HealthTips: Golfers see red on the green

Golfers willing to give up sex, hair, raises

Four out of 10 U.S. golfers would give up sex for a month to have the perfect golf swing, while one in five would sacrifice their hair and 21 percent would give up their next raise, according to a survey conducted for the automaker Lexus.

However, tendon pain in the elbow, shoulder or ankle need not force a golfer to keep clubs in the bag, according to Dr. Robert Dimeff of Cleveland Clinic Sports Health.

For some, resting the affected tendon may be all they need to ease the pain, but there are new approaches to physical therapy and rehabilitation as well as less-invasive treatments, such as shockwave therapy, autologous blood injections or nitroglycerin patches.

For those with tendon pain, Dimeff suggests:

-- Making sure golf clubs are sized correctly for you, and have a pro analyze your swing to make sure it's not causing pain.

-- Using moist heat to warm up your problem tendon before exercising. Afterward, apply ice and wrap the tendon with a compression strap or sleeve.

-- Working with a physical therapist to stretch and strengthen tendons and muscles. Eccentric exercises can elongate the muscle and tendon while strengthening them.

Less anger, fewer injuries

Being angry while on the green could result in getting hurt. Anger increases the chances of an injury significantly -- especially for men, according to Dr. Dan Vinson of the University of Missouri-Columbia.

"What we found is that people who describe themselves as feeling 'irritable' have a 30 percent increased risk for getting injured, while those who are feeling hostile are doubling the risk of injury," Vinson says. "What was surprising was that anger was not associated with any kind of traffic accident. We were only able to find a correlation between anger and sports injuries and assaults."

The most important thing beyond having some basic skills is to know the rules at a golf course in terms of playing and etiquette, according to Tom Templin, professor of health and kinesiology at Purdue University.

Templin advises novice golfers to:

-- Be silent when another player is hitting the ball. Cell phones should be turned off.

-- While on the putting green, never walk in the line of anyone's putt. Footprints can disturb the contour of the green.

-- Limit strokes to not delay play for those following. If playing slowly, it is common courtesy to let the group behind play through.

Get off the links if threat of lightning

Most people seriously underestimate the risk of being struck by lightning and do not know when or where to take shelter, according to the director of the lightning injury research program at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

"Even though the vast majority of those struck by lightning survive, they frequently have permanent after effects, which can include chronic pain, brain injury and thought-processing problems," says Dr. Mary Ann Cooper of the University of Illinois.

Cooper advises:

-- The rule is, "when thunder roars, go indoors." If a house or other building is not available, get into a hardtop car, bus or truck. Never go under a tree or near water.

-- Stay off landline phones, computers and video games. Cell phones are safe.

-- Wait 30 minutes after the last crack of thunder or flash of lightning before resuming activities or driving home.

Seeing red on the green

More than 22 percent of core golfers have picked up a case of poison plant itch on the golf course, according to a survey by skin-care maker buji.

"Plenty of golfers are developing poison ivy rashes in some rather ... ah, sensitive areas," a buji spokesman says. "Some have even mistaken the rash for a sexually transmitted disease. Perhaps that's because 46 percent of golfers have answered nature's call out on the course."

Golfers should:

-- Take a bathroom break before setting out on the links and bypass beer to decrease the need for bathroom breaks in the bushes.

-- Wear long pants and/or socks and pack some gloves for fishing a golf ball out of the rough -- those long kitchen-type gloves work best.

-- Wash clothes and take a shower when finished golfing.

-- Wipe down gear with soap and water before putting it away. Urushiol, the irritant in poison ivy/oak/sumac, can cling to shoes and clubs for up to five years.

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(e-mail: consumerhealth@upi.com)