FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2015

VALLEY HEALTHMONTROSE PRESS

VOL. 2, ISSUE 9

We’ll be serving up BBQ in your honor.

W E A P P R E C I A T E

IT’S OUR TURN TO THANK YOU...

SEPTEMBER 25 • 11AM-2PMTelluride • 120 S. Pine St.

SEPTEMBER 15 • 11AM-2PMMontrose • 1400 East Main Street

SEPTEMBER 17 • 11AM-2PMDelta • 1660 Highway 92

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Montrose Memorial Hospital WELCOMESDerick Fenton, M.D. Obstetrics & GynecologyBoard Eligible

Medical SchoolAmerican University of the Caribbean School of Medicine,Cupecoy, St. Maartin

Internship/ResidencySt. John Providence Health Systems, South� eld, MI

Of� ceAlpine Women’s Centre at MMH 715 South 3rd Street Montrose, CO 81401970.249.6737

Now Accepting New Patients

800 South Third Street, Montrose, CO 81401970-249-2211

MontroseHospital.com

Find out what to ask your doctorbefore you schedule surgeryPage 5

QUESTIONSTO ASK BEFORE HAVINGSURGERY

WHEN ASSISTED LIVING IS THE RIGHT CHOICEFIND OUT WHEN IT IS. PG 6

VALLEY HEALTH

PublisherVincent Laboy

Advertising DirectorDennis Anderson

For advertising information, contact Dennis Anderson at 252-7022

or via email at dennisa@montrosepress.com

Valley Health is a publication of the Montrose Press. It publishes monthly on the first Friday.

If you have a health-related news tip, contact editor@montrosepress.com.

A PUBLICATION OF THE MONTROSE PRESS

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Leann TobinMontrose Memorial Hospital

Hospital Happenings

Dear pharmacist

Willing to lose your mind for wine? How about coffee?

Somebody’s convinced us that wine is a health drink. Not only does this increase your risk of pancreatitis, but it fires off inflammatory chemicals in your body.

Think wrinkles, pain and grey hair. More than that, alcohol steals thiamine and that means you’ll forget stuff more often and have a hard time finding that correct word. Lose your mind, basically. Remember that, when sipping that red wine tonight, or bellying up to the bar with the boys. It puts you on the fast track to depleting thiamine. Which leads me to my next thought, bananas.

Have you ever heard the term banana bag? It’s not referring to a bag of bananas. It’s referring to a yellow-colored IV (intravenous) bag filled with thiamine and other nutrients. The “banana bag” is given via injection to restore vita-mins like thiamine and other nu-trients in your body after chronic alcohol use or abuse. It’s also used for people who are chroni-cally ill, or severely deficient in nutrients, perhaps from dehydra-tion, food poisoning or chronic infections. The IV nutrient bag is also sometimes referred to as a “Myers’ Cocktail.”

Thiamine or vitamin B1 func-tions in hundreds of biochemical reactions. Your brain cells die without it. We must get thiamine every day from our foods, but

unfortunately most foods have minute amounts unless you like organ meats and molasses.

Thiamine deficiency causes many problems with the mouth. You may have burning mouth syndrome, or swelling of the tongue (glossitis). You may feel a vibration sensation in your toes or legs. It can come and go. This slow deterioration may sneak up on you, causing your doctor to misdiagnose you with one disease after another (of course each disease gets it’s own handy-dandy drug).

Such “sneaky” symptoms that creep up include peripheral or autonomic neuropathies, visual difficulties especially with focus, balance problems or feeling tipsy when you haven’t had a drink. This could cause you to walk into walls, no joke. Some confuse these gait disturbances and neuropa-thies as a sign of normal aging, but it’s not. It could very well be your brain screaming, “Help! I’m running on empty. I need some thiamine over here!”

Thiamine helps to reverse alco-hol toxicity in your brain and the liver. In a 2013 animal study, con-ducted in India, rodents were in-toxicated with alcohol for 90 days. That’s all it took to damage their brain and liver. Then, thiamine was administered for 30 days. You can guess what happened. The biomarkers (for brain inflam-mation, liver enzymes and neu-

Montrose Moves is Montrose Memorial Hospital’s first-ever em-ployee wellness program.

