Fight off the hospital bug
The virulent, antibiotic-resistant bug known as Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is much more common in hospitals than previously thought, says a recent report from the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology.
Infection specialists chose one day in October or November 2006 to identify all the patients in 1,237 U.S. hospitals who either carried or had active MRSA infections. This bacterium no longer responds to many common antibiotics and can cause potentially deadly infections in the bloodstream, lungs or urinary tract.
The researchers found that 46 of every 1,000 patients had MRSA. That rate is 8 to 11 times greater than was reported in previous research, says a story in the September issue of Consumer Reports on Health. More important, it was found not just in intensive-care units but also throughout most hospital areas.
The germ can be spread by health workers who don’t discard contaminated gloves or adequately wash their hands. Here’s how to cut your risk of contracting MRSA:
*Politely ask hospital staff members to wash their hands before touching you if you don’t see them doing so.
*Ask the doctor or nurse to clean the stethoscope before using it on you.
*Don’t touch your hands to your mouth or set food or utensils on tables and beds where germs can thrive.
For more information, go to StopHospitalInfections.org, a public policy initiative of the Consumers Union.
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The anti-cancer workout
Are you one of the more than 10 million Americans who have survived cancer? If so, there’s a good way to stay that way: exercise, notes a story in the September issue of Redbook.
A Harvard Nurses’ Health Study of nearly 3,000 women found that breast-cancer survivors who walked three to five hours a week were half as likely to have a recurrence as those who exercised less than an hour a week. Colon-cancer survivors who walked six or more hours a week also were half as likely to have their cancer recur, says the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.
It is thought that exercise lowers estrogen levels, a hormone linked to breast-cancer growth. Exercise also helps control fat cells, which have been shown to stimulate tumor growth, according to Anne McTiernan, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle.
She suggests that survivors exercise 30 to 45 minutes at least three times a week.
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Medical histories for travelers
In just about 10 minutes you can create a free personal health record to carry while traveling, notes an item in the August issue of Bottom Line Retirement.
At PassportMD.com, enter your health information, and then print it out on a wallet-sized card. You also can store living wills and powers of attorney and access the information online at any time.
