While sat in the garden the other day, my father noticed a fern and warned
me that he has seen something on television stating that one or more types
were a risk to children's eyesight. Did anyone else see this or have an
opinion ?

Thanks

"Kev" wrote in message
...
While sat in the garden the other day, my father noticed a fern and warned
me that he has seen something on television stating that one or more types
were a risk to children's eyesight. Did anyone else see this or have an
opinion ?

Thanks



A Google search brings up some information on "the common Male Fern, often
known as Dryopteris Filix-mas (Linn.), and assigned by other botanists to
the genera Lastrea, Nephrodium and Polypodium," which also says that it has
various medicinal uses and it mentions that in too large doses it is an
irritant poison, causing muscular weakness and coma, and has been proved
particularly injurious to the eyesight, even causing blindness." I don't
know if that's what your're looking for.

"Kev" wrote in message
...
While sat in the garden the other day, my father noticed a fern and warned
me that he has seen something on television stating that one or more types
were a risk to children's eyesight. Did anyone else see this or have an
opinion ?

Thanks
*********************
Don't know, but if you're going up the fells keep away from the bracken.
Sometimes the stuff's riddled with nasty ticks.
Doug.
********************

"Douglas" wrote in message
...

"Kev" wrote in message
...
While sat in the garden the other day, my father noticed a fern
and warned
me that he has seen something on television stating that one or
more types
were a risk to children's eyesight. Did anyone else see this or
have an
opinion ?

Thanks
*********************
Don't know, but if you're going up the fells keep away from the
bracken.
Sometimes the stuff's riddled with nasty ticks.

Surely you don't begrudge the little ticks their dindins?

Franz

On Tue, 1 Jun 2004 16:48:25 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote:


"Douglas" wrote in message
...

"Kev" wrote in message
...
While sat in the garden the other day, my father noticed a fern
and warned
me that he has seen something on television stating that one or
more types
were a risk to children's eyesight. Did anyone else see this or
have an
opinion ?

see www.nhm.ac.uk/hosted_sites/bps/siman.pdf for health risks from
bracken spores


Thanks
*********************
Don't know, but if you're going up the fells keep away from the
bracken.
Sometimes the stuff's riddled with nasty ticks.

Surely you don't begrudge the little ticks their dindins?

Lyme Disease is carried by ticks.
An infectious disease caused by a bacterium which is spread to humans
by tick bites. It is characterised initially by an expanding red rash
at the site of the bite often accompanied by headache, muscle and
joint aches and fever.

It occurs throughout Europe (including the UK), the United States,
Coastal regions of Australia, China and Japan where it is confined to
wooded regions.

Repellents containing DEET have been found to be useful but if an
embedded tick is discovered, slowly pulling it out with tweezers is
the best method of removal and the affected person should remain alert
to the development of any symptoms. If a rash appears at the site of
attachment, immediate medical attention should be sought. Lyme disease
is effectively treated with oral penicillin or tetracyclines.

"Douglas" wrote in message
...

"Kev" wrote in message
...
While sat in the garden the other day, my father noticed a fern and
warned
me that he has seen something on television stating that one or more
types
were a risk to children's eyesight. Did anyone else see this or have an
opinion ?

Thanks
*********************
Don't know, but if you're going up the fells keep away from the bracken.
Sometimes the stuff's riddled with nasty ticks.
Doug.
********************

I never heard of the eyesight risk, but have heard that areas of dense fern
planting (like say, the side of a mountain) should be avoided during spore
release time as these are allegedly carcinogenic.
Not that we haven't just about heard the same thing about just about
everything else so far.

Patrick

"Douglas" wrote in message
...

"Kev" wrote in message
...
While sat in the garden the other day, my father noticed a fern and
warned
me that he has seen something on television stating that one or more
types
were a risk to children's eyesight. Did anyone else see this or have an
opinion ?

Thanks
*********************
Don't know, but if you're going up the fells keep away from the bracken.
Sometimes the stuff's riddled with nasty ticks.
Doug.
********************

I never heard of the eyesight risk, but have heard that areas of dense fern
planting (like say, the side of a mountain) should be avoided during spore
release time as these are allegedly carcinogenic.
Not that we haven't just about heard the same thing about just about
everything else so far.

