European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 4, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Stuttering a Complex Handicap by Gayle Young United press International or 2b years Elliot Dennis avoided answering the Telephone or making Calls to people to did l know his Nile ordered for him in res Laurants and Deal with any stranger who called at their new Jersey Home i simply could t communicate , o4, said recently in a sell measured voice devoid of the Stuller he developed As an 8-Yoar-Oid Schoolboy and which to finally Mas lored eight Yea s ago being a stutterer is tremendously frustrating to said in school 1 would know the answer b Al i could never raise my hand " the National nishtut Osof health estimates there Are 15 million people in the world who Are handicapped by a Stutler one million of them in the United sales. Just about everyone slut lers Al sometime or another it s a spectrum said Lorraine Schneider adminis Lalive director of the National Center for stuttering a Tor profit therapy Confer where Dennis evenly atty teamed to control his disorder people who Ara real Stuller ers know it she said. The just can l get the words  Stul luring usually develops in Early childhood. Light about the time children normally snarl forming Complex sentences doctors say it is estimated one out of every 30 children will develop a noticeable stutter but 80 percent of them will lose in by the Lime they Are teen agers. In rare cases stuttering develops in adults but it usually is the result of an Accident or stroke according to a Nih report on Stull ering. Doctors used to believe All stuttering was psychological Schneider said. They Tel ought emotional problems caused the Stuller. Now we know the stutter causes emotional  Dennis said he was labelled emotionally disturbed As a youngster. School was a hard situation to Deal with he said. Recent research however indicates the Larynx Muscles in people who Stuller react abnormally during speech according to then a. Normally one sol of Larynx Muscles opens in the vocal chords to allow air to pass while another Sot of Muscles closes to produce sound. In stutterers both sets of Muscles contract creating a tug of War Over the vocal chords that results in the unmistakable catch in the Throat Hal characterizes a stutter some researchers believe the Larynx Muscles in Stuller ers contract during periods of stress just As most people s neck and shoulder Muscles tighten when icy Are anxious or angry since most Skull errors find speaking exl remly stressful heir stuttering problem is compounded Schneider said other research has ind scaled the brain As Well As the Larynx has an effect on Stull ering studies have shown stutterers con speak easily when they Are prevented from hearing then own voices when they Are addressing Small children or animals and when they talk to themselves in a Mirror according to the Nih report. Some re searchers believe these activities arc no As . So stutterers have an easier Lime controlling their speech consequently soul tiers report they have the most difficulty speaking when they must other Lood in a crowded restaurant or speak in Public or on the Lel Ephone people Alto Loe their stutter when hey speak in unison whisper or sing according to the my report it s believed that keeping Hie vocal chords in constant Molion lessens a slut Ler said Linda coot spokesperson Al the National instil ule of neurological and  and Lrol Ein Bethesda my while stuttering can disappear Foi no apparent reason most people with Iho disorder need speech therapy to help them overcome the problem researchers say. The recent studies on Larynx Muscles has spawned whole new therapy programs Lor Skull errors. Dozens of programs offered across the country use techniques like Biol Hedback to help teach Stuller ers to relax their Throat Muscles and modify the sounds they produce. Many of the programs Are successful bul their graduates usually speak More softly and slowly than people normally do according to the Nih report Many torpor stutterers have monotonous voices it said there s always that Chance of slipping  Schneider said. You re never Mically  for Dennis who now lives in old Bridge. N mastering his Stutler has meant a promotion at his company irom a warehouse worker to a Lierd Engineer who Deats Wilh customers daily. Life is about 900 percent better to said slowly look a no cavities associated press technological advances have made cavity tree generation of children Wilh reach a dental expert says in Tho Uniec Delales nearly 40 percent of All children under age is have no cavities this has All happened in the fast i years said or. Heber Simmons jr., president of the american Academy of Pedi Alric dentistry. You used to see cavities in most children. It s just a dram Lic  ii children learn Good dental habits Early they la Likely continue them into adulthood and will remain cavity Iree he said in a Telephone interview from his Jackson miss of flick a key to cavity prevention to said is making sure children ingest adequate amounts of fluoride starting in infancy. Within the past is years most regions in Tho country have Pul fluoride in the water Supply bul Simmons said it should be mandatory everywhere. Fluoride hardens the tooth enamel and makes i More impervious to decay causing bacteria he said. Ii is Likely that we can have a cavity free generation. We be got the tools at hand to do it in we ust do it a study published in a recen Issue of paediatric dentistry the Academy s journal found thai Many ready to drink infant formulas do not contain As much fluoride As previously thought Simmons said. From birth to age 2, children need a Quarter Milligram a Day of fluoride and a Hall Milligram Between the Ages of 2 and 3. He said. Many children using the formulas As Well As breast fed infants May need to take fluoride supplements a added those whose formulas Are mixed with liquidated water probably would not need supplements he said. Children As Well As adults also should be urged to use dental floss at least once a Day and to cat regular meals instead of constantly nibbling. Ii you have to make a Choice Between dental loss and a Toothbrush choose denial loss he said because that s what cleans Between the sur Lacos where Ballena from food most Likely will collect. Simmons noted Hal research has shown that bacteria do the most damage shortly Afler eating to know that it s not necessarily whal you eat but the frequency of what you eat that causes trouble he said there s really no such thing of Good and bad foods. All things can cause decay. Teeth stand up real Well under three meals a Day but they Don t land up Well when you Oal All the  children As will at adults Shoutd be urged to be dental to at Lett once a Day. Tuesday. August 4. 1987 the stars and stripes Paga 17