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1 The examiner• TRACEYSHAFFER Many benefitsto eating eggs | Page 8

• FITNESS 2 • WELLNESS 4-7 •NUTRITON 8-9 • CALENDAR 10-11• LARRY JONES

Low cost exercise facilities | Page 4

Living LegacyHer son’s heart beats onafter his death – Page 3

Page 2 Tuesday, April 19, 2011 fitness

Submitted photoBlue Springs Mayor Carson Ross and St. Mary’s Medical Center are encourag-ing people to walk on their lunch hour as part of the city’s Let’s Move! cam-paign for physical fitness.

Submitted to The Examiner

Blue Springs Mayor Carson Ross and St. Mary’s Medical Center invite the community to join them for a WOW Spring kick-off on Wednesday at the St. Mary’s Medical Center Walking Trail, 201 N.W. R.D. Mize Road in Blue Springs. The 1 p.m. event is free and open to the public.

Walkers are encouraged to join this pro-gram that will meet weekly at St. Mary’s every Wednesday from 1-2 p.m.

“Blue Springs believes in promoting the health and well-being of all residents by offer-ing services and amenities that promote an active lifestyle,” Ross said. “Advancing the Let’s Move initiative is not just the city’s goal but also mine personally. Events like these demon-strate how just working together can promote meaningful lifestyle changes.”

Ross; Annette Small, CEO of St. Mary’s Medical Center; and Deb Ohnoutka, chief nursing officer of St. Mary’s Medical Center

and participating staff, will be leading the walk to emphasize how easy it is to put on your ten-nis shoes and get moving over your lunch hour.

“We have a responsibility to care not only to our patients inside our medical center, but also to promote health throughout our com-munity,” Small said. “We want St. Mary’s to be a resource for wellness and walking is a great overall exercise that people of all ages and fit-ness levels can do.”

St. Mary’s Medical Center is a key member in the Let’s Move! Blue Springs initiative and offers their walking trail to the community for use at anytime. The walking trail is a paved, one-third mile loop located on St. Mary’s Medi-cal Center campus.

“I believe movement is one of the greatest gifts we can give our bodies,” said Ohnoutka. “It doesn’t have to be fancy. Just get out and play. Ride a bike, take a walk, whatever you do, make it fun.”

For information about the walks, contact Sheryl Morgan at 816-655-0495.

City, St. Mary’s advocating for healthy, active lifestylesJoin mayor for Wednesday lunch walk

Waxman joins Centerpoint staff after Afghanistan deployment

Dr. Steve Waxman, M.D., FACS, FCLM, has joined Jackson County Urology and the medical staff Centerpoint Medical Center.

Dr. Waxman joins practice following active duty service as a U.S. Army physician in Afghanistan. He was deployed to Baghdad in February 2007, where he worked in a sup-port hospital in the “Green Zone.” He served in Iraq until August 2007, and left active duty in 2008. In 2010, he was redeployed to Afghanistan, and was released again from active duty in January 2011.

Waxman is board certified in urology and fellowship trained in urodynamics, female and reconstructive urology, pediatric urol-ogy, urologic oncology, laparoscopic/robotic surgery and endourology. He is a fellow of American College of Surgeons and of the American College of Legal Medicine, and a member of the American Urological Asso-ciation, the Society for Urodynamics and Female Urology, the Society of Genitouri-nary and Reconstructive Surgeons and the Society of Government Services Urologists.

Jackson County Urology has two loca-tions: 206 N.W. Mock Ave., Suite 200, Blue Springs, and 19550 E. 39th St., Suite 419, Inde-pendence.

Family medicine practitioner Thomas joins Midwest Physicians

Midwest Physicians, part of HCA Mid-west Health System, announced the addition of board-certified family medicine physician Roger A. Thomas, DO, to Lee’s Summit Fam-ily Care.

Thomas has nearly 20 years of experience and has worked at various health care facili-ties throughout the area. He has specialized training in sports medicine and is a member of the American Osteopathic Associa-tion and American Osteopathic College of Occupational and Preventive Medicine. Dr. Thomas received his medical degree from the University of Health Sciences in Kansas City. He completed his residency at Doctor’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, where he also completed a fellowship in sports medicine.

Lee’s Summit Family Care is located near Lee’s Summit Medical Center.

healthSHORTS

Tuesday, April 19, 2011 Page 3cover

By STEPhAniE BooThESpecial to The Examiner

David Starr was a promising engineering student at Mizzou.

A Bright Flight scholar, David was on his way to buy a book for school at an area book-store when he was broadsided.

David died from injuries he sustained in the crash. Twenty years later, a Utah man sur-vives, enjoying life with grandchildren thanks to the gift of David’s heart.

“There was nothing more we could do for David,” said his mother, Barbara Starr, who lives in Blue Springs.

The man who received David’s heart had four children and was able to watch them grow up. David’s eyes gave the gift of sight to two people, and his tissue was given to 50 people.

Things were different in 1991 when Bar-bara, a nurse, and her family had to make that hard decision. There was no one on site to talk to the family about organ donation or to counsel them about brain death, but the family made the decision based on what they thought David would have wanted.

“It was a real blessing to know that just two weeks later the man who had gotten his heart was up in a wheelchair,” Barbara said.

Touched by the story of the man living with David’s heart, Barbara’s youngest son, Kit, became a living donor to a kidney transplant patient the family met at the Mo-Kan Trans-plant games.

The man won numerous medals at the games when Barbara and Kit met him. A little while later, Barbara ran into the man’s wife at an area grocery story and learned he had since rejected the kidney and there was little hope of getting another.

