Chronic inflammation in the body could interrupt with hormones, as well as reproductive hormones and it could also lead to interfere with embryo implantation. As a result, conception could become more difficult for both men and women. Health and Me spoke to expert, Dr Varsha Agarwal, who is a consultant and fertility & IVF specialist at Motherhood Fertility & IVF, Noida.

Here's what she explained.

The Delicate Balance Of Fertility

Fertility depends on a delicate balance of hormones, she noted. Healthy reproductive organs, and proper immune functions are among the most important functions of the human body that results in healthy fertility. However, when the body experiences inflammation, explains Agarwal, this balance can be disrupted. Many individuals struggling with infertility may not even realize that inflammation could be one of the underlying conditions.

Inflammation is the body’s natural response to injury or infection, but when it becomes chronic, it can create an internal environment that isn’t ideal for reproduction. According to Dr. Agarwal, “Chronic inflammation can interfere with hormonal signals, damage reproductive tissues, and even affect how an embryo implants in the uterus. Over time, this can make conception more difficult for both men and women.”

How Does Inflammation Affect Fertility In Women?

In women, inflammation can impact the ovaries, fallopian tubes, and uterus. It could also cause conditions like endometriosis, pelvic inflammatory diseases (PID), and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). These conditions are often linked with chronic inflammation and could disrupt ovulation, affect egg quality, and even alter the uterine lining. All of these could make conception more difficult.

Dr. Agarwal explains, “Inflammation in the reproductive organs can lead to scarring or blockages in the fallopian tubes, preventing the egg and sperm from meeting. It can also alter the hormonal environment, which may delay or prevent ovulation.”

Does It Also Impact Male Fertility?

Inflammation doesn’t discriminate between men or women. Inflammation in the testicular or prostate area can reduce sperm count, motility, and quality, creating challenges in conception. “In men, oxidative stress triggered by chronic inflammation can damage sperm DNA and reduce fertility potential,” adds Dr. Agarwal.

Lifestyle factors such as poor diet, obesity, smoking, stress, lack of sleep, and exposure to toxins can all worsen inflammation and hormonal imbalances. Over time, these factors can contribute to infertility in both sexes.

What Can Be Done To Manage Inflammation?

Dr Agarwal recommends lifestyle measures like:

• Consuming anti-inflammatory foods: fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, fatty fish rich in omega-3. Avoid processed and fried foods.
• Maintain a healthy weight by exercising daily
• Stay active
• Quit smoking
• Prioritize sleep
• Reduce stress by practicing mindfulness and meditation

“If conception isn’t happening despite regular attempts, it’s vital to consult an expert,” advises Dr. Agarwal. “Get screened for underlying inflammatory or autoimmune conditions early. With timely medical guidance and healthy lifestyle changes, it’s possible to reduce inflammation, restore hormonal balance, and improve fertility naturally and safely.”

Scientists have found that kids' social media use might be slowing down their brain power. A new study says that spending time on these apps could be hurting how well a tween's mind develops. This research shows that the more time kids spend on platforms like Instagram or TikTok, the worse they might do on school-related tasks later on.

How Does Social Media Affect Our Health?

The researchers found that children aged 9 to 13 who used social media more often did worse on tests that measured skills like reading, memory, and language. They were tested on these abilities two years after the study began. The results were published in a major medical journal called the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The lead scientist, Dr. Jason Nagata, explained that even using social media for a short time each day was connected to poorer results on these brain-power tests. He suggested that the brains of young tweens might be extra sensitive to social media. This means parents need to be careful about when they let their kids start using these apps and how much time they spend on them.

How Did Social Media Affect Kid’s Academics?

To figure this out, the researchers looked at information from over 6,500 children across the country. These kids were all part of the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, which is the biggest study ever done in the U.S. to track how children's brains grow over time. They sorted the kids into groups based on their social media use:

• Over half (58%) of the kids barely used social media at all.
• More than a third (37%) were using social media for about one extra hour every day by the time they turned 13.
• A small group (6%) were using social media for up to three extra hours a day by age 13.

The children's brain power was measured using special tests created by the National Institutes of Health, which tested things like how well they remember information and understand language. The study found a clear, but small, drop in the test scores for kids who used social media.

• Kids who used social media for just one extra hour a day scored about 1 to 2 points lower on their memory and reading tests.
• Kids who used social media for up to three extra hours a day saw a bigger drop, scoring as much as 4 points lower.

Why Is Important To Restrict Your Child’s Social Media Usage?

Dr. Nagata explained that even though these differences seem small, they are very important because they were seen again and again across the children. Since reading and memory are the most important skills for learning, even these small dips in scores, when seen across thousands of kids, could be a problem for education as a whole.

The scientists think the problem is that social media is so fun and engaging that kids might choose to scroll instead of doing homework or reading. This time shift could be hurting their learning. The researchers stress that creating good screen habits early on can help protect a child’s learning and brain growth.

The results of this study support actions already being taken, such as schools trying to limit student phone use during the day. The findings also provide backing for bigger changes, like making the age limits for social media access even stricter than they are now.

However, the researchers want to be clear about one thing: because they were only watching the kids' behavior (it was an observational study), they can't say for sure that social media causes the lower test scores. They can only say that there is a clear association between the two.

Allergies are a major concern for parents, as they can develop at any time. Parents often worry about being in a situation where they cannot help their child. This leads them to be very cautious of certain foods like peanuts, which is a common allergen, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.

However, there may be a way to reduce the risk of your child developing peanut allergy. According to a new study published in the Pediatrics journal, giving pediatricians a few simple tools significantly increased how often they recommended introducing peanuts to babies early.

