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REPETITIVE MOTION INJURY      

They’re getting smaller, faster and more sophisticated by the minute, allowing us to do things we never dreamed possible. With the never-ending wave of new cell phones, PDAs, handheld games and other electronic gadgetry infiltrating our lives, it’s no wonder that individuals of all ages have been experiencing an increase in repetitive motion injuries.  From teacher to student, we’re all using an increasing amount of electronic items on a daily basis.

 Whether you’re text messaging, playing video games or simply sending e-mails, you should:

• Rest your eyes every 15 minutes, by looking away from the screen for a few minutes to something a short distance away and blinking your eyes rapidly for a few seconds.
• Rest your hands after bursts of typing.
• Stand up and move around or do something else every 30 to 60 minutes.
• Do quick stretches and gentle exercises every one or two hours.
• Keep your back and wrist posture in a neutral position while sitting and keyboarding.
• Configure your workstation appropriately so you have easy access to your equipment.
• Keep you upper and lower back straight in neutral, whether using the back of chair or leaning forward.
• Seat size should be appropriate for your height and size. Set your seat so that it does not compress the back of your knees.
• Your feet should be in contact with the floor.
• Balance your head so it’s not tilted back of leaning too far forward.
• Keep your upper arms close to your body and relaxed.
• Keep your wrists at a neutral position, level with your forearm.
• Make sure your chair armrests are not directly compressing any part of the forearms or elbows.
• Move your mouse with motion from the forearm and not just the wrist.

5 Steps to Increase a Child's Confidence

Do you know any students who seem like they could use a boost in their self-assurance? Then you may want to share these tips with parents to help increase the students’ self-confidence levels. Silvana Clark, author of Parent-Tested Ways to Grow  Your Child’s Confidence, offers the following tips for parents to develop children’s self-esteem this school year and beyond.

1. Praise your child’s accomplishments as appropriate:  There’s no need to clap and cheer if a 10-year-old uses a napkin at dinner. (Although there’s nothing wrong with an occasional, “Thanks for using your napkin.”) Parents sometimes feel they have to give a standing ovation to anything their child does. This school year, provide specific praise if your son decides to build his own kite for the science fair.  It may not soar, but can comment on his creative use of string and plastic bags.
2. Relax and laugh with your children:  Children benefit from seeing adults use humor in a positive way.  So you all overslept—instead of yelling, having a race to gets dressed in the quickest time.  The winner gets to choose dessert at dinner.  Comment on how amazing it is that your family could oversleep and yet get out the door in such a short amount of time.  Studies show that optimists have a higher level of self-confidence.
3. Encourage positive risk taking:  Self-confident children have the inner fortitude to try new things, even if it means a chance of failure. Encourage your children to try out for the school play or enter an art contest.  As a family, read a book together on a subject new to all of you.  Take a fall bike ride on an unfamiliar path, even if you don’t know where you will end up.  Children soon learn they have skills to make wise choices when taking risks.
4. Let your children solve problems: Do your children want you to buy them the latest designer clothes for the new school year? Have them check ads or call

The Danger of Inhaling Mothballs

Among the many substances that teens often abuse to get a quick high are inhalants, such as spray paints, nail polish remover, hair spray, glues and cleaning fluids. Now a letter published in the New England Journal of Medicine sheds light on a lesser-known inhalant — mothballs.

In the letter, Doctors from France, say that they were surprised to learn that an 18-year-old girl they had treated at a local French hospital had been sniffing and chewing mothballs.  The girl was treated for a scaly rash, an unsteady walk and mental sluggishness.  She was apparently encouraged by classmates to use mothballs as a recreational drug.

Recent national surveys and scientific studies show that today, one in five students in the United States has used an inhalant to get high by the time he or she reaches the eighth grade.  Inhalants can include anything from gasoline and glues to nitrous oxide and aerosol hair spray.  Some estimates say that there are more than 1,000 inhalable products easily accessible and legal for young people to purchase. These chemicals are available in school, at home and in grocery, automotive and convenience stores—and are easier to obtain than alcohol.

Mothballs contain paradichlorobenzene (PDB), a substance that is found in other household products, such as insect repellents and air fresheners.

In the letter, the doctors note that while there have been very few reported cases of mothball abuse, because the symptoms can be hidden or easily mistaken for something else, experts may not have a true sense of its abuse