A Spanish women has given birth to a baby from an embryo that has been frozen for 13 years.

The child was born from one of six surplus embryos deepfrozen after a successful in vitro fertilisation programme involving another couple. They donated the embryo through an “embryo adoption” scheme to the unnamed woman, who has now given birth.

The baby, born in Barcelona, is believed to be the world’s oldest in vitro child. The previous record was held by twins born to an Israeli woman who gave birth in May 2003 from embryos frozen for 12 years.

Nobody knows how long an embryo can be stored without losing viability, but the evidence suggests that it could be decades, or possibly centuries. It could, therefore, be possible, though it would be open to ethical questions, for the infertile daughter of the woman who provided the embryo to give birth to her brother or sister.

News of the birth is expected to give fresh ammunition to researchers in countries such as Britain who claim that huge numbers of embryos are being destroyed needlessly every year because Britain lacks the equivalent of the embryo adoption scheme in Spain.

The identity of the new parents and the sex, name and date of birth of the child have not been revealed. Staff at Instituto Marquès, the Barcelona fertility clinic involved, are expected to offer more information next week. They believe that 13 years is the longest storage period from which a healthy baby has been delivered, and medical literature gives them some backing. It remains possible that embryos have been used after even longer, although no account has been reported, and the Spanish team seems to be on safe ground in claiming a record.

It stored the surplus embryos at minus 196C (-320F) — the normal practice — after the biological mother became pregnant following fertility treatment at the clinic in 1993.

The mother is 40 and is thought to have suffered miscarriages before turning to the embryo adoption programme. A source at the clinic said: “The couple both suffer from fertility problems. She had ovulatory problems which prevented her from becoming a mother without help and he suffers from a low sperm count.

“They underwent three courses of fertility treatment, including IVF, but all ended in miscarriages. The decision to turn to the embryo adoption programme was a last resort. The child born from the frozen embryo is perfectly healthy. It goes without saying that everyone is delighted.”

Some countries, including Britain, put a five-year limit on the preservation of cryopreserved embryos. In Britain the deadline can be extended for five years only with the written permission of the parents. Some researchers have criticised the law, saying that the embryos could be used for further attempts to conceive or be donated to other women with fertility problems, as in this case. Spain puts no legal limit on the amount of time that embryos can be stored, although guidelines allow IVF clinics to donate them to other couples or use them for medical research once the biological mother is a certain age.

SOURCE:TIMESONLINE

This is just as sad as the mercury story I did about a month ago. As adults our job is to protect the next generation. More people are concerned about making money than keeping the world safe for our children.

Forty-seven primary school children in eastern China have been found to have excessive lead in their blood, the latest such case to hit the country.

Tests on the children from a school in Fujian Province’s Qili Village by the Disease Prevention and Control Center determined the high lead levels, the official Xinhua News Agency reported late Saturday.

It said one 7-year-old boy was been hospitalized for moderate lead poisoning, and that the Meiheng Smelting Co. in the village was the suspected the source of the lead.

Environmental problems have escalated recently as China’s economy booms, with some of the disasters prompting violent protests against local and provincial governments.

In September, Xinhua said at least four children _ among hundreds of people sickened by emissions from a lead smelter in western China _ likely suffered permanent brain damage.

A Chinese environmental official was quoted as saying the factory was emitting 800 times the acceptable levels, and accusing local authorities of failing to do anything.

About 250 children were hospitalized weeks after the mass poisoning case was uncovered in Hui county in Gansu province, Xinhua said. It said they were being treated with vitamin supplements and most were in stable condition.

Many of the China’s environmental disasters have been blamed on companies which, counting on lax enforcement of regulations, find it easier and cheaper to dump poisons into rivers and the ground instead of treating them.

Related Articles:

Lead Exposure and Children

SOURCE:CBSNEWS

Fox News is reporting that 17,000 kids per year are injured on school buses. This report has re-ignited the arguement for seat belts on school buses. While 17,000 is less than 1% of the kids nationally that travel on school buses it’s still way too many to not look at other safety ideas.

