School’s Out For Summer, But Health Is Still Important (NAPSA)—Forteens, this is the season for sleeping in, beach trips and first jobs. For their parents, however, it’s time to worry about common summerhealth risks. In fact, a new survey supported by the National Parent Teacher Association (PTA) reveals that one in four parents of teens is extremely or very concerned about their teen’s health during the upcoming summerbreak. Notably, heat exhaustion is the top health concern for 35 percent of parents and 75 percent will insist that their teens wear sunscreen while engaging in summeractivities. Accordingto the survey, 92 percent of parents plan to maintain open communication with their children to ensure that they have a safe summer. In fact, online safety is a top summersafety concern for parents of teens, and 41 percent are extremely or very con- cerned about proper decision-making in an unsafesituation. In addition, the survey reveals that one-third of parents agree that it is important for their teens to have a summer job, to learn workethic and responsibility. Here are some of the respondents’ other health concerns: * Ninety-five percent of parents want their teens to stay active andfit. eEKighty-one percent plan to provide their teens with healthy food choices over the summer. Almost 30 percent feel it is extremely or very important to take their teens to the doctor for a summerhealth visit. Many parents in a recent survey feel it is essential for their teens to stay active andfit. Almost 63 percent feel it is extremely important for their teens to get vaccinated against infectious diseases. *Despite the finding that almost two in three parents will makesure that their young teen is up-to-date with his or her vaccination schedule to ensure a healthy summer, only 12 percent cite pertussis (whooping cough) as a summerhealth concern. Whooping cough is a disease against which children are routinely vaccinated that is currently on the rise among teens in the United States. Whooping cough is a highly contagious bacterial infection of the respiratory system that causes spasmsof severe coughing. Teens are at risk of whooping cough because childhood immunization begins to wear off five to 10 years after the last routine vaccination shot, typically administered whenchildren are between 4 and 6 years old. Because ofthis, many teens are vulnerable and unprotected against this serious disease. Teens are often undiagnosed because they don’t show symptoms. They can then become the source of infection for family membersand others. Whooping cough can also be difficult to detect because the first symptomsare similar to the common cold with a mild fever, runny nose and a cough. Symptoms generally progress to more severe coughing episodes, often with a high-pitched “whoop,” followed by vomiting. These severe coughing spells can last up to 10 weeks. Once made awareof their teen’s potential susceptibility, an overwhelming 92 percent of parents surveyed agree that young teens should receive a whooping cough booster. The good newsis that in 2005 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved booster vaccines for diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis for use in adolescents. To help educate parents about how to keep their teens happy, healthy and active over the summer, the National PTA launched “Summer Break—What’s at Stake?” Parents and caregivers are encouraged to. visit www.pta.org to obtain useful information about teen summer health. GlaxoSmithKline has pro- vided funding and other support to the National PTA for the survey and the “Summer Break—What’s at Stake?” campaign.
