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According to a report in the July issue of the Archives of Physical Medicine, many people don't bend their knees when lifting because it takes more energy. In a study involving 20 healthy volunteers, heart rates went up more when they raised and lowered a box by squatting compared to bending over from the waist. The extra energy required to lift safely could explain why people risk back strain by lifting with straight legs. About 80 percent of adults are pained by lower back problems at some point. Bending knees and keeping the back straight when lifting is worth the extra effort to avoid the pain, say experts.
WorldSafety.com News, July 26, 2000

The rise in popularity of platform shoes has resulted in an increase in associated injuries. Of the 56 cases identified in the CHIRPP database in the last 4 years, all involved females and almost 80 per cent were between the ages of 9 and 19 years. Over one-third of the injuries were serious enough to require medical follow-up. The circumstances usually involved "falling off" or "turning over on" the shoes while running, walking, or playing sports. Almost half (47.3 per cent) of the injuries were sprains or strains of the ankle or foot, and 27.3 per cent were fractures of the foot or lower leg.
CHIRPP News, Issue 18, June 2000

New York is the first U.S. state to legislate "fire-safe cigarettes." The new law requires that all cigarettes sold in the state meet the new fire safety standards no later than July 1, 2003, giving cigarette manufacturers three years to comply. The cigarettes must stop burning within a specified time period if not smoked and they must meet tougher standards to keep lit cigarettes from setting furniture on fire. The package also includes tougher enforcement provisions to fight cigarette bootlegging. Every year 1,000 Americans die in fire deaths caused by cigarettes that are not extinguished.
Yahoo! News, June 15, 2000

Spain ranks first for organ donations at 31.5 per million population, and the U.S. is a distant second at 22.7. Canada's organ donation rate is only 13.7. The low rate is not due to a lack of consent, but to fewer automobile crashes and better health care. Our motor vehicle fatality rate is 50 per cent that of Spain and the U.S. The Americans have 3 ½ as many gun-related deaths, and Canadians are less likely than Spaniards to die of strokes and aneurysms due to prevention and better care. With demand for transplants expected to double over the next five years, health officials are working to increase organ donations.
Globe and Mail, June 21, 2000

Environment Canada is halfway through a $37 million upgrade of a national weather radar system which will help detect and track violent tornados like the one that tore through Pine Lake, Alberta on July 14, 2000. By 2003 or 2004 the country will have coast-to-coast coverage of the most populated areas. The development and behaviour of severe weather is so complex that it is the last frontier of meteorology.
Edmonton Journal, July 19, 2000

The 1999 DesRosiers Light Vehicle Study found that female respondents drove slightly more kilometres in 1998 than their male counterparts (20,983 compared to 20,762). Females have certain types of repair and maintenance work performed on their vehicles less often than men, for example: replacement of muffler systems, oil changes, air filter replacement, sparkplug replacement and transmission repair/replacement. The study attributes this to less familiarity with the technology and mechanics of cars, and suggests a contributing factor may be that women tend to drive more defensively, exacting less wear and tear on the vehicle.
Aftermarket Watch, Volume 14, Issue 2, 2000, Automotive Industries Association of Canada

A study by the British Columbia Cancer Agency found that children who use sunscreen develop fewer moles and can have a lower cancer risk later in life. The three year study of 309 Vancouver children in Grades 1 to 4 found that freckle-faced children who regularly received the correct application of sunscreen developed 30 to 40 per cent fewer moles than freckled children in the control group. Up to half of all cancerous moles arise from pre-existing moles. The study concluded that, especially for freckled children, there is a good chance of reducing children's risk of melanoma by using sunscreen.
Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), Vol. 283, No. 22, June 14, 2000

A study by the National Search and Rescue Secretariat identified problems and issues surrounding search and rescue (SAR) on land. It found that the fastest growing group of lost people is Alzheimer's and other mentally affected persons. Search and rescue is seeing the results of increased risk-taking by the "macho" segment of Canadian society. Although skilled volunteers form the single largest provider of ground SAR, they are not protected by Workers' Compensation in some provinces.
Media Advisory, National Search and Rescue Secretariat, June 6, 2000

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