The Real Rain Man Kim Peek Mega Savant

Tell Kim Peek any address in the United States and he?ll recite the local highways and byways, area and zip codes, television stations and interesting historical events ? oh, he?ll also tell you where you can go to pay your telephone bill. Ask Kim to button his shirt and he?ll return nothing more than a blank stare. Such is the genius, and disability, of the Real Rain Man.

Kim was diagnosed as severely mentally retarded at the age of nine months and the doctor, in a hurry to make a tee time, recommended Kim be institutionalized ? and forgotten. Undeterred, Kim?s parents took him home and have spent the following five decades as eyewitnesses to a sometimes wonderful, and always curious, medical mystery.

Consider the frustration of Kim?s mother when he did not walk until age four. Consider her amazement when he completed memorizing the first eight volumes of the encyclopedia a scant six months later. Consider that at the age of fifty-four he is incapable of dressing himself. Consider that he can instantly recall the exact content of more than 12,000 books. Consider?

Kim reads both pages of a book simultaneously, one with the left eye and one with the right, devoting a mere ten seconds to each standard page of text. Unbowed by brevity, Kim recalls the details of his furious forays at a 98.7% accuracy rate. Consider?

Give Kim your birth date and he will tell you on which day of the week you were born, on which day your birthday will fall this year and, in anticipation of the proverbial gold-watch-moment, on which day of the week your sixty-fifth birthday will fall. Consider...

Unlike most savants, who exhibit a single area of extreme expertise, Kim is a Mega Savant, exhibiting genius in more than a dozen areas, including History, Geography, World Leaders, Space, Sports, Math, Movies, Shakespeare and the Bible. Consider...

Kim is a complex tangle of ?skills and ills? ? a truly dichotomous representation of the genius to which we all aspire and the childlike simplicity fr! om which we each evolve.

Virtually unknown prior to Dustin Hoffman's portrayal, Kim has since delighted over a million seminar attendees who have come, clutching arcane facts in eager hands, in vain attempts to take the master to task. He lives in Salt Lake City with his octogenarian father, Fran, who to this day tends to those everyday dilemmas of undone shoelaces and unbuttoned shirts that exist beyond the realm of Kim?s genius.

Says Kim of his relationship with his constant companion, caregiver and friend, ?Dad and I share the same shadow.?

Tim Anderson is a freelance writer who has a special interest in medical topics. Visit his blog at http://medicalmigrant.blogspot.com/

 

What Happened to the Flu Vaccine Shortage?

What Happened to the Flu Vaccine Shortage?

Back in October 2004, the United States lost almost half of its expected 100 million doses of the flu vaccine, which prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to encourage recommendations to each state, suggesting that doses of the vaccine be restricted to high-risk groups only. However, it is becoming apparent that perhaps this panic attack was a little too dramatic.

It seems that, due to a mild flu season, the demand for the country's limited doses of the vaccine was less than anticipated. In fact, the demand was so low that some states are actually loosening restrictions regarding who gets a shot.

Those states that have taken such action include:

* Michigan and Utah: Lifted all restrictions; Michigan has about 170,000 available doses

* Minnesota: Opened up the flu vaccine to those 50 and older, among others

* Massachusetts: Dropped the lowest receiving age limit from 75 to 65, as well as lightened a few other restrictions

* Nebraska: Traded 4,000 flu-shot doses with Missouri for measles, mumps and rubella vaccine

Further, only weeks ago a Washington-based company that holds immunization clinics vaccinated 100 clients a day at its office -- now it vaccinates only 20 people on a daily basis.

USA Today December 13, 2004

Dr. Mercola's Comment:

All of this news doesn't surprise me at all, considering public health officials were reassuring Americans that getting a flu shot is not a life-or-death matter. Fact is, the flu shot does NOT prevent illness in most people but actually does just the opposite -- it weakens the immune system and makes you more predisposed to the illness.

Also, it is important to understand that people are dying from the flu because they are already sick and have compromised immune systems. Thus, the ultimate treatment for the flu is PROACTIVE PREVENTION.

I have compiled a list of seven guidelines to help you prevent and fight the flu this winter. I! suggest printing this list off and posting it somewhere in your home where you and your family will see it on a daily basis. By doing so, everyone in your family will be aware of the healthy alternatives and preventatives to the flu.

