EDUCATION / OUTREACH

1. Eat a low carb snack before you go to a party to help control your appetite.
   
2. Monitor your carbohydrates closely.
   
3. Maintain consistent meal times
   
4. Increase glucose monitoring over the holidays.
   
5. Read and understand food labels, paying attention to ingredients and serving sizes.
   
6. Prepare traditional recipes for cakes, cookies, and fruit breads with less sugar, sugar substitutes, fruit or fruit juices.
   
7. Beware of what is added to foods such as maple syrup, marshmallows, butter and cream soups.
   
8. Use portion control, smaller is always better during the holidays. Remember you don't have to eat everything that is on your plate
   
9. Use one plate for what you will eat to better assess what and how much you are eating.
   
10. If you drink alcohol, don't drink on an empty stomach. Alcohol can either increase or decrease blood sugar. Don't mix alcohol with soda, ginger ale or juice.
    
    
    
    TIPS TO PREVENT FALLS IN THE ELDERLY
    
    
    
    1. Indoor Lighting-Make sure stairs and hallways have bright light. Always try to use the highest wattage allowed in the bulb. Night lights for those middle of the night trips to the bathroom can make a big difference in preventing falls.
       
    2. Clutter-Just having things out of place can cause falls. When objects are out of their normal place, they can be overlooked and tripped over.
       
    3. Extension cords-Find a way to arrange your furniture so that extension cords are out of the way.
       
    4. Lack of handrails-Don't used the soap or towel holder for a grab bar or handrail. It wasn't designed to hold the weight of a human being.
       
    5. Scatter rugs-Be sure all throw rugs or scatter rugs have a no skid backing
       
    6. Pets-Somehow these precious little creatures manage to get under our feet and can cause a fall. Be aware of where your pet is and be careful when visiting others who have pets too.
       
    7. Outdoor lighting---Is just as important as indoor lighting. Use all the available outdoor lights whenever possible. Sensor lights are available that will turn on whenever there's movement. That's good for you and bad for intruders
       
    8. Handrails-Use handrails on all steps no matter how easy the steps are to climb or how many times you've been up and down them before.
       
    9. Uneven walking surfaces-Be sure to avoid broken sidewalks and areas that are under construction if at all possible.
       
    10. Snow and ice-Try to park where it is clear of ice or snow. Try to keep your driving to daylight hours so that you can see the patches of ice or snow in the parking lot. A bag of non-clumping kitty litter in your car, with a scoop made from cutting off the bottom half of a half-gallon milk or orange juice container, can be used to create traction and help you get out when your car is stuck.
        
    
    
    Information provided by Wright State University College of Nursing and Health
    
    
    
    CANCER & WOMEN
    
    A free medical school anyone can attend.
    Click here for more information
    
    Mini-Medical School is designed for anyone who wants to learn more about issues surrounding significant developments in health research and patient care. Taught by experts in medicine and hot health topics, Mini-Medical School explores the latest developments in language you can understand.
    
    Mini-Medical School began in 1995 and is the largest semiannual public educational event sponsored by the University of Nebraska Medical Center. The free program is broadcast to many locations across the state.
    
    Classes are easy to understand. No educational requirements are necessary, and no homework is assigned. Mini-Medical School instructors use a variety of visuals and handouts to supplement their presentations and allow plenty of time for questions.
    
    
    
    FLU VACCINE
    Each year in the U.S., an average of 36,000 people die, and more than 200,000 are hospitalized from serious flu-related complications. The flu is a contagious disease caused by influenza viruses. It can cause mild to severe illness and can even lead to death. Some people, such as older people, young children, pregnant women, and people with certain health conditions, are at higher risk for serious flu complications. Influenza is contagious and spreads mainly from person to person when an infected person coughs or sneezes near others. People also may become infected by touching something with flu viruses on it, and then touching their mouth or nose.
    
    In general, the flu is worse than the common cold, and symptoms such as fever, body aches, extreme tiredness, and dry cough are more common and intense. However, because the symptoms of flu can seem the same as symptoms of other illnesses, it can be very difficult to know if a respiratory infection is caused by the flu virus or not. A doctor can tell you for sure. Complications of flu can include bacterial pneumonia, dehydration, and worsening of chronic medical conditions, such as congestive heart failure, asthma, or diabetes. Children, in particular, may get sinus and ear infections.
    
