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The Savannah Tribune • Wednesday, April 22, 2009 - 3
SOCIAL AND COMMUNITY NEWS
Clearing That Mental Fog
Carolyn Guilford
More and more I hear
folk talking about brain fog.
Persons in Chemotherapy the
most, but also persons of all
ages.
Trouble recalling
names and dates, newly
learned materials, details of
events and information from
along ago.
This brain fog affects
persons in every age range,
from teenagers -difficulty
learning, working profes
sionals, retirees, as well as
the elderly.
We call it ‘brain fail
ure’. For abnormal brain
function, most of the risk
factors can be eliminated or
easily controlled once we
become aware of them and
make the commitment to
manage them. And in doing
so we protect the brain, long
term.
Our overall quality of
life is linked to cognitive
function.
Academic perform
ance, career success, self
esteem and confidence, and
the enjoyment of life, all
comes from peak brain
health. And peak brain
health comes from regular
physical exercise, regular
mental exercise and the right
nutrition.
We know that exercise
strengthens the heart and is
needed for good circulation,
which sends vital nutrients,
glucose and oxygen to all the
cells of the body.
And it sends these vital
nutrients to the brain as well.
The brain also needs the
mental exercise. Learning
new skills, languages, or
challenging the brain with
reading, games, puzzles even
as we age, keeps the brain
sharp.
It’s a ‘use it or lose it’
organ like any other, and is at
risk of growing dull.
A healthy diet. The
same nutrients we rely on to
keep the body healthy and
strong are also needed to
keep brain cells strong and
active.
The right nutrients with
elevate cognitive function,
memory retention, adapt to
mental stress, reverse cogni
tive decline, and even stop
dementia.
One of the main rea
sons for poor cognitive func
tion in this age is the farming
practices which depletes the
soil in which the foods are
grown, causing produce to be
very low in the very nutrients
vital to life and health.
But, also the process
ing, the adding of chemicals
and preservatives, and pesti
cides, all of which are toxic
to the brain.
This is a very good case
for buying organically grown
produce, and for growing
your own.
Other neuro-toxins
include smoking, chronic
stress, chronic diseases: high
cholesterol, diabetes, and
high blood pressure, and the
medications for these dis
eases, and the drinking of
alcohol.
So many times when I
hear persons speak of the
chemo brain, or brain fog,
they laugh it off, however,
this foggy thinking and
faulty memory is really an
early warning sign of brain
decline to come, in the form
of dementia or Alzheimer’s
disease in the future.
Losing your mental
acuity is not a normal part of
aging as many would
believe, and is not inevitable.
With the right care, the brain,
as with the body, is perfectly
designed to last our full life
times of one hundred and
twenty (120 ) years.
So how do we care for this
brain and this body for a
good life?
Avoid the things that
are bad:
Sugar, fatty
meats, cream, lard, shorten
ing, hydrogenated fats,
doughnuts, fried chicken,
candy bars, commercially
prepare cookies, breads and
muffins, and french fries.
Junk foods and processed
foods. Alcohol, caffeine, arti
ficial sweeteners, and sodas.
And embrace the good:
Baked and broiled fish, leafy
greens, berries, all the colors
of veggies, nuts and seeds,
whole-grain fibers, and
organically grown meats and
produce, as much as possi
ble.
Aerobic exercise
enhances circulation to the
brain also, carrying vital
nutrients and oxygen to the
cells for energy and peak per
formance.
Mental stimulation
with mind teasers helps mul
tiply and extend branching
neurons, helping keep them
flexible and supple, all of
which empowers the brain to
learn more, recall quickly,
accurately and to remain
sharp.
A study call ‘ACTIVE’,
published in December 2006,
Journal of American Medical
Association showed that
mental exercise can help
fight cognitive decline in
older adults and also may
“help maintain thinking
skills needed for everyday
tasks such as paying bills,
shopping and cooking.”
This would allow many
more persons to continue to
live at home independently.
Remember, Health is a
choice, Your Choice.
Health Restoration
Consulting
R O. Box 2814, Savannah,
GA 31402
(912) 236-8987
Stay Informed! Visit us online at:
www.savannahtribune.com
click on “Get News Updates”
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Obama Administration Announces
New Campaign to Refocus on
HIV/AIDS Crisis
President Barack Obama
Officials from the
White House, Department of
Health and Human Services
and the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention
(CDC) announced recently a
new five-year national com
munication campaign, Act
Against AIDS, which high
lights this alarming statistic
and aims to combat compla
cency about the HIV/AIDS
crisis in the United States.
