Latest news with #babyhealth
Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Teething 9-Month-Old Has Strange Bump in His Mouth. Docs Think It's a Tumor Until They See a Toy Embedded in His Gums
Rowan Steiner says 5 doctors examined the blue mass in her son's mouth before a specialist used a dental tool to pry it off A mom was changing her baby's diaper when she saw something that scared her. Rowan Steiner, 31, said her son, Max, then 9 months, was crying during the diaper change — and that's when she spotted a massive blue lump by his gums. The Salt Lake City, Utah, mom of five said she and her husband rushed her son to the hospital, where he spent 12 hours being examined by five different doctors, according to Daily Mail. Kennedy News & Media Part of a fidget toy that was in 9-month-old Max Steiner's mouth The PEOPLE App is now available in the Apple App Store! Download it now for the most binge-worthy celeb content, exclusive video clips, astrology updates and more! Docs originally thought it was a tumor but admitted it could be something else. ADVERTISEMENT 'Throughout the day the doctors had mentioned it could be a toy. We were totally open to the idea because I have five children and a nine-month-old wants to put everything in their mouth at that stage,' Steiner said of the 2022 ordeal. But, 'I, his dad, and all of the doctors physically touched it ... every single person did.' One doctor even said Max needed a CT scan. But when an ear, nose, and throat specialist examined Max, he used a dental tool to pry the 'mass' off — and the Steiners discovered it was a bubble from a fidget toy that had come loose while the tot was sucking on it. Getty Stock image of a fidget toy. 'It was just suctioned so tightly that it wasn't moving at all,' Steiner told the outlet. 'We were like, 'How would this make sense?' A fidget toy was not what we were thinking of at all." 'We were terrified, and then when we found out it was a fidget toy, we were relieved.' ADVERTISEMENT Max had some swelling and bleeding around his gums after the plastic bubble was removed, but his mom shares, 'That was probably the best case scenario after thinking that it was going to be a tumor, or he could have swallowed it or choked on it.' Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Read the original article on People
The Sun
18-07-2025
- Health
- The Sun
Katie Radford rushes 9-month-old baby to hospital & shares reminder to parents to ‘always listen to gut' after diagnosis
KATIE Radford has rushed her nine-month-old baby to hospital and shared a very important reminder to all parents. Just days after the 22-year-old broke her silence on her split from her father's child Connor Carter, the mum-of-one urgently rang 111 for advice regarding her ill child. 10 10 10 Nine months after giving birth to her 'absolute dream baby', Katie noticed her son Ronnie Hudson Carter, who was born on 8th October 2024, was 'unsettled.' And after 'being sent to hospital ' and her son receiving a shocking diagnosis, Katie, who is a member of Britain's Biggest Family and stars in the hit Channel 5 show 22 Kids & Counting, has urged parents to 'always listen to your gut.' Posting on social media, on her Instagram stories, the brunette, who found out she was pregnant after being with Connor for six years, uploaded a snap of her youngster in a hospital bed. Alongside the picture, the eighth Radford child penned: 'Thank you everyone for all your messages. 'I rang 111 as he was so unsettled this morning, nothing would calm him down other than a bath.' Alongside a crying emoji, she continued: 'They have said he's got shingles.' Shingles, also known as herpes zoster, is a viral infection that causes a painful rash. While it's more common in adults, babies and children can also get it. It's caused by the varicella-zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox. After a person has chickenpox, the virus can lie dormant in their nervous system and later reactivate as shingles. Mum-of-22 Sue Radford MISSED 'scared' 21-year-old daughter's birth as Noel booked posh Dubai break at £400 a night hotel Following this, the third eldest Radford daughter shared a message for parents, as she warned: 'Let this be your reminder to ALWAYS listen to your gut. 'I [saw] two doctors and got told it was nothing. 