"A Colorado woman whose son died from a fentanyl-laced pill he bought through social media celebrated a pair of verdicts this week against Meta and YouTube that she said opened the door for companies to be held responsible for harms to children using their platforms."
https://apnews.com/article/social-media-verdicts-children-meta-youtube-snapchat-db4a02be92ac1837461873e27be7cf77
#PublicHealth #SocialMedia #Meta #YouTube #MentalHealth #ChildrensHealth #courts
Woman whose son died from drugs bought on social media celebrates verdicts against Meta, YouTube
A Colorado woman whose son died from a fentanyl-laced pill he bought through social media is celebrating a pair of verdicts this week against Meta and YouTube. Kimberly Osterman says the verdicts in California and New Mexico open the door for social media companies to be held responsible for harms to children using their platforms. Osterman's son, Max, died in 2021 at age 18 after he purchased the drugs from a dealer on Snapchat. She says “the infinite scrolling lured him in” and the companies “put profits over safety.” She hopes to see strict guardrails such as age verification enacted to prevent minors from accessing the platforms.
"Doctors across the nation are alarmed that skepticism fueled by rising anti-science sentiment and medical mistrust is increasingly reaching beyond vaccines to other proven, routine, preventive care for babies...'Nature will allow 1 in 5 human infants to die in the first year of life,' Hill said, 'which is why generations of scientists and doctors have worked to bring that number way, way down.'"
https://apnews.com/article/babies-newborns-pediatricians-vitamin-k-hepatitis-b-erythromycin-9126463f0cb38b9778fb77bc0d071776
#healthcare #PublicHealth #ChildrensHealth #prevention #misinformation
New parents are shunning proven preventive care for their infants in effort to be 'natural'
Doctors across the nation are alarmed that skepticism fueled by rising anti-science sentiment and medical mistrust is increasingly reaching beyond vaccines to other safe and routine care for babies. A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that refusals of vitamin K shots rose steeply between 2017 and 2024. Those shots can prevent potentially deadly bleeding. A subsequent research review found that U.S. parents who declined vitamin K shots were 90 times more likely to also refuse the hepatitis B vaccine and an eye ointment that can prevent potentially blinding infections. Pediatricians say these refusals put their youngest patients at grave risk.
Simona Martin: Colorado’s data center boom needs public health guardrails
As AI infrastructure expands across the state, lawmakers face a choice about who bears the costs and risks.
Scotland becomes first part of UK to screen newborns for spinal muscular atrophy
Campaigners hope pilot will result in heel prick test for rare condition being approved across Britain
"Tooth decay can begin very early in a child’s life. If five states ban fluoride in drinking water, the costs to Medicaid for a significant increase in kids with cavities could top $40 million within three years, a new analysis finds."
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/kids-health/fluoride-ban-kids-cavities-medicaid-costs-millions-study-rcna264070
#PublicHealth #OralHealth #dental #tooth #ToothDecay #fluoride #ChildrensHealth #medicaid #CDC
If states ban fluoride, kids with cavities and Medicaid costs could spike, study finds
If five states ban fluoride in drinking water, the costs to Medicaid for a significant increase in kids with cavities could top $40 million within three years, a new analysis finds.
"While some families were deported, others have been released back into the country. As of this week, 53 children and 49 parents were being held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center, the federal government’s only detention center for families, according to internal government figures reviewed by The New York Times."
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/20/us/children-ice-detention-decrease.html
#PublicHealth #immigration #ICE #DHS #detention #deportation #ChildrensHealth #families
ICE Released Hundreds of Children from Immigration Detention
About 50 children were in federal detention in Dilley, Texas this week, down from about 500 in January. It is unclear how many were deported, but some are back at their U.S. schools.
ZM95S particulate protective mask children XXS size KN95 (Mask with frame) - Protective Masks
Mask with frame, direct wear and use, XXS size, KN95 grade, filtration efficiency 98%, inhalation resistance 100pa The frame can be reused, the same size of filter element can be purchased to assembly The straps are adjustable, headloop and earloop, making them suitable for kiddie Skin-friendly, soft and comfortable wearing experience MRI Safe The average delivery time is 8-15 days
Three-quarters of nine-month-olds in England have ‘daily screen time’
Study showed average time on screens each day was 41 minutes, with some watching more than three hours a day
Little nurses: what happens when children take care of sick and disabled relatives?
About 5 million US minors tend ill relatives due to gaps in our health infrastructure
Bich Nguyen
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