WellCommons

Sarah Sanders, cardiovascular nurse clinician at KU Hospital, checks the resting heart rate of Lawrence Journal-World health reporter Karrey Britt during a heart health assessment March 29, 2012, at Kansas University Hospital. The 90-minute program includes a screening, person risk factor evaluation and education on how to reduce your risk for heart disease. The cost is $60.

I hadn’t heard about Kansas University Hospital’s A Change of Heart program until I was invited to a brunch at Cedar Crest in spring 2010. Then-Gov. Mark Parkinson, and his wife, Stacy, wanted to roll out the program statewide.

At least 100 people attended, from lawmakers to health providers, and they were clad in red and talking heart health. At age 49, Shirley Allenbrand, of Lenexa, said the program had saved her life. I left the event motivated and ready to take the heart assessment myself, but soon forgot and never heard much about the initiative again.

Karin Morgan, program coordinator, said there were good intentions, but it failed due to costs.

In March, I received a press release that the A Change of Heart program had moved into a new women’s heart center on the first floor of the hospital. I was motivated again, yet nervous about what I might find out. That’s because I’ve had my cholesterol checked at my primary care doctor’s office and then received a notice in the mail that said my numbers were slightly elevated. Additionally, heart disease runs on my mother’s side of the family. My grandfather died of a heart attack.

Once I paid the $60 fee by credit card over the phone, I received information about my upcoming appointment and an online survey that needed to be filled out prior to my appointment. It asked questions ranging from fruit-and-vegetable consumption to sleep habits and took about 20 minutes to complete.

On the day of my appointment, I needed to fast after midnight. Once there, I filled out a little more paperwork, and then the testing began. I was client No. 927.

Sarah Sanders, a cardiovascular nurse clinician, measured my weight, waist, blood pressure and pulse, and then she took some blood from my finger. Within five minutes, they had my results.

Kathleen Dalton, advanced practice registered nurse, went over them with me. I’ve never had someone explain my numbers like she did. She was very thorough and understandable, and the good news was I had nothing to worry about. All of my numbers were optimal except my LDL , or bad, cholesterol which was slightly elevated. The optimal level is less than 100 milligrams per deciliter and the desired level is less than 130. Mine was 108.

The numbers included: BMI, waist circumference, blood pressure, pulse, total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL and LDL cholesterol and glucose. For example, the desirable waist for women is 35 inches or less; for men, it’s 40 inches.

Dalton explained the risk factors that lead to heart disease, including diabetes, smoking, poor exercise, poor diet, age, medications and immediate family’s heart history. She also went over symptoms, and she put some of my fears to rest.

When she asked if I had any dizziness or irregular heart beats, I said, “Yes. Maybe?” Sometimes when I am on the treadmill, I feel light-headed. She said it’s probably dehydration. I also told her that when I lie down in bed for a night’s sleep, sometimes my heart is pounding. She said that’s normal and then explained what would be abnormal.

After the session with Dalton, I was offered a buffet of heart-healthy foods to pick from, and then I sat down with Morgan. As I ate a whole-wheat bagel with a tad of cream cheese and fruit, she talked about nutrition and exercise and then offered advice.

“Your BMI is perfect. Your waist is perfect. You’re already exercising. There’s not much you can do from here but maintain what you are doing,” she said. It was music to my ears. I strive to get at least an hour of exercise six days a week, mostly walking or bicycling. I also try to fit in weights and other exercises like sit-ups when I can.

I asked Morgan about healthy snacks to take to work, and she suggested fruit, yogurt, vegetables or a handful of nuts.

After exchanging personal stories about exercise and eating habits, she handed me a bagful of goodies to take home: a stack of brochures on everything from nutritious nibbles to eating out, a note pad and pen, a food journal, a waist measurement kit, a pedometer and a handbook on eating out. There also was a folder of information that included the results of my online survey and suggestions for improvement along with facts about heart disease. I also received a copy of my assessment results to share with my primary care doctor.

The 90-minute program gave me a sense of relief and reassurance that I was on the right track when it comes to heart health.

