Health & Wellness
Healthbeat
Training upped for .
state's first responders
: North Carolina's Executive Committee for Highway
Safety, which includes representatives from the N.C.
Department of Transportation. N.C. State Highway
Patrol and other highway safety groups, has launched a
new training program for. first responders. The program
is being paid for through a $525/300 Federal Emergency
Management Agency Prevention Grant and is aimed at
improving safety, reducing secondary accidents and
decreasing congestion on roads throughout North
Carolina
The N.C. Responds r Safety Program will be provid
ed to fire, rescue and law enforcement agencies, as well
as emergency medical services, towing operators and
other first responders across the state. TTie program
includes a 30-minute DVD written and produced by the
ECHS that lays out standard response methods for the
most common types of incidents and educates personnel
on how to clear them quickly and safely while minimiz
ing their effect on traffic
In addition, the program provides reference cards for
responders to put inside their vehicles to serve as on-the
scene guides. The cards show several incident scenarios
and point out key safety tips such as where to most effec
tively park response vehicles and how to appropriately
position traffic cones. They also feature several state
statutes, including the Quick Clearance and Move Over
laws, which help protect first responders.
Death rate high for meat lovers
CHICAGO <AP) - The largest study of its kind
finds that older Americans who eat large amounts of red
meat and processed meats face a greater risk of death
from heart disease and cancer. The federal study of more
than half a million men and women bolsters prior evi
dence of the health risks of diets laden with red meat like
hamburger and processed meats like hot dogs, bacon and
cold cuts.
Calling the increased risk modest, lead author
Rashmi Sinha of the National Cancer Institute said the
Popkin
findings support tne advice or sev
eral health groups to limit red and
processed meat intake to decrease
cancer risk.
The findings appear in
Monday's Archives of Internal
Medicine.
Over LO years, eating the
equivalent of a quarter-pound
hamburger daily gave men in the
study a 22 percent higher risk of
dying of cancer and a 27 percent
higher risk of dying of heart dis- j
ease, lnat s compared to those who ate tne least red
meat, just 5 ounces per week.
Women who ate large amounts of red meat had a 20
percent higher risk of dying of cancer and a 50 percent
higher risk erf dying of heart disease than women who ate
less. People whose diets contained more white meat like
chicken and fish had lower risks of death.
In an accompanying editorial, Bany Popkin. director
of the Interdisciplinary Obesity Center at the University
of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, wrote that reducing
meat intake would have benefits beyond improved
health.
Livestock increase greenhouse gas emissions, con
tributing to global warming, he wrote, and nations
should reevaluate farm subsidies that distort prices and
encourage meat-based diets.
, "We've promoted a diet that has added excessively
to global warming," Popkin said in an interview.
Exercise may help patients in ICU
An exercise program developed at Wake Forest
University Baptist Medical Center aimed at helping
patients in the medical Intensive Care Unit (ICU) main
tain physical conditioning is a featured "Innovation
Profile" on the Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality (AHRQ) Web site
The movement therapy, designed for patients who
require a mechanical ventilator to breathe, has been
shown to encourage early walking and has reduced
length of hospital stay. Read about the protocol at
http://wwwahrq.gov/. AHRQ is part of the Department
of Health and Human Services and focuses on advanc
ing health care quality
Dr. Peter Morris, an associate professor of internal
medicine-pulmonary/critical care, launched ft 24-month
study of "mobility therapy " in 2004. following 330 ICU
patients who received either standard care or a daily
exercise intervention performed with the help of a criti
cal care nurse, physical therapist and nursing assistant.
'The Coming Plague' at UNCG
Pulitzer winner Laurie Garrett, author of the best
seller "The Coming Plague," will speak at The
University of North Carolina at Greensboro at 7:30 p.m.
T\iesday, March 31, in the
suinvan science uuiiamf
Sponsored by the UNCG
Institute for Community and
Economic Engagement, Garrett's
appearance is free, open to the
public, and part of the university's
Science and Society Lecture
Series. Seating will be available
0(1 a first-come basis with parking
available in the Mclver Street
deck A reception and book sign
ing will follow her speech.
Garrett
As a medical and science writer for Newsday, in
(New York City, Laune Garrett became the only writer
? to have been awarded all three of the Big "Ps" of
lism: The Feabody. The Polk (twice) and The
r. She is the best-selling author of "The Coming
: Newly Emerging Diseases in a World Out of
e" (1995) and "Betraval of Trust: The Collapse of
| Public Health" (2001).
L.
What is Foodborne
Illness?
There has been a lot of cover
age in the news lately about, food
borne illness, but surprisingly, not
much information has been shared
about what these illnesses are.
Foodbome illness is caused by eat
ing contaminated foods or drinks.
According to the Centers for
Disease Control (CDC), there are
many different types of things that
can contaminate food and cause
disease, including bacteria, virus
es, and poisonous chemicals. Data
from the CDC show that the most
commonly reported food borne ill
nesses are caused by bacteria
known as salmonella. Campylobac
ter, and E. coli, as well as a group
of viruses called Norwalk or
Norwalk-like viruses. However, it
is hard to know how many real
cases of these illnesses occur each
year; because many of the symp
toms are similar to other viruses
and diseases, people often do not
see their doctor.
How do we get these illnesses?
The bacteria that cause food
borne illness can appear anywhere.
