Carolyn Moynihan
Does Hogwarts have a drinking problem?Carolyn Moynihan | 30 Jul 2009A good question, asked by New York Times Well blogger Tara Parker-Pope. In scene after scene of the movie Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, she says, “the young wizards and their adult professors are seen sipping, gulping and pouring various forms of alcohol to calm their nerves, fortify their courage or comfort their sorrows.” Parents may be surprised -- and not very happy about this message. Divorce has lasting effects on healthCarolyn Moynihan | 29 Jul 2009More evidence has come to light of the damage divorce does to family members. A study of 8652 people aged 51 to 61 shows that those who have been divorced, as well as those widowed, have worse health than those who have been continuously married or who have never married. Their health improves somewhat with remarriage but still suffers long term effects.New Zealand parents reject smacking banCarolyn Moynihan | 27 Jul 2009The Great Smacking Debate is in full flight in New Zealand where a law change two years ago specifically banned the use of “force” for the purpose of correcting children. Opponents of the new law collected enough signatures to secure a referendum on the smacking issue, which takes place next month. A New Zealand Herald poll last week shows that 85 per cent of parents of young children plan to vote No on the question: “Should a smack as part of good parental be a criminal offence in New Zealand?”Children engulfed by armed conflictCarolyn Moynihan | 24 Jul 2009A distressing report from UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, says that more then one billion children live in countries or territories affected by armed conflict. Just think of it: that’s about one-sixth of the world’s total population. More than 300 million of these children are under the age of five, and 18 million children are refugees or displaced persons.Why are young men still living at home more violent?Carolyn Moynihan | 23 Jul 2009We have are used to the idea that young men are responsible for much of the violence in society, but who would have thought that living under the parental roof was the strongest risk factor for such behaviour? And yet, that is what researchers at Queen Mary, University of London, found when they asked over 8000 men and women about violent behaviour over the past five years and mental health problems.Lessons from career woman's no-baby shockCarolyn Moynihan | 21 Jul 2009I have just caught up with a classic “confessions of a career woman” story by a British woman who has reached the age of 45 bitterly disappointed that she will never have her own child. The Daily Mail headline says it all: “Seduced by stories of stars giving birth later and IVF myths, career-obsessed Lucy believed children and love could wait.”US teen sex statistics show ‘disheartening’ trendCarolyn Moynihan | 20 Jul 2009Birth rates among teenagers are on the rise again in the United States after large declines between 1991 and 2005, according to a report from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Other sexual health indicators also have flattened or worsened in what the CDC calls a “disheartening” reversal. Predictably, there are calls for “better sex education” -- meaning more stuff about condoms and pills, evidently.Japan’s new craze: marriage huntingCarolyn Moynihan | 16 Jul 2009Japan’s population might be ageing and shrinking, but the Japanese are not short of an idea or two to tackle the trend. With marriages rates well below those of an older generation, today’s 20- to 40-somethings are fuelling a new fad known as “konkatsu” or “marriage hunting”, pursuing Mr or Mrs Right with the seriousness of nailing down a job.Every Family Matters: A major British report on marriageCarolyn Moynihan | 15 Jul 2009Despite what we have said recently on this blog, some Brits do get it about things to do with family life, and some of them are pretty important people. There is, for example, the former Conservative Party leader and current MP Iain Duncan Smith, who heads a very influential think tank called the Centre for Social Justice. This independent policy group has just published a major report calling for legal changes to support marriage as the basis of stable family life.Mother-daughter, father-son links in obesityCarolyn Moynihan | 14 Jul 2009The problem of obesity continues to haunt governments while scientists come up with conflicting ideas about the causes. (If you thought it was simply a matter of over-eating, you are sadly out of date.) The theory that it all comes down to genetics has just taken a knock from British researchers who find strong evidence that parental role models are the real problem.subscribe donate
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