London sports company organises family run to tackle child obesity

One event is not going to solve childhood obesity, but at least the sports event company “The Fix UK” is doing its bit to tackle the problem by organising a five kilometre family run on Epsom Downs and Racecourse on Sunday 19th October.

It will offer families the opportunity to take part together, with the added bonus that children can run for free when taking part with their family.

Ben Leach, Director, The Fix UK, said, “The latest government obesity figures prove grim reading. People in Britain are getting fatter and in particular this is affecting our children. Obesity brings with it a host of health related problems that cost the NHS an estimated £2bn every year, and brings with it misery to families. If our children are becoming obese before adulthood, for health and longevity this is surely a ticking time bomb. We are trying to put the onus back on the parents to help take responsibility for their children’s physical fitness.”

For entry details see The Fix UK

New mums find it difficult to meet one another: enter What’s on for Little Ones web site

Nearly three-quarters of new mums would like to be able to share their experiences with other mums, but don’t know where to go to meet them, according to a new study by the UK-based What’s on for Little Ones website.

In addition, two out of five mums didn’t know that there are a huge range of groups and classes available.

“Many new mums feel isolated and need to meet other mums who are going through similar experiences, but it can be difficult to know where to meet them,” said Sam Willoughby, founder of What’s on for Little Ones. “Taking part in local activities gives mums the chance to meet other parents, share tips and advice, and make lasting friendships. Plus, babies and children have the chance to have fun, meet other children and learn new skills too.” The site offers a completely free to search and doesn’t even ask parents to register. All the information is quickly available, dates, times and everything else parents need to know including links to websites and contact information plus a map of how to get there! The information is up to date as the people running the classes and activities for children can update their details whenever they need to.”

WhatsOn4LittleOnes.co.uk

“Grandad-olescents” on the rise: 50-65 have new views on retirement

Harrison Ford and Madonna are just two role models for the 50-65 age group, helping to change the way they view their retirement plans.

A new study by pensions company AEGON suggests that retirement is almost a second adolescence for some, with people now looking towards a world trip or a new career when their current working lifestyle ends.

Over 2,000 people between the ages of 50 and 65 were surveyed to gauge their attitudes towards retirement and to see what sort of financial provision they have in place.

The survey reveals that 56% expect to carry on working in some capacity after they reach retirement age (which will no doubt please the Government) and, for most, not because they have to.

More than one in ten said ‘love of the job’ made them want to stay in the work force, while 14% argued that they were simply ‘too young’ to retire. Interestingly, 12% said they would like to try out a completely different career in their retirement.

Those who don’t want to continue working are looking to far-flung destinations, with over a fifth of people taking a holiday trip of a lifetime, including long-haul touring, travelling around Europe, or action and adventure holidays.

Celebrities like Sir David Attenborough, Dame Judi Dench, and Madonna are setting the standard for those at retirement age.

Financially speaking, 42% of those surveyed thought that they’d be better off than their parents, and 32% better off than their children.

However, over half admitted that they could have been better prepared for retirement had they thought about planning for it sooner.

Rachel Vahey, Head of Pensions Development at AEGON, commented, “Retirement isn’t the abrupt cliff edge it once was and, for many of today’s “baby boomers, retirement age marks a new and exciting chapter of their lives. But if you want to make adventurous life choices and have a more flexible approach to retirement, it requires careful planning. Younger generations should take note and make sure that they have enough income to enjoy their second adolescence.”

Glamourous breastfeeding with Pickle & Boo’s exclusive bracelets

Breastfeeding is wonderful and should be celebrated, but at the same time, new mums probably don’t want to advertise which side is next in line for baby. Neither should they have to remember — there’s enough else to think about with a new-born.

Enter Pickle & Boo’s exclusive breastfeeding bracelets, which not only subtly remind mums which breast is next, but add a touch of glamour too. Just what’s needed when a lot of other things involve sick, poo, and nappy changes.

These ten bracelets are made with Swarovski crystals, freshwater pearls, and Pickle & Boo’s signature “This Side Next” engraved sterling silver heart tag.

