August 26, 2013
News Clips
Journal Review
- AAP Recommendations for Male Adolescent, Young Adult Health
The authors reviewed available literature on young men’s health and summarized best clinical practices to meet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Healthy 2020 objectives for adolescents and young adults. While offering recommendations for overall care of males in this age group, the review especially focuses on gender-specific issues in reproductive and sexual health.
Medscape
August 12, 2013Pediatrics AbstractNote: The principal author, Dr. David Bell, is a co-chair of The Boys Initiative’s Ensuring Healthy Futures project’s steering committee. Dr. Breland, a co-author of the review, is a member of the project’s advisory council.
News Clips
- Boys whose fathers work 55 hours plus, more aggressive
Boys tend to be more antisocial and aggressive if their fathers work extremely long hours — 55 or more hours a week, researchers in Germany and Australia say.
upi.com
August 24, 2013 - Nonmedical use of prescription pain relievers may raise the risk of turning to heroin use
A new report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows that people aged 12 to 49 who had used prescription pain relievers nonmedically were 19 times more likely to have initiated heroin use recently (within the past 12 months of being interviewed) than others in that age group (0.39 percent versus 0.02 percent).
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
August 22, 2013 
Baby circumcisions in U.S. hospitals decline over three decades
The rate of circumcisions performed on newborn boys in U.S. hospitals dropped 6 percentage points over the last three decades, with an especially steep decline in Western states, according to U.S. government data released on Thursday.
Reuters
August 22, 2013- As circumcision declines, health costs will go up, study projects
A team of researchers estimates that every procedure not performed could lead to significant increases in lifetime medical expenses because of STDs.
Los Angeles Times
August 21, 2013 
Study Ties Poor Oral Health to Cancer-Causing Virus
People with swollen gums, missing teeth and other signs of poor dental health are more likely to be infected orally with the human papillomavirus, researchers reported on Wednesday.
New York Times
August 21, 2013- Helping minority males complete college helps the Texas economy
Some of Texas’ major public education institutions — including school districts, community colleges and public universities — rightly are joining forces to combat lagging college completion rates for African-American and Latino males.
The Statesman
August 20, 2013Junk food may lead to mental health problems in children
Deakin University researchers, working with Norwegian collaborators, have found for the first time that a clear relationship exists between mums’ diets during pregnancy, as well as children‘s diets during the first years of life, and children’s mental health.
Medical Express
August 20, 2013 - Bullied kids struggle to keep a job later in life
Kids who are bullied often face a range of health and personal problems later in life, a new study finds.
Futurity
August 20, 2103 - School Has Become Too Hostile to Boys
And efforts to re-engineer the young-male imagination are doomed to fail
As school begins in the coming weeks, parents of boys should ask themselves a question: Is my son really welcome? A flurry of incidents last spring suggests that the answer is no.
Time
August 19, 2013 - Software Tells Teacher When Kids Space Out
ExitTicket, software born in a classroom, can tell a teacher if the kids in the back of the class haven’t been paying attention.
Information Week
August 19, 2013 - Transgender issues: California parents panicking
So, at least one parent in California — Assemblyman Tim Donnelly, R-Twin Peak — says one of his two teenage sons will not be returning to public school because, ohmygawd! the lad might encounter a transgender person in the washroom or shower room/dressing room.
Montreal Gazette
August 18, 2103 - Research Reveals How Kids Learn From ‘Sex-Saturated’ Online Culture
New research from author and clinical psychologist Catherine Steiner-Adair has found many teens are turning to Internet videos to educate themselves on topics relating to sexual health, including sexuality, dating, and gender stereotypes.
Mashable
August 18, 2013 
Cola ‘makes kids as young as five violent’: Children who have four fizzy drinks a day are more likely to fight, destroy possessions and attack others
A study found that boys and girls who had four soft drinks a day were more than twice as likely to get into fights, destroy others’ possessions and physically attack people, compared with those who drank other beverages.
Mail Online
August 16, 2013- Indiana launches website to fight Rx drug abuse
“Whether you are seeking ideas on how to talk to your teenager about whether they are abusing prescription drugs, searching for help for yourself or a loved one or just want to know how to properly dispose of your unwanted medications, this new website serves as a one-stop shop. I believe consumers need to be armed with information and the right resources so we can try to put an end to this epidemic.”
