With many young adults moving back in with their parents in the wake of the economic recession, many parents and their children are attempting to navigate a unique family landscape.

In a new study, researchers studying this phenomenon have found somewhat discouraging results regarding the levels of family conflict between these young adults and their parents.

“We have worked with young people, in this case, in the family environment, to see what happens during the ‘full nest syndrome’, when children reach 18 years of age and they continue living at home,” said Beatriz Rodríguez, study researcher.

The study results indicate that there are more domestic disputes among young adults who continue to live at home with their parents compared to those who do not. Furthermore, the conflicts are more complicated than conflicts during teenage years.

School-related conflicts typical of teenage years are replaced by conflicts related to more personal or moral values concerning prospects for the future.

“There is dissociation between what mothers and fathers expect of their children in this evolutionary stage and what the emerging adults expect of themselves,” the researchers said. “In addition, there is a divide between social values and their personal expectations.”

One encouraging aspect of the study was that as the conflicts evolved, so did the resolution strategies. The young adults were able to develop more constructive strategies to resolve fights and were more willing to negotiate with their parents.

“From our perspective, we believe that a social policy is needed to help young adults leave their family homes,” Rodriguez said. “However, while the situation is what it is, parents should also recognise that their children are going through the transition to adulthood and understand that their social and cultural situation is different from the one that they lived.”

A common belief among college students is that they need to drink and be social to have fun, but a new study finds that less outgoing people can be just as happy.

Indiana University researchers found that introverted students rely less on partying and drinking to be happy and more on connections with family and friends or cognitive strategies, such as positive thinking.

“You don’t have to go out and party to be happy [even though] that’s the thing students feel they need to do, particularly when they’re new to campus,” said Bernardo J. Carducci, director of the Shyness Research Institute at Indiana University Southeast.

“But, it’s critical to maintain contacts with family, with friends and like-minded individuals with whom you feel some sort of meaningful connection,” Carducci continued. “That could be other people in clubs that you belong to, like the accounting club, astronomy club . . . people you play intramural sports with.”

Carducci also found that college students who are goal-oriented tend to be happier than their less focused peers.

“When you look at what these people do differently, people who strive to reach personal goals, they engage in more purposeful leisure, rather than sitting around and watching television,” Carducci said. “They don’t go clubbing as much as the others. They spend more time on what we call spiritual reflection. They write in journals. These are the kinds of people who tend to be more happy. These also are the people who mostly graduate from college.”

Keeping a dog or cat in the home during a child’s first year of life does not appear to increase the risk of a child becoming allergic to the animals in the future, according to a new study.

In fact, the researchers say, the findings indicate exposure to a pet early in life may actually decrease the likelihood that a child may later suffer from allergies.

Researchers from Henry Ford Hospital followed over 500 children for the first 18 years of their lives.  The researchers periodically contacted the parents and children to collect information about exposure to cats and dogs.

At age 18, the study participants were asked for blood samples, which the researchers measured for antibodies to dog and cat allergens.

The results showed that being exposed to the specific animal in the first year of life was the most important exposure period, and not only did it not increase the risk of children’s allergies, it actually appeared to be protective in some groups.

Males whose family had kept an indoor dog during their first year of life were about half as likely to become allergic to dogs compared to males in families with no dogs.  Both men and women were about half as likely to become allergic to cats if they lived with one in the first year of life.

The study was published in the journal Clinical & Experimental Allergy.

When faced with any sort of unstructured time, children are likely to get bored. They are also likely to let you know about it often! Summer is meant to be a time for rest and relaxation but also for exploring and education outside of the classroom. Here are some ideas for keeping your kids happily engaged this summer.

*Have a scavenger hunt in the house on a rainy day. Vary the clues depending on your children’s age. For younger children, use clues such as “Go to the room where you take a bath,” or “Go to the room with the blue walls.” For older children, use clues such as “This is the room where Dad watched the baseball game last night,” or “Find the room where Mom likes to read quietly.” The prize can be a gift certificate to a local bookstore or a new game the family can play together. Make sure everyone gets a prize or that it’s a team effort and everyone works together to find the prize. If not, you’ll be hearing “Not fair!” instead of “I’m bored!”

