HEALTH: Quit Smoking Seminar

Harvard-trained, triple board-certified interventional cardiologist Giovanni Campanile, MD, FACC, FSAI, will be the featured presenter at a unique seminar to help Keys smokers keep their New Year’s resolution to quit.

The “Resolving to Quit Smoking” seminar is free and will be held Saturday, Jan. 8, from 10 a.m. to noon at Key West Doubletree Grand Key Resort (9 a.m. registration).

“Almost every smoker I’ve ever met has made at least one New Year’s resolution to quit, but rarely keep it,” said Scott Irwin, a tobacco treatment specialist for Keys AHEC and a former two-pack a day smoker. “This special two-hour seminar is designed to ensure that smokers who want to quit for the New Year have all the tools, support, and proven, evidence-based methods on smoking cessation they need to succeed.”

HEALTH: Folic Acid Protects New Moms and Newborns

by Chris Tittel
Public Information Officer Monroe County Health Department

The New Year is upon us and with it promises to quit smoking, lose weight and a host of other resolutions. There’s one New Year’s resolution that women – especially those who are having a baby or who are planning to have a baby – should consider.

National Folic Acid Awareness Week (January 2-8) gives pause to think about the importance of this B vitamin to women’s health and the health of their unborn and newborn children.

The Florida Department of Health states that with half of all pregnancies in the United States reportedly unplanned, it’s most important that women of childbearing age take folic acid to protect their unborn children.

HEALTH: Hepatitis C: Bring Stealth Disease up on Radar Through Testing

by Chris Tittel
Public Information Officer, Monroe County Health Department

Hepatitis C has been making headlines recently, with one South Florida newspaper last week describing it as “very much a Baby Boomer’s disease.”

In September, the Wall Street Journal ran a story headlined “HCV: Health Danger of Parties Past” that advises: “People who used intravenous drugs, snorted cocaine with a shared straw or had an unsterile tattoo or body piercing could be infected with hepatitis C and not realize it.”

The article adds: “The virus, which spreads via bloodto- blood contact, can cause no symptoms for decades while silently destroying the liver.”

FITNESS: Aerobics Is So Yesterday. Let’s Zumba at the CoffeeMill!

by Sheila Terry

 If you’ve been following what’s new in health and fitness, you’ve heard of Zumba. Zumba is the brainchild of Columbia celebrity fitness trainer, Beto Perez, and it’s estimated that a million people have tried it so far. Simply put, Zumba is a dance-based cardio workout done to the beat of irresistible Latin rhythms such as salsa, merengue and mambo. If that sounds a little intimidating, it shouldn’t. Zumba enthusiasts in Key West range from people in their twenties to those in their seventies and beyond.

Around the country there are Zumba classes in gyms, schools, hospitals and almost everywhere people gather to get healthier.

If you can move your feet side to side, you can do it; after just a few sessions, you’re channeling your inner Mario Lopez. After a couple of weeks you can’t walk by El Meson de Pepe’s without breaking into a spontaneous samba. When students are asked just what it is about Zumba they like so well, typical comment are: “It doesn’t feel like exercise; it’s exciting”, “I love the music”, “I’m revved up for hours after class” and so on.

 

HEALTH: Safer Shoppers Make Happier Holidays

by Chris Tittel
Public Information Officer, Monroe County Health Department

Today is Black Friday, typically the busiest shopping day of the year. As we run about Key West purchasing toys for the little ones, the Monroe County Health Department wants to make sure that shoppers keep several safety tips in mind.

Each year, approximately 217,000 toy-related injuries are treated in hospital emergency rooms nationwide. Following a few simple rules when selecting toys will help ensure fewer emergency room visits and much happier, healthier holidays for all.

• Read warning labels and manufacturer’s guidelines, including minimumage requirements and other restrictions.

Diabetes: Keys to Prevention

by Chris Tittel
Public Information Officer, Monroe County Health Department

November is American Diabetes Month, a time to learn more about a chronic condition that reportedly impacts the lives of more than 1 in 10 adults across Monroe County.

Diabetes is a disease in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin, a hormone that’s required to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life.

According to the Florida Department of Health, more than 11 percent of adults across the Florida Keys have been diagnosed with diabetes.

The statewide average is just under 9 percent. There are two major types of diabetes:

Type 1 is an autoimmune disease in which the body does not produce any insulin, most often occurring in children and young adults.

HEALTH: ‘Tis the Season for Flu Shots

FLU SHOT CLINIC SET FOR SATURDAY, OCTOBER 16, AT THE GATO BUILDING

The Monroe County Health Department will run a flu shot clinic, 9am-4pm, on Saturday, October 16, at the Gato Building, 1100 Simonton Street, Key West. Youths under age 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Cost is $30. If you have insurance, please bring your insurance card. Anyone who shows up for a shot will receive it, regardless of ability to pay.

Flu is a contagious disease that can be spread through coughing, sneezing or nasal secretions. Anyone can get flu, but rates of infection are highest among children.

For most people, symptoms last only a few days and may include: fever, cough, sore throat, headache, chills, muscle aches and/or fatigue. Flu can also cause pneumonia and make existing medical conditions worse. Each year thousands of people die from seasonal flu and even more require hospitalization.

HEALTH: Depression Screening: What You Can Do to Stop Feeling Blue

by Jennifer Duyser, Public
Information Assistant,
Monroe County Health
Department

As National Depression
Screening Day (October 7) approaches,
the Monroe County
Health Department encourages
anyone who may think
they’re suffering from this
debilitating condition to take
a few moments to share their
concerns with a mental health
professional.

Dr. Stephen Ragusea
and Dr. Anthony Ragusea
will conduct free confidential
mental health screenings by
appointment only from 9 a.m.
to 3 p.m. on October 7 at the
Gato building, 1100 Simonton
Street, Key West.

A 10-minute screening
not only offers you the chance
to learn more about anxiety and
mood disorders, but also gives
the mental health professional
the opportunity to refer you
for a complete evaluation if
appropriate.

To schedule an appointment,
call (305) 293-7500.

HEALTH: Show the Love: Take a Loved Oned to the Doctor

by Jennifer Duyser, Public
Information Assistant,
Monroe County Health
Department

With school back in session,
it’s hard to go a full day
without hearing or reading
reminders to take children to
the doctor for back-to-school
vaccinations and physicals.

But what about other
loved ones? When’s the last
time they had physical examinations
to determine their levels
of health and wellness?

Take a Loved One to the
Doctor Day (September 21) is
a nationwide campaign that
stresses the importance of getting
regular checkups from
health care professionals to
help end health care disparities.
The U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services,
the Florida Department of
Health and the Monroe County
Health Department encourage
individuals to take charge of
their health by making an appointment
to see a physician,
nurse, dentist or nurse practitioner;
attending a health event
in the community; or helping
a friend, neighbor or family
member to do the same.

Free Tows Offered If You Drink Too Much

As the three-day holiday weekend approaches, the Key
West Police Department wants to remind the community to drive
safely. Most importantly, don’t drink and drive.

This weekend, as in holidays past, AAA is offering its Tow
2 Go program. If you find you’ve overdone it, AAA and Alex’s
Auto Wrecking and Towing are offering free and confidential rides
home for you and your car. Simply call 1-800-AAA-HELP. Or you
can call Alex’s directly at (305) 296-4910 or (305) 872-4910.