'Then after today being sent to hospital they've said it's shingles!!!' Can babies get shingles? IT is more common for babies to have chickenpox, and while they can get shingles, it is rare. For a baby to get shingles, they must have had chickenpox in the past (even in the womb), or they were exposed to the virus during pregnancy or shortly after birth. If the baby's mother had chickenpox late in pregnancy, the baby may have been exposed and developed a mild case, allowing the virus to lie dormant. If a baby got chickenpox in early infancy, the virus could later reactivate as shingles. Signs of shingles in babies include; a localised rash on one side of the body, often in a stripe pattern; blisters that scab over in seven to 10 days and pain or irritability, although babies can't express nerve pain clearly. Chicken pox vs Shingles In the UK, chickenpox is particularly common in childhood. According to the UK Health Security Agency, about half of children have had chickenpox by age 4, and 90% by age 10. While most cases occur in children, infants under four weeks old are at higher risk for complications. But when it comes to shingles in young children, according to Pharmacy Times, for every 1,000 children observed over the course of one year, about 0.74 cases of shingles occur. Katie's sly dig Katie's post regarding her son's rush to hospital and shock diagnosis comes just nine days after she shared a sly dig online about people making 'no effort.' After removing all trace of her child's father from her Instagram and sparking concern amongst fans that she and Connor had separated, Katie posted a brutal poke at those who haven't been present with her son. Posting on TikTok, Katie uploaded a video with the caption 'Only them missing out not Ron ❤️.' Alongside the clip, she wrote: 'One of the most hurtful things as a mum is seeing people who you thought would see your kid all the time make little to no effort.' 10 10 Shortly after posting the 31-second clip, Katie confirmed: 'Just to clarify this isn't about his dad, he still sees his dad 🥰.' Connor Carter then flocked to the comments and wrote: 'Only needs the people who bother.. he won't be missing out on anything/anyone. 'My little man will be surrounded by the ones he needs💙' The discussion on Katie and Connor's split began back in May, when the Radford family spent time in Florida on an extravagant £52,000 family trip to celebrate Sue Radford 's 50th birthday. The Lancashire-based brood had a sun-soaked extravaganza in the US and alongside the Radford youngsters, Millie was joined by her husband Harley Passmore. Katie posed on the beach whilst on the trip, but Connor was nowhere to be seen in snaps shared on the family's Instagram account. Connor's fears on being a "young dad" Not only this, but previously, on an episode of the family's TV show, emotional scenes documented the moment then 21-year-old Connor found out he was going to become a father. Clearly in disbelief, Connor admitted: 'I didn't think I'd ever be a young dad…scared.' To this, Katie recognised: 'It is a big change. I'm scared. I don't think anyone's ever ready for a kid.' 10 10 Connor then confessed: 'I don't really do well with change, I don't like it. I'm still a kid, I've not grown up yet. 'I don't think I'm ready now, I don't think in five years time I'd be ready, but it's something that's going to have to change really. And whilst pram shopping with dad-of-22 Noel, 54, Connor explained: 'I can't imagine pushing a pram, it just feels a bit weird. The Radford Family's TV history THE first ever episode of 22 Kids and Counting aired on Channel 5 on 22nd February, 2021. After the first series - which had just four episodes in it - performed well, Channel 5 commissioned a 10-episode second season, which was broadcast in 2022. They went on to commission a third series, which included a Christmas special aired in December 2023. The fourth season began airing in January 2024, but fans were left disappointed when it stopped after six episodes. Sue and Noel reassured viewers that they were just taking a little break, and the next episode will be airing on 21st July. You can catch up on all previous episodes of 22 Kids and Counting on My 5, here. 'I thought I was a few years off this yet. Didn't expect it to be honest. 'I didn't ever think I'd be here to be honest, not for a few years. "Gonna have a lot of responsibility and I don't like having it.'
