October 30, 2003

Potter Headache

I thought the headache I had while reading Order of the Phoenix was simple transference from Harry as the pain from his scar waxed and wained.

But a Northwest Washington physician thinks otherwise:

three patients, ages 8 to 10, complained in June that they had been suffering from headaches for two or three days.

"In each case, the headache was dull and the pain fluctuated throughout the day," Bennett wrote in a letter published in today's issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
....
"On further questioning, it was determined that each child had spent many hours reading J.K. Rowling's latest book in the Harry Potter series," Bennett wrote in the letter, which journal editors titled "Hogwarts Headaches -- Misery for Muggles."
......
"The presumed diagnosis for each child was a tension headache brought on by the effort required to plow through an 870-page book. The obvious cure for this malady -- that is, taking a break from reading -- was rejected by two of the patients, who preferred acetaminophen instead," ....

Hmmmm, I still think I'm right and when the next volume comes out I suggest parent's of 8-10 year olds give them something to prop up the book.

Posted by Steve on October 30, 2003
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