Upon hearing the story, Kit immediately said, “I can give him one of mine.”

Kit’s kidney was a match, and he and the man have been friends ever since.

“He just didn’t want another family to go through what our family did,” Barbara said.

Barbara and her family have been advo-cates of organ donation since losing David. Barbara was asked to sit on the Transplant Council at St. Luke’s, where she worked as a nurse, because she had a different perspective on the topic.

David’s picture was featured on the Donate Life float in the 2008 Rose Bowl Parade.

Barbara said there are still a lot of miscon-ceptions about organ donation, and she’s work-ing with the Midwest Transplant Network to help reverse those misconceptions.

One of the myths is that hospitals won’t take as good of care as someone who is an organ donor.

“They get the very best care, and only when that has been exhausted and they pass away is when Midwest Transplant notified,” Barbara said.

Families are only approached about donat-ing a loved one’s organs if it is determined the deceased is an eligible match.

Another myth is that an organ donor can-not have an open-casket funeral or that donat-ing the organs can be costly. Neither is true. The cost to extract the organs is paid for by the Midwest Transplant Network.

Knowing so many people benefited from David’s organs helped the family in their griev-ing process and makes Barbara think her son’s legacy lives on.

“I just didn’t want David to die totally in vain,” Barbara said. “It seemed like such a waste of a bright young man.”

About six years after David’s death, the family got a letter from the man who received David’s heart. He was doing well and expressed his profound gratitude for the family’s gift. Barbara still remembers how he signed the letter.

“Love from all of our hearts and David’s.”

Special to The Examiner/STEPhAniE BooThEBarbara Starr’s son David was killed in a car accident in 1991. After making the difficult decision to donate his organs, Barbara was asked to sit on the Transplant Council at St. Luke’s, where she worked as a nurse.

THe gifT of LifeDavid Starr’s life ended prematurely, but in death, he saved others

“It was a real blessing to know that just two weeks later the man who had gotten his heart was up in a wheelchair.”Barbara Starrdonated her son David’s organs

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Page 4 Tuesday, April 19, 2011 wellness

How many times have you read my articles and thought, “Here we go one more time talk-ing about spending money to exercise!”

There is a facility in Independence where you can purchase a membership for $15 a year to use a weight room, cardio area and gymna-sium if you’re 16 to 59 years old. If you’re older than 60, it’s only $5 per year. There is a maxi-mum family charge of $45 per year.

It’s called the Roger T. Sermon Community Center, and is at 201 N. Dodgion, or what most of us refer to as the corner of Truman and Noland roads. Yes, that’s right. A city-owned property has these amenities available.

Just a week ago, thanks to a joint partner-ship between the Health and Parks and Recre-ation departments and funding received from the Missouri Foundation for Health, the cardio area at the Roger T. Sermon Community Cen-ter doubled in size.

The Sermon Center previously had two Pre-

cor ellipticals, one Cateye stair climber, four Star Trac treadmills, one Schwinn aerodyne bike, and one Cateye recumbent bike. Through funding from this grant, we were able to add two state-of-the-art adaptive motion trainers, two ellipticals, two recumbent bikes and one

treadmill. This is all part of a project funded by the

Missouri Foundation for Health through the Social Innovation Fund, which established by the 2009 Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, and through a partnership with the Com-munity Development, Health, Parks and Recre-ation and Public Works departments working together on the “Building a Healthier Indepen-dence” project.

As this next year continues, you will hear more about this project, but this week, why don’t you take some time from your schedule and visit the Sermon Center? Check out its facility and join in the activities. Sermon Cen-ter hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mon-day through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, and noon to 6 p.m. Saturday.

What a great opportunity to make new friends and exercise in a climate-controlled environment!

Larry Jones is director of the Indepen-dence Health Department.

Larry Jones

Sermon Center is oneof city’s best-kept secrets

Donate life. This slogan for Donate Life America resonates deeply with those among us who have received tissue or organs and whose lives have been forever changed as a consequence.

According to Donate Life, there were 8,021 deceased organ donors and 6,610 living organ donors in 2009, resulting in 28,465 organ trans-plants. About 75 organs are transplanted daily. One donor can help up to 50 others through life-saving organ donation and the donation of tissue and corneas. Transplant recipients are living longer than ever before thanks to advances in transplant science. More than 70 perent of liver, heart and kidney recipients live more than 5 years after the transplant.

Currently there are more than 100,000 people waiting to receive an organ. Every 11 minutes, someone is added to the organ recipi-

ent wait list. Unfortunately, 20 people die each day while waiting for an organ. Two-thirds of those on wait lists are older than 50 years of

age. There is a misconception that seniors are not good candidates for organ donation. How-ever, there is no age limit for organ donation. Criteria are based on medical condi-tion and not strictly on age. Organs have been success-fully transplanted from donors in their 80s.

Some are concerned that their religion may prohibit receiving or donating tissue or organs. Most religions support organ donation on humanitarian grounds. OrganDonor.gov provides information about this and encourages conver-sation with clergy for clarification. Others are concerned that they will be billed for donating,

but these costs are passed on to the recipient. There are about 2.5 million deaths annually

in the United States. Those on wait lists and their families can only imagine the effects if even half were donors. April is Organ Donation Month, so it’s a good time to discuss dona-tion with your clergy, your family and your God. You can be added to your state registry of donors through OrganDonor.gov or have your intent noted on your driver’s license and with

family. Consider joining the 86 million already signed up to be donors. Consider being a hero.

