Report: Autism Rate Rises to 1 in 40 Children

A new government study finds that roughly 1 in 40 American children has autism, a huge jump from the previous estimate of 1 in every 59 children.

The survey asked parents of more than 43,000 children between the ages of 3 and 17 whether or not their children had ever been diagnosed with autism or an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and whether the child in question still struggled with an ASD.

More >> Report: Autism Rate Rises to 1 in 40 Children

Youngest Children In A Class Are Most Likely To Get ADHD Diagnosis

The youngest children in a school class are most likely to be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, when in fact their comparatively fidgety behavior may be due to their relative immaturity, according to a study published online Wednesday.

Scientists from Harvard University probed the way ADHD is assessed by taking advantage of a quirk found in many U.S. school systems: There's a Sept. 1 cutoff for enrolling in kindergarten. That means children born in August get in just under the wire, while children with September birthdays have had to wait until the following school year to enroll.

More >> Youngest Children In A Class Are Most Likely To Get ADHD Diagnosis

‘It’s discrimination:’ Father calls 7-year-old’s questioning by police over CBD oil ‘an interrogation’

A 7-year-old was questioned by police at school because of suspected cannabidoil (CBD) use on Tuesday, Nov. 20 in West Bend. The boy's father runs "Laughing Grass Hemp" in West Allis. He said he's upset his son was questioned because CBD oil is completely legal.

"He had a debilitating, deadly seizure disorder," said Matthew Wetzel.

More >> ‘It’s discrimination:’ Father calls 7-year-old’s questioning by police over CBD oil ‘an interrogation’

School with high vaccine exemptions has N.C.'s worst chickenpox outbreak since 1995

A chickenpox outbreak at a private school now ranks as the state's largest since a vaccine for the virus became available more than 20 years ago, health officials say.

As of Friday, 36 students at Asheville Waldorf School had contracted the varicella virus, known to most as chickenpox. The school has one of the highest vaccination religious exemption rates in North Carolina.

More >> School with high vaccine exemptions has N.C.'s worst chickenpox outbreak since 1995

Family believes bullying, ADHD medication played role in 9-year-old girl's suicide

The parents of a 9-year-old Alabama girl who took her own life believe that bullying and ADHD medication played a role in her death.

According to AL.com, Madison “Maddie” Whittsett, of Birmingham, was pronounced dead at Children’s of Alabama Monday morning. The Friday before, her mother found her hanging in her bedroom closet.

More >> Family believes bullying, ADHD medication played role in 9-year-old girl's suicide

RFK Jr. Wins Case Against Government For Vaccine Safety Violations

Robert F. Kennedy Jr teamed up with Del Bigtree of the Informed Consent Action Network to take on the Department of Health and Human Services for vaccine safety violations and they have won. Their lawsuit has brought forth evidence that vaccine safety has been neglected for over 30 years, and as we know it is nothing but a sham, showing that the government agencies we are to trust are not doing their jobs to ensure and improve the safety of immunizations.

More >> RFK Jr. Wins Case Against Government For Vaccine Safety Violations

Police: Third preschool worker arrested for not reporting the drugging of children

Pennsylvania police have arrested a third preschool worker after it was discovered the employee knew the owner was putting sleeping pills in children's lunches, a criminal complaint said.

According to authorities, Janie Hersh was arrested and charged Wednesday for failing to report as a mandated reporter and disorderly conduct.

More >> Police: Third preschool worker arrested for not reporting the drugging of children

Profiteers of Misery: Parents slam health fat cats in UK and US who are raking in as much as £730,000 annually for every autistic child they ‘lock up’ in secretive secure psychiatric units

A cluster of ‘fat cat’ private operators is creaming off hundreds of millions of pounds from the NHS after muscling in on the cruel but lucrative trade in locking up people with autism and learning disabilities.

More >> Profiteers of Misery: Parents slam health fat cats in UK and US who are raking in as much as £730,000 annually for every autistic child they ‘lock up’ in secretive secure psychiatric units

THIS SCIENTIST RAISED HIS BABY SON WITH A BABY CHIMP

Dr. Winthrop Niles Kellogg set his son, Donald, and his adopted daughter, Gua, in front of a movie camera. The psychologist wanted to capture a memory of the two babies, Donald in a white onesie and leather shoes, Gua in a diaper and similar shoes. The vignette in sunny Florida might have been cute, except that Donald was a human and Gua was a chimpanzee, and they were both subjects in Kellogg’s experiment.

More >> THIS SCIENTIST RAISED HIS BABY SON WITH A BABY CHIMP

Mother fights to have son removed from chemotherapy after clean bill of health

A mother on Long Island is fighting to have her son removed from chemotherapy treatment after he was given a clean bill of health by doctors.

Candace Gundersen's son, Nick Gundersen, 13, is receiving court-ordered chemotherapy at NYU Winthrop Hospital in Mineola. He's now in the custody of Suffolk County Child Protective Services.

More >> Mother fights to have son removed from chemotherapy after clean bill of health

Rise in melatonin use to help children sleep leads to safety warning

Tens of thousands of children and young people are being given the hormone melatonin to help them sleep, prompting concern that the medicine is being handed out too readily with little evidence of its effectiveness and safety in long-term use.

Melatonin, a hormone the body produces naturally in reaction to darkness and which helps prepare us for sleep, has been authorised for use among the over-55s, and has been hailed as a less addictive alternative to drug treatments for insomnia.

More >> Rise in melatonin use to help children sleep leads to safety warning