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Winter sports such as skiing and snowboarding are a great way to get kids active, but new research suggests extra safety measures may be in order for younger children. The study found that grade-schoolers had almost three times the odds of having a serious skull or facial fracture while skiing or snowboarding, compared to older children. Meanwhile, older children had more than twice the risk of younger kids of having an injury to their abdominal area. “Injury prevention efforts need to be different for age group. There should be more targeted prevention strategies,” said study author Dr. Robert McLoughlin, a general surgery resident at the University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center in Worcester. McLoughlin doesn’t think the findings mean that kids should forgo winter sports. “It’s great that in a digital age where obesity is rising that kids get out and play, but they need to do it in a way that’s safe,” he said. Skiing and snowboarding are considered high-risk sports, even with protective equipment, the researchers said. Experts estimate that in 2015 there were more than 13,000 injuries related to snowboarding or downhill skiing in kids under 15. About 5% of those injuries required hospital admission. McLoughlin and his team looked at data from a nationally representative study of kids’ inpatient hospital admissions between 2009 and 2012. They found 845 admissions related to… read on >

Trampolines aren’t just for backyards anymore, and the rise in commercial trampoline parks may be sparking a rise in kids’ injuries, a new report finds. “While trampolines are a great source of fun and exercise for children, the potential for injury, particularly in recreational areas with an underlying business incentive, needs to be recognized,” stressed study author Dr. Nancy Hadley Miller. Her team tracked U.S. government health data and found that the incidence of broken bones suffered by children while on trampolines has risen by an average of nearly 4% each year between 2008 and 2017. And every year during the study, it became 32% more likely that a trampoline-related bone fracture would occurr at a gym or recreation facility (a trampoline park), rather than on a trampoline in a family’s backyard. Bringing kids to these facilities — especially for events such as birthday parties — has become increasingly popular. The findings are to be presented Saturday at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Pediatrics in New Orleans. In a meeting news release, Miller said she believes her team’s findings should refocus injury prevention efforts. “Historically, advocacy campaigns have focused on trampoline injuries in the home,” said Miller, who is a professor of orthopedics at the University of Colorado, Denver. The new data suggests “that future messages to parents and legislators should also… read on >

Whether you’re mountain biking, kicking a soccer ball with friends, or just sprinting down the street to catch a bus, your quadriceps are hard at work. The quads are the large muscles that run down the fronts of your thighs. The stronger they are, the less strain each movement will exert on your knees. Lunges and squats will keep these muscles in tip-top shape. The basic squat involves a motion similar to sitting down in a chair. Stand straight, feet shoulder-width apart, toes forward. Keeping good posture, lower your hips until your thighs are parallel to the floor. You might have to work up to this over time, going a little deeper each session. Hold the position for two seconds before returning to the start position. As you get stronger, try the sumo squat. Start with your feet wider than your shoulders with your toes pointed out. Push your hips back and bend your knees, but no more than 90 degrees — your back will lean forward for support. After a few seconds, contract your glutes and slowly stand up. For lunges, start with feet shoulder-width apart. Step forward with your right foot, then lower your left knee almost to the floor as you make a right angle with your right thigh and calf. Bring your left foot up to meet the right and then… read on >

If you have a hard time remembering names or what to get at the supermarket, there are ways to boost your memory. According to a study in the journal Consciousness and Cognition, one of the best things you can do is say the information you want to remember out loud, and it’s even stronger if you repeat the information to another person — that means not just mouthing the words. This could explain why you can recite your child’s favorite book unaided — read it out loud enough times and you can have near total recall. An everyday example is to repeat the name of a new acquaintance out loud as soon as you’re introduced. Instead of just saying, “It’s nice to meet you,” add their name and say, “It’s nice to meet you, Mary.” Making word and number associations is effective, too. Break down a phone number you want to memorize into digits you can associate with special dates or the ages of your kids, for example. You might try dividing almost any type of information into chunks that you learn one by one. Other research explains why making lists is so effective. The human brain is better at recognition — or seeing words — on a to-do list rather than trying to mentally recall errands you’re supposed to run. Finally, make friends with… read on >

(HealthDay News) — Repetitive strain injury (RSI) stems from prolonged repetitive, forceful or awkward movement of the same muscles, says the University of Michigan. The effects of RSI may include pain, weakness, numbness or poor motor control. To help prevent RSI, the school suggests: Practice good posture. Ensure the chair at your workstation is adjustable. Do not overuse your joints. Take breaks and stretch. Avoid gripping writing utensils tightly. Use proper typing techniques. Keep your wrists straight, let your hands float and don’t strain your fingers.

