They claim that IVF children are taller than kids conceived naturally. The researchers analyzed the height of nearly 200 children to come to this conclusion. As a result, it was discovered that the height of children born through IVF at the age of six was higher than that of similar children born naturally. The difference was an average of 2.6 centimeters.

The New Zealand researchers tried to understand the cause of such a difference in the height of children. Their version – medications taken by women to stimulate ovulation during in vitro fertilization are responsible for this.

It is also quite possible that the culture medium in which embryos are placed before implanting them into the uterus is responsible for the high growth. These factors can alter the hormonal profile of children conceived through IVF procedure. In the end, it leads to a more intense physical development of children.

Source of the image: Scientificamerican.

The research group, which was led by Professor Cesar Rivera, conducted a set of experiments with two groups of volunteering students. The first group consisted of bilinguals – young people, who learned to use two languages early in their childhood, Catalan and Spanish; the second group consisted of students who know only Spanish. The participants were asked to solve various problems, while their brain activity was monitored with functional magnetic resonance imaging.

The scientists discovered that bilinguals use the left inferior frontal lobe, the Boca’s area, to solve such problems as sorting objects according to shape or color. The other group, monolinguals, on the other hand, uses the right part to solve the same problems.

Scientists from Great Britain, Italy, and Japan have earlier published their findings in PloS One magazine, about the fact that children who talk two languages starting from early age are better oriented in conversations and are better at recognizing rudeness, dishonesty, and excessive information. Moreover, some studies have shown that bilingual children develop much faster, and maintain higher reactions rate even in adulthood.

Source of the image: Photl.

In their research held in Patagonia, Chile, scientists were looking at how sucking a pacifier or fingers affects speech development. The study involved 128 babies aged between three to five years. They found babies using a pacifier or sucking their fingers past the age of three were more likely to have difficulties in pronouncing certain sounds. The study was published last Wednesday in BMC Pediatrics.

According to a study by the University of Washington, US, the babies who were not bottle-fed, at least, before the age of nine months had lower risk of developing speech defects. Babies sucking their fingers or a pacifier past the age of three years were three times more likely to develop speech problems.

Scientists showed earlier that extended use of a pacifier or sucking fingers affects the anatomy of mouth, jaws and teeth, while breastfeeding helps develop coordinated breathing, swallowing and speech articulation.

Source of the image: sxc.hu/profile/fnavarro.