ParentData with Emily Oster

ParentData

Parenting is full of decisions — starting the moment you learn you’re pregnant (sometimes before) and continuing indefinitely. For the past decade, Emily Oster has been a guide through the challenges of pregnancy and parenthood using data. She translates the latest scientific research into answers to the questions people have in their day-to-day lives. ParentData brings Emily together with other experts in areas of pregnancy and parenting to talk about some of the most complicated of these issues, from labor induction to food allergies to parenting through a divorce. Each conversation brings us closer to Emily’s mission: to create the most informed generation of parents by providing high-quality data that they can trust, whenever they need it.

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Our Editor's Take

The ParentData with Emily Oster podcast combines parenting with data. The economist and author brings scientific research to the complicated world of parenting. Emily is a PhD graduate from Havard. She is a Professor of Economics and International and Public Affairs at Brown University. Emily discusses every stage of parenthood, from pre-pregnancy to raising teenagers. Her guests include writers, athletes, and doctors. Each has a different perspective to share on raising children. Guests discuss the challenges of being a parent from the perspective of data.

In most podcast episodes, Emily interviews a guest. In one, she speaks to Dr. Anupam Jena, host of the Freakonomics podcast, about data and parenting. She also talks to Virginia Sole-Smith about how to speak to children about diets and weight. In another episode, she discusses helping children with their mental health with Dr. Kelly Fradin.

Emily also invites listeners to participate in the podcast. Listeners call in to ask their parenting questions to an expert. For one episode, pediatric urologist Dr Liza Aguiar answers questions about potty training. Sometimes, Emily opens up about her own parenting experience. She speaks about her experience of pregnancy and parenthood. She also talks about marriage and building a solid relationship. Breastfeeding, school, and puberty are all conversations on the show.

Each episode discusses what data can tell parents about parenting and children. The podcast also shares the power of data, as well as its limits. Emily explains how data can be helpful in some parenting situations. She also describes how parents shouldn't rely on it when making decisions.

Emily's background allows her to bring a scientific view to podcast topics. At the same time, she uses her personal experience to discuss parenting topics. ParentData with Emily Oster is a fascinating discussion for any generation of parents.

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Crianças e famíliaCrianças e família

REPRODUZIR TRAILER

Official Trailer: Relaunching ParentData with Emily Oster

Official Trailer: Relaunching ParentData with Emily Oster

Becoming a parent is transformative. It is also terrifying. From conception and pregnancy onwards, you’re handed a new set of rules to follow with little explanation of the reasons or risks. For each decision, you want to do the “right” thing — but how, with conflicting advice from all directions? For the past decade, Emily Oster has been a guide through the biggest decisions and most challenging moments of pregnancy and parenthood by translating the latest scientific research. ParentData brings Emily and other experts together to debunk myths with data and navigate understudied areas of pregnancy and parenting, from the impact of social media on teens to navigating a complicated birth. Each conversation brings us closer to Emily’s mission: to create the most data-literate and informed generation of parents.

Episódios

Shawn Johnson's Late-Night Panic Google

Shawn Johnson's Late-Night Panic Google

Gymnast and Olympic gold-medalist Shawn Johnson describes the panic of international emergencies, advocating for your children in French, and why she hopes her kids never become gymnasts themselves.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

It's A Podcast Anniversary Q&A! You asked, Emily answered

It's A Podcast Anniversary Q&A! You asked, Emily answered

It's our one-year podaversary! We relaunched the new and improved ParentData podcast a year ago this week. We've heard from some incredible, thought-provoking guests, and many voices from our community and beyond. But today on ParentData, we're handing Emily the mic. In the spirit of her weekly Wednesday Instagram Q&As, she'll be answering your burning questions about pregnancy, babies, and older kids, in real time...and with a little help.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.ParentData is generously supported by:Honeycomb Skylight (Use code PARENTDATA for 15% off your Calendar purchase!)StrollerCoaster podcastWhole Foods Market

Caitlin Murray's Late-Night Panic Google

Caitlin Murray's Late-Night Panic Google

Instagram's Caitlin Murray (@BigTimeAdulting) contemplates fear of the unknown, the probability of rare childhood diseases, getting hit by meteors, and the gentle parental art of "...what if you just didn't think about it?".Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Phones and the Importance of Play: Are phones really to blame for the decline in kids’ mental health?

Phones and the Importance of Play: Are phones really to blame for the decline in kids’ mental health?

If you're a parent who reads the news - and who listens to this podcast - you probably heard a lot about screens this summer. And even now, as kids go back to school, we're hearing a lot about phones. No phones in schools. Put your phone in a Yondr pouch. Hide your phone in your backpack. People are doing TikToks in the bathroom. Take their phones away.Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt is at the forefront of a lot of these conversations. His book, The Anxious Generation, has really galvanized a lot of these conversations, around kids and phones and schools and their mental health. Today on ParentData, Jon joins us to talk about it all: both what his research has revealed and what's gotten a fair amount of pushback, particularly around the question of whether phones are really the boogeyman for teen mental health that everyone seems to think they are.Study on social media and mental health (Braghieri, Levy, and Makarin: American Economic Review, Nov. 2022)Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.We're looking for your questions for a podcast Q&A! Record a voice memo (under a minute) and send it to podcast@parentdata.org. Thank you!ParentData is generously supported by:Honeycomb Skylight (Use code PARENTDATA for 15% off your Calendar purchase!)StrollerCoaster podcastWhole Foods Market

Chelsea Sodaro's Late-Night Panic Google

Chelsea Sodaro's Late-Night Panic Google

Champion triathaloner Chelsea Sodaro talks baby wipes and the kindest way to say goodbye to your poop.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

(Part Two) Kids, Screens, and Schools: How worried should we be?

(Part Two) Kids, Screens, and Schools: How worried should we be?

This is the second in a two-episode series on the issue of kids and screens and schools. The first episode featured Jessica Grose of the New York Times about her survey of parents about their kids’ screen use. The tenor of that episode, overall, was pretty negative on screens. Basically, less is better than more.Today on ParentData, we welcome Dr. Michael Rich, a pediatrician, child health researcher, and children’s media specialist. Dr. Rich has built his practice and research around helping families with problematic screen use, but also around providing actionable, realistic guidance to parents and families. Put simply: our kids’ lives are going to involve screens. Our job is to mentor them and help them develop a healthy relationship with devices. Even if it means watching some truly stupid YouTube videos every now and then.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Ask Bubbie's Late-Night Panic Google

Ask Bubbie's Late-Night Panic Google

Pediatrician-turned-grandma influencer, Dr. Flo Rosen - better known as Ask Bubbie - tackles the super easy issues of vaccine hesitancy, sleep training, and intergenerational harmony.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

(Part One) Kids, Screens, and Schools: How worried should we be?

(Part One) Kids, Screens, and Schools: How worried should we be?

When we were growing up, screens came in fixed, predictable contexts: TV, movie theaters, computer labs, Oregon Trail. But kids today use screens all the time, especially at school, where they've become a ubiquitous part of classroom life. We've been hearing a lot lately about how detremental this is to learning. But how bad is it really?Today on ParentData is the first of two episodes on kids, screens, and schools. In this episode, we're joined by New York Times reporter Jessica Grose, who writes on parenting and recently ran a survey of parents about their kids' screen usage. Her goal with the survey was crowdsourced data to understand, basically, how much are kids actually using screens? And do their parents think it's good for them?Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Myleik's Late-Night Panic Google

Myleik's Late-Night Panic Google

Serial entrepreneur Myleik explores buttholes, pinworms, and when, as a parent, there's nowhere to go but up.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Every Kid is a Math Kid: Debunking the myths around learning math

Every Kid is a Math Kid: Debunking the myths around learning math

Many of us grew up dividing the world into "math kids"... and the rest of us. It can be just as scary when our kids present us with their math homework as it was when we were assigned our own. So how do we get our kids excited about math?Today on ParentData, we're joined by Shalinee Sharma, who runs an online math platform called Zearn. She is a math zealot — a person who really, truly believes that all kids can not only succeed in math but love it. We talk about putting those beliefs on the page in her new book "Math Mind: The Simple Path to Loving Math". It’s a guide to how we can make all kids “math kids.” We talk about why she wrote it, what she hopes people will get from it, and how schools can do math better. Subscribe to ParentData.org for ad-free podcast episodes, hundreds of articles on pregnancy and parenting, and more.

Mandy Moore's Late-Night Panic Google

Mandy Moore's Late-Night Panic Google

Actress and singer Mandy Moore contemplates croup, toddler beds, and Bayesian statistics.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Ozempic 101: A doctor explains the data and science behind weight-loss drugs

Ozempic 101: A doctor explains the data and science behind weight-loss drugs

News about weight-loss drugs is hard to miss. A new generation of drugs — Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, Zepbound — are on television, on billboards, and in many of our homes. There is little debate about the efficacy of the drugs for weight loss (they work, at least for most people) but lots of discussion about everything else surrounding them. But what's been largely missing from this conversation is the answer to the practical questions that many people would like to ask their doctors. Are these drugs right for me? How do the side effects work? How fast would I lose weight? Do I really have to take them forever? What if I’m breastfeeding?Today on ParentData, we invite back Dr. Gillian Goddard, the endocrinologist and brain behind our Hot Flash newsletter, to dive into the data behind these drugs. Dr. Goddard has been prescribing them for many years, and is both extremely knowledgeable about the science behind them, and extremely thoughtful about who is a good candidate, how to weigh the risks and benefits, and the kinds of questions you should be asking your doctor if you're interested in exploring them.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Ezra Klein’s Late-Night Panic Google

Ezra Klein’s Late-Night Panic Google

The New York Times’ Ezra Klein asks how we can trust anything we read about parenting.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

The Value of Camp: What a tech-free summer teaches kids

The Value of Camp: What a tech-free summer teaches kids

Color War. Underwear on the outside of your clothes. Sailing badges. Friendship bracelets. It is difficult to overstate how attached some people get to their sleepaway camp experiences - they don't explain, they proselytize. And right now, camp is having a moment in our popular culture as we debate what Jon Haidt has deemed the “phone-based childhood.” Camp is one of the last screen-free zones for kids, and that’s both exciting and, as a parent, a little scary.Today on ParentData, we're joined by Steve Baskin, a career camp director and incoming head of the American Camping Association, to talk about all things summer camp. We discuss resilience, the value of free play, the need for phone-free time, whether or not your kids will actually brush their teeth (they will!) and why homesickness might actually be a good thing. Special thanks to Falcon Camp in Carrollton, Ohio for lending their voices to this episode.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Jackie Oshry’s Late-Night Panic Google

Jackie Oshry’s Late-Night Panic Google

The Toast’s Jackie Oshry asks about babies and honey, the efficacy of Baby Mozart, and what you can’t put down the garbage disposal.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Raising Boys: Another side of gender equality

Raising Boys: Another side of gender equality

There are many, many wonderful things about parenting boys. There are also challenges that seem disproportionate. Boys often develop language later than girls. More boys than girls are held back in school entry. Girls do better in school at nearly all levels, and are significantly more likely to attend college. Yet this doesn’t get the kind of attention that it might if the genders were reversed. Today on ParentData, we're joined by Richard Reeves. Richard is the president of the American Institute for Boys and Men, which aims to both identify and combat the challenges facing boys and men today. We talk about the challenges boys face in school, male executive function, how standardized testing affects boys and girls differently, why those adolescent backpacks are so gross, and how true gender equality requires everyone to thrive.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Abby Phillip's Late-Night Panic Google

Abby Phillip's Late-Night Panic Google

CNN anchor Abby Philip asks how to keep her kid in bed all night.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Why Kids Can't Read: How we missed the mark on literacy education

Why Kids Can't Read: How we missed the mark on literacy education

Reading Rainbow. Reading is FUNdamental! Hooked on Phonics. We grew up steeped in a culture that encouraged reading. And in the past couple of years many U.S. states have embraced legislation about how kids are taught to read in school. The phrase that you may have heard is “science of reading,” as in “let’s make sure schools are using reading curricula based on science.” But what does that actually mean? And how would you, as a parent, know if your school was doing it?Today on ParentData, we're joined by journalist Emily Hanford, the host of the excellent podcast, Sold a Story. The topic of its first season was how reading is taught in American schools, and, for a lot of parents, it opened their eyes to the fact that there isn’t just one way to teach reading and that many schools weren’t doing it right. We talk about what the science says about the right approaches to reading, and then, more practically, about how parents can evaluate their own kids’ learning and whether the legislation we’re seeing is doing any good.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

Ophira Eisenberg’s Late-Night Panic Google

Ophira Eisenberg’s Late-Night Panic Google

Comedian and NPR mainstay Ophira Eisenberg wrestles with changing her kid’s school, and how to clean slime.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.

The Kids Are Actually Alright: Is parental anxiety too high?

The Kids Are Actually Alright: Is parental anxiety too high?

We’ve been hearing a lot about the teen mental health crisis — and there is no question that on a number of metrics, teens do seem to be struggling more than they have in the past. But is it really that bad? Is there a chance we’re overreacting to normal teenage feelings?Today on ParentData, we’re joined by Dr. Mathilde Ross, a psychiatrist at Boston University. Her view is, yes, sometimes we are overreacting. And more to the point, she thinks sometimes parents are the problem. We talk today about what she’s seeing in college kids, how parents can choose to step back, and how to embrace independence, in both your 17-year-old and 7-year-old.Subscribe to ParentData.org for free access to new articles every week on data-driven pregnancy and parenting.