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P age B4
J une 7, 1995 • T he P oru
and
O bserver
H E A LTH
The Numbers Keep Growing:
African-Americans Living With Kidney Disease
H arriett E llis leads an inspiring,
fast-paced lifestyle -- more so than
The most d isturbing part o f this equa
tion is that the num ber o f cases o f
kidney fa ilu re in A frican-A m ericans
most people that you m ight meet.
H arriett is the form er D ire cto r o f
Pharmacy at H arlem H ospital and
Brush Up On Flossing
Flnsstno
Flossing remnvec
removes nlnnnp
plaque that
hides between teeth and under the
gum line-places toothbrushes can’t
I reach
. u . the
m , 70s ». . A_ •
■ .z*
Floss innovationsduring
ly to shred I f you have tig h t teeth
and 80s included extra fine, mint
use and extra slippery floss.
waxed and unwaxed, cinnamon, bub
To prevent plaque build-up, den
ble gum and m int w ith baking soda
tists recommend flcssingat least once
fo r that fresh feeling.
a day, preferably before retiring.
I wists o f the 90s include neon
It doesn’ t matter w hether you
colors, flosses made o f the same
floss before o r after brushing.
Fond o f your teeth and gums?
I N ot flossing is a m ajor cause o f
I adult gum disease and tooth loss.
Last year Americans bought 3.8
b illio n yards o f floss, enough to
material as teflon and flosses w ith
fluoride.
wrap around the globe 86.7 times.
S till, more than 80 percent o f flossers
don’t floss regularly, nor do they
I floss all teeth.
I oday more than 30 companies
sell hundreds o f flosses w ith catchy
m onikers like Easy slide. G lide, the
Way it Was and Sweet Breath.
There is no added health advan
The first comm ercial flosses-
made o f waxed and unwaxed s ilk -
tage to using flavored, waxed, flu o
ride-covered o r bak ing soda-covered
dental floss.
were sold by Johnson and Johnson
I in 1898
Because s ilk w asn’ t w id e ly
I available during W orld W ar II, floss
use was lim ited until 1945, when
manufacturers switched to nylon and
other synthetics.
N o pain, no gain? N o t neces
sarily, but ify o u rg u m s a re inflam ed
by tartar - the substance caused when
plaque ca lcifie s - there may be dis
com fort and/or bleeding at first. The
good news? W ith in a few days o f
correct flossing yo u r gums should
heal.
T ired o f stickin g hands in your
Certain floss types may be best
fo r particular mouths. I f you have
larger spaces between your teeth, use
mouth? T h e re ’ s a new product:
FlossPlus, w ith a battery-operated
head that sonically vibrates 20,000
times per minute. I t ’ s $29.95 from
a thicker floss. If you have restora
tions, try a waxed flo s s -it’ s less lik e
N eoSonicsC rop. Joliet, Illin o is . O r
you can ca ll (800) 99-FLO SS.
Aids: The Second Decade
A Focus On African Americans
by
A ngela S hiloh -C kyer
tion.
This story is more comm on than
S helita’ s symptoms were ty p i
cal o f someone w ith advanced H IV
disease. Yet w hile she suffered w ith
night sweats, fever, and A ID S -re la t
ed pneumonia (PCP), she never real
ized what was causing these prob
lems. She died w ithout know ing of,
and w ithout treating, her H IV infec-
you w ould imagine, p a rticu la rly in
ourcom m unity. M any A frican A m er
icans are diagnosed w ith A ID S w ith
out even know ing they are infected
w ith H IV , the virus that causes the
disease. W hy is this happening? In
many cases, fear, denial o r shame
com bine w ith poverty and a lack o f
access to health care to keep people
from being tested and from receiving
im portant medical treatment.
T his is p a rticu la rly discourag
ing since the face o f the H IV /A ID S
epidem ic in the U nited States is
ch a rg in g from that o f a m iddle class,
w hite gay male to that o f a poor,
A frica n Am erican male, female, or
baby.
