Disclaimer:

All material on this website is provided for your information only and may not be construed as medical advice or instruction and should not take the place of health care or services you may need. No action or inaction should be taken based solely on the contents of this information; instead, readers should consult appropriate health professionals on any matter relating to their health and well-being.

Friday, May 25, 2012

Life has been hectic so it's been a long time since I posted anything.  Things should be settling down soon but I did want to share some links.  May is arthritis awareness month so I thought that would be a good topic to share.  Here are some links to some great information on arthritis:


Arthritis and Rheumatic Diseases (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)

Arthritis (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Arthritis (Food and Drug Administration)

Arthritis Advice (National Institute on Aging)

Do I Have Arthritis? (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Click It or Ticket: Seat Belt Use


I saw in my local paper that the Click It or Ticket campaign is under way this week so I thought I’d post some information about seat belt use.  Thankfully, according to a National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration 2010 survey, seat belt use has been increasing steadily since 1994, accom­panied by a steady decline in percent of unrestrained pas­senger vehicle occupant fatalities during daytime (see figure 2).   

The 2010 survey also found the following:

Seat belt use for occupants traveling during weekdays increased significantly from 83 percent in 2009 to 85 percent in 2010.

Seat belt use continued to be higher in the States in which vehicle occupants can be pulled over solely for not using seat belts (“primary law States”) as compared with the States with weaker enforcement laws (“secondary law States”) or without seat belt laws. (see figure 1)

Seat belt use for occupants in rural areas increased significantly from 81 percent in 2009 to 83 percent in 2010.

Seat belt use for occupants traveling on expressways increased significantly from 89 percent in 2009 to 91 percent in 2010.

Figure 1. 
States With Primary Enforcement Seat Belt Laws*
Alabama
Alaska
Arkansas
California
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
Oklahoma
Oregon
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Washington
Wisconsin

* States with laws in effect as of May 31, 2010. The District of Columbia is included in the table.

Figure 2.


So what all this is saying is:  Buckle Up!