Sunday, November 6, 2011

Your Black Health: How to Have a Happy and Healthy Holiday


by Shani K. Collins, Your Black Health

The Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are upon us.  We will enjoy many delicious meals prepared with love.  Also, the joy of being in the presence of our family and our friends will be an added highlight to the season.  Although the holidays are a time for food, fellowship, and giving thanks, they are not an excuse to take our focus off our health.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Doctors Unearth First HIV-Prevention Method Controlled by Women

HIV-drug

Your Black World reports

An HIV drug has been found to be effective against genital herpes when it’s applied as a gel. 

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Thursday, August 11, 2011

New Face of Chimpanzee Mauling Victim is Revealed

GRAPHIC CONTENT - This 2009 file photo provided by Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston shows Charla Nash after she was mauled by Travis the chimpanzee.   In this undated photo provided by Brigham and Women's Hospital, Charla Nash is seen after her May, 2011 face transplant at the hospital.

This might be considered a miracle of modern medicine.  A Connecticut woman was mauled two years ago by a chimpanzee and had her face disfigured.  After two years of surgeries, doctors are finally revealing the woman’s new face to the public.

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US Government Warns Americans Not to Travel to Haiti

haiti, black politics, black news

Reports state that the cholera outbreak, high crime levels, and an unstable government are the primary reasons that the US government is not recommending that its citizens visit the country of Haiti.

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Tuesday, August 9, 2011

A Doctor Now Gives the Services She Once Receives

black doctors, african american doctors

by Ayvaunn Penn, Your Black World

Some studies show that a significant number of people remain in the social class they grow up in. That does not mean, however, that it is impossible to rise above one’s situation, and Dr. Carey McDade is a prime example.

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Monday, August 8, 2011

George James: Athletes and Mental Illness

black athletes, mental health, african americans, black news

by George James, Your Black World 

We expect a lot from athletes, from little leagues to professionals. We expect athletes to perform at high levels, entertaining us with their physical ability and amazing us with their talent. Unfortunately, we don’t expect athletes to be just like us, human. We put athletes on a pedestal making them celebrities and above the normal rules of life. This process starts at an early age. It could be at a pee wee football or soccer game. Our projections, that athletes are special, unique and gifted starts when they are young and continues as they develop their abilities and get older.

Sean Kingston Drops 45 Pounds Since His Accident

Your Black World reports

He’s no longer the chubby but loveable figure he once was.  Sean Kingston was the highlight of the night at the Fox’s Teen Choice Awards show, making his first red-carpet appearance and appearing 45 pounds lighter.  This was his first public appearance since a serious jet ski accident on May 29.

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Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Survey: More than Half of All African Americans Know of a Friend or Relative with HIV

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse UniversityScholarship in Action 

According to a new survey at Your Black World, it was found that over half (56.3%) of all African American respondents have a friend or relative who they know to have HIV.  The number was higher among black women (58.7%) than black men (51.2%). 

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Study: Black Doctors Hesitant to Recommend HIV Tests

african americans, hiv

By JasmineHughes

The number one killer of African-American women between the ages of 25 and 34 is AIDS, and this is a first-world country. Despite this fact, HIV is a subject many African-American physicians are nervous about bringing up with their patients.READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY →

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Doctors Group Says Hotdogs are as Lethal as Cigarettes?

by Ayvaunn Penn, Your Black World

Whether you are young or old, the findings of The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine may have you thinking twice before you eat a hot dog. The group recently showcased a new billboard on Monday close to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway that features a cigarette box filled with hot dogs. The pack has a skull and crossbones on it, and the billboard reads “Warning: Hot dogs can wreck your health.” The purpose of the billboard is to make the public aware of the connection between colorectal cancer and hot dogs.

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Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Study Shows that Black Women Die Fastest from Breast Cancer

by Ayvaunn Penn, Your Black World

A new study that has been published in theJournal of Clinical Oncology concerning the relationship between breast cancer mortality rate and race. According to Reuters, Susan M. Gapstur of the American Cancer Society states that this “new study is the most detailed and well-designed so far.”

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Thursday, May 12, 2011

Activists Trying to Stop Rape Beading in Kenya

 

Little girls are being pushed into sex with older men as a result of a practice called “rape beading.”

