Medical Examiner 1/10/20 by Daniel Pearson

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JANUARY 10, 2020

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2020: THE YEAR OF THE

It’s probably no surprise that you’re reading an article about the eye in this first issue of the year. This year in particular. After all, it’s 2020, right? On the Chinese calendar this may be the Year of the Rat, but everywhere else it’s definitely the Year of the Eye. There is no question that eyes are body royalty. Sight is universally judged to be the most precious of our senses. There is no other organ by which we learn so much about the world around us. We use our eyes in almost everything we do. Despite their vital importance, our eyes are small organs, only about an inch in diameter. A golf ball, by comparison, has a diameter of about an inch and a half. What eyes may lack in size, they more than make up for in performance. They are full-color, automatically focusing motion picture cameras. Their lens has a feature that instantly adjusts to light conditions from very bright to near total darkness. They have a Steadi-Cam-like feature, enabling us to see perfectly well while running, or to maintain focus on a stationary object while our head rotates in any direction. Speaking of visual tech, our eyes also possess DVR-like recording capabilities; images we have viewed can be recalled years and even decades later. Our eyes can clearly view tiny objects up close or focus sharply on stars in distant galaxies, and according to scientists they can detect an astonishing 10 million colors. Oops. Using our eyes we just spotted an error in the previous sentence. Technically speaking, eyes don’t actually see objects. They see the light that objects give off or reflect. Those light rays enter the eye through the lens and hit the rods and cones that cover the back wall of the eye, the retina. The retina is covered with rods and cones, some 120 million rods and 6 million cones. Take a moment to ponder those two numbers. The rods, plentiful though they are, enable us to see just shades of gray and in dim light. It is the 6 million cones which enable us to see the aforementioned millions of different colors. Here is another instance where human technology has attempted to imitate nature. Cones register shades of color using the same RGB combinations (red, green, blue) that computer

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THE FIRST 40 YEARS ARE ALWAYS THE HARDEST

PART 4 OF A SERIES BY JONATHAN MURDICK Editor’s note: Our correctional nurse isn’t quite as fetching as the nurse on the cover of the pulp novel shown. Ours isn’t even a female. But our nurse has at least one exceptional advantage over the nurse in the picture: he’s real.

PARENTHOOD by David W. Proefrock, PhD Your 11 year-old son just got braces. He isn’t supposed to chew gum or eat certain foods, but he has been sneaking and eating forbidden foods and chewing gum anyway. What should you do? A. Have a serious talk with him about the reasons why he isn’t supposed to chew gum or eat certain kinds of food. B. Take him back to the orthodontist so the orthodontist can tell him what will happen if he eats foods he’s not supposed to eat. C. Tell him that he has to learn to be responsible for making good choices about what he eats while wearing braces. Take him to the grocery store and buy acceptable snacks and other foods to have around the house for him to eat, and hold him accountable for the choices he makes. D. All kids with braces chew gum and eat things they are not supposed to. Don’t worry about it. If you answered: A. This won’t hurt anything, but it’s probably not going to help either. He’s already been told why he shouldn’t eat certain things. What he requires now is to develop the responsibility to do what he’s supposed to do. B. The orthodontist has already had this talk with him. Helping him develop the responsibility to do what he is supposed to do is one of your jobs as a parent. C. This is the best response. Help him take responsibility for picking out things to eat that are acceptable. Then hold him accountable for his choices. D. While it is true that most kids “cheat” a little while wearing braces, that doesn’t make it okay. This is a chance to help him learn responsibility. You should never miss an opportunity to help your child learn responsibility. This is one of those opportunities. Make it possible for him to make good choices and then hold him accountable for the choices he makes. + Dr. Proefrock is a retired clinical and forensic child psychologist.

JANUARY 10, 2020

eeks had passed since my first day. The sights, smells, fears and horrors were becoming my constant companions, and each day I felt like a piece of my soul was being sacrificed to the sheer oppression of this place. This particular South Carolina prison (which will remain nameless) houses only the most serious offenders serving no less than 20 years. While there were exceptions due to overpopulation, these guys were the worst of the worst. Life in most dorms appeared to be relatively routine. Inmates spent most of their day in their cell with their assigned roommate(s), walked to the chow hall for meals, and a select few had productive activities like shop or work duties. The prison locks down at least five times a day for “count,” where every inmate is personally accounted for to ensure security. The inmates return to their cells before evening count and spend the rest of their evening locked away. I say life in most dorms because Max is a dorm unto itself, with its own rules and little to no inmate movement. One notable exception to this was a previously ordinary dorm in the middle of the yard housing what we will call “The Rejects.” The Rejects had rioted before I arrived. An officer was killed and a nurse assaulted. Because the entire dorm was in violation, the prison simply turned this dorm into another max. Problems quickly arose because this dorm was not built like max, and its inmates shared the cells with two to four other roommates. Imagine being stuck in an 8ft x 12ft concrete room with up to four other dis-

comrade to us as bright red SHOCKING TRUE TALES! en blood oozed from the back of

I Was a

Prison Nurse !

50¢ reputable characters 23 out of every 24 hours, day after day. I mentioned in an earlier article that Rule #1 of prison life was to show no fear. Rule #2 is to NEVER lie to an inmate about ANYTHING. One of the largest issues I addressed in daily sick call was athlete’s foot, jock itch, and skin related infections. Because showers required two officers to escort each inmate, and only 3 officers worked each unit, simple math dictates people don’t get frequent showers in prison. In the reject dorm, they showered even less. When I arrived, these inmates had already spent nearly a year in lockdown status. Every time you entered the building, barely restrained violence was palpable, and some inmates committed horrible offenses simply to be moved to the Max for a change of pace. The patient in our first story was an unfortunate victim of such a senseless display. I mention rule #2 because I learned its importance from an officer who arrived in our medical unit one day flat on his back. Officers rushed their fall-

his skull. One officer franticly screamed on his radio while another held a cloth to the back of his friend’s head. We packaged and stabilized our patient as quickly as possible and then made the journey through the yard, desperately wheeling our stretchered patient toward the flashing lights of a waiting ambulance. I was surprised that not a single inmate offered prayers or well wishes. To the contrary, they cursed, spit, and hurled insults like a barrage of arrows descending on a retreating army. We loaded our patient into the ambulance and only then did we realize the prison was in chaos. Reject dorm inmates could be heard pounding and screaming across the prison. Eerie echoes arose from the surrounding dorms as other inmates picked up the beat and chants, and together the inmates howled like a pack of wild coyotes. The sound is one I’ll never forget. I don’t imagine the officer who was struck by a “lock in a sock” will either. The weapon is crude but effective. Somewhere a careless worker left a padlock open and it was obtained by sticky fingers. To weaponize this all one must do is slip the lock into a tube sock and swing it with furious intent. The officer suffered a significant skull fracture but was fortunate enough to return to duty months later. The issue: he didn’t give the inmate a shower he had been promising but repeatedly not delivering. Let’s review: NEVER lie to an inmate. It also stands to reason that if you cage a man like an animal, don’t be surprised when he bites. +

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Eyes aren’t just how we look at the world; they are beautiful to look at too.

screens do. Once light rays strike the rods and cones, they activate nerve fibers attached to the millions of rods and cones, something like (to use a very crude example) wires attached to the back of each individual pixel on a TV or computer screen. Those “wires” combine to form a cable known as the optic nerve, a bundle of as many as 1.7 million fibers. The optic nerve would have nothing of value to convey to the brain were it not for what happens to light rays before they strike their first rod or cone. Light rays must come to a point on the retina for a clear and sharp image to result (more about that in a moment). The job of the lens is to bend light rays passing through it precisely so they will meet at that point. It does this instantaneously, continuously and automatically, whether the object being viewed is a foot away, a mile away, or hundreds of thousands of miles (such as the moon). The iris, the eye’s colored portion, helps enable sharp vision by — those same three words — instantaneously, continuously and automatically adjusting the aperture of this amazing camera system to regulate how much light enters the eye. It opens wide in dim lighting, enlarging the

pupil, and narrows in bright light conditions or when viewing an object up close. A few paragraphs back a statement was made about “clear and sharp images” resulting from light rays striking the retina precisely. This was a bit of an oversimplification. The optic nerve collects the data provided by our millions of rods and cones, but it doesn’t send images to the brain. It converts the image data to electrical signals. The brain receives these signals and translates

