Zinc

Q. I am disillusioned with zinc lozenges. My son came down with an awful cold. I loaded him up with vitamin C and zinc, but he still sniffled and coughed and was miserable for a week. I thought zinc was supposed to help people get better fast.A. The use of zinc to treat the common cold is controversial. Several studies showed that this mineral helped people recover more quickly, but new research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association contradicts this.Children and teens taking zinc lozenges recovered from their colds in nine days, just like those taking placebo lozenges.

DONORA, Pa. — This downriver town has long endured the drooping narrative of Rust Belt endings, in which most of what is gets dwarfed by most of what used to be. But it has never been a place where people have trouble getting to the point. The little business at the edge of Donora is called Beer, Butts and Bets, so no one will mistake it for the regional office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. I wolfed a burger the other day at a breakfast and lunch place called, helpfully, Breakfast and Lunch.

Nutrition experts at the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health have found that inexpensive zinc supplementation in the Third World could prevent millions of cases of life-threatening illness in children younger than 5 years old.A study published today in the Journal of Pediatrics concludes that giving zinc to malnourished babies and toddlers cuts the incidence of pneumonia by 41 percent and of diarrhea by as much as 25 percent.The research team, led by Dr. Robert E. Black and Sunil Sazawal at Hopkins, pooled the data from 10 previous published and unpublished studies of zinc supplementation of children in nine developing countries.

The simple act of trying to keep dentures in place can trigger serious health problems, including neurological damage, a new study by University of Maryland researchers warns. Preliminary studies link the zinc in some adhesives to neurological damage and blood abnormalities, at least among patients who squeeze out too much denture cream, too often, trying to keep their teeth anchored. A review of the scientific literature by faculty members at the University of Maryland Dental School has concluded that these health risks "should be a matter of concern for all dentists caring for denture patients.

Looking for new ways to prevent lead poisoning of children, doctors at Kennedy Krieger Institute are beginning the first study in Baltimore of the potential benefits of a vitamin program containing zinc. Doctors are seeking families to volunteer for the two-year project. Families will receive free vitamins, regular blood tests for their children, cleaning equipment and instructions on how to reduce the levels of toxic lead dust in their homes. Researchers suspect that regular consumption of a basic vitamin supplement with zinc may prevent children from absorbing the toxin commonly found in paint in older Baltimore homes.

Labels bring order to the riot of buds and blooms of every enthusiastic gardener's growing collection of fine plants. They have the same function as nametags at a big cocktail party. Garden plants are not just anonymous clumps of vegetation, and labels help put you on a first-name basis with your flowers. Plant labels also express a gardener's style. A colorful pottery label stamped "chives," poised on a wire stake like a lollipop, is as much a part of the decorative scheme as the pretty herbs around it. A professional-looking zinc label, with the plant's scientific name printed out by a label maker, tips you off that this is the garden of a serious connoisseur of plants.

The maker of Poligrip denture cream will stop making formulas containing zinc amid lawsuits claiming years of excessive use caused neurological damage and blood problems in consumers. GlaxoSmithKline will stop making and marketing Super Poligrip Original, Ultra Fresh and Extra Care products in the U.S. The company plans to reformulate the creams without zinc. The company stressed that the products are safe when used as directed, but that some people use extra cream to correct ill-fitting dentures.

Jim Brady does not know whether to run for governor, for mayor or for cover.The Supreme Court unanimously told Starr to wait in the queue like everyone else, and may be indicted.LTCOne hundred twenty scientists caught a neutrino, a mile down a zinc mine 30 miles north of Takayama, Japan, and found it overweight. Explain that.You ought to get to vote for the next Spice Girl.Pub Date: 6/08/98

We're almost through the holidays, now, but there are still a few more chances to enjoy those once-a-year, traditional goodies that keep us connected to the friends and family we love.But many people still just call those high-risk situations, because they threaten to undo a whole year's worth of healthy eating. If you're in that category, I'd like to offer one more approach to ending the old year healthy and happy. Let's just call it "how to have your cake and waistline, too."I'm borrowing this approach from sports nutritionist Nancy Clark, whose own holiday strategy is calorie-based.

You might think doctors and nurses have discovered some secret formula for fighting the misery-inducing common cold. Turns out, the classic prescriptions of rest, fluids and an over-the-counter pain reliever and fever-reducer like aspirin, acetaminophen or ibuprofen topped medical staffers' personal choices in a survey of 43 medical workers by Dr. Kathi J. Kemper of Children's Hospital in Boston.Other findings:* 81 percent used some cold medication; 60 percent favored fever reducers, while a third used decongestants.

