Pregnant women ignore alcohol warnings '
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
MADISON, Wis. - The num
ber of women who admit drinking
' alcoholic beverages while pregnant
has increased despite health warn
ings concerning fetuses,
researched say.
"Fetal alcohol syndrome is the
most common recognizable cause
of mental retardation in the Unit
ed States. It's a cause that is totally
preventable," said Kenneth Lyons
Jones of'the University of Califor
nia-San Diego. Jones was among
about 100 scientists at a University
of Wisconsin conference last week
on chemically induced birth
defects. Using a slide show, Jones
said news media often publicize
the harm to fetuses of marijuana,
cocaine and heroin, but "you can
tie them all in a bundle and they
don't have anywhere near the effect
that alcohol does."
A pregnant woman who drinks
can contribute to a baby's low
weight, small head, facial abnor
malities, low intelligence, hyperac
tivity and joint problems, scientists
said. Despite the evidence, the
number of expectant mothers who
admit drinking alcohol increased
from 12.4 percent in 1991 to 16.3
percent in 1995, they said.
"Unfortunately we're not doing
a very good job of educating preg
nant women about the deleterious
effects of alcohol," Jones said.
Scientists suspect alcohol
affects the fetus' brain as it forms
facial structures and controls
movement in the womb.
"There is no safe amount for all
women to drink during pregnan
cy," Jones said. ?
, / File photo
A pregnant woman who drinks can contribute to o baby's low
weight, small hood, facial abnormalities, low intelligence, hyperac
tivity and joint problems, scientists say.
Malnutrition
mm page CJ
hose people is Delores Rosen
blatt-Groover, 65, whose severe
irthritis keeps her in bed most of
he time as she struggles to sur
vive on $277 a month.
"I can't afford to buy vegeta
bles, fruits, desserts," she said.
'Sometimes I can't get out of
bed to prepare a meal."
Wiping back tears, Ms.
Rosenblatt-Groover, who is sepa
rated from her husband, explains
that on the rare occasions some
bne takes her to the grocery she
buys as much canned tuna and
fry cereal as she can afford.
"It's depressing, sometimes,"
she said. -
Check out The
Chronicle's
special insert
of Health &
Wellness
located at the
center of
today's
newspaper.
cue finds kids in dorms at higher risk tor disease |
B\ BILL BERGSTROM
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
PHILADELPHIA - College
freshmen, especially those who live
in dormitories, face a higher risk of
potentially fatal meningococcal
meningitis than others in their age
group, a study by the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention
indicates.
As CDC and college health
officials conduct further research
to look for the reasons, they rec
ommend that students consider
getting vaccinated against
meningococcal disease.
A $60 vaccine would prevent
about three-fourths of the cases
that Occur among college students.
Dr. MarJeanne Collins, director of
health services at the University of
Pennsylvania, said last week at the
annual meeting of the American
College Health Association.
Asked if students would con
sider that too costly, Collins, a
member of the ACHA's Vaccin'e
Preventable Disease Task Force,
said, "How many beers can you
drink for $60? Twenty beers?"
"The cost of a college educa
tion at my institution is $30,000 a
year. It is all relative. I would think
it is within the ballpark of other
vaccinas," she said.
Though the disease is rare,
Collins said it is devastating to the
.A
I
students, families and campuses
affected, v ?
"Anyone that's had ... to talk to
a parent who has just yesterday
had an active, healthy college stu
dent. who today is informed that
that student is dead, really feels the
tragedy of this illness," she said.
Dr. Michael Bruce, an epidemi
ologist at the GDC, reported that a
study of 83 reported meningitis,
cases involving college students
from September through May
indicated a rate among freshmen
of 1.4 cases per 100.000, rising
sharply to 3.8 cases, per 100.000
among freshmen living in dormito
ries.
That compares with a rate of 1
case per 100,000 for 18-22 year
olds nationally, and a slightly
lower rate of 0.7 cases per 100,000
for college undergraduates overall.
The findings reinforced an
analysis by Johns Hopkins Univer
sity School of Public Health
researchers, published last week in
The, Journal of the American
Medical Association, that said col
lege students who live on campus
face greater risk of meningitis
infections than other students.
That study prompted the
ACHA to renew a 1997 recom
mendation that all college students
consider getting vaccinated against
meningococcal disease.
"Both of these studies support |
the recommendation that colleges
educate and inform students about
the disease and provide access to
the vaccine," Collins said.
The most common meningo
coccal disease is meningitis, an
inflammation of the membranes
surrounding the brain and spinal
cord. Early symptoms include
fever, severe headache, nausea,
vomiting, lethargy, stiff neck and
rash.
Antibiotics can be effective, but
treatment must begin immediately.
About one in 10 people who get
the illness die, or about 300 people
a year nationally. About 10 percent
of those who survive are left with
brain damage, kidney failure, hear
ing loss or loss of limbs.
Of about 3,000 cases a year
nationally, 125 to 175 afflict col
lege students and 15 to 20 students
die each year, according to public
health estimates.
' The researchers said results are
expected this fall from a more ?
detailed study of students'
lifestyles that will examine whether
factors such as living situations,
participation on sports teams,
alcohol consumption or tobacco
use affect meningococcal disease
risk.
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