Rushing for the School Gate … and the consequences

London – Getting the children up and ready for school can be a battle.

But the conflict doesn’t end there, as parents are more than ready to squabble with other mothers and fathers once they reach the school gates, a survey has shown.

The study of more than 3 000 motorists found that 16 percent of parents admit to arguing with other adults on the school run, while almost a quarter confess to blocking other people’s cars.

Dropping the kids off can be so stressful that 43 percent of parents even worry about it the night before.

However some of the stress is self-inflicted, as the poll by second-hand car website Auto Trader found that half of school run drivers admit to envying other families’ vehicles.

Twenty-nine percent also said they risk parking illegally just so they can get closer to the school. – Daily Mail

Source: http://www.iol.co.za/lifestyle/family/parenting/the-battle-for-the-school-gate-1.1663096#.Uyib2Xm6dGg

Having the common cold and driving is like drunk driving

Oxford – You might think obeying the Highway Code and respecting speed limits makes you a good motorist. But your health and well-being could be compromising your safety behind the wheel without you realising.

“Driving requires our full concentration,” says Professor Russell Foster, a neuroscientist at Oxford University. “If there’s an underlying health issue, that can be seriously — and dangerously — compromised.

“Driving on a motorway can exacerbate the problem as it can be extremely monotonous, particularly if people are already tired.”

The RAC recently reported that one in 20 drivers unknowingly suffers from a sleeping disorder, sleep apnoea, that puts them at risk of nodding off at the wheel.

And if you have an accident and only discover afterwards it was caused by an underlying health issue, you may lose your licence or worse, says Paul Reddy, a solicitor and motoring law specialist at Slater & Gordon Lawyers. “It’s down to an individual to take responsibility for whether they are healthy enough to drive.”

Here, with the help of leading medical experts, we look at how your health might affect the way you drive…

Snorers can fall asleep on the road

One in 20 drivers unknowingly suffers from sleep apnoea syndrome, which might cause you to nod off at the wheel, according to research by the RAC. The organisation suggests that the disorder is responsible for up to one in five accidents.

It occurs when muscles in the throat relax as we go to sleep, reducing airflow and causing snoring, explains Professor Russell Foster, director of the Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute at Oxford University.

“If the throat closes completely, you stop breathing for a couple of seconds, and the brain, realising it is being starved of oxygen, forces you to wake up,” he says. “This can happen up to 100 times a night — disrupting the sleep cycle and also causing you to miss out on phases of deep refreshing sleep. So you feel tired during the day.”

Many drivers are unaware they have the problem. Yet according to the RAC, those with undiagnosed sleep apnoea are six times more likely to have an accident.

See a GP if your partner complains you snore heavily and you have other warning signs such as a dry throat and headache on waking. Treatment involves using a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device at night — this gently forces air into your airways while you sleep, preventing them closing.

A bad back may slow your braking

Any kind of lower back pain can make driving dangerous by weakening your leg muscles, says London-based chartered physiotherapist Sammy Margo.

“When there is a pinching in the spinal nerve, perhaps through inflammation or arthritis, this can cause referred weakness down the legs,” she adds.

“Drivers may not realise this until the leg is tested — perhaps by having to brake suddenly — and they may find that they can’t do it quickly.”

If you suffer from lower back pain, Ms Margo suggests driving with the seat forward so your leg doesn’t have to stretch to reach the pedal, and less effort is needed to brake quickly.

Heavy colds can halve concentration

Our concentration when driving with a bad cold or flu drops by more than 50 percent according to research from Cardiff University’s Common Cold Centre.

This is the equivalent of downing more than four double whiskies.

Car safety experts found reaction times dropped sharply and sudden braking became much more frequent as motorists with bad colds were less aware of surrounding traffic. They were also a third more likely to hit the kerb because they were less capable of judging distance.

…and medicine leaves you dangerously drowsy unfortunately, taking something to treat a cold or flu can also lead to road accidents since some preparations can cause drowsiness, says Professor Ron Eccles, director of Cardiff University’s Common Cold Centre. This may be down to anti-histamine, which controls runny noses and sneezing, but also has a sedative effect.

Another problem is if the medication contains codeine. It slows reaction times in many people and has been linked to low concentration levels and blurry eyesight — possibly because it causes the pupils to get smaller.

Research by website Confused.com, in partnership with the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, found that one in seven motorists who has taken cold or flu medication containing codeine has suffered side-effects at the wheel.

If you are stopped by the police after taking a cold remedy, you could find yourself charged with ‘driving whilst unfit through drugs or alcohol’, which could lead to disqualification, says solicitor Paul Reddy. Professor Eccles warns: “I wouldn’t drive for at least six hours after taking one of these preparations.”

An eye condition makes wing mirrors useless

Last year, an estimated 2,000 drivers in the UK were involved in road crashes due to poor vision, according to the College of Optometrists. One reason, they say, is that motorists may not realise their eyesight has deteriorated because of glaucoma. This is where the drainage tubes in the eye become blocked, preventing the aqueous humour — the fluid that creates pressure in the eye to keep its shape — from draining properly.

The condition affects the peripheral vision, says optometrist Dr Rob Hogan of iCare Consulting. “So, when driving, you may well miss anything that comes into your side vision — for example, anything you would see in your wing mirror, such as a cyclist — as you’d just have a black spot.

“Any damage caused by glaucoma can’t be repaired, which is why an early diagnosis is so important.”

Treatment involves medication, eye drops, and laser surgery to clear the blocked tubes.

Why you should keep Jelly Babies handy

Plunging blood sugar levels can be a serious hazard. Known as reactive hypoglycemia, it can suddenly make you feel shivery and cause a tingling around your lips and a deep, painful hunger, which can all be a major distraction.