Answer: Thyroid gland

Gift of life is yours to giveJoin the 86 million Americans already registered as donors

Dr. Lori Boyajian-O’Neill can be contacted at lori.boyajian-oneill@hcahealthcare.com.

Lori

Boyajian

O'Neill

SportS and wellneSS

Which of the following tissue or organs cannot be donated? Bone, cornea, heart, intestine, kidney, liver, lungs, pancreas, skin, tendon, thyroid gland, veins. Answer at the bottom of column

Page 6 Tuesday, April 19, 2011 wellness

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healthSHORTSMissouri Foundation for Health releases state’s 2011 report

Missouri Foundation for Health has released Issues in Missouri Health Care 2011, an updated resource that includes 12 issue briefs on important health care topics affecting Missourians.

MFH and the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City contracted with Health Management Associates, a national health pol-icy research and consulting firm, to produce the publication. These issue briefs provide data and analysis on topics ranging from phar-maceuticals to electronic health records and the health care workforce. Each health topic includes a section on how the Affordable Care Act impacts that component of Missouri’s health care system. The issue briefs also iden-tify possible policy solutions to address health system challenges in Missouri. Covered topics include:

n The State of Health in Missouri: Cover-age, access and health status

n Coverage issues for Missourians with chronic health conditions

n Addressing Medicaid fraud and abuse: Facts and policy options

n Treating the whole Missourian: Mental health and substance use disorders

n Buying value: Improving the quality of Missourians’ health care

n Real opportunities for ending the addic-tion: Tobacco use prevention and cessation

n Assuring an adequate health care work-force in Missouri’s medically underserved areas

Download Issues in Missouri Health Care 2011 free at www.mffh.org/content/531/issues-in-missouri-health-care-2011.aspx. Limited free

print copies also are available. For more infor-mation, contact Chris Raborn at 314-345-5576 or craborn@mffh.org.

Centerpoint Medical Center opens senior-only emergency department

Centerpoint Medical Center, at 39th Street and Jackson Drive in Independence, opened a seniors-only emergency department April 4.

The Seniors Emergency Center is dedicated to the unique needs of aging population. This specially designed and equipped four-room ER, which is adjacent to the regular emergency department, will address the unique medical care needs of geriatric patients, including a less frenzied atmosphere, thicker mattresses, softer grip flooring and signage with oversized letters. In addition, the nurses have all received internal training to help them recognize, diag-nose and treat for multiple conditions that are unique to geriatric patients, and even uncover hidden problems.

One in five Americans will be age 65 or older by 2030. As baby boomers age, hospitals are gearing up to accommodate the special needs of patients age 65 and older. In a typical hospital emergency department throughout the United States, older adults make 17 million visits annually.

Carolyn Caldwell, FACHE, president and chief executive officer of Centerpoint, says the area’s first comprehensive Seniors Emergency Center will benefit not only seniors, but also their caregivers. “This will be a beneficial resource for the community, aligning with our commitment to provide exceptional and com-passionate patient care for the geriatric popula-tion and those that care for them.”

– Jillayne Ritchie

The City of Independence Environmental Health Division conducts inspections anywhere food is handled, prepared and served to the public within city limits. Critical violations must be handled within 72 hours.

n Kentucky Fried Chicken, 17837 e. U.S. 24 – On April 6, inspectors found the vent on the “origi-nal chicken fryer” not working properly. Hot grease was spewing out of the top and all over the floor and other equipment. This not only creates a burn hazard for the employees, but also a slipping hazard; repair

or find a solution to the problem. Rags were found on top of the chicken cooker vent, creating a fire hazard and causing smoking from the heat; removed.

n Back Yard Burgers, 15908 e. 23rd St. – On April 6, inspectors found a cup without a handle lying in the sugar used for iced tea. There can be no utensils lying in ready-to-eat food, because this can contaminate the food. Plastic food bags were found sitting inside the front hand sink. Both violations were corrected.

– Jillayne Ritchie

Food inspections l Independence

wellness Tuesday, April 19, 2011 Page 7

Renew also offers services to refresh your mind and rejuvenate your spirit with a facial or massage in our Spa. Renew is located in a separate area with a private entrance, and equipped with state of the art equipment and furnishings that are geared towards enhancing each step of your recovery.

A truly innovative concept in post-acute care, designed especially for women, doesn’t just meet the needs of those recovering from an acute ill-ness, injury or exacerbation of a disease process.

Carmel Hills Long Term Care

Our long term care services are designed for individuals who need 24 hour nursing care. These residents may be chronically ill, frail, or experiencing a very slow recovery from an illness or injury. Our long term care units offer private and semi-private rooms including room furnish-ings, multiple common areas and dining lounges. We offer respite care or vacation care that allows families an opportunity to take a brief break from the demands of round- the- clock care giving.

Sunset Place at Carmel Hills

The dedicated Alzheimer’s Unit offers dedicated, caring and com-passionate staff well trained to assist residents in living their lives to the fullest. We offer structured activities designed to maximize interaction with each resident. Personalized behavioral manage-ment designed to encourage par-ticipation in a calm environment. We provide semi private and pri-vate rooms, complimentary cable television, nutritionally balanced meals and rehabilitation services.