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Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Michelle Obama Dances with Kids on the White House Lawn (Video)

Yes, that’s Michelle getting down with some kids….again – changing what it means to be a first lady.

click to watch

 

Friday, May 6, 2011

Black Stroke Victims Call Family First, Not Doctors

A new study sheds light on decisions that African Americans tend to make when they are victims of strokes.

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Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Bishop Desmond Tutu Announces Changes in South African Aids Policy

Your Black World Reports

Desmond Tutu -- former Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, South Africa -- says South Africa should not be embarrassed about its policies to combat AIDS. 

"For many years we were embarrassed in international gatherings for what we were not doing in fighting AIDS. We therefore thank the Minister of Health, Aaron Motsoaledi, for the change in policy....It is a very rare privilege and honor for us the older ones to say we are passing the baton to you the young to carry on with the fight against this pandemic."  - Desmond Tutu

Monday, March 15, 2010

Dr. Boyce: Crack Disparity Law Should Have Been Changed More Effectively

Democrats' crack-cocaine compromise is still 'racist'

Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University

 

When I was a teenager, a police officer explained to me how the "War on Drugs" took place in his hometown. The officer candidly described how every policeman in the city knew what boats contained drugs and when those boats would arrive in the city's major port. But he also knew that officers were not expected to show up on these boats to make arrests, and that they were not to deter the progress of the product when it hit the port. Instead, they were instructed to allow the drugs to get to the inner city, where they were given authorization to make as many arrests as necessary. In other words, his job was to arrest the small fish, not the big ones.


The misleading, ill-conceived and terribly racist set of drug policies which defined the Reagan era has been absolutely devastating for the African-American community. The existence of gang warfare in South Central Los Angeles has left hundreds of thousands of youth with post-traumatic stress disorder, as the CIA was oblivious to the fact that drugs and guns were being openly delivered to a community that no one cares about. The Anti Drug Abuse Act of 1986 was the product of America's broad-stroke reaction to increased drug use of the 1980s. The law gave a sentence 100 times greater for possession of crack cocaine (more likely to be possessed by blacks) than the one given for powder cocaine (possessed in greater proportion by whites), creating a black incarceration rate of holocaust proportions.


After sitting on the books for decades, the law was finally modified this year. Democratic Senator Dick Durbin and Republican Jeff Sessions did black people the "favor" of agreeing to reduce the sentencing disparity from 100-to-1 to 18-to-1. So, instead of getting a prison sentence that is 100 times longer for the same crime, we only get one that is 18 times longer. Gee thanks. I'm supposed to be happy about that one, huh? So, we're not good enough to demand true equality, and are instead forced to accept dysfunctional compromises with Republicans from Alabama? While some might call this political pragmatism, others might describe this outcome as the modern-day version of the Three-Fifths Compromise.

 

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Monday, November 23, 2009

WINDING DOWN By Julianne Malveaux

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The last five weeks of the year, the days beginning with Thanksgiving and moving through the New Year, are days when we all wind down. Some of us don't want to admit it, citing business as usual. But the fact is that from the first thanksgiving party to the last holiday gift exchange, we have collectively decided that the year is over and we can't do much about it.

This year is different from many others. One in six Americans does not have a job. One in four African Americans is unemployed. This means that our holiday parties must be muted by the challenge of acknowledging and supporting those who are impaired in our midst. It also means lifting up those who deserve the lift up, those who have done such phenomenal things this year that they need a shout out.

I will lift up my sister friend Susan Taylor for her National Mentoring Cares Movement ad for the phenomenal love she sows into African American people as we grow, develop, and learn to heal from our hurt. As she crosses the country, she infuses her gentle spirit into the many ways we can embrace our futures. She is a force that must be loved, respected and appreciated.

I will lift up Dr. Boyce Watkins for his embrace of Heather Ellis, the young sister from Missouri who faced 15 years in jail for cutting a line. Heather Ellis did what so many of us do - went to the store with a friend (cousin), took separate lines, and decided that whoever got up first would hook the other up. How did this turn into a racial farce of utter insanity? It would take the people in Kennett, Missouri to tell us. Here is what I know - Boyce Watkins spent time, effort, energy and money in rallying people around heather Ellis. I am grateful for his activism and lift him up for his work.