Daily Mail
18-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Heartbreak for Britain's biggest family as Katie Radford, 22, begs for help after baby son has mystery illness - as she hits out at doctors for dismissing it as 'nothing'
Katie Radford has revealed her baby son was worryingly sick with a mystery illnes. The daughter of parents-of-22 Sue and Noel Radford, from Morecambe, Lancashire, gave birth to her first child, Ronnie Hudson Carter, in October last year. But Katie - who has starred on the Channel 5 show 22 Kids & Counting - took to Instagram to beg for help after she noticed that something wasn't quite right with her baby son. She called NHS number 111 to ask for advice on what her son's worrying symptoms could be, after Ronnie wasn't 'calming down'. Katie said on her Instagram story: 'Thank you everyone for all your messages. I rang 111 as he was so unsettled this morning, nothing would calm him down other than a bath.' She said he was later diagnosed with shingles, which is an infection that causes a painful rash. The NHS advises people to ring 111 or get advice from their pharmacist 'as soon as possible' if they suspect someone has shingles. However, Katie also hit out at two medics who told her that Ronnie's symptoms were 'nothing'. She said: 'Let this be your reminder to always listen to your gut. I've seen two doctors and got told it was nothing and then after today being sent to the hospital and [they've] said it's shingles!!!' The mother-of-one shared the alarming statement on Instagram alongside a picture of her son resting in bed. Although the rash cannot be passed to others, they might catch chickenpox as shingles is caused by the same virus. The NHS therefore recommends that those with shingles to avoid coming in contact with anyone who is pregnant, has a weakened immune system, babies less than one month old or people who have not had chickenpox before. Noel first found out their daughter Katie was pregnant after he discovered a positive test in the family home and realised that it must belong to Katie. At the same time, Noel was planning to whisk Sue away for their 32nd wedding anniversary and accidentally booked a holiday abroad which coincided with Katie's due date. Their trip to Dubai fell three weeks before Katie gave birth. However, Ronnie was born early while Sue and Noel were on the flight from Manchester to Dubai, which meant they missed the birth of their grandchild. At the beginning of a 22 Kids and Counting episode, Katie and Connor are seen struggling to navigate the life-changing news that they are expecting their first child. The discovery is a shock to Katie, who hadn't planned to fall pregnant with her partner of six years. WHAT IS SHINGLES? Shingles is an infection that causes a painful rash. The first signs of shingles can be: A tingling or painful feeling in an area of skin A headache or feeling generally unwell A rash will usually appear a few days later. In rare cases shingles can cause pain without a rash. Usually the rash appears as blotches on the chest and tummy but it can appear anyway on the body, including on your face, eyes and genitals. Source: NHS Described as the 'most predictable couple' in the family, the two are shocked to find out that their family is about to become three. 'Me and Connor, we like a simple life,' says Katie. 'No surprises, I like to know I'm doing. Me and Connor do like a routine.' Connor adds: 'I feel like I'm still a kid. I know I'm not but I still act like a kid. I've not grown up yet,' said the hopeful but anxious father-to-be. But Katie made up for Connor's uncertainty. 'He might have doubt but I don't. Connor, you're going to be an amazing dad,' she says in a heartfelt scene. And fears quickly turn to excitement when the couple when the couple has their first scan. 'She could go weeks before and that would be when we're out there,' Sue worries. Trying to reassure her, Noel says: 'It's the first one, they never come early do they. Everything has been booked and paid for - flights, hotels, airport transfer. Don't flap, we'll be fine.' But things quickly turn sour as Sue insists 'we can't go', arguing she doesn't 'feel comfortable' making the journey as such a time. With Katie's seal of approval, the couple decide to embark on the adventure anyway - but Sue's worst fears are realised when her 22-year-old daughter goes into labour while she and Noel are on the flight to Dubai. In a tense scene, a panicked Katie calls Connor and says: 'I can't get through to mum and dad, none of my messages are delivering. I'm absolutely petrified.' With her parents having just arrived in Dubai, Katie fears that her mother won't be there for the birth. Immediately jumping on the next flight, Sue and Noel head back towards the airport to return home for the birth of their grandchild. However, by the time the couple lands back in Manchester, baby Ronnie Hudson has already arrived. Arriving back too late for hospital visits, Sue and Noel head back to the family home where they attempt to get some rest before meeting the baby. The next morning, Sue reveals she was 'tossing and turning all night' with excitement for meeting the baby. In a heartwarming moment, Sue finally has the chance to meet the little one. 'I was barely still awake but when I held him for the first time, all that stress of getting back on the flight and everything, was so worth it,' she recalls. 'You don't get those moments again,' adds Noel. 'Bringing a baby into the Radford house, it didn't feel real that it was me and not somebody else - or my mum,' Katie says.
