European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 23, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                March 1985 the stars and stripes Page 17 modern living by Patricia Mccormack United press International countering to the handicapped parents who make insulting remarks about mentally impaired or disfigured people can expect their children to do says a professor who recently studied families of handicapped boys and unkindness by other children is a Point of stress that such families have an especially hard time understand said sol professor of sociology and Public health at Boston Levine recently directed a study of stress in families with handicapped these parents Are nothing less than he our research staff actually cried when reviewing the transcripts of their these families deserve More support than society is giving his testimony of cruelty to the handicapped came during interviews with parents of 81 handicapped Chil Ages 3 to in the Boston handicaps included cerebral Spina Downs syn and learning Levine the old roles of physically and mentally handicapped people As objects of scorn and derision will die hard because of societal needs for objects of Tell your kids not to make fun of the handicapped and try to be not treating them As unusual if they Tell them to look on handicapped kids with look at them As other kids who Are struggling and doing the Best they All children should understand that handicapped boys and girls Are not Happy about their nor is the Handicap their among his other findings More than half of the parents worry a great Deal about what will become of their children when they can no longer care for this was the greatest fort two percent of the parents worry a lot about changes in government funding that might affect the of the parents feel that the healthcare professionals they Are in Contact with do not do a Good the greatest need the parents feel is not for psycho logical support but for tangible respite care that gives them an occasional break and recreational pro Grams for their children Are the services most frequently some of the stories we have heard have just been says Robert Ebert of the Boston University school of Public co director of the study funded by the William Grant imagine the effect of a priest who refuses to baptize a stricken baby expected to die within or doctors who act disdainfully when parents or friends who do not know what to say or How to say and so Drift although the worst situations do not happen to eve they happen too Ebert Levine claims society expects parents of the Handi capped to take care of their but most of us do not grasp the unremitting stress this can it would not necessarily Cost much for society to alleviate some of that thinking creatively and imaginatively can take us a Long Way if we have the will to limiting the risk Low weight United press International tiny babies Are expensive a new Institute of Medicine study calling the High Cost of intensive care for underweight infants a compelling reason for a National Effort to raise the percentage of full size some of the institutes recommendations for action Are As simple As getting the word to More Mothe Stobe dont smoke dont drink much alcohol eat nutritious foods go to the potentially much tougher is a recommendation that the government spend More Money on such programs As thus giving poor women better Access to medi Cal care and advice during their the presented to a congressional said that in 1982 the latest year for which National data Are available about infants were born weighing less than it said babies below that Mark Are nearly 40 times More Likely to die in their first month and also Are much More Likely to suffer from serious Erma Bombeck w Hen psychologists and therapists speculated on the gloomy future of they always figured it would be a time when couples stopped i that Hast been the Case at More couples than Ever Are i but Treyve saying it the drip dry wedding dress is a better or for worse is a comparison of wife 1 and wife the Symbol of a first anniversary is no longer paper its a fifty percent of marriages today will end in of that number 60 percent will remarry within five about three fourth of these will go on to marry for a third and even a fourth there called serial marriages and their numbers will make a big difference in if you can stand any More future heres what you can the Low weight infants made up percent of All live Down from percent a decade but still a higher rate than a dozen other developed said the institutes committee to study the prevention of Low medical understanding of the reasons for Low weight births is but certain risk factors involving race and eating and drinking practices have been the committee in recent medical advances have allowed specialized Hospital neonatal units to save infants weighing two pounds or but the committee said continuing Progress will require major new actions to prevent Low an approach that May Well prove to be considerably less both socially and than additional investments in neonatal intensive conceding that figures for potential spending were the committee nevertheless made one estimate for a target population of million women considered at High risk of having Low weight each Dollar spent on prenatal care could save As much As in later specialized care after their babies were such women tend to be Black and not Well the study and it said a lot could be accomplished through better education pro Grams that effectively communicate to those women that they should be taking care of their own bodies As a Way of taking care of the babies there but Early and continuing care by a doctor is also very said the which is dominated by medical and it said that Many poor women bypass such care not because they dont want it but because they cant afford among the barriers to proper the com Mittee Are medicaid restrictions on the number of allowable prenatal the nations health care program for the is administered by the states but primarily financed by the Federal the Reagan admin while not spelling out How each state must run its is asking Congress to Cap total spending at about billion in fiscal in the year the ruling class will be they will drive around in big live in and have kidneys shaped like swimming Many of them will enter one will be elected some enterprising entrepreneur will come out with a videocassette on How to get your own it will be choreographed with Prince singing in the it can be or if youre someone who is in and out of the marital you May find it cheaper to buy open House for parents will have to be held on three nights to accommodate double and triple the Par ent teacher association will become one of the largest and richest organizations in the country on sheer numbers they wll eventually buy lbs and Dan rather will be Putty in their the logistics of so Many children who Are offspring of so Many unions will have to be resolved by in addition to blood tests before a names will have to be run through a computer to make sure you Are not marrying someone to whom you Are related through i a More efficient Way for singles to meet new mates will have to be in at several dating services Are being one is a Tail Dater that has a bumper sticker indicating youre and another is called the freeway singles where you Flash a numbered decal in the car window if you like what you see at the traffic in the look for drive ins where you honk if you love pot roast and serial marriages will bring about a lot of social changes in the year greeting cards will merry Christmas to dad and the irs will have group and a child of divorce will have enough advantage hours in the air to own the so How will you know if youre one of the 50 percent who can make a lifetime commitment before the two of you take your 1 pick out a carpet b hang a c play it could save you from becoming a c news group