| ATM: Fruit trees marginal in Western ski towns
JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. - Temperatures in mid-January dipped to 10, 20 and even 35 below zero in mountain towns. That's plenty cold, but not the sustained, penetrating cold that was commonplace in the 1980s and before.
In fact, the climate has changed so much that trees once thought delusional, such as apple and cherry trees in mountain towns, may now be possible, according to the National Arbor Day Foundation.
Based on average low temperatures, the Nebraska-based group issues a 10-zone hardiness scale for trees in the United States. Zones range from the most hostile, 1, such as would be found above timberline, to the most tropical, 10.
After gathering temperature data from 5,000 weather stations for the period from 1990 to 2005, the organization revised its hardiness zones.
It's Women's Heart Health Day
Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women in the United States. As estrogen levels drop with menopause, women no longer have the same protection estrogen gives them from heart disease and high blood pressure. As a result, women's heart-disease risks parallel those of men. However, men and women do not display the same signs of heart disease. Women often first experience angina - chest pain or discomfort that occurs when your heart muscle does not get enough blood. Additional symptoms can include unexplained heartburn, extreme fatigue, nausea, shortness of breath and reoccurring pain. If you haven't done so already, start protecting yourself today by making heart-healthy choices: Eat a variety of colorful fruit and vegetables, whole grains, low-fat and fat-free dairy foods, fatty fish, legumes and other lean protein sources.
Can't sleep? Try some lifestyle changes, doctor says
BIRMINGHAM -- Pearson Sadler can pinpoint to the day the last time he got a good night's sleep: March 15, 1996. Insomnia has tortured Sadler for more than a decade and he has tried various remedies to put the problem to rest. He now manages his sleep through prescription sleep medications for chronic insomnia. Still, he has frequent trouble getting what he considers a restful sleep, he said. "I didn't have problems getting to sleep, but I would wake up 45 minutes to an hour later and think it was time for work," he said. "Then I'd look at the clock and realize it was the middle of the night and I couldn't get back to sleep." Nearly everyone has occasional sleepless nights, perhaps because of stress, heartburn or too much caffeine or alcohol.
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