WASHINGTON - The New York Times reported that as the U.S. mulls how to provide medical coverage to 47 million uninsured Americans, it’s right to start with our nine million uninsured children.  The Bush administration is going the other way.  To save money and promote a free-market philosophy, it has proposed less money for a successful children’s health insurance program run by the states.  In Congress, Democratic leaders plan to cover many of those children - at $50-$60 billion over five years.  That price tag seems staggering, but less so when Bush et al. pours $200 billion yearly into Iraq.  Eliminating large overpayments to private health plans in Medicare would save $65 billion over five years.  A recent New York Times/CBS News poll showed most of us think the federal government should guarantee health insurance, especially to children, and are willing to pay higher taxes for it.  The issue is hot because the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, or S-Chip, is up for reauthorization.  It’s a federal/state effort to cover children whose family income is too high to qualify for Medicaid but too low to pay for private coverage.

STRASBOURG, FRANCE - Reuters reports: to be good to your heart and possibly live a lot longer, drink grape juice three times a week.  Research from the Universite Louis Pasteur concludes Concord grape juice "can have a similar effect (against heart disease) as red wine without alcohol."  "That is a very important message," said study author Dr. Valerie Schini-Kerth.  Certain types of grape juice and red wine are packed with high levels of polyphenols, shown to block the production of a protein linked to cardiovascular disease.  When endothelial cells - that make up blood vessels - stop working, heart and vascular problems develop.  Scientists found polyphenols in Concord grape juice activate the endothelial cells so they make nitric oxide to protect the heart from cardiovascular disease and help maintain healthy blood vessels and blood pressure.  If you drink grape juice for your heart, make sure it's Concord grape juice.  Other types of grape juice, which don't have the same high polyphenols levels and are processed differently, don't have the same healthy punch.  The study, partly funded by Welch Foods Inc., was in the journal Cardiovascular Research.

COLLEGE STATION, TX - The College of Medicine in the Texas A&M Health Science Center cautions "don't take lawn-mowing safety for granted."  A Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health study found 80,000 Americans require hospital treatment yearly from lawn mower injuries.  Most occur in children under 15 and adults 60 and older, and result from debris (i.e., rocks and branches) propelled by mower blades.  Dr. Robert Wiprud, associate professor of family and community medicine, has several tips: wear goggles, pants and close-toed shoes with gripped soles; clear yard of debris beforehand; keep everyone from the yard while mowing; never fix a running mower; mow only in good weather, not high heat; and don’t ride a mower on steep hills or embankments.  "Most injuries are caused by flying debris and reaching under the platform to clear grass with the mower running," Dr. Wiprud said.  "A walk over the area to be mowed - looking for material such as rocks and metal that could be thrown - and wearing safety eyewear is smart.  Never reach under the mowing platform with it running, even a little.  This will keep fingers and toes attached."  The American Academy of Pediatrics advises no child under age 16 use a riding mower, and no child under age 12 use a push mower.

CHICAGO - Reuters reported Bausch & Lomb, struggling to recover from a sweeping recall of its ReNu with MoistureLoc contact lens solution, said it initiated a recall of certain lots of its ReNu MultiPlus contact lens solution.  The solution was made at the plant in Greenville, SC, and contained an elevated level of trace iron, which may discolor the solution in some bottles and shorten the shelf life of the product.  The company said it had no reports of serious problems tied to the affected product.  It believes virtually all of it, made about a year ago, has been used by consumers.  Bausch said the recall involved 12 lots, and about 1 million bottles of solution from nine of the 12 lots originally were distributed in the U.S. Product from the 12 lots was distributed in Canada, Latin America, Korea, and Taiwan, where it is being recalled.  Bausch said it notified the U.S. Food and Drug Administration of its recall, and advises consumers to discard any lens care solution that appears to be discolored.  The recalled lots carry the expiration date "2008 - 03" on the bottle.

