Voters approve no smoking ordinance
On Nov. 6 residents of Bowling Green voted to make most public places smoke-free. Voters approved the Clean Indoor Air Act with 62 percent of the vote.
This ordinance prohibits smoking in most indoor public places including all retail stores, restaurants and waiting areas.
Bars, which receive less than 35 percent of sales from food are exempt from the ordinance. Restaurants are permitted to have separate “smoking rooms,” but the rooms must be ventilated and enclosed.
Andrew Schuman, a Bowling Green resident, helped pass the ordinance by forming the Bowling Green Clean Indoor Air Coalition and collecting 1,200 signatures to get the act on the ballot.
“Seventy-five percent of Bowling Green residents are non-smokers that want to protect their health. They don’t want to breathe second-hand smoke,” Schuman said. “This ordinance allows families, the elderly, employees, and asthma suffers to enjoy clean indoor air when they’re in public places.”
Allergies are often confused as colds
Allergies affect up to 30 percent of all Americans. Allergies normally last year-round, but symptoms change as the seasons change because of the variations in airborne pollens. From mid-August through the first frost, ragweed is the cause of most allergies.
“Warm temperatures and a lot of rain can lengthen the pollen season, no matter where you live,” said Richard Nicklas, MD, allergy and immunology specialist. “And throughout the year, outdoor molds can increase suddenly without any set pattern.”
He said this is the reason many people have difficulties telling the difference between a cold and seasonal allergies. Nicklas listed some ways to tell the difference:
– Itching of the nose, ears, or mouth is common with allergies.
– Spasmodic or “machine gun” sneezing is common with allergies.
– Nasal secretions are thin and colorless with allergies, thick and opaque with a cold.
– Colds are often accompanied by a fever, sore throat, or cough.
– Colds are usually gone within 14 days.
Stressed Americans seek comfort foods
Kevin Huggins, owner of the Silver Grill in midtown Atlanta, said people are often talking to him about the comfort food they find in his restaurant. Lately he said his blue-plate special is in high demand. It includes meat and three types of vegetables, a typical “Southern dinner fare.”
All over the country, people are ordering more comfort food- meals that soothe the soul during stressful times.
A recent ACNielsen survey of grocery store sales showed snack food sales were up 12.4 percent in September over last year. According to Information Resources, Inc, the sale of instant potatoes has raised almost 13 percent.
“People regress, trying to find ways to feel safe,” said Alan Hack, Ph.D.. “All of our earliest experiences of safety are about food, when our mother was feeding us.”
He said eating offers a sense of control.
“This terrorist act has taken a lot from us. What we put in our mouth feels like control,” said Hack. “It’s the one thing I can do that helps me take care of myself.”
– Compiled by Nicole Anderson
