School systems have long recognized the need for public support and participation, but now many districts are renewing their commitment to strengthen the ties with their communities. To build community support for schools that facilitates student achievement, school boards are developing communication strategies that routinely reach diverse…

The report by the President's Committee on Mental Retardation reviews the current state of knowledge in the area of biological and environmental prevention of mental retardation and describes programs on the frontiers of research or service delivery. Section I examines programs that are effectively preventing mental retardation through biomedical…

The conference proceedings on the prevention of mental retardation through improved maternity care consist of six major papers which are followed by panel discussions with two to five participants. Epidemiology of prematurity, topic of the first paper, is discussed in terms of cigarette smoking, asymptomatic bacertiuria, maternal heart volume,…

Background: Accumulating data from animal and human studies indicate that the prenatal environment plays a significant role in shaping children's neurocognitive development. Clinical, epidemiologic, and basic science research suggests that two experiences relatively common in pregnancy--an unhealthy maternal diet and psychosocial…

This report reviews the current conditions of New York's children. Topics include: (1) demographic conditions, trends and projections; (2) economic conditions; (3) child care; (4) education; (5) health and nutrition; (6) school-age pregnancy and child bearing; (7) alcohol and drug abuse; and (8) racial and ethnic group inequality. The report…

Inadequate nutrition will affect the birth weight of the infant and reduce the infant's chances for proper development and survival. (JD)

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder with poorly understood etiology. Many maternal exposures during pregnancy and breastfeeding potentially interfere with neurodevelopment. Using data from two age- and sex-matched case-control studies in Jamaica (n = 298 pairs), results of conditional logistic regression…

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is an epidemiologic surveillance system that was established by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to help monitor the prevalence of behaviors that not only influence youth health, but also put youth at risk for the most significant health and social problems that can occur during…

This analysis examined differences in health instruction among teachers of required health education classes or courses who had received or wanted staff development on health topics, teachers who had a degree in health education, and teachers who were Certified Health Education Specialists. Classroom-level data were collected from teachers of a…

The Domestic Task Force of the House Select Committee on Hunger met to hear testimony on women and hunger in Appalachia and on food assistance programs and legislation, including H.R. 2100, the 1985 farm bill. Introductory remarks by task force members outline the bill's food assistance provisions, which include increased funding for food stamp…

The purpose of the study was to find out the significance of health education strategies for coping with academic stress. Comprehensive health education strategies for coping with academic stress can help students obtain the greatest benefits from education and become healthy and productive adults .One child out of four has an emotional, social,…

We tested whether maternal vitamin D insufficiency during pregnancy is related to the autism phenotype. Serum 25(OH)-vitamin D concentrations of 929 women were measured at 18 weeks' pregnancy. The mothers of the three children with a clinical diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder had 25(OH)-vitamin D concentrations above the population mean.…

Objective: To evaluate whether early folic acid supplementation during pregnancy prevents diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders in offspring. Methods: Information on autism spectrum disorder diagnosis was obtained from the National Hospital Register and the Central Psychiatric Register. We estimated risk ratios for autism spectrum disorders for…

This bibliography of 2,414 journal articles provides health professionals and others with quick references on health and related issues of American Indians and Alaska Natives. The citations cover articles published in U.S. and Canadian medical and health-related journals between 1950 and 1988. Five sections deal with major health categories and…

The Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies survey conducted in spring 1985 drew responses from over 1,500 programs active in maternal and child health efforts directed toward low-income women and their families. The executive summary of this report identifies the major goals, common strategies, and needs of program respondents. Chapter 1 summarizes a…