Looking at eating binges and
other healthjnyths
By Roger McKay
BULIMIA NERVOSA
Are young women in their early to
mid-20s so obsessed with body im
age and body weight that they
turn to eating binges followed
bv periods of fasting or rigorous
dieting?
A new study published in
the American Journal of Public
Health indicates that bulimia ner
vosa is less common than popular
ly believed. The study estimates
the probable prevalence of the
condition among American college
students nationwide at about 1
percent for women and 0.2 per
cent for men—compared to some
early survey studies that have put
the rates as high as 8-19 percent
of college women and up to 5 per
cent of college men.
The study, which sampled stu
dents at 53 universities and col
leges, found that bulimia was
most prevalent (2.2 percenti
among undergraduate women liv
ing in group housing on campus
UPPER RESPIRATORY INFECTION
(THE COMMON COLO)
Any of more than 200 viruses can
cause I'RI But contrary to popu
lar belief, says the American
College Health Association
(ACHAi, coughing and sneezing
are not the main reasons for its
spread
You pick up I'RI by touching an
infected person, such as shaking
that person's hand, then touching
your eyes or nose I’RI viruses at
tack and multiply in the cells that
line the nose and throat, the
ACHA says
You can also pick up a cold by
touching a telephone or doorknob
or any other hard, nonporous sur
face after an infected person has
touched it.
To keep the bugs at bay, the
At'HA advises “Wash your hands
often and avoid touching your
face; use disposable tissues cold
viruses can survive for hours on
handkerchiefsi; eat a balanced di
et, avoid prolonged contact with
people w ho have colds, keep your
stress level down; keep your room
humidity moderate to high "
CHLAMYDIA
New laboratory tests are making
it faster and easier to detect this
serious health threat, which is
caused by a unique species of
bacteria called Chlamydia Ira
chomalis
Not usually know n is the fact
that about 20-40 percent of all
sexually active women have prob
ably been exposed to chlamydia at
some time, and any sexually ac
tive woman tor man' can become
infected One of the most common
STDs (Sexually Transmitted Dis
eases), chlamydia is more likely to
infect young people with more
than one sexual partner, women
using birth control pills and peo
pie infected with gonorrhea or an
other STD
According to the American
College of Obstetricians and Oy
necologists, symptoms in women
may include burning or itching in
the genital area, painful or fre
quent urination and pain in the
pelvic area
Symptoms for men include
painful urination, and burning
and inflammation of the urethra
'the tulie from the bladder
In all cases, it is best to see
your doctor if chlamydia is sus
pected
OSTEOPOROSIS AND CALCIUM
DEFICIENCY
It'' an issue for young women
and young men and nut, as usu
ally believed, something just for
the elderly to worry about At the
University of North Cirolin* it
Chapel Hill. I)r John Anderson.
Director of the Department of
Nutrition, is >tudying the calcium
intakes and hone health of 1.200
women between the ages of Is
and 25
With his colleague. Dr Frances
Tylavsky, Anderson took a de
tailed dietary history of each
woman and with a bone densito
meter measured the hone mineral
content of the same two bones in
each woman the spongy bone in
the w rist and the radius bone of
the forearm
cruiled for a two year study by
the Department of Ophthalmolo
gy to determine whether vitamia*
and minerals can slow down the
progress of cataracts and macular
degeneration, the most common
reasons for vision decreases in
people 45 or older Dr Randall
Olson, chairman of the depart
ment and principle investigator
savs it is believed that the addi
turn of itetakeratme. Vitamin ('
and Vitamin E to the diet can cut
down the incidence of cataracts
Olson warns, however, that all vi
tamins and minerals, if taken in
excess, can cause life threatening
complications Some experts
say ’blue-blocking" lenses pro
moted by many manufacturers as
the ultimate sunglass lens can ac
tuals harm the eyes by not allow
On how to answer a job interviewer
seeking information about potential
absenteeism: “I'm in good health and
rebound quickly. I've noticed that peo
ple who miss a lot of work really don’t
like their jobs or themselves very
well. ” The Complete Q&A Job Interview Book
by Jeffrey G. Allen (John Wiley & Sons)
During adolescence, when diet
mg becomes an issue, many girls
replace their intake uf milk and
other foods rich in calcium for oth
er things, and this has an adverse
effect on calcium absorption, he
-,n> "This interfers severely with
the proper formation of bone mass
in the years when it is most es
sential. because in adolescence
bone mass increases at a rate of
10 percent a year'
EYE NOTES
At the University o( Utah, hun
dreds of volunteers are being re
mg true color perception Also
note the darkness of a lens is not
an indication of its ability to pro
tect the eyes, as many of us think
Kycs covered by a very dark lens
could still !*■ vulnerable to ultra
violet ray damage from the sun
Ask for lenses with a I V inhibitor
injected into the lens material
Playing a major role in the latest
advance in rigid gas permeable
contact lenses fluorine, the anti
stick ingredient in frying pans
fluorine, it seems, resists protein
deposits and results in greater
comfort than rigid lenses oka