This exciting initia-tive is being coordinat-ed in conjunction with Montrose Medicine’s Healthy Works well-ness program. The goal of the first phase of this wellness program is to promote increased physical activity by our employees.

The walking pro-gram kicked off with great success! We scheduled three walks throughout the day for employees working various shifts and 56 people participated in the inaugural half mile walks.

An energized employee commit-tee, led by Martin Lutz, Tiffany Stewart and Brad Wiersma, has organized the walks and incentives to keep employees engaged.

At the first walk, each participant was given a pulse-reading pedome-ter to monitor their steps and heart rate. Employees can record their steps and count the totals for the “Jamboree to Junction” walking challenge–simulating the 60 miles one would walk from Montrose to Grand Junction.

A second Montrose Moves pro-gram, “Ascent up Sneffles,” en-courages employees to climb up and down 100 floors in hospital stairwells to partially simulate the experience of climbing up Mt.

Sneffels, our local fourteener in the Mount Sneffels Wilderness of the Uncompahgre National Forest close

to Ouray. In addition, recreation-

al bike rides are orga-nized and leave from the MMH parking lot every Wednesday evening.

MMH employees are incentivized to complete these fun and challeng-ing activity-tracking programs. Participants who accomplish both programs before the deadline in October, and voluntarily submit some basic health information gathered in conjunction with Montrose Medicine, can win rewards — such

as an awesome Montrose Moves polo shirt or other great rewards chosen by the hospital’s wellness committee.

The next phases of the Wellness program, which are deemed top priorities for the health of our employees, include healthy eating classes and food labeling in the Lobby Grille along with education in other areas.

As one of the largest employers in Montrose County, MMH is dedicat-ed to leading our community in the areas of health and wellness. We are excited to continue that focus with the establishment of our Montrose Moves program for our employees.

Leann Tobin is the director of marketing and public relations for Montrose Memorial Hospital. l

Montrose Moves!

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www.voahealthservices.orgwww.facebook.com/VOAWesternSlope

rotransmitters) all remarkably improved. The thiamine-treated group showed faster healing and regeneration, as compared to the rodents that were just left to “dry out” on their own. So they proved you can reverse alcohol damage with a natural B vita-min.

Does the same apply to hu-mans? While I think thiamine is useful to a person who drinks (even socially), the best way to repair damage is to stop drink-ing. It beats a banana bag, which often cost about $100 a pop.

Alcohol isn’t the only drink that can mess with your body, it’s coffee too. And smoking. And medications like antibiotics, acid blockers, theophylline, tamoxi-fen, antacids, hydrochlorothia-zide (HCTZ) and digoxin. These drugs deplete thiamine and induce symptoms. Other ways to become thiamine deficient include having an eating disor-der and lap-band or other obesity surgery. But by a mile, alcohol is the biggest offender and the one you have control over.

There’s another interesting connection to people with thyroid disease, specifically auto-immune thyroiditis (Hashimoto’s Thy-roiditis). There were three cases of people with Hashimoto’s that were suffering with fatigue, and they were found to be thiamine deficient. They were given very high doses of thiamine (600 mg daily for 3 months, or 100 mg/ml given intravenously every four days.) Like I said, high doses.

Anyway, upon re-evaluation, their thiamine levels went up and their fatigue improved significantly. Can we draw this across the board for all Hashi sufferers? No, I don’t think three cases is enough to make sweep-ing statements, but please keep this in the back of your mind. The reason it helped is because these patients had trouble with their transporters, meaning they had trouble getting the thiamine out of their blood and into their cells. Thiamine transport issues are not always the issue with people.

To get tested for thiamine deficiency, there are differ-ent ways. You can get a blood thiamine test, but it’s not al-ways accurate but it’s okay to screen. There is another test called “erythrocyte transke-tolase” which requires blood. Erythrocyte is the big word for red blood cell, and transketolase is the name of an enzyme that is dependent on thiamine (and magnesium).