To make an appointment, call 913-588-1227 or email hearthealth@kumc.edu. For more information, visit the A Change of Heart website.

Sarah Sanders, cardiovascular nurse clinician, measures the waist of Lawrence Journal-World health reporter Karrey Britt during a heart health screening March 29, 2012, at Kansas University Hospital's Adelaide C. Ward Women's Heart Health Center. The screening was part of the hospital's A Change of Heart program. Britt learned she wasn't at risk for heart disease.

Sarah Sanders, cardiovascular nurse clinician, draws blood from the finger of Lawrence-Journal World health reporter Karrey Britt during a heart health screening Thursday, March 29, 2012, at Kansas University Hospital. The screening is part of the hospital's A Change of Heart program.

Kathleen Dalton, advanced practice registered nurse, explains the results of a heart assessment to Lawrence Journal-World health reporter Karrey Britt on March 29, 2012, at Kansas University Hospital's Adelaide C. Ward Women's Heart Health Center. More than 900 people have had a heart assessment through the hospital's A Change of Heart program, which was started five years ago. Of those, 90 percent had at least one risk factor for heart disease.

LEARN MORE

To read more about program and how it has evolved during the past five years, visit "How healthy is your heart? KU Hospital program provides screening for disease, steps to reduce risks."

Kansas University Hospital offers A Change of Heart program that provides people with a screening for heart disease and then education on how to reduce the risk factors. The program, which began five years ago, moved to the new Adelaide C. Ward Women's Heart Health Center in February. Pictured in the background is Karin Morgan, program coordinator. by Karrey Britt

Susan Mayberry 47, a health and physical educational teacher at Basehor-Linwood High School, works with a class outside on Thursday, March 15, 2012. Mayberry was among 40 teachers who completed a heart health program at Kansas University Hospital last year. She said the program forced her to revisit the factors that put her at risk for heart disease, and one of those factors was her poor diet. The program provided one-on-one counseling and since then, she said she has improved her eating habits. by Richard Gwin

Five years ago, Kansas University Hospital started a unique program called A Change of Heart to inspire heart-healthy living.

The program provides a heart assessment and one-on-one counseling on how to improve the factors that put people at risk for heart disease, which is America’s No. 1 killer.

“This program gives you the education and the tools to bring your numbers down,” said Karin Morgan, a registered nurse and program coordinator. “You can go just about anywhere and stick your finger and then you might get a card that says it’s normal. Well, what does that mean?”

Morgan said it’s the education component that doctors often don’t have the time to provide, and that’s where the program comes into play.

Since its inception, the program has screened about 930 people, mostly women. Of those, 90 percent have been identified as having at least one risk factor for heart disease. More than 75 percent had multiple factors.

“We’ve had women who have come here in the morning, and they were in the cath(eterization) lab the next day from heart disease,” Morgan said. “I think a lot of people don’t get their numbers checked because they are in denial or they don’t think anything is wrong or they go to the doctor occasionally.”

She said they’ve seen people who had no idea they had diabetes or high cholesterol levels. “A lot of people look at their BMI (Body Mass Index) and go, ‘Huh?’” Morgan said. “Many people are surprised at their risk levels.”

KU’s program costs $60, takes 90 minutes to complete and is available for anyone 18 and older.

“It’s personalized and same-day results,” Morgan said. She hopes to soon be able to offer scholarships to those who can’t afford it.

Karin Morgan

Teacher initiative

In December 2010, the program received an anonymous donation to start a Teacher Change of Heart program. The goal is for the teachers to take the education back into their classrooms with the hope that the students will share it with their families.

About 40 teachers participated in the program last year. Morgan hopes 100 will complete it this year. They want to reach out to adolescents because they are the group most likely to start smoking, which is a huge risk factor for heart disease. Additionally, obesity and diabetes are on the rise among children — two more risk factors.

Last August, Susan Mayberry, 47, a health and physical education teacher at Basehor-Linwood High School, completed the program. She said her family history puts her at risk for heart disease.

Mayberry said the heart assessment and education forced her to revisit the factors that put her at risk, and one of those factors was her poor diet. She said the main reasons for her unhealthy habits were vending machines at school, Sonic Drive-In on her way to and from work, and potato chips.

