Family Tips

Baby lotions, shampoos and powders can lead to high levels of chemicals in an organism potentially dangerous to health. American researchers have found out that using of this products twice increased phthalate content in children’s urine, informs magazine Pediatrics.

Phthalates have hormone-like action, suppressing production of a man’s hormone testosterone. The previous researches have shown that these substances prevent normal development of genitals and can cause disorders of reproductive function both in boys, and girls.

Cosmetics’ manufacturers usually do not specify phthalate content on labels. Meanwhile, the given researches testify, that baby cosmetics quite often contains various phthalates, which can get in an organism of the child through the skin, informed head of the research Sheela Sathyanarayana.
In the report scientists recommended parents to limit use of baby lotions and powders to medical indications.

There is no explanation of this phenomenon at the moment: there are no obvious reasons for such baby-boom in the USA. In the neighboring Canada, also receiving many immigrants, the average woman gives birth to 1.5 children for all life. The American demographers also cannot tell, whether this baby-boom of 2006 will be the beginning of a new demographic tendency, or it is just a casual local “anomaly”.

Anyway, from the middle 70th, when birth rate in the USA, as well as in all West European countries, has reached the bottom point - 1.7 children for one woman - here, unlike Europe, began counter movement, and by the end of the XX century this parameter has grown up to 2.0. But higher than this level, birth rate has not risen for more than 40 years.

Let’s note that in Israel there is also increase of birth rate, and demographers are inclined to interpret it as a post-war baby-boom: the number of pregnant women has significantly increased after The Second Lebanese war.

In the USA, unlike other developed countries, baby-boom is evident: 4.3 million babies were born in 2006 - as much, as during the last post-war “baby-boom”, in 1961.

For the next 45 years there was not born so many children in the country, informs Ð?Р.

In 2006 the average of children for one American woman has reached 2.1 - the “gold” parameter needed and the sufficient for reproduction of population at the given level. It sharply distinguishes USA from all West-European countries were fertility rates make from 1.3 (Italy) up to 1.9 (France), and the population gradually grows old.

The quarter of the babies were born in Spanish-speaking families of the natives of Latin America, who has higher birth rate, than on the average in the country. However demographers cannot explain baby-boom only with contribution of Spanish sector: “baby-boom” is observed in all ethnic communities, all colors of skin and all age groups. White American women, black Americans, Alaska aboriginals have given birth to more babies – the only exception are immigrants from the countries of Asia.