More children today are dealing with allergies and asthma than ever before. Can you actually prevent allergies and asthma in your child?

If you have allergies or asthma, you might worry your child will have them too. This is a very common concern. While family history matters, there are simple things you can do early in your child’s life to help lower their risk.

The article “Prevention of Allergies and Asthma in Children” explains that parents can take simple steps to support their child’s health. It shows that small choices like how you feed your baby and manage their environment can make a difference.

One idea that is discussed is the type of infant feeding method used. Breastfeeding for the first 4 to 6 months helps build a strong immune system and may lower the risk of some allergies. Hypoallergenic formula options also may help for babies at higher risk. When starting solid foods, introduce them slowly. This includes common allergens like eggs and peanuts (even though it may be scary). Waiting too long to give these foods may actually increase allergy risk!

Your child’s environment also matters. Try to keep dust low by washing bedding often and keeping humidity low. The role of pets is unclear as some research shows early exposure may even help. You should always avoid tobacco smoke, as it increases the risk of asthma and breathing problems.

Focus on simple, healthy choices. These steps can help support your child’s immune system and lower their chances of developing allergies and asthma.

Click here to read more!

Grace Hoey

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

In this Ted Talk, seven-year-0ld Molly Wright explains how parents can help their kids thrive and develop into calm, happy children and adults. Connection and playing with your children is of the utmost important, something that Molly summarizes with the phrase “Serve and Return”. In an age of technology and ever-increasing responsibilities for parents, it important to give your kids your undivided attention as often as possible. Games like peek-a-book, copy-cat, and naming games all help children to develop important things, like trust, imagination, and vocabulary, while reinforcing the bond and connection between parent and child.

The first five years of a child’s life are a period of crucial development and growth, and parents’ support of their children during this time creates a foundation that the child can develop from for the rest of their life.

To watch the full Ted Talk and learn more, click here!

Afrah Rafi

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

As summer break approaches rapidly, it’s important for children to continue to engage in activities that enhance their learning. Out-of-school-time (OST) learning settings, including summer camp environments and other extracurricular activities, provide avenues for kids’ to continue this engagement by aiding their social and emotional learning development. A study conducted by the University of Utah the analyzes the relationship between OST settings, like summer camp participation, to understand the long-term effects on children’s personal growth in adult individuals that attended camp for at least three weeks in their youth.

Through a survey analysis of summer camp alumni, researchers evaluated the individuals’ responses to prompts pertaining to their summer camp importance and contribution to the development of their interpersonal and intrapersonal skills. The results of this analysis demonstrated strong indications between the two: Summer camps were found to be effective at developing independence, responsibility, and fostering social interactions between peers in individuals’ reports. Camps’ focus on community and group-based activities tended also strengthened campers’ foundational communication and teamwork skills.

Welcome back to Trivia Tuesday with UConn KIDS!

Last Week’s Question: What is it called when kids learn by watching others?

Last Week’s Answer: Observational Learning

 

This week’s questions is…

At what age range do kids partake in parallel play, a form of play where kids play in similar manners next to each other without directly engaging with one another?

a) 0-1 years

b) 2-3 years

c) 4-5 years

d) 6-7 years

Tune in next week for the answer!

How can we encourage kids to love learning from the inside out?

Intrinsic motivation starts early and grows when adults support children’s natural curiosity. Kids are naturally interested in exploring and learning about the world. When adults give them chances to play, explore, and try new things, children become motivated from their own interest instead of rewards.

Play is especially important because it is engaging and helps children learn from others. The article from Harvard also explains that adults should follow children’s lead during play. When adults notice what children are focused on and build learning around it, motivation increases. Children are also more motivated when learning includes social interaction. Playing and working with others helps them stay engaged. Giving children challenges that are not too easy and not too hard also supports motivation. When kids can succeed with effort, they are more likely to keep trying. The article also says children need some choice and control. When kids have a level of control, learning feels more meaningful. Praising effort and the process helps children stay motivated.

Click here to read more!

Grace Hoey

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Children react to the world around them in unique ways. David Rettew’s “Child Temperament: How We Start to Become Ourselves” examines how children’s temperament affects their social interactions and their response to challenges. He focuses on the concept of “goodness of fit,” the idea that a child develops best when their environment and caregivers respond appropriately to their individual temperament, demonstrating that while temperament shapes how children naturally interact with others and face challenges, supportive and responsive environments play a crucial role in its development. By recognizing and respecting kids’ innate reactions, parents, guardians, and educators alike can facilitate environments that encourage their children’s  through healthy emotional growth.

Watch the video below to learn more!

Chelsey Ko 

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

In honor of today being Earth Day, we’ve picked another article that takes a look at the reasons why it is beneficial for kids to spend time outdoors. Kids are spending more and more time indoors with the increase in technology and the increasing parental concerns about disease and danger. However, spending time outside in nature has significant health benefits to children and many researchers even consider it a necessity.

Kids that play outside are “smarter, happier, more attentive, and less anxious” than those that don’t. Spending time in the nature also teaches kids practical lessons, such as responsibility, confidence, and the power of creativity. With the reminder of Earth Day being today, it’s important for parents to emphasize the importance of spending time outside to their kids and encourage them to go outdoors and play!

Click here to read more!

Afrah Rafi

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Welcome back to Trivia Tuesday with UConn KIDS!

Last Week’s Question: Around what percentage of school-age children in the US have a learning disability?

Last Week’s Answer: 5%-15%

 

This week’s question is…

What is it called when kids learn by watching others?

A) Trial and Error

B) Habituation

C) Classical Conditioning

D) Observational Learning

Tune in next week for the answer!

Playing team sports has several benefits to children and aids in proper child development in many ways. Especially today, when children are tending to spend more time playing video games indoors than playing outdoors and rates of childhood obesity are on the rise, it’s important to know all the ways kids benefit from playing in outdoor team sports.

The physical benefits to kids playing in outdoor team sports are the most obvious. In addition to preventing obesity, lower risks of future illness such as heart disease, cancer, stroke, and diabetes are also linked to playing sports. Kids also benefit from better development of  bones, muscles, ligaments, and tendons, improved sleep, and “greater development of hand-eye coordination, functional movement skills, endurance, and strength.”

There are also psychological benefits to playing outdoor sports, such as lower stress levels, lower rates of anxiety and depression, and greater reported self-confidence and self-esteem. Playing in sports has also been linked to greater academic success for kids, as lower dropout rates and higher GPAs are correlated with playing team sports. There is also some research suggesting this manifests later in life as well, as kids who played sports see a 7-8% increase in annual earning compared to those who didn’t play sports.

Overall, it is clear that there are significant benefits to children that come with playing team sports, especially outdoor sports, during childhood. Having coaches that are supportive and positive mentors to kids is also crucial, and can greatly impact a child experience with playing sports.

Click here to read the full article!

Afrah Rafi

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

For scientists studying children and early language development, we are currently living in an exciting time for scientific discovery! With the popularization of technologies like phones and TVs, and the increasingly likelihood of children using and watching screens as early as infancy, scientists are trying to determine what effect screen time has on language development.

There is still much unknown about this topic, so this video by HELLO Lab showcases the different type of screen times (active vs passive) that your baby or child may be engaging in and how they can potentially impact language development. The concept of “parental technoference” is also explained, and how that may be having more of an effect than parents even realize!

Stay tuned for more HELLO Lab content and click here to watch the full video!

 

Afrah Rafi

UConn KIDS Research Assistant