Top children's health news for the week of Oct. 26 - Nov. 2.

Top Stories

• A "critical period" for our health, hormones.Regulatory rollbacks and decreased public health protections threaten progress on chemicals that mess with our reproduction, brains and behavior. (EHN)
• Analysis: Getting the lead out of our skies. Given the known hazards of lead exposure and the existence of alternative aviation fuels, we have an ethical responsibility to eliminate the use of avgas and protect our population from such a significant source of lead pollution. (EHN)
• Pesticide residues linked to unsuccessful IVF. Women who ate more produce known to harbor pesticides were less likely to succeed with fertility treatment than women who ate fewer of these fruits and vegetables. (The Scientist)
• Preterm birth rate increases, but many women can't get treatment to prevent it. Low-income, urban and black women are most affected by high costs and other hurdles. (Washington Post)

United States

• Coalition touts 'scientific evidence,' scores surprise win.The Consumer Product Safety Commission's move to ban many household uses of flame retardants last month came after a campaign by a novel coalition of scientists, doctors and advocates for children's health. (Greenwire)
• Around the Salton Sea, worsening dust a major health concern. Imperial County ranks first in California for asthma-related emergency room visits for children. Dust around the shrinking Salton Sea is making the problem worse. (Desert Sun)
• Residents in East Liverpool concerned about manganese contamination. A new study found children along the Pennsylvania-Ohio border in East Liverpool with higher levels of manganese in their bodies also had lower IQ scores. (Post-Gazette)

Food

• At the doors of starvation:' Siege strangles Damascus suburbs. "The child that we consider normal in Ghouta is the child whose weight is on the lowest end of the normal weight scale. We don't have fully healthy children." (Reuters)
• Lead in imported candy tops contaminated food list in state. A new study has found that the California Department of Public Health has issued more health alerts for lead in candy than for the other top three sources of food contamination - E. coli, Botulism, and Salmonella - combined. (San Francisco Chronicle)
• These Colorado preschoolers learn hands-on farming to prevent childhood obesity. As childhood obesity soars among low-income communities with limited access to fresh produce, some educators in Colorado are combating the problem by joining the farm-to-preschool movement. (PBS NewsHour)