    Vaccination is the single best way to protect yourself and people you love from influenza. The flu vaccine is safe and effective and cannot give you influenza. Certain people, including those age 65 years and older, people with chronic medical conditions, pregnant women, and very young children are at high risk of having serious flu-related complications. So, it is especially important that these people and those living with or in close contact with them get a flu vaccine each year.
    
    Influenza is unpredictable. We do not know when the flu season will begin or how severe it will be. Influenza season can begin as early as October and can last as late as May. However, winter is usually the prime time for influenza. Flu activity peaked in January or later during 26 of the past 30 influenza seasons. Record amounts of flu vaccine are expected this season, so consult your doctor or health clinic about when they will have vaccine, and then schedule an appointment to get you and your loved ones vaccinated.
    
    
    
    PNEUMONIA VACCINES
    Pneumococcal disease is a serious disease that
    causes much sickness and death. In fact, pneumococcal
    disease kills more people in the United States each year
    than all other vaccine-preventable diseases combined.
    Anyone can get pneumococcal disease. However, some
    people are at greater risk from the disease. These include
    people 65 and older, the very young, and people with
    special health problems such as alcoholism, heart or lung
    disease, kidney failure, diabetes, HIV infection, or
    certain types of cancer. The pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV)protects against 23 types of pneumococcal bacteria.
    
    All adults 65 years of age or older and people over 2 years of age who have a long-term health problem, disease or condition that lowers the body's resistance to infection,
    who is taking any drug or treatment that lowers the body's resistance to infection, Alaskan Natives and certain Native American populations should receive PPV.
    
    For more information on influenza, pneumococcal, and other vaccines, click here or visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website at www.cdc.gov.
    
    
    
    LUNCH AND LEARN
    

    What:	Lunch & Learn
    When:	November 6, 2008
    Time:	11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
    Where:	Pender Fire Hall

    
    

    Topic:

    Ask The Cardiologist

    
    There will be a Mini Health Fair relating to Cardiology prior to and after lunch. A cardiologist will speak and take questions during lunch from 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM.
    
    Click here to register online, or call Carrol Baier, RN, BS, PS at 402-385-4092.
    
    
    
    DINE AND LEARN
    
    Cholesterol & Diabetes
    August 27, 2008 at 5:00 PM
    
    Join us for a light meal in the Hospital dining room.
    Learn about managing your cholesterol.
    To register call 385-4092 and leave a message or e-mail Carrol Baier.
    
    Speaker:
    Jean Christenson RD, CDE
    Registered Dietician,
    Certified Diabetes Educator
    
    
    
    DIABETES
    
    What is Diabetes?
    Diabetes is a disease that prevents the body from either making insulin or properly using insulin. Insulin is needed to help the body change sugar, starch and other food that we consume into energy. In some instances, people have become less active while their portion sizes have grown, leading to weight gain and obesity. These factors along with family history, increase the risk for developing Type 2 Diabetes. There are 18.2 million people of all ages with Diabetes and another 41 million with pre-diabetes. Diabetes is reaching epidemic levels in the United States.
    
    
    
    AGING
    
    Healthy Aging
    The United States is on the brink of a longevity revolution. By 2030, the number of older Americans will have more than doubled to 70 million, or one in every five Americans. The growing number and proportion of older adults places increasing demands on the public health system and on medical and social services.
    
    Chronic diseases exact a particularly heavy health and economic burden on older adults due to associated long-term illness, diminished quality of life, and greatly increased health care costs. Although the risk of disease and disability clearly increases with advancing age, poor health is not an inevitable consequence of aging.
    
    Much of the illness, disability, and death associated with chronic disease is avoidable through known prevention measures. Key measures include practicing a healthy lifestyle (e.g., regular physical activity, healthy eating, and avoiding tobacco use) and the use of early detection practices (e.g., screening for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancers, diabetes and its complications, and depression).
    
    Critical knowledge gaps exist for responding to the health needs of older adults. For chronic diseases and conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, arthritis, depression, psychiatric disorders, osteoporosis, Parkinson's disease, and urinary incontinence, much remains to be learned about their distribution in the population, associated risk factors, and effective measures to prevent or delay their onset.
    
    source: Healthy Aging CDC.gov