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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 11, 2009)
Career tducation November II, 2009 S P E C IA L Page A3 E D IT IO N H ealth F ood Stam ps Show C hildren at R isk Economy could push numbers higher (A P , -- Nearly half o f all U S . children and 90 percent o f black y o u n g ste rs w ill be on food stam ps at som e point during childhood, and fallout from the cu rren t recession could push those num bers even higher, re searchers say. The estim ate com es from an analysis o f 30 years o f national data, and it bolsters other re cent evidence on the pervasive ness o f youngsters at econom ic risk . It su g g e sts that alm ost everyone know s a fam ily who has received food stam ps, or will in the future, said lead au thor M ark Rank, a sociologist at W ashington U niversity in St. Louis. "Your neighbor may be us ing some o f these program s but it's not the kind o f thing people w ant to talk about," Rank said. T he an a ly sis w as released Nov. 2 in the N ovem ber issue o f A rchives o f Pediatrics and A dolescent M edicine. The au thors say it's a m edical issue pediatricians need tQ be aw are o f because ch ild ren on food stam ps are at risk for m alnutri tion and other ills linked with poverty. "This is a real d an g er sign that we as a society need to do People wait to apply for food stamps in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. a lot more to protect children," Rank said. Food stam ps are a D epart- ment of Agriculture program for lo w -in co m e in d iv id u als and families, covering most foods a lth o u g h n o t p r e p a re d h o t foods or alcohol. For a family o f four to be eligible, their an nual take-home pay can't exceed about $22,000. According to a U SDA report released last month, 28.4 million A m e ric a n s r e c e iv e d fo o d stamps in an average month in 2 0 0 8 , an d a b o u t h a lf w ere younger than age 18. The aver age monthly benefit per house hold totaled $222. Rank and Cornell University sociologist Thomas Hirschl stud ied data from a nationally repre sentative survey o f 4,8(X) Ameri can households interviewed an nually from 1968 through 1997 by the University of Michigan. Rihanna Talks Domestic Violence Pop star victim opens up to women R ihanna says d ealing with the m edia attention after being assaulted in F ebruary by ex boyfriend Chris Brown was hu m iliating. But she now hopes to speak for young w om en who are afraid to talk openly about dom estic violence. The 21 -year-old pop star told G lam our m agazine in an inter v iew p o ste d o n lin e T uesd ay th a t the p o lic e p h o to o f her bruised face that w as leaked to reporters added insult to injury. A fter the assault, she aw oke to find helicopters circling her house and reporters sw arm ing her street. "I felt like I w ent to Rihanna sleep as Rihanna and woke up as Britney Spears," she said. Rihanna said she felt disap pointed and taken advantage of, especially when she heard that the tw o officers under investi g atio n for leak in g her photo were women. "1 felt like people were m ak ing it into a fun topic on the Internet, and it's my life," she said. Rihanna said she didn’t real ize how much her decisions af fected people she didn't know, like her many fans. She feels stronger, w iser and more aware now, she added. "D om estic violence is a big se cret," R ih an n a said. "T he po sitiv e thing that has com e o u t o f m y s itu a tio n is th a t people can learn from that. I w ant to give as much insight as I can to young w om en, because I feel like I represent a voice that really isn't heard. N ow I can help speak for those women." Asian Perspective on Gambling, Addictions Clark College hosts mental health series A ccording to the Los A nge les Tim es, in a 1999 survey in San Francisco's C hinatow n, 70 p erc en t o f th o se resp o n d in g cited gam bling as the top prob lem in their community. A n o th e r r e p o r t fro m th e U CLA G am bling Studies P ro gram noted how “In Chinese, V ietnam ese, Filipino, K orean and C am bodian com m unities, social w orkers and leaders are pressuring gam ing officials and state legislators to recognize a hidden epidem ic.” O n M o n d a y , N ov. 16, an A sian perspective on gam bling Bounsang Khamkeo and addictions will be the fo cus o f Clark C olleg e's “ Mental H ea lth M o n d a y s” p r e s e n ta tion. The discussion will be led by Bounsang K ham keo, a behav ioral health counselor and hu m an rig h ts a d v o c a te at th e O H SU Avel G ordly C enter for Healing. K h am k eo is an ad d ictio n s treatm ent expert who grew up in Laos but left at the age o f 17 to study in F rance. T h irteen years later, in 1973, he returned to his homeland and was impris oned. “ I Little Slave” is an account o f his sev en -y ear struggle in prison to stay alive and keep sane in spite o f harsh physical privation and endless psycho logical abuse. T he event, w hich is free and o pen to the p u b lic, will take place from noon to I p.m . in the