The maker of Poligrip denture cream will stop making formulas containing zinc amid lawsuits claiming years of excessive use caused neurological damage and blood problems in consumers. GlaxoSmithKline will stop making and marketing Super Poligrip Original, Ultra Fresh and Extra Care products in the U.S. The company plans to reformulate the creams without zinc. The company stressed that the products are safe when used as directed, but that some people use extra cream to correct ill-fitting dentures.

Please help me. I am 35 years old and have been addicted to Argo Corn Starch for the past four years. How can I stop eating it? It makes my mouth dry and my limbs cramp. I have mood swings and have gained weight. But just knowing I shouldn't eat starch is not enough. Please see a doctor and ask to be tested for iron or zinc deficiency. Pica, compulsively eating a substance that is not food, is frequently associated with such a mineral deficiency and often goes away when the deficiency is corrected.

Years ago, I was suffering with sensitivity to all underarm deodorants on the market. I found an alternative product at the health-food store and bought it, though it was dreadfully expensive ($12). The directions said to apply a small amount of this white paste to each clean, dry armpit only once a week. I tried it, and it worked. The ingredients were zinc oxide, rose water and some kind of powder. The tin was so small, I used it up in no time. Then I bought a tube of cheap zinc oxide ointment (75 cents)

I've been advised to use diaper-rash ointment containing zinc oxide to keep my horse's muzzle from getting sunburned while he's grazing. I've been wondering if this would also work to keep me from developing a "horsewoman's tan." All of the sunscreens I have tried help me avoid sunburn, but I have brown arms from the edge of my gloves to the edge of the short-sleeved shirts. For decades, lifeguards have used white zinc oxide to keep their noses from burning. It blocks both UVA and UVB rays and provides excellent protection.

My sister took Zicam Cold Remedy zinc nasal gel recently and immediately lost her sense of smell. Her doctors say she will be lucky to get 30 percent back. She is a medical practitioner and knew how to follow the directions explicitly. Next month's issue of Consumer Reports notes that "studies with animals and case reports suggest that nasal zinc may cause loss of smell, possibly permanent. Last year we [CR] unearthed more than 200 complaints to the Food and Drug Administration about an impaired sense of smell, taste, or both after using zinc nasal products."

John Goodspeed, the former Evening Sun columnist who collected examples of the city's linguistic train wrecks and christened the mispronunciations Baltimorese, died Sunday of pulmonary fibrosis at his Easton home. He was 86. From 1950 until he stepped down in 1967, Mr. Goodspeed chronicled the city, its habits and people in "Mr. Peep's Diary," a weekday column that appeared under a sketch of the Baltimore skyline. He claimed to have walked every street in Baltimore at least twice in his quest for often-quirky vignettes.

Heavy metal smells. While it may sound like music criticism, the conclusion is actually a new scientific model that may explain how humans and other mammals detect odors. Scientists at the University of Illinois have discovered that odor-sensing proteins, called olfactory receptors, may owe much of their stink-detecting capabilities to heavy metals such as zinc or copper. The discovery is based on knowledge that inorganic chemists have had for a long time, but biologists have largely overlooked - things that bind to metals smell strongly and badly.

My sister took Zicam Cold Remedy zinc nasal gel recently and immediately lost her sense of smell. Her doctors say she will be lucky to get 30 percent back. She is a medical practitioner and knew how to follow the directions explicitly. Next month's issue of Consumer Reports notes that "studies with animals and case reports suggest that nasal zinc may cause loss of smell, possibly permanent. Last year we [CR] unearthed more than 200 complaints to the Food and Drug Administration about an impaired sense of smell, taste, or both after using zinc nasal products."

Here's a thought worth a penny: It's time to rethink the penny. Thanks to rising metal prices, a penny now costs more than a penny to make. According to government estimates, the U.S. Mint produces 3 1/2 pennies for the price of a nickel. And since the penny remains America's most widely circulated coin (more than 7.7 billion were produced last year), that's $100 million worth of nickels. Rep. Jim Kolbe of Arizona has introduced legislation to abolish the penny. And while previous attempts by Congress to phase out the 1-cent coin have failed, rising prices make such a move appear to be inevitable.

Federal factories in Philadelphia and Denver have already stamped out 4.8 billion little tan disks this year so that purses might be encumbered, cashiers oppressed and tradition preserved. No more. It's time to abolish the penny. The store of value and unit of account that inspired bards from Shakespeare to the Beastie Boys has stopped paying dividends. It stores little value - an eighth of a stick of gum is about right. It clogs the economy like mud in a machine. And now it costs more to make than it's worth.