Health & Wellness
Healthbeat
MSG use linked to obesity
According to a University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill School of Public Health, people who use
monosodium glutamate. or MSG, as a flavor
enhancer in their food are more likely than people
who don't use it to be overweight or obese even
though they have the same amount of physical activ
ity and total calorie intake. The school's study is pub
lished this month in the journal "Obesity."
Researchers at UNC and in China studied more
than 750 Chinese men and women, aged between 40
and 59, in three rural villages in north and south
China. The majority of study participants prepared
their meals at home without commercially processed
foods . About 82 percent of the participants used MSG
in their food, TTiose users were divided into three
groups, based on the amount of MSG they used. The
third who used the most MSG were nearly three times
more likely to be overweight than non-users.
"Animal studies have indicated for years that
MSG might be associated with weight gain," said Ka
He, MX)., assistant professor of nutrition and epi
demiology at die UNC School of Public Health.
"Ours is the first study to show a link between MSG
UK and weight in humans "
f Because MSG is used as a flavor enhancer in
many processed foods, studying its potential effect on
humans has been difficult. He and his colleagues
chose study participants living in rural Chinese vil
lages because they used very little commercially
processed food, but many regularly used MSG in
food preparation.
Alumnus returns to head
UNCG's counseling department
J. Scott Young, who earned an MEd and a PhD at
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, has
returned to UNCG as chair of the top-ranked
Department of Counseling and Educational
Development.
Young, who specializes in spirituality in counsel
ing, comes to UNCG from Mississippi State
University, where he has
taught since 1996. He began
work Aug. 1, and follows Dr.
L. DiAnne Borders as depart
ment chair.
He has been a practicing
counselor in private practice,
agency and hospital settings
for more than IS years. His
leadership in the field of coun
seling includes service as pres
ident of the Association for
Spiritual Ethical and Religious
Values in Counseling and as a
the Governing Council and Executive
i for the American Counseling
received UNCG's Alumni
2003. He has also received die
Service Award from the Association far!
1, Ethical and Religious Values in Counseling
Mississippi Counseling Association's 2002
; Research Award.
is a National Certified Counselor and a|
Professional Counselor. He is married to
t- Young, a licensed counselor, registered
ast and psychology instructor. "Hie Youngs
: two daughters. Savannah and Sophie.
JS. Army awards
^Carolina Donor Services
Carolina Donor Services will be the first organ
fmcorement organization (OPO) in the country to be
recognized by the United States Army. The Army
I will award OPO today (Aug. 21) for contributing
organs since 2002 than any other organization
I ~
w the Military Share Program. The Military
Share Program is a Department of Defense Directive
which requests voluntary participation from organ
it organizations throughout the United
1 Carolina Donor Services' CEO and President
I Jordan said he is honored to accept the com
H"We, like all Americans, are indebted to the men
who are either serving or have served in
r. The Military Share Program is consis
our mission to save and improve lives by
g organ and tissue donation," said Jordan.
. on to say, "Carolina Donor Services will
! to support the Military Share Program in an
* aid our great nation's male and female
, Airmen, Seamen, and their beneficiaries in
plantation "
i information about donation or register
an organ and tissue donor, visit
fenc.org.
think that God's
ition can revive the dying
ZAGO (AP) - When it comes to
uod trumps doctors for many Americans. ?
1 eye-opening survey reveals widespread belief
intervention can revive dying patients.
mcher8 said, doctors "need to be prepared to ;
II families who are waiting for a miracle." 1
: than half of randomly surveyed adults ? 57
said God's intervention could save a fam
jr even if physicians declared treatment
be futile. And nearly three-quarters said
I have a right to demand such treatment,
ten asked to imagine their own relatives being
y ill or injured, nearly 20 percent of doctors and
" t workers said God could reverse a hope
Losing It
Winston Lake Y launching weight loss program next month
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
The Winston Lake Family YMCA is planning to show local folks how to adopt healthy changcs_
Y- Weigh, a 12- week weight management program, will start next month, but registration started Monday and
will continue through Sept. 5.
Available to Y members and non-mem
bers, the program is open to those
who are at least SO pounds
overweight; Participant^
must have their doctors'
consent.
Through every
thing from choles
terol health
screenings to
nutritional lec
tures and
weekly group
workouts, Y
W e i g h ' s
focus will be
on healthy
weight loss
and education.
"Y-Weigh will
be a highly-focused
yet highly-friendly pro
gram," said Jolyn Roberts, >
Membership Director at Winston Lake Family
YMCA. "Everyone who participates will see benefits whether it's in weight loss, education in healthy eating
tips or lifestyle changes. We'll be working together to make these changes, and coaches will be available
throughout the week for questions, motivation and encouragement. Work out with your own peers who offer
group support and build friendships with people who have similar goals and life experiences while you work
your way to new, healthy habits."
The program costs $60 for YMCA members and $195 for non-members. The Y does offer financial assis
tance for all of its programs, including the Y Weigh, to those can't afford the fee. The program fee includes
full access to the YMCA for the duration of.the program.
