health
health
THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE
THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE
By Jendayi Iyi
Raw or “live” foods contain
the minerals, vitamins and en- zymes intact to nourish our bodies. Cooked food is absent of the life-giving forces needed to sustain health. As a result of heating our food, we are left with a meal that seems to sat- isfy our hunger, for a while. Because our body isn’t getting the nutrients it needs, it sig- nals for more food but to no avail.
How often do we think
about what good health really is? To be pain free, enthused about life, energetic, mentally balanced, strong and alert — these attributes can be yours by incorporating raw food as your diet. Habits and addic- tions can prove to be difficult if not almost impossible obsta- cles to surpass. Good health can be yours on raw food with discipline and conviction.
over age 50. the
interviewee
m Taking responsibility for our well-being is essential. If ytou really think abou it, the
older adult’s hopes or goals through their life, how they achieved goals and overcame obstacles, or howtheir dreams
nd usually only sup- All
a grandparent, older entor,
neighbor, home resident, etc. friend,
nursing The in-
erview focuses on either the
easy and quick route to tre t- ing most p ysical maladies is to take a pill, but this does not address the cause of the con-
ditionmay have changed along the
presses the symptoms.
way.
medicines have side effects.
300-word essay based on the
The student then writes a
Why not pursue the natural
way to good health through the food we eat in its raw state?
Considering a raw diet may sound extremely limiting and just downright strange. The unfamiliar can be scary and uncomfortable at first. A raw diet is as simple as eating an apple, banana, nuts and seeds, or it can involve dehydrating, slproutingregi andon that fermentailngso (definitely worth the time and
est cities,” a nonprofit health plan is taking a major sta d against obesity to give resi-
ause time is at a premium for many of us in our busy lives, ur health has taken a back seat. We can’t afford to put our
117 tons of good news
from Detroit
In an economically chal-
enged is
home to one of Am rica’s “fat-
etffort). We sacrifice our health to the temptation of fast, con- venience and junk food. Be-
cdents a chance at better health and quality of life. The results oare impressive.
More than 25,000 Health
health on the back burner any
longer. The statistical rise in cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, kidney disease and Alzheimer’s (to name a few), are evidence that we need to change something about our lives if we want
simply a longer life, but a life of quality.
To keep the momentum
to live not
conditioning to prevent us from achieving our health goals. Usually what we feel as hunger is not from a lack of food but from a lack of water and nutrients. Your body is signaling that it needs some- thing, but since many of us are not tuned into our bodies, we just assume it needs more food. Unresolved and unmet emotional issues can lend a hand to our bodies seeking
• 13 to 27% improvement in total cholesterol among par- ticipants with 6-20% weight loss
• 5% reduction in ER visits
• 42% reduction in cardiovas- cular inpatient admissions
• 23% reduction in respira- tory inpatient admissions
March is National Kidney Month
dation of Michigan (NKFM)- Detroit Branch is celebrating National Kidney Month this March, and World Kidney Day by encouraging residents to get tested and understand their risk factors for chronic kidney disease.
Chronic kidney disease
(CKD) is an under-diagnosed, under-treated, yet treatable disease. Due to the increas- ing prevalence of obesity, hy- pertension and diabetes, CKD has emerged as a major health threat to Detroit residents. Detroit’s prevalence of kidney disease is 2.4 times higher than Michigan’s average and 2.6 times higher than the na- tional average.
• 14% reduction in use of three or more blood pressure medications
The National Kidney Foun-
“What has been accom-
plished through this partner- ship is remarkable. It really has placed a spotlight on how adoption of a healthy life- style can not only change the number on the scale, but re- vitalize your life and save you money,” said Florine Mark, president and chief execu- tive officer, Weight Watchers Group.
HAP will continue to offer
other minority groups are at an increased risk for devel- oping diabetes, hypertension and kidney disease. Although African Americans make up about 14 percent of the Michi- gan population, they comprise 45 percent of the state’s pop- ulation with kidney failure. More than 900,000 Michigan residents have chronic kidney disease and most of them don’t know it.
plans, experience-rated,
call
the $25 program to HAP HMO, POS, MPSERS (Michi- gan Public School Employees Retirement System), Casino (MGM, Motor City, Greek Town), Medicare Complimen- tary HMO plan members and Ford Motor Company retiree plan members. To enroll, visit www.hap.org, log in with “Online Services,” then link to “HAPAdvantageDiscounts” or call toll-free (888) 3-FLORINE.
