^ 65-70% of all breast can
cers are found by women
themselves. So be sure to do
your monthly breast self
exams, ladies!
— American Institute for Cancer Research
Including soy in your diet
can help prevent heart disease,
reduce your risk of developing
some cancers, alleviate symp
toms of menopause, and
improve your bone health.
— Veggie Life, May 1999
5$ There are about 2 trillion
bacteria on your feet.
— Health, April 1999
5* Only about half of the
approximately 50 million
chronic headache sufferers in
America seek the help of a
physician, even though about
90-95 % of them could be helped
significantly by doing so.
— Health, April 1999
3* A half of a grapefruit con
tains 6 grams offiber IF you
eat both the segments of the
grapefruit and the walls that
separate them.
— Nutrition Action Healthletter, 1997
& Regular exercise may
reduce the severity and fre
quency of all types of
headaches.
— Runner’s World, 1999
* 2.7million people in the United
States are chronically infected
with the hepatitis C virus.
— U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, 1999)
ifc 21,000,000,000 miles were
driven drunk in 1990.
Diabetes was 7th leading
cause of death in 1996.
— National center for health stats
$ 5.9% of population (15.7
mil) have diabetes
— National center for health stats
& 11% of Americans eat an
entire meal from a vending
machine once per week!!
— KPTV survey
$ To decrease the odds of
catching a bug, avoid party
bowls of food during cold and
flu season
— Quest Clinical Research
$ Eating Vitamin C rich
foods, such as broccoli, toma
toes and oranges, will help the
absorption of iron!
— Iron out mineral deficiency,
Onhealth.com
{ft A study of4,000 elderly
women with hip fractures con
cluded that one out of every
eight fractures was due to
smoking-related bone loss
— 1997 Onhealth.co
& The typical UO student is a
“safe”* drinker according to
the 1998 CORE survey: 85 %
have never been injured or
hurt as a result of drinking.
96 % of UO students have
never damaged property while
under the influence of acohol.
89 % did not drink and drive
in the past month.
* For some individuals any amount
of alcohol or drinkiny may be danger
ous.
Is Your Keyboard Hurting You?
By Annie Weinsoft
Those twenty-page term papers can hurt
more than just your GPA. Besides depriving
you of sleep, the long hours at your keyboard
can lead to a very painful, debilitating disor
der known as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
(CTS), if proper precau
tions are
not taken.
CTS is
caused by
long-term,
repetitive,
awkward
motions
of the
wrist,
such as
those
These motions cause the tendons in the
carpal tunnel, the large passageway under the
carpal bones in your wrists, to swell and put
pressure on the median nerve, which is the
main nerve controlling movement in your
hands and most of your fingers. Pressure on
this nerve can cause severe pain in the wrists,
hands, and arms, and can eventually cause
loss of function in these areas, if left untreat
ed.
Symptoms
Signs of CTS include numbness, tingling,
burning, or pain in your hands, arms or
wrists.
The symptoms often increase at night or
when resting. Some sufferers also experience
feelings of weakness in their fingers and/or a
reduced ability to squeeze their hands,
according to the National Institute of
Occupational Safety and Health. Naturally,
if you are experiencing any of these symp
toms, you should check with your medical
practitioner for diagnosis and treatment.
! Prevention
To help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome,
be sure to keep your wrists in a neutral posi
tion and maintain good sitting posture while
you work. Try to type using a light touch,
with your elbows bent at a ninety-degree
angle. Many ergonomic products are available
to aid in maintaining a more wrist-friendly
position. It helps to take frequent breaks for
at least five to ten minutes every hour. Try to
alternate your tasks, so that you do not spend
more than an hour or two at a time at your
keyboard. Also, be sure to warm up your
hands by stretching your fingers and wrists
before you begin.
Treatment
CTS is commonly treated with wrist
splints or braces, which keep your wrist in a
position that puts the least pressure on your
nerve. Anti-inflammatory medications,
including aspirin and ibuprofen, are also fre
quently used. As a last resort, surgury can be
performed to alleviate the pain. But this, like
all the other remedies, will only work if you
do not return to your old, harmful behavior.