The Guardian
16-07-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
Medical charlatans have existed through history. But AI has turbocharged them
Nearly a year into parenting, I've relied on advice and tricks to keep my baby alive and entertained. For the most part, he's been agile and vivacious, and I'm beginning to see an inquisitive character develop from the lump of coal that would suckle from my breast. Now he's started nursery (or what Germans refer to as Kita), other parents in Berlin, where we live, have warned me that an avalanche of illnesses will come flooding in. So during this particular stage of uncertainty, I did what many parents do: I consulted the internet. This time, I turned to ChatGPT, a source I had vowed never to use. I asked a straightforward but fundamental question: 'How do I keep my baby healthy?' The answers were practical: avoid added sugar, monitor for signs of fever and talk to your baby often. But the part that left me wary was the last request: 'If you tell me your baby's age, I can tailor this more precisely.' Of course, I should be informed about my child's health, but given my growing scepticism towards AI, I decided to log off. Earlier this year, an episode in the US echoed my little experiment. With a burgeoning measles outbreak, children's health has become a significant political battleground, and the Department of Health and Human Services, under the leadership of Robert F Kennedy, has initiated a campaign titled the Make America Healthy Again commission, aimed at combating childhood chronic disease. The corresponding report claimed to address the principal threats to children's health: pesticides, prescription drugs and vaccines. Yet the most striking aspect of the report was the pattern of citation errors and unsubstantiated conclusions. External researchers and journalists believed that these pointed to the use of ChatGPT in compiling the report. What made this more alarming was that the Maha report allegedly included studies that did not exist. This coincides with what we already know about AI, which has been found not only to include false citations but also to 'hallucinate', that is, to invent nonexistent material. The epidemiologist Katherine Keyes, who was listed in the Maha report as the first author of a study on anxiety and adolescents, said: 'The paper cited is not a real paper that I or my colleagues were involved with.' The threat of AI may feel new, but its role in spreading medical myths fits into an old mould: that of the charlatan peddling false cures. During the 17th and 18th centuries, there was no shortage of quacks selling reagents intended to counteract intestinal ruptures and eye pustules. Although not medically trained, some, such as Buonafede Vitali and Giovanni Greci, were able to obtain a licence to sell their serums. Having a public platform as grand as the square meant they could gather in public and entertain bystanders, encouraging them to purchase their products, which included balsamo simpatico (sympathetic balm) to treat venereal diseases. RFK Jr believes that he is an arbiter of science, even if the Maha report appears to have cited false information. What complicates charlatanry today is that we're in an era of far more expansive tools, such as AI, which ultimately have more power than the swindlers of the past. This disinformation may appear on platforms that we believe to be reliable, such as search engines, or masquerade as scientific papers, which we're used to seeing as the most reliable sources of all. Ironically, Kennedy has claimed that leading peer-reviewed scientific journals such as the Lancet and the New England Journal of Medicine are corrupt. His stance is especially troubling, given the influence he wields in shaping public health discourse, funding and official panels. Moreover, his efforts to implement his Maha programme undermine the very concept of a health programme. Unlike science, which strives to uncover the truth, AI has no interest in whether something is true or false. AI is very convenient, and people often turn to it for medical advice; however, there are significant concerns with its use. It is injurious enough to refer to it as an individual, but when a government significantly relies on AI for medical reports, this can lead to misleading conclusions about public health. A world filled with AI platforms creates an environment where fact and fiction meld into each other, leaving minimal foundation for scientific objectivity. The technology journalist Karen Hao astutely reflected in the Atlantic: 'How do we govern artificial intelligence? With AI on track to rewire a great many other crucial functions in society, that question is really asking: how do we ensure that we'll make our future better, not worse?' We need to address this by establishing a way to govern its use, rather than adopting a heedless approach to AI by the government. Individual solutions can be helpful in assuaging our fears, but we require robust and adaptable policies to hold big tech and governments accountable regarding AI misuse. Otherwise, we risk creating an environment where charlatanism becomes the norm. Edna Bonhomme is a historian of science
Daily Mail
10-06-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Deanne thought her one-year-old daughter only had a cold. The reality was much much worse - and her little girl is still suffering agonising symptoms months later
