Column Has Pulse Of The People
Dear Ann Landers: Will you please quit printing those boring, repetitious “how we met” letters that undoubtedly come from over-70 World War II vets? They are putting your under-70 readers to sleep.
Why are you continuing to publish such drivel? Those old war stories are not amusing, nor are they informative. They are ho-hummers from hell. Why in the world doesn’t your butt-kissing staff level with you? I’m betting you do not have the guts to print this. - A Florida Reader
Dear Florida: I shared your letter with my “butt-kissing staff,” and this is what they said: Those “old war stories” may not appeal to everyone, but you shouldn’t ignore the many readers who love them.
The column has survived for all these years because I have the pulse of the people. My readers range from 6 years of age to 104.
I am well aware that it isn’t possible to score a bull’s eye with every reader, every day. If the first few lines or the first letter are a bore, the reader can stop reading and go on to the next one or turn the page. My feelings will not be hurt.
Dear Ann Landers: We take issue with your reply to “Shorter in Luverne, Minn.,” who asked how to reply when someone mentioned that she was “shrinking.” You failed approximately 25 million Americans, 80 percent of them women, by not using this opportunity to educate them.
Height loss can be an early symptom of osteoporosis. Unfortunately, the loss of height associated with this brittle-bone disease is due to spinal fractures that can cause severe pain, deformity and, finally, disability.
Please, Ann, let your readers know that osteoporosis is not an inevitable consequence of aging. It is a bone disease that can be prevented, detected and treated. Every year, 1.5 million Americans break bones due to osteoporotic fractures of the spine, wrist and hip. Your older readers need to know that this disease affects both men and women and that a quick, painless procedure called a bone densitometry test is now available to detect bone loss long before fracture occurs.
Everyone should consume adequate calcium in his or her diet. This includes dairy products like milk, yogurt and cheese - even cheese on pizza - as well as broccoli, sardines, salmon, almonds, soybeans and mustard greens. For those who do not get enough calcium in their diets, calcium supplements can help, and for women over 50, medications may be necessary. People should also do weight-bearing exercises and avoid tobacco.
As the American population ages, it is increasingly important that we get the word out about this devastating but preventable disease. For free information, your readers can contact the National Osteoporosis Foundation, 1150 17th St., N.W., Suite 500, Washington, DC 20036-4603, or call 1-800-223-9994. (Internet: www.nof.org) - Jan Maby, D.O., and Gail Rosselot, R.N., Osteoporosis Program, Mount Sinai Hospital, N.Y.
Dear Jan Maby and Gail Rosselot: Thanks for hauling me up short for my inadequate response. I hope the foundation is swamped with requests for free information.
P.S.: I should also let my readers know that calcium supplements can be purchased at the local drugstore. Check with your doctor to see if they’re right for you. The tablets are not expensive and are very effective. While calcium alone will not prevent osteoporosis, I’ve been taking supplements for years, and they have served me well. When the music starts, I’m the first one on the dance floor.