Court: Woman Can Sue for Emotional Distress of Carrying an Unwanted Down Syndrome Baby

Posted on June 23, 2016

A Michigan appeals court ruled that a woman who got pregnant after having her Fallopian tubes blocked can get financial damages in a medical malpractice claim to compensate her for the emotional distress of knowing she would deliver a child with Down Syndrome.

The Appellate Court denied Lori Cichewicz‘s claim for the costs of raising a child with Down Syndrome but said she can seek compensation for the stress associated with the unplanned pregnancy like any medical malpractice claim.

Cichewicz said her doctor assured by her that her Fallopian tubes were blocked and she didn’t need to use birth control. But she became pregnant and gave birth to a daughter in 2011. It is another of those rare cases of of so-called wrongful conception.

The court ruled 3-0 in her favor. The lawsuit now returns to Oakland County Circuit Court.

h/t Detroit News

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New Birth Control Apps Help Women Skip Doctors; Teens Avoid Disapproving Parents

Posted on June 22, 2016

There are 40 million cases of unintended pregnancies in the U.S. each year yet access to birth control remains a very highly controversial political topic. And now there are at least 6 ventures or private companies (including Planned Parenthood)that have released desktop or mobile apps that enable women to get birth control without a doctor’s prescription.

The apps only require users to answer questions about their health online or by video. All of the apps prescribe birth control pills, and some prescribe patches, rings and morning-after pills. Some ship contraceptives directly to women’s doors.

The app makers only have to follow state telemedicine laws and are not tied by federal regs and ongoing political wrangling.

Some of the apps, like web-based Nurx and mobile app Lemonaid, accept insurance, including Medicaid for women with low incomes; some charge modest fees. Some send prescriptions to local pharmacies, where women can present their insurance information when picking up the contraceptives, the New York Times reports.

The apps are said to eliminate the time and cost for some women to go to the doctors.

The apps also enable teens to get around their family doctor and having their parents find out they are having sex. No more intimidating or embarrassing trips to the clinic when your mom thinks you’re going to the movies. Whoa!

While these are great for convenience for many women, we can easily see where some parents may oppose these apps. They really do cut the parent out of the equation. Even if a mom or dad has opened up a clear path of communication, a lot of teen girls simply will not feel comfortable going to a parent for birth control.

And there is the case of a 15-year old girl whose mom did approve but was turned down when the family doctor told them “oh you don’t need to be doing that.”

There are some great anecdotal interviews with women who benefit from these apps in a NYT piece that was released today. Check it out there.

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New Calls to Take Down Kid As Captain Hook Eaten By An Alligator Costume

Posted on June 22, 2016

There is new backlash over an old popular DIY Halloween costume of a kid being eaten by an alligator. The costume is a novelty take off of a scene from the popular children’s classic Peter Pan where Captain Hook‘s hand gets eaten by an alligator.

However, given the death of a two-year old child who was snagged and dragged underwater by an alligator in a Walt Disney World resort hotel in Orlando, Florida, some are calling for sites that sell similar costumes to pull them.

A website called Instructables, for example, shows visitors how to make a DIY version of the costume.

The concern is over the insensitivity of the costume going forward although previously, that costume was probably looked upon as a funny and harmless.

Also, the new calls have to do with American sensibilities. Sadly, it is not new for a child to be killed by an alligator in recent years. Before this Orlando tragedy, last May 2015, a 7 year old child chasing a balloon in Mexico was eaten by an alligator that jumped out of the swamp and pulled the child into the water.

In 2009, in Australia a 5-year old boy was eaten by an alligator when the boy ran into a creek to try to coax his puppy out. Alligators aren’t the only dangerous animals. In 2014, a 2-year old child was mauled to death and eaten by a new mama pig protecting its piglets from the boy.

It’s almost certain that we may see a few insensitive adults in this costume this Halloween.

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Awww! Among the 72 New Emojis Released today is a Pregnant Lady Emoji

Posted on June 21, 2016

Last May, Yahoo news reports that the Unicode Consortium — a little-known Mountain View, California-based organization that standardizes characters and emoji across all the different operating systems — voted to release a batch of 74 brand new pictographs, including a wilted flower, bacon, and a symbol for the word “selfie.”

People who are trying to conceive and planning families will now have a pregnant woman emoji option now too! Woo hoo! It made the cut.

Though, to be fair, current 2nd time mom-to-be to the newest Kardashian, Blac Chyna released it first as part of her Chymoji Emoji app options.

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The new Unicode Emojis were released today and people are most excited about all the new food options including bacon!

