Coiorectal cancer
high in Blacks
Hom TON - AI though col­
orectal cancer deaths have de­
clined for will tes, there has been
. an increase among Blac men.
But prop r nutrition and early
detection can reduce colorectal
cancer deaths in all people, in­
cluding Blac .
"A first tep is diet," said.Dr.
John 1. Hugh of Baylor College
of Medicin in Houston. "Prepar­
ing high-fiber food instead of
fried and oth r fatty foods may
les en the ri ."
Only on In 10 of all Ameri­
can eat tbe re ommended daily
allowance r fruit and vegeta­
bl ,a rdi ng to the Nati nal
Cancer} titutc; African -Ameri- .
n app ar t eat even Ie
to yden, T ol w
develop d t con iderable public
expense d i proving to b co tty
to consumers. Th drug was de l­
oped by Bri tol-Myer Squibb
Company nder a co perativ re-
March i
�-.---.__._-- -
I } our Iha/III
L _
WYD D cooperation be-
tween the Government and private
indu try to develop drug should be
encouraged becaus it peed ther­
apy to ailing Americans.
"At th arne time, drug eompa­
ni mu t not b allowed exploit
th taxpayer by charging p that
are unr enable," he aid.
UNCONTROLLED
HIGH BLOOD
PRESSURE IS A
LEADING CAUSE OF
KIDNEY DISEASE
"l'VE HEARD IT'S
. PAINFUL:'
can women can better control
t ir ight with pro tai-
lored to m t their ethnic DC
according to DeB ery
Cent r tudy.
The 10-wee . project, con­
ducted through t nutri tion e-
earch Clinic of Baylor Colle e
of Medicine in Ho ton, com­
bined twice-d By, over-the-
counter liquid me I
repl cemen ith n evening
meal and weekly meeting led by
a Black dietitian.
Menu plans were altered to'
use foods to which BI k women
were accustomed.
The Baylor tudy w on of
four pilo for propo ed five­
year Blac American Life- tyle
Intervention tudy to look at the
long-term outcome of obesity
among minori ty women.
"The pecial need of African­
American in thi area have not
been recognized in previous tud­
ies," aid Dr. John Foreyt, c inic
director.
Sickle Cell can be
detected e rlier
BOU TON - A DNA-based
tes t is identifying newborns wi th
sickle cell anemia earlier and de­
creasing deaths caused by the in­
herited, incurable di ease.
Sickle cell disease affects Eighty thou and Ameri n will
mainly African-Americans. It die thi year of di eases that affect
caused misshapen red blood cells more than 20 millioin people in thi
that can block blood vessels. country. If under tood, though,
"This new test allow us to these diseases _._ any that affect the
shorten the time it takes to con- kidney or urinary tract - could po-
firm sic le cell to about 1.7 tentially become a less evere na-
months of age," said Dr. Edward tional b alth problem.
McCabe of Baylor College of March is National Kidn y
Medicine. "The middle range for Month, and the ationaJ Kidney
confirmation USlS:ed��;;II;a=�= . g to in-
4 and 5 monlt portant the
• second blood t . ng overall
The immediate treatment for
infants is daily antibiotics.
Detecting sickle cell disease
earlier is making follow-up with
families easier, McCabe said
Heart Disease and
Black girls
According to the National
Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's
Growth and Health Study, Black
girls as young as 9, are two to four
times more likely than white girls
to develop heart disease as adults.
According to Dr. John Morri­
son, one of the researchers con­
ducting the study, the key
difference appears to be in the
level of body fat carried by both
groups, as well as in the amount
of calories (particularly fat calo­
ries) consumed, and the amount
of energy expended by both
groups.
The study of 2,379 healthy
girls began when they were age 9
or 10 (they are now ages 15 or 16)
and will continue until the are 18
or 19.
For study updates or more in­
formation contact: Dr. John A.
Morrison Children's Medical
Center, Cincinnati, OH, (513)
559-4200 or Eva Obarzanek, Na­
tional Heart, Lung and Blood In­
s ti tute, Bethesda, MD, (301)
496-2465.
Kidney- Month
This year, one-of the maj or fo­
cuses of National Kidney Month is
the relationship between high blood
pressure and kidney disease.
"About 30 percent of the cas of
chronic kidney failure are attributed
to high blood pressure" aid Neil
Kurtzman, M.D., NFK pre ident.
"But when high blood pressur i
kept under control, the risk of devel­
oping kidney disease is reduced."
African-American, for example,
have high blood pressure twice as
often as whites and four times more
severely, putting them at a higher
ri k for chronic kidney failure.
"Regular blood pres ure check­
ups are essentiaJ 'for everyone, but
more 0 for high-risk group, u h
african-American ," Dr.
Kurtzman aid.
Oth r leading causes of chronic
kidney failure are diabetes and
glomerulonephriti - inflamma­
tion of the filtering parts of th kid­
neys. When kidney failure 0 curs,
the kidneys can no longer clear the
body of toxic wastes and people
must have regular dialy i treat­
ments or undergo kidn ry tran plan­
tation to stay alive.
Whi 1 better method are .avail­
able (or managing th e di eas
ience till lac a complete un­
d rstanding of them.
"But we learn more about kidney
di eases in general, we learn more
ab ut p1ttvention" aid Dr.
Kurtzman. "For people wi th high
blood pr sure, it i e tremely im­
portant that they have their blood
pres ur checked regularly and fol­
low th ir doctor' orders. For peo
pie with diabetes, it i aJ 0
extremely important that tbey f 1-
Thunder 1
Not et
Rain
low all doctor' orders ab ut diet,
exer i e and medication."
The KF, who e work is funded
entirely by public donations, help
more Americans prevent, treat and
cure . dney and urinary di eases
than any other voluntary heal th
agency. Through its 52 Affiliat
nationwide, the NKF pr ents pro­
--grams inre earch profes ional edu-
cation, patient and com u . ty .
services, public education and r-"
gan donation.
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