Threaded onto a strong stretch cord to make it easy to switch the bracelet from wrist to wrist, they are generously strung
(8.5 inches approx) to be worn slightly loose for comfort. The bracelets are elegant and discreet — chicly designed and genuinely functional — yet virtually unrecognisable as obvious ‘nursing jewellery’.

1. Smokey Sparkle: a sophisticated combination of sparkling smokey topaz Swarovski crystals and gleaming olive freshwater pearls
2. Light Sapphire: beautiful light sapphire blue and aquamarine Swarovski crystals, combined with pale blue Swarovski pearls
3. Black Diamond: understatedly glamorous combination of black diamond Swarovski crystals and silver grey freshwater pearls
4. Maybe Baby: palest blue and rose pink Swarovski pearls and crystals, entwined with sterling silver dazzle dust beads and heart charms
5. Glamour Puss: dazzlingly pretty peacock green freshwater stick pearls with topaz and palest green Swarovski crystals
6. Fabulous Fuschia: (pictured) bright fuschia Swarovski crystals, complimented by rose and ivory Swarovski pearls
7. Lovely Lavender: gorgeous lavender and tanzanite Swarovski crystals, accented with creamy Swarovski pearls
8. Linen Glow: a sophisticated and classic combination of ivory fresh water pearls, sparkling Swarovski crystals and sterling silver rondelles
9. Palest Jade: washed green Swarovski crystals and creamy Swarovski pearls
10. Vintage Rose: attractive vintage rose Swarovski crystals and pale pink Swarovski pearls

Joanne Pibworth, founder of Pickle & Boo said, “We know that breastfeeding a new baby can be very demanding both physically and mentally, so it’s easy to lose track of which side you fed from last. Our bracelets are designed to keep life simple for new mums — just switch the breastfeeding bracelet to your other wrist after each feed and you’ll never need to wrack your tired brain again!””

The bracelets are packaged in a shimmering lavender organza bag concealed within an ivory gift box complete with tissue, ribbons and an explanatory notelet, making them the perfect gift for a new mum.

Available from PickleAndBoo.co.uk

Video dating embraced by young men and no-one else, study suggests

In less than surprising news given the stereotypes, young men (under 25) were the most likely people to be in favour of introducing webcams into online dating and video dating web sites.

On the other hand, nearly three-quarters of women said it was a definite no-no, particularly on dating sites.

That’s according to several studies by MakeFriendsOnline.com.

Last year, a survey of their members discovered that men wanted it, but over half of women didn’t.

As online dating which includes the use of videos is still rising in popularity, the site decided to run the survey again. This time they found that nearly three-quarters of male respondents liked webcams and wanted to use them on dating sites, but 63% of female respondents didn’t.

This suggest that men on cams might be increasingly talking to themselves, and also illustrates a marked trend with the percentage of women unwilling to use webcams increasing at a convincing rate.

The increased availability of Webcam Sites was reflected in the overall results which show an additional 12% of women have tried Webcam Dating since the last survey, but of those, a massive two thirds didn’t like it and wouldn’t do it again. By comparison, the male figures remain fairly static, the majority being as willing and eager to use a webcam this year as they were last.

The MD of MakeFriendsOnline, Martin Bysh, said, “In a market where it is notoriously difficult to attract and retain female users, MakeFriendsOnline is very proud and protective of it’s female membership, which at 51% is probably the best male/female ratio you’ll find anywhere. We would not want to alienate our female members by offering a feature that makes them uncomfortable and certainly not one which would actively put them off joining our site. We will therefore not be adding webcams to MFO.”

What do you think? If you’re open to the idea of online dating, would you be put off by the concept of using a web cam?

Family-friendly social networking site accuses popular sites of profit before responsibility

EasySite.com, a subscription-based family-friendly social networking site, has called out the likes of Facebook and MySpace for putting revenue and profit before taking responsibility for the privacy and safety of their users.

They cite the usual horror stories of paedophiles stalking teenagers, false profiles, and compromising photographs.

