Three Of Mccaughey Septuplets Suffer Serious Health Problems

CARLISLE, Iowa - Three of the Iowa septuplets, whose birth made medical history nearly two years ago, are suffering serious health problems, according to a report published yesterday.

Alexis, one of three girls in the set of seven, has a disorder that causes muscular weakness in her limbs. Her brother Nathan has a condition that causes spasticity in his legs, parents Kenny and Bobbi McCaughey said in the December issue of Ladies Home Journal, on newsstands today.

Neither can walk or sit up without help. In addition, recent scans found that both have underdeveloped brain areas, the article said.

Another girl, Natalie, suffers from a severe acid reflux-like condition that requires her to be tube fed through a line into her stomach. Alexis has the same problem and is also tube fed.

The seven, born Nov. 19, 1997, were the first septuplets known to have survived for more than a few days. Their mother had been taking fertility medication, and the babies were born more than nine weeks prematurely.

Half of Army's Apache copters to be grounded for repairs

More than half the Army's 743 Boeing-made Apache helicopters will be grounded for several months to replace tail-rotor bearings blamed in a crash early this year, the Pentagon said today.

On Friday, the Army disclosed that it would inspect the full fleet of Apaches to determine which carried the defective bearing assemblies but said it anticipated "no problems with readiness" in the fleet.

Asked for additional details today, Pentagon spokesman P.J. Crowley said nearly all 743 Apaches had been inspected and that about 400 will require bearing replacements. He said it will take eight to 10 months to get all the aircraft back in operation. And because there are too few spare bearings in Army stocks to complete the work, the manufacturer will have to restart production.

Crowley said it could take as long as three months for first deliveries of the new bearings.

The replacement work is expected to cost about $13.5 million, the spokesman said.

Execs accused of lying as trial opens in Hudson-recall case

LINCOLN, Neb. - Officials with Hudson Foods lied to the U.S. government for more than a week before the largest meat recall in the country's history was ordered, a prosecutor told a federal jury today.

Hudson initially ordered a limited recall of ground beef in 1997, even though company workers knew more ground beef was potentially contaminated with the E. coli bacteria, assistant U.S. attorney Jan Sharp said.

A recall of 25 million pounds of ground beef did not begin until the government discovered on its own that there was more potentially contaminated meat, Sharp said in opening statements in the trial of two Hudson executives charged with conspiracy.

Hamburger produced at a Hudson plant was linked to an outbreak of E. coli contamination in July 1997 in Colorado. Hudson is now owned by Tyson Foods.

Study: Simple habits help women beat heart disease

People have an unexpectedly high ability to prevent the nation's No. 1 killer, according to a preliminary study showing that women with the most healthful habits were 82 percent less likely to develop heart disease than a group of women who smoked, were overweight or didn't exercise regularly.

The new study of 84,000 women by researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health suggests that several of the known steps to reduce heart disease can combine to produce an overall benefit that is larger than mainstream authorities have estimated.

The findings were presented yesterday at an American Heart Association meeting in Atlanta.

Woman hid dead daughter in closet for two decades

NEW YORK - For two decades, in a closet strewn with air fresheners, bolted shut and blocked by a wardrobe, authorities say Madelyn Carmichael kept a horrifying secret: the violent death of her young daughter.

Carmichael, 60, fainted as she watched police, acting on a tip from a long-lost son, break into the makeshift tomb in her Brooklyn home where the mummified body was found.

Police believe the girl was beaten to death 20 years ago.

Carmichael remained hospitalized today, delaying her arraignment on second-degree-murder charges.