Newspaper Page Text
August 29, 1996 AUGUSTA FOCUS
10
Credit cards bring benefit and risk
Does the idea of purchasing a
new stereo system without pay
ing immediately sound appeal
ing? It is done every day with
credit cards. However, the joys of
the system are usually muted
the following month when the
bill comes and it’s time to ante up
with the company.
According to the Georgia Soci
ety of CPAs, using a credit card
can bring rewards and risk. For
those who can pay off the bill
every month, using a credit card
is a convenience. For those who
don’t use them wisely, they can
lead directly to bankruptcy.
CPAs say there are some ques
tions to consider when applying
for credit cards:
Is there an annual fee? Are
you charged a transaction fee
each time the card is used? Are
there any other fees? In today’s
competitive credit market, it’s
not difficult to find a card with no
annual fee.
*What is the interest rate on
an unpaid balance?
*When does the card start
charging interest, from the day
of the purchase, or is there a
grace period? Many cards pro
vide a grace period.
Summer, fall virus delays back-to-school fun
Back-to-school jitters may give
your child an upset stomach or
even make him sick for a day or
two. Childhood illness experts at
Egleston Children’s Hospital at
Emory University in Atlanta say
what sometimes may look like a
bad case ofthe summertimeblues
may actually be a virus that
strikes particularly hard in late
summer and early fall. If your
child complains of a sore throat,
vomits more than once, and has
diarrhea or abdominal pain, he
may have an enterovirus.
Enteroviruses are actually a
family of over 75 viral types that
can cause anything from eye in
flammation to stomach upset to
HEALTH FOCUS
Back to school:
Building a
homework routine
By James L. Philips, M.D.
Baylor College of Medicine
The start of school meansit’s time
to get children settled into a home
work routine.
Contrarytowhat wemayremem
ber of our “school days,” homework
now begins as early askindergarten
and first grade. At this age, children
need guidance tolay the foundation
for good study habits.
Theearly gradesteachbasicskills
that are the tools for success in later
years. Confidence in those basics
will result in positive feelings about
school.
You can help your child feel com
fortable with learning.
Dr. Florence Eddins, a child psy
chiatrist at Baylor College of Medi
cine in Houston, offers some tips:
*Designate a specific homework
time.
*Teach by example. Sit nearby
with some work of your own.
*Be flexible. Attention spans are
short, soyourchild mayneedbreaks.
sExperiment to see what works
best. Your child may like music in
the background, or he may need a
play period or snack before home
work time.
*Avoid television until work is
complete.
Another homework must is find
ing the right study area. Students of
all ages need good lighting and few
distractions.
Parents often think a bedroom
desk is the best idea, and it can be a
fine choice. Just make sure it isn’t
cluttered with clothes and belong
ings. The kitchen or dining room
table is also a good location and
provides a chance for casual super
vision.
Onceyour child gets used todoing
homework, pull back to allow inde
pendent work.
The final key to homework suc
cess is communication. Get to know
yourchild’steachers, andlearnwhat
the school expects of yourchild. And,
mostimportantly,letyourchildhave
a say in the homework routine.
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* Are purchases made with the
card insured against theft, loss
or damage?
*Does the card offer other ben
efits, such as rental car insur
ance or airline discounts?
The most important consider
ation is deciding when you will
pay off the balance. If paid off
each month, there is little need
to worry about the interest rate.
For these customers, getting a
viral meningitis, said Egleston
infectious disease specialist Dr.
Harry Keyserling. It is spread by
hands contaminated by human
feces. Enterovirus is contagious
and can affect all ages, but it
seems most often to hit school
aged children or children who
live or play in crowded condi
tions. Although your child can be
infected by an enterovirus any
time of year, it thrives in the
summer and early fall months.
Thereis nocure orvaccine. Symp
toms can last from three to four
days.
Because there are so many dif
ferent forms this virus can take,
diagnosing whether your child
fi\Sehool
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Livingßetter
card with a gimmick — a per
centage of purchases toward a
new car or a percentage back in
cash — may be the best choice. If
youwill be paying offthe balance
with interest, it is best to find a
card with a low interest rate.
Generally the cards giving some
thing back have a much higher
interest rate.
CPAs say the best time to be
gin establishing a credit ratingis
has an enterovirusis tricky, add
ed Dr. Corinne Taylor, a general
pediatrician at Egleston. A cul
ture of your child’s stool or blood
may be taken. If your child com
plains of a stiff neck and head
ache, a spinal tap may be done.
Since some enterovirus strains
can develop into viral meningi
tis, the tap is done to rule out
bacterial meningitis. Parents of
infants should be alert if their
child seems unable to move his
head easily. Parents can help
stop the spread of enterovirus
with these tips offered by Dr.
Taylor:
*Wash your hands thoroughly
with soap and water after going
during the college years. Credit
card companies invade college
campuses by the thousands. Stu
dents are attractive to credit
card companies because, when
students run into high debt, mom
and dad are usually there to bail
them out. Companies know this
well.
Gasoline cards and department
store cards are usually the best
places to start establishing the
credit history, CPAs say. These
cards usually have little risk and
most have no annual fee with a
lower interest rate. Establishing
a good credit history early is vi
tal. Starting early will be helpful
when it comes to purchasing
more important items such as a
car or a house.
