Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, May 25, 1990                   TAG: 9005250143
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: ATLANTA                                LENGTH: Medium

SUMMER SAFETY PROMOTED

As the Memorial Day weekend neared, the national Centers for Disease Control reported on the hazards involved in a number of summer activities.

About 30 million Americans ride horses each year, and the rate of serious injury per hour of riding is higher than that for motorcycle riders and even car racers, the CDC said.

Horseback riding accounted for 92,763 injuries in 1987 and 1988, according to the CDC, of which 9.9 percent required hospitalization. Of those hospitalized, 42.2 percent had head or neck injuries.

One study quoted by the CDC said less than 20 percent of those falling off a horse were wearing a helmet.

"The main issue here is people can be seriously injured riding a horse, and there is a safety mechanism and it is a helmet," said Dr. David Nelson, the CDC epidemiologist who wrote the report.

A separate report released Thursday by the CDC said a study in Massachusetts showed that almost one-quarter of 221 people responding to a survey drank alcohol while participating in aquatic activities, including swimming and boating.

Between 25 percent and 50 percent of the annual 8,000 adolescent and adult drownings in the United States involve alcohol consumption, yet researchers say the link between drinking and drowning is unclear.

"One of the points we're trying to make. . . is that the prevalence of drinking when you're out in the water is really quite high. It's much higher than drinking and driving," said Dr. Jonathan Howland of Boston University's School of Public Health.

"But what epidemiologists are trying to find out is what is the contribution of alcohol to injuries and drowning," said Howland, who helped compile the report. "We can determine with some accuracy how many people who drown are drinking. But we need to know more about the behavior of people who drink and didn't drown."

Howland said there is no doubt that drinking contributes in general to injuries.

Another CDC report said the New Jersey State Department of Health, in response to a study showing a high death rate for a type of skin cancer, is preparing a publicity campaign emphasizing the danger of excessive exposure to the sun.

The CDC suggested that people avoid heavy exposure from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., wear hats and use a waterproof sunscreen.