“Sites like MySpace and Facebook choose popularity over responsibility. Popularity means more traffic, which means more ads served and ultimately more money,” saidSteve Sivulka, CEO of Easysite.com. “Easysite has chosen a different path. From day one we created Easysite as a family-friendly website builder with safety and security in mind.”

EasySite prides itself as being ad-free, instead being supported by users paying for the service itself.

Sivulka says that people don’t realise how expensive “free” really is, suggesting that most services are advertising based and place ads on pages the individual user may believe to be theirs.

“A friend of mine found this out the hard way,” he says. “After sending out a link to his newly created personal website, friends and family complained that pop-up ads with strippers on them were appearing on his site. Some ‘free’ services will even send out junk email (spam), sell your personal information to other companies, or track your movements online to better target ads to you.”

I’m all for the concept of more family-friendly sites like EasySite, but I’m a little concerned that they seem to suggest that they’re the solution, when in fact people placing reliance upon their services could still face problems elsewhere.

Firstly, EasySite can do nothing to stop someone else publishing false information about you on another social networking site, blog, or forum.

Neither can it stop other people from publishing compromising photographs of you, if in fact you got yourself into an embarrassing situation in the first place.

While it’s true that some sites like Facebook do target adverts based on what a user does, this isn’t much different to what supermarkets do based on your purchase history, or what companies who conduct consumer surveys do. While some adverts may be questionable, responsible sites don’t show porn. Neither should users be under any illusion that a profile page (such as that which would be set up on Facebook, Bebo, or MySpace) belongs to them.

Finally, while some users might be content to stay in “safe” sites like EasySite.com (and I personally don’t believe a 100% safe web site exists) there’s a whole Internet out there which many people want to explore. That’s the time children and adults need to know how to keep themselves safe.

Social networking sites should take more responsibility for protecting minors, particularly as preteens are using these sites even though they shouldn’t be.

Staying safe online requires parental knowledge and openness.

I’m all for sites like EasySite.com, but they’re only a part of the solution to a safer Internet experience.

Kids who don’t play grow up lacking life and social skills

Free play is a vital part of a child’s development, and children of future generations could enter adulthood lacking vital life and social skills because of a lack of it.

That’s according to a new study by Persil, whose Every Child Has The Right campaign has recently launched.

A staggering 85% of British mums are concerned that children are growing up too quickly, and 64% believe children are being deprived of childhood through the lack of free play.

Free play helps the following areas of children’s development:

• Boosts their imagination and creativity
• Improves language and expression
• Helps them stay active and prevents obesity
• Reduces stress
• Helps raise self-confidence
• Increases emotional development and social skills for later on in life

Ideally, parents should make time each day for at least one hour of active play, outdoors if possible.

Children need little structure or encouragement, because they are naturally active. They just need the time, permission, and the right space.

The Free Play Initiative focuses on five areas within play that can help a child’s development: Play, Explore, Create, Imagine and Experiment.

More information is available at www.persil.com.

Young children using online social networks, three-quarters of parents “spying” on them

It must be something about the school summer holidays that’s bringing out surveys about children and parents and their relationship with the Internet… and each other.

Not a week after a survey about parental knowledge of their children’s online activities comes another from Garlik.

This one suggests that 75% of parents are monitoring what their children get up to online without their knowledge, by logging in to their social networking accounts, or setting up their own profiles so that they can “spy” on their kids.

The survey of 1,000 children aged from 8-15, and 1,030 parents, also found that children as young as eight are visiting web sites which aren’t meant for under-12s, including the social network phenomena of Facebook, MySpace, and Bebo.

More worrying is that around two-thirds of children admitted to posting information that could help identify them individually, such as mobile phone numbers and where they go to school. One in five had even met up with people they’d only befriended online.

Garlik, a company involved in the prevention of online fraud and identity theft, said that web sites needed to do more to prevent underage children from accessing them. However, parents are also responsible for what their children get up to online, and while spying may seem a bit drastic, there are things families can do to minimise the risks.