“They are easy. If you come home late from practice and you’re tired, you just eat the first thing that’s easy and you can grab,” she said.

According to the heart assessment, Mayberry was prone to have a heart episode within 10 years. “I was in the at-risk category,” she said.

The program’s nurses provided a lot of tips that she’s put into place, including taking snacks, such as nutritious grain bars or little bags of peanuts, to school. She also puts bran flakes and raisins into sandwich-size storage bags on Sunday night, so they are available when she gets home from work during the week. She might have a bag of the mix or a cup of yogurt.

“It’s something quick that I can have until I calm down and can think about having a meal. It’s about sitting down and eating instead of eating junk,” she said.

Mayberry said she’s shared her experience with students and has talked to the principal about purchasing target heart rate monitors. She plans to have a cardiologist come to speak during her classes and maybe even show some videos about heart disease. She said two other Basehor-Linwood High School teachers went through the program and their students have used pedometers and participated in a Wear Red Day to raise awareness about heart disease.

“My health kids are mostly ninth-graders and some 10th-graders, and they really do want to know about good choices of eating — far more than probably five years ago,” she said. “A lot of their grandparents and parents have had bypass surgeries, and we are talking 40-year-old parents.”

Now that Mayberry has made some changes in her diet, she would like to have a follow-up assessment to see if her numbers have improved. For now, the KU program is a one-time program, and the nurses encourage participants to follow up with a primary care doctor or cardiologist. But, Mayberry said that doesn’t hold her accountable.

“There’s not a safety net there to make sure that people follow through and go forward with it,” she said.

The Adelaide C. Ward Women's Heart Health Center opened on the first floor of Kansas University Hospital in February. The center will be primarily used to provide patients with heart health assessments through its A Change of Heart program. by Karrey Britt

Program changes

Morgan said the program was meant to be a one-time only screening and education program, but they took Mayberry’s comments to heart and are working on adding a one-time follow-up as part of the program. Morgan expects that to occur any day.

It will be just one of several changes that have been made to the program since its inception. In September 2010, they added a research component. If women agree to participate, they will receive a survey at one month, three months, six months and then every year for 20 years. The goal is to track how women are doing. She said participants can see results within four to six weeks if they are truly making changes.

In February, the program moved into an area on the first floor of KU Hospital called the Adelaide C. Ward Women’s Heart Health Center. The center was made possible through a donation from the Louis L. and Adelaide C. Ward Foundation.

“There’s no greater gift to give someone than a heart assessment,” said benefactor Addie Ward.

Because of the additional space, the program recently added a dietitian who is available by appointment to visit clients who go through the program. It also has a resource center.

To make an appointment, call 913-588-1227 or email hearthealth@kumc.edu. For more information, visit the A Change of Heart website.

COMING TUESDAY — Health reporter Karrey Britt went through the program March 29 and writes about her experience and the results of her assessment.

Sarah Sanders, cardiovascular nurse clinician at KU Hospital, checks the resting heart rate of Lawrence Journal-World health reporter Karrey Britt during a heart health assessment March 29, 2012, at Kansas University Hospital. The 90-minute program includes a screening, person risk factor evaluation and education on how to reduce your risk for heart disease. The cost is $60.

Todd. W. Babington

Lawrence’s First Watch restaurant will donate 100 percent of its profits on Monday, April 2, to the local chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation in honor of former owner Todd Babington.

Babington, who battled diabetes, died last year at age 52. He opened the Lawrence restaurant in 1997 and was one of the Brandenton, Fla.-based company’s first franchisees.

The restaurant, 2540 Iowa, is open from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Since its founding in 1970, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation has awarded more than $1.6 billion to diabetes research.

Rhonda LeValdo, an instructor in Media Communications at Haskell Indian Nations University, and Teresa Trumbly Lamsam as visiting professor at Kansas university, have teamed up to study how the media frame the diabetes rate among native Americans. by Richard Gwin

When Kansas University journalism professor Teresa Trumbly Lamsam goes to her childhood home in Oklahoma, she takes sacks of groceries with her. She knows she won’t be able to buy the kind of healthy food she wants on the American Indian reservation where she is from.

