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Section
Better
breathing,
better blood
pressure
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASffiNGTON - Take a
slow deep breath, then exhale
just as slowly Can you take
fewer than 10 breaths a
minute?
Research suggests breath
ing that slowly for a few min
utes a day is enough to help
some people nudge down bad
blood pressure.
Why would that brief inter
lude of calm really work? A
scientist at the National
Institutes of Health thinks
how we breadie may hold a
key to how the body regulates
blood pressure—and that it
has less to do with relaxation
than with breaking down all
that salt most of us eat.
Now Dr. David Anderson is
trying to pjeve it, with the
help of a special gadget that
trains volunteers with hyper
tension to slow-breathe.
If he’s right, tiie work could
shed new light, on the inter
section between hyperten
sion, stress and diet.
“If you sit there under-
breathir^ all day and you
have a high salt intake, your
kidneys may be less effective
at getting rid of that salt than
if you’re out hiking in the
woods,” said Anderson, who
heads research into behavior
and hypertension at the
NIK’S National Institute on
An estimated 65 million
Americans have high blood
pressure, putting them at
increased risk of heart
attacks, strckes, kidney dam
age, blindness and dementia.
Many don’t • know it.
Hypertension is often called
the silent IdUer, because
patients may notice no symp
toms until it already has done
serious damage.
Anyone can get high blood
pressure, measured as a level
of 140 over 90 or more. But
being overweight and inac
tive, and eating too much
salt—Americans eat nearly
double the upper limit for
good health—all increase the
risk. Indeed, losing weight,
physical activity and cutting
sodium are the most effective
hfestjie changes people can
make to lower blood pressure.
Stm, most hypertension
patients need medications,
too.
While they know risk fac
tors, scientists don’t fully
imderstand the root causes of
hypertension: What skews
the body’s usually finely
tuned mechanisms for regu
lating the force of blood
poimding against artery
walls, until it can’t compen
sate for some extra pounds on
a couch potato?
Understanding those mecha
nisms could point to better
ways to prevent and treat
hypertension.
Enter breathing.
Meditation, yoga and simi
lar relaxation techniques
that incorporate slow, deep
breathing have long been
thou^t to aid blood pressure,
althoi^h research to prove an
effect has been spotty
Then in 2002, the Food and
Drug Ad,ministration cleared
the nonprescription sale of a
medical device called
RESPeRATE, to help lower
blood pressure by pacing
hreathir^. The Intonet-sold
device coimts breaths by
sensing chest or abdominal
movement, and sounds grad
ually slowing chimes that sig
nal when to inhale and
exhale. Users follow the tone
until Iheir breathing slows
fixim the usual 16 to 19
breaths a minute to 10 or
fewer.
In clinical trials funded by
Please see BETTER/2B
i'*^^^^^^**^*^**^^^**^
tlCIje Charlotte Post
LIFE
THURSDAY, AUGUST 3, 2006
IN RELIGION
Sherrond King
spreads a mes
sage of freedom
on her new CD.
Making waves
beyond the beach
Swimwear
makes you look
great in or out
of water
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
MIAMI BEACH, Fla.-
Dare to wear this
swimwear anywhere.
Think high-waisted boy
shorts that can go from
beach to bar. Soccer-
inspired athletic pieces or
sailor-stjie tanks that can
double as cocktail-hour
corsets.
Of course, plenty of tra
ditional tiny bikinis and
revealing one-pieces also
were on display this
month during the second
annual Miami Sunglass
Hut Swim Shows, show-
casii^ 2007 cruise and
beach wear. But it was the
pieces offering a bit more
coverage and versatility
that stood out—especially
against the Miami Beach
backdrop where skin is
always in.
“Swimwear has evolved
into pieces that are really
good for layering,” said
Robert Verdi, host of the
Stjde Network’s Fashion
Police and a spokesman
for Sxmgiass Hut.
At the Rosa Cha show,
for example, some of the
pieces looked hke they’d be
more at home on the soc
cer field than on the sand,
though they still incorpo
rated sexy, lingerie-like
touches. Embroidery
adorned a pair of boy
shorts and a hint of lace
lined some sporty cover-
ups.
