Wellnews by Scott LaFee

The repeal of the federal speed control law in 1995, which had restricted the maximum highway speed to 55 miles per hour, has boosted more than just how fast cars move down the road these days. It has resulted in a marked increase in the number of road fatalities and injuries.

In a new study out of the University of Illinois Chicago's Public School of Health, researchers found that in the 10-year period following the law's 1995 repeal, approximately 12,500 deaths in the United States could be attributed to increased speed limits.

The original 55 mph law was passed in 1974 in response to the oil embargo and had an immediate impact: a drop of almost 17 percent in highway fatalities. Nonetheless, in 1987 the law was modified to allow states to raise the speed limit to 65 mph on some interstate highways, and then completely revoked in 1995. States now set their own speed laws.

The researchers say the total repeal was wrong. "This is a failed policy because it was, in essence, an experiment over 10 years," said Lee Friedman, lead author of the study. "People assumed that increasing the speed limit would not have an impact. We've shown that something has happened and it's quite dramatic."

Friedman says the federal government should again consider restricting highway speeds to 55 mph. It would save lives and gas.

GET ME THAT. STAT!

Although the absolute risk is low, babies born to older mothers have a slightly greater risk for many childhood cancers, according to research out of the Masonic Cancer Center at the University of Minnesota.

Risk of contracting seven of the 10 most common childhood cancers increased slightly, about 7 percent to 10 percent, with every five-year increase in maternal age.

The father's age appears to be irrelevant.

NUMBER CRUNCHER

A single serving of P.F. Chang's lemon chicken contains 810 calories, 189 from fat. It has 21 grams of total fat or 32 percent of the recommended total fat intake for a 2,000-calorie daily diet.

It also contains 94 grams of total carbohydrates (31 percent) and 63 grams of protein.

MEDTRONICA

Addiction inbox

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A review of news about drug addiction, alcoholism, drugs of abuse and new scientific and medical treatment options by Dirk Hanson, author of "The Chemical Carousel."

STORIES FOR THE WAITING ROOM

Fetuses that are 30 weeks old may have short-term memory, according to a paper in the journal Child Development. Researchers at Maastricht University in the Netherlands produced harmless sounds and vibrations next to the wombs of pregnant women. After 10 minutes of exposure, fetuses reacted measurably less than they did initially, suggesting that they had become used to the stimuli.

PHOBIA OF THE WEEK

Nyctophobia — fear of darkness

OBSERVATION

If I was in a family that had the familial form of Alzheimer's — where half of individuals have it by age 60 — I would definitely be taking in 500 milligrams of caffeine a day and I would be doing it in coffee.

— University of South Florida researcher Gary Arendash on his study that suggests coffee might reverse memory problems caused by Alzheimer's disease

CURTAIN CALLS

In 1989, an Illinois college student on spring break was playing "balcony Frisbee" at a popular Daytona Beach, Fla., hotel. The game consisted of players tossing and catching the flying disk from different balconies.

The Illinois student leaned too far out for a catch and fell to his death, becoming the only Frisbee fatality on record.

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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