Women catching up to men in promiscuity, and that’s just the forty-somethings

While online dating websites may not correlate exactly with wider society, an interesting study from free dating site PlentyOfFish.com has concluded that women’s promiscuity — or at least their intentions of — has doubled in the last four years.

In 2004, around 9% stated that they were looking for sex via the “intimate encounter” option. That figure is now around 18%.

With some ten million members, the male-female ratio of those looking for long-term relationships or traditional dates has remained consistent at 55:45, but three years ago, men looking primarily for sex outnumbered women by ten to one. That’s now down to 5:1, with a prediction that in ten years’ time, there’ll be equality in promiscuity.

Suggesting that the female lifestyles portrayed in “Sex In the City” and the like may have something to do with a shifting societal attitude, Markus Frind, CEO of Plentyoffish.com, says, “Our average user, among males and females, is between 38 and 42 years old. Yet, the data shows that the behaviour exhibited is more of what you would expect from those in their early 20s. Plentyoffish.com statistics may be indicative of a fundamental shift in society and behavioural norms.”

Longer term, of course, this continued shift will have a marked effect on what society considers “family” to be.

Top Toys for Christmas 2008: Toys R Us announces list

Leading toy store Toys R Us has announced what it believes will be this year’s must have Christmas toys. Don’t be surprised that a lot of these are quite high-budget items, including Nintendo games consoles and an Asus Eee PC.

Having said that, it’s good to see some of the classics are still in place, including LEGO, plus some educational items from LeapFrog.

So here we go. (Please note that the links are to relevant searches on Amazon.co.uk. If you buy anything from Amazon directly from these links, we earn a small commission. Thanks )

• High School Musical Dance Mat
• Hannah Montana Tour Bus
• Baby Annabel Doll
• Ben 10 Action Figures
• Ben 10 Omnitrix Watch
• In the Night Garden Upsy Daisy and her Bed
• Dance with me Teletubby
• Lego
• Star Wars Clone Wars
• Dr Who Classic Figures
• Bakugan Battle Brawlers
• My Meebas
• Catcha Beast
• Fur Real Biscuit
• Silverlit Picoo-Z Helicopter
• Nintendo Wii & Nintendo DS
• Monopoly Here and Now; the World Edition
• Baby Chou Chou My First Tooth Doll
• LeapFrog Tag
• LeapFrog Musical Fold Up Trike
• Asus Eec PC 7" Laptop
• Nintendo Wii and DS Lite

Mums: Get daily pregnancy tips via Twitter

Do you know what Twitter is?

It’s an online service which allows anyone to share 140-character snippets of information about themselves, what they’re doing, and what’s important to them. It’s a bit like text messaging on the Internet.

March of Dimes has announced that it’s providing daily pregnancy tips — or “tweets” — for mums via the service.

It’s available in both English and Spanish.

“We’re using all the new technology that’s available to us to help women make sense of the latest medical and scientific research,” said Beverly Robertson, national director of the Pregnancy & Newborn Health Education Center at the March of Dimes. “This service is in whatever format you want it. You can get it on your cell phone via text message, through instant messaging and online. The March of Dimes already has almost 1,000 Twitter followers around the country.”

Talking of Twitter, you can get updates from the Family Relationships Magazine here

UK Government to standardise sex and relationships education for 5-16s

British government ministers have admitted that the provision for sex and relationships education in the UK is “patchy”, and has proposed a revamp of the system which will see five-year-olds learning about relationships.

When the BBC polled one-thousand people, it found that two-thirds supported the concept of sex education lessons in schools from the age of 11.

The Department for Children, Schools and Families said that there was “a need to challenge the perception that sex and relationships education happened in a ‘moral vacuum’ in schools and … that parents and schools can and should work together to decide how best topics should be taught.”

Various issues need to be handled sensitively, such as the right for faith-based schools to modify the programme to include their own moral beliefs, while still providing consistent education.

“We are not suggesting that five and six-year-olds should be taught sex,” said minister for schools, Jim Knight. “What we are saying is we need to improve in particular the relationship education, improve the moral framework and moral understanding around which we then talk about sex later on in a child’s education.”

Though a number of organisations and charities have welcomed the news, the head of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), John Dunford, has raised concerns that a centrally-managed policy of personal, social and health education could take away the rights of an individual school to tailor its education programme in a way that best suits its individuals.

“It is part of the ethos of the school, helping to develop the young person in ways that schools deem most appropriate to their circumstances,” he said. “It should not be the subject to further central prescription and certainly not compulsion.”

The way sex education is taught (or not taught) in schools will always be a contentious issue to some, but hopefully the new proposals will ensure at least a minimum standard of education, not simply confined to biology, that can be tailored according to the needs of each individual school.