COLUMBUS, OH - About one in four women over 65 has suffered physical, sexual, or psychological violence due to a spouse or other intimate partner, a study found.  About 3.5% of women surveyed suffered violence in the past five years; 2.2% in the past year.  "Intimate partner violence isn’t a problem only for younger women," said Amy Bonomi, study lead author and associate professor of human development and family science at Ohio State University.  The study in The Gerontologist used telephone interviews of 370 women 65 and up, members of a healthcare system in western Washington state and northern Idaho.  Results showed 26.5% of those surveyed reported violence by an intimate partner over their lifetimes.  Of those who reported abuse, most sustained multiple types.  "It was very rare that women had only one type of violence," Bonomi said.  "Over half experienced two or more types."  About 18% reported sexual or physical abuse and 22% were victims of psychological abuse, including threats, called derogatory names, or having their behavior controlled by a partner.  The psychological abuse experienced by women wasn’t minor, Bonomi said.  About 70% of women who verbal threats said these threats were severe.  Women who reported controlling behavior experienced this abuse for an average of 10 years.  Only 3% had been asked by a healthcare provider about physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner since age 18.

HAIFA, ISRAEL - University of Haifa School of Social Work research connected father-child relationship and the ability to have intimate relations in adulthood.  Dr. Nurit Nahmani examined such quality in orphans, children of divorced parents, and children of intact families: 82% of children of married parents noted an intimate relationship; 62% of orphans and 60% of children of divorced parents did.  The study had 231 women and men ages 22 to 32.  Orphans surveyed lost fathers at age six to 12; children of divorced parents, lost a father in the same period.  Research used various parameters of father-child relationship and capacity for intimacy shown in closeness, sexuality, and commitment to adult partners.  Findings noted barriers that limited ability to have intimate dealings with partners among those whose thoughts of an absent father caused a marked rise in negative emotions and distancing.  There was a tie between a balanced father-child relationship and ability to form and sustain intimate adulthood relationships.  "Results showed orphans and children of divorced parents [had] different emotional connections with fathers.  The orphans tended to idolize fathers, children of divorced parents tended to feel frustration, anger towards fathers," Dr. Nahmani said.  "Also, 41% of participants whose father was permanently or partially absent noted a feeling of loss, often [with] fear of being abandoned a second time and reported not being involved in a relationship," Dr. Nahmani said.

BOSTON - A study by the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and University of Athens (Greece) Medical School (UAMS) in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests naps are good for your heart.  Midday napping cut coronary mortality by about 33% among men and women.  Researchers led by Androniki Naska, UAMS hygiene and epidemiology lecturer, and senior author Dimitrios Trichopoulos, HSPH professor of cancer prevention and epidemiology, looked at 23,681 people in Greece who, at the study start had no heart disease, stroke, or cancer history.  Study participants were followed an average of 6.3 years.  Naps are common in the Mediterranean region and several Latin American countries, and those countries tend to have low mortality rates of heart disease.  This was the first large study of individuals who were healthy at enrollment and the first to control in detail for risk factors such as diet and physical activity.  Results showed people who regularly took naps, defined as at least three times per week for an average of at least 30 minutes, had a 37% lower coronary mortality than those not taking naps.  The apparent protective effect of naps was particularly strong among working men and weaker among those not working, mainly retirees.  Among working women, there were too few deaths to allow inferences.  The authors believe an afternoon nap in a healthy individual may be a stress-releasing process, since there is considerable evidence stress has short and long-term adverse effects on incidence of and mortality from heart disease.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality joined the Advertising Council on a national public service ad campaign to encourage adults to take a more proactive role in their healthcare.  Medical mistakes in hospitals cover an estimated 44,000-98,000 deaths yearly, the Institute of Medicine states.  The mistakes lead to more deaths yearly than vehicle accidents, breast cancer, or AIDS.  Research shows consumers who get more involved with healthcare can improve their care safety greatly, but patients are generally unaware of what to do to help prevent medical errors.  A Kaiser Family Foundation study found 57% of us don’t believe preventable medical errors occur often.  The "Questions Are the Answer: Get More Involved With Your Healthcare" effort created pro bono by McCann Erickson/Detroit and includes a toll-free number (1-800-931-AHRQ) and Web site: www.ahrq.gov/questionsaretheanswer.