Can water fountains fight fat?

Here's something to drink to: easy access to water fountains and a nudge from teachers to use them might help kids stay lean. A new study published today in Pediatrics suggests that installing fountains in elementary schools and pushing students to drink more water may reduce their risk of being plump by as much as a third."Drinking fountains won't solve the obesity epidemic, but they could be effective components of the solution," says study co-author Rebecca Muckelbauer, a nutritionist at the Research Institute of Child Nutrition Dortmund in Dortmund, Germany. Muckelbauer and her colleagues studied the water-drinking habits of nearly 3,000 second and third graders attending schools in the neighboring cities of Dortmund and Essen during the 2006-2007 academic year. At the beginning of the school year, the researchers had water fountains installed in 17 of the schools and worked with teachers to implement educational programs to promote water drinking. (In contrast to U.S. schools, few German schools actually have water fountains, according Muckelbauer). The researchers surveyed the children about their drinking habits and measured their heights and weights at the beginning and end of the school year. Over the school year, children in the schools given fountains upped their water consumption from about three to four cups per day, while those in the other schools continued to drink an average of three cups daily. Over the course of the study, the number of overweight children increased from 384 to 385 out of 1,641 (23.4 to 23.5 percent) at the schools with fountains; in contrast, the number of fat kids at the other schools jumped from 339 to 364 out of 1,309 (25.9 percent to 27.8 percent), Muckelbauer says.

ITS COLD OUTSIDE!!!!

Winter has arrived and it is cold outside, so lets keep it outside , ok.I have a few tips for keeping your pipes from freezing during this type of weather.


During Freezing Weather:

* Keep meter box lids closed
Do not open your meter box, as injuries can result from lids which are not properly secured. Also, cold air can freeze the meter. It you notice a meter box lid which is not properly secured, please call your water company and they will repair it.
* Make sure heat reaches your pipes
If your pipes are enclosed in a cabinet under the bathroom or kitchen sink, leave the doors open so heat can get in.
* Keep a trickle of water running
During periods of low usage and particularly on sub-zero nights, keep a trickle of water running from the faucet highest in the home. This trickle should be a steady stream the size of the lead in a pencil.

If You Have A Frozen Pipe:

* If you do not know the location of the problem, call Your Public Utilities
They will check to see if you have water available at the meter. If the water is frozen at the water meter, they will correct the problem. If not, the problem is in your household plumbing and it is your responsibility to correct it.
* Wait for the pipes to thaw
If you have some running water, the safest and cheapest thing to do is wait for the frozen pipes to thaw.
* Never use an open flame
Never try to thaw a pipe with a flame, because you may start a fire. I great tool for thawing a pipe is to take the lamp shade off a lamp and position the bulb about 1 inches from the frozen area, Bulbs emit a lot of heat and this will thaw the pipe.Never leave this lamp unattended!
* Call a plumberIf all else fails, call a plumber and get professional assistance.