Every time you pay your bill,
whether on time or late, it goes
in your credit history. This his
tory tells other companies how
reliable you are about paying off
your bill. Your credit history dis
plays every credit card you have
had for the past seven years.
TRW, one of the three major
companies who maintain credit
histories, gives one free credit
history report to consumers a
year.
to the restroom or changing dia
pers. Make sure your children
learn good hand-washing hab
its, too. Until then, wash their
hands with soap and water after
they go to the bathroom.
elfyourchildisindaycare, make
sure the provider is properly dis
infecting surfaces and uses gloves
to change diapers.
*(Clean toys and other surfaces
regularly with soap and water.
olf your child complains of a
headache and stiff neck, take him
to your pediatrician immediately.
Egleston Children’s Health Care
Systemis Georgia’s firstand most
comprehensivehealthcare system
dedicated to children.
B eve Q
Eye Care Questions and Answers with Dr. Thomas Casella, Optometrist
Back-to-school eye exams
It is that time of the year, the last days of
summer, the beginning of football and chil
dren going back to school. But will your child
learn as he or she should this school year?
Vision problems can affect your child’s abil
ity to learn, since 8C percent of what a child
learns comes through vision.
A child may experience frequent changes
in vision without realizing a problem exists.
Problems may range from seeing a blurred
chalkboard to reading difficulties and poor
concentration stemming from poor eye move
ment, focusing and coordination.
To give your child good vision for learning,
have his or her eyes examined AT THE
BEGINNING OF EACH SCHOOL YEAR.
The most rapid change in the vision occurs
during a child’s growth years.
The Georgia Optometric Association
offers these signs and symptoms that
may ssistin the early detection of eye
and v sion difficulties:
B Blurring of vision at any time.
B A short attention span or frequent day
CSRA Classic is coming
on October 19!
Lead poisoning still a problem
for Georgia’s children
Children under the age of six
who live in homes built before
1978 may be at risk for lead poi
soning, according to Tommie
Bradford, project director of
Georgia’s Childhood Lead Poi
soning Prevention Program
(GCLPPP) in the Georgia De
partment of Human Resources
Division of Public Health.
“This is a silent but devastating
disease,” says Bradford. “It can
slow a child’s development and
cause learning and behavioral
problems if it isn’t detected. Par
ents may be encouraged to know
that lead poisoning is totally pre
ventable. We need parents to be
come aware of the danger of lead
Study shows girls less likely -
to have ADHD thanhoys
Girls are less likely to be iden
tified as having attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
than boys, according to a child
psychiatry expert.
“That’s because girls tend to
demonstrate more of the inat
tention symptoms and are less
noticeable than boys, who are
more prone to be hyperactive,”
said Dr. Matthew Brams, of
Baylor College of Medicine in
Houston.
Children with ADHD fall into
three categories: those with at
tention deficit disorder only,
those who are mostly hyperac
tive, or a combination of both.
Attention deficit disorder (ADD)
and hyperactivity were once cat
egorized as separate disorders
but now are included under
ADHD.
“Ages six to nine are the peak
years for diagnosis,” said Brams,
an assistant professor of psychi
atry at Baylor. “It’s three times
more prevalent in boys, which is
another reason teachers and par
ents may be more tuned to the
Member, Georgia Optometrist Association
poisoning, what they can do to
prevent it and the resources in
their communities for testing and
coping with this disease.” S
July 21-27 is Lead Poisoning
Prevention Week in Georgia.
Last year, at least 2,300 young
children were found to have too
much lead in their blood. When
children are screened and found
to have too much lead, pediatri
cians and county health depart
ments can tell parents how so
reduce their children’s exposure.
For more information on lead
poisoning, who should be tested,
and how to identify lead hazards
in the home, contact your county
health department. *
symptoms in boys.” 8
Brams says that children who
display attention deficit symp
toms fail to follow instruction
closely in class, donot listen well,
often lose things, make mistakes
in school work and during play,
are easily distracted and are of
ten forgetful. {3
Children with hyperactivity or
combination symptoms tend to
fidget, talk excessively, interrupt
and have difficulty playing qui:
etly. Symptoms for ADHD are
usually observed both at home
and in school before a diagnosis
is made.
ADHD runs in families, als
though no single genetic defect
has been identified. Other possii
ble causes of the disorder could
include prenatal health compliz
cations such as Fetal Alcohol
Syndrome, low birthweight, mal+
nutrition during infancy, expo+
sure to toxic substances such as
lead poisoning, metabolism dis»
orders like phenylketonuria
(PKU), or brain injury from trau+
ma, infection or tumor. iz
dreaming.
B A dislike or an avoidance of close work.
B Difficulty remembering what is read.
B Frequent loss of place while reading.
B Poor eye-hand coordination when copy
ing, throwing, catching, buttoning clothing or
tying shoes.
B A drop in scholastic or sports perfor
mance.
W Frequent eye rubbing, blinking squint
ing, headaches, itching, nausea and dizzi
ness.
M Tilting or turning of head to use one eye.
B Poor reading ability.
“In Georgia, children must have an eye
screening before entering school for the first
time — but it is important to continue annual
back-to-school eye exams, especially in the
elementary grades,” said Dr. Nancy Barr,
president, Georgia Optometric Association
and Riverdale optometrist. “It is too impor
tant to not give a child every advantage to
excel ...”