Here are the morning’s top stories on Tuesday, October 8, 2024…
- The recent hot weather has brought attention to schools, and how many of them lack air conditioning and other infrastructure to keep kids safe. The issue is even more crucial at child care centers because young kids have a harder time adapting.
- Smoggy air has plagued California cities during this recent heat wave. And new research shows that pollution may affect children’s brains.
Keeping Kids Safe Is A Challenge In Extreme Heat For Schools, Child Care Centers
Teresa Fogelini directs the gardening and nutrition program for North Bay Children’s Center, which runs this and 13 other preschools. She says kids can play at the water table or under a tunnel-shaped willow structure before it gets too hot.
The center rents space from an elementary school in Healdsburg to operate Fitch Mountain. About six years ago, it ripped up asphalt in the play yard and covered it with mulch, fruit trees and garden beds. That’s because studies show asphalt in school yards can reach dangerous temperatures on hot days.
Stanford pediatrician Lisa Patel says small children are especially vulnerable to heat. “Their bodies heat up more quickly. They don’t have the same capacity to sweat and they really rely upon their caretakers for their safety,” Patel said. California is starting to help public schools replace asphalt with green spaces, but Patel says child care providers haven’t gotten the same kind of support. “The early childhood care ecosystem is so diverse and so it’s hard to have a unified approach because some of them have been out of people’s homes,” she said.” “Some of them happen in larger buildings. Some of them happen from a business that is offering daycare.”
Mounting Evidence Shows Air Pollution Threatens Children’s Cognitive Development
When we think about air pollution, most of us focus on its effects on our lungs and maybe our hearts. But new research reveals something more troubling: the air we breathe may affect children’s brains.