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I AM ALLERGIC TO PENICILLIN So you say. But are you really? Probably not. Penicillin is the most commonly reported drug allergy. Approximately 10 percent of Americans self-report a past diagnosis of penicillin allergy. That’s unfortunate because of penicillin’s value in fighting infections and bacteria. But maybe the numbers don’t tell the full story. For starters, nine out of 10 patients reporting a penicillin allergy are not truly allergic. How does that happen? Many times the alleged allergy is pronounced in pediatric cases out of an abundance of caution. Years (even decades) later, we’re still listing it every time we fill out a medical form. And, let’s be honest, still trying to remember how to spell it correctly. There are two mitigating factors supporting the statement above that as many as nine out of 10 allergy reporters are not allergic after all. First, when formally tested for penicillin allergy, less than 1 percent of the population tests positive for the allergy. Second, even for those with a confirmed and verified penicillin allergy (the majority of which are initially pediatric), about 80 percent gradually lose their penicillin sensitivity after 10 years. Of course, none of this means that you are or are not allergic. But finding out for sure is not complicated. Ask your pharmacist or physician about testing and get the scoop. It’s usually initially done as a simple skin test, and may be followed up with an oral dose to conclusively rule out (or in) an allergy. What makes it important one way or another is, as alluded to earlier, the valuable uses of penicillin in treating infections. When penicillin is unavailable, doctors turn to broad-spectrum antibiotics (penicillin is a narrow-spectrum antibiotic). Broadspectrum antibiotics increase healthcare costs and are more likely to lead to antibiotic-resistant superbugs like MRSA and C-Diff. Incidentally, the numbers in this article are courtesy of the following sources: the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology; the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology; the Joint Council of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology; and the Centers for Disease Control. +

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them into images. But it’s not anything you could call simple. Like a camera lens, the eye’s lenses reverse and invert images, so the brain has to flip every image right-side up and reverse it so letters and numbers aren’t backwards. The brain does this — those three words again. In fact, it does it double-time, processing two slightly different images simultaneously, one from each eye. Too bad we’re out of space. There is only room for this final thought: I  eye. +

THE EYE… from page 1

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www.AugustaRx.com The Medical Examiner’s mission: to provide information on topics of health and wellness of interest to general readers, to offer information to assist readers in wisely choosing their healthcare providers, and to serve as a central source of salubrious news within every part of the Augusta medical community. Direct editorial and advertising inquiries to: Daniel R. Pearson, Publisher & Editor E-mail: Dan@AugustaRx.com AUGUSTA MEDiCAL EXAMINER P.O. Box 397, Augusta, GA 30903-0397

(706) 860-5455 www.AugustaRx.com • E-mail: graphicadv@knology.net www.Facebook.com/AugustaRX Opinions expressed by the writers herein are their own and/or their respective institutions. Neither the Augusta Medical Examiner, Pearson Graphic 365 Inc., nor its agents or employees take any responsibility for the accuracy of submitted information, which is presented for general informational purposes only. For specific medical advice, diagnosis, and treatment, consult your doctor. The appearance of advertisements in this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the products or services advertised. © 2020 PEARSON GRAPHIC 365 INC.

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JANUARY 10, 2020

#106 IN A SERIES

Who is this? ON THE ROAD TO BETTER HEALTH A PATIENT’S PERSPECTIVE Editor’s note: Augusta writer Marcia Ribble, Ph.D., is a retired English and creative writing professor who offers her unique perspective as a patient. Contact her at marciaribble@hotmail.com Another way the rehab center was better was that the food was real, actually cooked Regular readers of this column may have in the facility kitchen, not the awful food noticed a string of reruns in recent issues of of all the other hospitals and rehab centers the Examiner. I was out of commission after I’ve been in. Despite the better food, while breaking my hip. I’m home again, finally, in the hospital and rehab I nonetheless lost after way too many months of nearly forty pounds due to hospitals and rehab. It’s been the aftermath of the surgery I’ve been gone. a rough slog since July 12th and losing my appetite. Even and it will be rough for a while I am back. with more appetizing food, I with lots of rehab at home couldn’t eat much. ahead. Because I broke my hip my right leg Some of my favorites were the meatloaf is now two inches shorter than my left leg and mashed potatoes and vegetables and and I wasn’t allowed to place any weight on fruit we got once a week or so. I usually it for seven weeks after surgery, so I have a saved about half of the meatloaf for a pronounced limp. At my age that isn’t a very meatloaf sandwich with ketchup and mayo big issue, but it does slow me down a little. for a snack later in the day. I also enjoyed I was discharged Dec. 23, just in time to the baked fish, another regular offering. One be home for Christmas which made me very thing I did not enjoy was the almost daily happy. The one sadness in coming home scoop of plain white rice. Even the rice with is in leaving behind all the people I have gravy couldn’t tempt me. I’m from Michigan grown to love, both patients and staff, at the where rice is not usually part of any but rehab facility where I received post-hospital Asian meals. I would have enjoyed a lot more treatment. Having been at three different spaghetti and other pasta. rehab centers, I can attest that in many ways One rather humorous consequence of this one was the best, although far from losing so much weight was growing a whole perfect. lot of facial and other wrinkles. I didn’t have What made it better? It’s the only place a mirror handy, so I didn’t notice until I got with a genuine social as well as rehab home and I was shocked by them. I also activity schedule. Even severely handicapped noticed that I need a haircut badly. It’s not individuals were included in those activities, awfully shaggy yet, but clearly on the way. which kept us busy from our 9:30 am Because I was home for Christmas I exercise class through arts activities, was able to enjoy watching Luna, my religious services, bingo, and meals eaten great-granddaughter, open gifts from her together. It wasn’t always fun, but there was grandparents. Her favorite was a package of lots of laughter. One special treat happened dinosaurs, with one large, roaring, T-rex she frequently when our caregivers performed could “scare” me with. I could tell I’ve been dance routines during exercise classes, ill, though because their relatively short visit something we all enjoyed! left me needing my long winter’s nap. + by Marcia Ribble

any people who have saved a life say the experience has changed them profoundly. So you can imagine how the woman above must feel. She has saved thousands of lives. Her name is Diana Simone. In early 1996, she and millions of others around the country were following news of an unfolding tragedy. On January 13 of that year, Amber Hagerman, a 9-yearold girl who lived near Simone’s home in Arlington, Texas, was abducted while riding her bike. The kidnapping was witnessed by one person, a man who called 911 immediately, yet despite a good description of the vehicle and quick response by police, there were no leads in the case for days. In fact, the first true break in the case was a tragic one: four days after Amber’s disappearance, her body was found in a creek. Forensic investigators determined that she had only been dead for two days. For many, including Simone, the thought that Amber had been alive in captivity for two days was somehow worse than had she been killed immediately. But it also raised the point that police had had two days to rescue Amber before her murder. Amber Hagerman As all of this played out, Diana Simone wondered why more wasn’t done. She called a local radio station with a pointed question: why do you interrupt programming with severe weather alerts, but not for a missing child? Who knows how things might have turned out if everyone in the area was looking for a certain vehicle, not just police? Why not use the Emergency Alert System, already in place, for cases like this? The idea caught on, first in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and very soon nationally. Simone insisted from the start that it be named in remembrance of Amber Hagerman (so if you read somewhere that the Amber in Amber Alert stands for America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response, that is what is known as a “backronym,” an acronym invented after the fact). In fact, Simone was unknown as the driving force behind the idea until 2002. Signed into federal law by President George W. Bush in 2003 (with Simone in attendance), the Amber Alert system spreads a wide net using radio, television, digital interstate highway signs, and cellphones. Alerts are deployed state-wide or in multi-state regions depending on the case. According to the Department of Justice’s Amber Alert website (amberalert.ojp.gov), since its inception 967 children have been rescued across the U.S. (as of Sept. 2019) specifically by Amber Alerts, and the FBI National Crime Information Center says reports of missing children have dropped 40 percent since 1997, the year after Amber Alerts began. The program is also employed in 22 other countries. Sadly, however, Amber Hagerman’s kidnapper and murderer has never been found. +

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NEWSERIES!