There is no clear cause — it just seems to randomly affect some people, usually around four hours after having a heavy meal as the body seems unable to sustain blood sugar levels, says Dr Stephen Lawrence, a GP and medical adviser to Diabetes UK.

If this happens to you, see your GP about an HbA1C blood test — a more sophisticated analysis of the blood — to rule out diabetes. Have a snack before you hit the road, and take a packet of Jelly Babies with you as these release glucose quickly into the blood.

Getting caught short makes you speed

The risk for people with urge incontinence — which causes an urgent feeling to go — is that they get caught short and “end up speeding to make it to their destination or the nearest rest stop,” says Chris Eden, professor of urology at Surrey University.

“A serious urge to urinate can happen even if you went a short time before,” he warns.

Urge incontinence is caused by faulty nerve signals, which trigger small bladder contractions, meaning messages go to the brain telling it the bladder needs to empty.

The condition can be treated with medication that relaxes the bladder. Pelvic floor exercises can also help.

You can drive blind for 15 metres when you sneeze

An increasing number of adults are developing hay fever for the first time. Possible causes include new species of exotic plants, serious infections or moving to a more polluted area.

These adults may suddenly find themselves sneezing uncontrollably — and as we tend to close our eyes when we sneeze, this can make driving a hazard.

Around two million UK motorists have either had an accident, a near miss or have temporarily lost control of their car by sneezing at the wheel, according to insurance firm Esure. It’s most hazardous on the motorway, as drivers can travel up to 15 metres with their eyes closed during a sneeze.

Stephen Foster, a Kent-based pharmacist and allergy specialist, suggests vacuuming your car regularly and cleaning surfaces with a damp cloth to keep it free of dust and pollen, as well as getting air-conditioning checked annually.

“Use a nasal steroid spray such as Beconase or take a non-sedative antihistamine such as Benadryl before you get into the car,” says Mr Foster. “Check with your pharmacist that anything you buy won’t cause drowsiness. And keep the windows closed while driving.”

Rubbing a balm such as HayMax around your nose can help as this traps pollen.

Sleeping pills give you a hangover

Insomnia pills — such as over-the-counter remedies like Nytol — can have a hangover effect for several hours the next day, as in some people it may take this long for the liver to expel the drugs from the body.

“They also prevent you going into a deep, ‘slow-wave’ sleep during the night, which is why you may not feel refreshed in the morning,” adds Professor Foster. “Avoid sleeping pills if you are doing a long drive the next day.”

Daily Mail

Source: http://www.iol.co.za/motoring/industry-news/driving-with-a-cold-like-being-drunk-1.1662981#.UyibOHm6dGg

Sir, my Dad did all my homework

London – Most of us dreaded getting homework when we were at school. When we become parents, however, it seems we’re only too happy to knuckle down.

Nearly two thirds of parents said they help their children with their work – with one in six admitting to regularly doing all of it, a study has found.

One in ten said their assistance prevented tantrums and a bad atmosphere in the evenings.

But it could have been a case of crocodile tears because 70 percent said their children are more than happy to sit back and have their work done for them, while 38 percent said their youngsters even wander off and leave them to puzzle over the text books.

And puzzle they do, for a quarter agreed that the work set was too hard, while two thirds admitted there had been times when they couldn’t lend a hand because it was too difficult.

Some 18 percent fear that teachers judge them for the standard of their children’s work.

Meanwhile a competitive 42 percent confessed it gives them a kick when their youngsters receive high marks for a project they have helped with.

The survey also found that one in 20 couples argue regularly about homework. Common disagreements were about the best way to tackle the work, which parent should help, not helping enough and interfering too much.

A spokesman for educational trade show Bett, which carried out the survey, said: ‘There is a fine line between helping your child understand their studies and completely taking over.

‘It’s probably best just to be there as a sounding board if you’re child gets stuck on something.’ – Daily Mail

Source: http://www.iol.co.za/lifestyle/family/parenting/miss-my-dad-did-my-homework-1.1633931#.UydMGHm6dGg

Parents in denial over overweight children – study finds

London – Half of parents with an overweight child are in denial about their child’s size – thinking they are slimmer than they actually are – according to research.

They tended to underestimate their child’s excess weight or dismiss the problem as “puppy fat”, despite soaring rates of obesity.

Others with an obese child thought their son or daughter was normal or slightly heavy, while one in seven parents whose child was a healthy weight worried they were too skinny.

Alyssa Lundahl, who led the study at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the US, said parents who failed to recognise the problem were letting their children down.

“We know that parents play a very crucial role in preventing childhood obesity,” she said.

“When parents’ perceptions are corrected, they do start to take action and encourage their children to become more active and maybe turn off the TV and go outside and play.”

The research involved a review of 69 existing studies worldwide between 1990 and 2012, of more than 15 000 children aged two to 18. It found 51 percent of parents with overweight or obese children underestimated their child’s size.

In each case, researchers asked parents to assess their child’s weight using pictures or rating scales.

They then measured the children to determine whether they would be classified as overweight or obese based on where they fell in Body Mass Index growth charts.

Parents of younger children aged between two and five are less likely to perceive them as overweight or obese, said the study, published online in the journal Pediatrics.

It also found that parents who are overweight are less likely to accurately assess their children’s weight.

Yet children with at least one obese parent are more likely to become obese themselves. In England almost a third of ten to 11-year-olds, and more than a fifth of four to five-year-olds, are overweight or obese.

Around three-quarters of obese children are likely to remain that way into adulthood, putting them at risk of conditions such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and cancer. – Daily Mail

Source: http://www.iol.co.za/lifestyle/family/parenting/in-denial-parents-of-obese-kids-1.1646048#.UydKoHm6dGg