This finding is a major victory because it shows a clear way to prevent peanut allergies, which are becoming more and more common in children. This important study was conducted by experts from Northwestern University and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago.

What Age Should Kids Start Consuming Peanut Products?

As you may know, allergies happen when your immune system overreacts to something that is usually not harmful. Things like pollen, pet dander and certain foods like peanuts. Some symptoms of allergies can range from sneezing, a runny nose, vomiting or even difficulty breathing.

Harvard health explains that you can develop allergies at any age. Since 2017, official national medical guidelines have told doctors to recommend giving infants peanut-containing foods when they are around 4 to 6 months old. The reason for this early introduction is to actively lower the baby's risk of developing a peanut allergy.

Despite these clear rules, surveys showed that most pediatricians were not consistently following the guidelines. This is a serious issue because peanut allergy is the most common food allergy in children, and it now affects over 2% of all children in the United States, a number that is currently increasing.

How Can We Lower The Rate Of Peanut-Allergies?

The new study tested an intervention where doctors were given three easy-to-use tools:

• A short training video for the doctor's office staff to watch.
• Electronic health record (EHR) prompts—these are reminders that automatically pop up on the computer screen during a check-up.
• Handouts with clear information for the baby's parents.

The results were impressive: in the clinics that used these tools, doctors followed the guidelines 84% of the time for low-risk babies (those without existing eczema or egg allergy). In contrast, the clinics that did not use the tools only followed the guidelines 35% of the time. This means that babies whose doctors used the tools were nearly 15 times more likely to receive this important allergy prevention advice.

What Role Do Doctors Play To Lower Peanut Allergies?

Lead author Dr. Ruchi Gupta emphasized that this extra support for doctors is absolutely essential. Visits for 4- and 6-month-old babies are often very busy, with many things for the doctor to cover in a short time. The simple tools help doctors provide clear, consistent guidance to families despite this time pressure.

Dr. Gupta shared her hope: "We want these conversations to help parents feel confident and secure about introducing peanut products early." The ultimate goal is to use this effective prevention strategy to stop the trend of rising food allergies in the U.S. and protect children's health.

COVID-19 vaccine hunt for young children in the US has now become a task, as pharmacies and pediatricians' offices struggle to stock age-appropriate doses. Thanks to the regulatory confusion and limited supply. The New York Times reports that with the latest round of COVID shots and its availability for adults, many parents are now facing a dead end to secure vaccines for their children, especially those under 12.

What Is The Confusion All About?

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)'s restricted approval that limited new Covid vaccine authorizations to adults who are 65 and older or those with high-risk conditions has led to this confusion. Furthermore, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s broader recommendation weeks later that allowed anyone over six months to get vaccinated in consultation with doctor further fueled the confusion.

There is a lack in guidance, along with logistical and contractual hurdles, which has left many pediatric offices, and pharmacies, without appropriate pediatric doses. This gap is now frustrating parents across the country.

A Confusion That Triggered The Shortage

It was in August, when FDA updated its COVID vaccines recommendations, but only for older adults and individuals with underlying conditions. The move excluded children and thus created uncertainty among healthcare providers about whether children are liable to have the vaccines administered.

A few weeks after this, the CDC also issued its own recommendation stating that new shots could be offered to anyone aged six months and older, provided the decision is made after consulting a doctor. However, the agency's acting director did not sign off the recommendation until two weeks later. This created a window for confusion, making many healthcare providers unsure of the safety of vaccines for children.

Why Was There Confusion?

The confusion was created also because of the different formulation and smaller doses that children under 12 require in contrast with adults. The delay thus left many providers hesitant to order vaccines. For instance, Pfizer's updated shot was approved only for children aged five and above, which made Moderna as the only options for infants and toddlers.

The representatives of both the companies, as reported by the NYT say that supply is not the issue as doses exist, the issue is the regulatory uncertainty and low perceived demand, which have kept the healthcare provider from placing order.

The Dilemma That Pediatricians Are Going Through

Some pediatricians are reluctant to offer vaccines until the federal guidance are finalized, this is due to their liability concerns. One Virginia pediatric practice told parents that offering shots before the final CDC confirmation could raise questions of malpractice. “It is very unusual for doctors to have to navigate a disagreement between the recommendations of the CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics,” said Dr. Thomas Nguyen, a pediatrician in Canton, Ohio, adding that the uncertainty delayed his clinic’s decision to place vaccine orders, as reported by the NYT.

Even among the clinics that did order vaccines, the distribution is slow. Dr. Nguyen said his team placed a “small order” with Moderna on September 11, but it took nearly two weeks for the doses to arrive.

The Plight of Parents

Some of the parents who spoke to the NYT reveled their frustration and struggles, across the US.

In Chicago, Jill Schwartz has spent weeks trying to find vaccines for her three young children, aged 1, 3, and 5. “I tried their pediatrician’s office, a clinic, and multiple pharmacies — no luck."

In Womelsdorf, Pennsylvania, Rebecca Seidel said she called three different CVS locations after being told none had pediatric doses. When she reached out to her pediatrician, she was simply referred back to CVS.

In Portland, Maine, Leigh Bullion said she called a dozen providers before finding a pharmacy nearly 20 miles away that had pediatric appointments available. “It’s just like a nightmare,” she said.

Some parents like Caitlin Smith in Santa Fe, New Mexico, have spent weeks calling pharmacies and pediatricians across their city. She finally secured appointments for her children after more than three weeks of searching, only to learn the pharmacy had received just 10 pediatric doses. “It feels like the system for pediatric Covid vaccines is designed on the assumption that parents are vaccine-hesitant,” she said. “It’s extraordinarily frustrating for parents who are not hesitant and want to protect our kids.”