r/ScienceBasedParenting Sep 05 '24

Meta Post Welcome and Introduction, September 2024 Update -- Please read before posting!

30 Upvotes

r/ScienceBasedParenting - September 2024 Update

--

Hi all! Welcome to r/ScienceBasedParenting, a place to ask questions related to parenting and receive answers based on up-to-date research and expert consensus, share relevant research, and discuss science journalism at large. We want to make this sub a fun and welcoming place that fosters a vibrant, scientifically-based community for parents. 

We are a team of five moderators to help keep the sub running smoothly, u/shytheearnestdryad, u/toyotakamry02, u/-DeathItself-, u/light_hue_1, and u/formless63. We are a mix of scientists, healthcare professionals, and parents with an interest in science. 

If you’ve been around a bit since we took over, you’ve probably noticed a lot of big changes. We've tried out several different approaches over the past few months to see what works, so thank you for your patience as we've experimented and worked out the kinks.

In response to your feedback, we have changed our rules, clarified things, and added an additional flair with less stringent link requirements. 

At this time, we are still requiring question-based flavored posts to post relevant links on top comments. Anything that cannot be answered under our existing flair types belongs in the Weekly General Discussion thread. This includes all threads where the OP is okay with/asking for anecdotal advice.

We are constantly in discussion with one another on ways to improve our subreddit, so please feel free to provide us suggestions via modmail.

--

Subreddit Rules

Be respectful. Discussions and debates are welcome, but must remain civilized. Inflammatory content is prohibited. Do not make fun of or shame others, even if you disagree with them.

2. Read the linked material before commenting. Make sure you know what you are commenting on to avoid misunderstandings.

3. Please check post flair before responding and respect the author's preferences. All top level comments on posts must adhere to the flair type guidelines. Likewise, if you reply to a top level comment with additional or conflicting information, a link to flair-appropriate material is also required. This does not apply to secondary comments simply discussing the information. 

For other post types, including links to peer-reviewed sources in comments is highly encouraged, but not mandatory.

4. All posts must include appropriate flair. Please choose the right flair for your post to encourage the correct types of responses. Continue reading for flair for more information on flair types and their descriptions. Posts cannot be submitted without flair, and posts using flair inappropriately or not conforming to the specified format will be removed. 

The title of posts with the flair “Question - Link To Research Required” or “Question - Expert Consensus Required” must be a question. For example, an appropriate title would be “What are the risks of vaginal birth after cesarean?”, while “VBAC” would not be an appropriate title for this type of post. 

The title of posts with the flair “sharing research” and “science journalism” must be the title of the research or journalism article in question. 

\Note: intentionally skirting our flair rules or encouraging others to do so will result in an immediate ban. This includes, but is not limited to, comments like "just put any link in to fool the bot" or "none of the flair types match what I want but you can give me anecdotes anyways."*

5. General discussion/questions must be posted in the weekly General Discussion Megathread. This includes anything that doesn't fit into the specified post flair types. The General Discussion Megathread will be posted weekly on Mondays.

If you have a question that cannot be possibly answered by direct research or expert consensus, or you do not want answers that require these things, it belongs in the General Discussion thread. This includes, but isn’t limited to, requesting anecdotes or advice from parent to parent, book and product recommendations, sharing things a doctor or other professional told you (unless you are looking for expert consensus or research on the matter), and more. Any post that does not contribute to the sub as a whole will be redirected here.

A good rule of thumb to follow in evaluating whether or not your post qualifies as a standalone is whether you are asking a general question or something that applies only you or your child. For instance, "how can parents best facilitate bonding with their daycare teacher/nanny?" would generally be considered acceptable, as opposed "why does my baby cry every time he goes to daycare?", which would be removed for not being generalizable.

Posts removed for this reason are the discretion of the moderation team. Please reach out via modmail if you have questions about your post's removal.

6. Linked sources must be appropriate for flair type. All top comments must contain links appropriate for the flair type chosen by the OP.

\Note: intentionally skirting our link rules or encouraging others to do so will result in an immediate ban. This includes comments such as, but not limited to,“link for the bot/automod” or “just putting this link here so my comment doesn’t get removed” and then posting an irrelevant link.*

7. Do not ask for or give individualized medical advice. General questions such as “how can I best protect a newborn from RSV?” are allowed, however specific questions such as "what should I do to treat my child with RSV?," “what is this rash,” or “why isn’t my child sleeping?” are not allowed. We cannot guarantee the accuracy or credentials of any advice posted on this subreddit and nothing posted on this subreddit constitutes medical advice. Please reach out to the appropriate professionals in real life with any medical concern and use appropriate judgment when considering advice from internet strangers.

