vitality Dr. Warren Karp ask dr. karp Healthy foods, exercise are still the best diet plan J oy, from West Augusta, asks, “Is the Anti-Inflammation Diet a good diet?” Great question. These days, doesn’t it seem like there’s a special diet for everything, with a book (and usually a product) to go along with it? Writing diet books seems to be very good
for promoting media appearances, making money and having 15 minutes of fame, but is a popular book a good source of nutrition information? Do you honestly have to eat one way for your heart, one for your brain, one for your libido, one for aging, one way for your hormones and, most recently, a
special way to decrease inflammation in your body? The answer to this question is simple – you do not. It turns out that there is one very well-known way of healthful eating and you do not have to buy anything to find out about it. And, it shouldn’t be big news to you, either. You must have heard by now that you need to eat lots of fruits and veggies, have a few nuts here and there, eat more fish and whole grain starches, have a plant-based diet, eat less highfat meats and avoid fried foods, fast foods and foods high in sugar, salt, fat and calories. Honestly, if this is news to you, then you must have just emerged from a World War II bomb shelter. From an economic point-of-view, the problem with this widely- and freely-available information is that you can’t really attract a lot of new interest, excitement and, most importantly, consumer buying power. So, simply throw in some “wishful thinking” among the factual information to stimulate people’s imaginations and their impulses to open their wallets. What are some examples of this “wishful thinking” as it relates to the “anti-inflammatory diet?” One “wish” is that there is a simple, reliable, precise, specific and accurate blood test to “monitor” your inflammation (CRP, C-Reactive Protein); other “wishes” include lists of specific foods to “avoid” and “seek out.” To wrap up this marketing approach, let’s also recommend specific dietary supplements, especially ones that you happen to sell. The CRP blood test, for example, has been around for many years and has
been studied pretty extensively. It is a blood test that has some use in measuring the inflammatory state of an individual, under specific conditions. For example, if you have a bacterial infection, this causes an inflammatory response in your body and you can use CRP to monitor the infection, especially if you want to know if the treatment for the infection is working. In this case, then, the CRP blood test may be used to monitor inflammation which is the result of the bacterial disease. Inflammation is not causing the disease. To jump from this to using CRP as a monitor for inflammation which may be causing diseases such as cardiovascular disease or arthritis...well, it is just a big leap of faith and where “wishful thinking” enters the picture. For this reason, there is no consensus among health scientists that CRP be routinely measured in the general population as an indication of health risk. On the other hand, CRP may be helpful in monitoring the risk of a second cardiovascular event in people who have already had a heart attack. The idea that certain foods and See DR. KARP, page 16 “Ask Dr. Karp” focuses on food, diet, and nutrition. Dr. Warren Karp is a Professor Emeritus at Georgia Regents University. If you have a question you would like answered in this column, post it on his Facebook page, “AskDrKarp”
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here’s to your health Doctors Hospital named to Georgia honor roll Doctors Hospital in Augusta has been named to the Georgia Hospital Association’s (GHA) Partnership for Health and Accountability (PHA) Core Measures Honor Roll. Doctors Hospital is one of 30 hospitals in Georgia to be placed in the Chairman’s category, the highest on the list. The honor roll is based on clinical data provided by the federal Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS), which administers the nation’s Medicare and Medicaid programs. The data was collected from January 2013 to December 2013. Hospitals are required to submit care data to CMS, which details how well a hospital’s caregivers adhere to a list of Value-Based Purchasing (VBP) core measures. These measures are the clinical processes of care that are known to be the most effective methods of treatment for surgical patients and patients who have suffered heart attacks, pneumonia and heart failure. For instance, a recommended treatment to help prevent a heart attack is
ask dr. karp
continued from page 15 dietary supplements may be used as if they are drugs to treat or avoid inflammation is just not supported by the data right now. Some good “no-nonsense nutrition advice” is to base your health behavior on the best possible evidence at the moment and not what is “ahead of the science” or considered evolving or transitional thinking. So, is there really solid evidence that specific foods, like blueberries, green tea, or specific dietary supplements, like Coenzyme Q10, decrease your “inflammatory state?” No. Is there really solid evidence that eating certain foods, like tomatoes and eggplants, can increase your inflammatory state and are to be avoided? No.
