Behind the Headlines

Time-lapse technique may boost success rate of IVF

Friday May 17 2013

“IVF advance triples couples' chances of having a baby”, The Daily Telegraph reports. The innovation in question is actually based on an old imaging technique called time-lapse photography, where a camera is set to record a series of images…

No proof kids of lone parents are less intelligent

Friday May 3 2013

"Children brought up by two parents are more intelligent," is the baseless claim on the Mail Online website. The headline fails to acknowledge that the research the story is based on involved only mice...

Abnormal growth rate in womb linked to autism

Thursday May 2 2013

'Babies that are abnormally heavy or underweight are at 62% greater risk' of developing autism, reports the Daily Mail. The news is based on a large study of Swedish children with and without autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Researchers…

Have taller women evolved to have more babies?

Monday Apr 29 2013

“Taller, skinnier women have evolved to have more babies than their shorter counterparts,” the Mail Online website has claimed. It reports on research examining...

Negative parenting linked with kids being bullied

Friday Apr 26 2013

“Children who have overprotective parents are more likely to be bullied by their peers,” BBC News explains. The news correctly presents the findings of a major study on the effects of parenting on a child’s risk of being bullied, but it focuses…

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MMR catch-up campaign targets a million children

Thursday Apr 25 2013

The MMR vaccine should be given to all unvaccinated schoolchildren aged from 10 to16 as part of a national catch-up campaign, the government has announced. This MMR vaccination catch-up campaign aims to prevent further…

Does tough love work?

Friday Apr 19 2013

"Smacking does children no harm if they feel loved, study claims," The Daily Telegraph reports. The study in question was looking at the experiences of Mexican-American teenagers and how they reacted to physical punishment…

Can music help premature infants sleep and feed?

Tuesday Apr 16 2013

“Playing music to premature babies ‘helps them sleep and improves their breathing’” is the headline in the Daily Mail about research into the effects of ‘music therapy’ on premature babies. While positive effects were found, it is still unclear…

Report finds children's units lack 24/7 care

Friday Apr 12 2013

The Mail Online website warns that children’s hospital services are “not providing 24/7 care”, while The Guardian argues that “child services are spread too thinly”. The Independent makes the point that “Children [are] at risk until NHS units close”…

High UK child death rates unfairly blamed on GPs

Thursday Mar 28 2013

"Almost 2,000 British children a year die from 'avoidable' causes because family doctors lack training in paediatric care," The Independent alarmingly claims. The story comes from a review of health services for children across 15 countries...