stock up on these standard items:

• Art supplies. Many contain toxic chemicals that are not suitable for children -- especially younger ones. Pay special attention to these: Paints should be water-based to avoid solvents and colored with natural, non-metal pigments. Don't buy polymer clays that stay soft at room temperature or can be hardened in a home oven -- they're made from PVC (polyvinyl chloride) and often contain phthalates. Consider making your own "clay" out of common baking ingredients instead. Note: A label that says "Conforms to ASTM D-4236" simply means the product is labeled as required, not necessarily safe.
   
• Hand washing. Choose sanitizers with ethanol (ethyl alcohol) but no fragrance, and liquid hand soaps without triclosan, triclocarban or fragrance. And remember: Plain soap and water is often just as effective! Learn more.
   
• Backpacks. If it's time for a new one, look for natural fibers and skip those made with PVC. If natural fibers aren't an option, polyester and nylon are better than PVC. (Check the label for #3, the symbol for PVC, or look for "no PVC" on the label.) Labels don't always list the material, so you may need to contact manufacturers or visit their websites.
   

It may be one of the most beloved activities of hyperactive children and the parents who love them: bouncing in a bounce house. But, according to Attorney General Jerry Brown of California, it may also be toxic.

A lawsuit filed Wednesday by Mr. Brown’s office claims that some of the inflatable bounce houses that help entertain — and exhaust — the young guests at children’s parties have unsafe levels of lead, sometimes dozens of times the federal limit.

“I was surprised,” said Mr. Brown, who is running for governor in a state with 2.7 million children under age 5. “But as we test more and more of these products, we find dangers.”

The suit was prompted by a an investigation by the Center for Environmental Health in Oakland, Calif., an advocacy group that tested dozens of bounce houses, concentrating on the vinyl that gives them their bounce.

Lead levels in the vinyl, the tests found, varied from 5,000 parts per million to 29,000, far above the federal limit of 90 to 300 parts per million.

The Senate has reached a "tentative agreement" on the pending safety bill and staff will be briefed on the language Thursday, a staffer told The Hill yesterday.

The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee is expected to release the manager's package and a Congressional Budget Office score, according to The Hill.

"It's a clear signal that this is going to happen when they come back in September," said Sandy Eskin, director of the Pew Charitable Trust's food safety campaign.

Sources on the Hill confirmed that there are ongoing discussions about bringing the bill to a vote in September.

The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, introduced by Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) in March of 2009, rolled to a halt in the Senate after being unanimously approved by committee last November.

Health care reform and a series of other legislative priorities, as well as lingering disagreements over a bisphenol-A ban and on how to ease the impact of new regulations on small farmers have not helped the bill, which enjoys broad bipartisan support and overhauls the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) oversight of 80 percent of the food supply.

An environmental group in Maine has released a report it says documents the dangers of the chemical bisphenol A (BIS'-fen-ahl).

The Toxics Action Center released the report in Portland on Wednesday, eight days before the Maine Board of Environmental Protection holds a public hearing on a proposed rule calling for a ban on the use of bisphenol A, or BPA, in reusable food and beverage containers.

The report is a compilation of studies published between January and July. According to the report, 75 of the 81 studies that were looked at indicated that BPA is associated with a number of health problems ranging from diabetes and memory loss to liver damage and cancer.

BPA is commonly used in making plastics shatterproof and to line food cans.

The Maine Board of Environmental Protection will hold a public hearing on whether to ban bisphenol A in baby bottles and other reusable food and beverage containers at 1 p.m. Aug. 19 at the Holiday Inn and Ground Round, 110 Community Drive, Augusta.

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection has proposed banning the chemical, also known as BPA, from polycarbonate plastics products such as sippy cups. The chemical has been shown to disrupt hormone flows in animal studies and has been banned in other states.

Environmental groups in Maine have been urging their members to attend the hearing. Maine’s Toxics Center has scheduled an event about the dangers of exposure to BPA at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday at Lobsterman’s Park at the corner of Middle and Temple streets, Portland.

More information about the possible ban is available on the DEP website.

EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

PROCLAMATION

California is committed to ensuring the pediatric and long-term health of our youngest citizens, and one of the best ways to do this is through breastfeeding.  Many health care professionals recommend breastfeeding exclusively for the first six months of a baby’s life because it benefits both children and mothers.
 
Breast milk provides a perfectly balanced diet that infants need to grow strong, and it naturally builds a healthy immune system to prevent illness. Breastfeeding is associated with fewer instances of respiratory and gastrointestinal diseases, asthma, diabetes and childhood obesity.
 
The unique bond with a mother develops with her child while breastfeeding aids in the baby’s emotional and cognitive development. She can also lower her own risk of postpartum depression, breast cancer, ovarian cancer and Type 2 diabetes.
 
This month, I encourage all Californians to support breastfeeding awareness, and I especially call on employers to implement breastfeeding education in the workplace. Women with children are a rapidly growing sector of our workforce, and it is important that mothers can breastfeed or use a breast pump. Businesses, education centers and communities can all build awareness for this beneficial practice, and together, we can continue to work toward a healthier California.
 
NOW, THEREFORE, I, ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, Governor of the State of California, do hereby proclaim August 2010, as “Breastfeeding Awareness Month.”
 
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of California to be affixed this 9th day of July 2010.

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER Governor of California   ATTEST: DEBRA BOWEN Secretary of State

Most parents would balk at the idea of toddlers in high heels, but what about sandals or trainers? Some experts now believe that all shoes are best avoided in childhood, says Sam Murphy

While Katie Holmes was vilified by the press and public alike for stepping out with her four-year-old daughter in high heels last year, many of us wouldn't think twice about putting our kids in a dinky pair of mini-me trainers. But there's a growing belief among experts that when it comes to children's footwear, the best shoe may be no shoe at all.

Tracy Byrne, a podiatrist specialising in podopaediatrics, believes that wearing shoes at too young an age can hamper a child's walking and cerebral development. "Toddlers keep their heads up more when they are walking barefoot," she says. "The feedback they get from the ground means there is less need to look down, which is what puts them off balance and causes them to fall down." Walking barefoot, she continues, develops the muscles and ligaments of the foot, increases the strength of the foot's arch, improves proprioception (our awareness of where we are in relation to the space around us) and contributes to good posture.

"We've come to regard the way we dwell permanently in shoes as normal and natural," says John Woodward, an Alexander Technique teacher who has been barefoot for 25 years. "It's anything but. True, we are no longer hunter-gatherers. True, our urban environments are full of 'unnatural' dangers. But we can still learn from our origins - footwear was designed to protect the soles of the feet where necessary, and it was temporary."

Byrne, whose own two young children go unshod wherever possible, offers free foot health checks for children from her East London-based practice. "The more parents know about the structure of children's feet, the more we can prevent footwear-related damage being done," she says.