Over-The-Counter Medicine Ban for Children

Facts about children:

• They are dirty

• They like to stick things in their mouths

• They are little sacks of germs that get colds all the time, and pass them amongst each other because they are dirty and like to stick things in their mouths

Facts about colds:

• Most colds clear up on their own after a few days

• The best remedy for a cold is rest and fluids

Facts about over-the-counter cold medications for children:

• They were approved by the FDA only 30 years ago without any separate studies done to prove their safety or efficacy in children

• To date, there are still no studies that show the medications to be effective, even though there have been some research into the serious side effects (such as death in some cases)

• Thousands of children are sent to the emergency room every year from the administration of these drugs

• There is very little known about what the potential unknown side effects of these drugs are

• Despite the urgings of the American Academy of Pediatrics and Food and Drug Administration officials to remove these OTC cold remedies from the market, they are still being manufactured and sold across the country

• Families in the US spend over $286 million a year on these cough and cold medications for kids, of which there are over 800 different kinds on the market... That's a big market!

Broken Shelves

Earlier today, a 19-square-mile piece of ice in the Arctic broke free and floated out to sea like a giant, Manhattan-sized ship. It had been a part of Ellesmere Island, Canada for the last three to four thousand years.

That's a really big piece of ice, right? Every summer, the Arctic cap tends to lose some of its shelf, but usually regains it back over the colder months. According to today's article, the losses for this summer have equaled 82-square-miles.

These changes are irreversible under the present climate and indicate that the environmental conditions that have kept these ice shelves in balance for thousands of years are no longer present

For clarification, ice shelves are floating pieces of ice that are attached to land, but sit over the water. The good news for us is that sea level does not change when floating ice melts. But the breakup of an ice shelf leaves a glacier (ice over land) exposed and more susceptible to cracks and breaks. When a glacier melts, sea level rises. Melting glaciers also induce the breaking-off of shelf ice, further inducing glacial surges that can drastically change sea level.

Basically, this is not a good thing. Well, not for the ecosystems that live on the shelves, which will no longer exist by 2049 according to UCAR, and not for us or any other species that likes to live on land, and without being baked alive.

The planet, however, will be just fine and the creatures of the sea will start to take over again. Maybe the octopuses will become the next super species, and have pet sharks, and farm schools of guppies, and trade crabs as currency.

Or maybe it will be just like that Kevin Costner movie, and we'll all start to develop gills behind our ears and dirt will become a delicacy. Mmmmmm, delicious!

Ice Water at the Restaurant: Don't Do It!

It happens every time you go to a restaurant, large or small, fancy or cheap: a glass of ice water is plunked down in front of you, usually without you asking. It's been sitting for awhile, and condensation has formed on the outside. Touch it and your hand goes numb with cold. What do you think it does to your stomach?

Cold is one of the original boogey-monsters of Chinese medicine, second only to wind. The ancient Chinese were great scientists, and they studied cold they way the did anything else: thoroughly. Although it's now much easier to stay warm and regulate our environment, the conclusions handed down to us about cold remain extremely valuable.

Environmental cold is classified as one of the "six evil qi" or "six pathogens" that can cause damage. In general, your internal organs like to be quite warm. Consider that the average internal temperature is 98.6F - if it were nearly 100 degrees outside, it would be considered a heat wave. But that's how hot the inside of your body is nearly all the time.

Your lungs and stomach are particularly sensitive to cold, as they have direct connections to the outside world (your trachea and esophagus, to be exact). If you've ever lived somewhere really cold, you know how important it is to keep a scarf across your mouth and nose. I remember one winter in New York, there was a two-week period in January where the temperature stayed in the teens. When I walked home from work, the cold air felt sharp, like a knife. It was only nine streets and two avenues, but by the time I got home my lips would be numb.

Similarly, if you throw ice water into your stomach, you'll lose your appetite and slow down your digestive system. That can lead to gas and painful bloating, and in some cases even diarrhea or constipation.

So what are your options? You can ask for water without ice, or just don't drink water when you eat. If you need something to wet your lips or clean your mouth, try some tea. Moderate amounts of wine or beer are also warming and in most cases good for your digestion.