Comic lovers anticipate ‘The Legion of Health’

Young adults, teens, and pre-teens in Baton Rouge eagerly anticipate next week’s release of The Legion of Health comic book series volume one: Fed Up!. Created and edited by local family physician Dr. Rani Whitfield, the debut comic rivals Marvel comics in quality and message.

Fed Up!, which is scheduled for a Baton Rouge release on Tuesday, June 24, brings Tha’ Hip Hop Doc, a doctor, warrior, teacher and hero, and his team of muscle-bound, super-intelligent health advocates with super human powers to protect the human race from members of the Dungeon of Disease.

Representing Western medicine, fitness, nutrition, spiritual health, alternative medicine, research, and mental health these heroes battle SSPs (Symbiotic Supernatural Parasites) with colorful allusions in this comic world.

Tha’ Hip Hop Doc’s nemesis, Bad Heart, a sickly but shrewd and manipulative villain, will stop at nothing to destroy his foes, The Legion of Health. The comic series delivers critical messages on obesity, poor eating habits, physical inactivity, substance abuse, HIV/AIDS, and STDs packed with imagery and action.

Whitfield, who is also a board-certified sports medicine physician, said he designed the three-book comic series to reinforce positive health values using an ingenious, artistic package that is most popular among youth and young adults.

“The obstacle in the past with health comic books is that they were not of industry standard, and physicians were not actively delivering the messages to the youth,” said Whitfield. With that, Whitfield and comic artist Greg Nichols, took Whitfield’s Hip Hop Healthy speeches and created The Legion of Health. The series has been thoroughly researched and is a recommended teaching tool.

Tha’ Hip Hop Doctor and The Legion of Health series is currently available online for purchase at http://www.legionofhealth.com/.

Sleep Apnea: The Silent Killer

Sleep is a basic human need and is important for our mind and bodies to function normally.

Sleepiness due to a lack of adequate sleep is a big problem in the United States and affects children as well as adults. In general, children and adolescents need at least 9 hours of sleep each night to do their best, while adults need approximately 8 hours of sleep each night. There are many reasons for inadequate sleep such as anxiety disorders, use and abuse of certain stimulants such as caffeine, medicines for weight loss or attention deficit disorder, and alcohol abuse to name a few. However, there is one problem that, if not addressed, can be a cause of many health related issues. A disorder that often goes unrecognized because it’s happening while the victim thinks he is resting.

This silent killer is called sleep apnea.It is estimated that there are 18 million people in the United States who are living with diagnosed cases of sleep apnea, but many more are undiagnosed.

We all are familiar with National Football League legend and hall of fame honoree Reggie White, actor John Candy, comedian Rosie O’Donnel, and best-selling author Anne Rice. Each suffered from this often missed and under-treated disease.Maybe if more people understood the relationship between sleep apnea, being overweight, and how they all relate to high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and strokes, they would live longer and healthier lives.

Sleep apnea, in its simplest definition, means that a person’s breathing is interrupted while he is attempting to get some Zs. Some individuals will not breathe for 20 - 30 seconds before “coming up” for air. The family and significant others describe the sleep of these individuals with terms like, “loud snoring, restlessness, gasping for air, and sounds of choking”. Most patients complain of daytime fatigue and falling to sleep or dozing off while at work or driving.The short term problems are obvious and range from being kicked out of bed by your spouse, losing your job or killing yourself or another driver. The questions I’m often asked are, “How does sleep apnea happen” and “is it treatable?”

There are two types of sleep apnea: obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and central sleep apnea (CSA). Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common form and is caused by a blockage of the airways. This usually occurs when the tissues of the neck and throat collapse during sleep. In CSA, there is no airway blockage, but the brain fails to signal the muscles to breathe during sleep.There can also be a mixed picture where both central and obstructive sleep apnea exist together.

Risk factors for sleep apnea include: being male, being overweight, being over the age of 40, having enlarged tonsilshaving a large neck size (greater than 17” in men and 16” in women), or having a family history of sleep apnea.

When a person with sleep apnea stops breathing, the body has a reflex that will wake them up. The patient does this all through the night and rises the next morning feeling tired and sleepy. During these periods of apnea (which means not breathing) the body is deprived of oxygen to the brain and tissues.The response is an increase in red blood cells, that carry oxygen, and over time the blood gets thick and sluggish. If blood flow to the brain or heart is not adequate, a heart attack or stroke can result.To diagnosis sleep apnea, my patients are referred to an ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist and sent for a sleep study or polysonogram (PSG). The ENT specialist will evaluate the patients for correctable causes of sleep apnea. If the soft tissue in the throat is too thick, the septum in the nose is deviated, or other facial abnormalities exist, these can be surgically corrected.The sleep study is designed to detect other causes of sleep disorders, like restless legs syndrome, and to guide sleep specialist in treatment regimens for the disease. A PSG involves going to a lab and sleeping. Sounds easy, but with electrodes over your body and someone analyzing your sleep, it may be a little uncomfortable.