African Americans and
rves individuals and compa-
preventing and treating kidney dfilsease or
the NKFM-Det
agship HMO, PPOs, Medicare
Kidney Month activities near
yiou,nsured and self-funded prod-it
Branch at (313) 259-1574, visit
for Quality Assurance awarded HAP’s commercial HMO and
om/KidneyMI.
March is
To locate a Watch-
ers in your region, visit www.8883florine.com or call 1-888-3-FLORINE.
National Red Cross Month
Headquartered in Detroit, Health Alliance Plan is a non- profit health plan serving ap- proximately 500,000 members and 1,700 employer groups. A subsidiary of the Henry Ford Health System, the health plan
se For more information on
nies of all sizes through the
to find National
fully
ucts. The National Committee
www.nkfm.org, or visit us on Facebook at www.facebook.
cHAP Senior Plus, its Medicare Advantage HMO, Excellent Ac- creditation.
going, HAP has expanded the $25 offer to an additional 20,000 individuals enrolled in PPO, EPO, EPA, SOLO plans for individuals and families, Medicare Complimentary and POS plans effective Jan. 1.
We allow our habits and
HAP’s one-year study of
9,243 Weight Watchers mem- bers revealed that a significant percentage of members main- tained their weight and im- proved the following clinical measures that will likely lead to better clinical outcomes and quality of life:
• 21% increase in controlled blood glucose (HbA1c) people with diabetes
in
If you’re not already a HAP member, now’s the time to give us a call and make your one switch to a HAP Medicare Advantage plan today.
Alliance Plan (HAP) members have lost a collective 235,556 pounds since HAP teamed up with Weight Watchers to dras- tically reduce the cost of the program to $25 per 12-week session.
DID YOU CHOOSE THE RIGHT MEDICARE PLAN FOR YOU?
Did you join one of Michigan’s top-rated Medicare plans?* If you didn’t, now through March 31, you may be able to switch and get in on HAP’s many advantages.
HAP’s Alliance Medicare PPO received the highest Medicare Star Summary rating for Overall Health Plan Quality of any Medicare Advantage plan in Michigan for 2010. And no Medicare HMO plan in Michigan rated higher than HAP Senior Plus (HMO).
March 24-30, 2010
Family legacies keep history alive
Staff members at The
comes to a close, I hope we will all pay attention to the ways we can capture memo- ries and preserve our family histories. For young people under age 18, a national essay contest may just be the jump start required.
March 29 is the deadline for
this year’s “Listen to a Life” essay contest, sponsored by The Legacy Project, a multi- generational education initia- tive with the nonprofit Parent- ing Coalition and Generations United, both based in Wash- ington, DC.
To enter, a young person between 8 and 18 years of age interviews
terviewed cannot be a parent. Instead,
an older person The person in-
is The contest provides
young people the chance to learn about real life from real people, and they can give an- other person the greatest gift of all—a feeling that their life matters.
comfort and food can fill that void.
Young people
Many people when con-
fronted with a chronic condi- tion will seek to improve their diet by adding more fruits and vegetables. Optimally, these fruits and vegetables should be raw in order to receive the full benefits contained within them. No one is pretending that this is an easy endeavor,
become
more aware of their own dreams and goals — and what’s needed to achieve them — when they hear firsthand the stories of older adults. The annual “Listen to a Life” Essay Contest is also an opportunity to build closer connections between young and old as they get to know each other in new, often unexpected ways.
especially with a lifelong regi- men that we have become ac- customed to. Self control and discipline is essential in pur- suing a raw diet.
Paul Bridgewater
Schools and community
too technical, live food sup- ports life. Dead food cannot support life significantly, es- pecially if we are healing and correcting imbalance in our bodies. Once you pass the pro-
groups may run their own ver- sion of this contest and then submit the best entries in the national contest. Families may use interviews at a family gathering, whether they enter a contest or not. Whatever the choice, conversations with older adults are an ideal way to connect the generations.
