Arthritis Medication And Your Safety (NAPSA)—A new survey of people with arthritis indicates that many of the 70 million Americans with this painful and often debilitating condition no longer have to live with arthritis pain. They may be doing so because they are confused about the safety of pain medications. The survey, conducted by the Rippe Lifestyle Institute (RLI), revealed that close to half of arthritis patients polled are confused about the safety of treatment options, leading them to stop or reduce their use of pain relievers. Of this group, more than two-thirds (68%) reported a decrease in overall quality of life due to greater pain and limited physical activity. “Pain relief is critically important for arthritis patients in terms of their quality of life and activities of daily living,” said James M. Rippe, M.D., an Associate Professor of Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine and founder and director of RLI. “I always say to my patients to talk to a doctor, and get good medical advice before even thinking about changing medications.” Other significant survey findings showed that as a result of changes in treatment: • Forty-two percent are experiencing more pain than before. • Twenty-one percent say they have stopped exercising. • Forty-nine percent have limited their physical activities. How can patients sort through the confusion about arthritis pain relievers? One solution: Of those who consulted a doctor about arthritis pain medications, 64 percent reported that their physicians recommended over-the-counter (OTC) pain relievers. (NAPSA)—Playtime is a great time for messy family fun. Don’t be afraid to let the whole family get dirty. When your family ends up with stains like dirt, chocolate ice cream, and ketchup, after a day at play, don’t worry—products such as OxiClean have been proven to fight tough stains better than washing with detergent alone. For family fun ideas, visit www.oxiclean.com. Picture this: In a grocery store, prices are instantly updated, your cart has a computer display with your shopping list and there’s no checkout line. It’s possible with RFID technology which uses radio waves to track objects without human intervention, using an embedded microchip about the size of a grain of sand. It could revolutionize retail shopping and inventory control. For more information, see http://www.microsoft.com/busi nesssolutions/scm_chip.aspx. You may have dreamed about the perfect backyard. Now a new giveaway is awarding a dream backyard each month—plus great prizes for your yard and your family—now through September. Visit www.dreambackyardgiveaway.com to enter throughout this spring and (NAPSA)—You may be surprised at the best way to travel between England and the rest of Europe. It’s not by plane. It’s not by boat. It’s the train. Traveling at over 180 miles an hour, the high-speed Eurostar train takes just 2 hours 35 minutes to go from downtown London to downtown Paris. About 80 percent of people with osteoar thritis repor t limited movement or activities. The condition is responsible for seven million physician visits per year. “People need to discuss individual situations with a doctor or other health care professional who can help them understand the benefits and risks associated with all pain medications,” said Dr. Rippe. “By doing so, we can substantially improve the standard of care for those with arthritis pain.” He indicated that health care professionals must help patients distinguish between newer drugs, known as COX-2 inhibitors, and more-established prescription and OTC treatments, such as naproxen, which is sold as Aleve. “When used as directed, overthe-counter pain medications like Aleve can play an important role in preserving the health and wellbeing of arthritis sufferers,” Dr. Rippe said. “It is imperative that we in the health care community help our patients sort through this confusing and conflicting information and ultimately help them find the pain relief they need.” Rippe added that inadequately managed arthritis pain can cause people with arthritis to become more sedentary, which can lead to more-serious conditions such as obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes. summer. You can enter once daily, and one winner ’s name will be drawn monthly. It is possible to find someone who will take good care of your children, says Barbara Anderson, Ed. D., vice president of education for Knowledge Learning Corporation, which operates 1,900 early childhood education and care centers nationwide. Anderson suggests asking friends, relatives, neighbors and co-workers for recommendations. Request references and talk to other families for whom the sitter has worked. Look for sitters who’ve passed the American Red Cross babysitter’s training course, which includes certification in infant CPR and first aid. There’s a better way to cross the Channel. There’s just a 20 minute advance check-in—rather than hours—and no need to waste time traveling between the airport and the city. Eurostar has almost hourly departures in both directions. Roundtrip fares start as low as $90 for standard class. There’s wi-fi capability in all the lounges. No wonder more than 65 percent of all people traveling between London and Paris, including Europeans, take the train instead of the plane. To find out more, call Rail Europe at 1800-EUROSTAR or visit www.rail europe.com. (NAPSA)—Engineers for Monroe , North America’s leading brand of shocks, struts and related automotive technologies, urge consumers to follow a 50,000-mile shock/strut replacement recommendation to improve vehicle handling characteristics and comfort. For more information on inspecting and replacing shocks and struts, visit www. monroe.com or contact an automotive service provider. