Filed under: Just For Moms, Pregnancy & Birth, Medical Conditions, In The News

Even crackers won’t help severe morning sickness, and a new study says it’s in your genes. Credit: meddygarnet, Flickr

When you’re bent over with nausea and clutching your belly bump, don’t blame your wee one for your misery — scientists have found a link between the severity of your morning sickness and that of your own mother.

BBC News reports that a study by Norwegian researchers indicates that pregnant women are three times more likely to suffer from severe morning sickness if their mothers did, as well.

Hyperemesis gravidarum, or excessive nausea and vomiting in pregnancy, affects about 2 percent of all pregnant women, and can sometimes even require hospitalization. The Norwegian study, which looked at 2.3 million births, showed that women whose mothers had the condition are three times more likely to suffer from it, as well. The results could help women know their risk for the disease.

Hyperemesis is very different from typical morning sickness, which generally disappears after the first trimester. Instead, moms who suffer from it have excessive nausea that begins before the 22nd week of pregnancy and, in its most serious form, can lead to dangerous health conditions including dehydration and weight loss.

It’s also the most common reason that pregnant women are admitted to the hospital early. Hyperemesis also takes the blame for some babies with low birth weights, and even premature birth. Researchers tell BBC News that previous studies asserted tha the condition was caused by psychological issues.

The study, published in the British Medical Journal, also revealed that mom and daughter may share lifestyle risk factors that contribute to the condition.

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Filed under: Kids 5-7, Kids 8-11, Teens & Tweens, Education

Sweet specs. Image courtesy of fuseproject

Kids who can’t see properly don’t do well in school, but disadvantaged kids can’t afford glasses. And, in Mexico, kids who wear glasses are considered handicapped.

No problemo.

In Mexico, where half a million new children who need corrective eyeglasses enter the school system each year, a new program will help them see clearly. “See Better to Learn Better” will provide free, stylish glasses to underprivileged students ages 6 to 18 in the country, according to a press release. A collaboration between the Mexican government, industrial design firm fuseproject and Augen Optics, the goal of the program is to annually give away 300,000 pairs of glasses designed specifically for kids, free of charge, Fast Company reports.

Here’s how it works: Local and visiting optometrists visit schools and test the children, then they order the glasses from a factory and, a few weeks later, the personalized glasses are delivered to students.

These aren’t any ordinary glasses, either. The top and bottom of the frame is split, which makes it easier to place the lenses inside the frame without the usual (and expensive) heating process. The nearly unbreakable split frame is not only cheaper, but it allows kids to choose different colors for the top and bottom pieces, which makes for custom, stylish specs. Kids can choose from five different frames in three sizes and in seven different colors.

Fuseproject, which designed the One Laptop Per Child XO Laptop for the One Laptop Per Child foundation, partnered with Mexico-based Augen to manufacture the glasses, which was 50 percent less expensive than importing frames.

“This project follows our philosophy that design should continue to make a difference beyond the commercial world, and that nonprofits do need emotional appeal and efficient solutions just as much as for?profit companies. Design can make a tremendous difference and we believe this is a responsibility that the industrial profession carries: to bring transformative solutions,” Béhar says in a press release.

Related: Get Ready to Express Yourself in Madonna’s New Juniors’ Fashion Line

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Filed under: Teens & Tweens, In The News, Education

Newark police try to contain hundreds of students from a University High School march chanting “Christie has to go.” One officer estimated the crowd of students to be 500. Credit: Andrew Mills, The Star-Ledger

New Jersey high school students took a lesson in civil disobedience today when thousands walked out of class to protest Gov. Chris Christie’s proposed education cuts, the Star-Ledger reports.

The walkout was organized on a Facebook page, where more than 16,000 students signed up to participate.

“Phone calls, texts, Twitter, Facebook, everything,” says Malcolm X. Shabazz high school senior Donald Jackson, 17 who was leading a march of fellow students. “We’re protesting budget cuts, cuts in lunch, after school programs, it has to stop.”

College student Michelle Ryan Lauto, 18, who went to high school in New Jersey, set up the Facebook event page about a month ago encouraging the walkouts. She tells the Star-Ledger she finds it “disturbing” that her little sister may go through a school system far different than that one she did.

“I think the best outcome would be for the students to be in school and find a way to protest outside of school hours,” says Steve Wollmer, a spokesman for the New Jersey Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union.

Related: Megan Fox, Brian Austin Green Star in Video Protesting School Budget Cuts in California

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• ISBN13: 9780399534300
• Condition: USED – VERY GOOD
• Notes:

Product Description
From one of the top parenting websites—a comprehensive naming guide featuring the unique Babynames.com popularity ratings.

Forget those traditional lists of names and their meanings—in guiding readers step-by-step through the naming process, as well as the seven things to consider, this book will help parents decide upon a name perfectly suited to their child and family. The only baby name book to draw upon the opinions of 1.2 million parents, eac… More >>

The One-in-a-Million Baby Name Book: The BabyNames.com Guide to Choosing the Best Name for Your New Arrival

Filed under: Just For Moms, Just For Dads, Playground Bureau, Education, Extreme Childhood

You tweet, they are listening. Credit: Getty Images

Twitter: What Not to Do: If you are a Twitter newbie then you’ll want to get a quick handle on what NOT to do when engaging in Twitter. Here is a (brief) run down: Don’t tweet out anything that could get you fired or hurt your professional reputation. Remember — tweets are public. People are watching. Please act accordingly. HybridMom

Runaway Moms: Could You Be Next?: While my escapist fantasies don’t include Miami Beach or a guy with a mullet and a goatee — or any guy, for that matter — nor do they include faking my own abduction and scaring the crap out of my husband, kids, family, and friends. They do exist. The Stir

10 Things I Hate About Motherhood (And One That I Love): The reality is, none of us can paint an entirely clear picture of the reality of motherhood, because the reality of motherhood defies tidy characterization. Her Bad Mother

Why I Unschooled My Three Kids: Some people home school because they think schools teach too little and control too much. I don’t mind my kids learning things schools fear to teach, or having choices in their lives. Practicing on small things gave them knowledge and experience when they were old enough to practice on larger things. Some families home school to limit their children’s access and freedom. For us, it’s the opposite. Momlogic

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