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SENIOR HEALTH FOCUS
Q: Which is better for heart health - butter
or margarine? N.IN. Thomson, Ga.
According to Kim
Beivers, RD., C.D.E.
with University’s Dia
betes Services, mar
garines are generally bet
ter for your heart than
butter. That’s because
butter is high in choles
terol and saturated fat,
ENEAS
presents:
Journey toWellness
P o
R ,‘{':*""(
s N
the fence. Either a woman is pregnant or
she's not. You may have also heard folks say, "I just have a little
touch of sugar." Well, guess what? That person has Diabetes along
with about six million other Americans who have the undiagnosed
disease. Medical science recognizes "a little touch of sugar” as a
life-threatening condition, and we need to take this very seriously!
"A little touch of sugar" can spell disaster if left untreat
ed. Diabetes is at epidemic proportions in America, particulardy
among children and African Americans. Diabetes is a killer dis
case that can lead to stroke, heart disease, kidney failure, amputa
tions. blindness and a host of other problems.
Many people have a genetic disposition or family histo
ries that encourage the onset of Diabetes. But the majority fall vic
tim because of out-of-control eating habits and little or no exercise.
Diabetes occurs when the body poorly manages the
insulin naturally produced by the pancreas or the pancreas stops
producing insulin altogether. Insulin helps the body process glu
cose. a form of sugar that makes our cells thrive and gives us ener
gv. When Diabetics consume too much sugar in the form of car
bohydrates (white rice, white potatoes. white bread, com, grits,
desserts and soft drinks, eic) the body goes into "sugar overload"
and the classic symptoms of Diabetes appear. Symptoms include
excessive thirst and urination, blurred vision, tingling in the fingers
and toes, unusual fatigue and dizziness.
Although Diabetes has the potential to kill, don't lose
hope! Diabetes can be controlled with aggressive management
and a radical commitment to make significant changes to one's diet
and lifestyle.
If you have a family history of Diabetes or if you are
overweight, over age 40 and get little or no exercise, you are seri
ously at risk for Diabetes. Obese, sedentary children are also at
risk and their plight is far more dangerous because the degenera
tive nature of the disease can impact developing organs and set the
course its young victims for a shortened lifespan and numerous
medical problems.
If you have Diabetes, take control. If you don't have it,
but make lifestyle choices that put you at risk for the disease,
choose healthier alternatives for a healthier. longer life. If you
THINK you have the disease, get tested. It's one of the sweetest
things you can do to demonstrate your love for yourself and for
those who depend on you!
Visit www_journeytowellness.com for more important news about
vour health. y
the main substance in
plaques, or the deposits
that can develop in your
arteries and lead to heart
attack and stroke.
Margarines, on the
other hand, are made
from vegetable oils, so
they contain no choles-
DIABETES: A TOUCH OF
SUGAR IS NOT A
SWEET THING
By Dr. Mary Harris |
Did you ever hear the
expression, “a little bit pregnant?" It's
used to illustrate the point that when it
comes to health. there's no sitting on
AUGUSTA FOCUS
terol or saturated fats.
And they are higher in
the “good” polyunsatu
rated and monounsatu
rated fats than butter.
Polyunsaturated fats help
reduce “bad” or low-den
sity lipoprotein (LDL)
cholesterol. Monounsat
urated fats also helps
reduce cholesterol and
resist oxidation, a
process that leads to cell
and tissue damage.
But not all margarines
are healthy. In fact, some
margarines are actually
worse for your heart than
butter. That’s because
Breast cancer study
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A study of breast cancer is looking for African-American volun
teers.
New program examines stem cells’ potential
to repair, replace damaged tissue
Maximizing the potential of
stem cells to repair dg?mged tis
sue and possibly make new
o lost to disease or injury
isrigsgoal of the new Program
in lfienemtivc Medicine at
the Medical College of Geor
gla-Bctter understanding the
natural course of how stem cells
live and die is the place
researchers will start, says Dr.
Carlos M. Isales, endocrinolo
gist and chief of the new pro
gram in the Institute of Molec
ular Medicine and Genetics.
“We want to learn more
about stem cells over the life
time of a human and why they
seem to quit workm&as we
age,” sa ?)r Isales of the mul
qdins:lip{isnary, ll:u,llti-instim
tio oup hes pu
ofebe: b e
are
it because Mm m
out and not being replaced?
it because you have other hor
mones being produced that
interfere vt'?tgfi the action of
stem cells?”
To pursue answgz,ld the pro
s’ cuts
gmmm N%Eo(‘;wfiools ast{vell as
other universities and facilities
to indude MCG Schools of
Medicine and Dentistry, the
University of Georgja, the Uni
versity of South Carolina,
Savannah River National Lab
oratory and Fort Gordon. The
group includes both dlinicians
and %asic researchers working
togm to develop new
es to treating com
group is now meeting
weekly, preparing to apgll)y fora
Program Project grant from the
National Institutes of Health
which already has a ;
margarine is often made
through a process called
hydrogenation, which
makes the fat more solid
and less likely to turn
rancid. Hydrogenation
adds unhealthy trans fats
to the product. Like sat
urated fats, trans fats
may increase blood cho
lesterol and the risk of
heart disease. Generally
speaking, the more solid
the margarine the more
trans or hydrogenated fat
it contains.