Verdi said some of the
stjdes reminded him of the
1940s, That is “somethir^
we have not seen in a long
Camoflage is big this year in swimwear design.
time,” he said
A Carnival-theme song
played in the back
ground—which soimded
like screaming fans at a
soccer match—as models
strutted in lace, hlac and
fight pink bikinis; one-
piece suits with ultra low
halters and full open
backs; tank cover-ups and
baby doU dresses in silk
and ivory
From dainty pieces to a
sporty motif, models also
wore dark green and
white tops; gold leather
jackets; mesh details; ath
letic inspired tank dresses
with the Brazilian flag on
several suits; one-piece
suits with deep V cuts;
and tiny soccer-inspired
shorts.
(In case you couldn’t
guess, Rosa Cha designer
Amir Slama hails fix)m
beach-bOdni-and-soccer-
obsessed Brazil.)
The five-day event also
featured swimwear collec
tions by Inca, Red Carto’,
Gideon Oberson, Parke &
Ronen, Becca, ANK by
INSTYLESWIMSUITS.COM
Mirla Sabino, Norma
Kamali and Shay Tbdd.
Fern MaUis, vice presi
dent of IMG, which pro
duced the fashion shows,
noted that the collections
demonstrated the “duali
ty” of swimsuits for the
season. For example, biki
ni tops that can be worn as
a camisole or imder a
shirt.
Ofha' key themes to look
for: sailor stjies and pinup
girl inspirations finm Red
Carter; cowgirl details
See SWIMWEAR/2B
Swimwear still elicits fear in women
By Chens F. Hodges
cheris,hodges@thechartotteposf.com
Although new swimsuits cover
more skin, a survey says women
still fear them.
Marshall’s Department store con
ducted a survey asking women
what they fear most and being seen
in public in a bathir^ suit ranked
right under spiders.
About 1,200 women participated
in the online survey
Twenty-nine percent of women
polled said they feared heights; 22
percent get the heebee jeebies when
they see a spider;16 percent fear
swimwear and 10 percent don’t
want to go up in the great blue yon
der.
But 22 percent said none of that
stuff scares them. Rock on sisters!
So, why don’t women want to be
seen in public in a bathing suit?
After all when you’re poolside or at
the beach, isn’t that the point?
Anne Paxton wrote on Brazilian
Bikinis.org that once summer hits,
women are forced to remember the
pizza they ate and fi'appuccdnos
they drank during the winter.
‘Tve been guilty of buying into the
bikini body ideal,” she writes.
“More than once I bought a bathing
suit that didn’t fit but swore to
myself that I would fit into it by
summer. You can guess how suc
cessful that was.”
Tb alleviate the fear of striking
out in public in your bathing suit,
here are some tips to make sure you
look good:
• Do not compare yourself to
swimsuit models.
• If you have a large bust buy a
suit with a built in bra.
• Women with long torsos should
opt for a tankini.
• Pear shaped women should buy
suits with at built in tummy tuck.
• Choosing a suit with Lycra or
spandex and a high cut leg will
shave 10 pounds off your appear
ance.
Source www£-nterest£om
Whatever happened to Atlantic Beach S.C.?
By Cheris F. Hodges
cherE, hodges@fhechariolfeposf.com
This past weekend I took a
trip to South Carolina’s coast
with my sister and her kids.
She had the bright idea of
showing them Atlantic
Beach where the annual
Black Bike Rally takes place
every year. Since she’s the
oldest, I went along with the
plan, even though I really
wanted to head to Myrtle
Beach to hit the Pavilion
since it’s dosing this year.
When we arrived at the
famed beach, it was so bar
ren. Unfike the shores of
Myrtle Beach or even North
Myrtle Beadi, there were no
vendors, no smells of hot
dogs roasting, fiinnd cakes
fiTuig or even someone
hawking umbrellas and
chairs. It was just dirt and
the ocean Turning down the
street that gives you access
to the beadi is like turning
into a ghost town filled with
dilapidated buddings and
dirt driveways. Granted,
there was less traffic and
that was a good thing.