Once the diagnosis is made, conservative treatment options include aggressive weight loss, avoiding sedatives like codeine, alcohol, and sleeping pills, smoking cessation (smoke increases airway swelling), and avoiding sleeping on your back. If attempts at weight loss are unsuccessful, surgical procedures are often considered. A consultation with a board certified surgeon who specializes in bariatric surgery (weight loss surgery) is the only way to go. One of the most common non-surgical forms of treatment includes wearing a mask at night that will keep the airways open. This treatment is called Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP).

The mask covers the nose and mouth while you sleep, and is connected to a machine that delivers a continuous flow of air, maintaining an open airway. Special dental devices can be designed to keep the airway open as well as the surgical procedures mentioned earlier.There is even a medication called Provigil that some physicians use to treat the daytime fatigue and tiredness, but this is usually in combination with CPAP and good sleep hygiene. Many people are resistant to using their CPAP machine, and although cumbersome, it could very well save your life.

If you have any of the signs and symptoms above, see your physician right away, improve your sleep, and get back in bed with the one you love.

For more information on sleep apnea visit http://www.sleepapnea.org. (c) 2008 Rani Whitfield. Published May 2008 in New View magazine.

P.H.A.T or Fat?

“Doc, I just don’t understand”, said Patient X, one of my long-time patients. “My blood pressure is okay, I’m taking my medicine as prescribed and my blood work is normal. Look at my weight. It’s almost the same as last visit. Did you check my thyroid? I think my hormones are all out of order. I need that weight loss pill. Those television potions that I spent hundreds of dollars on aren’t working to rid me of my cellulite and baby fat. My knees are aching, I get short of breath walking up and down the stairs. I snore all the time, and I’m always tired. I’m going to start exercising this week, I promise. Doc, can you help a sister out with some of those weight loss pills? I need to lose 30 pounds this month for my daughters wedding, class reunion, cruise… These guy where looking at me and said I was P.H.A.T.” Or did they mean fat?

“Patient X” has the same story each visit and despite being a regular and loyal client, taking charge of her life has taken a back burner to quick fixes for weight loss. She’s probably one of the nicest people I have ever met; however she seems to be in denial when it comes to her health and the hard cold facts. Her blood pressure was elevated at 130/85 (normal is 120/80 or less), her cholesterol and fasting blood sugar was also mildly elevated, and wrapped around her waist was an excess of fat that had increased by several inches over the last year creating a cute, but deadly “jiggle” as she walked. My patient, Patient X, has what we call the metabolic syndrome, which is a group of risk factors found in one person. The risk factors for the metabolic syndrome include an increased waist circumference, elevated cholesterol (specifically the triglycerides), a low HDL (the good cholesterol), elevated blood pressure (130/85 or greater), and an elevated fasting blood sugar (greater than 100 mg/dl). It is estimated that over 50 million Americans have the metabolic syndrome and one of the dominant underlying factors is abdominal obesity (excess fat around the stomach).

The disease obesity, which can be simply defined as excess in body fat, is not the same as being overweight. “A person who is overweight is running a definite health risk, but an obese person is loudly and insistently asking for trouble”, says Stacy Mitchell, M.D. co-author of Livin’ Large: African American Sisters Confront Obesity. Overweight and obesity are labels for ranges of weight that are greater that what is considered healthy for a given height. When discussing adults, the Body Mass Index or BMI determines overweight/obesity. In my practice, I consider the BMI a vital sign as it helps me to assess my patient’s risk for obesity and the diseases that come along with it. So by simply taking one’s height, weight, and waist circumference, not only can your doctor determine your BMI and risk for obesity, he/she can also gain some insight on your risk for heart disease, the number one killer of all Americans.

In the past 20 years there has been a significant increase in obesity in the United States and African American’s are under attack. Obesity does not discriminate as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) estimates that almost two-thirds of (64%) of all Americans are overweight; almost one-third are obese. Conservative estimates by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) show that 65% of African American women and 33% of African American men are overweight. Childhood obesity is on the rise and we are now seeing shocking increases in diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension in this previously active and healthy population. Overweight/obese individuals are at risk for developing many conditions including diabetes, heart disease, strokes, high blood pressure, arthritis, hypothyroidism, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, gall bladder problems, gout, cancer of the kidney, endometrium (lining of the uterus), breast, colon and rectum, esophagus, prostate and gall bladder; depression, anxiety, etc… Obesity is now considered the second most preventable cause of death in the United States, preceded only by smoking. Four hundred thousand deaths a year are estimated to be associated with obesity.

There are treatment options for this disease; however, we must first accept that there is a problem, especially in the African-American community. While some medications have been approved for treatment (orlistat and sirbutamine) and there are surgical options, which are reserved for extreme cases, proper diet and nutrition coupled with regular and consistent exercise and modification of behaviors associated with overeating is the mainstay of treatment.

She’s P.H.A.T (pretty, hot, and tempting), “big boned”, full figured, pleasing plump, or thick! That can be a compliment to some ladies, but it could also mean she’s fat, obese, or overweight depending on the messenger. Remember, being overweight/obese is not an issue of aesthetics. “You can be overweight and still stop traffic”, says Teri Mitchell who also co-authored Livin’ Large. The reality is it’s still unhealthy. For more information on obesity visit http://www.cdc.gov/, pick up the book Livin’ Large by Teri and Stacy Mitchell.

(c) 2007 Rani Whitfield. This article was published September 2007 at www/eurweb.com