Many of you have found func-tional medicine practitioners to test you using a “CardioION” blood test. On this particular test, you will see a biomarker called “a-keto �-Methylvalerate” and if that is elevated, then you are low on thiamine. Talk to your doctor to see what is right for you. Thiamine is sold over the counter in various doses. I couldn’t possibly know what dose is right for you because I don’t know what genetic snps you have, nor do I know your liver and kidney function or your his-tory, or your allergies.

My personal belief is to always start low, and go slow. So, if it were me, I would use very low doses and gauge response to my symptoms. And of course, I would try to avoid thiamine drug muggers and beverages that de-plete my levels. That’s just me.

Suzy Cohen, RPh has been a pharmacist for 26 years. l

If your child’s thoughts, feelings or behaviors were causing them to struggle, would you know how to talk to them about it?

If they came to you looking for help, would you know what to do? You might be surprised to find out that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) es-timates that as many as one in five young people younger than 18 will experience a diagnosable mental-health problem in a given year, so it’s important to be able to address signs and symptoms early.

All parents strive to do right by their children. Being an aware and engaged parent plays a pivotal role in your child’s mental health, and maintaining open and honest communication with your child is one of the best ways to notice when something begins to go amiss. When you are in touch with what is “normal” in your child’s life, it becomes clear when changes emerge, like prob-lems with friendships or loss of interest in activities he or she used to get excited about.

Encourage your child to talk to you about his or her feelings, and let them know that there is nothing he or she can say or tell you that will stop you from lov-ing him or her. More easily said than done — especially when it comes to teenagers — but telling them out loud (and often) saves them the trouble of worrying about whether or not they can confide in you and how you might react.

Not so different from “the birds and the bees,” when the time comes to have a talk with your child about mental health, it may be uncomfortable, but it’s too important to avoid. Don’t feel like you should wait until something is wrong to start talk-ing. See how much your child knows about mental health — ask them directly, or share with them the story of a friend

or relative who has had mental-health problems.

You may even have your own story to share. If you’re sharing a story or experience, avoid judg-mental language and focus on the fact that mental health problems are treatable.

One way of identifying mental health problems early is to take an online screen. A screen is a scientific questionnaire used to determine whether signs and symptoms indicate risk of a disor-der. The Center for Mental Health has a screen for young people ages 11-17, and a corresponding screen for parents of young people, to help identify risk.

Since its launch in spring of this year, more than 1,200 par-ent screens have been taken at

centermh.org. Nearly 63 percent of those screens indicated that a young person was showing signs of risk for a behavioral, emotional or attention disorder.

Just like physical illnesses, treating mental-health problems early can help prevent a more serious illness from developing in the future. If you are concerned that your child may be experienc-ing a mental-health problem, it is important to take action and to address the symptoms early. Start the conversation. Seek help from a doctor or mental health profes-sional, and show your child there is nothing to be ashamed of. Listen. It could mean all the difference in the world to your child and to their future.

The Center for Mental Health l

How to talk to teens about mental health

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Mental Illness & Adolescents

More than 11% of ournation’s adolescents suffer

from a serious mentalillness that causes

significant impairment 11%(US dept.of health and human services 2015)

The onset of 50% of alllifetime mentalillnesses is 14 year olds

50%

Nearly 2 in 3 mentally illyouth are not identified bytheir primary care provider

and do not receive anymental health care

Only 1 in 5adolescents receive

treatment for amental health disorder

Suicide is the 3rd leading causeof death for 10-19 year olds in the US

A Close-Up on Teen Mental Health making teen mental health a priority

Seeing the signs: Parents Seeing the signs: Teens

agitated or restless behavior

weight loss or gain

drop in grades

trouble concentrating

not caring about people

lack of motivation

often feel angry or worried

use of alcohol or drugs

excercise, diet and/or binge-eating obsessively

reckless actions that harm you or others

think your mind in out of controldestroy property

It’s okay to ask for help

www.centermh.org

970.252.6220E M E R G E N C Y S E R V I C E S

844.493.8255 C O L O R A D O C R I S I S L I N E

BY CASSANDRA STEWART

Losing weight seems to be a goal everyone might come by at some point in his or her life. That’s because living a healthy lifestyle is important and the value of it just becomes more important as we age.

Whether someone is losing weight or just live an active lifestyle, there are habits they should be familiar of to make their lifestyle healthy.Here are some tips from lo-cal professionals on how to live an active and healthy lifestyle:

lDiet – Laura Schley,

physician assistant (PA) at The Pediatric Associates, said a balanced diet is crucial to lose weight but especially to give the body the nutrients it needs. lFruits and vegetables – Schley said having enough fruit and vegetables is the best thing the body can eat.

“These foods have plenty of nutrients our bodies need, and we need to make it a habit to eat enough of it everyday,” Schley said. “It also helps that we live in a place where there is plenty of it growing around us.”

l Meat – Part of having a balanced diet means eating enough meat, but the right kind of meat. Schley said eating lean meats are the best because they are most-ly rich in iron. She added this is important especially for women. lExercise – Keeping the body active is another key component to living a healthy lifestyle. Per-sonal trainer at Gold’s Gym Nathan Dorzweiler said he puts his clients through four sessions within four to six weeks. During this time he said they find exercise to fit the clients potential. From there, Dorzweiler

said they will ease into more challenging workouts. lRoutine – Keeping a schedule and following that schedule is crucial Dorz-weiler said. “We tell clients to exercise five times a week whether it’s hiking or even going on a walk for 30 minutes. Having structure and following the diet is key. About 80 percent of fitness is dependent on food intake.”

lFocus – Keeping your-self interested is crucial. Dorzweiler said this hap-pens to a lot of people who can get bored with certain workouts. “Change things up from time to time. The

body needs new stimuli but once it adapts we can feel bored.” He recom-mends rotating certain workouts. lWater – Keeping the body hydrated is very important anytime of the day. Schley said everyone should be drinking enough water every day especially while working out and in the summer. “When people are dehydrated they tend to eat more. Sometimes, they even look for replace-ments to hydrate like juice or Gatorade. They can be necessary but water is always crucial.” l

Making habits a part of everyday life

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Director of Recovery ServicesDirector of Recovery Services

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Taking the small step of signing up as an organ, eye and tissue donor is a decision that many people make. Without donation there is no research, without research there is no cure!

We all know someone who has bene� ted from donation through transplantation, surgery or a medical procedure. Donation may not be for everyone, but if you are interested in more information contact Shirley Koch at Donor Services, Inc. 970.240.9870.

Be a Donor ~ Be a Hero!

Simple techniques to help you relax

Finding ways to relax can improve life at home and at the office. While it’s not often easy to find time to slow down, especially for those men and women juggling the responsibili-ties of career and family, the following are some simple techniques that don’t take much time but can have a positive impact on your day.

lTake some time out from multitasking. The ability to multitask is a cherished commodity for parents and work-ing professionals alike, but men and women can benefit from peri-odic breaks from their everyday juggling acts. Something as simple as focusing on a single task for 30 minutes at a time, as opposed to checking emails while preparing dinner or working on a project while answering a client’s phone call, can help lower stress levels and have a lasting and calming effect on your nerves.

lMake time to medi-tate every day. Studies have shown that medi-tation can affect the circuitry in the brain, positioning it to more adequately respond to illness and stressful sit-uations. Meditation has the added benefit of be-ing a relaxing exercise, as meditation encour-ages people to sit with their feet on the floor

with both eyes closed in a relaxing setting that is free of external distrac-tions.

lWalk away from your desk and couch. It’s well documented that spend-ing too much time sit-ting at a desk can have a negative impact on your health. In addition to elevating a person’s risk of heart disease and diabetes, sitting at a desk all day long has been linked to repetitive stress injuries, obesity and back pain, each of which can contribute to stressful living condi-tions that make it dif-ficult to relax. Men and women should spend at least five minutes each hour walking, whether they are getting up from their desk at work or getting off the couch at home. Doing so takes little time, but it can help to relieve stress at work and at home and improve your overall health.

lPractice yoga. Yoga is another activity that can help men and women relax. Yoga in-volves a series of poses that helps stretch the muscles and aid their recovery from everyday aches and pains, includ-ing those that often result from stressful experiences or days at the office.