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to take aspirin either before or upon arrival at the hospital, as well as at discharge. It is recommended that surgery patients are given an antibiotic one hour prior to surgery to prevent infection. The VBP core measure is a composite measure that determines whether or not a patient received the right care at the right time. Daybreak Adult Care expands to Evans DayBreak Adult Care Services has opened its newest office in Evans. With the expansion of the Aiken office, the adult care service company will be able to provide senior care to residents in Georgia. DayBreak provides personalized home care services with a focus on maintaining dignity and independence in daily living for seniors in their homes. DayBreak Services include 24/7 care, respite care, grocery shopping, Alzheimer’s and related dementia care, meal preparation, light housekeeping, laundry, hospital/facility sitting, companionship, transportation, medication reminders, errands, home health, palliative, or hospice support, bathing
assistance and dressing assistance. For more information about DayBreak Adult Care Services, call 706-7231744 (Evans), 803-226-0288 (Aiken) or visit daybreakcare.com. Childrens Hospital commemorates Childhood Cancer Month Pediatric cancer patients and their families helped hang gold ribbons on trees outside the Children’s Hospital of Georgia that will be on display for the entire month of September to commemorate national Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. CHOG offers the area’s only Pediatric Cancer and Blood Disorders Clinic, and it is staffed with pediatric hematologists-oncologists, nurse practitioners and other specialists that diagnose and treat children with hemophilia, leukemia, lymphomas, sickle cell disease, various tumors, rare pediatric blood and clotting disorders, bone cancers, and more. Come out and meet some of the children and families affected by these illnesses. In the U.S., almost 13,000 children under the age of 21 are diagnosed with cancer every year; approximately
one-fourth of them will not survive. The objective of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month is to put a spotlight on the types of cancer that largely affect children, survivorship issues and, most importantly, to help raise funds for research and family support. A diagnosis turns the lives of the entire family upside down. United Hospice rebrands as PruittHealth United Hospice’s Augusta and Aiken locations are now PruittHealth Hospice. After 45 successful years in the health care industry, UHS-Pruitt Corporation has changed its name to PruittHealth, as well as the names of its family of providers, and modified company branding to achieve a more unified image for its vast array of health care services. While the name may have changed, the quality of care and services has not. The community can expect the same quality services and commitment to caring that United Hospice has always provided, now with a new name. For more information visit PruittHealth. com.
When it comes to your “inflammatory state,” your lifestyle, including your overall eating pattern, is where the focus needs to be. The focus should not be on whether you are eating this food, using that herb (such as curry or ginger) or taking a specific supplement. What are these lifestyle factors? Probably the most important are not being overweight/obese and controlling your blood pressure and diabetes. In addition, exercise has a big effect on your health, by many mechanisms, one of which may be by lowering your “inflammatory state.” Uncontrolled and untreated gum disease and dental infections and smoking also can increase your chronic
disease risk, perhaps through the inflammatory connection. It also may be that, after talking to your physician, you are a specific individual who should take a daily baby aspirin and statin-based cholesterol-lowering medication as two more ways of reducing your chronic disease risk and “inflammatory state.” Yes, it is true the statins do reduce cardiovascular risk by reducing your LDL (“bad”) cholesterol; however, they may have a second affect by reducing inflammation in your body. So, do we know what the one diet is that is the healthy diet? We’re pretty sure we do. And will this diet decrease your risk of chronic disease, help you as you age, help your brain, your heart,
and your kidneys and, by the way, perhaps decrease your inflammatory state? We’re pretty sure it will. Where do you find out about this diet? The information is freely available on the USDA “Choose My Plate” website (choosemyplate.gov). What’s the “no-nonsense nutrition” advice for today? If you are worried about your “inflammatory state,” and your risk of chronic diseases, then your emphasis should be on your overall eating pattern and your lifestyle behaviors, not on specific foods, books, or TV programs. Don’t be “ahead of the science;” rather, be at the “leading edge,” right behind the science. All this writing has made me hungry. I’m going to eat a tomato sandwich. Bon Apetit!