For those seeking short term med-ical and or rehabilitative services, we focus our efforts on working closely with patient and fam-ily and strive to achieve the most successful functional outcomes. Our nursing team is support by licensed therapists who provide physical, occupational, and speech therapies. This dedicated team works together to design individu-alized care plans tailored to each patients specific needs. We be-lieve our best results are achieved when we work together

Renew at Carmel Hills

810 E. Walnut • Independence, MO816.461.9600

Amateur athletes can have big league injuriesBy MARK hARTLEY, M.D.St. Mary’s Medical Center

The approaching summer brings out the runners, the cyclists and the weekend warriors. Unfortunately, it also brings in an increase of knee injuries – among them an increase in injuries to the anterior cruciate ligament within the knee. The ACL is the one of the four major knee ligaments. It runs diagonally, joining the upper leg bone with the lower leg bone and keeps the knee stable.

I see a lot of ACL injuries from people involved in sports that involve a lot of jumping or cutting maneuvers while running. Recent research has shown that ACL injuries are as common in girls and in women as they are in males. They are seen in many different age groups, not just people in their teens or twen-ties.

During an ACL injury, patients describe the knee “giving way or shifting on me,” feeling or hearing a “pop,” and experiencing varying levels of pain. Additional symptoms can be a catching or even a locking of the knee. Soon after, patients usually experience swelling,

pain or feeling of the knee “wanting to give out on me.” Weight bearing usually causes more pain, but not in all cases. After several days or weeks, patients usually feel the knee will “give out” while they’re walking. As with most inju-ries that happen on the playing field, the first treatment should be the R.I.C.E. treatment:

n Rest to prevent further damage to the knee;

n Ice to help reduce swelling and decrease pain;

n Compress or wrap – but not too tight (my preference would be “crutches to limit weight bearing to a minimal”);

n Elevate to reduce swelling. Although injuries to the ACL can be partial

tears, unfortunately, that is not the case in the majority of injuries. The complete tear is all-too-common. The prognosis for the rare, partially torn ACL is guarded. Partial tears do not necessarily mean the knee will be stable. Partial tears can behave as full tears when you return to activities.

Initial treatment for the patient with an unstable knee include limiting weight bearing until a definitive diagnosis with all injuries to the knee obtained, medication for pain, brac-ing to stabilize the knee, modification of activi-ties and, soon after, physical therapy.

For some people, elimination of activities dependent on a stable knee is the long-term choice. For many, a return to activities that require a stable knee means surgery and reconstruction of the ACL.

Options for reconstruction include the

patient’s own tissue or use of allograft from human donor. Graft selection include bone-patellar tendon-bone, hamstring tendon, and various allograft selections including the above and Achilles’ tendon.

Many surgeons have preferred techniques for different reasons. Regardless of the choice of the procedure of the reconstruction, ACL reconstruction is very successful in restoring stability to the knee. Besides the surgical pro-cedure, clinical success is dependent on post-op rehabilitation with the motivated patient and physical therapy.

Recent studies show that neuromuscular training programs can reduce the chance of an ACL injury. Prevention of ACL injuries is being studied, extensively. Refraining from activities that are associated with knee injuries is the best prevention. Obviously, this lifestyle is not acceptable for many and learning how your knee moves, especially when jumping, landing and pivoting, combined with strength-ening, especially the quadriceps muscles on the front of the thigh and the hamstring muscles in the back of the thigh, you can help prevent, to some extent, ACL injuries.

Mark Hartley, M.D.

GUeSt ColUMn

Mark Hartley is an orthopedic surgeon at St. Mary’s Medical Center

Page 8 Tuesday, April 19, 2011 nutrition

Current research suggests eggs are not as bad as they were once cracked up to be.

Below are 12 reasons to eat eggs.

1 An egg a day for most healthy people is OK and does not result in significant changes

in cholesterol or triglyceride levels.

2 According to new nutrient data from USDA, the average amount of cholesterol

in a Grade A large egg is 185 mg, 14 percent lower than the 212 mg previously reported.

3 One egg contains only 70 calories and pro-vides 6 grams of high-quality protein.

4 Health benefits from eating high-quality protein include maintaining muscle as you

age and better blood sugar levels.

5 When people on a calorie-restricted diet ate protein foods, such as eggs, for breakfast,

their appetite was satisfied longer.

6 Eggs are an excellent source of choline. Choline enhances brain development in

babies and improves memory after birth.

7 New studies indicate choline may even help prevent memory loss associated with

aging.

8 A new reason! A large egg is now consid-ered a “good” source of vitamin D, provid-

ing 41 IUs or 10 percent of daily value, which

may have cancer protection benefits.

9 Egg yolks contain lutein and zeaxanthin, which may reduce the risk of cataracts

and protect against macular degeneration. New research has found the lutein in eggs to be

more bioavailable, or used better by the body, than some other sources of lutein.

10 Eggs are one of the most affordable sources of high-quality protein.

11 An egg is a quick and easy meal for breakfast, lunch or supper.

12 Hard-boiled, they make a great high-quality protein snack to help control

hunger.

Eating well deviled eggsServes 24Deviled eggs are a perennial potluck favor-

ite. Our recipe replaces some of the egg yolks with nonfat cottage cheese – keeping the filling velvety and rich while reducing some of the fat.

All you need:12 large hard-boiled eggs, peeled1/3 cup nonfat cottage cheese1/4 cup low-fat mayonnaise3 tablespoons minced fresh chives or scal-

lion greens1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish2 teaspoons yellow mustard1/8 teaspoon salt

Paprika for garnishAll you do:1. Cut eggs in half lengthwise with a

sharp knife. Gently remove the yolks. Place 16 yolk halves in a food processor (discard the remaining 8 yolk halves). Add cottage cheese, mayonnaise, chives (or scallion greens), relish, mustard and salt; process until smooth.

