10 Most Dangerous Toys

I haven't started shopping yet for the holidays. I am really feeling the pressure to get organized. I would love to cross some presents off my list. I always take a look at the most dangerous toys first. They always seem to be the ones my kids want. Go figure! So here is the 2011 list from W.A.T.C.H.

Here's the W.A.T.C.H. list

2011 "10 Worst Toys" List
W.A.T.C.H.'s annual "10 Worst Toys" list nominates representative toys with the potential to cause childhood injuries, or even death. W.A.T.C.H.'s annual "Toy Conference" has generated extensive national press and media coverage. Because of these efforts, and the positive response from both the media and the public, there have been many toy and product design changes. Founder Edward M. Swartz (1934-2011) and W.A.T.C.H. fearlessly exposed potentially dangerous toys to the general public. As a result, children’s lives have been saved.
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TWIST 'n SORT
POWER RANGERS SAMURAI MEGA BLADE
FOLD & GO TRAMPOLINE
PULLING ANIMAL DUCK
SCHOOL BUS
Z-CURVE BOW
STEPPER "LOW RISE" STILTS
SWORD FIGHTING JACK SPARROW
THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKY DINKS MAKER
"GIGAN" GODZILLA FIGURE

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Skin Dimensions, SB products are manufactured with Pharmaceutical-Grade ingredients. Products are not just "Feel Good Products," as they contain unique and innovative ingredients in concentrations that can assist you in the achievement of your own personal skincare objectives. Our products contain higher percentages of Glycolic, Vitamin A, C, E, Co-Q10, green tea than what you can usually purchase over the counter.

Exemplary School or Scandal?

Wow! I cannot even imagine this happening at my child's school, but I am not surprised it's happening at some schools across the country. When kids don't perform well, schools lose money. They need the money to pay salaries and for necessites for the kids. It's not like the public schools have a ton of extra money. It just seems like a vicious cycle to me. It's too bad someone would decide to cheat in order to get the scores they need from the students.

FROM THE WASHINGTON POST:

A public elementary school in Texas that was given “exemplary” status for student achievement only taught reading and math to third graders last year and made up grades for each student in social studies, science, music and other subjects.

The Dallas Morning News reported that Roslyn Carter, principal of Field Elementary School, has been placed on paid administrative leave after investigators from the Dallas Independent School District investigators uncovered falsified grades for third-grade students during the 2010-11 school year.

A report by the investigators said that Carter was essentially obsessed with ensuring that students passed the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills. For the past two years Field has earned the state’s highest school rating, “exemplary,” in part based on the results of the test. Third-graders take the math and reading portions of the assessment.

The incident is just the latest in a string of scandals around the country involving cheating by teachers and principals designed to lift standardized test scores.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Skin Dimensions, SB products are manufactured with Pharmaceutical-Grade ingredients. Products are not just "Feel Good Products," as they contain unique and innovative ingredients in concentrations that can assist you in the achievement of your own personal skincare objectives. Our products contain higher percentages of Glycolic, Vitamin A, C, E, Co-Q10, green tea than what you can usually purchase over the counter.

Your Favorite Thanksgiving Recipe

I want to know! Share your favorite Thanksgiving recipes with me so I can start to cook! I don't enjoy it, but my family needs to eat better! I will try your favorite Thanksgiving recipes and let you know how they turned out. I want to know everything from the Turkey to the stuffing to the potatoes! Thanks for your help!

Here are some Thanksgiving suggestions from ALLRecipes.com

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Skin Dimensions, SB products are manufactured with Pharmaceutical-Grade ingredients. Products are not just "Feel Good Products," as they contain unique and innovative ingredients in concentrations that can assist you in the achievement of your own personal skincare objectives. Our products contain higher percentages of Glycolic, Vitamin A, C, E, Co-Q10, green tea than what you can usually purchase over the counter.

Does Dirt Prevent Allergies?

This makes me feel a little better about adhering to the five second rule. I think it's okay to have little dirt and a few germs. I just think it's a tough balancing act. I don't want the kids to feel terrible all the time and I don't want them to build up zero immunities either. How do you balance those two things with your family? Are you a germ-a-phobe?

HERE'S AN EXERT FROM SCIENCE:
If infants encounter a wide range of bacteria they are less at risk of developing allergic disease later in life. This is the conclusion of research from the University of Copenhagen, which suggests completely new factors in many modern lifestyle diseases.

"In our study of over 400 children we observed a direct link between the number of different bacteria in their rectums and the risk of development of allergic disease later in life," says Professor Hans Bisgaard, consultant at Gentofte Hospital, head of the Copenhagen Prospective Studies on Asthma in Childhood, and professor of children's diseases at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen.