8. No self promotion or product promotion. Do not use this as a place to advertise or sell a product, service, podcast, book, etc.

Recruitment for research studies and AMAs require prior approval and are subject to the discretion of the moderation team.

9. Keep comments relevant. All threads created must be relevant to science and parenting. All comments must be directly relevant to the discussion of the OP. Off topic threads and comments will be removed.

10. Meta-commentary and moderation are for mod-mail. Please keep our main feed relevant to parenting science. If you have a concern about a moderation action against a thread or post you made, or a subreddit concern, please address these with the team via modmail. Kindly take into consideration that the mod team are volunteers and we will address things as soon as we can. Meta-commentary posted on the main subreddit will be removed.

If you notice another user breaking the subreddit’s rules, please use the report function as this is the fastest way to get our attention. 

Please note that we do not discuss moderation action against any user with anyone except the user in question. 

11. Keep Reddit's rules. All subreddit interactions must adhere to the rules of Reddit as a platform.

--

Explanation of Post Flair Types

1. Sharing Peer-Reviewed Research. This post type is for sharing a direct link to a study and any questions or comments one has about he study. The intent is for sharing information and discussion of the implications of the research. The title should be a brief description of the findings of the linked research.

2. Question - Link To Research Required. The title of the post must be the question one is seeking research to answer. The question cannot be asking for advice on one’s own very specific parenting situation, but needs to be generalized enough to be useful to others. For example, a good question would be “how do nap schedules affect infant nighttime sleep?” while “should I change my infant’s nap schedule?” is not acceptable. Top level answers must link directly to peer-reviewed research.

This flair-type is for primarily peer-reviewed articles published in scientific journals, but may also include a Cochrane Review. Please refrain from linking directly to summaries of information put out by a governmental organization unless the linked page includes citations of primary literature.

Parenting books, podcasts, and blogs are not peer reviewed and should not be referenced as though they are scientific sources of information, although it is ok to mention them if it is relevant. For example, it isn't acceptable to say "author X says that Y is the way it is," but you could say "if you are interested in X topic, I found Y's book Z on the topic interesting." Posts sharing research must link directly to the published research, not a press release about the study.

3. Question - Link to Expert Consensus Required. Under this flair type, top comments with links to sources containing expert consensus will be permitted. Examples of acceptable sources include governmental bodies (CDC, WHO, etc.), expert organizations (American Academy of Pediatrics, etc.) Please note, things like blogs and news articles written by a singular expert are not permitted. All sources must come from a reviewed source of experts.

Please keep in mind as you seek answers that peer-reviewed studies are still the gold standard of science regardless of expert opinion. Additionally, expert consensus may disagree from source to source and country to country.

4. Scientific Journalism This flair is for the discussion and debate of published scientific journalism. Please link directly to the articles in question.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 6d ago

Weekly General Discussion

3 Upvotes

Welcome to the weekly General Discussion thread! Use this as a place to get advice from like-minded parents, share interesting science journalism, and anything else that relates to the sub but doesn't quite fit into the dedicated post types.

Please utilize this thread as a space for peer to peer advice, book and product recommendations, and any other things you'd like to discuss with other members of this sub!

Disclaimer: because our subreddit rules are intentionally relaxed on this thread and research is not required here, we cannot guarantee the quality and/or accuracy of anything shared here.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 17h ago

Science journalism Unsanitary Practices Persist at Baby Formula Factory Whose Shutdown Led to Mass Shortages, Workers Say

422 Upvotes

https://www.propublica.org/article/baby-formula-abbot-sturgis-michigan-shortages-unsanitary-conditions-workers-say

Reporting Highlights

Unsanitary Conditions: Workers at one of the nation’s largest baby formula plants say the Abbott Laboratories facility is engaging in unsanitary practices.

Cardboard Funnel: In one case, workers said an employee used a piece of cardboard from a trash bin to funnel coconut oil, a formula ingredient, into a tank during production.

Federal Response: One worker complained to the FDA, but it’s unclear how the agency will respond. The Trump administration recently cut 3,500 jobs at the FDA in a mass layoff.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 16h ago

Question - Research required In the name of science, how does my toddler have adult man sized poo, even on days they exist only of a handful of goldfish crackers? Is this healthy / normal?

