Get Healthy

(Photograph by Jodi Davis.)

Even at the early age of 10, Jodi Davis knew she was overweight. Her family members were all thin, except for one aunt, who would be the person Jodi long blamed for her weight issues. The verbal jabs from Jodi’s grandfather regarding her weight didn’t help, either. “I ended up eating more to try to ease my pain,” she says.

Throughout her teen years, Jodi continued to gain weight, despite repeated attempts at several diets. Later, she married and had three kids. Being a stay-at-home mom took a toll on her waistline. Every night, after the kids went to bed, Jodi felt the need to treat herself to something indulgent and would take to snacking, particularly enjoying chips and dip.
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LeeAnn Schreiner, left, Jean Jannasch and Pam Uhrina are co-owners of Nature’s Remedies in Valparaiso. The business opened Sept. 15, six weeks after the closing of the former health food store in the same location. (Photograph by John L. Hendricks/The Times.)

Organic foods, herbal supplements and natural vitamins are among the products stocking the shelves of store whose name explains its function. Nature’s Remedies opened Sept. 15, six weeks after the closing of the former health food store in the same location. The new shop is owned and operated by Pam Uhrina, Jean Jannasch and Leeann Schreiner.

“We took over the location, but not the business,” Uhrina said. “It’s a brand new everything.” The three Valparaiso residents worked in the closed health food store and now help staff Nature‘s Remedies.

“We share the stress, and that’s the good thing,” Uhrina said.
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Healthy recipes, positive role model spice lesson for Chicago students

Julian Coleman, a sophomore at Gary Comer College Prep in Chicago, eats a meal of low-fat macaroni, baked chicken, and salad Sunday at the U-Cook program in Merrillville. The program focused on the importance of healthy eating.
(Photograph courtesy of Kyle Telechan/The Times.)

A couple of healthy dishes, nine interested students and one positive role model proved the perfect recipe last Sunday.

Chef Glennard Brooks spent the afternoon talking to students from Chicago’s Gary Comer College Prep, a charter high school, about healthy eating habits and how he became executive chef at the Hilton Garden Inn in Merrillville.

“He talked about what I want to go to school to learn how to do,” said Jamani Jones-O’Bryant, 15, a sophomore who said he watches cooking shows and cooks at home.
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The lengthy menu of group fitness programs at most gyms can be overwhelming. Here is advice from personal trainers on finding one suited for you:

Observe it first. Ask the instructor if you can stand in the back of the room and watch a class in action. You also can talk to some participants afterward and, if you like what you hear, get a few tips on tackling the first day.

Talk to the instructor. Find out the usual pace of a class and its fitness goals, whether it’s overall toning, weight loss or working on specific body parts. A program also may be more or less intense on certain days of the week.

Determine your “impact” level. Aerobics classes usually are divided into low, medium and high impact. If you haven’t exercised regularly and get out of breath fairly easily, start out low and aim to move up over time.
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The holiday season’s busy pace and easy access to unhealthy food can make these merry times dreary for diabetics.

“Sometimes you have to attend parties and gatherings, and you find food that you are not supposed to eat. You end up taking a little of everything and then soon enough your sugar level gets too high,” said Roberto Moldonedo, 68, of Highland Park, who has battled diabetes since his youth.

Lewis Landsberg, dean emeritus at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, said that to get through the next months diabetics will “require a little more discipline.” He added that “the holidays are hard for everybody, but it’s harder for people who need to stay on an appropriate eating regiment.”
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Federal task force counters American Cancer Society’s long-standing recommendation

A 33-year cancer survivor, Ann Peters recalls finding a malignant lump in her breast herself. Now 66, Peters was shocked Monday to hear a government task force is advising not only that women wait until age 50 to get mammograms but that breast self-exams are of no value.

“I can’t imagine not doing it,” Peters said. “I don’t know a woman who wouldn’t share my thoughts.” Peters is president of the Pink Ribbon Society, which provides services to scores of breast cancer patients and their families throughout Northwest Indiana.

The new guidelines were issued by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, whose stance influences coverage of screening tests by Medicare and many insurance companies. The panel recommends getting a mammogram every other year after age 50. The advice is a major reversal that conflicts with the American Cancer Society’s long-standing recommendation of annual screening starting at 40.
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Settings, 120 S. Main St., is sponsoring a drive to supply new pajamas for women and children at St. Jude House.

By picking an ornament off the giving tree in the store’s window, shoppers will buy and wrap a new pair of pajamas for the nonprofit that provides services to victims of domestic violence.

Pajamas can be brought to Settings now through Dec. 20. The store will have a holiday open house Nov. 21 and 22. Those who bring wrapped pajamas will be entered in a drawing for a $100 gift certificate.

For more information, call Brenda Matz at 219.662.7062.

Ingredients

Applesauce:
1 tablespoon butter
3 apples, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped (about 4 cups chopped)
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt

Pork:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
4 (5-ounce) center-cut pork chops
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons canola oil
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From the Get Healthy Inbox—We’re committed to keeping you informed on health care news and ideas throughout the region and nation. Here’s today’s recommendation, submitted by Community Hospital:

Community Hospital Sleep Diagnostics Center invites the public to an open house from 5 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 17 to view the expanded, state-of-the-art facility at its new location, 10110 Donald S. Powers Drive, Suite 201B in Munster.

Offering advanced medical equipment and qualified professionals to assist with the proper diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders, the new Sleep Diagnostics Center has expanded its evaluation capabilities to a 10-bed facility. Each evaluation bedroom mimics a more relaxing, home-like environment and has been designed to provide ultimate comfort with amenities; including an adjustable mattress, flat screen television, nightstand, desk, reclining lounge chair and private bathroom.
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According to a mother who asked me to write this column, the use of chewing tobacco and other forms of smoke-free tobacco has become the rage in her son’s high school. Many assume that if the tobacco does not make smoke, it must be safe. How wrong they are!!

Nothing about the use of any form of tobacco is safe. Another myth to dispel is that smokeless tobacco helps a person quit cigarette smoking. This simply is not the case.

Because most tobacco users start before they are 18 years old, the FDA has declared tobacco use a pediatric disease.
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