Patrick

The message
from martin contains these words:

see www.nhm.ac.uk/hosted_sites/bps/siman.pdf for health risks from
bracken spores

It's the ticks from deer (especially) which carry Lyme disease. Look at
www.lyme.org

--
Rusty
Open the creaking gate to make a horrid.squeak, then lower the foobar.
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/

martin wrote:

snips ...
Lyme Disease is carried by ticks.
An infectious disease caused by a bacterium which is spread to humans
snips ...

Why do so many people worry about rare and uncommon diseases and
dangers, which they are very unlikely ever to encounter and studiously
ignore tobacco, alchohol, junk food, road traffic, etc?

--
Larry Stoter

The message k
from (Larry Stoter) contains these words:
martin wrote:

snips ...
Lyme Disease is carried by ticks.
An infectious disease caused by a bacterium which is spread to humans
snips ...

Why do so many people worry about rare and uncommon diseases and
dangers, which they are very unlikely ever to encounter and studiously
ignore tobacco, alchohol, junk food, road traffic, etc?

Depends where you are. If there are deer about, Lyme disease is not
rare. Very often it is not recognised though. (And near here we have
red, roe and muntjack, and I've seen fallow and sika not ten miles away.
Not a lot of bracken though.)

--
Rusty
Open the creaking gate to make a horrid.squeak, then lower the foobar.
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/

"Larry Stoter" wrote in message
. co.uk...
martin wrote:

snips ...
Lyme Disease is carried by ticks.
An infectious disease caused by a bacterium which is spread to humans
snips ...

Why do so many people worry about rare and uncommon diseases and
dangers, which they are very unlikely ever to encounter and studiously
ignore tobacco, alchohol, junk food, road traffic, etc?

--
Larry Stoter

Indeed, there is a well known 'ecologist' who can be regularily seen or
heard or read castigating us about the evils of pollution etc. This same
person can also be seen chain smoking rollups.(never mind the direct damage
to himself from the ciggie, there is a lot of ecological damage caused by
tobacco growing)

--
Tumbleweed

Remove my socks for email address

On Tue, 1 Jun 2004 23:19:54 +0100, (Larry
Stoter) wrote:

martin wrote:

snips ...
Lyme Disease is carried by ticks.
An infectious disease caused by a bacterium which is spread to humans
snips ...

Why do so many people worry about rare and uncommon diseases and
dangers, which they are very unlikely ever to encounter and studiously
ignore tobacco, alchohol, junk food, road traffic, etc?

a) I don't ignore the dangers of any of your list
b) because people catch them, I know one person suffering from Lyme's
disease. I've never met anybody, who even knows anybody with nvCJD
although in UK this is a national obsession that has cost the country
billions.

In message , Jaques
d'Alltrades writes
Depends where you are. If there are deer about, Lyme disease is not
rare. Very often it is not recognised though. (And near here we have
red, roe and muntjack, and I've seen fallow and sika not ten miles
away. Not a lot of bracken though.)

I lived in the Eastern US in the sixties, and there was very little Lyme
disease there then. In the years since then it has proliferated - I know
at least a half-dozen people who have had it and were incapacitated for
long periods, including two teenagers who spent a year each in
wheelchairs. So, yes, worth worrying about. (

--
Klara, Gatwick basin

On Wed, 2 Jun 2004 14:01:48 +0100, klara
wrote:

In message , Jaques
d'Alltrades writes
Depends where you are. If there are deer about, Lyme disease is not
rare. Very often it is not recognised though. (And near here we have
red, roe and muntjack, and I've seen fallow and sika not ten miles
away. Not a lot of bracken though.)

I lived in the Eastern US in the sixties, and there was very little Lyme
disease there then. In the years since then it has proliferated - I know
at least a half-dozen people who have had it and were incapacitated for
long periods, including two teenagers who spent a year each in
wheelchairs. So, yes, worth worrying about. (

There were about 250 cases reported in UK last year, it's often not
recognised by the professionals. Part of the increase reported is due
to increasing awareness of Lyme's disease.

The OP's question rang a bell but I've only just remembered, rather
late, what I'd heard about fern (or rather bracken) and eyes.

In west Scotland, farmers used to cut bracken to use dried as free
cattle bedding in winter. If you've ever handled dry bracken you'll know
it easily splinters. Apparently, the little sharp bits of broken bracken
would cause trouble when they got into the cows' eyes in the byre.

This could be the basis of the threat to children's eyes he'd heard
about; a child walking through bracken is being brushed by it at
face-level.

Janet.