146 Upvotes

Is there research on kids digestive systems? It genuinely perplexes me every day.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 5h ago

Question - Research required Where can I find the plot data for the UK-WHO baby growth charts?

1 Upvotes

Is there somewhere I can access the data used to plot the UK-WHO baby growth charts? I'm not looking to reverse engineer the calculation of the centile trends, just to get accurate values for what each trend line is at each week without having to rely on visual guesswork.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Expert consensus required Exposed to radiation while pregnant. It’s all I’ve been thinking about and I’m scared

164 Upvotes

I am 7 weeks pregnant and I haven’t told anyone at work. I work at mental health hospital as a Tech and yesterday a patient needed X-rays done. The nurse told me to go in there with him and the xray tech. Both me and the tech had on no shields or anything and I was standing behind her, it was in a small room and I was only about 4 feet away from her. She took 3 X-rays of his chest. After that, another nurse pulled me out and asked why I was in there and said I was being exposed to radiation and no young woman should be in there without protection. I didn’t know that. I thought it only affects you if you’re the one being scanned. So I immediately did some research and I started to cry. It’s been in my mind ever since. Is this really bad?


r/ScienceBasedParenting 16h ago

Question - Research required Baby sleeping with parents

3 Upvotes

Our 10 month old baby has been sleeping in our bed with us for a while already. I know most people would put the baby to sleep in his own crib, but he would cry and not sleep if we did that. However, we really don't mind having him sleep with us since we have a big King sized bed. There isn't a risk of him falling since he is always sleeping between us or against the wall. Is there any negative aspects to doing this? Is there an age limit for having him sleep in our bed?


r/ScienceBasedParenting 16h ago

Question - Research required 14 hour trip (move) with 10 week old

4 Upvotes

Our family, which includes our 10.5 week old, will be moving soon. This includes a 14 hour car ride. We are thinking of breaking it up into 4 days which would include stops every 2 hours and the drive would be: Day 1: 2.5 hours Day 2: 4.5 hours Day 3: 4 hours Day 4: 4 hours

Does this seem safe if we stop for a feeding at the halfway point in each 4 hour day?


r/ScienceBasedParenting 13h ago

Question - Expert consensus required Measles during pregnancy

2 Upvotes

Does anyone know how likely measles during pregnancy are to cause miscarriage? I’m so anxious this pregnancy after two losses and just found out I’m likely no longer immune. I’m trying to find documents on the risk of miscarriage with measles in pregnancy but not finding much. Of course I hope this is a non issue but once again my anxiety with these cases is getting the best of me. TIA


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Research required Is it damaging for me to not see my child 3 days per week?

34 Upvotes

Thanks in advance for your help. I work a 3 consecutive day/week schedule with long hours and a long commute. My husband also works long hours with a varied schedule. My son is 14 months and the best boy! He is in daycare 5 days a week but during 2 days it's just half a day. We are just 5 weeks pregnant with our second baby.

It is not uncommon for me to not see my baby for a full 24 or 48 hours during my work stint. Even during the best weeks, it's typical for me to see my son to get him ready and drop him at daycare, and then best case scenario, feed him a bottle right before bed. It's typical for my husband to do bedtime with my son on days when I work because I rarely make it home by 7 PM.

As the mother, my son is quite attached to me. I love him so much. 2 days a week I spend with him 100% or the time. We play, go on walks and to the park, go to a music class, etc. 2 days per week he goes to daycare until noon (so I can get some housework done) and then I'm devoted to him all afternoon.

I'm finding it very difficult to balance work and family. We live in the US and make a good living, but I don't believe I could scale back on hours or become a stay at home mom (even temporarily) without having to move or change our lifestyle significantly, but I would sacrifice anything for this babe (future babes.)

I know there won't be any literature with my exact situation, but any evidence to suggest I am permanently damaging my child (or not) by being absent 3/7 days?

Thank you all for your time.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Research required How do I help my 15 month old understand custody exchanges?

90 Upvotes

We have had split custody since my son was 3 months old. We slowly worked up to 50/50 at 12 months. He’s now 15 months and I’m struggling with knowing I’m making the right decision by having him go to the door with me and tell him bye-bye and give hugs and kisses. He gets so so upset.

I just changed to this because the last couple weeks I would leave when he got distracted playing and the guilt of finding out that he gets upset when he notices I’ve disappeared is eating me alive.