2. Spoon about 2 teaspoons yolk mixture into each egg white half. Sprinkle with papri-ka, if desired.

To hard-boil eggs: Place eggs in a single layer in a saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and cook at the barest simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, pour out hot water and cover the eggs with ice-cold water. Let stand until cool enough to handle before peeling.

To make ahead: Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day.

Nutrition facts per serving: 34 calories, 2g fat, 1g saturated fat, 1g monounsaturated fat, 71mg cholesterol, 85mg sodium, 31mg potas-sium, 1g carbohydrate, 0g added sugars, 0g fiber, 3g protein.

Carbohydrate Servings: 0

Need a reason to eat more eggs? Try a dozen

Tracey Shaffer, RD, LD, is a Hy-Vee dietitian at the Blue Springs location The information provided should not be con-strued as professional medical advice. E-mail her at1033dietitian@hy-vee.com.

Tracey

Shaffer

Food For thoUGht

nutrition Tuesday, April 19, 2011 Page 9

Paul F. Nassab, M.D.Paul F. Nassab, M.D., comes to DFP Orthopedics as a fellowship trained surgeon specializing in trauma, reconstructions, and disorders of the hand, elbow, and shoulder. He obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan and his graduate degree at the Boston University School of Medi-cine. He completed his post Doctoral Fellowship in Combined Hand at the prestigious Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

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By SARA LoPinSKiGateHouse News Service

Choose a fruit or vegetable and you know it is good for you. Not so easy with other foods.

Some have gotten a healthy designation when they are not so healthy. Take a look at five examples.

Granola bars. These bars got their healthy reputation as the mountain hiker’s snack of choice. Some bars are full of nuts, seeds, whole oats and other nutritious foods. Other granola bars are covered in chocolate or loaded with chocolate chips and artificial ingredients, but aren’t much better than eating a candy bar. The best granola bars contain the following:

4 grams or more fiber6 grams or less sugar5 grams or less total fat with unsaturated

poly- and mono-fat the preferred source6 grams protein or moreYou don’t have to go to a health food store to

find a healthy version. One example available at the grocery store is the Kashi TLC Chewy Granola Bar Dark Mocha Almond; it meets these recommendations and tastes great, too!

Tea drinks. These drinks are touted for their antioxidant power. The phytonutrients in tea leaves may help reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke and slow the growth of cancer cells. But tea drinks are not the same as brewed tea. Many bottled teas consist of little brewed tea and enough added sugar to rival regular soda pop. If you must drink bottled tea, look for one that lists brewed tea as the first ingredient and has less than 5 grams added sugar per serving. Or you can brew your own tea to enjoy.

Muffins. Morning muffins evoke a warm kitchen filled with the aroma of a home-baked goods. Bran or blueberry muffins sound healthy, but the problem with the muffin of today is the sheer size. Do you remember the muffins of the past that were about the size of a lemon? Today’s baseball-sized muffin adds 500 calories or more with more than 20 grams of fat. If you must enjoy a muffin, choose a smaller muffin made with real fruit and whole grain flour. Or try a different variety, such as a whole-grain, high-fiber English muffin with a light layer of peanut butter.

100-calorie cookies or snack foods.

These snacks sound like a big help on a healthy eating plan. You can have a measured portion of a favorite food, and certainly this is much better than consuming a sleeve of Chips Ahoy Cookies. But remember what a portion is: one 100-calorie pack, not four at one sitting. And keep in mind that most of these foods fall in the empty-calorie food category, void of any nutritional value. If you must include these foods, watch your portion size and balance with more healthy foods

Frozenyogurt. This sounds like a won-derful choice. Yogurt is a healthy food for us because it contains live and active cultures, which are good for our intestines and our immune system. But the fact is that not all fro-zen yogurt is the same, and some may contain just as many fat calories as regular ice cream with minimal calcium content. Look for frozen yogurt with live, active cultures and lower fat content or about 5 grams of fat or less per serv-ing.

Sara Lopinski, MS, LDN, is a registered dietitian for the HSHS Medical Group Center for Diabetes and Metabolic Health in Springfield, Ill.

Not all ‘health’ foods are created equalAvoid chowing down on snacks with undeserved healthy designation

DEAR DR. BLONZ: I have a sardine dilemma. Should I be buying small bris-ling sardines in lieu of big ones in the hope of ingesting fewer toxins? Also, why do some sardine boxes show 17 grams of fat and 8 grams of saturated fat and oth-ers show 2 grams of fat and one gram of saturated fat? Sardines are sardines. Could it be that the part of the world they come from, or maybe their diet? Thanks. – ANONyMOuS

DEAR READER: It’s reasonable to be concerned about toxins in fish, but this is less of an issue with sardines. But more on that later. First, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture database (tinyurl.com/36uag), a 3-1/2-ounce serving of typical sardines contains about 11 grams of fat, of which 2 are saturated. The serving size often reflects the size of the container, especially if it’s small. This might be the explanation for the variance in fat content you observed. Sardines can be canned with various oils or sauces and this can take up space and affect the number of fish in the can, but it would not be to the degree you cite. It is possible that the company providing those low-fat sardines were using an atypical low-fat

species of fish. You mention that “sardines are sardines,” but this is true only to a degree. There are no sardines swimming around in the ocean. The name comes from the way small, young fish are processed. They don’t become sardines until they’re in the can. There are estimates of as many as 11 different species of fish, most in the herring family, that are used

to make sardines around the world. What you refer to as brisling sardines are from fish on the younger/smaller end of the sardine scale.

