Keep out of the mouths of babes

my

SMALL “BUTTON” BATTERIES, found in countless home and personal electronic devices, represent a huge danger to children. Since 1985, more than 3,500 injuries and at least 17 deaths have been attributed to children swallowing button batteries, according to Energizer, a battery-industry leader and a partner with Safe Kids USA in a child-safety advocacy group devoted to raising awareness of this threat.

Many homes have older devices not equipped with the more current safety approaches being used by manufacturers. Calculators, remote control devices, cameras, penlights, hearing aids, cellphones and watches are just a few of the devices that use button batteries, which can also be found in musical greeting cards.

Choking is not the danger. The big risk is the power emitted by these tiny but powerful lithium batteries. When combined with saliva or other body fluids, the result can be a serious burn. The battery doesn’t have to be leaking for that to happen, and even a weak or dead battery will have enough of charge left to do damage.

Immediate action is required if you suspect

a child has swallowed a button battery. It takes as little as two hours for a hole to be burned in or through a child’s esophagus, trachea, stomach or nasal septum, leading to serious illness or even death.

If you think your child has swallowed a button battery or has placed one in his or her nose, seek medical attention immediately.

Button batteries are visible on an X-ray. If one is detected in the esophagus, trachea, ear or nose, it must be removed as soon as possible to prevent serious injury.

MEDIA BAKERY

stor y

Real Success Stories.
Real Costco® Members.

Tips for a battery-safe home

• Keep spare or dead batteries as inaccessible to children as medications or products containing poison.

• Never let children play with batteries.

• If you have devices that use button batteries, make sure to secure the battery compartment from your child’s prying fingers. Extra layers of tape over the battery compartment door may prove effective.

For more information, visit www.poison. org.—David Wight

Tricia Dewey Suisun City, CA Member since 1990

BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT is a lifesaving treatment for people with leukemia, lymphoma and other life-threatening diseases. Bone marrow is spongy tissue in the center of many bones, and is a source for stem cells—young, unspecialized cells that produce all blood cells.

Patients with certain illnesses are treated with chemotherapy and/or radiation that destroys their own stem cells. A marrow transplant delivers stem cells that make their way to the recipient’s bone marrow, where they produce blood cells that rebuild a healthy blood and immune system.

Stem cells for use in transplants can also be obtained from two other sources: peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs) and umbilical cord blood.

PBSCs circulate in the bloodstream. Normally few stem cells are found in the blood, but giving hormone-like substances called growth factors to stem cell donors a few days before the harvest causes stem cells to grow faster.

Umbilical cord blood is the blood left in the usually discarded umbilical cord and placenta after a baby is born. Parents can choose to store their newborn baby’s cord blood at a private cord blood bank in case their baby or a family member ever needs it, or can donate the cord blood to a public cord blood bank so that any genetically matched individual needing treatment has access to it.

Initially all stem cell transplants done were bone marrow transplants, but PBSC transplants are now far more common. Often, doctors are able to harvest more stem cells from peripheral blood than from bone marrow, and it’s also easier for the donor to give peripheral blood stem cells than bone marrow.

For a successful transplant, a patient needs a matching donor. Special testing determines whether a patient and a bone marrow donor or umbilical cord blood are a good match.

About 70 percent of patients do not find a donor in their family and instead depend on the national Be The Match® Registry®, run through the nonprofit National Marrow Donor Program® to find an unrelated donor. Finding an unrelated donor can take months.

To learn more about marrow donation or to join the Be The Match Registry, visit www.marrow.org.—DW

November

National
Marrow Awareness
Month

With alli®, I lost

33 pounds* and gained motivation.

The more results I saw, the more committed I became to exercising. I even worked out on vacation. Now I park as far from the door as possible. And instead of letting stuff pile up at the bottom of my stairs, so I only have to go up once, I take each item up separately. I know they’re little things, but they add up–to 33 pounds lost! And that’s a big thing.

Boost your weight loss
one step at a time.
For every 2 pounds you lose, alli can
help you lose 1 more.** Plus, alli offers
you comprehensive support online
with personalized tips and tools to
help you maintain a healthier weight.

Learn more and personalize your own plan at myalli.com/costco.

Featured member is provided alli product, retail value of $70, online community support and alli behavioral support as part of her participation in this program.*In clinical studies, most people lose 5 to 10 pounds over six months with alli. Featured story has not been independently validated by either GlaxoSmithKline or Costco. **alli plus a reduced-calorie low-fat diet. alli is for overweight adults. Read and follow the alli label. Results may vary. alli is safe when used as directed. ©2011 GlaxoSmithKline WAREHOUSE/ COSTCO.COM | AVAILABLE NOW NOVEMBER 2011 ;e Costco Connection 69