According to CDC data
released last year, about
56,000 Americans become
newly infected with HIV
each year - significantly
more than was previously
known - and more than
14,000 people with AIDS die
each year in the United
States.
“Act Against AIDS
seeks to put the HIV crisis
back on the national radar
screen,” said Melody Barnes,
Assistant to the President and
Director of the White House
Domestic Policy Council.
“Our goal is to remind
Americans that HIV/AIDS
continues to pose a serious
health threat in the United
States and encourage them to
get the facts they need to take
action for themselves and
their communities.”
The campaign will fea
ture public service announce
ments (PSAs) and online
communications, as well as
targeted messages and out
reach to the populations most
severely affected by
HIV/AIDS, beginning with
African-Americans, with
subsequent phases focusing
on Latinos and other commu
nities disproportionately
impacted.
To help achieve wide
spread use of the campaign
messages within African-
American communities, the
Obama Administration also
announced today the Act
Against AIDS Leadership
Initiative (AAALI), a partner
ship with 14 of the nation’s
leading African-American
civic organizations to inte
grate HIV prevention into
each organization’s outreach
programs.
To promote broad use of
the campaign messages, CDC
is also collaborating with the
Henry J. Kaiser Family
Foundation to focus on out
reach and technical assistance
to the media and the enter
tainment industry.
The Act Against AIDS
campaign will be supported
by a CDC budget of roughly
$45 million over the next five
years, as well as the efforts of
community, media and public
health partners across the
country to promote and uti
lize campaign materials and
messages.
The first phase of the
Act Against AIDS campaign,
called “9 Minutes,” uses a
series of video, audio, print
and online materials to
increase knowledge about the
severity of the HIV/AIDS cri
sis in the United States.
The campaign high
lights the simple fact that
every 9 minutes someone in
the United States becomes
infected with HIV.
The materials released
today direct Americans to
“get the facts” by going to the
Web site
www.NineAndaHalfMinutes.
org as a first step toward
learning how they can help
protect themselves and oth
ers.
The site provides basic
education about HIV/AIDS
as well as referrals to HIV
prevention and testing servic
es and organizations through
out the nation.
“Right here in the
United States, every 9 min
utes someone’s brother, sis
ter, best friend, father or
mother becomes infected
with HIV,” said Jeffrey
Crowley, Director of the
White House Office of
National AIDS Policy.
“Yet, research shows
that many of those becoming
infected do not recognize
their risk. This is a major
concern, because lack of
knowledge contributes to
increased risk behaviors.”
The next phase to
launch will focus on African-
Americans, who, by far, bear
the greatest burden of HIV in
the United States.
While accounting for
just 12 percent of the U.S.
population, blacks represent
roughly half of new HIV
infections and AIDS deaths
every year.
Targeted communica
tions to encourage increased
HIV testing among the two
groups of African-Americans
most severely affected, gay
or bisexual men and women,
will begin shortly.
Future phases of the Act
Against AIDS campaign will
focus on reaching specific
populations at greatest risk
with HIV prevention mes
sages tailored to meet their
unique needs including
Latinos and other high risk
groups.
To encourage broad use
of Act Against AIDS cam
paign materials and mes
sages, CDC is partnering
with the Kaiser Family
Foundation - a leader in
health policy and communi
cations - to enlist widespread
participation in the campaign
from the media and entertain
ment industries. The initia
tive will establish a coalition
of media partners who are
committed to increasing
knowledge of HIV/AIDS in
the United States. Industry
partners will be encouraged
to use the PSAs, and to
See HIV/AIDS, page 4
Light House to Celebrate
8 Years
You are cordially invited
to share with us as we celebrate
the 8th Anniversary of the Light
House Mission and Bible Study.
The Light House Mission
is an outreach Ministry of the
Hutchinson Longstreet Baptist
Church in Stilson, Ga., where
the Rev. Aurthur Kelley is the
Pastor.
The Light House Mission
and Bible Study services are
held every Friday evening from
7-9pm.
The Anniversary
Celebration will be held Friday,
April 24 at 7pm.
The message will come
from Evangelist Janice Johnson-
Scott.
Please come out and help
us lift up the name of Jesus.
The Light House Mission
and Bible Study is housed in the
Telfair Arms Apartment
Building in the 4th floor confer
ence room. Telfair Arms is locat
ed on the comer of Drayton and
Dully Streets.