Toxins in fish can include heavy metals or harmful chemicals, such as PCBs (polychlori-nated biphenyls) that the fish has been unable to break down or eliminate, and as a toxin it’s harmful to living organisms. Toxins tend to be cumulative affairs with fish, the amount depending upon the water where the fish lives and eats, what the fish feeds upon, and if the fish eats other fish, where those fish had lived and what they had fed upon.

Sardines tend to selected from young fish that feed on plankton, so there is less of chance that they will be accumulating anything harmful. The Monterey Bay Aquarium has a Seafood Watch website (tinyurl.com/98j39w) on which they rate fish. Sardines from the Atlan-tic are considered a “good alternative,” while those from the Pacific are considered a “best choice.” Sardines contain high-quality protein and the omega-3 fats, EPA and DHA. There is a fascinating history of the sardine at the Napo-leon Company; I encourage a read for anyone wanting some background on this healthful fish (tinyurl.com/6fabtah).

Fear of fish toxins dampens love of sardines

Ed Blonz, Ph.D., is a nutrition scientist and author. Send questions to: “On Nutrition,” Ed Blonz, c/o Newspaper Enterprise Asso-ciation, 200 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016. E-mail him at ed@blonz.com.

EdBlonz

on nUtrition

The Jackson County Public Works/Environmental Health Division conducts inspections anywhere food is handled, prepared and served to the public for cities other than Independence.

Blue Springsn lamar’s donut Store, 722 n. Missouri 7 – On

April 5, a bottle of saline solution was found stored next to food on shelf.

n KFC/taco Bell, 1236 n.w. woods Chapel road – On April 6, inspectors found a chemical spray bottle that was labeled “sanitizer” actually contained degreaser.

n pancho’s Mexican Food, 802-a w. U.S. 40 – On April 6, a bottle of pesticide was found on shelf that does not indicate in the labeling that it is safe to use in a food establishment; discarded.

n Sonic drive-in, 2323 n. Missouri 7 – On April 6, inspectors observed a waste water leak coming from plumbing under three compartment sink. Drain cover under soda machine where the pipe from front three compartment sink is directed was clogged with debris and was not draining; corrected.

Lee’s Summitn Mingle, 209 n.e. Main St. – On April 4, raw

calamari was observed above ready-to-eat foods in the prep reach-in cooler, and containers of ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous foods in the walk-in cooler were not date labeled; both were corrected. The drain

in the walk-in cooler was not draining and there was waste fluid accumulating on the floor in the walk-in cooler and it was also leaking into the dry storage room next to the walk-in cooler. Numerous fruit/drain flies were observed around the kitchen, and a few fruit/drain flies were observed in the bar area. A chem-ical spray bottle was observed on a shelf above the grill, and chemicals were observed in a cabinet next to lids, cups, and half and half containers; corrected.

n pleasant lea elementary, 700 S.w. persels road – On April 4, inspectors found cheese sticks in the walk-in cooler were 50-51 degrees; discarded.

n waids, 194 n. oldham parkway – On April 5, the reach-in cooler on the cook’s line had an inter-nal temperature of 55 degrees, the temperature of the corned beef hash was 57 degrees and shell eggs were 65 degrees, discarded. Numerous containers of cooked, ready-to-eat food were not date labeled, corrected. No sanitizer was detected in dish machine final rinse, the chemical bucket was empty and no extra chemical was available. Manager called owner to bring chemicals for the machine. This is a repeat critical violation from the last routine inspection. There were a number of drain flies present in the dish wash-ing area. Three chemical spray bottles labeled “quat sanitizer” actually held glass cleaner, bleach water, and degreaser, corrected. A bottle of fly spray was found in the chemical storage area labeled “for household use only”; discarded.

n China wok, 209 S.w. Greenwich drive – On

April 5, an employee was observed eating food in a food prep area, and cigarettes were observed on a food shelf; corrected.

n China King, 305 n.e. todd George road – On April 6, containers of raw meats were observed above vegetables in the walk-in cooler; corrected.

n Fazoli’s, 498 S. Missouri 291 – On April 6, inspectors found sliced sausage and ham stacked on top of the containers of food in the top part of the prep cooler next to the oven were 52-55 degrees, discarded. Pastas in an ice bath in-between the pasta cooker and the steam table were 50-55 degrees; dis-carded.

n Maggie’s authentic Mexican, 100C S.e. third Street – On April 7, inspectors observed bags and containers of various ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous foods in the reach-in cooler were not date labeled, corrected. Packages of enchiladas in the reach-in cooler were past their 7 day discard date; they were discarded.

n prairie View elementary, 501 S.e. todd George road – On April 8, inspectors found the reach-in cooler holding cheese and cookie dough at 54 degrees. Internal temperature taken on American cheese was 44 degrees, this product and all other potentially hazardous food was moved to another refrigerator. Cook indicated that the temperature was 36 degrees during HACCP checks that morning. All refrigeration must be 45 degrees.

– Jillayne Ritchie

Page 10 Tuesday, April 19, 2011 calendar

healthCALENDARItems for the Health Calendar may be e-

mailed to jill.ritchie@examiner.net or mailed to: The Examiner, P.O. Box 459, Independence, Mo. 64051, attention Jill Ritchie. The follow-ing items are for April 20 through 26, unless otherwise stated.

Blue Springstai Chi For arthritiS, presented by the

University of Missouri Extension, 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Fridays through May 27, Vesper Hall, 400 N.W. Vesper St. To register, call 816-228-0181.

