FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- Most parents these days are mindful of obvious poisoning risks to their children. They lock up household cleaners and keep chemicals and pesticides well out of the reach of youngsters.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- Trained as a registered nurse to work in emergency rooms and intensive care units, Hugh Rawls did just that until sidelined a decade ago by a back injury.

(HealthDay News) -- Metabolic syndrome is a group of risk factors that are related to being overweight or obese. It increases the risk of serious health problems such as diabetes, heart disease and stroke.

(HealthDay News) -- The thyroid gland, found in the front of the neck just below the voicebox, produces a vital hormone that helps control your body's metabolism. When it doesn't produce enough of this hormone, the condition is called hypothyroidism.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- More and more children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) who act out aggressively are being given antipsychotic drugs in addition to stimulant medications to help control their volatile outbursts.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- Social pressure for gay parents to raise heterosexual children can cause stress for these families and make it harder for gay children of gay parents to get the support they need, says an expert.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- Prostate cancer patients who are uninsured or on Medicaid at the time of their diagnosis tend to have more severe disease, likely because they have less access to medical care, U.S. researchers report.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- A poor diet and lack of exercise can cause an imbalance in metabolism that may increase a child's risk of developing asthma, a new study suggests.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- Girls growing up in higher-income homes without a biological father are likely to reach puberty earlier than others, new research finds.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- As flu season approaches, a coalition of the nation's largest public health organizations are highlighting the need for pregnant women to protect themselves and their babies by getting immunized.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- Discrimination experienced by U.S. teens from Latin American and Asian backgrounds can affect their grades and health, and is associated with depression, distress and reduced self-esteem, a new study has found.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- Increasing levels of education among women worldwide helped save the lives of millions of children a year, a new study shows.

THURSDAY, Sept. 16 (HealthDay News) -- Although millions take supplements containing glucosamine and chondroitin to relieve the pain of osteoarthritis in their hips and knees, there is no evidence that these supplements have any healing effect, finds a new analysis of large-scale studies.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- There's no link between asthma and tooth decay in children, according to a new analysis of studies on the issue.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- New research suggests that the seductive power of smoking cues does not diminish over time for those who are trying to kick the habit.

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

(HealthDay News) -- Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of ClinicalConnection.com:

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a new use for three cardiac resychronization therapy defibrillators (CRT-D) to treat people with a heart abnormality called left bundle branch block who also have mild cases of heart failure or heart failure with no symptoms.

FRIDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- A targeted drug called pazopanib could prove effective against difficult-to-treat cases of thyroid cancer cases, researchers say.