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FETAL ALCOHOL SYNDROME: POISONED BABIES

                              A particularly tragic outcome of alcohol abuse is its effect on the unborn. Alcohol is far worse for the developing fetus than any other abuse drug. When a pregnant woman drinks, her developing child also drinks, and the toxic effect of alcohol is especially devastating at this formative stage of the fetus. Alcohol causes irreversible damage to its central nervous system. Neurons do not form properly. Cells are killed off. Other cells end up located in the wrong place. The result, fetal alcohol syndrome [FAS], is the foremost cause of mental retardation in newborns. Difficulties encountered by FAS children include intellectual impairment, language problems, developmental delay, behavioral dysfunction or deficit, slow growth, hyperactivity, and hearing and sight disorders. Many FAS babies are also born with characteristic facial deformities. In addition, children whose mothers drank even moderate amount of alcohol during pregnanc

EVOKING YOUR CREATIVE POWER

                                  When we participate in creative processes we can explore countless numbers of possible patterns before finally settling on an idea. Many of us, however, encounter emotional resistance to the flow of creative possibilities. We demand of our minds an immediate, logical, finished product that stifles new creative exploration. Most of us do not lack ideas. What we lack is a rapid and direct means of getting in touch with those ideas. Is there a magic key for unlocking those secret reservoirs of imaginative power? One magic key describe by Gabriele Rico is a creative process called CLUSTERING. A similar process using patterns is termed “mind mapping” by Tony Buzan. Both techniques use the right brain’s ability to image and synthesize. Clustering, or “mind mapping,” temporarily suspends the normally dominant left brain activity that is logical and orderly. It is a non-linear brain-storming process akin to free association. Invisible i

FOOD ALLERGY AND FOOD INTOLERANCE: THE DIFFERENCE

             Tim: “I put down my fork and started to feel uneasy. I had an itchy sensation in my mouth, and my tongue was swelling. I started to feel light-headed and was having trouble breathing. Hives were breaking out on my arms and neck. I tried to stifle panic but knew I had to get to a hospital –and quickly!” For most people, eating is a pleasant experience. There are some, however, who are compelled to treat certain foods as “enemies.” Like Tim, quoted earlier, they suffer from food allergies. Tim’s severe allergic response is called ANAPHYLAXIS, a very dangerous condition. Thankfully, most food allergies are not as serious. In recent years, there has been a rise in reported food allergies and intolerances. Some studies, however, suggest that only a small portion of those who think they have a food allergy have been definitely diagnosed.                                                    WHAT IS A FOOD ALLERGY? “Food allergy has no universally accepte

THE RED BLOOD CELL-A MIRACLE PARTICLE

The value of blood as a life-safer and life-sustainer has been appreciated from the earliest times in the history of mankind. In fact, our ancestors recognized the value of blood perhaps more than we do today. Sacrifices, now and in the past, are performed to spill the blood of an animal and thereby appease the angry gods. The conventional symbol of blood is red, and this generally signifies the danger that might follow the spilling of blood through accident or violence. The red flag of revolutionaries is purported to be symbolic of the blood spilled by heroes during popular uprisings. Scientifically, blood is the agent that carries the vitalizing agent oxygen to all tissues of the body, and carries carbon dioxide from the tissues for excretion in the lungs. Blood is given to hospital patients in order that they may not die from excessive bleeding or from severe anemia. Such is the value and importance of blood to all animal and human life that this list could con