"We have studied staphylococci and coli bacteria thoroughly, and there is no relation. What matters is to encounter a large number of different bacteria early in life when the immune system is developing and 'learning'. The window during which the infant is immunologically immature and can be influenced by bacteria is brief, and closes a few months after birth."

"So it makes a difference if the baby is born vaginally, encountering the first bacteria from its mother's rectum, or by caesarean section, which exposes the new-born baby to a completely different, reduced variety of bacteria. This may be why far more children born by caesarean section develop allergies."

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Skin Dimensions, SB products are manufactured with Pharmaceutical-Grade ingredients. Products are not just "Feel Good Products," as they contain unique and innovative ingredients in concentrations that can assist you in the achievement of your own personal skincare objectives. Our products contain higher percentages of Glycolic, Vitamin A, C, E, Co-Q10, green tea than what you can usually purchase over the counter.

Why you may not want your kids to be smart

Typically, you want your kids to be smart, right? Of course! I am not saying that's the most important factor, but if you could choose, "brains" would land on the positive side of the characteristics. But what if I told you a new study shows a strong I.Q. has been linked to drug usage later in life. Would you have your child's I.Q. tested so you would have a better idea whether they will test out dangerous drugs like heroine and cocaine later in life? Maybe "knowing" about an increased possibility for your child would help. What do you think?

FROM SCIENCE DAILY:

A high childhood IQ may be linked to subsequent illegal drug use, particularly among women, suggests research published online in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

The IQ scores of the participants were measured at the ages of 5 and 10 years.

Drug use included cannabis; cocaine; uppers (speed and wiz); downers (blues, tanks, barbiturates); LSD (acid); and heroin. By the age of 30, around one in three men (35.4%) and one in six women (15.9%) had used cannabis, while 8.6% of men and 3.6% of women had used cocaine, in the previous 12 months.

When intelligence was factored in, the analysis showed that men with high IQ scores at the age of 5 were around 50% more likely to have used amphetamines, ecstasy, and several illicit drugs than those with low scores, 25 years later. The link was even stronger among women, who were more than twice as likely to have used cannabis and cocaine as those with low IQ scores.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Skin Dimensions, SB products are manufactured with Pharmaceutical-Grade ingredients. Products are not just "Feel Good Products," as they contain unique and innovative ingredients in concentrations that can assist you in the achievement of your own personal skincare objectives. Our products contain higher percentages of Glycolic, Vitamin A, C, E, Co-Q10, green tea than what you can usually purchase over the counter.

Kid Cholesterol Checks

This is certainly a sad and scary reality we are facing when it comes to childhood obesity. There is now a recommendation that all children have their cholesterol tested. It is so sad that that experts in the field say this is necessary. I hope change is right around the corner.

FROM THE WASHINGTON POST:

All U.S. children should have their cholesterol tested between the ages of 9 and 11, according to new guidelines released Friday. The recommendation comes from by a 14-member expert panel convened by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute and endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, which will publish the panel’s report on Monday in the journal Pediatrics.


The recommendation marks a significant expansion from the 1992 guidelines, which had recommended that children get their cholesterol checked only if there is a history of high cholesterol or early heart disease in their families. But the panel decided to push for expanded testing because accumulating evidence suggests that high cholesterol in childhood can lead to early signs of heart disease and that the current approach could leave some children at risk, said Stephen R. Daniels of the University of Colorado, who led the panel.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen


Skin Dimensions, SB products are manufactured with Pharmaceutical-Grade ingredients. Products are not just "Feel Good Products," as they contain unique and innovative ingredients in concentrations that can assist you in the achievement of your own personal skincare objectives. Our products contain higher percentages of Glycolic, Vitamin A, C, E, Co-Q10, green tea than what you can usually purchase over the counter.

The Santa Believers

I started to get a little sentimental today when my 8-year-old asked me if Jesus and Santa are buddies. Last week he asked me if the "Sleep Fairy" is me or dad. I bet this will be our last year when all the kids believe in Santa. I am planning on really enjoying the holiday traditions this year and making sure I actually video tape more than just Christmas morning. Oh-and I will actually save the videos on my computer this year. I always plan on making a great Christmas video, but it never seems to happen.

My question to you: When do kids stop believing in Santa? How do I prevent my oldest from telling our 4-year old the truth within minutes? It's certainly not the end of the world when they stop believing, but that look on their faces on Christmas morning certainly won't be the same!

Here's that website where you can write and get an email back from SANTA

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Skin Dimensions, SB products are manufactured with Pharmaceutical-Grade ingredients. Products are not just "Feel Good Products," as they contain unique and innovative ingredients in concentrations that can assist you in the achievement of your own personal skincare objectives. Our products contain higher percentages of Glycolic, Vitamin A, C, E, Co-Q10, green tea than what you can usually purchase over the counter.