Middle Age ADVENTURES IN

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BY J.B. COLLUM

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a significant amount of weight that year and wondered why I wasn’t feeling better. Little did I know that I had a ticking time bomb in my chest. I felt guilty because on that whole trip I only managed to walk on the beach with my wife once. The saga continued as we took a trip to the mountains in November of that year. We were in Gatlinburg, Tennessee on a cool, sunny afternoon in November of 2015. We spent the morning outlet shopping in nearby Pigeon Forge. I felt increasingly tired and out of breath as we went from store to store. I can usually walk for hours without a problem, but on this day, I found myself sitting on the benches more than usual. At lunchtime I told my wife I was too tired and would head back to our chalet after we ate. She and the rest of the crew would keep shopping while our son, nephew and I headed back. The pain and shortness of breath was joined by nausea as I drove. Once we got back, my symptoms were much worse. My son and nephew walked right in and started playing pool on the first floor, oblivious to my plight as I struggled to get out of the car and up the porch steps. Once inside, I started up the stairs to our bedroom on the third floor, but barely made it past the first flight. That’s what I was describing in the opening paragraph. The waves of unbearable chest and back pain had me on my knees. If I had been sensible, I would

have told my son to call 911 to get an ambulance. But my wrong-headed desire to not ruin the vacation for everyone else kept me from doing that. Later, when I was thinking straight, I realized that dying on vacation would have probably been slightly worse for all involved. I finally called out to my son and nephew. With their help, I managed to make it up to my room. I laid myself down in bed and started a conversation with a higher power. No, I didn’t call my wife. Not right away anyway. I’m talking about prayer. Over the course of about 30 minutes, the pain decreased until it was almost completely gone. I then tried to get up and realized the pain had only been sleeping and I had awakened it. So I laid back down and stayed there for most of the rest of our trip like a parent who is stuck in bed with their arm under a sleeping child. I wasn’t going anywhere. Once we got home, my adventures in middle age really got rolling as I made my first visit to a cardiologist, but I’ll tell you more about that next time. The two words I remember from that visit were “widow maker.” Thank you for joining me as I take a sometimes satirical and hopefully salubrious look at surviving middle age. + J.B. Collum is a local novelist, humorist and columnist who wants to be Mark Twain when he grows up. He may be reached at johnbcollum@gmail.com

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The pain in my chest and back radiating down my left arm was threatening to bring me to my knees. Was I having a heart attack? It sure seemed like it. Oddly enough, my first thoughts weren’t to get help and go to a hospital. We were on vacation, and I was thinking that I couldn’t let this happen now. That would be selfish and unfair to everyone else. I thought that if I could just get upstairs and rest, everything would be alright. Maybe it was just stress. Then the pain spiked even higher, my knees buckled and I collapsed on the stairs about halfway up the second flight. How did I get to this point? Let’s get some background. Middle aged. Loaded words for sure. I wasn’t old, but I wasn’t young anymore. I was only 49. I wasn’t supposed to be in that club yet. I wouldn’t even qualify for an AARP card for a few more months, but in retrospect, I think my middle ages started a few months earlier, back in the summer. I had taken a tumble coming down the stairs at home and injured my back. Still assuming I was immortal, I didn’t seek treatment. The pain eased, but then returned, though different. Because of the timing, I assumed (incorrectly) that it was from the back injury, so I ignored it. By the time we took a late summer beach vacation, I was tired all the time and the back pain was a regular part of my life, but I still chalked it up to the stairway slip. I had been on a diet and exercise regimen and had lost

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There’s an ax hanging over my head The year I turned 65, the proverbial “ax hanging over my head” moved ever so slightly. That ax has been there ever since my mother died. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease at 68, but she started having symptoms at age 65. She was in excellent health otherwise and it took the disease 18 years to finally stop her completely. When my mother retired at 65, the official reason for her retirement was her age. She had a thriving cosmetology business that she maintained successfully for years. But she told me the real reason for her retirement was because she knew she was having trouble remembering how to cut hair. In the 1990s there was not a lot of information about Alzheimer’s disease. President Reagan had been diagnosed with it, so it was being researched more and more. Not many people knew much about it and there was no treatment for it. When I went with my mother to her regular checkup and brought it up, the doctor passed it off by saying it was too early

to be concerned about it. I was not sure if he meant it was too early because her symptoms were not definitive, or she was too young to be concerned about it yet. Either way, I did not get any information. Over the next 3 years, I noticed more and more changes in my mother. She asked me to balance her check book and pay her bills. She became reluctant to drive. These changes took place gradually, so they were not something noticeable right off. It took time for me to accumulate enough incidents of her unusual behaviors to finally begin to be really concerned. A friend of my family had dealt with Alzheimer’s disease in their family. Since he was my only source of sure information, I asked him if he would speak to my mother the next time they were together. I wanted him to see if he noticed anything about her conversation and demeanor that was different. He said he would let me know. A week later, this friend’s mother showed up unexpectedly at my work. She laid a book on

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JANUARY 10, 2020 my desk called “The 36 Hour Day.” She told me to read it, and to take my mother to see a neurologist. When I had a moment, I read the first chapter in the book and immediately recognized my mother’s symptoms. I made an appointment with a neurologist who did the memory tests that were available. The neurologist never said my mother had Alzheimer’s disease, but handed me a pamphlet about it. That was as close to a diagnosis as was available at that time. Thus, the journey began. My mother came from a large family. She had four sisters and a brother. Two sisters were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s as well, although they did not show symptoms until their mid to late 70s. My mother died at the age of 83. That is when I became aware of the “ax” over my head. Would this disease be my legacy too? Even after so many years of research, the information about Alzheimer’s disease is still sketchy and changes constantly. Nothing is conclusive except that it does not have a cure. All the ads and news snippets about nutrition and exercise and brain games are worthless in my opinion. They simply play on our hope that it will not come to us personally. The truth is, no one really knows why or how or who this disease will strike. None of the children of my mother’s sisters and brother have been diagnosed with memory issues to date. I have not obsessed over this, but it has been with me, lingering in the back of my mind. Most of my relatives are long-lived so I have good genetics. Alzheimer’s is the only bad thing in my genetic history. The month I turned 65 I was too busy to think much about my memory. I have been the caregiver for an elderly aunt for more than 10 years. She is 93 and going strong. But she has issues that require my time and attention, so between her, my job and my family, I rarely have time to think about anything more than keeping up with my weekly schedule. However, the “ax” did move just a bit closer a few months into my 65th year. I love to cook. I cook for my family most days, and I enjoy trying new recipes. One day, I prepared a chicken pot pie. It was a recipe I have prepared many, many times. As my husband was eating it, he made the comment that something about it was different. I took a bite and realized I had forgot to put in the chicken! We laughed about the mistake and we both passed it off as being the result of a stressful week of activity and that we are getting older. This incident brought to my mind when my mother prepared a signature casserole of hers. As we each took a bite, we had a look of surprise on our faces. She had added vinegar to the casserole, and it was ruined. Several months after the chicken pot pie incident, I found a recipe for a cake I wanted to try. Not a simple recipe, it required several steps and had detailed steps for preparation. I was intrigued by the recipe. I gathered my ingredients and began the fun. It ended up being one of the most frustrating moments I have experienced in cooking. That was when I felt that the “ax” had moved again. It was the second time within a few months I had made a mistake or could not get my recipe correct. That caught my attention. I lived through that year and made it into my 66th year without too many other incidents. Mostly, I see myself struggling with memory issues typical of my age. Stress adds another element to that problem. And I know if I am aware of my memory issues, it is usually not Alzheimer’s. I am grateful for the knowledge I acquired during the years caring for my mother. The Alzheimer’s Association was invaluable in giving me information along with their support group. But I still carry the weight of the “ax” hanging over my head. I only hope that it does not fall. If my memory does fail, I do not want my family to bear the responsibility of caring for me as I did for my mother. I was able to manage it, but life is becoming more and more complicated and that kind of care is time-consuming as well as emotionally draining. I have expressed my desires to my children about how I wish to be taken care of if I begin losing my memory. Hopefully they will abide by my decisions to let me be cared for in a nursing home setting by people who are professionals. So many want to live their lives out in their own home; I do not. I would feel selfish in making that kind of demand on my family. I know the burden all too well. — Submitted by Sharon Reid Grovetown, Georgia

