Oct 31, 2012 | Social Work
Substance use and dependency directly and indirectly affect many families in the community. These issues are complex with an impact on social behavior and physical and mental health.
Education, understanding and supportive services can be helpful moving those affected towards recovery and healing. I often hear these common misunderstandings and myth about chemical dependency and addictions counseling:
MYTH: Chemical dependency is an individual problem.
FACT: There are 40 million illnesses and injuries every year in the US caused by chemical use that affects individuals, families, employers and communities.
MYTH: Chemical use is a choice that can be stopped by the person.
FACT: The net cost to society is $484 billion per year in treatment, lost wages and criminal involvement. Compare this to cancer at $171 billion and diabetes at $131 billion. Professional intervention is necessary.
MYTH: Treatment is costly and hard to get.
FACT: Continuum Health Partners offer a wide range of psychiatric and chemical dependency services in nationally recognized centers with a focus on treating the individual and affected family. Obtaining treatment and addictions counseling can simply be a matter of application and hospital assistance to obtain necessary care.
MYTH: Treatment doesn’t usually work.
FACT: Evaluation of treatment outcomes clearly show that at any given time up to 60% of chemical users recover for periods of years.
MYTH: The chemical user has to make an individual decision to stop using and recover.
FACT: Chemical users make bad decisions based on a distortion in perception and thinking. Educationally supportive intervention can help chemically dependent individuals make a choice to enter treatment and achieve recovery.
Edward Walsh is a Social Worker at The Addiction Institute in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at St. Luke’s and Roosevelt Hospitals.
Oct 30, 2012 | Cardiology, Diabetes, Diet and Nutrition, Heart Disease
All of us can think of a food and have flashbacks to our childhood. Foods that transport us back in time. For me, I remember the taste of Wonderbread, and the way the white fluffy slices would practically melt in my mouth. I also remember the day my mother banned the bread in favor of its counterpart, the dreaded whole wheat bread. These days, I’m grateful I made the transition early on, but why was it necessary? What’s so great about whole grains anyways? (more…)
Oct 29, 2012 | Exercise, Sports Medicine, The Center for Health & Healing
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uest post by H. Marie Williams
If you are considering a new training program, there are a few things you should know about how to train. Perhaps the most important thing to know is what zone you need to use in order to achieve your physiological goals.
The body draws energy from different systems depending on the type of exercise performed and these systems will determine what calorie sources get burned and how the body’s physiology is affected. The three energy systems are the phosphagen system, glycolysis and the oxidative system. (more…)
Oct 25, 2012 | Sexual Health, Urology
Guest blog post by Doron S. Stember, MD, Urologist at Beth Israel Medical Center.
Two major medical organizations, the American Urological Association and the European Urology Association, have each recently published guidelines related to the vasectomy procedure, otherwise known as male sterilization. At Beth Israel Medical Center, we have actually been performing vasectomies according to these new recommendations for many years.
The following is a list of 10 key concepts, outlined in the new guidelines, which we always discuss at the initial visit:
1. Men who undergo vasectomy should have the intent that they will be sterile permanently.
2. Sperm banking is offered prior to vasectomy; if banked sperm is ever used it will require in vitro fertilization
3. Vasectomy reversal is also possible if a man’s circumstances change in the future, but this procedure is not always successful and is potentially expensive.
4. After a vasectomy, men must continue to use contraception until the technique’s success is proved by post-vasectomy semen analysis.
5. Most patients tolerate vasectomy extremely well and have minimal need for pain medications, but there is a very small (1 to 2%) chance of chronic scrotal pain.
6. Despite persistent misinformation available on the Internet, vasectomy is not associated with erectile dysfunction, prostate cancer, stroke, testicular cancer or heart problems.
7. In contrast to female sterilization (tubal ligation surgery), vasectomy is much less expensive and does not require general anesthesia. Both male and female sterilization are equally effective at pregnancy prevention.
8. Men should avoid ejaculating for about a week after vasectomy in order to allow the tissue to heal.
9. Post-vasectomy semen analyses are critically important for confirming the absence of sperm in the ejaculate. Remember, the ejaculate will not look any different in appearance (or volume) except when analyzed under a microscope.
10. Informed, written consent is essential at the counseling visit. New York State requires a 30-day waiting period for the time that consent is signed until the day that vasectomy can be performed.
Men who are interested in learning more about the vasectomy procedure are encouraged to make an appointment by calling 212-844-8900.
Doron S. Stember, MD, is an Urologist at Beth Israel Medical Center.
Oct 24, 2012 | Diet and Nutrition, News, Safety
This guest post was written by Simone Walters, MS, RD.
Since I am a registered dietitian, one of the most popular questions I get asked is, “Is organic food better for me?” My usual response is that the way to better health is to eat more fruits, vegetables and whole grains, organic or not.
No Significant Difference in Nutrition
A new review of the published literature sheds some light on this very question. The authors found that for produce—fruits, vegetables and grains—there was no significant different in vitamin levels of organic items compared to conventionally grown items. They also found that detectable pesticide residues were significantly less likely to be found on organic produce compared to conventionally grown produce.
What do these results mean for the average consumer? The question of whether organic food is better for you is usually coupled with cost concerns, because, in general, organic produce can be more expensive than their conventionally grown counterparts. However, the most recent data indicates that in terms of nutrient content, organic and conventionally grown produce are equivalent. So from a health perspective it may not be worth the added costs for organic produce.
What About Pesticides?
There are, however, other reasons that consumers choose to purchase organic produce, and the fact that they tend to have lower quantities of detectable pesticide residues compared to conventionally grown produce is one of them. This finding, however, may not be as significant as it initially appears to be. First of all, it means that organic produce still contains pesticide residues, just less often than conventional produce. Secondly, the levels of residues found on organic and conventional produce generally are well below upper limits set by government organizations. In other words, exposure at these levels is less than what has been shown to cause adverse health effects. For anyone who still has concerns about pesticide residue levels on produce, I would advise to thoroughly rinse all produce before consumption both to help reduce residue levels before consumption and as a basic hygiene measure.
Bottom Line Advice
In light of these results, it is my opinion that if you’re trying to adopt healthier eating habits, consuming more fruits, vegetables and whole grains, organic or not, is definitely a step in the right direction.
