Health & Wellness
Healthbeat
Moses Cone plans free nutrition programs
GREENSBORO - In recognition of National Nutrition
Month, Moses Cone Health System Nutrition and Diabetes
Management Center plans four free nutrition programs.
The first was called "Get Real with Emotional Eating." This
program aimed to help people identify the emotional triggers
that prompt them to overeat and to find ways to eliminate them.
This program was Monday. March 4.
The number of children ages 6-17 considered overweight has
more than doubled in recent years. "Weighty Problems in Chil
dren" will provide parents steps they can use at home to help
their kids. It will be on Wednesday, March 13. Q
"What's in your Shopping Cart?" promises to help people
make better choices at the supermarket. It will help people zero
in on what is important on food labels as well as offer tips on
how to successfully modify recipes. What's new in stores and
the psychology of how and where products are displayed also
will be covered, ft will be on Wednesday, March 20.
These free programs will be from 6:30-8:30 p.m. in class
room 29 of The Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital.
"Mid-Life^Veight Control' is for women only. This program
offers tips on .refocusing the diet mentality and looks at fat cell
changes that happen as women hit middle age.
"Mid-Life Weight Control" will be held are from 6:30-8:30
p.m. in classroom 1 of The Women's Hospital of Greensboro
Those interested should register by calling 1-800-533-3463.
Sixth annual Hospice Hope Run set
More than 600 runners and walkers are expected to partici
pate in the sixth annual Hospice Hope Run, a 10K run and 5K
fitness walk, set for Saturday, April 20, at Ernie Shore Field in
Winston-Salem.
The 10K race, on a USATF certified course, will start at 8:30
a.m., and the 5K fitness walk (3.1 miles) will immediately fol
low. Both will begin and end at Ernie Shore Field. The run and
walk are open to anyone interested in participating, and the pro
ceeds will benefit patient care at the Hospice & Palliative Care
Center of Winston-Salem.
The cost is $16 for those who register early (on or before
April 12) and $20 after April 12 and on the day of the race. The
entry fee includes a custom-designed T-shirt, post-race refresh
ments, awards, and door prizes. The Twin City Track Club will
direct the race, and complete results will be available. Partici
pants are encouraged to collect pledges or donations for the race.
"For an additional $5 donation, people who want to walk or
run in honor or memory of someone will receive a commemora
tive poster and a special ribbon to wear. The growing number of
people wearing a colorful ribbon in honor or memory of some
one has truly enhanced the feeling of taking part in something
really special," Ann Gauthreaux. public relations manager,
explained.
For an additional $25 donation, a person can sponsor a mile
marker in honor or memory of someone and receive a ribbon as
well as a commemorative poster. Pre-registration is required to
sponsor a mile marker. People who are unable to walk or run or
can't join us on April 20 can sign up as a "Proud-in-the Crowd"
supporter and, for a donation of $16. receive a complete partici
pant packet.
In 2001, more than 650 runners and walkers took part in the
Hospice Hope Run. and thanks to sponsors and participants, a
record $62,000 was raised for patient care. Since the event
began in 1997, it has brought in more than $210,000. BB&T is
the rnajorsponsor for this year's Hospice Hope Run.
For more information about the Hospice Hope Run, call
Gauthreaux at 768-3972.
Report: Birth defects, premature birth
linked to mothers being overweight
SAN DIEGO - Birth defects, premature birth, and other
severe health problems in tomorrow's babies are linked to
the soaring rates of obesity among women of childbearing
age, according to a new report released here recently by the
March of Dimes Task Force on Nutrition and Optimal
Human Development.
"Weight before pregnancy matters much more than peo
ple realize, even health professionals," said Richard J.
Deckelbaum. M.D.. professor of nutrition at Columbia Uni
versity. New York, and chairman of the March of Dimes
Task Force. "For the moms, there are serious complications
such as gestational diabetes, dangerously high blood pres
sure, and hospitalization; and for the habies. prematurity,
serious birth detects and other severe problems. And when
these babies grow up. they are more likely to suffer from
obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and other health
problems. Obesity is particularly dangerous for women of
childbearing age because it creates a life cycle of serious
problems that can be passed from generation to generation."
More than 450,000 babies are born prematurely each
year in the United States, and the rate of premature birth has
increased 23 percent since the early 1980s. Deckelbaum
cites two recerft articles on the serious hazards and lifelong
consequences of prematurity that appeared in The New Eng
land Journal of Medicine.
Qcckelbaum urges women to prepare-for their future
children by eating "family-friendly" or "baby-friendly" por
tion sizes to reduce caloric intake, limiting second helpings,
and getting more physical exercise.
"Nutrition Today Matters Tomorrow: A Report From the
March of Dimes Task Force on Nutrition and Optimal
Human Development" also advises new approaches to pre
vent vitamin and mineral deficiencies, unhealthy nutrition,
exposure to unsafe food and water, and poor growth and
development among children in the United States and
worldwide.