To select the healthiest
margarine, Ms. Beavers
suggests you avoid stick
name: “Molecular Mecha
nisms of Tissue Repair With
A%oflkmmlafivdyfcwm
number and difficult to track
in the body, so researchers will
isolate cells from umbilical cord
blood, bone marrow and fat
and study them in vitro, Dr.
Isales says. They also will exam
ine the cells in tissue of different
ages to see how they change
and what responses generate
new cells. “Maybe as cells age,
they lose their ability to
respond to vibration,” he wz's.
“Eachltime you walk, for
example, you are gene a
vibmgon yt(c,> yourg,ebox?emlfiat
helps keep that bone healthy
angs helps make that bone
grow. Tl!x)e question is, ‘How
some of these mechanisms
change as we and our bones
e
0 e is
khown ‘fim the function of
stem cells in the body, some
stem cells have been better
characterized than others, such
as mesenchymal stem cells that
can become either fat, bone or
cartilage. So if bone repair is the
sc])al, it makes sense to use
ese, Dr. Isales says. Embry
e
n much con ;
im to have the broadest
potential. These undifferentiat
ed stem cells can make pretty
much any tygle of tissue
depending on the setting in
which they are placed, many
scientists agree.
“The ic?;e?s that eventually
you could replace just about
any tissue that is damaged,”
says Dr. Isales, who wants the
centers research to readily
translate to better care for
patients. “There are animals
margarines and choose a
low-fat spray margarine
or a low-fat tub mar
garine that contains no
hydrogenated oils. And
remember to eat all fats
in moderation since they
add excess calories. Fats
—regardless of the type
- contain nine calories
per gram compared to
four calories per gram
for protein and carbohy
drates.
If youd like more
information on nutri
tion, watch Ms. Beavers
on Eating Well with Kim
on Midday at noon on
(NAPSM)-Scientists will
learn more about a disease that
affects almost two million
women by ing their sis
ters. The Sm will look
at how the environment and
genes may lead to breast cancer,
a disease which disproportion
ately kills minority women.
Women whose sisters were
diagnosed with breast cancer
are at higher risk. Researchers
from the National Institute of
Environmental Health Sci
ences, a part of the National
Institutes of Health, are recruit
ing women between 35 and 74
who have not had breast cancer
that regenerate whole tissues,
such as mmik \%Tls that d?n
new tails. can they
grn?iwwhy cant we?x says Dr.
Isales.
The idea of regeneration in
humans has always existed to
some extent, he says, but now
scientists hg;g; tggl; x start
making it : ere is
potential here - when a ];:;ticnt
needs a kidney transplant or
when you have a patient with
bumns who needs skin Cfinfis
che possibilities are endless,”
e says.
e%ny;Karl H. Wenger, a bio
m engineering scientist
tv;hc K'l dmctocc?gu; of research fo;_
e Dgpmmcnt o
Orthopaedic Surgery, will
develop a bioreactor where
stem cells from one of these
patients could one day be
grown into needed replace
ment organs and tissue. Each
cell type has a distinct frame
work or matrix that will be
used like the frame of a build
iLt g
e are moving from
transplantation, _like rc::fi
transplantation, where we have
taken tissue from another per
son then give the recipient
medication to keep the gody
from attacking that tissue, to
being able to take primitive
cells or the patient’s own cells to
grow the ussue he needs. We
S i O
fiein an mm'fid _put
il:idxcm back in people,” Dr.
Up’z:stmct, MCG dental
oo s g
wi at
the Geg’;;gg mm
nology to use computer tech
nology and X-rays to design
November 18, 2004
Mondays, Wednesdays
and Fridays. Sponsored
by University and News
12 and hosted by Tom
Campbell and Ms.
Beavers, the segment
offers healthy eating
ideas along with quick,
easy and nutritious
recipes for your family.
If you have a question
you would like addressed
in this column or would
like more information on
University Seniors Club,
please write to Universi
ty Seniors Club at 4106
Columbia Road, Martinez,
Ga. 30907.
but who have sisters, living or
African-American, Latina,
Native American and Asian-
American women in particular
are encouraged to participate.
Volunteers in the Sister Study
will answer questionnaires and
provide samples to help
researchers identify factors that
influence the development of
breast cancer.
To volunteer, go to the Web
site, wwwisisterstudy.org, or call
1-8774 SISTER.
A study of breast cancer is
looking for African-American
volunteers.
identical replacements for bone
and other facial tssue lost to
cancer.
“We are working at the
moment in materials, but the
idea is to expand this into more
compatible materials and even
tually into natural tissue
replacement,” says Dr. Geo
S. Schuster, associate dean E
research for the School of Den
the concept for years, taking
molds or X-rays of teeth then
making caps or crowns to
restore form and function. “It’s
afyeryimpomntam,”hcmys
of the interest in regeneration.
“What we are particularly
interested in is being able to
reconstruct people with facial
?oer.Oml&ialmnocrisohe
rertin of TR
youcnndlinko‘?,”Dr.Schustu
says of the cancer that often is
found by dentists and can be
very deadly if not treated
Dental faculty, such as Dr.
Schuster, with expertise in cell
biology and biomaterials; Dr.
James Borke, who studies bone
formation; and Dr. David H.
Paslflmwho studies dtc}:nal
materials, are amo, ose
in Regenerative
The Medical College of
Georgia is the state’s health sci
the Schools of Allied Health
Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate
Studies, Medicine and Nurs
ing, the MCG Medical Center
and the Children's Medical
Center. Please visit our Web
site at http://www.mcg.edu.
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