!!!!!they’re releasing a bacon emoji today!!!!!
— Lauren Lux (@laurennleighh) June 21, 2016

FINALLY THERE WILL BE A #BACONEMOJI! ? https://t.co/LVZwwpTGbp #emojis #yas #JimmyFallon pic.twitter.com/MpzwEgelUR — Cherry Ocean (@CherryOcean_) June 21, 2016

Sadly, to make room for more, we lost some.

The taco is no more. Why? I don’t know. I’m sad because what will I use to express Taco Tuesday now? No fair!

We suppose because of the recent mass shooting violence, they removed the rifle. Though, the pistol is still there so…. shrug

And as an avid selfie taker, I thought it was so cool to see the Selfie emjoi make its debut. Finally!

Sadly, still no red hair emoji! Sorry gingers. 🙁

Are redheads considered just as dangerous as rifles or is there another reason we still don’t have our emojis?
— Rachel Schallom (@rschallom) June 21, 2016

Are you excited for the new emojis too?

Here’s the complete list:

Rolling On The Floor Laughing

Face With Cowboy Hat

Clown Face

Lying Face

Drooling Face

Nauseated Face

Sneezing Face

Prince

Mother Christmas

Man In Tuxedo

Shrug

Face Palm

Pregnant Woman

Man Dancing

Selfie

Hand With Index And Middle Fingers Crossed

Call Me Hand

Left-Facing Fist

Right-Facing Fist

Raised Back Of Hand

Handshake

Black Heart

Gorilla

Fox Face

Deer

Rhinoceros

Bat

Eagle

Duck

Owl

Lizard

Shark

Shrimp

Squid

Butterfly

Wilted Flower

Kiwifruit

Avocado

Potato

Carrot

Cucumber

Peanuts

Croissant

Baguette Bread

Pancakes

Bacon

Stuffed Flatbread

Egg

Shallow Pan Of Food

Green Salad

Glass of Milk

Clinking Glasses

Tumbler Glass

Spoon

Octagonal

Scooter

Motor Scooter

Canoe

First Place Medal

Second Place Medal

Third Place Medal

Boxing Glove

Martial Arts Uniform

Person Doing Cartwheel

Wrestlers

Water Polo

Handball

Fencer

Goal Net

Juggling

Drum With Drumsticks

Shopping Trolley

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NBA Finals: 5 Dad Moments Happened During The Series

Posted on June 20, 2016

Congratulations to the Cleveland Cavaliers for coming from behind 3-1 in a 7-game NBA Finals series to win. It happened on Father’s Day. Throughout the season there have been emotional moments related to dads.

1. Today, most people are talking about J.R. Smith, known as a bad boy in the NBA, who cried while giving an emotional tribute to his parents. After the tear-filled remarks before the NBA press corp, Smith rose and gave his dad a heartfelt hug.

I cried. He got a standing ovation. It was moving.

2. In a more funny interview, an on-the-court correspondent asked Smith’s daughter, Demi, if she is happy to see his dad play in the finals. She said, “I’m just proud of him because he made the championship without getting kicked off the team.” It’s hilarious because Smith had been kicked off of several teams before and his daughter was just keeping it real.

“I’m just proud of him because he made the championship without getting kicked off the team” — J.R. Smith’s daughter pic.twitter.com/Kgm5512m3x
— Kenny Ducey (@KennyDucey) June 16, 2016

3. Steph Curry is known for taking his daughter Riley to the post-game press conference and we saw game MVP LeBron James adorable youngest child, 18-month old daughter Zhurie, in his arms during his interview. She is soo cute. His wife Savannah Brinson James welcomed her in October 2014.

4. On a down note, Steph Curry reported that his dad was detained by police in Cleveland before game 6 and mistaken for a con-man and not let into the stadium on suspicion that he stole his backstage access.

5. Also, prior to game 7, Mychal Thompson expressed to ESPN that he feared LeBron James would rob his son Klay Thompson of experiencing his first NBA finals similar to how Mychal did while a champion with the L.A. Lakers in the 90s. Well… we know how that ended. 😮

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Father’s Day: Meet the Modern Millennial Dad (INFOGRAPHIC)

Posted on June 19, 2016

Happy Father’s Day!

Today, there are 70.1 million dads in the United States. Of those, about 1.4 million are stay-at-home dads. Imagine that compared to decades ago. Also, about 1.4 million men are single dads and the sole caregiver to their children.

The modern dad certainly is different. Want to explore some stats about what else makes up the attributes of the “modern dad”? Enjoy this Infographic courtesy of the folks at Giftagram on–demand gifting app, Giftagram (free on iOS and Android).

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Dads Who Work: Do you Live in the Top 10 Best or Worst State for Working Fathers?

