1. Never swim alone. For safety purposes, always swim with a group or bring along a friend. Given unknown elements, a dangerous situation may arise such as fog, currents, boats, etc. where you will be in much better shape with others around.

2. Adjust to cold water. If water you are training in is cold, below 66 degrees fahrenheit, be prepared. Wetsuits are necessary. Wearing a swim cap and earplugs can help keep your head warm. Get in water slowly and only get in for 5-20 minutes first time out, gradually increasing your time in water with each swim.

As a nation, we have been raised with milk on our breakfast cereal, ice cream as a reward, sour cream on our potatoes, and milkshakes at local fast food restaurant. Dairy products are in majority of our recipes, served in our school lunch programs, and a part of American life.

MY STORY

When my daughter suffered from respiratory infections, ear infections and sinusitis, I did not know that what I fed her could be contributing to her problems. At nights she would wake up screaming that she couldn¡¦t breathe. My husband and I would run into her room, grab her and take her into bathroom. We would run shower'¦s hot water till bathroom became steamy. Soon she could breathe and would start to calm down. Sometimes that wouldn¡¦t work and we would have to go to emergency room where they would put her in an oxygen tent to relieve her gasps for air.

A friend suggested I stop giving her milk. I was annoyed as only milk she ate was on her cereal. I decided to try it and almost immediately, she was having more restful nights. There was a backlash when she spent time with others that fed her ice cream, but otherwise, her ear infections and breathing problems stopped.

I started to research this issue learned that that "At least 50% of all children in United States are allergic to cow's milk, many undiagnosed. Dairy products are leading cause of food allergy, often revealed by diarrhea, constipation, and fatigue. Many cases of asthma and sinus infections are reported to be relieved and even eliminated by cutting out dairy." Natural Health, July, 1994, Nathaniel Mead, MD

A few years later, I began having regular bouts with sinusitis. Soon I was taking antibiotics on a regular basis. After awhile, they didn't work anymore and I had to take stronger antibiotics. When I complained to a coworker, she told me of a physician that made a huge difference in her life by working to see if she had any allergies. The physician had taken her off milk, and this made a huge impact on her sinus infections.

I went to see physician, who, after looking at my nose, asked me to keep a food diary. I was annoyed. I thought I was a healthy eater and this was a waste of my time. However, as I wrote down what I ate. I found that every time I ate dairy products, my nose began to run. Like my daughter, I too had a milk allergy.

I switched to soy milk and my sinusitis completely ceased. I was sorry that I hadn't known this years before, when I had round after round of sinus infections in college. I had found that I could save time in college cafeteria by grabbing a shake and a sandwich. I probably had allergic reactions to ice cream in shakes.

A Frequent Problem