Cha-may weeya
Medicine Talk
Siletz
Community
Health
Clinic
Do You Know Someone with Asthma?
Chronic Asthma in Native Americans is Rising Fast
In Oregon, 44 percent of Native
American/Alaskan Natives smoke com
mercial tobacco. It’s not surprising that
the documented cases of asthma are on
the rise in Native adults and especially
in children.
Asthma is a chronic breathing dis
order and is the most common chronic
health problem in children. Children
with asthma have attacks of coughing,
wheezing, and shortness of breath that
can be very serious.
The tiny air passages of the lungs
become inflamed and fill with mucus,
making breathing difficult. Many
asthma attacks occur when children get
respiratory infections, including infec
tions caused by common cold viruses.
Attacks can be caused by many
environmental factors and one proven
factor is exposure to secondhand
smoke. Secondhand smoke can cause
children with asthma to suffer more fre
quent and severe asthma attacks when
exposed. In addition, secondhand
smoke may cause thousands of other
wise healthy children to develop asthma
each year.
The awesome news, however, is
that eliminating secondhand smoke in
the home, car, and surroundings will
greatly reduce the symptoms of asthma.
Although environmental tobacco
smoke affects everyone, children are es
pecially vulnerable because they are
still growing and developing. Pound for
pound, children eat, drink, and breathe
three times as much as adults. Children
are most likely exposed to secondhand
smoke in their homes and cars.
What can you do to help someone
with asthma?
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Do not smoke in homes and cars
whether a child is present or not.
Clothing should be smoke-free when
you’re with a child who has asthma.
Make sure to work with providers
to have an asthma plan so they can
breathe easy.
Inform schools and day care pro
viders about the child’s asthma plan
and what to do.
Honor the gift of tobacco for one day on
Nov. 18, 2004
Get Quit Kits from the Siletz Community
Health Clinic or call the Oregon Quit
Line at 1-800-270-7867.
SCHC Tobacco Prevention and Education
beAnna Pearl, TPEP Coordinator
541-444-9659 or 1-800-648-0449
For more information, contact
De Anna Pearl at 541-444-9659 or
1-800-648-0449, ext. 1659, or visit the
Web site www.oshd.org/asthma.
Toothtalk
by Teri (the tooth fairy) Coddington, RDH
Holiday Tooth Decay
November is upon us as we enter
the festival season. Little ones will gobble
up their Halloween candy only to have
more Thanksgiving and Christmas treats.
Tooth decay occurs when your teeth
are frequently exposed to foods contain
ing carbohydrates (starches and sugars)
like soda pop, candy, ice cream, milk,
cakes, fruit, vegetables, and juices.
Natural bacteria live in your mouth
and form plaque that interacts with de
posits left on your teeth from sugary
and starchy foods to produce acids. These
acids damage tooth enamel over time
by dissolving, or demineralizing, the
mineral structure of teeth, producing
tooth decay and weakening the teeth.
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Siletz News
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The acids formed by plaque can be
counteracted by simple saliva in your
mouth, which acts as a buffer and re
mineralizing agent. Chewing sugarless
gum to stimulate your flow of saliva helps,
but the best way to prevent decay is to
brush with fluoridated toothpaste two
to three times a day and floss regularly.
Because we all carry bacteria in our
mouths, everyone is at risk for cavities.
Those with a diet high in carbohydrates
and sugary foods and those who live in
communities without fluoridated water
are likely candidates for cavities.
Teeth with large fillings and crowns
also have a higher chance of develop
ing tooth decay. Children and senior
November 2004
citizens are the two groups at highest
risk for cavities.
You can help protect your and your
loved ones’ teeth by stopping or reduc
ing the intake of soda pop or sweets,
drinking fruit juice instead of fruit
punch, eating unsweetened cereal, and
always brushing your teeth after eating.
At minimum, rinse your mouth with
water immediately after eating and
brush when you have an opportunity.
If your children want to snack on
candy or other holiday treats, have them
sit down and eat the snack at one time,
then have them brush their teeth. Don’t
allow them to snack on sweets or drink
soda pop all day long.
Our bodies need real food. Any
kind of real fruit juice is better than ar
tificially flavored drinks. Frozen cans
of concentrated juice are cheaper and
just as good as canned real fruit juices.
Real fruit juice does contain sugar, but
in the form of fructose, a more natural
form of sugar than table sugar.
The amount of sugar we eat adds
up. Not only can too much sugar cause
tooth decay, excess sugar consumption
also can cause our bodies to become out
of balance, increase our risk of devel
oping diabetes, and cause hyperactivity
in children. Eating and drinking less
sugar makes us feel better, keeps our
teeth strong, and keeps our bodies healthy.