JANUARY 10, 2020

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It’s amazing how many people have a new year’s resolution to go on a diet, but they are not sure the best way to achieve their health goals. Have you heard of the saying, eat the rainbow? It’s an acronym to help choose a healthy plant-based diet. Nature’s naturally colored plant foods, with their vibrant red, orange, yellow, green, and other bright colors, contain phytonutrients. These are a class of active plant chemicals that offer above and beyond the basic vitamins and minerals, fats, proteins, and carbs to help supercharge your health. Phytonutrients are said to protect the body from a wide array of illnesses and modern diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and other serious health issues. Also, some enhance immunity, are antiinflammatory, and work as a potent antioxidant to help repair DNA. Another plus to creating a diet around colorful vegetables, many are fat-burning and antiaging powerhouses. This Gen 9:13 salad is a healthy, bright winter salad that is colorful like the rainbow and packed with nutritious superfood ingredients. This salad is made with a variety of vegetables and fruits, which helps create a healthy gut microbiome. The more robust and diverse the bacteria in our gut is, the better our digestion will be, which in turn means, the more our bodies can do with the food we’re eating and the better our overall health will be. So have at it, eat the rainbow! Rainbow Salad

Salad Dressing Ingredients • 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil • 4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice • 2 tablespoon almond butter • 1 inch piece fresh ginger, grated • 1/2 teaspoon salt Instructions Toss all cabbage, kale, cilantro, apples, pumpkin seeds, yellow pepper, oranges and pomegranate seeds in a medium size bow. Drizzle salad dressing over the salad, stirring until salad dressing is evenly distributed

throughout the salad. Dress the salad and eat the rainbow! Salad Dressing Instructions In a separate small container mix together the olive oil, lime juice, almond butter, grated ginger and salt. Shake until smooth and blended well. + by Gina Dickson, an Augusta mom to six and Gigi to ten. Her web site, intentionalhospitality. com, celebrates gathering with friends, cooking great healthy meals and sharing life together around the table. Also on Instagram @ intentionalhospitality

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AUGUSTAMEDICALEXAMiNER

ASK DR. KARP

NO NONSENSE

NUTRITION Andrea, a Facebook friend from Thomson asks: “Just curious, Dr. Karp. What is the very best nutrition advice you can give us for the New Year?”

Happy New Year, Andrea and thanks for the question. There is no doubt that the very best thing you can resolve to do this year is to base your nutrition decisions on facts, not on hearsay, advertising, hopes or wishes. This year, make a more serious effort to wade through all the misinformation out there. When I say nutrition facts,

I mean using the known evidence and science. By contrast, nutritional hearsay is asking a relative or friend how he or she feels about the latest diet, supplement or food fad. It means basing your nutrition decisions on your personal experiences or the experiences of others. That approach can be fraught with problems. Other poor information sources for nutrition decision-making are the things you read in advertisements, hear in infomercials or what you read on social media platforms. Using these sources for nutrition information is not the way to go. In a nutshell, what I’m saying is to move away from a “testimonial” approach to food, diet, supplements and nutrition. Nutrition is a rigorous science, based on known facts; nutrition is not a warm and fluffy hope or wish. Don’t confuse the science of nutrition with the art of cooking, eating or serving food. Being an expert in one area does not make you an expert in anoth-

JANUARY 10, 2020 el, preliminary evidence. A hunch, a “feeling,” or a “common sense approach” to diet, food or supplement needs to be followed up by careful studies to see whether, in fact, the hunch turns out to be true. Did you know that most of the time, it does not? So don’t use low-quality experiential information for nutrition decision-making. Go the next step. Seek out the science.

er. Your friend, chef, mama or papa may be a great cook, but don’t assume he or she knows anything about nutrition science. This year, do not base your nutrition decisions on all the clever and sophisticated marketing by food or supplement manufacturers, distributors, or retailers. Only the naïve would accept as fact claims about a food, diet, or supplement from the very person or company selling you the product. Would you ask a used car salesman about a car you’re considering, or would you bring the car to your own trusted mechanic and let him or her check it

SOURCES OF RELIABLE NUTRITION INFORMATION Here are some high quality, peer-reviewed websites that contain accurate and reliable nutrition information: The American Heart Association (heart.org); the dietitian’s website, The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (eatright.org); the American Diabetes Association (diabetes, org), and the National Institutes of Heatlh (nih.gov). There are many others. Go to these websites for your nutrition information, not to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. +

over? And what about a trusted friend or relative selling you a product? They may truly believe in the product. Unfortunately, that is not enough for nutrition decision-making. For the New Year, go further in your nutrition information quest. Seek out the science and evidence. Over the past 100 years by sticking to the science we have made great strides in our nutrition knowledge and understanding. Lately, however, it seems we have been walking backwards; we have been walking away from critical thinking about nutrition. In the New Year, resolve to turn around and walk forward again. Get back to the facts. This is not to say that testimonials or a person’s experience are not valuable. They are. However, experiences and intuitions should be considered the very first step in seeking answers; they should not be the final step. Experiences offer low-lev-

Unfortunately, wishing or hoping something is true doesn’t make it true. Regrettably, people with chronic, incurable diseases are very susceptible to this type of wishful thinking. It is sad to see this group targeted for so much misinformation and nutrition selling. We’ve all seen those ads for a “miracle” food, supplement or diet. There is no shortage of unscrupulous people and companies eager to market and make a living off of vulnerable nutrition populations, like the very ill or very old. As a word of advice, when you see words like “detoxify,” “purify,” “revitalize,” or “balance” your body’s chemistry, don’t walk away; run! These are simply marketing buzz words which have no accepted definition and give you the idea that real science is somehow involved with the food or product. It is not. Please see KARP page 11

Have a question about food, diet or nutrition? Post or private message your question on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/AskDrKarp) or email your question to askdrkarp@gmail.com If your question is chosen for a column, your name will be changed to insure your privacy. Warren B. Karp, Ph.D., D.M.D., is Professor Emeritus at Augusta University. He has served as Director of the Nutrition Consult Service at the Dental College of Georgia and is past Vice Chair of the Columbia County Board of Health. You can find out more about Dr. Karp and the download site for the public domain eBook, Nutrition for Smarties, at www.wbkarp.com Dr. Karp obtains no funding for writing his columns, articles, or books, and has no financial or other interests in any food, book, nutrition product or company. His interest is only in providing freely available, evidenced-based, scientific nutrition knowledge and education. The information is for educational use only; it is not meant to be used to diagnose, manage or treat any patient or client. Although Dr. Karp is a Professor Emeritus at Augusta University, the views and opinions expressed here are his and his alone and do not reflect the views and opinions of Augusta University or anyone else.

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Ask a Dietitian

OUR BUSINESS IS ALWAYS LOOKING

DOWN

DISRUPTING THE DIET CULTURE

by Kathryn Bussey Filipiak, RDN, LDN Southern Scratch Consulting

built around making consumers believe one thing and one thing only: “Your body isn’t right.” Diet Culture is the shared beliefs, attitudes, values and practices of the diet industry that have infiltrated our common culture and become facets of our everyday existence. The diet industry is so good at what it does because it focuses solely on disrupting one of our most basic needs — the need for food — and makes us believe that our natural drive to eat is wrong. Edited pictures and glossy magazines (now in the form of a near-constant social media stream) have convinced us that everyone else has the body that we could have, if only we could control our eating and exercise. When a human doesn’t have access to food — for any reason — our response is to seek food until we get it. The diet industry lies to us and tells us that this isn’t true. The diet industry says we can restrict food and if we have a hard time doing that then we must not have any willpower. Lazy us! That is bogus. They sell us a product that is doomed to fail in the long run every single time because guess what? FOOD IS A BASIC HUMAN NEED AND OUR BODY WILL NOT FOCUS ON ANYTHING ELSE UNTIL WE ARE FED. We will obsess over eating until either our body wins or our minds are deeply hurt. I launched my consulting efforts a year ago to focus on family mealtime. After teaching my first webinar class “Feeding the People You Love: From Birth to Graduation,” I quickly realized that parents who are anxious