At First Interstate Bank.
we can help you get
I f YOU
DO N’T
into a dream home you
continuestogrow . T h e N e w England
Journal o f M edicine estimates that in
the 1960’ s, A frican-A m ericans made
up about 10 percent o f the co u n try’ s
patients being treated fo r kidney fa il
ure. In 1978, this num ber ju m p e d to
about 26 percent, and today the num
ber o f A frica n -A m e rica n s w ith k id
ney failure is no longer the “ death
sentence” o f ju s t th irty years ago —
before the life-saving kidney dialysis
machine was invented.
A lthough the machine managed
to sustain a patient's life by filte rin g
and cleansing waste from the blood
supply, it left many patients w ith
cripplinganem ia, m aking them weak
and incapable o f leading a norm al
life.
currently serves as Pharmacy D ire c
to r fo r a prestigious New Y o rk C ity
Health agency. H arriett also sits on
the New Y o rk Board o f Pharmacy,
teaches continuing education cours
es in pharmacy and plays tennis sev
eral times a week. B ut one aspect o f
her life is in cre a sin g ly com m on
ney failure is topping 30 percent o f
all kidney patients.
among A frican-A m ericans. H arriett
begins and ends each productive day
o f her life hooked up to a home
kidney dialysis unit.
The a larm ingly high rate o f k id
ney failure among A fric a n -A m e ri
cans is attributed p rim a rily to hyper
tension and diabetes. The exact rea
A lthough whites s till constitute
the largest number o f kidney patients
in this country, the rate o f kidney
fa ilu re among A frica n -A m e rica n s
sons w hy A frica n -A m e rica n s have a
higher incidence o f these conditions
is not know n, but it is lik e ly that
was introduced to treat this anemia
As a result, dialysis patients can
lead productive and more satisfying
lives -- often w o rkin g harder and
genetic factors may play a part.
Fortunately, a diagnosis o f k id
exercising more frequently than most
people w ith o u t the disease.
today is nearly fo u r times as great.
These symptoms were o rig in a l
ly thought to be signs o f renal disease
itself.
Then in 1989, a genetically en
gineered hormone called EPOGEN
Senior Program Planned
“ Take Charge.” a health and
safety program fo r senior citizens,
w ill be held on Thursday, June 29.
Charge” event.
This p ublic service program is
This free program fo r senior c it
izens has been designed to provide
in fo rm a tio n and education about
dealing w ith one’ s own health care It
w ill begin at 9:00 a m. and end about
1:00 p.m. at the Rccdwood Friends
Church in Southeast Portland (2901
SE Steele). The program is being
sponsored by the N orthw est Osteo
pathic M edical Foundation in coop
eration w ith Eastmoreland Hospital,
adjacent to the site o f the “ Take
uled on home, personal and street
an opp o rtu n ity fo r the senior popula
tion to learn about th e ir ow n health
smart safety, firs t aid, and poison
prevention. A pharm acist w ill also
be available fo r consultation.
care, personal safety, and emergency
first aid, p a rticu la rly in the home.
It is im portant to note that par
ticipants must preregister at 699-
Featured speakers w ill include,
among others: Howard G raitzer, DO,
geriatrician, "M a n a g in g y o u r Health
Care” C heryl K irk , RD, n u tritio n ist,
Oregon D a iry C ouncil Lawrence E.
Foltz, DO , fa m ily practice, “ Cardiac
Care” Nancy T u rp in , RN, geriatric
5366, as space w ill be lim ite d (dead
line June 26). The fa c ility is wheel
chair-accessible, and there w ill be
plenty o f free refreshments provided
during the course o f the program.
B lood pressure screenings w ill also
be available.
nurse practitioner.
In addition, speakers are sched-
For further inform ation please
cal I the Foundation office, 222-7161.
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From HCIA/Mercer Health Provider Consultine
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