I will lift up Donna Richardson Joyner, who has both embraced Bennett College for women and black women around the globe in her positive and joyful commitment to healthy living. Thanks to Donna, we are doing work on growing a healthy garden and embracing healthy habits at Bennett, but more importantly, thanks to Donna, we all have a model of how to live and how to be.

I will lift up Blanche Williams and the National Black Women's Town Hall and the many ways that Blanche is into hooking sisters up. Blanche's mantra is "Embracing Greatness" and she is unselfish about that embrace. She is a blessing and a lesson, a joy and a leader. I am so very excited about their work.

There are so very many more that deserve the lift up. And, there are so many that must be acknowledged as they struggle through these times. I am especially concerned by those who are marginalized by the notion of these holiday celebrations, marginalized by the reality that they have not much to celebrate. What do we celebrate through the storm? Mostly we celebrate that we are still here. Still here? Still navigating, functioning, managing, holding it up. And we celebrate the fact that in the middle of the wind-down, we are indeed winding down.

I always find the end of the year poignant. We always have much to reflect on, much to celebrate. We lift up those who have assisted, accomplished, and moved us more aggressively to a better world. And, at the same time, we acknowledge those who have been tousled by our economy. We ask that all of us do the work we must do to provide analysis as we move forward. We wonder if we suffer from the paralysis of analysis.

At the end of the day, we know that the end-year act of winding down offer us an amazing possibility to lift up and respect our past and yet be challenged by our present. We know that there are those whose contribution has been stellar; we know we all want to do more. We inhale this moment called the end of the year, appreciating the opportunity to wind down, looking forward to the challenge of winding back up.

As long as there are racial economic gaps, there is cause to work, challenge, and focus. When the black unemployment rate is nearly twice the white rate, when black wealth is a tenth of white wealth, there is work to do. For many the end of the year should be nothing more than a momentary respite. There is, still, much work to do.

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Thursday, November 19, 2009

Medicine on Call: Depression in the African American Community

 

 Medicine on Call with Dr. Elaina George 

Dr George and Delores Jones, a correspondent for AOL speak about dealing with depression and change through inspiration and spirituality. 

Click here to listen!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Dr. Elaina George Says that Obama’s Health Care Plan is Going to Hurt

By

Dr. Elaina George, MD

The health care reform bill (HR 3962) that just passed the House of Representatives is bad on so many levels it is difficult explain. As it stands, it will destroy both the doctor patient relationship and change the practice of medicine as we know it.

We have one of the finest health care systems in the world. It has been built on a foundation of choice. Doctors were free to choose the care that they deemed necessary to treat their patients, and patients were free to seek the medical care of their choice. Initially, the foundation was shaken by the rise of the managed care system with capitation. However, over the past 10 years, capitated plans which limit access to specialists have given way to the rise in power of insurance companies. They have used their anti-trust exemption to craft a system that has used monopoly to increase profits on the backs of both doctors and patients.

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Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Deborah Stroman: You Got Sugar in Your Blood?

by Dr. Deborah Stroman, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 

Got Sugar in the Blood? Change Your Lifestyle Today!

Do you remember your elders speaking about “sugar in the blood”? Do you have a friend or family member who suffers from diabetes? The importance of understanding high blood sugar is critical to the management of our often fast-paced, unhealthy, and stressful lives. A few years ago I had the opportunity to visit the “Bodies – The Exhibition” and experienced the most engaging presentation on the anatomy and pathology of the human body. Cadavers, adult and fetus, were on display to showcase the miracle of the body and the importance of good health and exercise. This poignant visit, which highlighted all of our major bodily systems, provides the inspiration to urgently share information regarding sugar – the crack cocaine of the Black of the community!

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Sunday, November 1, 2009

Ingredients for H1N1: What are they?

 

by Dr. Elaina George, Your Black World Medical Correspondent

There has been a lot of confusion about what ingredients are in the H1N1 Vaccine. In order to distill the information to make it easier for you to make an informed choice, here is a brief synopsis of the information provided by the manufacturers in their package inserts.

There are 4 manufactures who have been approved to sell H1N1 vaccine in the US. They are: Novartis, CSL, Sanofi/Pasteur and MedImmune

1. Novartis makes an injectable vaccine for ages 4 and above

Ingredients: Thimerosal (Mercury) both in the single dose and the multi dose vials

Antibiotics - polymyxin and neomycin (can be neurotoxic)

Manufactured with phenol (the chemical used on skin in cosmetic face peals to remove wrinkles)

Note: They recommend that children ages 4-9 get 2 injections one month apart. This would increase the risk from a reaction to the mercury (e.g, neurological damage such as Gullain-Barre or possibly Autism)

 

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Saturday, October 24, 2009

Black News: Barack Obama Declares National Emergency for Swine Flu

Hundreds of residents line up for free H1N1 vaccinations Friday at an Encino, California, clinic.