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about feeding their children are actually still very anxious about feeding themselves. Mothers who were calm about their own eating were better able to trust their children’s inner hunger and fullness signals and understand the their job with feeding and their child’s job with eating. That meant mealtime was a happy time rather than a game of “chase the toddler with a green bean and bribe him to eat his vegetables.” This realization about the groundwork needed for parents to eat well led me to create an email class around eating that first laid the groundwork of exposing Diet Culture and offering a framework for learning how to trust your own eating first. Then, and only then, could we learn how to feed our family and those we love really well. Then we can begin to live a life where food is simply one of many important things in our life rather than that thing we obsess over, the thing that always feels that it is lurking around the next corner. As I stated earlier, the problem with dieting is that when an individual intentionally restricts food, their body will respond by seeking food until it is fed. Think back to a time when perhaps you decided to cut out sweets. Re-

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The thing about culture is that it’s hard to recognize your own is different until you visit another. Often the benefit of travel isn’t so much learning about other people so much as it is understanding ourselves. Part of being an American is living in a “Diet Culture.” We are pretty steeped in it, but we don’t have to be. As a dietitian, I am really excited about this new decade. Why? Because thirteen years ago in the middle of my dietetic internship I learned that dieting was harmful. Over the years, the diet industry has wreaked havoc on our bodies, minds and our healthcare system for far too long. I imagine that 2020 will be a wake up call to dietitians, physicians, health coaches, fitness experts and anyone else with any amount of influence to dig into the research and address our Diet Culture within their own lives and within their work with patients and clients. Recently, I was having lunch prior to an event where I was speaking later that afternoon. Some attendees asked me what my business was about and I told them that frankly, I helped people recover from dieting. The women gave me kind of a blank stare. It was as if I had said “I help women recover from drinking water.” They had no idea what I was talking about! After all, what is so wrong with dieting? Isn’t putting patients on a diet pretty much the definition of what a dietitian does? What is “Diet Culture” anyway? So I explained to them: Diet Culture is the industry

Please see DIET CULTURE page 16

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CRASH

COURSE

More Americans have died on US roads since 2000 than in World Wars I & II combined In Georgia and South Carolina, a network of digital interstate signs send important messages to motorists. They are limited, however, to somewhat humdrum messages like “Incident at Mile Marker 42. Expect delays.” Or “362 people have died on [state] roads this year.” Here is a small sampling of how these signs are sometimes used in other states. +

JANUARY 10, 2020

HUMAN BEHAVIOR

How neuroscience works in everyday life

HOW TO REMEMBER YOUR SPOUSE’S BIRTHDAY

Your boss just introduced a new coworker. Five seconds later, you couldn’t repeat his name for the life of you. Your spouse is all dressed up when you get home. ”Didn’t you remember, tonight by Jeremy Hertza, Psy.D. we’re going out for dinner and a concert?” And yikes, there’s your pill box, showing that you forgot to take your morning pills—again. Sound familiar? Most people think, “Oh, I just have a bad memory. There’s nothing I can do.” Actually, there is. Four Steps to Sharpen Your Brain You can take four specific steps to help improve your memory, by up to 20% according to some studies. Step One: Exercise and eat better. Exercising your body is more important than exercising your brain—by a lot. In fact, a study published in Neurology in 2018 found that middle-aged women who are very physically fit were 90 percent less likely to develop dementia decades later. It just makes sense that if you’re physically active and eating well, more nutrients are going to your brain to help it work and think as it should. Step Two: Get better sleep According to a 2016 Consumer Reports survey, 1 in 3 of us have trouble falling or staying asleep most nights and 2 in 3 of us struggle with sleep at least once a week. Whether you turn off screens an hour before bed, exercise or try other strategies to lower stress, or use melatonin or seek other medical help, work on your sleep if you want to improve how you think.

Step Three: Exercise your brain Next, start building in a half-hour to 40 minutes every day for a formal practice session, doing Sudoku, crossword puzzles, or a brain exercise on your phone. The caveat is, don’t make it an excuse not to spend time with your spouse, not to exercise, not to sleep or not to do other things important to your overall happiness and family engagement. Make sure, too, to switch it up. Do Sudoku one night, crosswords the next, and a different game the next to stimulate different parts of your brain. Also, challenge yourself to complete the game in a certain amount of time, starting in a quiet part of your house. Then, once you’re more advanced, give yourself the same amount of time, but in a more “normal” setting with noise or other distractions. Step Four: Functional Training Now it’s time to work on some specifics. Be real about behaviors you want to change or improve, like: “I want to remember coworkers’ names”; “I want to remember conversations with my spouse”; or “I want to remember to take my pills.” Then, come up with some functional ways to help you do this. For example, as soon as you’re introduced to someone, repeat their name inside your head 10 times. After having a conversation with your spouse, go back an hour later and rehash the conversation in your own words; for example, “Thanks for reminding me about that concert. I put it in my phone for this Thursday at 7 p.m.” And if the pillbox on the counter isn’t working, try setting an alarm on your phone so you take the pills before you drive off to work in the morning. Remember This If you’re tired of feeling disorganized because you’re having trouble remembering conversations, activities or names, try these four steps. By stimulating your brain, giving it good rest and nutrients, and trying some new ways to trigger your memory, you strengthen your brain’s neurons and help build new connections. And just maybe, finally, remember your spouse’s birthday. +

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Jeremy Hertza, Psy.D., is a neuropsychologist and the executive director of NeuroBehavioral Associates, LLC, in Augusta. Contact him at 706-823-5250 or info@nbageorgia.com.

JANUARY 10, 2020

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AUGUSTAMEDICALEXAMiNER

The blog spot From the Bookshelf — posted by Roy Benaroch, MD, on May 8, 2017

GIVE YOUR BODY A REAL IMMUNE BOOST The human immune system is an amazing thing. There are thousands of microorganisms — millions, maybe — that are lurking out there, eager to make you sick. You breathe them in. They’re in every bite of food, and all over your hands when you rub your nose. We live in constant bombardment. And they’re sneaky, too — with changing DNA and proteins to fool us. We’ve got soap and water and some pretty good antibiotics to fight them off, but, really, the vast majority of the work to keep us healthy is done by our own immune systems. Wouldn’t it be nice to give your immune system a boost, to help it fight off infections? We know moderate (but not heavy) exercise can help, as can a good night’s sleep. What about those “immune booster” vitamin packs they sell? Hint: there’s a reason they say right on the package that they don’t prevent or treat any disease. Save your money. Another idea: you can just get sick, and at least the next time around your immune system can recognize the germ and fight it off more effectively. Of course, you have to get sick first to enjoy those benefits. And some of those sicknesses can be pretty serious. Or might kill you. Still, no pain no gain, right? Wrong. There’s a great way to get a real immune boost — a way to help your own immune system, or that of your children, fight off diseases without having to get sick first. They’re called vaccinations. They give your immune system a glimpse, a quick, safe view of an infection in a way that won’t make you sick, but will still teach your immune system to recognize the infection if you ever have to fight it off. It’s the best way to prepare your immune army for battle against the infectious enemy, and in a way that’s almost risk-free. Get your sleep and exercise, and eat tasty, home-made foods. Grow a vegetable garden. Hug your kids. Sing like no one is listening, and dance like no one is watching. And vaccinate, too. These are all great ways to keep your children happy, healthy, and safe. +

“It’s quick. It’s simple.”

Roy Benaroch is a pediatrician.

