The weeks just prior to conception and the early weeks of pregnancy are extremely crucial. By adopting a healthy lifestyle, parents can give their babies a head start toward a healthy life. Both men and women play an important role in preconception planning and behavior. (SM)

A step-by-step guide to auscultating young athletes helps physicians identify normal heart murmurs as well as sounds that might signify underlying cardiac pathology. Rapid, thorough preparticipation screening can help differentiate athletes who may require treatment or activity restriction from those with normal murmurs who can remain active. (SM)

Describes a study of weight control techniques and bulimic tendencies among elite female participants in an Olympic Swimming Selection Meet. Results showed concern with thinness, body dissatisfaction, and unhealthy eating, dieting, and weight loss patterns among participants. Discusses the explanatory power of the PRECEDE model. (SM)

Self-reports of 250 persons over age 50 confirmed increasing bias toward reporting more youthful age as one ages. Optimistic perceptions of health were maintained in older subjects. Results from two subsets of sample (n=48) indicated that youthful and optimistic bias occurred both in older persons with poorer/failing health and in persons in…

Presents a model for counseling on health-related physical activity. Grounded in theory and knowledge of the client, the model provides the practitioner the main work steps to follow and lists factors to be taken into account at each stage. An illustrative case history and evaluation results are presented. (Author/EMK)

Health-care practitioners generally lack counseling skills. Article introduces general principles of counseling, emphasizing client-centeredness, cooperative role relations, unconstrained interaction, and goal-oriented proceeding are emphasized. Methods to be used in health care to promote physical activity are related to counselor skill and…

A study interviewed caregivers and reviewed medical records of 278 adults with mental retardation with and without Down syndrome. The adults with mental retardation had age-related disorders comparable to those in the general population, but there was an increased frequency of thyroid disorders, nonischemic heart disorders, and sensory impairment.…

The relationship between medical illness and suicide seems to be multi-faceted. While medical illness is not the sole determinant of suicide, certain illnesses, such as HIV/AIDS and brain cancers, do appear to elevate the risk of suicide. Possible effective prevention efforts include education of primary care providers, and improved medication…

A literature review led to the following categories of factors affecting learning in older adults: major changes in physical capacities, changes in sensory capacities, changes in speed and timing, attitude changes, learning capacity and performance, memory change, and changes in adjustment ability and morale. (SK)

Investigated behavioral decision-making theories of bounded rationality and satisficing in relation to young people's decision making in the World Wide Web and considered the role of personal preferences. Results of this study of ninth- and tenth-grade females consider time constraints, information overload, physical constraints, reduction…

In situations where care-receivers cannot respond to questions about their functional status, caregiver proxies are often substituted. Yet studies addressing caregiver-care-receiver agreement remain limited in scope, focusing primarily on cognitive functioning and caregiver relationship. This study broadens the range of research in this area by…

Gay and lesbian youth encounter most of the typical biological and cognitive changes of adolescence. However, cultural circumstances create differences in the social and emotional development of many gay and lesbian teens. In the United States, these teens often live within social environments characterized by a hostile fear and an active…

Governments and health authorities are expressing concern about increasing levels of obesity, diabetes and physical inactivity in children. In response to such concerns, it is common to adapt strategies for adults to children, and to conduct adult-focused research. This paper describes a research study commissioned by the South Australian…

The present study examined the applicability of the double ABCX model of family adjustment in explaining maternal adjustment to caring for a child diagnosed with Asperger syndrome. Forty-seven mothers completed questionnaires at a university clinic while their children were participating in an anxiety intervention. The children were aged between…

There is growing evidence that cannabis can have negative effects on health. While the ongoing debate about the nature and duration of these effects recognizes mild cognitive impairment, the evidence for irreversibility of cognitive impairment and causal links with psychiatric illness is not conclusive. There is undoubtedly potential for…