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There are perils to living in a poor neighborhood. Some common hazards, such as stress-producing personal-safety fears and meager access to healthy food , can contribute to long-term health problems. But new research pinpoints another disadvantage that can create immediate mortal danger: It takes longer for heart-attack victims in low-income areas to get transported to the hospital. "Our findings are disturbing, given that poorer neighborhoods have higher rates of disease and other...

Parents are overwhelmed with messaging and claims about how the latest “educational” toy or app is going to make their child smarter or more prepared for school. At the same time, accelerating scientific advances have demonstrated the critical importance of early brain and child development across the lifespan. The new AAP clinical report Selecting Appropriate Toys for Young Children in the Digital Era supports pediatricians as they counsel parents, focusing on what we know about toys and...

As we prepare to close out 2018 and reflect upon the past year, it’s overwhelming to think about the countless crises that have erupted and disrupted communities around the country, including the growing incidence of extreme climate events, mounting wealth and income inequality, increasing urban displacement, gentrification, and families separated at the border. The rising tide of crises demonstrates the need for massive and systemic change. Earlier this year, NPQ published an interview with...

The Food Stamp Program (FSP, known since 2008 as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP) is one of the largest safety-net programs in the United States. It is especially important for families with children. However, the FSP eligibility of documented immigrants has shifted on multiple occasions in recent decades. When I studied the health outcomes of children in documented immigrant families affected by such shifts between 1996 and 2003, I found that just one extra year of...

I heard a story this week that sent sensation to my heart. It was the story of a woman of color and her child. They were at a hospital, I'm unsure the specifics of where or why. One of the nurses, a white woman, had an interaction with the child and then complimented the child on their appearance, strength and intelligence. The mother proceeded to hide her child behind her back and said, "oh no my child is none of that." On the surface, as a white woman, I thought, "Ahh, that is kind of the...

How useful and necessary are biomarkers in telling the story of how toxic stress from adverse childhood experiences and resilience can impact a child’s long-term health? In the introduction to an article in the journal BioEssays , Dr. Kathryn Ridout, a Kaiser Permanente San Jose psychiatrist, and her co-authors examine what is known about two biomarkers and quote data on child maltreatment and its economic burden over time that says it all. “When totaling the costs of health care, child...

Unfortunately, implementing a trauma-informed framework at your organization is not as simple as bringing in experts, gathering staff for training and then riding the wave of motivation and excitement into the sunset. It involves a cultural shift at your organization, ongoing focus and training, and a commitment from leadership.

When I visit my people in West Africa, I often tease them by saying, "If the Europeans ships came again tomorrow, we would be stolen again!" This is a joke to me because I am always amazed by the warm reception I receive when I visit new villages. Despite my light-brown skin, and clearly Western mannerisms, I am always welcomed and cared for. When I present with physical, spiritual or emotional issues, my people immerse me in medicine: Women might dance and cook for 3 consecutive days,...

CHICO — His new math book in hand, 14-year-old George Rood walked over to the impromptu photo backdrop in the Pleasant Valley High School library to get his picture taken for his new student ID card. George never expected to be starting anew this early into high school. The Paradise High freshman was forced out of his Magalia home when the Camp Fire came bearing down on the ridge where his family lived, fleeing with his grandmother and little brother and leaving behind the last sense of...

Dr. Gerald S. Berenson, a cardiologist who found that detecting and reducing elevated weight, blood pressure and cholesterol in young children could help prevent heart disease when they became adults, died on Nov. 22 in Houston. He was 96. Dr. Berenson, who lived in New Orleans, had been visiting a daughter in Texas when he died of a heart attack in his sleep, his son Dr. Leslie Berenson said. Dr. Berenson was a professor of cardiology at the Louisiana State University Health New Orleans...

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is funding a new Arizona State University initiative to provide in-depth health care news coverage about underserved communities across the Southwest. ASU’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication is receiving a $500,000 grant to establish the Southwest Reporting Initiative, which will provide timely and accurate health news and information, in particular­ about Latino and Native American communities. Cronkite News, the student-produced,...

Wrestling Ghosts now has a trailer! Please feel free to share with your colleagues and friends who may be interested in our film. We have some community screenings coming up down the pipeline, and can't wait to share Kim's story with more people! Check out the trailer here!