I hope you all are enjoying the nice summer, and are taking time to relax!

This month I will discuss a few different areas of interest. The first is in regards to antidepressants, and the possible withdrawals that can be incurred when coming off of them. People are often told only the benefits and side effects, but not about what they might face should they choose to quit taking them later on.

Another topic of information is on the use of sunscreen. This has been a very hot summer, and many places are reaching record breaking highs. Therefore, not surprisingly more and more harmful rays enter the atmosphere. A new sunscreen has recently been approved by the FDA that can help prevent cancer causing rays from penetrating the skin.

Lastly, we have a guest article by Dr. Loreto Jackson on hydration, and why it is so important for children to remain hydrated. I hope you all enjoy the rest of your summer.

Angela Roth (& Terri Covey, webmaster)
Health & Fitness Section Editor

 Many people praise antidepressants, and how much they can help. However, are those who start taking antidepressants warned about the "dark side" when certain types of antidepressants are discontinued? Many doctors discuss the benefits of the medication, and even common side effects, however some may neglect to mention what can happen if someone suddenly decides to quit taking the drug.

The longer you are on antidepressants, the more your body adjusts to having the drug in your system, and the more likely you are (with certain types) to face mild to severe withdrawal symptoms when you attempt to quit taking some of them.

This information is not meant to influence in regard to the use, or non-use of antidepressants, and it certainly is not meant to disregard the benefits that many people find in using them. It is, however, meant to help educate and caution those who are on them, or are thinking of possibly getting on them, or know people who are on them, to the possible withdrawal that can occur with sudden discontinued use.

As educators, it is important to realize that some of your students may be on antidepressants. Information that I have discovered is that some kids often do not use discretion when coming off of them either, and without parent knowledge adolescents may not be regularly taking their meds, which can cause withdrawal symptoms. They may even decide to quit taking them on their own without the care of a physician to ensure cessation is as comfortable as possible.

Here is some valuable information to be aware of regarding the dangers of suddenly terminating the use of certain kinds of antidepressants. Not everyone will experience withdrawal symptoms, as problems depend a great deal on the type of drug, the dosage, the length of time taking them, as well as the individual's physiology. However, with some antidepressants, almost 80% of users go through some type of withdrawal symptoms, regardless of how they gradually "taper" down each week.

It Might Not Be the Flu! - Feeling like you're coming down with the flu lately? If you've recently discontinued an antidepressant you might actually be going through withdrawal. Read the rest.

Q+A: Antidepressant Side Effects - Dr. Joseph Glenmullen, a clinical instructor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, appeared on "Primetime Live" to discuss the often-unrecognized side effects of antidepressant drugs. Here is a sampling of his answers to your questions on the subject.

Getting Off Antidepressants - As bad as her panic attacks were, 27-year-old Melissa Hall says that going off the antidepressant medication she originally took as treatment was also a nightmare. Read the whole article.

Zoloft Withdrawal - The popular antidepressant Zoloft, as well as other well-known brand name antidepressants have been under attack and a source of nationwide debate. Read the rest.

Suggestions for Recovery of Missing Children -
Tips for cases involving family/parental abductions. When it comes to keeping your child safe, strangers are not the only potential threat that parents should be concerned about. In fact, family and parental abductions account for the majority of missing children cases. You might want to consider 'bookmarking' this page.

Make sure children have a fun and safe summer
Many parents worry about leaving their children home alone or letting them play unsupervised in the neighborhood. However parents can take a few simple safeguards to ensure their children have a safe and crime-free summer.

Personal Safety & Health: How to help kids. Give them the best child safety and health information. This information is provided by a police officer. With the right information, there is a lot you can do to dramatically improve your children's security and health by taking simple, but very important steps. Parents and teachers possess the ability and power to effectively train children to become incredibly safe, live healthy lifestyles, and help your children achieve everything you want for them in their lives.

This is a site you should really take time to look through and utilize. LOTS of great information! I could not figure out how to run across this page from the left-hand menu, but be sure to carefully read this page: How To Teach Your Kids About Safety Without Scaring Them Or Stealing Away Their Innocence.

Abduction: New ways to keep your kids safe
Each year, around back-to-school time, there is a heightened awareness of child safety and in particular increased reports of suspicious people trying to lure kids away. Read this important information.

Cyberbully: The Bully Beyond the School Yard
Many children report being bullied in their own homes via the internet. Instant messaging and email is quickly becoming the preferred choice of communication for teens. The bully is no exception. Read this information.

Don't Talk to Strangers and Other Parenting Myths - No doubt, parenting is tricky. Parenting information changes all the time plus everyone feels compelled to give their personal, often contradicting, opinions. Unfortunately, even some of the basic "rules" of parenting can't be trusted. Here we discuss four such myths that can make life or death differences.

Facts - Estimated over 2,300 children go missing everyday.

Enjoying Fun in the Sun?