KARP … from page 8

How do you find accurate and reliable sources of information about food, diet and supplements? First, seek out advice from an R.D.N., a registered dietitian nutritionist. They are your nutrition experts. Second, if you are searching for information on the web, always use peer-reviewed websites like the ones in the box on page 8. What does peer-reviewed mean? It means that the website information is carefully evaluated by recognized scientific experts prior to being published on the web. Another very effective way of getting at the truth when searching the web for nutrition information is to always put the term “pubmed” as the last word of any search. Pubmed is an evidenced-based internet resource for worldwide scientific medical information. By putting the term, “pubmed” at the end of your web search, your search will be restricted to the science, not all the urban legends. Try it, you’ll like it. What is the “No-Nonsense Nutrition” advice for the New Year? It’s simple. Base your decisions about food, diet, supplements and nutrition on the facts and on evidence. Don’t base your nutrition decisions on the experiences, hopes, dreams and testimonials of well-meaning friends and family. And, remember, social media, TV, best-selling books and ads are not reliable sources of accurate nutrition information. Most of all, have a very happy, healthy and wise New Year! +

FACEBOOK.COM/AugustaRX

“It is nearing dusk, her favorite time to feed. Although you heard her droning arrival, she gently lands on your ankle without detection, as she usually bites close to the ground. It’s always a female, by the way. She conducts a tender, probing, ten-second reconnaissance, looking for a prime blood vessel. With her backside in the air, she steadies her cross-hairs and zeros in with six sophisticated needles. She inserts two serrated mandible cutting blades (much like an electric carving knife with two blades shifting back and forth), and saws into your skin, while two other retractors open a passage for the proboscis, a hypodermic syringe that emerges from its protective sheath. With this straw she starts to suck 3–5 milligrams of your blood, immediately excreting its water, while condensing its 20% protein content. All the while, a sixth needle is pumping in saliva that contains an anticoagulant preventing your blood from clotting at the puncture site. This shortens her feeding time, lessening the likelihood that you feel her penetration and

splat her across your ankle. The anticoagulant causes an allergic reaction, leaving an itchy bump as her parting gift. The mosquito bite is an intricate and innovative feeding ritual required for reproduction. She needs your blood to grow and mature her eggs.” If you visit the Medical Examiner’s Facebook page (facebook.com/AugustaRX) you can watch a 3-minute video of the process described above, posted on Jan. 6. If this book’s subtitle, which alludes to “our deadliest predator,” sounds a bit sensationalistic, consider that

even in today’s “advanced” world, mosquitoes still kill an estimated 725,000 people around the world every year. And we’re afraid of snakes that kill maybe 5 people a year in the US? The Mosquito relates that ravenous clouds of mosquitoes in the Canadian arctic, where suitable targets are scarce, can cover a hapless caribou within seconds. Literally cover, with a bite rate exceeding 9,000 per minute. That same bite rate would drain half the blood from an adult human within two hours. Unfortunately, mosquitoes don’t limit their attacks to lone humans or caribou. They have felled huge populations, stopped mighty armies in their tracks, evaded multiple efforts to eradicate them, and in the process have changed the course of human history many times over. Mosquitoes hold a deadly but large and fascinating place in human history. + The Mosquito — A Human History of our Deadliest Predator by Timothy C. Winegard, 496 pages, published in 2019 by Dutton

Research News Whole milk and obesity It would be understandable to assume from the headline of this news item that researchers have linked whole milk and obesity. In fact, the opposite is true. Canadian researchers analyzed 28 studies from seven countries exploring whether there is a link between drinking milk and being overweight or obese. The majority of children in the US and Canada drink milk daily, a major source of dietary fat. Eighteen of the 28 studies suggested children who drank whole milk were less likely to be overweight or obese. Surprisingly, perhaps, none of the studies, which involved about 21,000 children between the ages of one and 18, showed that drinking reducedfat milk was associated with a lower risk of being overweight or obese. The findings, which challenge the conventional

wisdom of many dietary experts, were published in late December in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. It’s cheaper to be healthy Dietary analysts recently decided to take a look at what a more perfect world would look like. The researchers assembled a “typical” population of adults aged 35-85 and determined their current dietary patterns in 10 assorted food groups: fruits, vegetables, nuts/seeds, whole grains, unprocessed red meats, processed meats, sugar-sweetened beverages, polyunsaturated fats, seafood omega-3 fats, and sodium. With the food and demographic data in hand, researchers used a computer model to analyze the disease risk of their typical population and its associated costs. But then researchers recalculated the same data as though everyone’s diet was optimized to the healthiest

version possible. The medical costs associated with suboptimal diets averaged out to just over $300 per person. That translates to more than $50 billion in annual costs that could be saved through improved diet. Added to the fiscal expense are the incalculable human costs of a less than ideal diet. Why do we gain weight as we get older? As the years roll by it’s natural to be less active that we were in our youth, but why do people whose diet and exercise patterns have not changed gain weight as they age? Swedish researchers have found that the way fat is processed in our cells slows down as we age. In their study, the weight of people who maintained the same diet over time increased by an average of 20 percent. The only solution: keep exercising and eat less. +

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AUGUSTAMEDICALEXAMiNER

The Examiners

JANUARY 10, 2020

I love my new job!

What do you do?

by Dan Pearson

I’m an ESL instructor. I’ve always heard We just start with the I teach people English as English is the hardest basics: the rules of But that’s just it: their second language. language to learn. grammar. their are know rules.

THE MYSTERY WORD The Mystery Word for this issue: TERNIA

Simply unscramble the letters, then begin exploring our ads. When you find the correctly spelled word hidden in one of our ads — enter at AugustaRx.com

EXAMINER CROSSWORD

PUZZLE ACROSS 1. How profit sometimes starts 4. Cardiac follower 10. Jr. commissioned naval officer 13. South American tuber 14. Venice bridge 15. Hip bones 16. Rocky peak 17. In view of 19. Thrombus 21. County in Ireland 22. Woods of local note 27. Broad silk necktie 31. Like Phinizy Swamp 32. Echolocation 33. CHOG charity partner 36. Money of Western Samoa 37. Stain with mud 38. Wander 40. Blacksmith’s workshop 42. Hebrew for “delight” 43. Formally charge with a crime 45. Private box in a theater 47. Major CSRA employer 48. Famous burn doctor 49. Smaller shin bone 51. Dental prefix 52. Strengthen 56. Brass wind instrument 58. Lounge lazily 59. Rigidly moralistic 66. Male swan 67. On the ocean 68. White of the eye 69. Minimalist IV (abbrev.) 70. Liveliness 71. Came to the aid of 72. Evergreen tree

32 36

21 23

31 33

10 15

46 50

58 62

E X A M I N8 E R

3 6 7 7 1 3

S 4 U D O K U

3 1

5 6 4

DIRECTIONS: Every line, vertical and horizontal, and all nine 9-square boxes must each contain the numbers 1 though 9. Solution on page 14.

DOWN 1. Jugular ________ 2. Common intestinal bacteria 3. Fortune-telling cards 4. Russell St. school (abbrev.) 5. Aug. 2016 sports venue 6. Operated 7. Ernie of the PGA 8. Like summer weather in Augusta 9. List type 10. Peyton’s little brother 11. 30-D group, for short 12. Bend downward 15. Annoying 18. Delete 20. Classic movie stn. 23. Top ____ 24. Skill 25. Christiania today 26. Chaplin 28. Nematocyst 29. Paddled 30. Mr. Reznor of 11-D

We’ll announce the winner in our next issue!

33. County of Cordele, Georgia 34. Sano start 35. Lowest point 37. Started 39. Citizen army 41. Desert in East Asia 44. Political power or influence 46. Will Farrell holiday film of 2003 49. It lies east of the Bay of Biscay 50. Popular ISP 53. _____ Mountains 54. Aromatic spice 55. Arm joint 57. Criticize severely 59. _____ smear 60. Exploit 61. Pharmaceutical sales agt. 62. Sick 63. Edible brown mushroom 64. Where the Wild Things ___ 65. Young boy Solution p. 14

QUOTATIONPUZZLE U T T C F A E A N N H O L L R U I S E H T R G G E I D

E C E E I N U N C E A I E T M T P C A R O

4 7 9 5 2 1 5N 8 1 3 I 6 9 S 8 6 7L 4 3 2

— Martin Luther King Jr.

DIRECTIONS: Recreate a timeless nugget of wisdom by using the letters in each vertical column to fill the boxes above them. Once any letter is used, cross it out in the lower half of the puzzle. Letters may be used only once. Black squares indicate spaces between words, and words may extend onto a second line. Solution on page 14.

Use the letters provided at bottom to create words to solve the puzzle. All the listed letters following 1 are the 1st letters of each word; the letters following 2 are 2nd letters of each word, and so on. Try solving words with letter clues or numbers with minimal choices listed. A sample is shown. Solution on page 14.

