"As a state, Florida struggles to provide government funding to people with disabilities, so we look to the community to pick up the gap," says Mary Hitchcock, president and CEO of Easter Seals in Sarasota. They compensate with organizations like Manasota Lighthouse and its services for the blind; Children's Haven & Adult Center, Manasota ARC and Loveland Center, which support residents with mental retardation; and Child Development Center, which assists at-risk children.

The alternative healing arts thrive here as well. In addition to 211 chiropractors, Sarasota has 123 acupuncturists and 101 osteopaths. Spa services abound, with more than 1,400 massage therapists to soothe our muscles, 16 electrologists to remove unwanted hair, 33 licensed athletic trainers to whip our bodies into shape and 118 nutritionists and nutrition counselors to make sure they stay fit. After injuries, 274 occupational therapists and 407 physical therapists can get you back on your feet again. We also enjoy a wealth of board-certified plastic and reconstructive surgeons.

The abundance of care surprises new residents like Palileo and King, who says, "There's a perception that hospitals that are not tertiary [teaching] centers are not as good, and that's just not true here." King says Sarasota enjoys most of the same services as Tampa, Gainesville, Jacksonville and Miami. When you consider that we also enjoy dazzling beaches, spectacular climate and a superior cultural atmosphere, Sarasota truly is a city of physical, emotional and mental good health.

All figures from the Florida Department of Health Web site, http://www.doh.state.fl.us/IRM00PRAES/PRASLIST.ASP

CLOCKING IN AND OUT

Most of us already know that we're either a "morning" person or a "vampire," someone who prowls the night only to cringe at the sun's first rays. But few people are aware of the science that has occurred regarding these instincts.

Enter Dr. Matthew Edlund, head of the Center for Circadian Medicine and director of the Gulf Coast Sleep Institute. Edlund, a Sarasota resident, has trained in sleep medicine, occupational health and internal medicine at Brown University, Harvard and the University of California. He is also one of the first physicians in the United States to clinically practice body clock medicine and recently published his first book on the subject, The Body Clock Advantage.

The book is based on Edlund's assertion that each of us falls into one of two groups: "owls," who rage late into the night, and "larks," who spring out of bed at dawn but are crawling by midnight.

Edlund maintains that understanding what kind of "clock" your body runs on can improve every area of your life, from athletics to health, romance and creativity. He also believes that all humans are ruled by "circadian rhythms" that impact how we behave.

Did you know, for example, that most industrial accidents happen between the hours of midnight and 6 a.m.? According to Edlund, many major mishaps, from the Exxon Valdez oil spill to the nuclear accidents at Chernobyl and Three Mile Island, occurred during these hours. He even declares in his book, that, "Unless you are a night person, your performance will decline from midnight on."

The good news is that, regardless of your internal rhythms, you can learn from them, and even change them to work for you instead of against you. Recently, Edlund spoke with us about his book and his research.

Q. What exactly is a human body clock?

A. Everyone is born with a particular type of body clock that tells them when to sleep. An exquisite set of genes controls the biological clock. But all of terrestrial biology is based on a daily cycle. If you go into the Pacific Basin, where there is no light, you'll still see organisms existing under a 24-hour system.

Q. How does this clock affect humans?

A. In humans, it means that some people genetically prefer to stay up late while others can't go past 10 at night. Many people select their jobs based on their clock. The trouble starts if you don't know or won't acknowledge what type of body clock you have. Then it becomes difficult to find areas that it doesn't affect.

Q. What do you mean?

A. Take shift work. Humans certainly did not evolve for nighttime shifts. Studies show that people who work overnight have higher rates of hypertension and other health problems, even miscarriage. We have to recognize how to use the body in the way it was built. We seem to want to use our bodies as if they were machines, instead of making sleep patterns more regular so that we stay in sync with our own body clock.