*Have a backyard camp out! Bring sleeping bags, tents, and build a fire. If you don’t have camping equipment, lay out an old sheet or blanket to sit on. Instead of telling ghost stories, have each family member tell a story about their favorite thing about your family. Don’t pressure your children to sleep outside, as they may be nervous or uncomfortable. Staying up late and having some special snacks is plenty fun! Just remember to use bug repellent so you don’t wake up with itchy campers in the morning!

*Use an old shoebox and create a special art box. Store all sorts of “extras” inside: buttons, scraps of paper, ribbon, washable markers and glue. Allow your children to create their own masterpiece on a piece of construction paper using all the materials inside the box. Make sure the items in the box are things your child can use independently. This way, your children can sit at the table and work while you make dinner or throw in a load of laundry. You can also use old magazines and cut out pictures to tell a story or re-create a family event.

These are just a few fun things you can do with your family this summer. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box and try something new. You can always have a family meeting afterward to discuss the pros and cons of your new, adventurous outing. The important thing to remember is relax and enjoy time together as a family, regardless of what you are doing.

New research may make it possible for doctors to predict when a woman will reach menopause, which could simplify family planning for many couples.

Dutch researchers followed 257 women for a period of 11 years and found that blood levels of a hormone (AMH) can indicate at what age a woman will enter menopause.

Generally, women enter menopause between the ages of forty and sixty.  A woman’s fertility, however, ends ten years prior to this – meaning that fertility for some women could potentially end at age 30.

In regard to balancing family planning and a career, the researchers said it would be extremely valuable for women to know the expected length of their fertility.

“Women often postpone having children until their career has been well established,” said  Professor Frank Broekmans and Professor Bart Fauser, study authors and gynecologists from the University Medical Center Utrecht, The Netherlands, in a press release.

“However they may find that it is difficult to get pregnant at this time. It could therefore be very useful for women to know beforehand up to which age they remain fertile,” they said.

If AMH concentration levels indicate that a woman will enter menopause early, the woman can choose to have her eggs frozen if she desires to have children at a later date, according to the researchers.

The study is the first to succeed in making long-term fertility predictions for individual women.

It was published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

It’s usually about this time when parents start to hear those dreaded words that inevitably come each summer. “I’m bored!” rings through houses across America and parents’ wells of ideas begin to run dry. The excitement of summer has started to wear off, play date pals are away on vacation, and our little swimmers are a bit water-logged. Though a loose daily schedule seems to provide endless opportunities for fun, parents everywhere are looking for quick and easy ways to break the monotony of summer. Here are a few “out of the box” ideas for keeping your children intrigued this summer.

*Call your local pet shelter and ask about volunteer opportunities. This may include a weekly trip to the shelter, handing out fliers for a pet rescue organization, or feeding the animals. Shelters likely have clear rules on who can volunteer and in what capacity, so check with them first before springing the idea on your children. If they don’t allow children to volunteer, bring your child to drop off bags of food or new toys for the animals. Seeing how much work it takes to care for a pet could also cure the constant requests for a puppy!

*Have a donation stand instead of a lemonade stand. Set up three jars for three different charities and generous neighbors can drop their donation in the jar of their choice. After your collection, have your children write a letter to accompany the donation when you send it off to the charity. They can also hang a “thank you” sign outside the house after the collections are completed.

*Have a family cook-off! Have each of your children choose a recipe to make. Invite family members or neighbors over for a taste and have them cast votes. Instead of first, second, and third place, which can surely hurt feelings, have categories such as most unique recipe, best presentation, and sweetest treat. Be sure to have a prize for each participant. Your local dollar store is a great place to pick up ribbons or small toys.

Remember, the key to keeping your children happily occupied is to provide a variety of activities. The activities don’t have to be grand trips or expensive outings. There are plenty of simple, cost-effective ways to spice up your routine summer days. Check back on Thursday for more ideas!