Health experts say the lack of food stores on reservations is one factor contributing to the soaring Native American diabetes rate. But lack of food options on reservations is not something you’ll often read about, and that’s something Lamsam wants to change.

She and her research partner, Haskell Indian Nations journalism instructor Rhonda LeValdo-Gayton, are studying how the media portray diabetes among Native Americans. The hope is to shed light on the forces shaping the conversation on Native American diabetes and offer guidance for journalists on how to cover the issue to promote better health.

The work is personal for both women. Lamsam is disturbed by research indicating that if nothing changes, diabetes could help wipe out Native Americans in 100 years. LeValdo-Gayton has lost several family members to the disease and has two young children. She is determined to make sure the damaging cycle of diabetes does not touch them.

“I feel like we just really got to step this up,” LeValdo-Gayton said. “I feel like we’re going to lose people that we don’t want to lose.”

Irreplaceable knowledge

Nationally, about 16 percent of Native Americans have diabetes, more than double the rate found in Caucasians. Native Americans are three times more likely to die from diabetes than the general population, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The disease is also striking more young people. The number of Native Americans ages 15 to 19 with diabetes increased by 68 percent from 1994 to 2004.

“If that doesn’t scare you, I don’t know what will,” Lamsam said. “What does that do to the lifespan of the population?”

Locally, there are at least three people under 40 on dialysis for diabetes, according to Dr. Dee Ann A. Deroin, a family physician in Lawrence.

“It stems from our change in lifestyle, the unavailability in healthy food and the decrease in healthy activity,” Deroin said.

For those with diabetes, the disease can mean blindness, amputated limbs, heart disease and kidney failure.

In Native American communities, diabetes is taking elders far too young, forcing adults in their 20s and 30s to become the keepers of the culture.

“We shouldn’t be at this point. We should be having them around us a lot longer to teach that next generation,” LeValdo-Gayton said.

She has lost three uncles and worries about what their absence means for her children’s cultural education.

“I am just floored by everything I still have to learn, and I have to seek it from somebody else now,” LeValdo-Gayton said. “I don’t want to see our next generation of people having to deal with death like this.”

Who you blame matters

Studies have shown the federal government is more likely to invest in fighting a disease if the public views the victims of the disease not at fault for contracting it.

Sixty years ago, smoking was seen as an individual’s choice. If you smoked, that was your business, and if smoking destroyed your body, that was your business, too.

But the conversation about smoking changed in the 1960s, when public health officials and the media began to emphasize nicotine’s powers to addict and smoking’s power to destroy. All of the sudden, perhaps smokers weren’t completely to blame. Major public policy changes followed, from surgeon general’s warnings to lawsuits draining hundreds of millions of dollars from the tobacco industry.

That model of framing a health issue — everything from HIV to obesity — as not just being the responsibility of the individual has been pushed by public health officials. It could be a way to combat diabetes.

“Mainstream news does influence public opinion and public policy in this country,” Lamsam said. “How they’re telling the story of diabetes makes a difference to what happens in D.C.”

In their pilot study completed this summer, Lamsam and LeValdo-Gayton found that during the past 14 years, news articles have framed Native Americans as being responsible for contracting diabetes because of bad eating habits or sedentary lifestyles.

Most articles did not look at the larger issues that might contribute to diabetes.

“We find predominately that the media frame the story to place responsibility for having diabetes on the individual,” Lamsam said.

But there are no magic words to make a person live healthier or lose weight.

“Weight loss requires fairly intensive management. We think about it like managing other chronic diseases,” said Christie Befort, an associate professor of preventive medicine and public health at KU’s School of Medicine.

There is a lack of nutritious food available on many reservations. For example, the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota has just one grocery store for a population of 8,000 spread over 3,500 square miles.

“The grocery store is very far away,” LeValdo-Gayton said. “It’s OK, but if you look at the selection of vegetables or fruit, it’s very minimal.”