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but they do have types of foods in
which they are most commonly
seen. Campylobacter is very com
mon in undercooked chicken and
other poultry because it is part of a
healthy bird's digestive system.
Salmonella is also common in the
digestive systems of many ani
mals. b.ut as we have seen recently
with peanut butter, it can show up
anywhere. E. coli is most com
monly found- in cow feces, and
when trace amounts of feces end
up in the meat or a drinking water
source it can make its way to us.
The Norwalk group of viruses is
different because they can be
spread from person to person
through food. For example, if
someone preparing a salad has the
virus on their hands, the person
eating the salad can easily contract
the illness. This is why these types
of food borne illness are common
and spread rapidly in communal
living situations like dorms or
nursing homes. There are other
types of illnesses that can be food
borne. including hepatitis, staph
infections (caused by staphylococ
cus bacteria), and shigella (caused
by. the bacterium shigella).
However, these latter illnesses are
much more commonly spread
through other routes.
What are the symptoms?
Campylobacter, salmonella
and E. coli illnesses are all caused
by bacteria and have very similar
symptoms. The most common of
these symptoms are:
Diarrhea, sometimes very
severe and bloody
Sever abdominal cramps
Fever
The Norwalk group of viruses
See Food borne on All
Students to dance for cancer research
SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE
Wake Forest University stu
dents will stay on their feet from
noon to midnight on April 4 dur
ing the annual Wake 'N Shake
dance marathon to raise money
and awareness for the fight
against cancer.
Students can dance or play
basketball-, dodge ball and
videogames, but they must stay
on their feet for the entire 12
hour event held in Reynolds
Gynj.
"Every single student knows
someone who has been affected
by cancer." says senior Caleigh
Jooste of Villanova. Pa., co
chair of this year's event.
"While I personally dance for
twelve hours in memory of two
grandmothers and an aunt, I am
also dancing for our future. The
money we raise at Wake 'N
Shake goes directly to the
Comprehensive Cancer Center
WFU Photo
Another Wake 'N Shake is slated for next month.
at Wake Forest University
Baptist Medical Center where
they are making huge strides in
research and development to
help prevent and battle cancer."
Jooste has been involved with
Wake 'N Shake since her fresh
See Dance on All
Moms
praise
local
author
Willis lives in
Winston-Salem
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
A local author who spe
cializes in helping children
with developmental issues
and their families has won an
honor for one of her books.
Dr. Clarissa Willis'
"Teaching Young Children
with Autism Spectrum
Disorder
has won the
2 0 0 9
Mom's
C h o i c e
Award,
which hon
ors authors,
inventors ,
companies,
parents and
others for
Dr. Willis
their efforts in creating quali
ty family-friendly media
products and services. A
panel of business profession
als, librarians, children and
others pick the winners of the
awards each year.
Published by Gryphon
House, Inc., "Teaching
Young Children with Autism
Spectrum Disorder" is
described as a straightfor
ward, easy-to-understand
guide to working with chil
dren who have autism. It
explains the major character
istics associated with autism
and helps teachers under
stand the ways children with
autism relate to the world.
Willis, who lives in
Winston-Salem, has spent the
last 20 years working on
behalf of children with
autism spectrum disorder.
She is a regular speaker on
the topic at conferences
throughout the world.
Willis has penned five
books in all, including
"Inclusive Literacy Lessons,"
and her latest, "Inclusive
Environments for Young
Children." She has also writ
ten articles that have
appeared in a number of jour
nals and other publications.
Willis is a former associ
ate professor of special edu
cation and the associate
director of the Center of
Excellence in Early
Childhood Learning and
Development at East
Tennessee State University.
For more information on
her award-winning book, go
to www.gryphonhouse.com .
To learn more about Dr.
Willis or to contact her, go to
her Web site,
www.clarissawillis .com .
Meharry gets endowment to launch health policy center
FROM the nnpa news service
Meharry Medical College recently
received $9 million in funding from the
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF)
to establish a national health policy center
on its Nashville, Tenn. campus.
The endowment, announced early this
month, is part of RWJF's investment in
expanding the diversity of perspectives
shaping America's health policies. The mul
timillion-dollar gift is the largest of its kind
in the 132-year history of Meharry, a histor
ically black institution that has educated
generations of African- American doctors.
The purpose of The Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation Center for Health
Policy at Meharry Medical College is to
increase the number and diversity of those
with formal training in sociology and eco
nomics who engage in health services and
health policy research. The project will inte
grate faculty and students from both
Meharry and Vanderbilt's College of Arts
and Science's sociology and economics
departments within the Center. The Center
will have four key components:
- The recruitment of health policy stu
dents and faculty at Meharry and
Vanderbilt;
- The creation of a certificate program in
health policy for Meharry 's medical, dental,
public health and biomedical science stu
Mchtrry/NNPA Photo
Me harry President / CEO Wayne J. Riley and RWJF Senior Vice President John R.
Lumpkin launch The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center for Health Policy at
Meharry Medical College.
dents;
- The establishment of a Health Policy
Scholars in Residence program at Meharry;
- and to give support to student and fac
ulty led research, seminars and symposia to
inform various policy debates.
Princeton, N.J. -based Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing
health and health care issues facing our
country. As the nation's largest philanthropy
devoted exclusively to improving the health
and health care of all Americans, the
Foundation works with a diverse group of
organizations and individuals to identify
solutions and achieve comprehensive,
meaningful and timely change.