Simply put, without getting
Legacy Project know that we live our lives forward, but we understand them backward. In looking back, we can iden- tify turning points or dynam- ic events. For any of us over age 60, this “life review” can clarify and organize our think- ing about life, make sense of events, and enrich the mean- ing of our life story. As we see how the story of our life has turned out, we then change what we can for the future and accept the rest. This process of looking back is formally called “life review.”
duce aisle in the supermarket, the rest of the store is filled with processed preservative filled adulterated food.
pulation. Like others, they
raw oods but with industrial-
are also learning more about
changed in the past 100 years.
Food has
lives, we
drastically
others, our world and our-
Fast
the consumers’
benefits for both young and
selves. food, convenience food and junk food have dominated
Here are just some of the
tastes. With
ization c me mass produced ments and disappointments. food.
My gerontology students at Wayne County Community College District, in particular, are learning the importance of life reviews as they work to better understand the older
po Our ancestors ate more
are finding that when any of us talk about our
Feb. 24-March 2, 2010
Raw food: The optimum way to superior health
By Paul Bridgewater
As Black History Month
interview. The grand prize winner will receive a Lenovo ThinkCentre computer and $800 of Orchard Software and an iPod Nano. Twenty run- ners-up will receive $400 in software and a MP3 player fromOrchard Software. For in- formation and an application, visit: www.legacyproject.org/ contests/Ital.html. Again, the deadline is March 29.
old in informal conversations or formal interviews:
• It creates a sense of con- tinuity, linking the past with the present and the future.
• It enables younger people to find out interesting things about their family members or members of their commu- nity, as well as the broader historical past.
• It is a way to pass on family stories and traditions, and preserve family history and cultural heritage.
• It builds self-esteem in those doing the telling and those doing the listening.
• •
time b ing at a premium, the
velop research,
t m tation to take what
and listening skills.
I pportuni y reflect
It helps young people de-
interviewin ig
on and assess their life achieve-
s
cons dered the quick and easy route to food is at the sacrifice of nutrients.
gives older p ople an to
Organic raw food is the
• It combats the isolation and sense of loss that may come with growing older.
• It helps older people re- solve conflicts and fears, and
most beneficial for our health. You want your food to be free of harmful chemicals and pes- ticides. Though organic food may cost a little more, you are worth it. There are so many
gives younger people amodel for facing their own life chal- lenges.
• It promotes intergenera- tional interaction and under- standing.
suggests useful questions for young people to ask their elders, and the questions are grouped into several topic areas to cover life events in childhood and adulthood, identity, aging, life lessons and legacies. Reviewing the questions, arranging an in- terview, and beginning an essay are great steps toward preserving a family’s legacy.
Tune in to “The Senior
fruits and vegetables nuts and seeds to choose from. Raw recipes abound on the Inter- net and your local library has many books that will help guide you on your quest for a raw diet. When you begin to look in a different direction in your choice of foods, a whole new world of choices will open up to you.
TheLegacyProjectwebsite
Make going raw an adven-
Solution” on WGPR 107.5 FM every Saturday morning from 10 to 11 a.m., hosted by Paul Bridgewater, presi- dent and CEO, Detroit Area Agency on Aging. The Detroit Area Agency on Aging is lo- cated at 1333 Brewery Park Blvd., Suite 200, Detroit, MI 48207; (313) 446-4444; www. daaa1a.org.
ture. You’ll find that the calorie reduction will definitely help your appearance and help your heart. Longevity and quality of life will improve. Your tastes will begin to change beyond the salt and sugar laden foods you have been used to. Adding more raw food to your present diet will put you on the road to health. How much do you want to be healthy? The de- cision is up to you and every day is an opportunity to say yes to your health. Remember, whenever you choose what to put on the end of your fork, ask yourself, “Is this going to help me or harm me?” The choice for health is ultimately your responsibility.
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To find out if you still qualify to enroll in a HAP Medicare plan, call a HAP Medicare representative today, toll-free at
(800) 292-9344 or TDD (800) 956-4325
Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
*Based on the Overall Health Plan Quality Star Summary Ratings awarded by the federal Medicare program (2008-2009 data). HAP Senior Plus and Alliance Medicare PPO are health plans with a Medicare contract.
H2312 H2322 401 SWM Ad F&U Certified 1.21.10
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