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Last year I visited a relative in Canada and leaning up in the corner of one of his rooms was an old Harmony guitar. He bought it in Leigh-on-Sea in [...]

The article in Guitarist magazine features several letters from readers. One reader shares their experience of playing guitar with their eyes closed, which led to them playing in new and different ways. The editor agrees that closing one sense can heighten others and suggests that closing our eyes can help us focus on sound and improve our playing. Another reader discusses their preference for certain guitar brands and how their perceptions have changed over time. The editor emphasizes the importance of finding guitars that work for individual needs and highlights the dedication of guitar designers in creating quality instruments. The article also includes a request for information about a specific guitar brand and a reader's invention to address neck dive in guitars. Lastly, a reader shares their discovery of an old Harmony guitar and seeks more information about its history and value. [Extracted from the article]

Background: Iron deficiency and its consequent anemia constitute the commonest micronutrient deficiency in the world. Objective: We investigated whether long-term, weekly ironfolate supplements administered at school would improve hemoglobin and ferritin concentrations in adolescent girls, including those with mild-to-moderate anemia and hemoglobin concentrations indicating borderline anemia. Design: Subjects were 266 girls with hemoglobin concentrations of 80-119.9 g/L (group A) and 358 girls with hemoglobin concentrations of 120-130 g/L (group B) who were otherwise healthy. Two hundred sixty-six girls in group A and 268 girls in group B were randomly assigned to receive either 60 or 120 mg Fe plus 3.5 mg folic acid weekly for 22 wk. Ninety of the girls in group B were randomly assigned to receive only 5 mg folic acid weekly. Capillary hemoglobin and plasma ferritin were measured at baseline and after 12 and 22 wk of supplementation. Results: By the end of the study, 2% of the girls had dropped out and [is greater than or equal to] 96% had taken [is greater than or equal to] 20 of the 22 tablets; side effects were minimal. Mean plasma ferritin increased significantly in all iron-supplemented groups, independently of initial hemoglobin values and iron doses. Ferritin concentrations decreased in the girls supplemented with folic acid only. As expected, hemoglobin responses to iron were higher in group A than in group B and increases were positively correlated with initial plasma ferritin. Hemoglobin failed to respond to folate supplementation if initial plasma ferritin concentrations were low. Mean hemoglobin increased significantly and consistently in relation to the length of treatment. Conclusion: Long-term, weekly iron-folate supplementation was found to be a practical, safe, effective, and inexpensive method for improving iron nutrition in adolescent schoolgirls. Am J Clin Nutr 1999;69:1249-56.