Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.health,americast.usa-today.health From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: health Tue, Aug 25 1992 Date: Tue, 25 Aug 92 04:24:46 EDT Message-ID: 08-25 0000 DECISIONLINE: Health USA TODAY Update Aug. 25, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network ALLERGY SUFFERERS SMELL TROUBLE: Millions of hay-fever sufferers are sneezing and wheezing as ragweed season arrives. "Ragweed is probably the worst weed there is" for people with allergies, says Warren Filley, an allergist in Oklahoma City. It is common most everywhere except the West Coast. Ragweed normally starts blooming Aug. 15 and lasts until the first frost. (For more, see special Allergy package below.) SCIENTISTS EYE NEW THERAPY: Rather than just serving as lenses to the outside world, eyeballs may act as barriers that protect some people from a painful past. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy is the latest tool for removing those neurotic blocks along the path to happiness. Roughly 1,500 therapists worldwide use the technique. PATIENTS `REPROCESSES' PAST: The American Journal of Nursing says the eye method involves specific and repetitive rapid eye movements, similar to those experienced naturally during deep sleep. While executing the movements, the patient "holds in the mind" distressing visual memories. Each set of blinks and rolls then brings out previously buried information that the patient can "reprocess." MOST SANDWICHES UNHEALTHY: A report says most popular American sandwiches are unhealthy. The September Nutrition Action Healthletter studied sandwiches sold at several Washington, D.C., luncheonettes and found only one - a fresh-cooked turkey breast - low enough in fat and salt to be called a "Best Bite." Egg salad, BLT and grilled American cheese were among the "Worst Bites." WORKING MOMS SHOULDN'T WORRY: Working moms of preschoolers, take heart. A new study says working full- or part-time outside the home doesn't really affect your child for better or worse. Researchers at East Tennessee State University say the kids are articulate and maturing and are doing the things they need to do to adapt to their moms' schedules. WOMEN ARE WALKING TO FITNESS: Women who exercise are walking even more than they did three years ago. A Gallup poll of 504 women exercisers, ages 25 to 55, shows 59% of female exercisers are walking now, compared to 46% three years ago; 88% say they'll exercise regularly throughout their lives. SEXUAL ABUSE CLAIM MORE COMMON: Sexual abuse in child custody battles is increasingly used and misused. That's according to lawyers and child advocates. New York attorney Stanford Lotwin says the charge now surfaces in "as many as 25% of cases." Other experts say parents sometimes promote their own stories when they get emotionally involved. THINKING OLD COULD BE FATAL: Thinking old can lead to death. A new study says elderly adults who blame health problems on old age die sooner than those who say they suffer from a specific disease. Researchers at Brown University say results confirm the idea people die earlier because they might tend to give up. Doomsdayers are also less likely to seek treatment. WHITE ADOPTIONS DOWN: Children born to unwed white mothers in the USA during the mid-1980s were six times less likely to be placed for adoption than they were two decades ago. Scientists speculate the shift may be linked to an increasing acceptability of unwed parenthood, as well as the legalization of abortion in 1973. SPECIAL PACKAGE ON ALLERGY: SOME CITIES MANAGE OK: Forecasts for 10 cities by Multidata Inc., in Minneapolis, indicate some cities (Oklahoma City and Minneapolis, for example) will have less pollen than normal, while others fare far worse: Columbus, Ohio, 2.5 times greater than average; Louisville, Ky., three times greater than average. Pollen levels will also be high in Baltimore; Grand Rapids, Mich.; Hartford, Conn.; and New York. CITIES LADEN WITH POLLEN: In Rochester, N.Y., "The plants out there are very heavily laden with pollen," says local aerobiologist Donald Pulver. In San Diego, specimen "slides are so covered with mold, we can't even see the pollen," allergist James Kemp says. A number of medications are available, including antihistamines and decongestants, to help fight off symptoms. HOTLINE OFFERS HELP: Tips to reduce hay fever: Keep windows closed between 5 and 10 a.m., when airborne pollen peaks; don't hang laundry outdoors; and wash hair at night to remove pollen. For help, call The American Academy of Allergy and Immunology's 24-hour hot line at 1-800-822-2762. (End of package.) CORRECTION: The number to call to find out more about osteoporosis in Monday's report was incorrect. The correct number is 1-800-223-9994. Health Editor: Michele Coleman. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM