Something Extra
DOER PROFILE
:CHALLE NGE:
Keep The
Mind Alive
Gcm
•
- Atvla sinemg
0 006 45 E
509t 222 075 L'S.
• Carol Rosenblum and David Bartczak review a recent copy of the Mental
Illness Research Association's newsletter they produce together with other
volunteers.
Carol Rosenblum
David Bartczak
An ancient remedy
yields new medicine.
Researchers at the Technion-Israel Institute
of Technology are discovering that chemicals
in green tea help rid the brain of iron deposits,
which have been linked to neurodegenerative
diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.
These findings have Led to several new drugs
based on mopping up excess iron with green
tea extracts. Another drug developed at
the Technion, now in the approval. process,
actually halts the death of brain cells.
Home: Huntington Woods
Kudos: Health Education
Huntington Woods couple,
Carol Rosenblum and David
Bartczak, are busy profes-
sionals. Carol teaches fourth-graders
at the private Kensington Academy in
Beverly Hills. David is a diagnostic
engineer for General Motors' trans-
missions, working at the GM proving
grounds in Milford. At night and on
the weekends, they run their own
home-based tutoring service.
. As volunteers, they help two major
health organizations educate the pub-
lic and fund-raise for research and
treatment. David, 56, and Carol, 59,
both serve on the board of the Mental
Illness Research Association (MIRA).
David is also on the board of the
Michigan Parkinson Foundation.
A
The American Technion Society is proud to
be a partner in these efforts. With your help,
we can ensure that Israel's scientists continue
shaping a stronger Israel. and a better,
safer world. Join us.
___
NO CHALLENGE TOO GREAT
V
;
AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR
TECHNION
Carol, how did you and
David get involved in the
Bloomfield Hills-based
MIRA?
"We both had a interest in brain
research. The late Dr. David Olen, a
neuro-psychiatrist we knew socially,
approached us to help form a group,
which became the association. The
association primarily wanted to edu-
ISRAEL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
To find out how you can participate in events
email detroit@ats.org , call (248) 737-1990
or visit www.ats.org/mind
Jo Strausz Rosen, Detroit Chapter Director
Matt Engelbert, East Central Regional Director
32506 Northwestern Highway, Farmington Hills, Michigan 48334
1066270
12
Janaury 26 • 2006
cate the public about the stigma of
mental illness as well as raise money
for research in brain diseases and dis-
orders:'
Basically, what is mental
illness?
"It is a brain-based disorder, a phys-
ical illness. It is not a personality dis-
order. And there are treatments for
these illnesses."
How widespread is the
problem?
"No family we know of hasn't been
touched by a disorder. Mental illness
affects one in every five families in the
country. We're on the cusp of unlock-
ing the key to finding cures for these
illnesses:'
What should the public
know about mental illness?
"Depression, bipolar disorder, schiz-
ophrenia, Alzheimer's, anxiety and
others are not character defects or
personality disorders. They are ill-
nesses that are treatable. In educating
the public as to the nature of these
disorders, we hope to help erase the