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The July issue of Tuft University's Nutrition Letter tells us that the
advice that coffee and pop do not count in your daily intake of water
because they are diruetics is propaganda from two associations: One
promotes the sales of bottled water, and the other promotes the sales of
water filters. A recent controlled blind study demonstrates that any
combination of water, coffee, tea, and/or pop produce the same amount of
urine per intake, IF those drinking the coffee, tea or pop do so regularly
and haven't just started it. It seems the body accustoms itself to the
caffeine quickly, though in some people who have sensitive bladders there
are substances in tea and coffee that make them more sensitive liquid in
the bladder so they empty the bladder more often. One of the docs
conducting the study says his mother is 86, drinks hardly anything but
coffee all day, and is well hydrated. Good news for me: I hate water. Gives
me stomach cramps and tastes terrible to me. Now there's a new one, eh?

The same letter lists the most common food sensitivities in order as: milk,
eggs, wheat, peanuts, soy, tree nuts (almonds, walnuts and cashews), fish,
and shellfish. Adults are more likely than children to have sensitivities
to tree nuts and shellfish, and less likely to be sensitive to milk and
eggs. Of course we all know that celiacs may differ in this. -vance

Margaret Stewart's hints for better bathrooms: Convert a Barcolounger into
your own special toilet seat. And perhaps you might enjoy having a
well-stocked mini-library installed also. Imagine the envy on your friends'
faces when they . . . .