Oral health is more than just clean teeth and fresh breath—it’s a window into overall health. While most people prioritize brushing and flossing, tongue hygiene often goes ignored. This oversight can lead to problems such as bad breath (halitosis), altered taste, dry mouth, infections, and even systemic health issues. A new review published in journal Cureus, part of Springer Nature, titled Importance of a Healthy Tongue: Could It Be a Reflection of Overall Health in Children? highlights the importance of maintaining a healthy tongue and draws attention to its role in both pediatric and adult oral care.

Why Tongue Health Matters

The tongue is a multifunctional organ, vital for chewing, swallowing, speaking, and tasting. It’s covered with papillae that contain taste buds and serve as a breeding ground for bacteria if not cleaned regularly. Food particles and microorganisms can get trapped, especially on the dorsum of the tongue, causing bad breath and increasing the risk of infections like oral thrush.

Children under 18 months are especially vulnerable due to underdeveloped oral routines and exposure to pacifiers and bottle nipples. In these cases, even breastfed babies can develop thrush, which may be linked to maternal factors such as poor breast hygiene or antibiotic use.

Health Clues from the Tongue

A healthy tongue is typically pink with a slightly rough surface due to papillae. Any changes in color, size, texture, or shape could signal an underlying issue. For example:

• A yellow tongue may suggest infection.

• A gray-black coating could reflect digestive disorders.

• A bluish tint might indicate poor oxygen levels or heart conditions.

• An enlarged (macroglossia) or undersized (microglossia) tongue could point to congenital syndromes, nutritional deficiencies, or inflammatory diseases.

• Certain conditions like geographic tongue, atrophic glossitis, or hairy tongue further show how tongue health connects to systemic wellness, nutritional status, and even immunity.

Children vs. Adults: Different Tongues, Different Needs

In infants, tongue hygiene can start as early as feeding time—using a damp cloth to clean milk residue. As children grow, introducing tongue scraping around age 3 or 4 can help build lifelong habits. However, many children resist the sensation, and their motor skills may not yet allow for effective cleaning. Making the process fun and rewarding helps, as does school-based education.

For adults, the stakes are different. With age, taste sensitivity may diminish, and poor hygiene may go unnoticed. Lifestyle factors—smoking, diet, medications—can contribute to bacterial buildup and systemic effects. For example, research links poor oral hygiene to cardiovascular risks. Regular tongue cleaning, hydration, and avoiding tobacco use can mitigate such issues.

Small Step, Big Impact

The tongue plays a central role in maintaining a healthy oral environment. A few seconds spent scraping the tongue during routine brushing can prevent several oral and systemic problems. Yet, it remains a neglected part of oral care, especially among children and older adults. Pediatricians, dentists, and caregivers must reinforce its importance from infancy through old age.

A big concern for parents these days is how kids are seemingly swallowed by technology. They no longer plead to go out and play for ‘just five more minutes’. The serotonin and dopamine boost we used to crave while playing outside as kids, does not seem like a big deal any longer. Could this be due to the increase in electronic device usage?

Parents who are worried about their kids screentime are right to be concerned. Many studies have shown the increased screentime slows down brain development. If certain habits can slow down brain development, are there others that can increase brain development?

A new study published in the Environment International journal suggests that living close to green areas, like parks or forests, might lower a child's chance of developing problems like ADHD and autism. This protective effect seems to start even before they are born.

How Green Spaces May Help Before and After Birth

The study found that children were less likely to experience brain development problems if their mothers lived near green spaces before or during pregnancy. The same benefit was seen if the children themselves lived near green spaces when they were infants. These important findings were published in a science journal called Environment International. One of the lead researchers pointed out that having more access to green spaces in cities could truly support healthy brain development in young children and help reduce the number of developmental delays.

Why Green Spaces Might Be Good for Brains

Scientists don't fully understand yet exactly how green spaces might help a baby's brain grow healthily, even while still in the womb. However, they have some ideas. They believe that being around nature can reduce stress and feelings of sadness, encourage people to spend more time with others, and lower exposure to loud noises and very hot or cold temperatures. All of these things could be good for a young child's overall development.

What the Study Discovered

For this research, scientists looked at a lot of information from over 1.8 million mothers and children who were part of the Medicaid program in different states. They used satellite images and the mothers' home addresses to figure out how much green space they lived near. The results were quite interesting:

• Children whose mothers lived near green spaces had a 34% lower risk of intellectual disabilities.
• They also had a 17% lower risk of autism.
• For children who lived near green spaces themselves after they were born, the study found a 19% lower risk of learning disabilities.

The researchers noticed that these protective effects were present at different stages: before pregnancy, during pregnancy, and in early childhood. This suggests that there might be various biological reasons why green spaces are helpful at different times.

Stronger Benefits in City Areas

The study showed that the protective effects of green spaces were even stronger for children living in city areas and for children from Black or Hispanic families. This suggests that green spaces might provide an even greater benefit in places where they are not as common. Increasing access to green spaces in city environments could really support early childhood brain development and help reduce the number of developmental delays.

What We Still Need to Learn

It's important to remember that this study can't prove that living near green spaces directly causes healthier brain development. There could be other factors that also play a role in a child's risk for developmental problems.

Future research will dive deeper into the exact reasons why green spaces might benefit children's brain development. They also want to explore whether different kinds of green spaces—like parks, walking trails, or playing fields—offer different levels of benefit.

A baby’s sex at birth might not be the equal coin toss that we’ve always believed it to be. A new study published by the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, titled, “Is sex at birth a biological coin toss? Insights from a longitudinal and GWAS analysis” challenges this long-held assumption.