Journal Gazette
August 16, 2013 
Teen Abuse of Prescription Drugs Skyrockets
One in four adolescents questioned in 2012 admitted that they had abused prescription drugs at least once, which represented a dramatic 33 percent increase in just four years.
Addiction Treatment Magazine
August 16, 2013- Boys also harmed by teen ‘hookup’ culture, experts say
According to new research, boys who engage in this kind of sexualized behavior say they have no intention to be hostile or demeaning — precisely the opposite. While they admit they are pushing limits, they also think they are simply courting. They describe it as “goofing around, flirting,”
Today
August 15 2013 - Boosting College Readiness Among Black and Latino Males
In an effort to improve these outcomes, the Open Society Foundations has partnered with Bloomberg Philanthropies and several New York City agencies to create the Young Men’s Initiative, which addresses disparities in education, criminal justice, employment, and health among young men of color.
Open Society Foundations
August 15, 2013 - Boys with allergies, Asthma at higher risk for ADHD
“ADHD, a chronic mental health disorder, is most commonly found in males, while asthma is also more common in young boys than girls,” said Eelko Hak, lead author of the study published in journal Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology.
Business Standard
August 14, 2013 - The struggle to help boys learn
Everywhere we look, boys are squashed into a narrow idea of what it means to be male. And that doesn’t have much to do with school as they know it.
Online Opinion
August 14, 2013 - Most teens have easy access to their prescription drugs
Three in four teens who were prescribed medication during the last six months had unsupervised access to them at home, likely increasing the risk of overdose, substance abuse and drug diversion, a new University of Michigan study indicates.
University of Michigan
August 13, 2013 - Many Risk Factors for Early Dementia Can Show Up in Teens
Swedish researchers have identified nine risk factors — many occurring during a person’s teens — that are tied to early onset dementia. The good news is that several of these symptoms and behaviors can be prevented or treated, experts noted.
Medline Plus August 13, 2013 - Boys, Girls and Childhood Obesity
A new study published in the journal Pediatrics collected health data from more than 1,700 sixth grade students…But there were gender differences, as well. Boys who participated in vigorous physical activity and school sports appeared to be protected against obesity. While for girls, milk consumption appeared to help ward off severe weight problems.
Medline Plus
August 12, 2013 - Use of Antipsychotics in Children Under Investigation by HHS
An investigation into whether certain antipsychotic drugs are being prescribed too often to treat behavioral problems in youngsters covered by Medicaid is being conducted by federal health officials. The review has been underway for several months and is being conducted by the inspector general’s office at the Department of Health and Human Services. In a parallel move, various agencies within HHS are telling state officials to tighten oversight of prescriptions of such drugs to Medicaid recipients who are 17 and younger, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Healthfinder.gov
August 12, 2013 - NIH issues online course on screening youth for alcohol problems
A new online training course will help health care professionals conduct fast, evidence-based alcohol screening and brief intervention with youth. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health, produced the course jointly with Medscape, a leading provider of online continuing medical education.
National Institutes of Health
August 12, 2013 - Sex in a Teenager’s Room: Why Not?
But what would happen if parents embraced another possibility and actually accepted their teenagers’ sex lives, even going so far as to allow teenagers to have their boyfriend or girlfriend sleep over?
Slate
August 12, 2013 - Study finds that some depressed adolescents are at higher risk for developing anxiety
Specifically, those who are most vulnerable are those who have a pessimistic outlook toward events and circumstances in their lives; those who have mothers with a history of an anxiety disorder; or those who report that the quality of their family relationships is poor, Kouros said. A depressed adolescent with any one of those circumstances is more at risk for developing anxiety, the researchers found.
Medical Xpress
August 9, 2013 - Outgoing Young People Become Happier Seniors: Survey
But shy people not doomed to a miserable life, researcher stresses.
HealthFinder.gov
August 9, 2013 - Youth Concussion FAQ
An estimated 400,000 high school athletes sustained concussions while participating in five major male sports and four major female sports during the 2005-2008 school years. In addition, experts believe that the prevalence of sports-related concussions among young people in all sports is significantly higher than reported.
National Football League
August 9, 2013 - Targeting Disruptive Behavior in Early Childhood Can Reduce Teen Substance Abuse
Canadian researchers believe early intervention for behavioral problems can reduce or prevent substance use in adolescence.
