Research Notes

'U' economists: 2001 will bring slower economy

University economists have predicted that the economy will continue growing this year and slow down in 2001.

In the University's annual forecast update of the U.S. economy, they predict the rate of economic growth will remain at 4.9 percent this year and decrease to 2.7 percent next year as the Federal Reserve continues to raise interest rates.

Mortgage rates will grow from 7.4 percent in 1999, to 8.6 percent in 2000, to 9.2 percent in 2000, the report predicts. Treasury bills will also grow from 4.6 percent last year to 6.9 percent in 2001.

They also predict that there will be a greater inflation rate and a decrease in the growth of disposable income. The forecast says inflation rates in 2001 will rise to 2.8 percent - 1.7 percent more than last year.

The economists say the unemployment rate will remain relatively the same next year at 4.4 percent, a 0.2 percent difference from 1999.

They also forecast that the value of the dollar will rise by 0.8 percent this year before declining by 1.6 percent in 2001.

The forecast was based on the Michigan Quarterly Econometric Model of the U.S. Economy and compiled by the University Research Seminar in Quantitative Economics.

U. Minnesota researchers find bulimia drug

Researchers at the University of Minnesota have found a drug that might help in combating bulimia.

The drug, called ondansetron, is currently used for patients receiving chemotherapy to reduce vomiting and nausea.

Ondansetron blocks the activity of the afferent vagal circuit nerves which give the brain a signal saying the stomach is full. The researchers found that bulimia causes hyperactivity in the nerves.

In a small study of 25 bulimic women, researchers found that women on the drug purged an average of 6.5 times per week compared with 13.2 times for women on the placebo.

Research will continue on the drug, which can help the 2 to 3 million women in the nation who have been diagnosed with bulimia.

They warn that the drug might be dangerous for patients who take antidepressant medication, one of the current treatments for bulimia.

Brown U. study explores sleep issues of children

Researchers at Brown University have found that 37 percent of students in kindergarten through fourth grade have sleep disturbances, a percentage much higher than they previously expected.

The study, led by Brown University School of Medicine assistant pediatrics Prof. Judith Owens, found that the children have many sleep issues, such as snoring, bed-wetting, sleep-time anxiety and daytime sleepiness.

They also found that poor sleep habits in children carry into adolescence and adulthood.

Owens said she hopes to perfect a five-question screening tool to determine if children have sleep issues, along with developing a sleep medicine curriculum. The study, which was published in the journal Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics and funded by a five-year grant from the National Institute of Health, shows that extended periods of sleep deprivation is unhealthy.

She attributes many of the sleeping disorders to the rising availability of computers and video games that stimulate children's brains before bedtime.

- Compiled by Daily Staff Reporter Lindsey Alpert from wire reports.