When a woman is pregnant, we're often quick to laugh off her cravings for even the unhealthiest foods. However, pregnancy is a time to indulge in nutritionally dense sources of delicious food - and avoid unhealthy foods, as often as possible. Read on.

In a bid to promote breastfeeding, hospitals push to reduce formula feeding in infants in the days following their birth. But in a new study, the first to carry out a randomized trial, researchers show that giving small amounts of formula to newborns who lose a lot of weight in their first few days of life, can actually help prolong breastfeeding in the long term. Read on

Most new moms aim to breast-feed their babies - a practice encouraged by experts who tout the many health benefits of breast milk.

But breast milk is not perfect when it comes to vitamin D. A new study published Tuesday in a special edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association focusing on child health reiterates that breast-fed babies also need a vitamin D supplement. Read on.

When I was in graduate school, Bridget Swinney's book on infant feeding, "Baby Bites," was one of my textbooks for a course on pediatric nutrition. Later on in life, I returned to her book for help navigating the thorny waters of transitioning my own kids to solids. Read on.

A newborn's immune system development, vitamin D levels and risk for multiple sclerosis may be influenced by the month of birth, new research suggests.

A study conducted in London found that babies born in May have significantly lower levels of vitamin D and a potentially greater risk for developing MS than babies born in November. Multiple sclerosis is a disabling neurological condition that can lead to problems with vision, muscle control, hearing and memory. Read on.

Pregnant women who took daily supplements of DHA, a type of omega-3 fatty acid, had longer gestations, bigger babies and fewer early preterm births, according to a new clinical trial. Read on.

Caffeine consumption during pregnancy is linked to low birth weight babies as well as an overall increase in the length of gestation, reveals new research published in the journal BMC Medicine. Read on.

Babies born to women who take supplements of the B vitamin folic acid in early pregnancy are significantly less likely to develop autism, a developmental delay characterized by problems with communication and social interaction. The findings of a large Norwegian study reinforce those of other researchers that folic acid supplements are important to a healthy pregnancy.

Read the full article here.

A review of the existing evidence finds it to be inconclusive about whether omega-3 fatty acids taken by mothers during pregnancy boost their kids' brain development early in life. Read on.

A nutritional supplement called myo-inositol may help protect women at risk for gestational diabetes, according to a small pilot study. Read on.

No one knows what causes colic, the intense pain and stomach cramping that commonly begins in otherwise healthy infants at about a month and disappears a few months later. But now researchers have found a possible explanation: the kinds of microbes that inhabit babies' intestines. Read on.

Babies were less likely to get the itchy skin rash eczema when their mothers took probiotics during pregnancy and while breastfeeding, according to a study from Finland. Read on.

A new study announced this week suggests that women who consume the recommended daily dosage of folic acid during the first month of pregnancy may have a reduced risk of having a child with autism.

The study furthers the researchers' earlier investigations, which found that prenatal vitamins around the time of conception have a protective effect against autism, but this time researchers from the UC Davis MIND Institute sought to pinpoint folic acid's role.

The study found that women who consumed the daily recommended amount of folic acid -- 600 micrograms, or .6 milligrams -- during the first month of pregnancy experienced a reduced risk of having a child with autism. The study will be published in the July issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

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By New York Daily News, 06/18/2012

Despite evidence suggesting omega-3 fatty acids might help protect women from two serious pregnancy complications -- gestational diabetes and preeclampsia -- a new study found no significant differences in the rates of those problems among women who took fish oil pills and those who didn't.

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By Reuters, 06/06/2012

As a pediatric urologist, I know that, as The Times reported recently, the popular laxative Miralax isn't (gasp!) F.D.A.-approved for children. I still prescribe it daily. I believe Miralax's active ingredient (polyethylene glycol 3350, or PEG) is safe for kids. The problem isn't overuse in children; it's underuse.

Of course children should eat fruits and veggies instead of fries and chicken nuggets; Miralax is no solution to the constipating effects of junk food. But what folks don't realize is that along with childhood obesity, childhood constipation is epidemic. A stool-stuffed rectum, encroaching upon the bladder, is the main cause of bedwetting, accidents, urinary frequency and other stressful toilet troubles that I see in my practice.

If all kids took Miralax (not that I'm recommending this), I daresay bedwetting rates would be cut by half.

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By The New York Times, 06/01/2012