(Via Pocket Lint)

Lads mags contribute to irresponsible behaviour and family breakdown, says Tory minister

Magazines aimed at young men, often featuring pictures of scantily-clad women and light articles about sex and sexual encounters, are contributing to irresponsible behaviour and the breakdown of family and society, according to the Shadow Education Secretary, Michael Gove.

Suggesting that they simply offer “instant-hit hedonism” during a speech on family, marriage, and education, he said, “Titles such as Nuts and Zoo paint a picture of women as permanently, lasciviously, uncomplicatedly available.

“We should ask those who make profits out of revelling in, or encouraging, selfish irresponsibility among young men what they think they’re doing.

“They celebrate thrill-seeking and instant gratification without ever allowing any thought of responsibility towards others, or commitment, to intrude.”

A spokesman for the Periodical Publishers Association said that the issues that Mr Gove raised were “deep and complex social issues which reach far wider than simply reading a magazine.”

Mr Gove continued his speech by saying that young men needed to face up to their responsibilities, which in turn could reduce social problems such as teenage pregnancies. He also reiterated the Conservative Party’s commitment to supporting marriage and family, including through financial help.

What do you think? Do “lads mags” contribute to problems in society, and if so how much?

(Via BBC News)

Modern mums return to grandmothers’ wisdom

A new survey has found that some modern mums are using child-raising techniques started in the Sixties, including set meal times, strict bedtime routine, and set naps during the day.

Advice from elderly generations coupled with scores of baby books such as “The Contented Little Baby Book” by Gina Ford and “Feeding your Baby and Toddler” by Annabel Karmel has led to mums adopting a more stringent approach to motherhood.

The past 50 years has seen motherhood evolve from a structured rigid approach during the 1960s to a more relaxed attitude during the 1970s and 1980s, but mums of today are ditching the methods of their own mums in favour of their grandmother’’s fuss-free methods.

Babies are even taken out and about more to ensure they get more than three hours of fresh air each day.

The poll of 4,500 mums of all ages, conducted by Kamillosan to celebrate the brand’s 75th anniversary, revealed that modern mums find it difficult to practise a relaxed attitude towards raising their children.

Feeling under pressure to get it right, 79 per cent of mums of today say they have read tons of books about the best way to raise their child, with 38 per cent relying on their grandmother’s experiences and tales of old.

As a result, 55 per cent of babies today are woken by their parents at a set time every morning.

Two-thirds will then go on to eat their breakfast, lunch and dinner at set times during the day, and 57 per cent will have one or two scheduled naps.

In the evening the average mum will bath baby, give them a bottle of milk and then settle them in bed after a bedtime story and nursery rhyme.

Once a fortnight the average baby is taken to the health visitor to measure height and weight.

A spokeswoman for Kamillosan said, “Surprisingly, motherhood trends have gone full circle with today’s mums replicating the strict baby routines that were adopted by their grandparents. New mums today adhere to the same set meal and bed times that their grandmothers once followed, as well as singing the same lullabies. However, not everything has stayed the same. New mum’s today supplement their grandmothers’ advice by visiting internet parenting sites to source information. They also prefer to follow government guidelines with regards to car seat safety, as the survey revealed a large majority of grandmothers used to travel in the car with their baby on their lap. Despite motherhood changes over the years.”

Despite the fall back to routine, there have been some major developments in the way women approach motherhood since the 1960’s.

Most importantly, mums of today have the added pressure of juggling part time jobs and motherhood.

However, although they didn’t go out to work, 52 per cent of Sixties mums did send their children to a playgroup or childminder or nursery of some sort.

Today’s mums are more likely to breast or bottle feed on demand, believing that a baby under six months should be fed whenever it is hungry.

And although Sixties mums fed a on a strict four hourly routine, if their baby was screaming for milk 67 per cent would give in and feed the child regardless of the time.

Government guidelines for children’s car seats are stricter than ever before.– which is why 86 per cent of mums are absolutely stringent with making sure their baby is travelling in the correct car seat.

Fifty years ago, only 57 per cent of mums would worry about the way their baby travelled in a car, and 41 per cent frequently just had the baby on their laps.

