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THURSDAY, Sept. 7, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- If you were a big baby -- or your spouse or partner was -- your baby has a good chance of being big, too.New research shows parents who were large babies are more likely to give birth to a large baby.Knowing this has the potential to improve prenatal care and interventions by identifying which pregnancies have higher risk of labor and delivery complications.To study this, researchers combined information on parents' birthweight to pregnancies they parented, over 50 years. Data on nearly 648,000 singleton births in Norway were included.Researchers defined macrosomia, the scientific word for a big baby, as 4,500 grams -- about 10 pounds.About 3.2% of parents in the study were big babies, compared to 4% of their offspring.Compared to both...

THURSDAY, Sept. 7, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common viral infection that affects people of all ages, with infants and older adults being particularly vulnerable to severe complications. Preventing the spread of RSV requires a multi-pronged approach that includes vaccination, good hygiene practices and public health initiatives. You may have seen recent reports about newly approved vaccines for RSV. One vaccine is approved for use between 32 and 36 weeks of pregnancy, to protect infants from birth through 6 months of age. There are also two RSV vaccines licensed for use in adults aged 60 years and older in the United States. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that adults 60 and older receive a single dose of RSV vaccine...

THURSDAY, Sept. 7, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- While it doesn't prevent infection altogether, new research shows the mpox vaccine does reduces the severity of disease in those who fall ill from the virus.An international team of scientists found that those people who had either mpox vaccination or a previous infection in 2022 had less severe disease. The researchers studied 38 mpox infections in 37 gay and bisexual men; among the group were eight reinfections and 30 that occurred after a complete vaccination course.Patients who had been vaccinated had fewer lesions, less disease of the mucous membranes of the mouth and genitals, and minimal need for pain medication or hospitalization. Researchers used what is called the Mpox-SSS score to assess symptom severity. The scoring system was...

WEDNESDAY, Sept. 6, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Just like adults, kids face daily stressors.Luckily, a new study suggests that teaching them creative thinking can help them manage it all.Researchers found that when school-age children learned some "narrative creativity" techniques -- such as shifting your perspective and imagining "what if" scenarios -- they quickly became better problem-solvers.After a week-long creativity camp, or even just a single lesson, kids showed more confidence in their ability to face life's daily problems and come up with a "plan B" when necessary.The study was small, based on 60 kids attending the same summer camp. But experts said the findings just make sense.When kids can think flexibly, they are less likely to "panic" in the face of challenge, said study...