Free hYpnoSiS SeMinarS – Stop Smok-ing from 6:30 to 8 p.m. April 26; Weight Loss Management from 6:30 to 8 p.m. April 27, A Healthy Change Hypnotherapy, 1133 W. Main St., Suite 203. To register, call Mike at 816-560-6903.

IndependenceCanCer preVention Store toUr, 5:30

to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Noland Road Hy-Vee, U.S. 40 and Noland Road. Join Jamie, your Hy-Vee dietitian, for a walk down the aisles to learn which foods you should include in your diet to lower your cancer risk. Tour starts at the customer service desk. No registration required.

Greater KanSaS CitY aSSoCiation oF SChool nUrSeS host presentation, 5:30 p.m. April 26, Centerpoint Medical Center auditorium, 39th Street and Jackson Drive. Dr. Gregory Hummel will discuss knee injuries in

girl athletes. A short business meeting will fol-low the presentation, bring a sack dinner.

diaBeteS Store toUr, 10 to 11 a.m. or 4 to 5 p.m. April 27, Noland Road Hy-Vee, U.S. 40 and Noland Road. Stop by if your inter-ested in managing your blood sugars through food and nutrition. Tour starts at the customer service desk. No registration required.

Lee’s Summitwomenheart meeting, 6 to 7:30 p.m.

April 28, Panera Bread, 1686 N.W. Chipman Road. Join women who have heart disease or who are interested in preventing heart dis-ease. Call Nancy Payne at 816-550-5552.

Addiction groupsIndependenceStraiGht talK, narCotiCS anonY-

MoUS, 8 p.m., Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, First Baptist Church. Narcotics Anonymous Help Line: 531-2250.

liVinG Free – al anon meeting, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, 1723 Appleton Ave. 461-0039.

Blue SpringsalCoholiCS anonYMoUS, meetings

available daily, most sessions are closed, and there are beginner meetings also, 1428-B W. U.S. 40 (behind Betty’s Diner). There is a total of 29 meetings per week. For times, call 228-7921.

Chapel hill al-anon, 6:30 p.m. Mon-

day, Wednesday, Thursday; 9 a.m. Saturday, 1428-B W. U.S. 40 (behind Betty’s Diner).

BlUe SprinGS alateen, 3 to 4 p.m. Sun-day, 1428-B W. U.S. 40 (behind Betty’s Diner).

Raytownnew daY al-anon, 10 a.m. Wednesday,

Blue Ridge Trinity Lutheran Church. 353-5446.

Bereavement groupsBlue Springswidowed perSonS support group, 7

to 8:30 p.m. Monday, St. Mary’s Medical Cen-ter, Annex A. 224-0677 or 229-8093.

independentS SinGleS MiniStrY grief support group, 7 p.m. Tuesday, First United Methodist Church. 228-3788.

adUlt BereaVeMent support group, sponsored by St. Mary’s Medical Center, 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. several times throughout the year, Vesper Hall. To register, 655-5490.

IndependenceBereaVeMent SUpport GroUp, 7 to

8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Columbian Adult Day Care Center. 836-8303.

the CoMpaSSionate FriendS, for those dealing with the death of a child, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Walnut Gardens Commu-nity of Christ. Call Barbara Starr, 229-2640, or the hotline: 531-6464.

OtherinFant loSS GroUp, sponsored by

Carondelet Health. 655-5582.

Food inspections l Jackson County

YourTAkE how do you stay fit?

D’VAnTE MoSBY independence“Staying active and getting outside whenever I can. I also try not to sit around, especially when it gets warmer.”

KARSon TATuM independence“Keeping active and making sure I don’t slack off.”

DEVin JEnKinSindependence“Playing tennis and the ‘Just Dance’ video game. That’s a lot of fun.”

MiscellaneousIndependenceMaternitY Unit toUrS, Centerpoint

Medical Center. Call 751-3000 for dates and to register.

ViSitinG nUrSe, Friday, Fairmount Com-munity Center. They will check blood pressure, glucose levels and answer general health questions for seniors. 254-8334.

Food handler/ManaGer perMit training classes, food handler classes, 3:30 p.m. Thursdays at Truman Memorial Building, 1 and 3:30 p.m. Wednesdays, Independence Health Department; manager class, 1 p.m. Monday. There is a fee. To register, 325-7803.

Blue SpringsBreaK tiMe ClUB, sponsored by Shep-

herd Center of Blue Springs, 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Timothy Lutheran Church. For older adults with some physical and/or mental limitations. A donation of $10 to the cost of the program is suggested. 228-5300.

Free leGal adViCe for seniors, 10 a.m. to noon Monday, Vesper Hall. Legal advice provided by Cochran, Oswald & Roam, LLC. To set up an appointment, 228-0181.

Prenatal/Infant/Child programsIndependencenatUral FaMilY planninG session, 7

p.m. Tuesday, Nativity of Mary Parish. Fee. For reservations, 913-384-1000.

wiC nUtrition proGraM, for women who are pregnant, breastfeeding or gave birth less than six months ago, 404-6460 or 257-2335.

Blue SpringswiC nUtrition proGraM, for women

who are pregnant, breastfeeding or gave birth less than six months ago, 220-1007.

BlUe SprinGS/lee’S SUMMit toUGh loVe support group, for families dealing with unacceptable adolescent behavior, 7:30 to 9:40 p.m. Tuesday, First Christian Church. 913-492-1200.

