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News Releases
Farmers Project Highlighted in National Magazine
Columbia, Mo. (July 31, 2002) - Farmers have more to worry about than raising a good crop, according the May/June 2002 issue of Progressive Farmer magazine.
“Facing Up to Farmer’s Health Risks,” part two of a six-part series on safety, health and wellness in farming, addresses the growing problem of arthritis in agriculture.
The article highlights Farmers and Arthritis, a project of the Missouri Arthritis Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (MARRTC). This MARRTC project is dedicated to helping farmers with arthritis stay on the job.
Progressive Farmer is published by Southern Progress Corp., a subsidiary of Time Inc., headquartered in Birmingham Ala. Progressive Farmer is a general circulation magazine with a circulation of 14,000. The Midwest edition, which includes the “Facing Up to Farmer’s Health Risks” series, goes to subscribers in Missouri, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and Kansas. Arthritis – the nation’s No. 1 disability – affects farmers’ backs, hips, knuckles and other joints, due to the constant bending, climbing and gripping of farm equipment that comes with the job.
According to the article, Missouri’s economy relies heavily on agriculture which means arthritis can be a serious economic issue as well as a serious personal issue.
Two-thirds of farmers surveyed report that “arthritis inhibits some activities,” according Farmers and Arthritis Project statistics cited in the article. Of those farmers, one-third said they need to work shorter days and one-quarter said they cannot work on all or most days because of their arthritis.
The Farmers and Arthritis Project is a cooperative venture between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and MARRTC.
Project coordinator Karen Funkenbusch said that the article is a step in the right direction on encouraging farmers to take advantage of help available for farmers with arthritis. Funkenbusch explained many people know about the project, but few take advantage of the help offered by the Farmers and Arthritis Project.
“We do a lot of public service announcements on our programs,” said Funkenbusch, “but [response] really depends on the community.”
Progressive Farmer plans to do a cover story in 2003 focusing on arthritis and farming, according to Funkenbusch.
The article also spotlighted AgrAbility, a national program that provides assistance, such as adaptive technology and educational materials, to farmers with disabilities. AgrAbility’s goal is to help farmers with disabilities, on both large and small operations, to continue farming effectively. The Missouri AgrAbility program operates as a partnership between the University of Missouri-Columbia, along with Lincoln University.
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