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates tire failures/blowouts contribute to 414 deaths and 10,275 nonfatal injuries each year in the U.S. Doug Herberger, GM North America vice president and general manager of Service and Parts Operations, said, “Although today’s tires are more technologically advanced than ever before, regular visual inspections and maintenance are critical to enabling tires to perform at their best.” For more information, visit www.goodwrench.com. 12 Make Reading Fun With Activities At Home (NAPSA)—Educators agree that when parents read to children at home, children will perform better at school. There are several steps parents can take to strengthen their children’s reading skills, including implementing a family reading night. In addition to reading with children on a daily basis, PTO Today has teamed up with Target to help families create their own special reading night: • Make family reading night a special event by setting aside a designated time each week or month. Bring books to life by creating a theme and choosing books and snacks based on the theme. Add costumes to make it livelier and even have the family act out the book. • Invite guest readers to read books to your children; this could be a neighbor, a member of the community or a family friend. • Choose books that are fun and age appropriate for your children. Have the books relate to your child’s current life experiences. Your child’s teacher can help you select books that are most relevant and timely. • Encourage your children to actively participate by asking them to do the reading, turn the pages as you read, or point to and name characters or objects on the pages. • Include a fun activity, such as family poetry, where family members answer questions and the answers are turned into a poem. • Look for community events that support reading. For example, Target and PTO Today offer Family Reading Night events, held at your child’s school, which include both the joy of reading and parental involvement. At these events parents and children listen to guest readers, participate in activities, enjoy refreshments (NAPSA)—Household water damage can cause a flood of problems and high repair costs. The Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) says you should know the location of the shutoff valve for your house. For more advice, visit www.ibhs.org or call toll free 1 (866) 657-IBHS (4247). A pest control professional can identify your particular pests, treat to remove them and recommend steps that homeowners can take to prevent reinfestation. Professional pest control is important because the untrained eye cannot always recognize the damage pests cause. For further information, NPMA provides a national hotline referral service for homeowners to find a pest control professional on its Web site at www.pestworld.org. Working with the right handyman may not only help your home improvement job get done faster, it could help keep your family safe. According to Handyman When parents make reading part of every day they can make a real contribution to their child’s reading skills. and take home a deeper appreciation for reading. Family Reading Night is just one of several ways in which Target demonstrates a commitment to families, reading and education through its Ready. Sit. Read! program. The program is designed to foster a love of reading among children at an early age, with an emphasis on children from birth through age 9. “It is our mission to provide school parent groups with the resources they need to build parental involvement in schools. When parents are involved, test scores rise, children build more self-esteem, and their overall attitude toward learning improves,” said John Driscoll, vice president, PTO Today. “We’re proud then to be able to offer the Family Reading Night program with Target because it reaches kids at a critical age and further spreads the message about the importance of reading to both parents and children.” To learn more about Target’s commitment to reading and additional reading resources and activities, visit www.Target.com/ readysitread. To encourage your school to set up a Family Reading Night event log on to www.school familynights.com. Connection, a national home improvement and remodeling contractor network, homeowners should do the following before hiring contractors: Insist that contractors provide written estimates on company letterhead; ask for written guarantees; find someone else if a contractor insists on cash payment. For more tips visit www.handymanconnection.com or call 1-800-466-5530.