P en g u in S tu d en t L ounge, lo cated in the c o lle g e ’s P en g uin U nion B u ild in g . C lark C o lle g e ’s m ain cam p u s is lo ca te d at 1933 F ort V ancouver Way in V ancouver. Brown, 20, pleaded guilty to felony assault in June. He was sen ten ced to five years' p ro bation, six m onths o f co m m u nity lab o r and a y ear o f d o m e stic v io le n c e c o u n s e lin g for the attack, in w hich he w as a c c u se d o f h ittin g , ch o k in g and biting R ihanna in a rented sp o rts car. T M Z published the photo o f Rihanna's bruised face less than tw o w eeks after the beating, and the L A P D im m ed ia te ly launched an internal investiga tion of the leak. About 18,(MM ) adults and children were involved. O verall, about 49 percent of all children were on food stamps at some point by the age o f 20, the an a ly sis found. T h at in cludes 90 percent o f black ch il dren and 37 percent o f whites. T h e a n a ly s is d id n 't in c lu d e other ethnic groups. The tim e span included typi cal econom ic ups and dow ns, including the early 1980s reces sion. That m eans sim ilar por tions o f children now and in the future will live in families receiv ing food stam ps, although o n going econom ic turm oil may in c re ase th e n u m b ers, Rank said. Fiber Diet Boosts Immunity An apple a day m ay keep the d o cto r aw ay but a fiber- filled diet co u ld also h old the key to keep in g asth m a, d iab etes an d arth ritis at bay, acco rd in g to A u stralian re search released T hursday. S cien tists at S yd n ey 's G arvan In stitu te o f M edical R e search say that fib er not only helps keep people regular, it bo o sts the im m une system so it can b etter co m b at in flam m atory diseases. W hen foods high in fiber, such as d ried fruit and beans, re a c h th e g u t, b a c te ria c o n v e rt th e m to c o m p o u n d s know n as sh o rt chain fatty acids. T h ese acid s are know n to allev iate som e inflam m atory disease in the bow el. R esearch er C h arles M ackay said that the team , w hich w ork ed w ith scien tists in A ustralia, the US and B razil, w as able to draw a clearer picture o f th is relatio n sh ip , w ork w hich has im p licatio n s for oth er diseases. The African American Men’s Club, Inc. (AAMC) Presents a Pre-Holiday Dance Saturday, November 2 8 ,2(M)9 Billy Webb Elk's Lodge, 6 North Tillamook St., Portland, Oregon ? 9 PM - 2 AM Donation: $15.00 per person • Music by DJ Let's Kick o ff the holiday season with friends, food, and fu n Raffle & 50/50 split: Tickets - $1 .(X) each Menu: Roast Beef, Chicken, Mac & Cheese, Green Beans, Salad & Dinner Rolls Tickets Available at: AAMC Club Members • Elk’s Lodge (503) 284-4853 Cannon’s Rib Express (503) 288-3836 • One Stop Records (503) 284-8103 Geneva’s Shear Perfection (503) 285-1159 James & Johnnie Mayfield - Vancouver (360) 576-8519 • fl Proceeds to benefit the AAMC Scholarship Program The African American Men’s Club is a non-profit organization Our New Location! J. THE iz 5 3 SPINACOLUMN An ongoing series of questions and answers about America's natural healing profession Dr. Billy R. Flowers P art 10. F atigue: A cu re fo r p eo p le sick and tired o f b eing o f b ein g sick and tired. : I seem to be tired a lot detail. A nother cause, how ever lately. D oes that m ean I is often stress. M any o f you have pro b ab ly heard o f the need iron? “Fight O r Flight” syndrom e. : The m ost com m on rea W hen the body is stressed, it son patients com e intoour responds with a com bat-ready office is because o f som e type posture. In analyzing many such o f pain. But m any o f these patients' x-rays, we find the head people are also suffering from angled forw ard and the back fatigue. Fatigue that m akes the arched in this highly-stressed eyes bum slows dow n the heal ing process and m akes you position. A fter C hiropractic ad w onder w hy you d o n 't feel as justm ent. this condition is often well as you used to. Obviously, there can be m any causes o f fatigue. D iet is certainly one of them. It's a subject w e'd be happy to discuss with you in Flowers' Chiropractic Office \ i i \ c n i s e w ith d iv e rs ity 1 vastly improved. Patients come back well-rested, telling us they just had their best n ig h t's sleep in ages. If you think the stress o f everyday I ife might be w ear ing you dow n and preventing your body from w arding off illnesses, call us for an appoint ment. O r if there are any other q u e s tio n s you m ig h t have about your health, ju st call us at the phone num ber below. Pastors Jerry & Annie Gutierrez Would like to invite you for Service every F r id a y N ig h t a t 7 : 0 0 p m Services will be held a t New Song Community Comer 2511NE MLK Blvd. Comer of NE MLK Blvd and Russell Street 2124 NE Hancock, Portland Oregon 97212 Infant and Toddler care will be provided • Doors open at 6pm for every service Phone: (5 0 3 ) 2S7-35O 4 for directions or more information, call in îhe Portland; Observer 0033 ads («'port ktndob ser»'cr.com 503-488-5481 www.mfhmportland.com