1 2 3 4 1

H 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4

B 1 2 3 4 5

V 1 2 3 4

3 1

4 E 1 2 3 4 5 6

1 2 3 4

1.ACCCTMMDFYY 2.NAAAROOOOOH 3.VEENNUUUUDI 4.MNBTRREA 5.THTT 6.AE 7.I 8.N 9.S

SAMPLE:

1. ILB 2. SLO 3. VI 4. NE 5. D =

L 1

O 2

V 3

E 4

I 1

S 2

Your faith can move moutains and your doubt can create them.

B 1

L 2

I 3

N 4

D 5

WORDS NUMBER

Click on “MYSTERY WORD” • DEADLINE TO ENTER: NOON, JAN. 6, 2020

8 3 6 7 4 2 5 9 1

5 8 7 1 2 4 9 3 6

1 4 9 3 6 5 7 2 8

6 2 3 9 7 8 4 1 5

JANUARY 10, 2020

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AUGUSTAMEDICALEXAMiNER

THEBESTMEDICINE ha... ha...

The

Advice Doctor

Moe: I heard my son speak his first words today. Joe: Aww. What were they? Moe: He said, “Where have you been?”

Moe: Why was 2019 afraid of 2020? Joe: Uh... Moe: Because they got into a fight and 2021.

oe: They say you are what you eat. Joe: It’s true. Moe: Sure is. Today I bought some ready to eat chicken, and sure enough, when I got home I was ready to eat chicken. Moe: Cockroaches can survive a nuclear holocaust, but they can’t survive a slap from a newspaper. Joe: That just proves how toxic the media is. Moe: I just bought a cured ham. Joe: That’s nice. I wonder what it had. Moe: Whenever a homeless person asks me for money, I think, “This hard-earned money is just going to be spent on booze and drugs.” Joe: Yeah, me too. Moe: That’s why I always give it to the homeless person instead. Moe: There sure is a lot of controversy about vaccinations. Joe: Tell me about it. Moe: But you know what I don’t get? Joe: What’s that? Moe: Measles. Or the flu. Or polio.

A woman was highly annoyed because of her husband’s many irritating habits. After putting up with it for years, one day she left him a note on the dresser reading, “I’ve had enough. I’m gone. Don’t look for me or try to get me to change my mind.” Then she hid under the bed so she could hear his reaction. Soon enough her husband came home. She heard him stop in the kitchen before he came into the bedroom. She watched as his feet went over to the dresser. He stood there for a moment in silence, then she could hear the sound of pen on paper as he wrote a response. Next, she heard him making a phone call. “She’s finally gone,” he said. “It’s about time, right? Listen, I’m coming over to see you now. Put on that silky negligee and we’ll have some fun.” Then she heard him grab his keys, head out the door and drive off. She wiggled out from under the bed in tears of anger and frustration and grabbed the note to see what he’d written. “We’re out of milk,” the note said. “Be back in five.” Then below that, “PS: I can see your feet.” +

Why subscribe to theMEDICALEXAMINER? What do you mean? Staring at my phone all day has had no Effect on ME!

Because try as they might, no one can stare at their phone all day.

Dear Advice Doctor, I don’t know if I should be writing to you or the Parenthood columnist on page 2. I have a teenager problem. The issue is not with my children, of course. They are perfect angels. It’s always other people’s kids. In my case, my son has fallen in with a trouble-maker, and he is corrupting my formerly perfect offspring. Naturally, my son can’t see the negative influence this bad egg is having on him. Everyone else can, though. My question: should I address this problem through my son, or through the other kid? — Striving to Restore Perfection Dear Striving, You raise an interesting point, one that seemingly has a different answer every year. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I’m sure you’ve noticed that there have been times when you didn’t have to specify bad egg. Bad was understood; bad was clearly implied by the word that followed it: egg. It isn’t that way anymore. Science no longer banishes eggs to the same despised dietary categories as Twinkies, pork rinds and greasy fried foods. How does it happen that a food like eggs is on the bad list one year and the next year gets a green light? The answer: science happens. Once upon a time, cholesterol was at the top of the Most Wanted list for culprits in heart disease. As an article on WebMD puts it, “after 25 years of study, it has become evident that cholesterol in food is not the culprit -- saturated fat has a much bigger effect on blood cholesterol. Full-fat dairy products and fatty meats are examples of foods that are loaded with saturated fat and which trigger the body to produce cholesterol.” So those changes in recommendations — this year something is ok, next year it isn’t — are signs of progress in our knowledge. Eggs are good sources of iron, vitamins, minerals, and protein, but not good sources of calories and fat. They’re hard to beat, nutrition-wise. Yes, they do have about two-thirds of the recommended daily limit on cholesterol. The American Heart Association says an egg a day is okay. Just go easy on other high-cholesterol foods on egg days. I hope this answers your question. Thanks for writing. + Do you have a question for The Advice Doctor about health, life, love, personal relationships, career, raising children, or any other important topic? Send it to News@AugustaRx.com. Replies will be provided only in the Examiner.

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By popular demand we’re making at-cost subscriptions available for the convenience of our readers. If you live beyond the Aiken-Augusta area, or miss issues between doctor’s appointments — don’t you hate it when that happens? — we’ll command your mail carrier to bring every issue to your house! NAME ADDRESS CITY STATE ZIP Choose six months for $20____ or one year for $36 ____. Mail this completed form with payment to Augusta Medical Examiner, PO Box 397, Augusta GA 30903-0397

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THE MYSTERY SOLVED The Mystery Word in our last issue was: SLEEP

...cleverly hidden up in the corner of the p. 2 ad for WINDSOR FINE JEWELERS

THE WINNER: BRENT HAMILTON! Want to find your name here next time? If it is, we’ll send you some cool swag from our goodie bag. The new Mystery Word is on page 12. Start looking!

JANUARY 10, 2020

AUGUSTAMEDICALEXAMiNER THE PUZZLE SOLVED N O T C H

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The Celebrated TheSUDOKUsolution MYSTERY WORD CONTEST 4 7 8 5 1 6 2 3 9

...wherein we hide (with fiendish cleverness) a simple word. All you have to do is unscramble the word (found on page 12), then find it concealed within one of our ads. Click in to the contest link at www.AugustaRx.com and enter. If we pick you in our random drawing of correct entries, you’ll score our goodie package! SEVEN SIMPLE RULES: 1. Unscramble and find the designated word hidden within one of the ads in this issue. 2. Visit the Reader Contests page at www.AugustaRx.com. 3. Tell us what you found and where you found it. 4. If you’re right and you’re the one we pick at random, you win. (Winners within the past six months are ineligible.) 5. Prizes awarded to winners may vary from issue to issue. Limited sizes are available for shirt prize. 6. A photo ID may be required to claim some prizes. 7. Other entrants may win a lesser prize at the sole discretion of the publisher. 8. Deadline to enter is shown on page 12.

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QuotatioN QUOTATION PUZZLE SOLUTION “Intelligence plus character is the true meaning of education.” — Martin Luther King Jr.

WORDS BY NUMBER “Your faith can move moutains and your doubt can create them.”

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JANUARY 10, 2020

IT’S A QUESTION OF CARE What are the potential risk factors for seniors with untreated major depression?