Posted on June 17, 2016

With Father’s Day approaching and nearly 93 percent of dads with kids younger than 18 in the labor force, the leading personal-finance website WalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of the Best & Worst States for Working Dads.

In order to help dads balance their dual role as parent and provider, WalletHub analyzed the work-life balance, health conditions, financial well-being and child-rearing environments for working dads in the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.Wallet Hub did so using 20 key metrics, which range from day care quality to male life expectancy.

Best States for Working Dads		Worst States for Working Dads
1	Minnesota	42	New Mexico
2	Connecticut	43	Georgia
3	Vermont	44	Alabama
4	Massachusetts	45	Idaho
5	New Jersey	46	South Carolina
6	Wisconsin	47	Louisiana
7	Iowa	48	Mississippi
8	Kansas	49	West Virginia
9	Virginia	50	Alaska
10	North Dakota	51	Nevada

Comparing The Best & Worst

Virginia has the highest median income for families – dad present – with kids younger than 18, at $100,738 – which is two times higher than the state with the lowest, Hawaii, at $51,160.

Nevada has the highest unemployment rate for dads with kids younger than 18, 7.95%, which is seven times higher than in North Dakota, the state with the lowest rate: 1.20%.

New Mexico has the highest percentage of kids younger than 18 with dad present living in poverty, 21.28%, which is four times higher than in New Hampshire, the state with the lowest, 5.36%.

Texas has the highest male uninsured rate, 22.9%, which is five times higher than in Massachusetts, the state with the lowest, 4.9%.

Alabama has the highest heart disease mortality rate among males, 267.8, which is two times higher than in Minnesota, the state with the lowest, 147.

Florida has the highest child care costs adjusted for median family income, 13.32%, which is two times higher than in Mississippi, the state with the lowest, 5.82%.

For the full report and to see where your state ranks, please visit:

http://wallethub.com/edu/best–and-worst-states-for-working–dads/134

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STUDY: Folic Acid Taken During Pregnancy Lower’s Baby Childhood Obesity Risk

Posted on June 16, 2016

Pregnant women should take folic acid, a B vitamin, during pregnancy to prevent neural tube defects in their babies. Now a new study, in JAMA Pediatrics, has found that sufficient folic acid during pregnancy may reduce the risk for obesity in children.

Researchers studied 1,517 mother-child pairs, measuring the mothers’ folic acid blood levels at delivery and following the children through average age 6. After controlling for other variables in both mother and child, they found that compared with those mothers who had folic acid levels in the highest three-quarters, those with levels in the lowest one-quarter had a 45 percent higher risk for obesity in their children.

Continue reading

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New Sleep Recommendations for Kids are Out

Posted on June 14, 2016

Kids who don’t get enough sleep are at risk for a whole range of mental and physical woes, including some potentially serious health issues. New sleep guidelines for babies, school-age children and teens, released Monday, outline just how many hours of sleep kids need at every age in order to help them be at their best.

The American Academy of Pediatrics is lending its backing to the recommendations developed by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

Here’s the lowdown on how much sleep kids need at different ages, according to a consensus group of 13 sleep medicine experts and researchers who developed the recommendations:

Infants 4 to 12 months – 12 to 16 hours of sleep every 24 hours (including naps).
Children 1 to 2 years – 11 to 14 hours of sleep every 24 hours (includingnaps).
Children 3 to 5 years – 10 to 13 hours of sleep every 24 hours (including naps).
Children 6 to 12 years – 9 to 12 hours of sleep every 24 hours.
Teens 13 to 18 years – 8 to 10 hours of sleep every 24 hours.

Recommendations for babies younger than 4 months aren’t included because there is such a wide range of what’s normal when it comes to sleep patterns in newborns, and there isn’t enough research to back up guidance in the youngest of infants.

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Brands are Releasing their Best Father’s Day TV Commercials Now

Posted on June 12, 2016

Father’s Day is around the corner and I have been thoroughly enjoying this year’s commercials centered around dads. We are used to seeing scores of vids about moms for Mother’s Day but I think at times, dads get the short end of the stick.

And to top it off, all the deadbeat dads out there make it hard for the good dads. Now they have to share their day because a lot of people, in social media anyway, like to wish single moms a happy Father’s Day. Further, because of the fathers who have dropped the ball on their responsibility, a lot of the women who they had children with also take the dad to express how their Happy Father’s Day greetings are reserved just for the good dads.

My goodness, there are even Father’s Day cards for single moms too. It was a controversy a few years back too when the Hallmark’s specialty line for African American women released the cards.

During Mother’s Day, you rarely see all the caveats but there are a plenty during Father’s Day. But I don’t want to add to the toxicity. Enjoy these great Father’s Day themed commercials some brands have released.

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