(HealthDay News) — Proper posture can prevent pain and injury, says Mayo Clinic. To check if you have proper posture, Mayo suggests the “wall test.” Here’s what it involves: Stand so the back of your head, shoulder blades and buttocks touch the wall. Your heels should be 2 to 4 inches apart. Place a flat hand behind the small of your back. You should be able to slide your hand between your lower back and the wall. If there’s too much space behind your lower back, draw your belly button toward your spine. If there’s too little space behind your lower back, arch your back so your hand can slide behind you. Walk away from the wall while holding proper posture. Return to the wall to check whether you kept the correct posture.

Could America’s roads become safer in the future? Maybe. A new online survey involving just over 1,400 participants showed that a growing number of American teens are getting their driver’s license before age 18, which means more of them are learning to drive under supervised conditions. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety study released Oct. 21 surveyed teens and young adults aged 18 to 24 to determine when they got their license. The questionnaire was administered over this past summer. The researchers found that nearly 41% of survey participants got their license at or before age 16, and about 60% did so before age 18, an 11% increase since 2012. “The trend for teens to acquire their driver’s license has changed over the past 10 years,” said David Yang, executive director of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. “Many are getting licensed before the age of 18, which means more of Generation Z is learning to drive under the protection of state graduated-driver licensing programs and parental supervision,” Yang added in a foundation news release. In 2012, the United States was just emerging from a recession and many young people said they’d delayed getting their license because their family couldn’t afford the high cost of having an additional driver, the researchers noted. The new study also found that nearly two-thirds of respondents in less urbanized… read on >

Computer-driven artificial intelligence (AI) can help protect human brains from the damage wrought by stroke, a new report suggests. A computer program trained to look for bleeding in the brain outperformed two of four certified radiologists, finding abnormalities in brain scans quickly and efficiently, the researchers reported. “This AI can evaluate the whole head in one second,” said senior researcher Dr. Esther Yuh, an associate professor of radiology at the University of California, San Francisco. “We trained it to be very, very good at looking for the kind of tiny abnormalities that radiologists look for.” Stroke doctors often say that “time is brain,” meaning that every second’s delay in treating a stroke results in more brain cells dying and the patient becoming further incapacitated. Yuh and her colleagues hope that AI programmed to find trouble spots in a brain will be able to significantly cut down treatment time for stroke patients. “Instead of having a delay of 20 to 30 minutes for a radiologist to turn around a CT scan for interpretation, the computer can read it in a second,” Yuh said. Stroke is the fifth-leading cause of death in the United States, and is a leading cause of disability, according to the American Stroke Association. There are two types of strokes: ones caused by burst blood vessels in the brain (hemorrhagic), and others that… read on >

(HealthDay News) — The shoulder normally has a wide range of motion. But swelling, damage or bone changes can cause pain, restrict the shoulder’s use and significantly impact daily activities, says MedlinePlus. To care for shoulder pain, MedlinePlus suggests: Put ice on the shoulder for 15 minutes on and off. Rest your shoulder for a few days. Slowly return to regular activities. Take ibuprofen or acetaminophen to reduce inflammation and pain. Call 911 if you have sudden pressure or a crushing pain in your shoulder, as this can be a warning sign of heart attack.

You probably already realize that adding zucchini or carrots to a cake won’t magically make it low calorie or healthy. But you might not realize that there are many foods that sound healthy but really aren’t. It might seem as though bran muffins are the perfect way to get needed fiber, but the 3 grams in an average bakery offering don’t justify all the white flour, sugar, fat and calories that go along with it. A better breakfast is to mix 2 tablespoons of wheat bran into hot, steel-cut oatmeal and top it with a handful of raisins. Sushi sounds like a great way to enjoy fish, but the ratio of fish to rice — usually white rice — makes the protein portion minuscule (and, ounce for ounce, extremely expensive). Opt for sashimi instead, which is simply slices of raw fish, or ask for brown rice in your rolls. Also, watch the soy sauce — it’s laden with salt — and limit mayonnaise-based spicy sauces that accompany many fancy rolls. What could be bad about hazelnut and dark chocolate spreads? The problem is that sugar and palm oil are the first two ingredients in many popular store brands. If you love the flavor, dip whole roasted hazelnuts into melted dark chocolate as a treat, or whip up your own spread by blending freshly roasted hazelnuts… read on >

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All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

Skiing, Snowboarding Injuries Most Severe Among Younger Kids

Kids’ Trampoline Injuries Take Another Bounce Upwards

Quad Training for Knee Support

Don’t Forget These Tips to Boost Your Memory

Health Tip: Preventing Repetitive Strain Injury

Health Tip: The ‘Wall Test’ For Good Posture

More Teens Learning to Drive in Safer Conditions

Could AI Beat Radiologists at Spotting Bleeds in the Brain?

Health Tip: Caring for Shoulder Pain

Don’t Be Fooled By Foods That Sound Healthy But Aren’t