The study was published on July 18 in the journal Science Advances, and it found that several factors, including a mother's age, genetics, and the sex of older siblings—may influence whether she’s more likely to have a boy or a girl.

Patterns Behind the Birth of Boys and Girls: How Was The Study Conducted?

The research looked at more than 146,000 pregnancies involving over 58,000 U.S. nurses from the NIH-funded Nurses’ Health Study, covering the years 1956 to 2015. What they found was eye-opening: families with three or more children were more likely to have either all boys or all girls than if the sex of a child was purely random.

“If you’ve had two or three girls and you’re trying for a boy, your odds aren’t 50-50 anymore,” explained Jorge Chavarro, professor of nutrition and epidemiology and the study’s senior author, in a quote to The Washington Post. “You’re more likely to have another girl.”

Also Read: It Might Not Be Diabetes; It Could Be This Common Pill Causing Heart Disease: Study

The Role of Maternal Age and Genetics

One of the biggest surprises was the link between maternal age and the likelihood of giving birth to all children of the same sex. Women who started having children after age 28 had a slightly higher chance of giving birth to only boys or only girls.

Researchers believe this could be due to biological changes that come with age, such as shifts in hormone levels or physical conditions that may affect which sperm survive and fertilize the egg.

Additionally, the study identified two specific genes that appear to be linked with the likelihood of having children of only one sex. While scientists don’t yet know how these genes affect birth sex, their discovery opens the door for further research.

Chavarro noted that future studies should explore whether lifestyle choices, diet, or even exposure to certain environmental chemicals might also play a role.

Are Families Subconsciously Seeking “Gender Balance”?

The study also touches on social patterns. In families with two children, there was a higher chance of one boy and one girl. Researchers believe this may be because couples tend to stop having children once they have one of each sex, possibly due to a preference for a “balanced” family.

This idea is supported by another paper published in the Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, which jokingly refers to parents who have three boys or three girls as those who “lose the birth lottery.”

When Expectations Don’t Match Reality

The findings also bring up the topic of “gender disappointment”, a real emotional experience for some parents when the sex of their baby isn’t what they hoped for.

A 2023 paper in the BJPsych Bulletin found that in many Western families, this disappointment often stems from a desire to experience raising both sons and daughters.

In everyday life, these expectations can be seen in subtle remarks like “Four boys? Poor you,” or “Still trying for a girl?”, comments that reflect how deeply society views gender roles and balance, reports CBC.

What It Means for Expecting Parents

While the science behind birth sex is clearly more complex than a simple 50-50 chance, experts agree it’s not something to stress over. Rather, it’s a reminder that biology, age, genes, and personal choices all come together in ways we’re only beginning to understand.

One of the biggest concerns that comes forth with excessive internet use is misinformation. While people are constantly warned about the same, the major problem arises when teens start relying on this data for their health. This is not a ‘one off’ instance where some teens follow this pattern, but it is an on-going issue. What we must do is find the reason why, why do teens find it easier to rely on unverified medical information, and how many teens do so.

What many people will be surprised to know is the sheer amount of kids who are looking for health information online. A new study done by health and well-being app Luna shows that many teen girls are looking for health advice online, using Google or apps like TikTok, instead of talking to a doctor.

Teens Turn to the Internet for Health Answers

A recent survey of nearly 2,500 young people by a teen health app found that almost a third of teen girls (31%) are searching online for health information. In contrast, only 27% of them talk to their parents or guardians. This trend is concerning, leading experts to encourage parents to create an open and non-judgmental environment at home so their children feel comfortable discussing health concerns with them and with doctors.

What Do Teens Look For?

However, this is not the only data available on the matter. According to the 2014 Young Adult Library Services Association journal, teens often turn to the internet for health information due to its accessibility, affordability, and anonymity, even though they often prefer asking people directly.

They seek information on a wide range of topics, from illnesses and accidents to sexual health and mental health. Sexual health and drugs are particularly popular topics. Often, teens look for information when they face a problem (e.g., a personal health concern) rather than for proactive health maintenance (e.g., nutrition).

Why Teens Avoid Talking to Adults

One of the main reasons teens turn to social media or the internet for health advice is embarrassment or shame, which prevents them from seeing a doctor. Another significant factor is that they don't feel comfortable talking to their parents; 19% of teens in the study said they avoid the doctor because they don't want their parent or caregiver to know about their health issues.

The 2014 review also mentioned how girls are twice as likely to seek health information online, though they may have less access to technology and fewer tech skills than boys. Girls are more likely to seek information for family or friends and are more concerned about violence and victimization related to sexuality. Male peer norms and perceptions of masculinity can also lead boys to deny health problems and avoid seeking online information.

Encouraging Open Conversations at Home

Experts suggest that for this pattern to change, parents might need to actively remind their pre-teens and teens that they are always available to discuss anything. While it can be challenging to get a young person to open up, experts emphasize that parents don't need to have all the answers. Instead, it's about being a trusted presence who listens without reacting harshly or jumping to conclusions.

The study also highlighted that regular check-ins can help build trust over time, signaling to teens that it's okay to talk about sensitive or confusing topics.

The Dangers of Online Health Advice

The co-founder of the teen health app emphasized that how teen girls feel about discussing their health needs to change. It's troubling to see so many resorting to apps like TikTok or Google for answers instead of speaking with a doctor or their parents.

While some helpful advice can be found online, there's also a vast amount of incorrect information that could cause more harm than good. This highlights the urgent need for safe and reliable spaces where teens can learn about their health and well-being.