(bbc) A modern child's life is filled with unnecessary monitoring and mollycoddling from over-protective parents, says writer John O'Farrell, who sets out his opinion in the BBC Two series Backlash. Add your comments too. The physics of parenthood have exploded. Once the kids were satellites orbiting around the parents; now the centre of the universe is the child. Mothers feel guilty leaving their children to watch television on their own, so sit down and watch Pingu beside them, wasting valuable time that could be far better spent sitting in the kitchen smoking and doing Su Doku puzzles.  More...

(AP) -- A seventh-grade girl got suspended from school for a week for bullying another student. Then Mom got involved, and things got worse for Miasha Williams. During the suspension week, the 12-year-old's mother, Ivory Spann, made her daughter stand outside various schools with a poster reading: 'I engaged in bullying behavior. I got suspended from school and this street corner. Don't be like me.  More...

Often dubbed "alpha moms," these Super-women are hyper-aggressive, competitive and manipulative. They enlist an army of worshipers - and quickly kick out anyone who challenges them or their sense of self-importance. You probably know the type . . .  More...

We've all been rejected in our dating lifetime. We pine for someone who, well, doesn't like us back. It's the cold reality of love. Parents can help their children -- boys and girls -- understand this fact of life and how to deal with this inevitability. For starters, the answer is not to bully or beat up the person who doesn't like them back, or to send nasty emails, text messages or spread ugly rumors in school.  More...

There is a movement of mothers who engage in breast feeding responsibilities. But several articles caution against the practice. During slavery, Black women were required to "Wet-Nurse" the babies of slave owning mothers. What do you think about the practice of contemporary breast-feeding responsibilities? . .  More...

Enough reason to at least try other methods of dealing with infections. . . . .  More...

In the Latino world, "Traime la Chancleta" is as common as "Bendicion, Mami. " This editor knows both very well. The dreaded chancleta was usually an ugly, oversized, plastic slipper your Abuela or Titi sported with her floral print, short sleeve, pastel, cotton, knee-length robe. Should old school discipline be replaced with the mainstream practice of Time Out? Tell us what you think? . .  More...

As more blacks move up the economic ladder, one fixture — some would say necessity — of the upper-middle-class income bracket often eludes them. Like hailing a cab in Midtown Manhattan, searching for a nanny can be an exasperating, humiliating exercise for many blacks, the kind of ordeal that makes them wonder aloud what year it is. “We’ve attained whatever level society says is successful, we’re included at work, but when we need the support for our children and we can afford it, why do we get treated this way?” asked Tanisha Jackson, an African-American mother of three in a Washington suburb, who searched on and off for five years before hiring a nanny. “It’s a slap in the face. ” Numerous black parents successfully employ nannies, and many sitters say they pay no regard to race.  More...

After years of colicky debate over which method is best for getting babies to fall asleep by themselves, experts have a soothing new message: just about all the techniques work, so pick one you are comfortable with and stick with it. Despite their apparent differences, most of the behavioral approaches reviewed in the October issue of the journal SLEEP were supported by evidence that they resulted in infants and toddlers learning to fall asleep independently at bedtime and when they woke during the night. Of the 52 studies examined in the review, 49 showed positive results, with 82 percent of the infants and young children in the studies benefiting significantly. . .  More...