Hillsborough County high schools start the day far too early, in my opinion. Studies have shown that teenagers are on a different sleep cycle from the rest of us. If left to their own devices, they'll be ready for sleep much later, and wake up later, too. (Like that's news to anybody with a teenager in the house.) ...more

December 14, 2008

Parenting column about the dangers of "drowsy driving." ...more

December 11, 2008

I read the article "are we safer," but I wonder if we truly are and will we remain so? Sarah Palin is going to be breastfeeding her baby. I breastfed two of mine and she made a commendable choice. The job of raising children and the job of vice president both require vigilance and alertness. ...more

September 20, 2008

Energy drinks are consumed by people of all ages, but the beverages have been heavily marketed to younger people, prompting questions regarding safety. ...more

September 5, 2008

A grisly news story concerning the shooting of two teenage girls in Oklahoma recently left me wondering what might have prevented the tragedy. Would alertness to potential dangers in their immediate surroundings have saved them? Perhaps, but what is lost when children are conditioned to see potential harm everywhere? What happens when a society stops trusting? ...more

July 11, 2008

Pfizer Inc.'s once promising anti-smoking drug Chantix received another blow Wednesday after a nonprofit group's report about serious physical side effects prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to ban the drug's use by pilots and air traffic controllers. ...more

May 22, 2008

The presents are wrapped. The kids are wound up. The decorations are everywhere. And you are wiped out. ...more

December 24, 2007

A barrage of Latin beats blasts through the stereo speakers, and Patty Sanchez takes center stage, her body shimmying with what seems like a hundred dance moves. ...more

October 17, 2007