What is the best/gentlest way to make these transitions easier? Every evening I stay for a while and nurse him, play with him and he’s so clingy because he knows I’m going to leave. Please help a sad momma figure out the best way to navigate this


r/ScienceBasedParenting 13h ago

Question - Research required Sleep Training a 5 Month Old

0 Upvotes

My LO has always had a tough time sleeping, during newborn stage it took at least 20 minutes of walking around bouncing to get him down for naps. Around 3 months that time went down and he started sleeping longer stretches, at night he would wake up once at that was it. At 4 months he quite literally started waking up every hour. We tried ferber method for about 2 weeks, and he started waking up 2-3 times per nice instead of every hour but would cry anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour and a half each night. We figured he wasn't ready for the training and started bouncing him to sleep each night. He has always cried inconsolably if he wakes up when you put him in his crib. He's 5 months now and I don't know what to do, my husband is now the only one who's gentle enough to get him down. I'm debating a sleep consultant or starting training again next week.. anybody have a similar experience and can offer advice? They say at 6 months it gets better.. not sure if I should wait it out.

We carefully keep him in his wake windows, watch for his sleep queues, have a nap and bedtime routine that ensures a dark room, white noise machine, etc.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Expert consensus required What is the science behind encouraging parents to quickly wean off of formula around the kid's first birthday and replace that with milk?

71 Upvotes

I totally understand both wanting to encourage solids and, if a baby is breastfed, wanting to slow that process down for the sake of the mom. But I keep seeing sources that push to replace formula with milk, and I don't really understand that. My kid obviously doesn't take a multivitamin, and isn't formula packed with all kinds of important vitamins and minerals?


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Expert consensus required Is the link between eggs and hormone related cancers significant enough to limit my toddler’s high egg intake?

6 Upvotes

A friend previously shared an article with me which made the link between eggs and breast cancer sound significant. However I cant find it, only this from 2015:

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/british-journal-of-nutrition/article/egg-intake-and-cancers-of-the-breast-ovary-and-prostate-a-doseresponse-metaanalysis-of-prospective-observational-studies/736186CC1BF856A17DA8C3B7D309C1F4

My question is, should I limit my egg- gobbling toddler's egg intake? Would choosing one type of egg (organic, duck etc) over abother make a difference?


r/ScienceBasedParenting 22h ago

Question - Research required Pavlik harness timeline evidence

0 Upvotes

My baby was put into a Pavlik harness at 10 days old with 2c hips. She responded to treatment after a week and we've been told to expect 12 weeks of the harness, with an hour out per day starting in 5 weeks. From what I've seen, it seems like length of full-time harness use (23-24hrs/day) is largely dependent on the doctor/institution. I have also seen studies which point to their being little evidence for 24hr treatment after hips are stable. I would love to be able to take her out for longer- I hate the harness so much, it has really impacted my mental health.

Can folks here tell me a) what your treatment protocol was b) how old old your baby was when you started and c) where you are located (city, institution)?

please do not respond telling me why the harness is important/why I need to follow my doctor's orders. I am looking to start a conversation with him based on what I'm reading and see what he says


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Expert consensus required Changing sleep schedules

2 Upvotes

Hi my son is enrolling in a 3k program and they have a different nap schedule than his day care. Does anyone have anything scientific on how to change sleep schedules or are there studies that show how changing sleep schedules could be a negative?

Thank you


r/ScienceBasedParenting 14h ago

Question - Research required How Damadging are Hot Showers and Baths to Male fertility

0 Upvotes

Me and my girl are getting to the point in our lives where we're starting to consider kids.

I haven't gotten checked yet, but one thing that I've recently been thinking about was how heat specifically when taking a bath or shower can affect fertility.

I'm a 28 year old male and have been cranking the heat knob to the absolute furthest it can go ever since I graduated Uni 5 years ago.

I take a hot bath first for anywhere between half an hour to a hour and a half and then take a 15 minute hot shower after that.

The last thing on my mind during that period in my life was having a baby. But not that me and my SO want one... I'm honestly terrified.

Any info is appreciated


r/ScienceBasedParenting 16h ago

Question - Expert consensus required Antibiotics or not?

0 Upvotes

I know, I know, I’m not usually one to deny antibiotics. My son is 7 days shy of 6 months, has had a runny nose on and off for 3 weeks, a cough x1 and last night a fever of 101.1 I wouldn’t of noticed if I didn’t kiss his forehead. He’s been in a happy normal mood. Fever went away after 1 dose of Tylenol. Woke up this am rubbing one ear. Im at work so I sent my husband to pediatrician but I wish I was there to listen in. Amoxicillin (10 days) and triprolidine (7 days) was rxed. My baby seems normal and happy besides the fact that yes he’s napping a little more. Breastfeeding fine. The NP he saw today has given us conflicting information in past visits and is young and seems maybe just inexperienced. She did say one ear had an ear infection. My question is, should I give the antibiotics and harm the gut biome I’ve proudly cultured with breast milk if: my kid seems fine otherwise and had only 1 instance of ear rubbing, 1x fever, its unilateral? Im not sure if she said it was bad and I dont want my kid suffering, but he literally has seemed like his normal smiley happy talkative self.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Research required Reducing Tearing during Childbirth

48 Upvotes

When I’ve researched there is a lot of conflicting information. What does the science tell us about ways to reduce tearing during childbirth?


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Research required Evidence behind allergens not being offered every week causing allergies

13 Upvotes

So I knew I was supposed to offer the allergen to my baby at least once a week once introduced but I didn't know not offering the food once a week once an allergen is already introduced could CAUSE an allergy. I have definitely forgotten some weeks to offer her certain allergens. Does this really put baby at risk say for instance if she has fish only every two weeks and not every week?


r/ScienceBasedParenting 19h ago

Question - Research required Thirdhand Smoke

0 Upvotes

First off I feel really worried because I’ve probably exposed my baby to thirdhand smoke because I’ve never heard of it before. My baby is now two weeks old and it’s only the past week that I’m worried about. My dad stayed at my house for a good bit of time the past week vaping in the house and using a weed pen. A few times he vaped while holding her but blowing away from her face. Obviously this is secondhand smoke so all vaping in the same room as the baby is gonna be stopped period. I too have smoked weed outside (nothing that makes me too impaired). I’m worried because neither one of us changed clothes or anything like that after smoking or vaping. I’m really worried about any harm this could have caused, she is growing fine and had great vitals at her appointment yesterday. Also I want to be safe in the future, is vaping in the house okay at all? Should I get an air purifier? Am I okay if I just keep a hoodie outside and wear it to smoke then wash my hands? I just really want to make sure no harm was done and I’m aware quitting is the safest option but I want to figure out a safe routine if family or I want to step outside and smoke.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Expert consensus required Sleep “training”

0 Upvotes

Do you have to teach a baby/toddler how to fall sleep independently?


r/ScienceBasedParenting 2d ago

Question - Research required To DEET or not to DEET little ones?

52 Upvotes

I’ve heard DEET is a neurotoxin but mosquito diseases suck too, quite literally.

I’m going on vacation soon to FL and need help picking an efficient bug spray to put on my little one while out because I’m sure we’ll be out at night some. Help understanding the research on what’s most effective but also safe for little one would be appreciated. Or is picarin less bad for baby and still as effective?

I’ve been going through some super heavy family and personal issues the last few days and really need to buy something before we go but I’m struggling to find the energy to research it myself so any help is very much appreciated here.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Expert consensus required Strep

0 Upvotes

If strep untreated in a newborn and goes away, can this still be harmful?

So my 11 week old had a high temperature last week 3 days in a row at night. Then on Saturday I seem to have come down with something which I'm realising now was strep (never had it before), im still struggling but not as bad. I've been up all night stressing that untreated could lead to something else.

Any research appreciated, please be kind i haven't slept much.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 1d ago

Question - Research required Straw for sippy cups?

5 Upvotes

Is it really true that sippy cups with the straw are better for little ones? My son is 9 months and we currently have the stereotypical sippy cup with no straw. I’ve seen a lot about how using ones with straws is better for them but haven’t seen any research to indicate it makes a difference or even a reason why it’s “better”.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 2d ago

Question - Research required Wake up on my own

15 Upvotes

Baby is 5 weeks old, I breastfeed. Feeding on demand, no schedule or predictability whatsoever. I noticed that no matter where I sleep - next to the bassinet or in another room with my earplugs - I wake up on my own right on time when baby starts to show first hunger cues. It happens every time! Sometimes it is annoying because my partner takes care of feeding with the bottle, so I could sleep. But I wake up anyway. Although When I am awake, I don’t feel when baby is hungry. Can judge only by milk leaking. I’ve heard about this phenomena from two unrelated people, but can google nothing! I want to know how does it work.


r/ScienceBasedParenting 2d ago

Science journalism She was America’s parenting hero. Then the backlash came.

445 Upvotes

Interesting profile on Emily Oster in the Independent, here. Refers to Oster's position (and others' responses) on a number of parenting topics and studies, including alcohol, caffeine, vaccines, COVID school closures and more.