the more things are hyped, the more they aren't worth the time wasted on it?

[acroyear]

Experts Change Advice on Kids' Allergies - washingtonpost.com:

Breast-feeding helps prevent babies' allergies, but there's no good evidence for avoiding certain foods during pregnancy, using soy formula or delaying introduction of solid foods beyond six months. That's the word from the American Academy of Pediatrics, which is updating earlier suggestions that may have made some parents feel like they weren't doing enough to prevent food allergies, asthma and allergic rashes.

In August 2000, the doctors group advised mothers of infants with a family history of allergies to avoid cow's milk, eggs, fish, peanuts and tree nuts while breast-feeding.

That advice, along with a recommended schedule for introducing certain risky foods, left some moms and dads blaming themselves if their children went on to develop allergies.

"They say, 'I shouldn't have had milk in my coffee,'" said Dr. Scott Sicherer of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine's Jaffe Food Allergy Institute in New York. "I've been saying, 'We don't really have evidence that it causes a problem. Don't be on a guilt trip about it.'"

Sicherer helped write the new guidance report for pediatricians, published in the January issue of the journal Pediatrics. Earlier advice about restricting certain foods from moms' and babies' diets has been tossed out and the only surefire advice remaining is to breast-feed.

Kinda goes hand-in-hand with the recent revelation that there's no such thing as the "Mozart Effect", at least as far as IQ scores go.

Of course, there's more to academic and professional success besides the mere IQ score.  Whether extended/complex music in early chlidhood impacts concentration skills or long-term memory, neither of which are covered in the typical Mensa thingy but are critical to success in our society, is not really addressed by the hype.  The hassle of not having an objective criteria for success we can all agree on...

Comments

[stori-lundi.livejournal.com]

It's a wonder we all survived past infancy. Granted, I wasn't breast-fed and I have allergies. My sister was and she's super skinny but inherited my mother's IBS. She's also gets pneumonia at the drop of a hat. Go fig.

And I swear, with all the restrictions placed on pregnant women, it's a wonder they can eat anything at all.

what to feed a baby

[petricat666.livejournal.com]

Okay, this is so bizarre, but I'm reading about the glorious revolution and it talks about the various illnesses of Prince James Francis Edward (the old pretender). Apparently the doctors were convinced that if the baby was given to a wet nurse that the breast milk would kill him,so they put him on a diet of soaked bread...as a newborn. Within two months they almost killed the baby and Queen Mary of Modena put her foot down and insisted on a wet nurse. The wet nurse did her job and the baby immediately recovered.

[motherwell.livejournal.com]

As long as nobody finds any evidence of a "Salieri Effect," I'll be content.

[xpioti.livejournal.com]

Thinking back on it, we started introducing Stage 1 foods to Her Benevolence at 2 months of age. And it was good that we did, because I sure wasn't producing enough to fill her up. Having gestational diabetes wound up being a blessing in disguise, because someone finally gave me a list of things that I should eat and it what proportions. Finally finding the FDA's listing of the amount of mercury in various fishes was also a relief; I like some fish, but can never remember what's low in mercury. (FWIW, of the three types of salmon, the one for pregnant women is wild Alaskan salmon.)

I'm inclined to think that nutrition and nurturing has more impact than music on concentration skills and long-term memory; I know I feel more focused and remember better when I'm well-fed and well-rested. And a well-fed, well-rested toddler is less prone to acting like a deranged lunatic. :)