W
BASKETBALL TEAM HAS NO REGRETS
WEDN
Jayhawks look ahead to next year's season. SPORTS 1B
LAWRENCE ELECTION RESULTS COME IN
Three win city commission vote. ELECTION 15A
THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
RSITY DAILY KANSAN
M. BROWN
WEDNESDAY,APRIL8,2009
WWW.KANSAN.COM
AWFUL ALLERGIES
VOLUME 120 ISSUE 131
Fighting the spring sniffles
Budding plants contribute to students' battles with pollen, dust and mold
HOW DO YOU KNOW IT'S ALLERGIES?
"We have seen some patients with mild allergy problems, and we're going to see an increase as more plants bud and bloom and pollen is released," Denning said. More than half of all United States citizens test positive for one or more allergens, according to a nationwide survey conducted in 2005.
prescription allergy pill, every day to help control her symptoms, and she puts a drop of customized allergy medicine on her tongue.
"The drops are like an allergy shot," Heitman said. "You're taking what you're allergic to so you can build up your immunity."
"It's definitely been worse this season — the pollen count has been pretty high," Fettke said.
Sarah Fetke, Wichita senior, has seasonal allergies to pollen, dust and mold that worsen in the fall and spring.
Whitney Heitman, Clearwater sophomore, discovered she had allergies six years ago but was not officially tested until last year.
"It was good to know what exactly I'm allergic to because then it can be treated correctly," Heitman said. Now Heitman takes Allegra, a
Fettke also uses Allegra and a nasal spray when her symptoms arise.
Allergies vary in presence and strength according to a person's environment. Denning said she frequently heard students say they had never had allergies until coming to Kansas.
PATRICIA DENNING
Senior staff physician,
Watkins Health Center
"If you live in Kansas and are allergic to ragweed, you'll have some trouble."
Seasonal allergies sometimes lead to sinus infections if mucus does not drain from sinus cavities in the face, she said.
"If you live in Kansas and are allergic to ragweed, you'll have some trouble," Denning said. "But if you live in Arizona then you may not have any."
Fettke said she usually had about three sinus infections a year, and Heitman said she experienced three to five per year.
Denning said sinus infections could be treated with antibiotics and over-the-counter medicine such as Mucinex D.
Edited by Grant Treaster
WHAT ARE ALLERGENS?
"Allergens are proteins that your body reads as foreign and irritating, so it sets up a line of defense to protect itself. In your eyes, nose and throat, that's mucus to wash those proteins away. That's your body's way of trying to put a protective layer against allergens. Also, blood vessels under the skin dilate, which causes oozing and causes us to drip and allergens set off little nerves that make us itch."
Source: Patricia Denning, Watkins Memorial Health Center
PILLS
POTENTIAL ALLERGY TREATMENTS
EYEDROPS
NASAL SPRAY
The most common treatment for allergy symptoms is an antihistamine pill that works by blocking histamines and keeping blood vessels from dilating. Common allergy pills are Claritin, Zyrtec and Benadryl.
Steroid nasal sprays work by stopping mucus production in the nose. This is effective for runny noses. Any swallowed medicine is deactivated by gastric acid.
Eye drops are prescribed for eye allergies and usually have an antihistamine or a steroid in them.
Patricia Denning,
Watkins Memorial Health Center
CAMPUS
Pickens will discuss plan to end dependence on oil
BY AMANDA THOMPSON
athompson@kansan.com
T. Boone Pickens will speak
about the Plexens Plan at a town hall-style meeting today at 4:30 p.m. in the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics.
Plan Web site, www.pickensplan. com, the plan aims to end foreign oil dependence by increasing wind, solar and natural gas production in the U.S. Pickens said that since the plan kicked off in July of 2008, he
According to the Pickens
Pickens
In addition to visiting town halls to gather support, Pickens instituted a virtual march on Washington through his Web site from April 1 to April 3. Nearly 5 million people submitted online requests to Congress to take note of the Pickens Plan.
"We're applying grassroots pressure and I think that's somewhat unusual," Pickens said. "If we're going to do it, it's going to happen for all the right reasons."
had visited more than 20 city halls. About half of those visits involved college campuses.
"We haven't had a real energy plan in 40 years, and I want to get everybody on board." Pickens said.
Pickens said his plan came in two parts and outlined the need for drastic change in the way the U.S. was fueled in the next 10 to 20 years. He said the first part of his plan addressed the need for renewable forms of energy.
Pickens said that in the month of March, the U.S. imported 386 million barrels of oil. The oil cost the U.S. $18 billion and accounted for 65 percent of the oil used in the U.S. that month.
"This is what we took to the Obama transition team, that we would have wind, solar and a 21st-century grid to go along with it, what we call a smart grid," Pickens
In a video blog on the Web site,
SEE PICKENS ON PAGE 4A
ECONOMY
Cigarette tax increase makes smoking a drag on finances
BY LAUREN HENDRICK lhendrick@kansan.com
Some students trying to kick their cigarette habits have more incentive after the federal tax on cigarettes raised was raised on April 1. The tax increase ranges anywhere between 39 cents to $1.01.
Alex Abel, Wichita junior, said he had been trying to cut back after four years of smoking.
"For a little while you justify it as a phase, but it's a disgusting habit," Abel said. He said that at the peak of his smoking habit he smoked a pack a day but had since limited himself to half a pack a day.
smoking . Though he
classes. Though he wants to quit altogether, his next step is limiting smoking to weekends only.
The new federal excise tax on cigarettes is part of
Abel said he had been taking small steps to quit, including not smoking while driving and not
Watkins Memorial Health Center, said he had visited with students concerned about the increased
President Obama's effort to provide universal health care. The San Francisco Chronicle reported Feb. 5 that the children's health bill would provide health care for 4 million uninsured children.
"it's amazing how much money students spend on cigarettes."
KEN SARBER Watkins health educator
Ken Sarber, health educator at
price of their smoking habits.
Sarber said most smokers had a difficult time parting with the lifestyle of smoking. He sometimes suggests peeling
and eating oranges to satisfy the habit of taking a cigarette to the mouth.
"A lot of students don't realize how addicted they are," he said.
index
SEE SMOKING ON PAGE 4A
Classifieds. 3B Opinion. 7A
Crossword. 6A Sports. 1B
Horoscopes. 6A Sudoku. 6A
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2009 The University Daily Kansan
CITY BUSINESSES AID LOCAL CHARITIES
With grants drying up, area nonprofits receive help through Lawrence's GiveBack program. | KANSAN.COM/VIDEOS
weather
TODAY
67 39
Sunny
A
THURSDAY
---
52 39 T-Showers
FRIDAY
5131
。
weather.com