What do you think?

(Via BBC News)

Majority of parents see video games of benefit to their children, survey finds

Although excessive use may discourage children from physical exercise, a new study suggests that parents can see the benefits of them playing video games.

Though one may be sceptical as the research was commissioned by Sony (the company which makes the PlayStation consoles), it does suggest that children are learning to think strategically by playing them.

• Nearly three-quarters of parents questioned said that their children’s problem-solving skills had improved since they started playing video games;
• Well over three-quarters saw a marked improvement in typing skills from playing PC/online games;
• Seven in ten parents said that their kids play games online with other people either sometimes or all the time;
• Four in five parents said their children played video games in a common area of the house.

The survey, which was conducted on Yahoo!’s “Shine” website, found that around nine out of ten parents spent time playing video games with their children. This sits well with a survey carried out last year by PopCap Games, which showed that casual computer games can help parents and children bond.

“The good news is that parents are involved with and aware of what their kids are playing,” said Sony Online Entertainment’s president, John Smedley. “The even better news is that parents and kids are playing together.”

Women not confident about contraception, put other worries before unwanted pregnancy

Four in five women are concerned about the current method of contraception used for birth control, yet two in five have stayed with their chosen method for five or more years.

That’s according to a new survey carried out in the US by Schering-Plough, which also found that well over half of women using a hormonal contraceptive had increased stress levels when having sex if they’ve not used their birth control product correctly.

Women using birth control say they worry more about their own or their partner’s satisfaction (29%) and body image (24%) than pregnancy (10%) or contracting a sexually-transmitted disease (8%).

Of women aged 18 to 34 who currently use birth control, four in five use contraception primarily to prevent pregnancy. However, 93 percent of women aged 18 to 34 (both on and off birth control) do not know that half of unintended pregnancies in the United States occur with couples that used some method of birth control.

Sixty-two percent of women indicated they discuss birth control with a potential partner. Women of all ages who currently use, or have previously used hormonal contraceptives, reported that a physician’s recommendation was among the top five attributes that are most important to them in choosing a birth control method.

Nearly a quarter of 18-34 year-old women said that a daily method of birth control would be most convenient for them, though 46 percent of women in the same age group who currently use a hormonal contraceptive have more difficulty remembering to use their current method correctly when their daily routine is interrupted.

“The findings from this survey signal that while we may be living at a time when women have many contraceptive options and are empowered to make their own informed decisions, many are either dissatisfied with or have concerns about their method,” says clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Yale University School of Medicine, Dr. Minkin. “Overall, this is a wake-up call for women to evaluate how happy they really are with their current method and recognise that they don’t have to settle for the status quo when it comes to birth control options.”

TV4Parents: online TV for parents goes live next week

I’ve just found out about a rather exciting new resource, due to launch next Thursday, 23rd October.

TV4Parents is an online forum, based in the UK, developed by Tomorrow’s Child, and aimed at parents, carers, and children aged 0-11.

This online TV styled web site will look at ways of parenting, offering hints, tips, advice, and a place for parents to share their experiences with others.

An ongoing nationwide survey — “Pressure Cooker Kids” — confirms that parents and children are under pressure to spend time together, deal with separation anxiety, and eat healthily and together.

A book and DVD will also be launched next week. “Creative Wellbeing” is written by education specialist Jacqueline Harding and medical advisor Dr Sanjay Chaudhuri, both who are heavily involved with Tomorrow’s Child and the new site.

Visit the site now to get a taste for what’s to come, and bookmark it, because it looks like it’s going to be a fantastic resource for anyone looking after children.

TV4Parents.com

Making Halloween safer for kids: ten tips for parents

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) has outlined ten things that parents can do to ensure that their children have a fun, but above all safe, Halloween night this year.

1. CHOOSE bright, flame-retardant costumes or add reflective tape to costumes and candy bags so children are easily seen in the dark. In addition, carry a glow stick or flashlight.
2. PLAN a trick-or-treating route in familiar neighbourhoods with well-lit streets. Avoid unfamiliar neighbourhoods, streets that are isolated, or homes that are poorly lit inside or outside.
3. NEVER send young children out alone. They should always be accompanied by a parent or another trusted adult. Older children should always travel in groups.
4. ALWAYS walk younger children to the door to receive treats and don’t let children enter a home unless you are with them.
5. BE SURE children do not approach any vehicle, occupied or not, unless you are with them.
6. DISCUSS basic pedestrian safety rules that children should use when walking to and from houses.
7. CONSIDER organising a home or community party as an alternative to “trick-or-treating”.
8. MAKE SURE children know their home phone number and address in case you get separated. Teach children how to call 911 (or equivalent emergency number) in an emergency.
9. TEACH children to say “NO!” or “this is not my mother/father” in a loud voice if someone tries to get them to go somewhere, accept anything other than a treat, or leave with them. And teach them that they should make every effort to get away by kicking, screaming and resisting.
10. REMIND children to remain alert and report suspicious incidents to parents and/or law enforcement.

“Child safety is important year round, but Halloween is an especially important time for parents and children to pay extra attention to their surroundings and not let their guard down,” said Nancy McBride, National Safety Director of NCMEC. “It is important that parents exercise a few basic safety precautions to help ensure that Halloween is both fun and safe.”

Early Learning Centre gears up for Christmas with 450 new toys

The Early Learning Centre has announced a huge range of new toys coming into stock in plenty of time for Christmas this year.

As a special offer, customers buying any product from the Star Buys range will receive another free toy.

The Brilliant Start range of toys is designed specially for babies, featuring black and white designs with bold colours and graphics.

Toys such as the Brilliant Start Activity Table help to encourage babies’ visual development and boost their strength and co-ordination.

The ever-popular Classic range of toys are made from wood, tin, and fabric, and include the Tin Spinning Top and Rocking Horse.

A number of Christmas toys are also on offer to encourage children to use their imagination and creativity including the Snow Queen Palace, featuring towers and balconies. Along with the Magical Figure Set, this is a Christmas must have for imaginative children.

Early Learning Centre

Hispanic community gets new online safety resources for kids

Stop Internet Predators has announced its new Spanish website, designed to raise awareness of the new Internet technologies that can pose a threat to children.

October is both National Hispanic Heritage Month and Cyber Security Awareness Month, so it’s a fitting time to launch the resource.

Many of the fifteen advocacy groups that have joined the campaign are happy about the opportunity Stop Internet Predators has to discuss child safety issues specifically with the Hispanic community.

Alma Morales Riojas, President and CEO of MANA, A National Latina Organization, is featured in a video on the site explaining how important it is for the Hispanic community to be informed, to fully understand the new threats and to take the necessary action. “MANA welcomes the opportunity to utilize this new website as a platform to empower Latinas to alert themselves and their families of the possible threats brought by new technologies like Google ‘Street View’.”

More information about the campaign and a complete list of partners is available at www.StopInternetPredators.org.

Celeb Watch: Madonna and Ritchie to divorce

After months of speculation, it has been confirmed that Madonna and Guy Ritchie are to divorce.

Their seven-and-a-half marriage came under media scrutiny when it was alleged that Madonna was having an affair with New York Yankees baseball player Alex Rodriguez. The couple has asked that the media respect their privacy at this time.

No other official details are available.

Cheeky Wipes: the poo revolution is here

A real alternative to disposable baby wipes, just as efficient (if not more), and kinder to baby, bank account, and environment.

Cheeky Wipes

Moist, fragrant, and convenient even while out and about, they don’t contain any of the harsh chemicals often found in disposable wet wipes, but instead rely on essential oils to help soothe baby’s bottom and keep nasty poo smells at bay before being washed.

How they work:

1. Just add a little water and a few drops of the fresh wipes essential oil blend to the fresh wipes container, then pop in your lovely soft wipes and they are ready to use!
2. Do the same with your mucky wipes container but with a few drops of the mucky wipes essential oil blend instead and add the mesh bag ready for dirty wipes.
3. Once you’ve used the wipes, place them inside the clever mesh bag in the mucky wipes container, to neutralise any unsavoury smells, start soaking pre-wash, and avoid any direct contact with poo!
4. Your mesh bag of mucky wipes can go straight into the washing machine with your next load of washing (just loosen the drawstring on the bag) and your wipes come out clean and ready to reuse.
5. No need to dry them, just place them back in the fresh wipes box with some fresh soaking solution.

The Cheeky Wipes All-in-One Kit costs just £29.95 and is available to buy online at www.cheekywipes.com

It consists of:

• 25 lovely soft Terry Towelling cloth baby wipes (15 cm x 15 cm)
• 1 Fresh Baby Wipes Container
• 1 Mucky Baby Wipes container - with mesh bag insert
• 1 Fresh Baby Wipes waterproof out and about travel bag
• 1 Mucky Baby Wipes waterproof out and about bag - with mesh bag insert
• 1 bottle of Lavender & Chamomile ‘Fresh Baby Wipes’ essential oil blend
• 1 bottle of Tea Tree & Tea tree lemon ‘Mucky Baby Wipes’ essential oil blend

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