Getting out the message

I was reading Consumer Reports this week. They had two articles, where they really got things right, and it was nice to see.

The first article compared alternative medicine treatments to established drug therapies for a variety of different maladies. Unlike a study, it was based on questionnaires, so it measured people's impressions (including the placebo effect) rather than therapeutic outcomes. Still, sometimes if you feel better, that's what counts.

They found that chiropractic and massage both tended to score better than medications for back pain. The same was true for neck pain, but CR was very specific to point out Chiropractic manipulation of the neck significantly increased the risk of stroke by causing the lining of a neck artery to break off and block blood flow to the brain. The arteries that run through the neck bones are the vertebral which join at the basilar artery on the way to the pons. If you need a picture, refer back to brain lessons. Linda's stroke may have started that way.

The second article was about remodeling your bathroom. They had a very nice bottombar about including accessibility into your design. They got most of the basics; lever door handles, tall toilets, open toilet paper holders, grab bars, low-rise tubs or showers, lever faucet handles. Two ideas I hadn't seen were having both a tall and short sink, and putting 3/4" plywood behind the drywall where you will want grab bars (so you can place them firmly where ever you like without having to find a stud).

These articles are both in the August 2005 issue if you are interested.