"This report is a blueprint of practical answers for a
healthier tomorrow for people in the United States and
around the wogld." Deckelbaum said. "We hope it will
inspire health 'providers, community leaders, and policy
makers at all levels."
The March of Dimes Task Force on Nutrition and Opti
mal Human Development, created in 1999, consists of 29
nutrition scientists, administrators, and policy-makers from
organizations such as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the
World Health Organization, and the American College of
Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
Maintaining ideal body weight and getting adequate exer
cise and nutrition - including avoiding too much alcohol and
salt - can help prevent high blood pressure.
Study says middle-age
Americans face high
blood-pressure risk
BY l.INDSEY TANNER
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHICAGO - Middle-age
Americans have a 90 percent
chance of eventually developing
high blood pressure, a new study
estimates. But experts say many
can still beat the oddswith diet
and exercise.
The study, published recent
lyjn the Journal of the American
Medical Association, prompted
warnings from the nation's top
health authorities, including
Health and Human Services
Secretary Tommy Thompson
and Dr. Claude Lenfant. director
of the National Heart, Lung and
Blood Institute.
"Ninety percent is a stagger
ing statistic and cause for con
cern," Thompson' said. '.This
finding should energize Ameri
cans to take steps to protect
themselves against high blood
pressure."
Lenfant, whose agency
helped fund the study, said
Americans "cannot adopt a
wait-and-see approach. If they
do, chances are they will find
themselves with high blood
pressure, and that puts them at
increased risk for heart disease
and stroke."
High blood pressure is esti
mated to affect 50 million Amer
icans. The study, among the first
to calculate the lifetime risk of
developing the condition,
.SVr Study on C4
BigH
Houston Mayor Lee Brown, center, is weighed in by Houston City Council member Carol
Alvarado, left, and Houston Parks and Recreation Department Fitness Director Shadston
Pittman during the "Weigh-Out" ceremony for the city's Get Fit challenge at City Hall
Feb. 27. The city has made a collective effort to slim down since it was recently deemed
the nation's "fattest city." Combined, the city officials lost 102 pounds, including 14
pounds shed by the mayor.
Society:
Colon
cancer
can be
avoided
si'i ( I \i it) mi CHRONICLE
ATLANTA - Colon can
cer can be easily prevented,
but it remains the second lead
ing cause of cancer deaths in
the United States and will
claim nearly 57,000 American
lives this year. According to
the American Cancer Society,
the nation's leading voluntary
health organization, many of
those lives could be saved if
people better understood the
risks for the disease and got
tested regularly. Colon cancer
screening tests identify suspi
cious or pre-cancerous polyps,
which can be removed before
they develop into serious
health problems.
"Routine colon cancer test
ing can actually prevent the
disease from occurring," said
Robert C. Young, M.D.,
national volunteer president of
the American Cancer Society.
"Societal roadblocks, howev
er, need to be overcome to
make this the norm. Many
people find colon cancer an
embarrassing topic to raise,
even with their doctors. For a
variety of reasons, many doc
tors do not discuss the issue
with patients at risk for the
disease, including those 50 or
older and African Americans."
"With colon cancer testing,
we can see parallels with
where Pap testing was 60
years ago," said Durado D.
Brooks, M.D.. M.P.H.. direc
tor of colon cancer programs
at the American Cancer Soci
ety's National Home Office.
"Once Pap testing became
widely discussed and imple
mented, the beneficial results
in preventing cervical cancers
were clearly evident. Like
wise, we could expect the
See Colon on C4
Triplets to be ambassadors for agency
SI'hC'IAI. TO I MI. CHRONIC IT;
Six-year-old Ross, Jacob,
and Anderson Lippard have
been selected to represent Win
ston-Salem as youth ambassa
dors for the 2(X)2 WalkAmerica.
Through the years, youth
ambassadors have played
important roles, both nationally
and on a local level, in spread
ing the message about the
March of. Dimes fight to save
babies.
"We're helping the March of
Dimes save babies," said Jacob
Lippard. who w ill walk with his
brothers in Winston-Salem's
WalkAmerica Saturday. April
13. at Salem Square. "We want
everyone in Winston-Salem to
help us save them too."
Funds raised in WalkAmeri
ca support research and pro
grams that benefit babies across
the nation and in Winston
Salem.
The Lippard family under
stands the importance of the
March of Dimes mission. The
triplets were born nearly two
months early on March 9. 1994.
Anderson weighed 2 pounds. 7
ounces; Jacob weighed 2
pounds. 5 ounces; and Ross
weighed 2 pounds. 9 ounces?
The babies received surfactant
therapy, and Ross and Jacob
were off ventilators within their
first week of life. Ross and
Anderson came home after six
weeks. Jacob was smaller and
had a few more setbacks and so
he stayed in the NICU at
Sei Lippards on C4
Lippard triplets