Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.health From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: health Thu, May 28 1992 Date: Thu, 28 May 92 05:21:26 EDT Message-ID: 05-28 0000 DECISIONLINE: Health USA TODAY Update May 28, 1922 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network LA. LEADS USA IN POLLUTION: Louisiana has replaced Texas as the USA's worst industrial polluter, says a new Environmental Protection Agency report. That's why the state leads the nation in many chronic illnesses and cancers, says Linda King of the Environmental Health Network in Harvey, La. Indiana, Tennessee and Ohio followed Louisiana and Texas in the annual pollution study, which is required by Congress. ABORTION LAWS STRUCK DOWN: State judges in California and Ohio struck down new abortion laws Wednesday. The Ohio law, to have taken effect Thursday, would have required women seeking an abortion to get counseling from a doctor and be told about fetal development and abortion alternatives. The 1987 California law, never enacted, would have required unmarried women under 18 to have parental permission. VIRUS CAUSES INFANT FEVERS: Herpes virus 6, a newly discovered virus, infects most people age by age three and is often the cause of common but unexplained fever in infants, says a report in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine. Symptoms of the illness, which cannot be treated, include ear inflammation, a rash and a fever exceeding 104 degrees. The illness is typically harmless and leaves within a week. LOU GEHRIG CLUE FOUND: The brain chemical causing Lou Gehrig's disease has been identified, say Johns Hopkins University researchers. Reporting in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine, researchers say the chemical, an amino acid called glutamate, helps brain cells send messages. Excess glutamate, lethal to cells, is found in patients with the disease. The finding may lead to new drugs or treatments. FETAL TISSUE BANKS OPPOSED: Dr. Otis Bowen, Health and Human Services secretary during the Reagan administration, Tuesday criticized the Bush administration's continuance of a fetal tissue ban. Bowen, who first enforced the policy, said plans to set up fetal tissue banks are scientifically worthless. The banks would use tissue only from miscarriages or abortions done to save the mother's life. WATER COOLERS MAY BE DANGEROUS: Office and home water coolers may contain enough bacteria to make people ill, suggests a study out Wednesday. Addressing the American Society of Microbiology in New Orleans Wednesday, Fred Rosenberg, Northeastern University, Boston, reported finding 2,000 to one million bacteria per milliliter in reservoir tanks and faucets. Levels over 10,000 are considered a concern. BURN SETTLEMENT REACHED: Home water heaters should be set no higher than 120 degrees to prevent serious injury, the Safety Council recommends. Burns and injuries from fires are the second-leading cause of accidental death among one- to four-year-olds. In a settlement reached Tuesday, defendants agreed to pay $15 million to India Gomez, who suffered third-degree burns from scalding water. HALCION WORRIES CONTINUE: At least 30% of people who take Halcion have been using the drug for more than three months, and often without supervision, says Dr. Sidney Wolfe of the consumer group Public Citizen. Patients using the drug for more than 10 days should be fully evaluated and monitored for side effects, says its maker, Upjohn. A Food and Drug Administration committee recently affirmed the safety of Halcion. MORE TROOPS REPORTED DISEASE: A blood disease confirmed in 27 U.S. military personnel who served in the Persian Gulf has now been reported by troops from South Carolina. The disease, called leishmaniasis, is transmitted by sand-fly bites and can incubate up to three years. Since the disease is fatal in 90% of untreated cases, health officials have banned blood transfusions from Gulf War troops. OVERBREATHING WORSENS DISORDERS: Hyperventilation, or overbreathing, can intensify psychological disorders, says Dr. Herbert Fensterheim, Cornell University Medical College. In the June issue of American Health, Fensterheim says that obsessive ideas and apprehension are the most harmful effects of hyperventilation, which is believed to be caused by chronic tension in back, chest, neck and shoulder muscles. POLLUTION FEARS TO BE DISCUSSED: Washington health officials are expected to meet Thursday with residents who say air and water pollution from Canada is causing an abnormally high rate of illness. Cominco Ltd., a Canadian firm running a smelter and fertilizer plant, will also attend the meetings. N.Y.C. TO STRESS ABSTINENCE: Sex education materials presented to New York City students must stress abstinence as the best protection against AIDS, the city's school board decided Wednesday. An earlier school board decision had approved condom distribution and rejected a proposal that required parental consent for students taking part in the classes. MORE UNPLANNED BIRTHS: More women are giving birth to unplanned children, Census figures show. There were 1.1 million babies born to unwed mothers in 1989, according to the Census Bureau. The numbers of infants born to unmarried whites increased 73% from 1980 to 1989, while the the increase for blacks was 16.6%. Health Editor: Christopher Goldthwaite. (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. 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