Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.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 Wed, Oct 28 1992 Date: Wed, 28 Oct 92 04:40:26 EST Message-ID: 10-28 0000 DECISIONLINE: Health USA TODAY Update Oct. 28, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network CHILD BEHAVIOR LINKED TO FAMILY: There's a strong relationship between family stability and behavior problems, the National Center on Health Statistics discovered in a broad 1988 survey. Almost one out of every five children under the age of 18 suffers from a psychological disorder, researchers discovered in the survey of 17,000 parents. (For more, see special Behavior package below.) LESSONS SEEP IN DURING DREAMS: It helps to get a good night's sleep to remember learned material taken in earlier in the day. New research suggests if dreams are repeatedly interrupted, people may forget. Findings presented Tuesday at a Society for Neuroscience meeting are the first to show evidence that brain circuits fire up during our dream state and program lessons into memory. AIDS FURTHER DEFINED: The Centers for Disease Control has proposed a new AIDS definition. It would add three more illnesses to the list of 23 diseases considered AIDS hallmarks - pulmonary tuberculosis, recurrent pneumonia and invasive cervical cancer. AIDS activists charged the current definition ignores illnesses peculiar to women. The revised definition is expected to be enacted next year. CHANGES IN CPR TO COME: New CPR guidelines advise rescuers to dial 911 before beginning to resuscitate an adult. So says a report in Wednesday's Journal of the American Medical Association. Previous guidelines advised administering CPR for one minute, then calling emergency medical help. Nineteen new guidelines are aimed at getting high-tech help to heart attack victims as quickly as possible. ALCOHOL BINGES SPREAD CANCER: Drinking alcohol can make cancer spread through the body. So say UCLA researchers. The study, based on animal studies, has important implications for people with cancer. Researcher say the study shows alcohol suppresses the ability of "natural killer" cells to destroy cancer cells. Cancer often can be cured if removed before it is spread to other areas of the body. BOWEL DISEASES ARE PHYSICAL: Some gastrointestinal troubles, often labeled as psychological, may have easily detectable physical causes, say experts. Symptoms, including diarrhea, constipation and vomiting, are now grouped under "functional bowel disease," which can be diagnosed by having the patient swallow a radioactive marker that lets doctors form a picture of bowel activity and compare it to normal readings. FDA COMES OUT ON LABELS: The Food and Drug Administration is expected to announce final food labeling regulations late next week. Included are definitions for words such as "low-fat" and "light," and a new standard food label that will appear on most processed foods. LIGHTS KEEP WORKERS ALERT: Bright indoor light that simulates early morning sunlight may keep office and factory workers more alert and shows promise for even improving performance, new research shows. Findings from the study, presented at a Society for Neuroscience meeting, show that women exposed to bright lights on the late night shift were more mentally alert and maintained higher body temperatures. STATE TO VOTE ON HEALTH CARE: Voters in California and Massachusetts will consider health-care proposals when they go to the polls Tuesday. Californians will vote on a ballot initiative that would require businesses to provide basic health-care coverage for most workers and their families. And in Massachusetts, residents will decide whether to impose a 25-cent per-pack tax on cigarettes. SPECIAL PACKAGE ON BEHAVIOR: CHILDREN PICK UP PROBLEMS: Children coming from single-parent families or stepfamilies were 2 to 3 times as likely to have had emotional or behavioral problems, a survey discovered. The study is the most recent of its kind. "There's no question there's an association between family situation and behavior problems in school," says Nicholas Zill, a psychologist who headed the study. ECONOMY MAY BE A FACTOR: Emotional and behavioral problems are the "new morbidity" of childhood, said Zill. Structural changes in the American economy, with shifts away from good paying blue collar jobs, also are leading to more behavior problems in schools, the psychologist says. YOUNG PEOPLE WANT WORK TOO: "Not everyone can be above average," said Zill. "There are fewer and fewer dignified work opportunities for young people who do not do well in school. The children of those parents are creating problems for the schools." (End of package.) 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