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Another runaway Toyota Prius was reported yesterday. A 56-year-old driver was injured while driving her 2005 Prius in New York. The accident was blamed on the sticky accelerator pedal that has the Japanese automaker under fire. So what should Toyota owners do?
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The Consumer Product Safety Commission is preparing a safety warning about baby slings, the popular baby carriers that parents can strap around their chest. The concern is that infants can suffocate, and there have already been several instances.

According to CPSC head Inez Tenenbaum, “We know of too many deaths in these slings and we now know the hazard scenarios for very small babies. So, the time has come to alert parents and caregivers.”

Concerns about baby slings were raised as early as 2008, when Consumer Reports experienced two dozen serious injuries when children fell out of the soft fabric slings. Though the baby slings are both fashionable, and advertised as an important way for new moms to bond with their babies, it’s clear that the safety risks aren’t worth it.

More at the Baltimore Sun. Photo by N.R.

Over at Babble, David Shenk has “4 Ways to Guide Your Child Toward Excellent,” or better put, tips for parents to help their kids succeed. The advice isn’t too specific, but I think it’s intentionally ambiguous so it can be applied to whatever part of your child’s life needs parental support. Here are the four steps and some excerpts from Shenk:

1. Believe
“Rather than wonder if their child is among the “gifted” chosen few, parents should believe deeply in the extraordinary potential of their children.”

2. Support, don’t smother
“Early exposure to resources is wonderful, as is setting high expectations and demonstrating persistence and resilience when it comes to life challenges. But a parent must not use affection as a reward for success or a punishment for failure.”
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Yesterday, we talked about how women who drink alcohol regularly were more likely to lose weight. Well, a new study suggests that coffee drinkers have a lower risk of having Type 2 diabetes. But not just any coffee drinkers — those who have their cup of joe at lunch time.

Two cups of coffee seems to be the magic number, as women who drank two cups were 33% less likely to develop diabetes, yet women who drank three cups in a day were only 27% less likely. There was no difference between those who drank caffeinated or decaf coffee. The researchers weren’t sure if there was a difference between those who took their coffee black or with cream/milk.

It also might surprise you just how much caffeine is in coffee.

Read the rest at Healthcare News. Photo by kwerfeldein.

This week, the Archives of Internal Medicine published a study that divided women aged 39 and older into drinkers (light or regular drinkers) and nondrinkers and tracked their weight gain. Surprisingly, nondrinkers gained more weight — an average of nine pounds instead of three. Hey, that’s pretty good news for those who enjoy the occasionally glass of wine.

Too bad that trend didn’t carry over for men. Male drinkers gained more weight than nondrinkers, leading researchers to believe that men and women may process alcohol differently. But perhaps it has to do with varying trends in the amount men and women drink.

Obviously, the take away here isn’t that women 39 and older should drink until they drop a few pounds. But hey, I’ve heard worse excuses to drink. Prost!

More at Well. Photo by jeremylim.

Obesity is a growing danger among U.S. children (no pun intended), but how early can parents help prevent their children from becoming overweight? As a Los Angeles Times article suggests, parents should make an effort to prevent childhood obesity as early as, well, before the baby is born.

Today, one of every three U.S. children is overweight — but it’s much easier to prevent obesity than to treat it. That’s why pediatric obesity experts now say intervention should begin early — very early. The risk of becoming overweight or obese, it increasingly seems, begins before a child is born, establishes roots in infancy and may be entrenched by the time a tot starts kindergarten.

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I think we can all agree that the expectations we have of kids today is tremendous, but just how dangerous is it to their psychological health? Seeking to answer that question is a new documentary called Race to Nowhere, which looks into the pressures on students to overachieve. Watch the trailer below. Via ParentsAsk.

Race to Nowhere is a new documentary about the dark side of America’s achievement culture. Watch the trailer here.

The administration of Sacred Heart, a Catholic pre-school in Boulder, CO, expelled a student for having gay parents, citing the Catholic churches stern views on homosexuality.

“To allow children in these circumstances to continue in our school would be a cause of confusion for the student in that what they are being taught in school conflicts with what they experience in the home,” said the Archdiocese of Denver, in a formal statement.

Growing up, I went to a private Episcopalian high school. I was not Episcopalian, and many other students were of different denominations and entirely different religions. While I understand that Boulder’s Sacred Heart is there to serve the Catholic community, I think by not accepting students of different backgrounds undoes much of what the Catholic church stands for.

Here’s the story from the Associated Press.

We had over 500 entries in our Best Family Vacation Ever giveaway. And who won? Reader Maria K, whose favorite vacation was at Disneyworld!

Hands best vacation in my life was my 1st visit disney @ age 8, I was still young enough to think everything was awesome and being with my parents was the best part, same trip 5 years later @ age 13 and I was total tool thinking everything was lame and my parents were crazy. lol

Congratulations, Maria! You win a $250 Amazon gift card as well as a year-long premium Life360 membership. Thanks to everyone who entered, and stay tuned to Life360 Now! for more giveaways.

Photo by rgtmum.

You may or may not find this chart comparing the levels of caffeine in various drinks surprising, but it’s good to know that coffee lovers are the supreme caffeine addicts. (And maybe coffee lovers like knowing that brewed coffee has way more caffeine than an Americano?) Of course, the serving sizes for each beverage varies. The full breakdown at Wisebread.