New national data show school bus-related accidents send 17,000 U.S. children to emergency rooms each year, more than double the number in previous estimates that only included crashes.

Nearly one-fourth of the accidents occur when children are boarding or leaving school buses, while crashes account for 42 percent, the new research shows.

Slips and falls on buses, getting jostled when buses stop or turn suddenly, and injuries from roughhousing are among other ways kids get hurt on school buses, the data found.

Injuries range from cuts and sprains to broken bones, but most are not life-threatening and don’t require hospitalization. And while the numbers are higher than previously reported, they represent a small fraction of the 23.5 million children who travel on school buses nationwide each year, the researchers said.

The researchers said the results provide a strong argument for requiring safety belts on school buses, something industry groups say is unnecessary and is more than many school districts can afford.

Safety belts, particularly lap-shoulder belts “could not only prevent injuries related to crashes,” they could also keep kids seated “so they’re not falling out of their seats when buses make normal turns or brake,” said lead author Jennifer McGeehan, a researcher at Columbus Children’s Hospital’s Center for Injury Research and Policy in Columbus, Ohio.

“Our study shows that there needs to be continued vigilance on school bus safety,” McGeehan said.

The study appears in November’s Pediatrics, being released Monday.

The research, involving nonfatal injuries treated in emergency rooms, is based on 2001-2003 data from a surveillance system operated by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Some 51,100 children up to age 19 were injured during the study period, or about 17,000 annually, the researchers said.

Data from the government’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration through 2005 show that about 8,000 children are injured each year in school bus crashes but on average fewer than nine are killed — numbers that have remained stable for the last decade or so, the agency said. The tally is based on police reports, and not all injuries resulted in emergency room treatment.

In a 2002 report to Congress, NHTSA recommended against lap-only belts in school buses because they can be risky, especially in small children, by restraining them high on the abdomen, potentially causing internal injury in a crash.

Five states — California, Florida, Louisiana, New Jersey and New York — and some districts have implemented varying safety belt requirements for school buses, according to the National Coalition for School Bus Safety, a nonprofit advocacy group.

“It’s an expensive proposition to outfit school buses with lap-shoulder belts, not just because of the cost of the equipment but because it also reduces seating capacity,” said Robin Leeds of the National School Transportation Association, an industry group that represents school bus companies.

She said school buses are the safest way for kids to get to school, with or without safety belts.

The American Academy of Pediatrics advocates having lap-shoulder belts on all new school buses and supports having adult monitors on buses, too, said Dr. Barbara Frankowski, a Vermont pediatrician and chair of academy’s council on school health.

However, Frankowski added, “it’s kind of unfair to say each individual district has to suck up the cost.”

Safety Council of Canada’s website has this to say on the issue:

Seat-belts were designed for cars, and have saved thousands of lives. School buses are designed with safety (but not seat-belts) in mind; they are not built like cars. Buses are much larger, higher and heavier than other vehicles on the road, so they have a body-on-frame design. For seat-belts to enhance rider safety, the bus body would have to be completely re-engineered with seat-belts integrated at the design stage.

Beyond the engineering problems someone would need to ensure the seat-belts are used, adjusted properly between uses by small and larger children, and repaired when damaged. In an emergency, seat-belts could hinder evacuation. Young children should not be placed in a situation where they must become responsible for their own safety.

SOURCE:FOXNEWS

SOURCE:SAFETYCOUNCIL

These blocks are made by Haba and they are fabulous. They have stimulating colours and patterns on them, which help to keep kids attention while playing.

Pile up these whimsical blocks and be amazed! Thanks to their optical effects these blocks are sure to fascinate even the youngest stacker. Made of beech wood, acrylic with some foil coating. 26 pieces total.

They promote: Creative Expression, Independent Play, Early Motor, Sensory skills

I found them at www.oompa.com for $32.99 U.S.

Other toys I like from this Manufacturer:
No Batteries Required - Play Cube
Awesome Play Space for Baby - Dream Meadow