Very clear this summer are the effects of global warming. Many part of the US will face record high temperatures many times throughout the summer. Increasing heat will cause more and more people to be out in the sun to get some "rays" and to keep cool in the water. It is a scientific fact that sun exposure increases the likelyhood of skin cancer later in life.

Some help may be on the way. The FDA has just approved a new type of sunscreen, that until now has only been available outside the US. This new sunscreen blocks the rays are more commonly linked to cancer.

Sunscreen ingredient blocks harmful UV rays - For years, Americans have been pointing and clicking their way to younger looking skin, snapping up pricey lotions and potions with mexoryl in them. But soon, mexoryl will be available at the local drug store. Read the rest.

Vitamin D, mexoryl - This short articles provides a bit more explanatory information on this chemical. Read also "Defending Your Skin." With skin-cancer rates on the rise, American companies are finally producing great new sunscreens - and consumers are sidestepping the law to get even more advanced products from Europe.

Understanding Allergic Reactions To Insect Bites And Stings - There is no summertime activity more dreaded than the pesky bee sting. For five percent of the population, though, an encounter can be potentially deadly. Learn more about allergic reactions to insect bites and stings.

Why Shouldn't I Go In Swimming Right After I Eat? - This is something I've heard all my life, but I've always wondered about: Why is it dangerous to go swimming right after I eat? Could I really drown?

What is "sunburn?" Why does my skin turn red, and why is it so painful?

How To Soothe Sunburn Pain
The sun can do a lot of damage, including giving you a painful sunburn. Even worse, dermatologists say that prolonged exposure to sunlight can cause skin cancer. Learn tips to soothe and prevent sunburn pain.

How Sunburn And Sun Tans Work
There is something mysterious about the sun and skin: Why is it that if you spend an hour in the sun, your skin will change color? What's happening, and why does sunscreen prevent it? Find out exactly what the sun does to your skin.

How Sunglasses Work
Whether you're hitting the surf or the slopes or just spending a day on the lake, sunglasses are a must-have accessory. A good pair of sunglasses can protect your eyes from harmful UV rays and eliminate irritating glare. Find out if those $10 sunglasses really are as good as the high-cost ones.

How CPR Works - Sudden cardiopulmonary arrest is the leading cause of death for all adults, male or female. Modern medicine has come up with several tools to combat this frightening condition. Many of these emergency procedures require complex equipment, but one, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), does not. Find out how CPR saves lives.

How Brain Death Works
Whether brain death is a result of cardiac arrest and lack of oxygen to the brain, or of a gunshot wound to the head, the diagnosis is the same. Learn what the term "brain dead" actually means.

Anaphylaxis
Anaphylaxis is said to be present if a person is extremely sensitive to a substance on first exposure. If the person is exposed to the substance again, the result may be anaphylactic shock, a violent allergic reaction characterized by itching skin, hives, breathing trouble, collapse of the circulatory system, and several other potentially serious side effects. Learn more.

How Sleep Works
Every animal does it, some more so than others, and to this day the reasons are a mystery. Why do we sleep? What happens if we don’t? How much sleep do we really need? Find out what it is your body does while you sleep and check out some interesting theories on sleep and dreams.

Apnea
Apnea is strictly defined as the absence of breathing. It is also used to refer to an interruption in breathing that occurs in some infants and during sleep of some children and adults. Learn more.

How To Cope With Food Poisoning
As anyone who's had a bad case of food poisoning can tell you, it is a thoroughly awful experience. Find out about avoiding and relieving the symptoms of food poisoning.

How To Stop Diarrhea
You may blame it on a 24-hour bug or something you ate, but if you’re like the average American, you’ll suffer once or twice this year from diarrhea. Learn how to stop diarrhea.

HYDRATION: Why such a big concern with kids? - Dr. Loreto Jackson

Of all nutritional and safety concerns for the young athlete, the most critical is the maintenance of proper hydration for the purpose of maintaining a stable body temperature within a safe range.

One of the critical functions of water is to cool the body. During exercise, the child generates a tremendous amount of heat that needs to be shifted from the core to the surface of the body, and eventually eliminated through the evaporation of sweat. This mechanism involves the loss of fluid that can result in dehydration. The dehydrated child involved in high intensity activity is at greater risk of heat-related illness than the dehydrated adolescent and adult. All will suffer impaired performance (it just takes a loss of 1-2% of body weight for this to occur), but the child will suffer heat stress earlier on in their activity. This is due to the child's reduced capacity for sweating, and other physiological factors related to their size and developmental level ( see Exertional Heat Related Illness).

Heat stress refers to a cascade of heat-related events that can escalate in severity to eventually be life threatening (dehydration > heat cramps > heat exhaustion > heat stroke).

Heat stress is preventable. It is more likely to transpire in hot and humid climatic conditions, but should not be disregarded as a risk in cool or temperature-controlled indoor environments (the heat produced by young people during high intensity activity, coupled with their inefficient sweating mechanism is still a performance and health consideration).