“Stranger Danger in the 21st Century” - Internet dos and don’ts for parents and children

With five in six parents relying on verbal agreements with children on their use of the Internet, there’s a real need to educate both adults and children in the ways staying safer online.

Here’s a set of “Dos” for parents, and “Don’ts” for children, written by Sue Atkins of Positive Parents.

Do’s for Parents

Do: Talk to your child about how they use the internet. Encourage them to show you how they access the net and to talk to you about any concerns they may have regarding online chatting. Show an interest rather than point an accusatory finger of distrust at them. Your child will feel reassured and safe if you show a balance of respecting their way of communicating but keeping a watchful eye on what’s happening.

Do: Keep the computer in a public place in your home - if a predator sees a bustling living room or kitchen in the background on the webcam rather than just a quiet child’s bedroom, he will probably be less likely to embark on attempting to groom your child.

Do: Keep up to date with technology. Ask your child to teach you new things - they’ll enjoy spending time with you, and you’ll enjoy being with them too, but also know that you are keeping them safe in the process.

Do: Remind your child that any people they only know through the internet (and not in the real world) may not be who they say they are.

Do: Check the privacy settings covering their profiles online.

Do: Make it clear to your child that you will occasionally check what websites they are using and will also sometimes ask questions to make sure they know the people they are contacting.

Do: Remind your child that anything they post can be visible to the world.

Don’ts for Children

Don’t: post any personal information, e.g. e-mail address or mobile number on profiles.

Don’t: post anything online you don’t want the world to see.

Don’t: continue online conversations that make you feel uncomfortable or suspicious about whom you are talking to. Report these to the Child Protection Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) website via their ‘report abuse’ facility and talk to your parents or another adult whom you trust to help you.

Don’t: agree to meet anyone in person whom you only know via the internet.

Don’t: open any attachments or links if you don’t know (in the real world) the person who has sent them.

Don’t: use your real name in chat rooms - pick a nickname just to use online.

Don’t: assume that the people you are chatting to online are who they claim to be.

Don’t: keep any anxieties, worries or little niggles to yourself about approaches to you, or conversations you have had, online. Talk to your parents and/or an adult you trust. If not, you can call Childline.

Don’t: ‘accept’ strangers who ask to be ‘friends’ on your online profile - say NO or just ignore them. Don’t be tempted to say YES.

Don’t: agree if someone suggests keeping your chats a secret - tell your parents or a trusted adult.

Resources

NCH’s advice on internet safety
Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre
Think U Know: part of the CEOP site. Has pages specific to certain age groups to help them understand how to use the internet safely. Can also report abuse here.
Childline– - telephone 0800 1111

Celeb Watch: Brad and Angelina, Davis Beckham, Sienna Miller

Brad and Angelina: Expensive Baby Pictures

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have sold pictures of twins Vivienne Marcheline and Knox Leon Jolie Pitt to Hello Magazine for a cool £7.5m, making them the most expensive baby photos of all time.

There’s a story for the kids when they grow up. The Hollywood couple gave the £2m proceeds from pictures of their first baby, Shiloh Nouvel, to charity. I wonder if they’ll do the same this time around?

(Via Marie Claire)

David Beckham “persists” on Sesame Street

Footballer David Beckham is to make a guest appearance on US children’s show Sesame Street, in which he’ll help Elmo spell the word “persistent” (no rude jokes from me, you can make your own up).

“David has always been a huge fan of the show’ they revealed, ‘When he was a kid he watched it, like a lot of people, and knew all the characters. He was more than happy to go on,” a source told The Telegraph newspaper.

Ahh, sunny days.

(Via Marie Claire)

Rosetta Getty will fight for husband in affair with Sienna Miller

Reports suggest that estranged wife of Balthazar Getty, Rosetta, will “forgive and forget” the affair he is having with Sienna Miller. “Rosetta thinks the bond she has with him and their kids is stronger than anything Sienna can offer,” a friend told The Daily Mirror.

“As time goes by he realises how deep his love for Rosetta and their children is,” an insider said of Balthazar.

(Via Marie Claire)

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