STROKE--PART I

In a matter of moments you can go from a fully functional person to an invalid. I'm Dr. David DeRose, in a moment we'll look at strokes, on WellnessWise.

A stroke occurs when blood supply to part of the brain is interrupted. Lack of blood supply deprives that region's brain cells of oxygen and vital nutrients. Within a short time, those brain cells die, and the body area controlled by those cells stops functioning.

Over 80 percent of the time, a stroke is caused by a blood clot that blocks the flow of blood to a certain brain area.

About 15% of strokes occur as a result of hemorrhage or bleeding from an artery into the surrounding brain tissue.

Sometimes people experience temporary "ministrokes." Technically these are called transient ischemic attacks or TIAs. Although these go away without treatment, they should never be ignored. They often provide a warning of either a stroke or heart attack.

The signs of a TIA are similar to those of a stroke. They include:

   --Weakness or funny feelings often confined to one side of the body. 
   --Change in vision--especially involving loss of a part of your field of vision
   --Confusion or loss of coordination
   --Difficulty speaking or understanding speech
   --Sudden onset of a severe headache

If you experience any of these symptoms, seek immediate medical attention. This may prevent a full blown stroke-- or at least reduce permanent damage.

For WellnessWise, I'm Dr. David DeRose.

What you learn shortly may help you prevent a stroke. I'm Dr. David DeRose, with WellnessWise.

STROKE: It's one of America's most feared diseased. And rightly so. Although stroke is a killer, claiming over 100,000 deaths per year in the US, many fear stroke more as a crippler. Each year about a quarter of a million Americans suffer non fatal strokes with their tendency to affect speech, movement, and intellectual function.

Your chances are 1 in 20 of having a stroke before you have your 70th birthday. Those odds may not sound all that bad. But still, you can decrease your risk substantially by a few simple practices:

(1) Control your blood pressure. High blood pressure raises your risk of having a stroke 6 times.

(2) Don't smoke. Smokers have up to 4 to 5 times the risk of stroke compared to non smokers. Within 2 years of stopping smoking your risk decreases by about 50%.

(3) Control diabetes. Diabetes increases one's stroke risk by 2 to 4 times.

(4) Avoid alcohol. Use of alcohol (even in the moderate amounts that some are recommending to prevent heart disease) actually doubles your risk of hemorrhagic strokes--strokes caused by bleeding in or around the brain.

For WellnessWise, I'm Dr. David DeRose.

Does every adult need milk? I'm Doctor David DeRose. In a moment we'll take a look on WellnessWise.

Mother's milk is the ideal food for an infant, but by mid to late childhood many actually begin to lose their ability to digest the natural milk sugar called lactose.

In infants lactose is broken down by an enzyme called lactase. As children get older, many of them lose significant amounts of this enzyme. This condition is called lactase deficiency or lactose intolerance. Actually, the majority of adults in the world have some lactose intolerance, even though many do not realize it. The main population group who have less risk of this condition are those of Northern European descent.

Symptoms of lactose intolerance may include bloating, cramps, gas, or watery diarrhea shortly after eating dairy products. Lactose may be found in other items like cake and pancake mixes, salad dressings, milk chocolate, breads and medications.

For some individuals the problem is best controlled by avoiding lactose containing products completely. This is an option because a totally adequate diet is possible without using any dairy products.

If some one with lactase deficiency wants to use lactose containing foods, they can usually do so if they also take an oral form of the enzyme lactase.

For WellnessWise, I'm Dr. David DeRose.

References: Lactose intolerance, Postgraduate Medicine Jan. 1994. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 12th edition. pages 423-4; 1991. Shils and Young, ed., Modern Nutrition in Health and Disease, 7th ed., p 43-49, 1124; 1988

SECTION II

SCIENCE/HEALTH ABSTRACTS

Phylis Austin is an experienced medical university research librarian and author who allows us to reprint portions of her bimonthly periodical "Science/Health Abstracts."

A group of Alzheimer's disease patients ranging in age from 60 to 87 years, were placed on a structured exercise program in which the patients walked with a partner for 30 minutes three times a week for ten weeks. The exercise group was compared with a similar group who were talked with for 30 minutes three times a week. After ten weeks the exercised patients had a significant improvement in their ability to communicate.

Progressive decrease in ability to communicate is a common problem with Alzheimer's patients.

Earlier studies showed an improvement in working memory, reasoning ability, reaction time and cognitive reasoning with exercise.

About 15,000 new patients each year develop trigeminal neuralgia, a severe burning or stabbing pain over the course of the trigeminal nerve, found on the side of the face. The pain may appear suddenly, persist for about a minute, then quickly subside. Chewing, smiling, talking or touching the face may induce the pain.

The cause is not understood, nor is treatment entirely satisfactory. Many patients are subjected to surgical procedures, which may lead to loss of motor control or facial sensation.

Diabetics often suffer associated kidney disease. Earlier studies have shown that a high protein diet accelerates the development of kidney damage. A recent study suggests that a vegetarian diet may be adequate to slow the progression of the disease.

Apparently vegetable protein does not have the same adverse effect that animal protein does. (Diabetic Medicine 8:949-953, 1991)

SECTION III

Parting Words

Well, we've officially moved to a biweekly format as far as publication. The WellnessWise Electronic Journal continues to be distributed free of charge via Internet E-mail to all subscribers. Please address subscription requests and any other correspondence to my preferred address: docderose@aol.com. (Alternate address is 74532.622@compuserve.com.)

If you're ever in the New York City area, come say "hello" in person--and check out our 70 acre lifestyle change facility that lies within one hour of Manhattan. Call 1-800-SAY-WELL for further details.