Wellnews by Scott LaFee

Everyone knows that breathing polluted air is bad for one's health. Now comes news that you don't even have to breathe a lot of it.

Italian scientists report that inhaling polluted air for as little as three days can cause some genes to undergo reprogramming, which may affect a person's risk of developing cancer and other diseases.

In a paper presented at the International Conference of the American Thoracic Society in San Diego, the scientists compared the blood DNA of healthy workers exposed to high levels of airborne particulates at a foundry near Milan for three days. They found changes in four genes linked to tumor suppression.

On the plus side, the gene changes appear to be reversible once air quality improves.

If you must travel through dirty, polluted air, it might be wise to stay in your car with the air conditioner running. A German study found that a good automobile A/C system eliminates more than 80 percent of the germs, fungal spores and particles from outside air.

Of course, the system must be properly maintained, with air filters regularly changed. The researchers also recommend having the A/C system examined as soon as car users smell any suspicious odor.

 

BODY OF KNOWLEDGE

British women wear heels for 51 years on average, from the ages of 12 to 63.

 

GET ME THAT. STAT!

Twenty-three percent of U.S. elementary schools send obesity "report cards" home to parents, according to a University of Illinois study.

 

NUMBER CRUNCHER

A serving of three medium slices of cured pork bacon (cooked, roasted, pan-fried or broiled) contains 103 calories, 71 from fat.

It has 7.9 grams of total fat or 12 percent of the recommended total fat intake for a 2,000-calorie daily diet.

It also contains 21 milligrams of cholesterol (7 percent); 439 mg of sodium (18 percent); 0.3 grams of total carbohydrates (0 percent); and 7 g of protein.

 

MEDTRONICA

Eat this

healthdiaries.com/eatthis

A blog featuring healthy recipes, food information, commentary, news and everything else about food in relation to health and well-being.

 

STORIES FOR THE WAITING ROOM

After a three-year study, reports Harper's magazine, a Viennese chemist has determined that bellybutton fluff is a combination of clothing fibers, sweat, dust and fat wicked into the navel by body hairs. The chemist concluded that if one shaves one's belly, the fluff will not appear.

 

PHOBIA OF THE WEEK

Scopophobia — fear of being stared at

 

BEST MEDICINE

Q: What's the difference between a general practitioner and a specialist?

A: The first treats what you have; the second thinks you have what he treats.

 

OBSERVATION

I enjoy convalescence. It is the part that makes the illness worthwhile.

— Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

 

CURTAIN CALLS

A 21-year-old man at a Hatteras Island beach in North Carolina dug a 9-foot-deep hole in the sand. He was sitting proudly at the bottom of it when the hole's walls collapsed, swallowing him.

Dozens of nearby beachgoers rushed to his aid, attempting to dig him free with toy shovels and their hands. A backhoe was called in, but by the time the man was excavated, he could not be revived.

To find out more about Scott Lafee and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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