Story Courtesy of Metro.l

If you are planning to have surgery, you may be anxious. Asking the right questions before sched-uling surgery can help ensure good care and give you a better idea of what to expect.

Here are a few areas you may want to cover with your surgeon in advance of the big day.

Reviewing your optionsThe implications of your surgery will extend

beyond the day you go to the hospital. Your doc-tor may offer you options when it comes to the type of surgery performed. Find out the length and type of recovery period for each option, as well as the expected outcomes.

For example, one option may be typically as-sociated with shorter expected recovery time, but could carry greater risk. Another option may be associated with better long-term outcomes, but increase recovery time or leave larger scars. A third option may not involve surgery at all. The many factors at play will help you make the deci-sion that is best for your long-term health.

Improved therapiesWhile great strides have been made to operate

using smaller incisions in procedures known as minimally invasive or laparoscopic surgery, controlling bleeding is still a major issue for surgeons. In fact, the task can account for 30 to 50 percent of procedure time, and for those on blood thinners, the bleeding risk is even higher.

However, new innovations are revolutionizing this process, making surgery faster and safer for patients. For example, the AC5 Surgical Hemo-static Device is being studied to see whether it can one day provide a faster, more effective means of controlling bleeding during operations versus other common methods, such as cautery or the use of biomaterials.

This new device, created by Arch Therapeutics, uses AC5, which is made of a synthetic peptide, to safely and rapidly create a physical barrier in the nooks and crannies of tissue and promptly stop bleeding. Reduced fluid and blood loss dur-ing surgery can improve patient safety, free the surgical team to focus on other tasks, and lessen recovery time.

Before your surgery, ask your doctor about medical innovations that may improve your outcome.

Surgeon’s CredentialsThere may be few times in your life where

reviewing a professional’s credentials is more important than when you are picking a surgeon. Luckily, there are many impartial, online rating sites for doctors and surgeons that can help you determine whether your doctor is the best fit for you — from the years of experience they’ve had to their success rates. You may even consider get-ting a second opinion on the necessity of surgery.

Your health is in your hands more than you

may realize. Be sure to seek out the best therapies available. You can help steer the direction of your healthcare with the right questions for your sur-geon. Story Courtesy of StatePoint Media. l

What to ask your doctor before scheduling surgery

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PediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricPediatricCompassion. Quality. Care.When your child is in need, we will be there.

Two Convenient Locati onsMONTROSE AREA947 South Fift h StreetMontrose, CO 81401970-249-2421970-249-8897 fax

DELTA AREA242 Cott onwood Street #101Delta, CO 81416970-874-7552970-874-7554 fax

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When assisted living is the right choiceBY KYLYNN WILSON

The choice to move a loved on out of an indepen-dent-living situation to an assisted-living community is not easy.

Care should be taken to find the very best placement for your loved one. Assisted-living communities are not “created equal” meaning that each resident has a tailored plan of assistance. The resident will receive the help they need while enjoying the independence of doing things they can do, themselves.

As your loved one ages it may be necessary to move him or her to an assisted living community. There are telltale signs that now would be a good time to get them the help they need but will not ask for themselves. You, as the caregiver, often must prompt this decision for them for their own health and protection, and

for your peace of mind.Here are a few signs

signaling that it is time to move to assisted living:

l Your loved one is having memory difficulties that are preventing them from eat-ing properly, taking medica-tion correctly, or endanger-ing themselves (or others) by their actions or neglect of safety observations.

l Personal care (bathing, grooming, dressing) is fall-ing to the wayside, especially if this would have caused embarrassment or discom-fort to the individual in the past.

l The caregiver is suffer-ing in their personal life or their own health is failing because of the stress and demand of being a caregiver.

l Your loved one has become reclusive and depressed, has lost a loved one, lost cognition, is lonely, or can no longer drive.

