r/ScienceBasedParenting

Hi.

My partner went to stay with our baby in Malaysia (with her parents) for a while but for the last 1 month the AQI in Malaysia has been crazy with it being around 150-200 constantly. I didn't realize how bad it is until I also reached Malaysia (and immediately my asthma flared up, which never happened to me in the US). We are now worried how badly it would have affected the baby over the last month. Baby was mostly indoors but they didn't have any air purifiers in the house. The baby coughs and sneezes now and then (but had those back in the US as well, but feel the frequency is more here). We are leaving in a week but feel we have done some irreparable damage already and feeling guilty about it.

is there anything that can be done to prepare for breastfeeding when you have inverted nipples? what about right after delivery? what actually helps and what is just clutter?

Ive been reading Montessori toddler and the book says not to praise the toddler when they do stuff because they learn to do things for the external praise.

This is super hard for me. I have a 9 month old and get super excited when he does stuff.

Am I hurting him?

Is there any research about effects of parental use of screens around babies? I feel like background tv comes up a bit but even beyond that. My daughter is 9 months and I am thinking about things like ordering groceries, doing crosswords, or scrolling Reddit while she is nearby. I am not completely ignoring her. Is scrolling on my phone different from if I were reading a physical book? Or painting or something?

Also curious about auditory input like if I have podcasts or audiobooks on speaker.

Do these have detrimental effects if she isn’t the one using the screen?

Also on a practical level, I am wondering how you fill your day and stay sane if you aren’t using a phone 🙃 She is too young for real crafts or activities and I don’t have the energy or money for field trips.

Hello. I am not looking to argue or have anyone change my mind. I believe in science and I believe in public health.

I have a friend whose daughter attends the same daycare as my own. I am aware her child is unvaxxed against the measles because she has been swayed by anti-vax influencers. We live in a state with an outbreak and multiple deaths. My baby daughter is too young to be vaccinated. I am having a very hard time with this. I think of all the unvaxxed babies in the daycare who are at risk every day because of her unvaxxed daughter.

What would you do in this situation?

My grandmother lives on the opposite coast. She is 102. My son is 8 weeks old. It is important to us that they meet while she is still with us and we hope to go after he receives his 2 month vaccines.

The 2 month vaccines don’t include flu/ Covid (believe those happen around 6 months?) and I’ve read about flu and covid picking up already.

We want to fly out to her with him, ideally in November when we would be ~3 months old, but are genuinely worried about plane travel and illness.

We can swing first class to be in a less crowded part of the plane. But how else can we protect him? And how “risky” is this?

Having a hard time finding anything that’s not purely anecdotal. I remember reading something that one of the reasons as kids get old they think their parents are full of sh** is an evolutionary one designed to get teenagers to leave their tribes and reduce chances of inbreeding or something but ofc I can’t find it anymore.

But I swear the amount of times I tell my kid xyz and then a random adult tells it to them once and they’re like omg mom did you know xyz… I want to rip out my hair. This can’t be an isolated thing, can it?

Hello, my newly turned three month old is sleeping through the night. She’s been what everyone calls a good sleeper her whole little life so far. When she was newborn-2mo she would wake once a night have bottle and go back to bed. Now she doesn’t wake up at all.

We have a nighttime routine and she goes in her crib at 8pm however over the past week she has been waking up between 630-8 she previously would wake at around 3am and then start the day at 5. Is this normal? The time she woke up at 8 was because I forced her to get up she did not wake up on her own. My parents and anyone I ask are telling me I’m lucky, but with SIDS and such I worry about her when she sleeps.

I check the monitor constantly when she sleeps and she’s always just laying there content and I can see her chest moving up and down. I know realistically it’s probably fine. But have there been any studies that suggest sleeping longer is a higher risk for SIDS? Or other medical issues?

Hello, I have an 8 month old and she has received a few vaccines. I am trying to educate myself on the safety and efficacy of these vaccines. I can’t seem to find any long term cohort studies for these vaccines - e.g., the MMR vaccine. Are there any studies that see if there are any long term negative health impacts? I feel that there are many possible negative impacts of various vaccines and I can’t find a single long term study on any of these vaccines like Mmr, meningitis or polio etc.

Any links to long term studies would be appreciated.

Hi all! I am combo feeding my second baby - one month in and just doing my best to hang in there - and I came across this 2019 study that suggested combo feeding is increasing my baby’s risk of developing an allergy. Can anyone find anything that indicates that this is not as big a deal as it is in my head right now? Or someone who is better at reading studies tell me what this means or if I should stop?

Pediatrician thinks combo feeding, or breastfeeding, or formula feeding is all fine as long as baby is gaining weight and healthy, so I am probably freaking out over nothing. But like - all the pumping and trying to nurse to the limited degree that I can - am I making things WORSE???

My 2.5 year keeps saying ’I dont know how to read. Teach me how to read. ’When I say we have to stop reading/dont have time to read.

I have taught reading to 4 year olds but Ive always been against early teaching of reading as there are so many other skills to learn first , and from reading in Proust and the Squid about how the brain has to make complex new connections (whereas maths is natural) as reading is so new to humans. Am I wrong? Should I start teaching phonics now or wait?

My LO is 6 months old and I’m struggling to find good resources that tell me what type of toys are developmentally good for them. I’m worried he’s bored or not stimulated enough but on the other hand also conscious that they course find the whisk much more exisiting then some of the actual toys they have. But I’d still want to research if there are some things that are really good for them, e.g teaching them about cause and effect, object permanence etc. we’re already spending lots of time outdoors so that’s covered.

Does anyone have any recommendations? Are the lovevery kits a good guide? (I think they’re quite expensive so not going to buy the kits but maybe good for inspiration?) we do like the Montessori approach. Thanks

Hi there! My sons ped only gives vaccines at clinics throughout the fall (generally once a week or so). I often have work conflicts.

We are able and signed up to go today for flu and Covid. He’s at the tail end of a cold/infection (he had a fever Wednesday, and very low borderline fever Thursday afternoon, so almost 48 hrs fever free). Runny nose but tons of energy, eating fine. I was told he could go in for the shots.

I know waiting til he is super healthy is ideal for immune system but he’s in preschool. I tested him for flu and Covid to make sure he didn’t have an infection for the vaccine illnesses. But I’m worried he’ll get sick between the next opportunity and at this point in the year, won’t he always have some kind of cold??

Thoughts please :)

Hi all, second time mum here. My first is nearly 10 years old and the recommendations and research have obviously advanced and developed since then. She was early weaned at 4.5 months due to lack of weight gain/failure to thrive regardless of all attempts until she started solid foods.

LO is currently 3 months and gaining weight nicely. He is combifed with BM and formula and showing lots of interest in food. Can't sit up yet, but has good head control and has started rolling to his front so i anticipate he will have core strength and neck strength to sit in a high chair by 5 months.

We want to do a combination of finger foods and purees but I'm not sure when to start his weaning based on the most up to date research? With my last baby it was driven with a need to improve calorie density in her diet so she could gain weight but as this isn't really a concern this time I'd like to follow the best guidelines.

Any help would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance!

I know screen time isn’t the best but my nonverbal son (11) used to love watching peppa pig 2 years ago and nursery songs but now he’s consumed with just watching people eat. There’s a particular creator who is just making repulsive sounds eating. I’ve taken away his tablet but he’s figured out safari. Some people say asmr is good for people on the spectrum but now he’s not even into people talking as so much. Can someone tell me the benefits of asmr?
Not sure I can fully ban the device it is helpful since I have a toddler and a busy working mom. We do play too but something about the asmr has his mesmerized.