Psych Central
August 8, 2013 - Most youth who use smokeless tobacco are smokers, too
Most young people in the U.S. who use newer smokeless tobacco products are smoking cigarettes too, according to new research. “These findings are troubling, but not surprising, as tobacco companies spend huge sums to market smokeless tobacco in ways that entice kids to start and encourage dual use of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco,” Vince Willmore, vice president of communications at the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy organization, told Reuters Health in an email.
Medline Plus
August 8, 2013 - Stimulant-related emergency department visits rise 300 percent among younger adults
A new report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows that some drug- related emergency department visits increased by 300 percent — from 5,605 visits in 2005 to 22,949 visits in 2011. These visits, made by adults aged 18 to 34, were related to the nonmedical use of central nervous system (CNS) stimulants. On average, about 30 percent of these visits also involved alcohol.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
August 8, 2013 - CDC Chief: Doctors: Are You Helping Reduce HPV?
Just last month we had great news for Americans. Infection with the types of human papillomavirus (HPV) that commonly cause cervical cancer in women has dropped about half in 14- to 19-year old girls since the HPV vaccination program started.
The vaccine works. It works even better than we had hoped.
But last week we published a study showing that HPV vaccination coverage hasn’t increased at all in the past two study years.
Huffington Post
August 5, 2013
Journal Articles
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- Clinical Implications of Substance Use on Suicidality Among Youths
The major clinical implication from the study is that gathering information about the lifetime number and types of substances used by an adolescent can inform the assessment of suicide risk. Furthermore, understanding the substance use history may help determine the adolescent’s broader risk of health risk behaviors and associated mental illness. This can help guide clinical decision making regarding the level of mental health interventions an adolescent may require.
Psychiatric Times
August 22, 2013 - “Just talk to me”: communicating with college students about depression disclosures on Facebook.
The study found that “In-person communication from friends or trusted adults is the preferred means for raising concerns about a student’s signs of depression displays on Facebook. Programs that encourage resident advisors and peers to respond in this manner and encourage treatment may represent a way to improve access to care for depression.”
Journal of Adolescent Health, January 2013
International News
Australia
- Boys want to look fit to be happy
Boys as young as eight have decided they want to look fit and sporty – and think they will be happier if they do – a new body image study has found.
Sydney Morning Herald
August 11, 2013
Canada
- Teenage smoking ‘quadruples risk of psychiatric disorder’
The likelihood of having a psychiatric diagnosis is fourfold in adolescent children who are regular smokers, a UK study has revealed.
Telemanagement
August 22, 2013 - Anti-homophobic bullying policies linked to drop in teen binge drinking
LGBTQ and straight students who attend high schools with specific anti-homophobic bullying policies and gay-straight alliances (GSAs) are significantly less likely to binge-drink, according to findings in a new UBC study.
Metro News
August 15, 2013
Italy
- Suicide of homosexual boy triggers concern
The suicide of a 14-year-old boy in Rome who was bullied because he was gay triggered calls on Monday for quicker government action to pass laws against gay-bashing.
Gazetta Del Sud
August 8, 2013
New Zealand
- Boys slip further in school’s co-ed class
Teenage boys’ attitude to reading is widening the gap between them and their female classmates at a Wairarapa college.
Rathkeale College in Masterton is a state-integrated boys’ school where girls from sister school St Matthew’s Collegiate join in years 12 and 13 to form a co-educational senior school.
Stuff.co.nz
August 12, 2013
UAE
- Why are UAE boys dropping out of school?
Even as the UAE puts impressive and effective measures in place in education to take its knowledge-based economy to higher levels, there is an occurrence that seems to be slowing down the pace — UAE males at the senior secondary level choosing to drop out from school.
Gulf News
August 11, 2013
UK
- Why boys are better at exams, according to Oxford University chief
Girls may be outraged by this, but the man in charge of admissions at Oxford University believes boys do better in exams like science because they are better at taking risks.
The Telegraph
August 18, 2013 - Boys will be boys: Gender divide is growing fast at A-levels
Girls shy away from maths and science and fewer boys opt for English and creative subjects
“We need very good female role models of engineers and scientists to go and talk to students – and we need those who have made a success out of English to go and talk to boys.”
The Independent
August 16, 2013