New Stringent Crib-Safety Rules

It’s one of the major purchases for new parents: a charming crib for their baby. However, drop-side cribs are believed to have caused the deaths of dozens of children.

Drop-side cribs, which were considered the safest item in a nursery — the one single place where parents could leave a baby unattended for hours — had turned into a deathtrap for some infants thanks to defective hardware, bad designs & flimsy parts.

Beginning today, tough new baby crib-safety rules will become effective, meaning most cribs in American homes would no longer meet the requirements & it would be against the law to sell or even donate a crib that does not meet the regulations.

The manufacture, sale & resale of drop-side cribs are banned under the new rule. Drop-side cribs have a side rail which can be raised & lowered to let parents easily place or lift an infant, but they’ve been blamed in the deaths of numerous children.

The new rule mandates tougher safety tests for baby cribs before they enter the market. Earlier, manufacturers were permitted to retighten screws & bolts on a baby crib between different tests.

All the four sides of new cribs would be fixed & the cribs ought to be sturdier due to tougher testing requirements.

The new regulations address all the major hazards responsible for killing babies in recent times, including conventional sides that move up & down.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission would be monitoring online sites like Craigslist and eBay to ensure older cribs aren’t sold.

Manufacturers have to give certification that the baby cribs meet the latest standards, while retailers are exempted from providing this certification to customers.

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Ointment May Delay Flow Of Snake Venom

Snakebite victims may gain precious time by applying an ointment that delays the flow of deadly snake venom through their body, prolonging their survival by almost 1 ½ times.

Snake venom is usually made of big toxic molecules that can’t enter the bloodstream directly. Instead, the lymphatic vessels running parallel to blood vessels disperse them and they enter the bloodstream via veins near the heart.

Researchers liken the lymphatic system to a vacuum cleaner that takes large molecules into circulation.

The study by the University of Newcastle has discovered that certain snake venoms have substances that make sure this ‘vacuum cleaner’ doesn’t become blocked, consequently allowing the snake venom to succeed in its lethal mission.

Lymph flow is influenced mainly by pumping – like millions of tiny hearts in series. Now this is because of smooth muscle contractions in the vessel wall & movement caused by external compression.

The substances present in snake venom indirectly stop the discharge of nitric oxide that hinders these muscle contractions. Australian researchers hypothesized that the venom’s action could be delayed if snakebite victims are treated with a topical solution which releases nitric oxide, such as the one that contains glycerol trinitrate.

Researchers have discovered that the new cream increased the survival chances of rats that were injected with snake venom by almost 50%.

The ointment, containing the drug glyceryl trinitrate used in treating heart failure, works by slowing the transit of venom through the lymphatic system.

This approach may give snakebite victims additional time to receive medical care & antivenom treatment.

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FDA: Evergreen Produce Alfalfa Sprouts Likely To Contain Salmonella

Health officials have warned people not to consume the Evergreen Produce brand of alfalfa sprouts or spicy sprouts. In case you have them, discard them immediately. Health regulators are investigating a possible link to the salmonella outbreak in the 5 U.S. states of Montana, Idaho, North Dakota, New Jersey and Washington.

Symptoms include fever, chills, abdominal cramps and diarrhea 12 – 72 hours after infection. Generally, the illness lasts 4-7 days, and the majority of people recover without any treatment. However, some people may need hospitalization from acute diarrhea.

Sprouts – alfalfa, bean and radish – are more prone to salmonella-contamination compared with other veggies due to the warm, humid conditions needed for them to thrive.

Infants, the elderly, pregnant women and people with impaired immune systems are at increased risk of contracting salmonella infection. Health authorities advise against eating any kind of raw sprouts.

The Department of Health has urged markets, restaurants & delicatessens to clear their shelves of all these products.

People who believe they may have fallen ill from consuming contaminated sprouts must seek medical attention.

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Minx Manicures: Fashion At Your Fingertips

It’s the hottest trend in nail fashion – an ultra-thin sticker that’s applied to nails, allowing the wearer to flaunt metallic foil or graphic prints on the fingers.

Minx nail coverings are adhesive nail stickers that come in a variety of colors & patterns. Since they’re not liquid, there is no drying time, spilling, smudging and chipping.

Celebrities like Beyonce, Solange, Lady Gaga, Kim Kardashian & Rihanna have all got themselves well and truly minxed.

You can mix ‘n match the designs. Each Minx set has 10-12 per sheet, with each having different nail sizes.

The nails are prepped using a file, and the client’s hands placed under a heat lamp.

Each Minx nail covering is carefully selected according to nail size & shape before it’s cured under the lamp for close to 10 seconds. The coverings then are painstakingly & meticulously placed onto the nails one by one, a pusher is used to run over them, the ends are folded over the finger pads and placed under the lamp for a couple of minutes. Then careful, precise filing follows to make sure that each covering exactly fits to the nail. Lastly, a short hand massage and that’s it.

The end result is stunning, blingy nails that would make the wearer the envy of all!

A minx manicure costs between $30-55 with over a 100 designs to select from. They last for 1-2 weeks.

To extend the life of Minx, every couple of days you need to blast them with a hair dryer or hold them over a pot of boiling water & then push them down with a cuticle pusher.

To remove the Minx coverings, just blast them with hot air & then push from the cuticles forward.

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Philippines Faces Leptospirosis Scare

Health official have issued a warning to the general public not to wade through floodwaters as there are increased incidences of leptospirosis cases in the Philippines.

As the rainy season isn’t over yet, health authorities are advising people to wear rubber boots so as to avoid contracting leptospirosis.

Leptospirosis is an infection that’s caused by being directly exposed to bacteria present in animal urine & feces. People get infected by swallowing floodwater or when harmful bacteria enter the body via open wounds, nose, eyes or lesions in the skin.

The symptoms include chills, fever, vomiting and headache. In extreme cases, leptospirosis may cause meningitis, respiratory diseases, renal failure and even death.

Last week, tropical storm “Falcon” caused heavy rains in Manila & surrounding provinces, causing massive floods in major & secondary roads.

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