[Note: We mail this E-Borne newsletter 4x/year +/- to friends, colleagues and suspecting customers of record. If we have mistakenly included you in this mailing, or you wish to be removed from our subscriber list, please refer to end of the newsletter for instructions. We'll miss you, but we promise to honor your request.]
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Dear friends and colleagues,
Dog Days are done, Labor Day
BBQs a thing of the past, kids are back
behind bars...er, in school...can Fall be far
behind? You sure wouldn't know it by the
local So. California clim @ 116 degrees! Not
even a microbe would be caught colonizing on
days like these. Check that -they're probably
working overtime! Probably best to just
stay indoors, surf 'n browse, and get ready
to strip the gears into holiday season mode.
LOTS OF EXCITING NEW DESIGNS TO FALL-BACK ON...
1. PSEUDO WHAT? WATERBORNE AND DANGEROUS
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While not having the microlebity of resistent
Staph aureus (MRSA) or Vancomycin-resistent
enterococcus (VRE), Pseudomonas aeruginosa
looms as a significant pathogen when
introduced into our usually neighborly
bodies. Tranmitted via body contact, fluids
or water, P.a. causes about 10% of reported
nosocomial(hospital-acquired) infections, and
can be especially harmful for those with
compromised immune systems. Premature
infants, for example, are among the very
susceptible. Pseudomonas has also been found
in a suspiciously high number of cystic
fibrosis patients or those who have undergone
bronchoscopy, and has shown a curious linkage
to contaminated liquids used in commercial
ear piercing. (It's the water!)
Check out Pseudomonas along
with some of its WATERBORNE pals (Legionella,
Hep A, Cryptosporidium, E. coli and
Norovirus) you will want to avoid - unless
they're on our new silk WATERBORNE SIX tie
and scarf designs!
Waterborne Six Tie and Scarf
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2. BOTTOM LINE ON GERMOPHOBIA
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GET A LIFE, BUT KEEP IN MIND...
- Wash hands thoroughly (20 secs) and
frequently.
- Plain soap and water is fine.
- Anti-bacterials are no better than soap,
under normal conditions.
- Ditto for standard sponges and cleansers
in the kitchen.
- Keep kitchen surfaces clean, don't cross
contaminate raw meats and veggies.
- Alcohol hand sanitizers are great,
especially when access to soap and water is
limited.
- Standard face masks are not very helpful
- skinny microbes laugh at them.
- Anti-germ devices in airplanes work
mostly in your head - human proximity is the
culprit. (Consider dumping the passenger next
to you.)
- Don't wrap yourself in plastic - just use
common sense. (Extra precautions for young
children, pregnant women and the
immunocompromised.)
(Reference: Berkeley Wellness Letter,
November 2006)
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3. MALARIA: BITING BACK AGAINST THE POLITICS
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In 1946, with the express purpose of
eliminating Malaria in the U.S., Congress
established the agency that was to become the
Centers for Disease Control. Unbelievably, in
2007 Ghana, malaria claims an estimated four
people an hour, two of whom are children!
Each year, some 500 million cases of malaria
occur world-wide, with up to one million
deaths. The vast majority are pregnant women
and children under five living in sub-Sahara
Africa. Caused by the parasite Plasmodium
falciparum, the pathogen invades red blood
cells, after a malarial mosquito has a bite
for lunch, causing the cells to burst. The
infuriating part: malaria can be controlled
by judicious use of effective insecticides,
preventive strategies and economic and
political will - little of which are
characteristic of the countries most heavily
impacted, nor many of the politically correct
cultures that should know better!
While at U.C.L.A., malariologist Dr. Rick
Fairhurst helped us accurately depict the
dynamics of RBCs under seige by the
Plasmodium parasites. Now, after a complete
sellout, IA Malaria ties and scarves have
reemerged to remind us of a serious global
threat.
Malaria Tie and Scarf
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4. PETTING ZOOS AND YOOSE
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AND YUR KIDZ!
In spite of hand washing alerts, visitors to
petting zoos apparently ignore the obvious.
E. coli 0157 (the nasty one) and other
potential pathogens of the digestive system
can easily be transmitted by a pat here, and
a stroke there, yet studies show that only
about 30% of visitors routinely wash or
disinfect their hands after leaving the zoo.
Feeding a cow or a goat was reported to be
among the most dangerous risk factors, while
bringing home contagious critters on shoes
(more poetically, ..stepping in it) couldn't
help! Bringing food, beverages, pacifiers or
sippy cups into the facilities also makes for
perfect set of tummy-transmitters.
We personally have not fed a goat for some
time - but staying alert for those kids and
grandies is becoming a full-time job!
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5. FLOSS FLUSHERS BEWARE
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Great Balls of Floss! No, not the remastering
of an old Jerry Lee Lewis classic - just
another (who-knew) bad habit with unintended
consequences. While dentists are thrilled
that flossing is kool, wastewater treatment
workers are complaining that machinery is
often jamming due to softball sized clumps of
shred-resistent floss. If you think about
this long enough, you will surely pass on lunch.
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6. HOPE FOR THE SLEEP DISORDERLY
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Sleep disorders have become an increasingly
serious public health issue, with
often-debilitating consequences for those
affected. A widening network of treatment
centers, including newly developed
departments within hospitals, is attempting
to address some of these challenges. Always
seeking to help the world chill out, IA has
created a sartorially somnolent design called
"ZZZs & Dreams," featuring actual REM (rapid
eye movement) and Deep Wave EEGs, and
accented by just the right touch of
neurohormonal melatonin. We are talking
mellow, here!
ZZZs & Dreams Tie and Scarf
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7. GIANT MICROBES® ON BOARD
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The polyester plushies are
now part of the IA collection of microbial
mayhem. As we've mentioned before, the GMs
are topical educational and awareness tools
for the family, school and workplace. The
clever tags provide timely and informative
descriptions, helping make these items a
perfect complement to their silken namesakes
already on the IA roster.
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8. UPCOMING PERSONAL APPEARANCES
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Thank you, thank you. . .
ICAAC: Interscience Conference on
Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy;
Chicago, September 17-19, 2007.
APHA: American Public Health Association;
Washington, D.C.; November 5-8, 2007.
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BACK AT YOU WHEN THE TURKEY CROWD STARTS
LOOKING FOR COVER...
Awareably yours,
Roger P. Freeman, D.D.S. and the IA Team
Infectious Awareables Copyright 2007 Infectious Awareables, Inc. Please feel free to pass this Ezine along to your friends. All we ask is that you keep it intact and forward it in its entirety. NOTICE: To subscribe to the IA newsletter: www.iawareables.com/a_main.htm
Phone:
818.990.6264
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