A mum has revealed the horrifying moment her six-week-old baby girl went limp and stopped breathing less than two days after catching a cold. Adelaide nurse and mother-of-two Deanne Tingey thought her little girl, Winter, was suffering from a common cold in May last year. The 27-year-old told Daily Mail Australia that her daughter's initial symptoms included a runny nose and a slight cough. But as the day progressed, she started to go downhill. Ms Tingey said Winter wasn't eating as much as usual and her cough had developed, prompting her to book an appointment with her doctor. 'By the time we got to the GP, which was 2pm the following day, Winter had not fed at all in the morning and only had one wet nappy,' Ms Tingey said. 'My GP told me to take her straight to the emergency department. So from his office we went to the hospital.' Ms Tingey said by the time they arrived, Winter was struggling to breathe, drowsy, limp and gasping for air. In less than 24 hours, Winter was fighting for her life and was taken directly to the Resus Bay - a dedicated space in hospital emergency departments designed to provide treatment for patients with critical or life-threatening conditions. 'They put her on high-flow oxygen and put a gastric tube in her straight away,' Ms Tingey said. 'They started giving her Panadol, taking bloods, swabbing her and said she had the classic signs of RSV.' Doctors discovered Winter was suffering from respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) - a common illness that causes respiratory infections, especially in babies and young kids. The virus can also lead to serious illnesses including bronchiolitis and pneumonia. While most people experience mild, cold-like symptoms, RSV can be fatal for infants or cause serious complications and long-term respiratory problems into adulthood. 'I kind of felt like a failure, because being a nurse, I should have looked out for those signs,' Ms Tingey said. 'Just watching her struggle so badly, it was absolutely heartbreaking. It's actually one of the worst things that I've ever seen.' Ms Tingey remembers the doctors explaining that the 'entire ward was full of babies with RSV'. Doctors discharged Winter 24 hours after she had arrived at hospital - a decision Ms Tingey felt was wrong. The concerned mother rushed her baby back to the hospital once more, just six hours after being discharged when she started to go blue and was very limp. 'I was hesitant to take her home, but I agreed to take her home because I had doctors telling me she'll be fine at home,' Ms Tingey said. 'As a nurse I felt annoyed at myself but when it's your own child you don't think about it in nursing terms. In that moment I was a mother, not a nurse. 'But there was a part of me that thought this is too early. I'm just glad that I took her back.' Ms Tingey stayed in the hospital full-time with Winter for another week as she received treatment while her mum looked after her young son. Winter developed bronchiolitis - a chest infection that affects the small airways in the lungs - as a result of the RSV. She would also stop breathing during her sleep and had to wear an overnight sock that monitored her oxygen levels. Now, Winter, aged one, suffers from a chronic cough, still stops breathing during her sleep, has difficulties swallowing and has a rattling sound in her chest. She also has to drink thickened milk and thickened water to stop her from choking when she drinks as her airway kept collapsing when she had RSV. Winter is set to have a surgery to secure her airway, known as a tracheoplasty, once she gains another two kilograms and reaches 10kg. Ms Tingey described her little girl as an 'absolute firecracker' who is 'full of sass'. The young mum said she wants to raise awareness of RSV and urged parents across the country to learn how to recognise the early signs. 'The amount of people that still don't even know what RSV is, blows my mind,' Ms Tingey said. 'Please know what the signs and symptoms are. Know that there's help available and get your child checked early if they start to sniffle or look like they're sick.' She also urged parents to 'advocate' for their children and to trust their gut instincts when they feel something my not be right. Cases of RSV are expected to surge as Australia heads into the cooler months, with RSV awareness week marked on the first week of winter from June 1 to 7. RSV is the leading cause of lower respiratory tract infections in infants and result in more hospitalisations in infants and young children than influenza 1, 2, 3 and 4. In Australia, infants under 12 months are more than 12 times as likely to be admitted to hospital with RSV than those aged between one and four years old. Last year, more than 170,000 RSV cases were reported, with 50 per cent of those in infants and children aged between zero and four years old. To date, more than 50,000 cases of RSV have been reported since the beginning of the year. Babies with mild symptoms of RSV need small, regular amounts of fluid including breastmilk or infant formula. A parent should call Triple Zero or got o a hospital emergency department immediately if their child is showing severe symptoms. Severe symptoms include difficulty breathing, grunting noises while breathing, dehydration - when a child is not taking in enough fluids - and blue-coloured lips or skin.