President Obama has declared a national emergency to deal with the "rapid increase in illness" from the H1N1 influenza virus.

"The 2009 H1N1 pandemic continues to evolve. The rates of illness continue to rise rapidly within many communities across the nation, and the potential exists for the pandemic to overburden health care resources in some localities," Obama said in a statement.

"Thus, in recognition of the continuing progression of the pandemic, and in further preparation as a nation, we are taking additional steps to facilitate our response."

The president signed the declaration late Friday and announced it Saturday.

Calling the emergency declaration "an important tool in our kit going forward," one administration official called Obama's action

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Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Black Health Tip: Avoid the Whites in Your Food

Deborah Stroman

by Dr. Deborah Stroman, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Do you need a simple rule to begin a smart nutrition routine? Try to make a change in your diet by “avoiding the whites” – those additives that supposedly will make your food taste just right or have the right consistency. To live well and be healthy, we need to make changes that may feel uncomfortable at first and possibly illogical to friends and family.

Salt, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, accounts for nearly 150,000 premature deaths every year primarily due to complications from high blood pressure. We do need ~ 6g of salt per day to live. Sadly, the average intake of salt is between 9g and 10g a day! Salt is a commonly occurring mineral, the technical name of which is sodium chloride. It is the sodium part of salt that is important. Sodium helps to maintain the concentration of body fluids at correct levels. It also plays a central role in the transmission of electrical impulses in the nerves, and helps cells process nutrients.

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Monday, October 19, 2009

Healthy Living: Did you Know there are Natural Ways to Fight the Swine Flu?

In this episode of Medicine on Call, Dr. Elaina George speaks with Dr Maiysha Clairborne of Mind, Body, Spirit, Wellness. we spoke about natural approaches to prevent and treat swine flu. Overall natural remedies to reduce stress and promote overall wellness.

Click here to listen!

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Sunday, October 11, 2009

Health News: 76 Children Die from Swine Flu in the US

Vanessa Chan, 6, of Boston, receives an intranasal H1N1 vaccine ...

From Yahoo News

Health officials said Friday that 76 U.S. children have died of swine flu, including 19 new reports in the past week — more evidence the new virus is unusually dangerous for the young.

The regular flu kills between 46 and 88 children a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That suggests deaths from the new H1N1 virus could dramatically outpace children's deaths from seasonal flu, if swine flu continues to spread as it has.

CDC officials say 10 more states, a total of 37, now have widespread swine flu. A week ago, reports suggested that cases might be leveling off and even falling in some areas of the country, but that did not turn out to be an enduring national trend.

"We are seeing more illness, more hospitalizations, and more deaths," the CDC's Dr. Anne Schuchat said at a press conference Friday.

The new virus, first identified in April, is a global epidemic. The CDCdoesn't have an exact count of all swine flu deaths and hospitalizations, but existing reports suggest more than 600 have died and more than 9,000 have been hospitalized. Health officials believe millions of Americans have caught the virus.

The virus is hitting young people harder. Experts believe older people are suffering from it less, perhaps because they have a bit of immunity from exposure over the years to somewhat similar viruses.

 

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Thursday, October 8, 2009

High Vaccine Costs Lead Some Doctors to Stop Giving them

shot_syringe_vaccine.ju.03.jpg

Parents who bring their kids to Dr. G. Andrew McIntosh for the chicken pox vaccine are out of luck.

The family physician, who has a solo practice in Uniontown, Ohio, doesn't offer that shot because he can't afford it. Most insurers won't sufficiently cover the cost.

"It doesn't do me any good. I am losing money on [them]," he said. The chicken pox vaccine runs about $115, but insurers only cover between $68 to $83 of that.

McIntosh has also cut back on a handful of other critical childhood vaccines for the same reason -- including the measles, mumps and rubella, known as the MMR vaccine.

It costs him about $58 to buy an MMR shot, he said, while insurers pay about about $40.

 

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