Ultimately, Lamsam would like to see more success stories in tribal newspapers. There have been healthy living programs on reservations, and coverage of those types of things could make a difference.

“We’re talking about a collective culture, not an individualistic culture,” Lamsam said. If people on a reservation see their friends and neighbors are living more healthy, it would probably make it easier for them to live healthy lives as well.

“You don’t have to do it all at once. Just change one bad habit, one at time,” LeValdo-Gayton said. “Then you slowly understand how it can affect you.”

Abbott Diabetes Care announced today that it has initiated a recall of about 359 million blood glucose test strips.

The recall involves: Precision Xtra, Precision Xceed Pro, MediSense Optium, Optium, OptiumEZ, and ReliOn Ultima. The recall only affects test strips — not monitors.

The affected test strips may falsely give low blood glucose results, which can lead users to try to raise their blood glucose when it is unnecessary and to fail to treat elevated blood glucose because of a false low reading.

The problem appears to be related to longer-than-expected blood fill times. This may be dependent on the age of the strips and if the strips have been stored in or exposed to higher temperatures for an extended period of time.

Abbott Diabetes Care will replace affected test strips at no charge.

Customers can check if they have test strips that have been affected by clicking on www.precisionoptiuminfo.com and looking up their product lot number or by calling Abbott Diabetes Care customer service at 1-800-448-5234.

It is uncertain how many of these test strips are in Kansas. If you've been affected by the recall, please contact me at kbritt@ljworld.com.

How to use affected strips

If consumers must use affected test strips while in the process of obtaining new strips, they should:

Check the amount of time it takes for their blood glucose meter to start the “countdown” after they first apply blood to the test strip. They should start timing immediately after blood first makes contact with the test strip. If the meter takes longer than five seconds to start the countdown, that test strip is affected and the result should not be used. Users should check the time for each test strip they use because all of the strips in a package may not be affected to the same degree. If any reading appears lower than they would expect or does not seem to correlate with the way they are feeling, the user should contact their health care provider immediately.

Symptoms of high, low blood sugar

If they do not immediately have access to unaffected strips and are unable to test their blood sugar, users need to be aware of symptoms of high and low blood sugar. They are:

• High blood sugar — excessive thirst, excessive urination, blurred vision, weakness, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.

• Low blood sugar — trembling, excessive sweating, weakness, hunger, confusion, and headache. Some individuals may have no symptoms at all before they develop unconsciousness or seizures. It is important to treat low blood sugar promptly to avoid loss of consciousness or a seizure.

The Lawrence Diabetes Support Group and Pinnacle Career Institute are providing a free presentation, “Lifestyle and Diabetes,” in Eudora.

It will be at 7 p.m. Dec. 13 in the Pinecrest Apartments II community room No. 61, 924 Walnut. Massage therapists, medical assistants and personal trainers will be at the event.

For more information, contact Ginger Wilkins, of Pinnacle Career Institute, at 841-9640, ext. 6003, or gwilkins@pcitraining.edu.

But not just any exercise: aerobics AND weight or resistance training.

Jennifer Corbett-Dooran did an article -- Exercise Combination Cuts Blood Sugar in Type 2 Diabetics -- in the Wall Street Journal about 262 people who were divided into four groups: aerobics only, weights only, both and none. The study supervised their exercise (or non-exercise, as the case may be) for nine months.

All the exercisers spent about the same amount of time -- and expended about the same amount of energy -- in their workouts. The combo -- 110 minutes a week on a treadmill and weights twice a week -- significantly lowered their blood sugar.

Check out the article for more info. If you're feeling geeky and have a subscription, read the research article in the Journal of the American Medical Association. For the overview, here's a link to the abstract.

A related article in the New York Times -- Protecting Yourself from the Cost of Type 2 Diabetes -- includes exercise in its tips on reducing the costs associated with Type 2 diabetes. It always stuns me when I read that one out of 10 Americans has diabetes, and, if that trend isn't reversed, by 2050, one in three will have the disease.

In recognition of National Diabetes Month in November, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), in partnership with the Kansas Diabetes Action Council, is raising awareness of diabetes and its complications.