Dr. Mercola's Guidelines to Preventing the Flu

1. Eat a healthy diet and avoid sugar

2. Get enough rest

3. Eat fresh garlic regularly

4. Use an effective tool to help you address the stress in your life

5. Wash your hands regularly

6. Take fish oil/cod liver oil

7. Exercise regularly

The bottom line: Lead a healthy lifestyle year round. To help you get on the right track to doing so, I suggest reading my book, TOTAL HEALTH Program, and implementing my diet in your life. If you do, chances are you'll never have to worry about coming down with the flu again!

Also, I highly recommend the simple five-step Clenzology Advanced Hygiene System, which focuses on superior cleaning of the areas of your body that are most susceptible to the flu -- your hands, face, ears, nose and mouth. This hygiene kit is simple to use and only takes a matter of minutes, which makes it ideal for families with young children.

Most importantly, the Clenzology soap is not antibacterial and it is capable of reaching the tens of thousands of germs on the backs and palms of the hands, on the fingers and under the fingernails.

PLEASE NOTE: The facial solutions in this kit must be diluted as directed before use. If you are pregnant or have a history of thyroid problems consult a physician before using this product.

-------------------
Dr. Joseph Mercola
Author of Total Health Program
Founder of the renowned Optimal Wellness Center
http://www.Mercola.com - The #1 Natural Health Site on the Internet!

 

Arthritis Exercise One Way to Relieve Pain & Stiffness in Your Joints (part 2)

Even when you cannot make it out to walk or to an aquatics or yoga class, there are exercises you can do daily to improve flexibility, strength and conditioning when you suffer from arthritis. You can flex your legs while sitting in a chair facing forward, simply by moving your leg outward while keeping your foot on the floor and holding it there for a few seconds, then retracting it until your foot is behind you, then alternating to the other leg. Interlocking your fingers and slowly flexing your wrists to the left and the right for a few minutes a day can help tremendously to increase flexibility and reduce pain in the wrist area.

For your upper back, you can stand upright in front of a table, then lean over and place your hands on the table and tuck your chin back toward your collarbone. Once positioned as such, lift your upper back upward and simultaneously take a deep breath. Hold that position for 5-10 seconds and then relax while exhaling. While doing this, lower your spine slowly as you move both shoulder blades forward as if toward each other. Repeat this exercise for 10-15 repetitions.

For the shoulders and middle back, start again from an upright position standing as straight as you can, reach back and lock the fingers of both hands together. Breathe slowly and deeply and lift upward with your shoulders while at the same time, exhaling. Be sure to keep your chest up and your chin in. Repeat this for about 10-15 sets.

For the shoulders and upper chest, choose a free corner of the room to stand in and place your hands on the opposite sides of the corner. Take a step back about 18 inches from the corner. You now should be facing the corner directly with your hands on both of the walls with your body some distance from the wall itself. Keeping your chest up after inhaling, lean in toward the corner while exhaling. Repeat this exercise for 10-15 sets.

Whatever exercise program you choose, be sure to breathe properly when exercising. Oxygenation is important to any exercis! e regime n as it promotes a healthy heart rate and reduces fatigue; additionally oxygenation helps circulation, which is vital to achieving the flexibility and strength that you are trying to achieve in battling arthritis. Also, listen to your body. It is natural to feel a little fatigue and soreness when starting a new exercise regimen, However if the pain of soreness persists for more than one hour, or you have a decrease in mobility that lasts longer than an hour, then the regimen should be reduced until the soreness desists. Also, look for signs of increased swelling of joints or any persistent increase of weakness; these are signs of activities that are too strenuous and a reduction in activity will be necessary. Just remember to take all new exercise regimens slowly at the start. The idea is to increase flexibility not train for the Olympics.

Written by Shelley Hitz, Licensed Physical Therapist and Certified NASM Personal Trainer. If you have arthritis, she can design an online exercise program for you! Contact her today at http://www.onlinefitnesscoach.com or sign up for her FREE Exercise Advice Journal at http://www.abs-exercise-advice.com/journal.html.

 

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