When choosing an as-sisted-living community examine the community and their services while keeping your loved one’s likes and dislikes in mind.

Do the current residents of a community look happy and well cared for? Is the community clean, have ad-equate lighting, and appro-priate flooring? How is the food? Is the staff friendly? Are there activities that your loved one would like to attend? Does the atmo-sphere seem to be one that your loved one will flourish in?

Remember that the com-munity chosen will be their home and good placement is the difference between a depressed, agitated person and a joyful, well-adjusted person. Their happiness and safety, as well as your peace of mind, are of the upmost importance.

Kylynn Wilson is the Mar-keting and Admissions Di-rector at Crossroads Senior Living, Delta. Kylynn may be reached at (970) 874-1421 or by email at kwilson@crossroadsalc.org. l

CARE SHOULD BE TAKEN TO FIND THE VERY BEST PLACEMENT FOR YOUR LOVED ONE. ASSISTED-LIVING COMMUNITIES ARE NOT “CREATED EQUAL” MEANING THAT EACH RESIDENT HAS A TAILORED PLAN OF ASSISTANCE. THE RESIDENT WILL RECEIVE THE HELP THEY NEED WHILE ENJOYING THE INDEPENDENCE OF DOING THINGS THEY CAN DO, THEMSELVES.

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Five ways to increase home fire safety

An average of seven Americans die each week as a result of house fires. Most fires occur in residen-tial buildings between the hours of 11 p.m. and 7 a.m., when occu-pants are most likely to be asleep. Your first line of defense is fire preparedness.

Here’s five things you can do to increase your chance of survival in a fire:

l Install smoke alarms on every story of your home and outside sleeping areas. Be sure to test them monthly, clean them every six months and replace batteries in spring and fall. Hav-ing working fire alarms can cut your chance of dying in a fire in half.

l Have a fire-escape plan for your family and practice it. A small fire can spread rapidly — you may only have minutes or seconds to escape. When going over the details of your escape plan, check windows and doors to ensure all open easily. Know your local emergency number (911). Never stop to gather be-longings or reenter a home after safely outside.

l When renovating, consider using fire-rated, noncombustible products. Your choice of insula-

tion, for example, can be vital. Stone wool insulation, resists temperatures up to approxi-mately 2,150 F. When directly exposed to fire, it will not create toxic gases, contribute to toxic smoke or promote flames. Fire-resistant building materials can give you extra time to escape when seconds count.

l Purchase a multi-use fire ladder for each bedroom in your home and practice using it. A fire ladder may be your only escape option if flames block critical exits.

l Place fire extinguishers on every level of your home, espe-cially in high-risk areas like the kitchen, near fireplaces and in the garage. Use only for small, contained fires that are not spreading rapidly. Know how to operate your extinguisher be-fore an emergency occurs using the PASS method: Pull pin, Aim low, Squeeze lever and Sweep from side to side. The safest op-tion is always to evacuate your home and call for help.

Fire prevention measures are a serious matter in every home. Find out how to keep your home and family safe at nfpa.org. Story Courtesy of Metro. l

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While no single food or ingredi-ent can prevent people from getting cancer, research has shown a link between excess body fat and vari-ous cancers. A poor diet that’s high in fat can contribute to excess body fat, which the American Institute for Cancer Research has linked to higher risks for developing cancers of the esophagus, pancreas, colon and rectum and gallbladder among others.

The agency notes research on foods that fi ght cancer is ongoing, but the following are some of the foods that can play a role in cancer prevention.

ApplesApples are a good source of fi ber,

which can help men and women lower their cancer risk. Dietary fi ber can increase feelings of full-ness, which reduces the likelihood that people will overeat. Men and women who do not overeat are less likely to accumulate the excess body fat that increases their risk for various cancers. In addition, apples’ dietary fi ber contains pec-tin, a polysaccharide that bacteria in the stomach can use to produce compounds that protect colon cells.

BroccoliBroccoli is a cruciferous veg-

etable, and nearly all cruciferous vegetables, which get their name because their four-petal fl owers resemble a cross, or crucifer, are great sources of vitamin C. Broc-coli also is a great source of the B vitamin folate as well as potas-sium. The AICR notes that stud-ies have shown folate helps to maintain healthy DNA and keep cancer-promoting genes inactive. But men and women should speak

with their physicians regarding how much folate to include in their diets, as animal studies have suggested that high amounts of folate may promote development of certain types of cancer, including colon cancer.

CranberriesLike apples, cranberries are

high in dietary fi ber and vitamin C. Diets high in foods containing vitamin C have been linked to a reduced risk for cancer of the esophagus. In addition, studies have shown that vitamin C pro-tects cells’ DNA by trapping free radicals, which can damage the body, and inhibiting the formation of substances called carcinogens, which are capable of causing can-cer in living tissue.

LegumesLegumes include kidney and black

beans, yellow split peas and red lentils. Dry beans and peas are great sources of fi ber and good sources of protein, and each also make excel-lent sources of folate. In addition to their ability to contribute to the pro-tection of colon cells, legumes also contain various phytochemicals, which researchers feel may decrease chronic infl ammation, a risk factor for many cancers. In addition, these phytochemicals may increase the self-destruction of cancer cells.

While there are no magic foods that can guarantee men and women won’t one day develop cancer, there are many foods that research has shown are capable of reducing a person’s risk of developing this potentially deadly disease. More information on cancer-fi ghting foods is available at www.aicr.org. Story Courtesy of Metro. l

BY CASSANDRA STEWART

Giving the body what it needs can be a challenge for some people. However, fi nding the right foods that the body needs can be even harder.

In that case, some people think of super foods. Super foods are a type of food such as nuts or berries that carry nutrients the body crucially needs. If increased in their diet some consider their meals and diet healthy. That can be partially true because giving the body nutrients it lacks is a factor when living a healthy lifestyle.

However, there is a diet that Teresa Tomasi-Maloney, registered dietitian at Montrose Memorial Hospital, recom-mends. It is the Mediterranean Diet. While this diet’s purpose is not intended to be short-term, it can and help some-one lose weight. Particularly, this diet is intended for a change of lifestyle as the diet focuses on modernized cultural eat-ing from the Mediterranean areas.

“We promote the Mediterranean diet,” Tomasi-Maloney said. “People for many of years in the U.S. have followed it, and it has proven to help the body. The diet can help with cholesterol, infl ammation and certain diseases.”

The diet is composed of food groups found in the Mediter-ranean such as nuts, beans, avocados, cheese, fi sh and olive oil.

According to oldwayspt.org the Mediterranean diet food pyra-mid focuses on eating an abundance of fruits vegetables, grain, beans, nuts and seeds. Also replace fat and oils such as butter with olive oil. When it comes to

dairy, consume moderate amounts of it. Eat fi sh a few times a week and eat red meats a few times per month. When it comes to dessert, eat fruit and add honey for a sweet taste. Another factor in the pyramid is red wine. Drink a glass or two every day with meals. Keep in mind to avoid all processed foods and stick to local fresh food.

Tomasi-Maloney said the access Montrose has to fresh produce this diet is attainable for locals.

She added that this diet and the proper exercises could make for a good, healthy lifestyle.

“You can eat the super food of the week that the media highlights and get the nutrients you need, but you can also eat super nutrients when just eating the right foods every day.”

Here are a few Mediterranean diet recipes. For more information go to oldwayspt.org. l

Foods that help fi ght cancer

A diet for a better lifestyle

Breakfast • ½ cup cantaloupe • 1 slice whole wheat toast • 2 tsp. almond butter • 1 cup coff ee nonfat yogurtLunch • 1 ½ cups fresh spinach • 2 oz. skinless chicken breast • 1 tsp. olive oil • 1 sesame breadstick • 1 cup skim milk • 1 orangeDinner • 4 oz. broiled salmon • 1 sweet potato • 5 mushrooms • ½ cup asparagus • 1 cup mixed greens w/ beans • 1 tbsp. olive oil • 1 tbsp. vinegar • ½ cup strawberriesSnack • 1 oz. roasted hazelnuts • ½ cup mandarin oranges