Nearly 24 million Americans have diabetes – including an estimated 6 million Americans with diabetes who have it and don’t know it. It is estimated that another 57 million adults in the U.S. have pre-diabetes, placing them at increased risk for developing type 2 diabetes. Type 2 is the most common form of diabetes, accounting for 95 percent of all cases.

“In Kansas, the story is just as serious,” said John W. Mitchell, KDHE Acting Secretary. “About 8.5 percent of Kansas adults – roughly 180,000 – have been diagnosed with diabetes.”

When looking at age groups, the prevalence of diabetes in Kansans over the age of 65, is the highest (19.4 percent). For Kansans age 55-64, the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes is 14.8 percent. Diabetes is more prevalent in certain populations. For example, the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes (age-adjusted) was higher among African Americans (non-Hispanic) at 14.3 percent than Hispanics at 13.7 percent. In comparison, the prevalence of diabetes in Caucasian (non-Hispanic) was considerably lower at 7.6 percent.

“The only way to know if you have diabetes or pre-diabetes is to be diagnosed by a doctor,” said Dr. Jason Eberhart-Phillips, Kansas State Health Officer and Director of KDHE’s Division of Health. “Left untreated, diabetes can lead to serious health problems and complications such as heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, nerve damage, blindness and amputation.”

Someone who has diabetes might have some, all or none of the symptoms, which can include:

· Frequent urination

· Excessive thirst

· Unexplained weight loss

· Extreme hunger

· Sudden vision changes

· Tingling or numbness in hands or feet

· Feeling very tired much of the time

· Very dry skin

· Sores that are slow to heal

· More infections than usual

The good news is that you can reduce your chances of developing Type 2 diabetes by becoming more active, maintaining a healthy weight, and making nutritious food choices. People with pre-diabetes who take such steps to change their lifestyles can lower their risk of advancing to full-blown diabetes by approximately 60 percent.

For people already living with diabetes, these lifestyle changes can help to better manage the condition and can delay or prevent complications. With more Kansans becoming affected by diabetes and its consequences every day, we must work together to better prevent, manage, and treat this disease. Are you at risk for Type 2 or pre-diabetes? Find out by taking a diabetes risk test at: www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/prevention/diabetes-risk-test/.

For more information, please visit www.kdheks.gov/diabetes or www.kansasdiabetesactioncouncil.org.

Pinnacle Career Institute and the Lawrence Diabetes Support Group have teamed up to provide a program, “Lifestyle and Diabetes.”

The event, which is open to the public, will be at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 18, at Pinnacle Institute, 1601 W. 23rd St., Suite 200.

Massage therapists, personal trainers and medical assistants will offer tips for those living with diabetes or who are pre-diabetic. The support group members will be available to talk about their personal success stories.

For more information, call Ginger Wilkins at 841-9640 or e-mail gwilkins@pcitraining.edu.

Beginning July 19th The Chiropractic Experience will lead 6 contestants through a life-changing weight-loss competition, focusing on exercise, proper nutrition, and better lifestyle habits. This competition is open to the public, so if you think you have what it takes to be THE BIGGEST WINNER stop by The Chiropractic Experience at 25th and Iowa St. and pick up your application today!....

Applications due July 9th! Are you ready to be in the greatest shape of your life?!! Would you like to feel better, have more energy and a higher self-esteem than you ever thought possible? If you answered YES to any or all of these questions, The Chiropractic Experience thinks you have what it takes, and would like to invite you to be 1 of 6 contestants for this year’s “Biggest Winner” challenge!

The 12 week life-changing program for $199 includes:

*90 days of personal training using the acclaimed P90X training program

*Before & after body composition analysis and fitness assessment

*Body For Life book

*Eating For Life book

*Chiropractic Experience water bottle

Grand Prize $500 cash

Workouts will be held every morning from 630-800 AM in The Chiropractic Experience yoga studio. Dr. Sean Cailteux will be leading these classes using the workouts of the acclaimed P90X series. We only have room for 6 participants which we will select from the provided applications. For more information or for an application stop by The Chiropractic Experience at 2449 Iowa St., Ste. Q or call us at 785-838-3333