Since it is possible for the body temperature to rise at the rate of 1^oF every five minutes, the dehydrated athlete has the potential of reaching the life threatening heat stroke stage very quickly. It is therefore incumbent upon coaches, parents, and administrators to learn to recognize the early signs of heat stress in order to intervene before these stages progress to this danger zone. Additionally education of athletes and coaches needs to be proactive; and preventive practices need to be implemented to lessen the chances of heat stress ever becoming an issue.

continued top of next column...

WARNING SIGNS

Dehydration

	Irritability*
	Decline in performance*
	Lack of energy*
	Confusion - lack of attention and focus*
	Dry lips and tongue
	Unquenchable thirst
	Sunken eyes
	Dark urine (darker than normal - some vitamins can darken urine)
	Infrequent urination or small volume of urine
	Sunken eyes
*	These signs may also be symptoms of nutritional deficiencies

Signs of progression to the next level

	Painful muscle contractions
	High body temperature, possibly accompanied by dry skin
	Nausea / vomiting
	Dizziness
	At this stage, the athlete should be moved to a cool environment, cool materials applied to their body (e.g. towels soaked in ice water), and medical attention sought.

PLANNING FOR PREVENTION

When: fluids in = fluids out, then in theory the body should be able to maintain a balance in its regulation of temperature. However, studies and informal observations have consistently demonstrated that athletes rarely drink sufficiently to replace their fluid losses during activity. Young athletes are probably the worst, in that they do not think of re-hydrating until (maybe) their thirst prompts them to do so (At that stage it is too late. Thirst is an emergency signal indicating "dehydration").

Young athletes get caught up in the excitement of play and competition, and often are worried that a request for fluids is a sign of weakness - something the coach needs to dispel by scheduling frequent hydration breaks - in which the coach also partakes to demonstrate their belief in this practice (they too are losing sweat during practice/competition, and need to recognize that the weight loss resulting from this sweat is not "fat loss," but fluid which can also lead to their impaired decision making and performance).

Preventive Strategies

	Schedule regular hydration breaks during practice and competition. It may be necessary for administrators to discuss and implement rules changes to ensure this practice. At the very least, coaches need to tell young athletes that they are expected to practice hydration strategies at any time they are not playing.
	Provide a sports drink of less than 90 calories/8 oz "courtside." Studies have shown that young athletes are more likely to drink sports drinks over water. The taste and sodium content prompts them to drink more. However, a sports drink with more calories is likely to promote stomach discomfort.
	Parents can also consider providing their young athletes with personal sports bottles filled with their favorite sports drink.
	Make player substitutions frequently during the heat.
	Wear light colored, breathable clothing.
	Adults: be alert to warning signs and respond quickly if they occur.
	Educate young athletes on sensations that are inappropriate responses to activity, and encourage them to report these to a coach or other responsible adult.
	Establish an environment of caring and support so that the young athlete is not afraid to come forward with concerns.

HYDRATION STRATEGIES

While drinking fluids is critical during practice and competition, the young athlete needs to practice sound, habitual hydration habits so that on the day of competition, they are not trying to play "catch-up" or "pre-loading" - practices that usually lead to feelings of bloatedness, heaviness, and rarely help the athlete reach euhydration (optimal hydration levels).

Habitual Hydration Strategies

	Drink water, fruit juice, lemonade or fat-free milk with every meal.
	Young people prefer to drink fluid at refrigeration temperature.
	Drinks with carbonation provide little in the way of hydration, and should never be used for rehydration after activity.
	Never become thirsty - carry a water bottle filled with water or diluted sports drink and drink frequently throughout the day.
	Include, in the daily diet, foods which have a high proportion of water (such as fruits and vegetables): Foods such as cucumber, grapefruit, iceberg lettuce, cantaloupe, squash, spinach, watermelon and blueberries all have more than 80% water in their make-up (apart from the fact that most provide other essential performance-enhancing nutrients).

Hydration Strategies for Training & Competition

Heat stress, a frequent outcome from dehydration, is a common sports injury in children and young athletes. If allowed to occur, performance will be affected, and at worse the condition can progress to be life threatening. The good news is that it is preventable. Adults who take the safety and welfare of their young athletes seriously should become educated on warning signs, appropriate responses, and preventive measures. Equally important, coaches need to get young athletes to the stage where they consider re-hydration as a training tool (just as important as stretching, skills, and drills, etc.), where they can be proactive in the management of their own hydration status.

Replacing fluids by drinking during the day and during activity is cool!

Dr. Loreto Jackson, an exercise physiologist with a specialty in performance nutrition, is the Director of Student-Athlete Performance at Clemson University. She has held a variety of academic and administrative positions at the universities of Delaware and Miami, and was dean of health at Indian River Community College in Florida.

She has a private practice and consults with athletes, at all levels of competition, on nutrition and performance issues. Many of those with whom she has worked have / are competing at the Olympic, NFL, NBA, and MLB level of competition. Dr. Jackson is currently completing a book on performance nutrition for the parents and coaches of developing athletes. She can be contacted at: loreto@bellsouth.net or 864-506-4329.