| ■ WHO: Air travelers should exercise legs | 07.07.02 |
| WHO recommended Friday that passengers on long flights exercise their legs and resist taking sleeping pills to reduce the risk of potentially fatal blood clots. Although the danger of developing deep vein thrombosis, normally in the form of a blood clot in the calves, is small, it increases if people are immobile for long periods in cramped conditions, the U.N. agency said in a report. Some people are also predisposed to the condition for genetic or lifestyle reasons. WHO based its recommendations on research done by scientists in Britain, Switzerland and the Netherlands after the death in 2000 of a British woman after a long flight from Australia. |