I can appreciate that
Atlantic Beach, according to
the town’s web site is one of
two oceanfixint properties
owned by African
Americans. That fact alone
makes me swell with pride.
But looking at the “Black
Pearl of The Atlantic” makes
me sad.
The great history of the
beach is gone. When I
retmned to Charlotte, I
hopped on the internet to see
what Atlantic Beach used to
be. According to the town’s
web site, this used to be a
great place,
“Tbwn of Atlantic Beach
was formed of mostly
Aside from the crowds of the Atlantic Beach Bike Rally in
May, the black pearl is a ghost town.
GuUah/Geechee • people,
descendants of slaves who
lived for 300 years on the
Sea Islands fix)m
Wilmington, North Carolina
to Jacksonville, Fla
“In the early 1930’s, defy-
ii^ Jim Crow laws in the
segregated south, debunk
ing black stereotypes, and
broadening the enterprises
of the Gullah/(5eechee peo
ple, black men and women
opened hotels, restaurants,
night clubs, and novelty
shops in Atlantic Beach.
They would travel along
Interstate 95, Hi^way 17
and South Carolina
Highway 9, coming fixim
North Carolina, South
Carolina, Virginia to
Florida, where racial segre
gation took its toU.
Please see WHAT/2B
Childhood
asthma
Asthma, a life threatening
medical concfition, affects
approximately 11 percent of
Afiican Americans.
It is increasingly prevalent
among African American chil
dren. African American chil
dren with asthma are more
likely than non-minority chil
dren to require emergency
medical treatment. Could your
child be one of them?
What is asthma?
Asthma is a chronic condition
in which narrowir^ of the pas
sages fixim the lungs to the
nose and mouth (airways)
leads to difficulty breathir^.
These changes commonly occur
in response to changes in the
environment, including weath
er; allergens (such as dog or cat
hair, mold, or dust); tobacco
smoke; foods; or respiratory
infections (colds). It often runs
in families AUeigies are not
the same as asthma, but chil
dren with allergies can also
have asthma.
What causes asthma?
In people with asthma, the
airways that run from the nose
to the limgs are overly sensi
tive. Asthma is the excessive
response of these airways to a
“tr^er” such as dust in the air.
It involves swelling and
inflammation of the airways
and reversible tightening of the
tiny muscles that smround the
airwa3^ (bronchospasm). In
severe cases of asthma, dam
age to the lungs can accumu
late over time, resulting in per
manent narrowing of the air-
ways.Children with asthma
may be able to breathe normal
ly most of the time. When they
encounter a trigger, however,
an attack (exacerbation) can
occur. Common asthma trig
gers include tobacco smoke,
dust, pollen, exercise, viral
infections such as the common
cold, animals (hair or dander),
chemicals in the air or in food,
mold, changes in weather
(most often cold weather),
strong emotions, and some
medications.
Children’s airways are nar
rower than those of adults. So,
tri^ers that may cause only a
slight response in an adult can
be much more serious in chil
dren. In children, asthma can
appear suddenly and cause
severe wheezing and shortness
of breath. For this reason, it is
important that asthma be
diagnosed and treated correct
ly ' In some cases, this may
mean takir^ daily medication
even during times when the
child is not having any symp
toms.
How do I know if my child
has asthma?The symptoms of
asthma indude shortness of
breath,, wheezii^, and/or
coL^hii^. This cough is usually
a dry cou^- sometimes you
can hear a little wheeze at the
end of the cough. Depending on
the trigger, the symptoms can
occur dming the day the night,
or both the day and the ni^t.
These symptoms may initially
be confused with a common
■ cold or the ‘flu’,but in children
with asthma they recur over
several months or even years.
So, it’s also important to recog
nize a pattern or history of
symptoms..
Other indicators of a more
serious episode indude rapid
breathing, prolonged exhaling,
or exaggerated use of the mus-
des in the chest and neck to
assist breathing. It’s important
that parents and caregivers
are able to recognize promptly
the onset of asthma symptoms,
Please see RISKS/3B