Registration can be completed by visiting the Winston Lake Family YMCA, 901 Waterworks Rd. For ques
tions or more information about Y-Weigh, call 336-724-9205.
Medical Center finds its CEO
John D. McConnell
will start Nov. 1
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center
has found its first ever chief executive officer.
Dr. John D. McConnell, 54, will oversee the clin
ical, research and academic enterprise for Wake
Forest Baptist, reporting to the Medical Center's
board of directors. The Medical Canter restructured
its leadership in March 2007 to a single overarching
governing body with a single CEO.
McConnell, who is expected to start at Wake
Forest Baptist on Nov. 1, comes to Winston-Salem
from Dallas, where he has been executive vice presi
dent of health system affairs at University of Texas
Southwestern since 2003. A noted urologist who
joined the UT Southwestern faculty in 1984,
McConnell has held a number of clinical as well as
administrative posts at UT Southwestern, including
urology department chair, prostate disease center
director, vice president for clinical programs and
executive vice president for administration.
"We knew there was a John McConnell out there
somewhere when we brought together the enormous
resources of North Carolina Baptist Hospital and
Wake Forest University Health Sciences," said Steve
Robertson, chair of the Medical Center Board. "Dr.
McConnell is clearly positioned and experienced to
lead us with an understanding that encompasses the
evolution of physician practices, the prominent role
of research in a medical center, administration and an
abiding focus on patient care."
McConnell will lead 11,000 employees at the
Medical Center, which has a combined net annual
revenue of $1.6 billion. He brings to Wake Forest
Baptist a philosophy of balanced excellence which
has guided his career for 25 years.
WFUBMC Photo
Dr. John D. McConnell with his wife, Melinda.
"All components of the mission must be the best
they can be," he explained. "We all think and act as
one entity. The emphasis is on quality not quantity.
McConnell and his wife. Melinda. a former med
ical technologist with an M.B.^ degree, have been
married for 30 years. Their daughter, Cara, is an
English major at the University of Kansas.
Spreading Yoga
PHNewiFoto/Yofa Alliance
Residents of West Palm Beach, Fla., participate in Yoga Day
USA 2008. The Yoga Alliance has just announced that Yoga
Day 2009 will be Saturday, Jan. 24. Events designed to increase
awareness of the benefits of yoga and help make yoga more
accessible to more people are expected to take place in cities
throughout the nation. For more information, go to
www.yogadayusa.org.
Blacks and
Acanthosis
Nigricans
What is Acanthosis
Nigricans?
Acanthosis Nigricans
(AN) (sometimes called dirty
neck) is skin disorder that has
dark brown velvety plaques
most commonly found on the
skin of the underarms, neck,
and knuckles, but can occur
on the insides of the thighs
and tops of fingers and hands
as well. The discoloration is
the result of thickened skin
and not an increase in pig
ment, as is commonly thought
by patients. It does not usual
ly have any symptoms, but
can occasionally get itchy.
Are there any diseases
associated with AN?
AN is associated with
many syndromes and dis
eases, both benign and malig
nant. Insulin resistance and
diabetes mellitus are the most
common associations with
AN. Other relationships have
been shown with malignancy,
while even more cases of AN
occur without any known
underlying disease, except
perhaps, obesity. As the
prevalence of obesity in
adults and children today con
tinues to rise, AN becomes an
even more important finding
to alert physicians of possible
pathology and halt disease
processes at earlier stages,
thus decreasing morbidity and
mortality.
Who gets AN?
There is a hereditary type
of AN found in ^oung chil
dren. There is a type that
affects adults with insulin
resistance/obesity. The last
type, which is rare, typically
affects an older population,
and is associated with malig
nancy. AN can affect males
' and females, but the type that
affects adults tends to be more
common in women.
Regarding race, AN tends to
have a higher prevalence
among blacks than whites.
Native Americans also have
been shown to have an
increased risk of AN, which
correlates with their increased
risk of diabetes.
What is the mechanism of
AN causing skin lesions?
The darkened skin is not
associated with a change or
increase in melanocytes (cells
that produce melanin, or skin
pigmentation), but is due to
thickening of the skin layers.
As the levels of insulin in the
See AN on All
UNC report: Cheerleading causes
most injuries for female athletes
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
? ? 1 ? ? ? 1 ? ? . ? ; i , -
The gracc and excitement of cheerleading is not without its dangers
and risks.
The University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill
released a report earlier this
month showing that the largest
proportion of injuries to high
school and college athletes
occur in cheerleading.
The annual report from the
National Center for
Catastrophic Sports Injury
Research, which is based at
UNC, shows high school cheer
leading accounted for 65.1 per
cent of all catastrophic sports
injuries among high school
females over the past 25 years.
Previously, the figure was
believed to be 55 percent, but
new data included in this year's
survey indicates that the true
number of checrlcading injuries appears to be higher.
At the college. level, the new data shows cheerleading accounted for
O See Cheering on All
?