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The National Children’s Study Launches January 13th!
Christopher Gavigan
Friday, January 02, 2009
We are at an incredible turning point in understanding how the environment impacts children’s health and development. Healthy Child is proud to announce our enthusiastic support for The National Children’s Study, launching on January 13th. We are hopeful that the study will yield a rich and comprehensive body of knowledge that will impact the quality of life for families across the United States.
A groundbreaking endeavor, The National Children's Study will follow 100,000 American children from preconception until the age of 21 to deepen our understanding of illnesses such as allergies, asthma, ADHD, and chronic diseases like autism, diabetes and obesity. The study is funded annually by Congress and will be carried out in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as a host of universities, hospitals, research centers and NGOs.
The National Children’s Study (NCS) will be lead by many of the field’s top physicians and experts, and work in conjunction with universities, hospitals, and research labs. Healthy Child Board Member Dr. Philip Landrigan has been closely involved throughout the study’s initiation, and will be leading efforts out of Mt. Sinai Medical School in New York. Of the NCS, he said, “It is certain to significantly inform the basis of child health advice, interventions, and policy for generations to come.”
The children and their families will represent the diversity of economic and social factors that make up our population. 105 Study Centers have been set up across the country, guaranteeing that the children studied will reflect diverse backgrounds and situations, and thus highlight the differences that exist between groups of people in terms of health care access and disease occurrence.
Imagine, in just 3 year's time, the NCS will yield clear and important findings on the causes of premature birth, key birth defects, pregnancy risks, and early childhood illness. Early on in the study, we'll also have credible data about prenatal links to autism - the rate of which is increasing at about 20% every year. Researchers will immediately use this valuable information to determine some of the causes and risk factors associated with these epidemics and create a blueprint for prevention.
Overall, the NCS will be one of the richest research efforts on children's health and long-term development. Crucial to the public's access to this pioneering study is an organization like Healthy Child to translate and clarify the results of the research into understandable information for parents - identifying the new opportunities necessary to give children the healthiest lives possible. We could not be more excited for this momentous beginning, and we hope that you share our optimism and hope.
Posted by Nadine on 01/07 at 10:19 PM
I am excited to see this new information. Sounds like the kind of information that would answer many questions and shape our future. Thanks so much for being a part of this and more so, for bringing it to our attention,
Nadine
Posted by leanne on 01/08 at 04:38 PM
Oh wow this is fantastic. I am from Australia and wish we had what it took to get out there and do the same thing. I wish somebody would organize something for how the food preservatives affect our children. I will put my hand up for that one.
Great work!!!!
Posted by Cindy Horgan, MOT, OTR/L on 01/07 at 11:34 AM
I APPLAUD YOU!! This information is crucial and I’m ecstatic that in just 3 years we will have this wealth of information. As a mom of 3 girls and as a pediatric Occupational Therapist you have my attention, praise and support!
Thank you for helping our kids future!!!
Cindy Horgan, MOT, OTR/L