| Briefly in Tompkins
The Tompkins County League of Women Voters will meet at 7 p.m. today in the Beverly Livesay Room at the Human Services Building on Seneca Street to discuss affordable housing in Tompkins County. There will be a panel discussion with John Spence from Better Housing, John Ward from the Red Cross program for the homeless, Martha Robertson from the County Legislature, and Paul Mazzarella of Ithaca Neighborhood Housing Services. The meeting is open to the public. Senior citizens' dinner is today .
Preventing diabetes is even better than treating it
America is in the grip of a diabetes epidemic. About 21 million people have the disease, and many more have pre-diabetes. And all the indications suggest that the prevalence of diabetes will continue to soar in the years ahead. Elevated blood glucose (sugar) levels define diabetes. A fasting blood sugar reading of 126 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or higher is enough to diagnose the disease, and levels between 100 and 126 indicate pre-diabetes. But since diabetes is a leading cause of heart attack, stroke, kidney failure, visual loss and memory loss, it's much more than a simple blood sugar problem. Treatment can help protect diabetics from many of the complications that cause disability and premature death. But preventing diabetes from developing in the first place is even better.
Schools report 2 cases of superbug
At least two Lowcountry students have been diagnosed this week with a dangerous, antibiotic-resistant "superbug." A James Island Charter High School student was being treated Wednesday for methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA. And on Monday, a Fort Dorchester High School football player was diagnosed with the infection and had surgery Tuesday to remove the affected area. Medical experts caution that parents should not panic about their children catching the infection just by going to school. MRSA usually is transmitted by direct skin-to-skin contact or contact with shared items that were in touch with someone else's infection. While MRSA is more resistant to antibiotics, it can be treated with a half-dozen medicines. "This is a large and growing problem, but it is not a cause for alarm or concern just because a child goes to school," said Dr.
University of Wisconsin-Green Bay may expand smoking ban
Michelle Pophal walked across the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay campus this week with a lit cigarette, unconcerned that the university might soon expand its smoking ban. "I'm working on quitting," said Pophal, a student from Merrill.
UWGB is just one place where area anti-smoking forces are making strides. Limits on outdoor smoking have spread in recent years as nonsmokers have become increasingly active about staying away from cigarette smoke in public places.
"Our organization has always stood behind efforts to remove the chances of people being exposed to secondhand smoke," said Rebecca Derenne, field government relations director for the American Cancer Society's Green Bay office.
Hospitals in Brown County, acting on recommendations from the Wisconsin Hospital Association, have imposed tobacco bans on all hospital property.
Novel Therapies May At Last Bring Relief for U.S. Hereditary Angioedema Patients
Although there is currently no treatment approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) for acute attacks of hereditary angioedema (HAE) – a genetic disease causing swelling of extremities, face and internal organs that can be life-threatening – hope is on the horizon according to a team of experts presenting the latest research at the ACAAI Annual Meeting. .
Tough incapacity test to cut 20,000 claims
Ministers attempted to get their welfare reform programme back on track yesterday after it emerged that billions of pounds are being paid out in incapacity benefit to people suffering stress, fatigue and even acne. Peter Hain, the Work and Pensions Secretary, said that a new, tougher test on who will qualify for the benefit would cut the number claiming the benefit by 20,000 a year. The Department for Work and Pensions also rushed out a technical assessment on how the test will operate when it comes into force next year. The report was published after The Times revealed that thousands of people with vague conditions such as dizziness claim incapacity benefit, and at least 2,000 receive it because they are judged to be too fat to work. The data show that many people who go on to benefit never work again.
Nutrition: Fighting cholesterol through diet
It's possible. Studies show that you can lower your cholesterol through diet. It often takes a little bit of a lifestyle change, but chances are, with a little hard work, you'll feel better. Diet therapy should really be the first line of treatment with elevated cholesterol, and if medication is involved, diet should also be included. A change in diet, if on cholesterol lowering medications or not, will help decrease the overall risk of heart disease. A low-cholesterol diet is classified as a daily intake of less than 300 mg of cholesterol, less than 7 percent calories from saturated fat, and less than 30 percent of calories from fat, and an increase of complex carbohydrates in place of the refined, processed carbohydrates. Sound familiar? It's a standard healthy diet. But the reduction in cholesterol and total fat as well as refined carbohydrates will benefit health in a variety of ways.
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