Things you can do at home to alleviate
CTS symptoms include using ice or heat
packs, running cold water over your hands,
massaging the painful areas, and reducing
your salt and caffeine intake. Exercises to
increase strength and dexterity in your hands,
wrists, and arms may be beneficial, as well.
In addition to typing, behaviors such as
sleeping on your hands, playing an instru
ment, repeatedly using power tools, and doing
excessive amounts of writing or needlework
may lead to CTS. Symptoms of CTS can also
be caused by ailments such as obesity,
rheumatoid arthritis, and diabetes.
For more information, stop by the Health
Education Office at the University Health
Center, contact the Health Center’s depart
ment of Physical Therapy and Sports
Medicine at (541)346-4401, the National
Institute of Occupational Safety and Health at
(800)356-4674, the National Institute of
Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin
Diseases at (301)495-4484, or check out the
National Library of Medicine’s web site at
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/carpal
tunnelsyndrome.html.
Keep Your Pressure In Check
by Elizabeth Clifton
I’ve lost my number. Can I have yours?
Knowing your blood pressure is important
at any age.
Most students lead a fast paced lifestyle of
high stress, not enough time for proper sleep
or exercise, often smoking, and eating dinners
consisting of Top Ramen. What younger
adults may not know is that these behaviors
put them at risk for having
high blood pressure.
mT
Getting your blood pressure checked is
very simple. By sticking your arm in a grocery
store’s blood pressure machine, you can find
out within minutes if your blood pressure is
near the healthy target of 120/80. The higher
of the two numbers is the systolic and signi
fies the peak pressure in your arteries when
the heart contracts. The diastolic, the lower
number, is the pressure when the heart is
relaxed.
If you find that your blood pressure is at
or higher than 140/90, it is recommended
that you consult a physician. Treatment does
not always entail medication; usually it
requires a change to a healthier lifestyle.
The single most helpful change is to quit
smoking. Other modifications that can be
made are to lose weight if overweight, limit
alcohol and caffeine intake, choose foods
Ik lower in sodium, and to eat lowfat dairy foods
and plenty of fruits and vegetables. Several
clinical studies have found that eating 8-10
fruits/vegetables serving daily, when com
bined with a low saturated fat diet, will
reduce systolic blood pressure on average 11
mm Hg and diastolic about 6mm Hg after 2
weeks. This is very significant.
Most Americans consume far more than
the recommended daily
allowance of less than
2400 mg. One
example of
this is
that a single McDonald’s Big Mac can contain
an entire day’s allowance for sodium. On top
of eating a lower amount of high sodium
foods, some medications such as many decon
gestants, are also high in sodium. Sodium is
found in many other ways than table salt. A
registered dietitian, such as Kristen Olmos of
the University Health Center, can further
explain a blood pressure reducing diet.
Another way to manage high blood pres
sure is to exercise regularly and follow a
stress reduction regimen. Cardiovascular exer
cise (such as jogging, cycling or cross country
skiing) for a sustained minimum of 20 min
utes in duration will not only help you feel
better, but is linked to lowering elevated blood
pressure. There are also wonderful relaxation
seminars hosted by the Health Education
Program at the University Health Center and
Physical Activity and Recreation Services
classes that can aid in the management of
stress, which is linked to hypertension.
Simply, young adults do not recognize high
blood pressure as a health risk and many stu
dents with it do not know. Senior sociology
major Melanie Jones said, “I usually think of
older people” when it comes to the disease of
high blood pressure. In actuality, quite a few
students live with it and do not know. An
active senior EMS major was very surprised
to find she had hypertension. With high
school track and field records that still stand,
she exercised regularly, got adequate sleep
and had a pretty low level of stress. That
senior is me.
This story may lead one to think back to
their last physical and remember that the
medical professional claimed that their blood
pressure was fine. But was that examination
during the school year or during the much
less stressful summer months while at
home? Blood pressure may not be as
daunting as other health issues, but it
mk can considerably affect longevity of life.
W A simple check at the grocery store or
i Health Center will show your heart how
much you love it. In turn, it will love you
back for the rest of your life.