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AUGUSTAMEDICALEXAMiNER

The Mayo Clinic describes Major Depressive Disorder as the persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. This mood disorder affects how you physically feel, think, and behave. People with untreated Major Depressive Disorder often experience disruption in their ability to do the simplest of everyday tasks needed to maintain a healthy life. When this disorder goes untreated for a long period of time, it becomes particularly dangerous for seniors. Below are some health risk factors seniors with untreated Major Depressive Disorder face. • Severe Dehydration This circumstance is caused by not eating or drinking properly. It is an especially dangerous issue

for seniors because dehydration can negatively affect the function of vital organs such as the kidneys. A senior’s organs are often working less efficiently than someone younger already, so the damage severe dehydration causes to organs can be much more serious in seniors. • Not Taking Needed Medications If someone is not eating or drinking well, then they most likely are not taking their needed medications either. This can lead to a multitude of health issues depending on what medications are being taken and their purposes. For example, if someone stops taking their blood pressure medication due to their depressed state, they then put themselves at more risk

of having a stroke. Seniors are often on medications to help manage life-threatening chronic conditions, which puts their life at risk when stopping the needed medications. • Weakness Weakness can be caused by many issues that are secondary to symptoms of Major Depressive Disorder. Not eating or drinking can cause you to become weak, lying in bed and not using muscles can cause increased weakness, and not taking needed medications can also add to this issue. Weakness puts a senior at a higher risk for falling. Falling in seniors can be serious and cause broken bones or debilitating head injuries. The ability to recover from these injuries

decreases as we age. If you feel that the senior in your life is experiencing symptoms from Major Depressive Disorder you should seek medical and emotional treatment for them. Ask your doctor about a referral to a geriatric psychiatrist as a great first step in keeping your loved well both mentally and physically. + by Lori Beth Charlton, MSW, LMSW, C-ASWCM is an Aging Life Care Manager who assists her clients and their families in choosing the best care options for their needs. She is committed to ensuring that her clients receive exceptional care by managing all of the details that create a positive environment for care.

PROFESSIONAL DIRECTORY +

ACUPUNCTURE

Dr. Eric Sherrell, DACM, LAC Augusta Acupuncture Clinic 4141 Columbia Road 706-888-0707 www.AcuClinicGA.com

ALLERGY Tesneem K. Chaudhary, MD Allergy & Asthma Center 3685 Wheeler Road, Suite 101 Augusta 30909 706-868-8555

CHIROPRACTIC Evans Chiropractic Health Center Dr. William M. Rice 108 SRP Drive, Suite A 706-860-4001 www.evanschiro.net

COUNSELING Resolution Counseling Professionals 3633 Wheeler Rd, Suite 365 Augusta 30909 706-432-6866 www.visitrcp.com

DENTISTRY

Jason H. Lee, DMD 116 Davis Road Augusta 30907 706-860-4048

IN-HOME CARE

Floss ‘em or lose ‘em!

Steven L. Wilson, DMD Family Dentistry 4059 Columbia Road Martinez 30907 706-863-9445

DERMATOLOGY

Everyday Elder Care LLC Certified Home Health/Caregiver 706-231-7001 everydayeldercare.com Zena Home Care Personal Care|Skilled Nursing|Companion 706-426-5967 www.zenahomecare.com

LONG TERM CARE

Georgia Dermatology & WOODY MERRY www.woodymerry.com Skin Cancer Center 2283 Wrightsboro Rd. (at Johns Road) Long-Term Care Planning I CAN HELP! Augusta 30904 (706) 733-3190 • 733-5525 (fax) 706-733-3373 SKIN CANCER CENTER www.GaDerm.com

DEVELOPMENTAL PEDIATRICS

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Sleep Institute of Augusta Bashir Chaudhary, MD 3685 Wheeler Rd, Suite 101 Augusta 30909 706-868-8555

TRANSPORTATION AMBULANCE • STRETCHER • WHEELCHAIR

706-863-9800

VEIN CARE Vein Specialists of Augusta G. Lionel Zumbro, Jr., MD, FACS, RVT, RPVI 501 Blackburn Dr, Martinez 30907 706-854-8340 www.VeinsAugusta.com

Karen L. Carter, MD Medical Center West Pharmacy 1303 D’Antignac St, Suite 2100 465 North Belair Road Augusta 30901 Evans 30809 706-396-0600 Your Practice 706-854-2424 www.augustadevelopmentalspecialists.com www.medicalcenterwestpharmacy.com And up to four additional lines of your choosing and, if desired, your logo. Parks Pharmacy Keep your contact information in this 437 Georgia Ave. ARKS convenient place seen by thousands of HARMACY N. Augusta 29841 patients every month. Steppingstones to Recovery 803-279-7450 Call (706) 860-5455 for all the details! 2610 Commons Blvd. www.parkspharmacy.com Augusta 30909 706-733-1935

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AUGUSTAMEDICALEXAMiNER

DIET CULTURE… from page 9

call how badly you craved cookies while you did! The human body is made for food and when we restrict it, our innate drive to eat will assemble into action to make us think about it until we get it. This is why I think dieting is so harmful to us personally as well as socially. You see, when an individual is restricting their food intake, it not only robs them of their private thoughts, it also robs the world of their public contribution. Now imagine a world where 45 million people in one country alone were dieting. What if 45,000,000 people every year were unable to live their values and their purpose because they were distracted by avoiding food when all their body wanted was to eat?!? Unfortunately, that is the exact reality we live in. Over 45 million Americans go on a diet each year. In her book “The Beauty Myth,” author Naomi Wolf writes: “A culture fixated on female thinness is not an obsession about female beauty, but an obsession about female obedience. Dieting is the most potent political sedative in women’s history; a quietly mad population is a tractable one.” What does “tractable” mean? It means being easy to control or manipulate. That is pretty scary! The descriptor “quietly mad” is the perfect description of an individual’s mind when they are hungry. In times of famine, there is at least a shared social drive for food. Everyone is hungry. With dieting, the individual is doubly mad: driven by hunger but also driven by diet culture messaging that says they are weak-minded and lacking willpower. Dieting is isolating and it is oppressive. I don’t want that for anyone. For thirteen years, since I took my first step away from my own very disordered eating, I have imagined a world where dieting is seen as the destructive, harmful industry that it is. I have a dream of being able to eat dinner with friends and not have a single person say that they shouldn’t be eating as they take a bite of food. I have longed to be able to send my children to school and not have to explain that they don’t have to be afraid of pizza even though their health class said so, or that ‘fat’ is not the worst name you can call someone. As international feeding authority, dietitian and family therapist Ellyn Satter says “When the joy goes out of eating, nutrition suffers.” In my work and in my personal life, I have found this to be so true. I really hope this new decade is one of freedom for you. I wish you freedom from the constant food worry and body angst that is indicative of Diet Culture. I wish you peace and health to be able to follow your purpose and your passion. If leaving dieting and food control sounds frightening to you, then you are not alone. Food oppression has become so familiar to us that freedom can seem like an even scarier place. If you are unsure if you can leave this familiar place of watching calories in and calories out, then may I suggest simply exploring a new culture for a little bit? I would love to introduce you to a place where food is a joyful part of your life rather than a beast to control. I would love to introduce you to a country where you can see bodies as the magnificent works of art they are rather than constant works in progress; a place where your health is important enough to support your purpose and your passions, but far from the only thing that makes you feel worthy. If you are interested in this new culture, listed below are some books and social media handles to get you started. Further, if you want to really step out of “Diet Culture,” consider unfollowing your fitness and health accounts for now. You can always go back, but perhaps with a new perspective. Happy New Year! Cheers to food freedom! + Recommended Reading: Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole MS, RDN, CEDRD-S and Elyse Resch MS, RDN, CEDRD-S Child of Mine: Feeding With Love and Good Sense by Ellyn Satter RD, MSSW

The Feeding Doctor

Health at Every Size by Linda Bacon, PhD

M.D. John Cook,

Pictured above (from left to right), John Cook, MD; Lauren Ploch, MD; Jason Arnold, MD; Caroline Wells, PA-C; Chris Thompson, PA-C

2110 Woodside Executive Court Aiken, South Carolina • 803-644-8900

SKIN CANCER CENTER

2283 Wrightsboro Road Augusta, Georgia • 706-733-3373

Skin Cancer Removal • Mohs Surgery • Routine Skin Exams • Mole Removal • Botox • Dermal Fillers

GENERAL, SURGICAL & COSMETIC DERMATOLOGY

On Facebook: Southern Scratch

The Eating Instinct by Virginia SoleSmith

Proudly affiliated with Dr. John Cook of Southern Dermatology in Aiken

Body Respect by Linda Bacon, PhD and Lucy Aphramor PhD, RD

www.intuitiveeating.org

www.ellynsatterinstitute.org

JANUARY 10, 2020

Nicole Cruz, MS, RD Nutrition Consultant Ellyn Satter Institute-parent page Megrette Fletcher (Weight neutral diabetes) Molly Bahr Counseling +

To each and every one of our readers and advertisers as 2020 dawns:

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT