The parents of US sailor Abby Sunderland have defended the 16-year-old's doomed circumnavigation attempt.

Five teachers disciplined for offences ranging from sex with students to watching porn in a classroom have had their identities protected.

Bay of Plenty girls aged 15 to 19 are suffering from some of the highest rates of chlamydia in the country.

Police are worried by a rise in underage prostitution in downtown Auckland, where girls as young as 12 are selling themselves for sex.

Police say increasing numbers of girls as young as 12 are working as prostitutes in Auckland's city centre.

A family spokesman says searchers have contacted a 16-year-old Southern California girl who was feared lost at sea and she is alive and well.

Auckland rugby bosses have compiled Ten Commandments for schoolboy rugby matches in a bid to stop unruly parents and others from sideline rants.

Members of a school 1st XV with a booze "culture" were left to drink unsupervised for three hours in London on the night a teen sleepwalked to his death.

Two schoolgirl rugby teams have been suspended after a brawl in which players were joined by spectators and reserves rushing in from the sideline.

Kids who eat three or more burgers a week are more likely to suffer from asthma and wheezing, new research has found.