November 25, 2025
(WSJ) – Chatbot maker Character[dot]AI is cutting off access, citing mental-health concerns. Teens are distraught: ‘I cried over it for days.’ Character.AI’s first version, launched in 2022, offered some of the earliest chatbots available to consumers. It quickly gained traction … Read More
November 21, 2025
(New York Times) – A previous version denied a link between vaccines and autism. It now echoes the doubts about that conclusion voiced by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website that previously … Read More
November 21, 2025
(The Guardian) – Exclusive: Clinical guidelines should change to avoid exposing young people to potentially harmful side-effects, researchers say In the UK, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) guidance says under-18s with moderate to severe depression can be … Read More
November 21, 2025
(Ars Technica) – ByHeart announced on Thursday that its own testing identified the bacterium that causes botulism in its baby formula, which is linked to an ongoing infant botulism outbreak that has doubled since last week. As of November 19, … Read More
November 20, 2025
(WSJ) – Powerful psychotropic drugs are often the next step, even though their combined effects in young children haven’t been studied closely. ‘I was living in a body hijacked by the medication.’ Tens of thousands of kids who take prescription … Read More
November 20, 2025
(Digital Detox) – Parents are spending serious money to fix their kids’ screen habits, turning to everything from one-on-one screen-time coaches to full-blown digital detox camps. These services are booming as many parents feel they’ve completely lost control over how … Read More
November 20, 2025
(AP) – They’re cute, even cuddly, and promise learning and companionship — but artificial intelligence toys are not safe for kids, according to children’s and consumer advocacy groups urging parents not to buy them during the holiday season. These toys, … Read More
November 19, 2025
(Wired) – Schools in the US are installing vape-detection tech in bathrooms to thwart student nicotine and cannabis use. A new investigation reveals the impact of using spying to solve a problem. Public records obtained by The 74 from a … Read More
November 17, 2025
(Wired) – Deliriants like Benadryl can bring on terrifying hallucinations in high doses. Some Gen Z-ers are taking at least a dozen pills at a time—and challenging others to do the same. When used in high doses, diphenhydramine, an ingredient … Read More
November 10, 2025
Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics (vol. 46, no. 5, 2025) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
November 3, 2025
(Nature) – In a world first, a bespoke gene-editing therapy benefited one child. Now researchers plan to launch a clinical trial of the approach. Late last year, dozens of researchers spanning thousands of miles banded together in a race to … Read More
October 31, 2025
(New York Times) – Why are so many families in Lehigh Valley losing custody of their children? When Neary investigated the doctor’s past, she found a history of similar complaints spanning three decades and multiple states. Her reporting examined court … Read More
October 30, 2025
(Undark) – Cannabidiol is sold as safe, but animal studies show that it can interfere with adolescent brain development. Usually derived from the hemp plant, CBD is pitched as a calming remedy with none of the stigma of marijuana. Even … Read More
October 29, 2025
(NPR) – Teens who start using cannabis before age 15 are more likely to use the drug often later in their lives. They are also more likely to develop mental and physical health problems in young adulthood compared to their … Read More
October 29, 2025
Hastings Center Report (vol. 55, Issue 4, 2025) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
October 24, 2025
(Medpage Today) – Here’s what concerns me most as a clinician: the absurdity of the notion that an artificially generated, non-sentient avatar could be a reasonable companion for a child or teen. It goes against everything we know about developmental … Read More
October 23, 2025
(WSJ) – An amended complaint from the parents of Adam Raine, a 16-year-old who died by suicide, alleges the changes were part of a push to increase engagement OpenAI twice loosened ChatGPT’s rules for discussing suicide in the year before … Read More
October 22, 2025
(Science) – Prophylactic use of azithromycin saves vulnerable children’s lives, but could trigger antibiotic resistance In some of the most remote and impoverished areas of the world, as many as one in 10 children die before their fifth birthday. The … Read More
October 21, 2025
(NPR) – For years, parents were told not to expose their babies to peanuts, to prevent a potentially dangerous allergy. But 10 years ago, a landmark study found the opposite to be true, stating that if babies consume peanut products … Read More
October 20, 2025
(AP) – Meta is adding parental controls for kids’ interactions with artificial intelligence chatbots — including the ability to turn off one-on-one chats with AI characters altogether — beginning early next year. But parents won’t be able to turn off … Read More
October 17, 2025
(NBC News) – As measles keeps popping up in some pockets of the United States, the possibility of being exposed to the highly contagious virus continues. At least 1,596 measles cases have been confirmed in 2025, according to data from … Read More
October 16, 2025
(NBC News) – New research found that gene therapy for children with a form of severe combined immunodeficiency was successful in 95% of trial participants. Scientists have identified about 20 gene variants that cause SCID. Eliana’s form of the disease, … Read More
October 15, 2025
European Journal of Human Genetics (vol. 33, no. 9, 2025) is available online by subscription only. Articles include:
October 14, 2025
(NPR) – Preteens using increasing amounts of social media perform poorer in reading, vocabulary and memory tests in early adolescence compared with those who use no or little social media. That’s according to a new study that suggests a link … Read More
October 13, 2025
(Aeon) – The convergence of singular talent and profound disability confounded scientists eager to place humans into neat categories To use the language of the 19th century, how could a person be at once both a ‘genius’ and an ‘idiot’? … Read More