MoMS & MoMS-to-Be prenatal and postnatal class, 4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday, Family YMCA. 224-9620.

Kansas CitywiC nUtrition proGraM, for women

who are pregnant, breastfeeding or gave birth less than six months ago, 404-9740 or 923-5800.

Support groupsIndependencedoMeStiC ViolenCe GroUp for men,

6 to 8 p.m. Monday, Family Conservancy of Eastern Jackson County. 373-7577.

CarinG CoMMUnitieS KinShip, 7 p.m. Monday, Cler-Mont Community School. LiLi Moe, 796-6041.

MoMS oFF Meth, 7 to 8 p.m. Wednes-day, First Christian Church, Room 206. Free. Terri, 210-9574.

CaretaKer’S oF people with alZheiMer’S, 5 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Com-prehensive Mental Health Services. Call Pat Aldridge, 254-3652, Ext. 222.

alZheiMer’S CareGiVerS, 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Christ United Methodist Church. 461-1101.

CarinG CoMMUnitieS diVorCe and Step FaMilY, 6:30 p.m. once a month, days vary, Blue Hills Elementary School. 796-6290.

Blue SpringsoVerCoMer’S oUtreaCh 12-Step, 7

to 8 p.m. Monday, Blue Springs Assembly. 229-3298.

MUltiple SCleroSiS SelF-help GroUp, 6:30 p.m. Monday, St. Mary’s Medical Center, Annex B building. Call Dixie Bozarth, 229-2851.

CanCer support group, 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, First United Methodist Church, Room 100. Call 229-8108.

SelF-help GroUp For people with MUltiple SCleroSiS, 6:30 p.m. Thursday, St. Mary’s Medical Center. Call Dixie Bozarth,

229-2851.parentS oF niCU BaBieS, 6:30 to 8 p.m.

Thursday, St. Mary’s Birthing Center. Moms delivering at other facilities are welcome. 655-5574, option 5.

BreaStFeedinG, offered by St. Mary’s Medical Center, 10 a.m. Thursday, 206 Mock Ave., Suite 101. 655-5574.

ChriStian 12-Step reCoVerY pro-GraM, 7 p.m. Friday, Blue Springs Christian Church. Call Steve, 229-7311, Ext. 243.

Lee’s SummitalZheiMer’S, 7 to 8:30 p.m. Monday,

Lee’s Summit Medical Center, The Arbor Room. Call Jeanne Reader or Jan Horn at 913-831-3888.

Kansas CityeMpower KidneY diSeaSe ClaSSeS,

5 to 7 p.m. Tuesdays through 2011, at several area hospitals. Call 842-0076 to register.

Weight ManagementIndependencetopS Mo. 291, 6:15 to 7:15 p.m. Monday,

St. Michael’s Episcopal Church. 461-0811.topS Mo. 251, 9:15 a.m. Tuesday, May-

wood Baptist Church. 478-0723 or 252-2392.

topS Mo. 331, 5 p.m. Tuesday, College Park Community of Christ. 254-7075.

topS Mo. 24, 9 a.m. Thursday, New Wal-nut Park Church. 373-6146 or 650-5262.

topS Mo. 100, 9 a.m. Thursday, Farview Restoration Branch. 356-5278.

topS Mo 0062, 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Northeast Baptist Church. 254-9455.

topS Mo. 892, 10 to 11 a.m. Friday, Nativ-ity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Catholic Church. 356-9219.

topS Mo. 482, 10 to 11 a.m. Friday, Cal-vary Presbyterian Church. 452-3029.

healthY reFleCtionS, 10 a.m. Thurs-day, Sermon Center. 325-7370.

oVereaterS anonYMoUS, 10 to 11:30 a.m. Monday, Maywood Baptist Church. Hand-icap accessible. Call Wanda G., 833-2632.

loVe Me Slender, 1 p.m. Tuesday, Van Horn Health Source. 418-4070.

Cea-how (Compulsive eaters anony-mous-h.o.w.), 8:30 a.m. Saturday, Unity Church of Independence, 14304 E. 39th St. 1-800-672-6715.

Blue SpringstopS Mo. 772, 10 a.m. Tuesday, First Bap-

tist Church West Annex. 350-1554.Lee’s SummitoVereaterS anonYMoUS, 7 p.m. Mon-

day, Unity Village, Administrative Building, Room 221. Call Lisa, 833-2636.

Cea-how (Compulsive eaters anony-mous-how Concept), 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, First Presbyterian Church. Call Lisa at 679-7009 or visit www.ceahow.org.

RaytownoVereaterS anonYMoUS, 4 p.m. Sun-

day, Quiet House, 65th and Elm. 353-2691.OtheroVereaterS anonYMoUS, a 12-step

program for compulsive eaters. 913-383-5933 or www.overeatersanonymous.org.

weiGht loSS ChallenGe, 5:30 to 6:15 p.m. Tuesdays, or 7 to 7:45 p.m. Thursdays. Cost, $35 for 12-week class, with $25 going in the pot for top three losers. To register, 800-262-2152.

Women’s IssuesIndependencewoMen’S eMpowerMent GroUpS,

sponsored by the Child Abuse Prevention Association (CAPA), 6:30 to 8:30 Monday. For locations, call karen Costa, 252-8388, Ext. 16.

Otherhope hoUSe inC. weekly support

groups, open to any female who has been or is now involved in an abusive relationship. For times and location, call the hotline at 461-4673.

– Jillayne Ritchie

calendar Tuesday, April 19, 2011 Page 11

healthCALENDAR

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