Sample Articles: October - December 2004

MOUSE TALK

By Amy C. Lowenstein

FOR YOUR GRANDCHILDREN

Spending the day with your grandchildren? Need to keep them busy? Log on to enchantedlearning.com. Although this site is designed primarily for teachers, there are instructions for many creative and just plain fun activities that can be done at home. You don’t need a teaching degree, just a computer. Scroll down the home page to get some idea of the wide range of projects.

CRAFTS

On the right of the home page is a list of activities. Click on Crafts and you will find dozens of things for pre-schoolers or kindergartners to make, including puppets, flowers, masks, and projects for every holiday imaginable. Easy to follow step-by step instructions are provided. Everything can be made from inexpensive material found around the house, like paper plates, string and egg cartons.

COLORING BOOKS AND NURSERY RHYME

Pictures to color abound. Click on Nursery Rhymes. You can print them out to read and to color with old-fashioned crayons. There are even instructions for making a nursery rhyme book. To prove what a thoroughly modern grandmother/grandfather you are, click on a picture for your grandchild to color on-line with computer paint boxes. Instructions are so easy that even a grandmother/grandfather can follow them! And just think, no mess!

ALPHABET BOOKS AND GAMES

Click on Preschool and Kindergarten Activities. Here you will find instructions for making books to teach colors or the alphabet. Most children love dinosaurs. You can make an alphabet book with a picture of a dinosaur for each letter. There are even simple games to be played on the computer and a Lotto game to be printed out. Click on Connect-the-Dots. At the top of the screen are many connect-the-dot drawings to be done with letters or numbers on-line. Scroll down the screen to find other connect-the dot pictures to print out. There are also color-by-number drawings to print.

OLDER CHILDREN

When your older grandchildren come to visit, there are pictures by famous artists that can be colored by computer; instructions for drawing their own personalized calendars, and even a page to show how their name would appear using international marine signal flags. For curious children, there are pages about animals, biology, physical science and geography. There is really something for everybody. New material is added to the website frequently.

Amy C. Lowenstein is the author of For Grandmas Who Do Windows, Dithridge Press, available at Barnes & Noble and online. Contact Amy at Grandmawindows@aol.com if you have any questions or would like more information about her book or this article.

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Optimizing the Tear Film to Avoid Dry Eye

By Drew Hiatt, M.D.

Dry eye is a very common ocular condition. It results from either poor tear production or excessive tear film evaporation. In the dry desert climate of the Southwest, it is important to optimize the tear film in order to fight harsh evaporative conditions. Artificial tears often provide only temporary relief from dry eye symptoms.

Upper and lower eyelids each have a row of glands called meibomian glands that exit just behind the eyelashes. Meibomian glands produce a small amount of oil that floats over the liquid tear film. This oil layer helps to hold the tear film on the surface of the eye by increasing the surface tension of the tear film and by decreasing evaporation. To have a healthy tear film, it is important to have healthy meibomian glands.

Dysfunction of the meibomian glands is a common cause of dry eye. Meibomian glands can become congested with thick oils. Symptoms of meibomian gland dysfunction include dry eye, fluctuations in vision, thickened eyelids, redness, clogged glands (styes), mattering or crusting around the eyes, itching, foreign body sensations, and/or tearing. These symptoms are due to irritation from thickened oils and from poor resultant tear film.

The primary treatment of meibomian gland dysfunction is proper eyelid hygiene. One can use a warm, moist hand towel or washcloth as a warm compress to warm the glands, thereby thinning their oils. Gentle pressure should be applied to one’s upper and lower eyelids near the eyelashes to push the thinned oil out of the glands. Then, gently wash along each upper and lower lid with Johnson’s baby wash or baby shampoo. Finally, rinse well.

Oils in our diets influence the constituents of oils in our bodies. Most of us do not eat enough oils, like those found in salmon. We can improve our meibomian gland function by taking flax seed oil capsules or other omega 3 supplements.

Optimizing meibomian gland function helps to optimize the tear film. An optimal tear film helps to battle evaporative causes of dry eye. Your eye doctor has more aggressive means of treating dry eye and meibomian gland dysfunction if there is not improvement with these treatments. There are other important causes of eye irritation, redness, and dry eye. It is important to check with your eye doctor to be certain other ocular conditions are not present prior to instituting the treatment discussed.

For questions regarding the content of this article or any other eye condition, please call the doctors at SwagelWootton Eye Center (480) 641-3937.

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Brain Health and Healthy Aging
Excerpts adapted from the National Alzheimer's Association

By Jennifer Williams, MSW
Alzheimer's Association Desert Southwest Chapter

Is Alzheimer’s disease preventable? While there is still no cure, we do know that individuals can now take steps to take care of the brain by managing blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar and body weight- to help you to stay healthy as you age.

Feed your brain by taking a multivitamin that includes folic acid, vitamins E and C, and eat foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Exercise your body and your brain by working out, taking a class, reading, playing cards or working on crossword puzzles. Below is a more detailed sampling of some of the research we now know can contribute to healthy aging. What’s good for the heart may be good for the head!

Blood pressure and cholesterol: Older adults who have had a stroke have a higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease than those who have not had strokes. Growing evidence suggests a relationship between vascular risk factors and Alzheimer's disease. While the exact relationship needs to be examined further, accumulated evidence points to the possibility that people may delay dementia symptoms or prevent Alzheimer's by addressing and correcting their vascular risk factors; such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure. (December 2003 Archives of Neurology.)

Low-fat diet and Vitamins E & C, Folic acid & antioxidants: Older adults who took supplements containing at least 400 international units of vitamin E and 500 milligrams of vitamin C may reduce their risk of Alzheimer's disease. (January 2004 Archives of Neurology.)

Additionally, individuals who eat primarily lean meats, fruits and vegetables during midlife, may experience a reduced risk of Alzheimer's disease compared to those who consume larger amounts of red or processed meats and significant amounts of fats and sugars. (Presented by researcher Grace Petot and her colleagues from the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and University Hospitals of Cleveland.)

Mental stimulation & activity: Reading books, playing cards and board games, doing crossword puzzles, and dancing may all reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia.

This 21-year study of older adults adds to a growing body of evidence on the possibly protective effects of staying mentally active. (June 19, 2003 New England Journal of Medicine.)

Stay tuned for more information on Alzheimer’s research, and know that a world without Alzheimer's can be a reality. Ninety-five percent of what we know about Alzheimer’s disease we've learned in the past 15 years, and scientists are making great strides in better treatments, preventions and a cure.

For more information, please contact the Alzheimer's Association’s 24 hour Helpline by calling 1-800-272-3900.

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Why Plan Your Estate

By D. Marlane Porter, Attorney at Law

It is a well-known fact, that up to 80% of Americans never take, or make time to create, an estate plan prior to incapacity or death. In fact, most Americans spend more time planning a family vacation than they do creating a management scheme for handling the assets they spent a lifetime accumulating.

The knowledge that we will eventually die is one of the things that seem to distinguish humans from other living beings. At the same time, no one likes to dwell on the prospect of his or her own death. But if you postpone planning for your demise until it is too late, you run the risk that your intended beneficiaries -- those you love the most -- may not receive what you would want them to receive whether due to extra administration costs, unnecessary taxes or squabbling among your heirs.

This is why estate planning is so important, no matter how small your estate may be. It allows you, while you are still living, to ensure that your property will go to the people you want, in the way you want, and when you want. It permits you to save as much as possible on taxes, court costs and attorneys' fees; and it affords the comfort that your loved ones can mourn your loss without being simultaneously burdened with unnecessary red tape and financial confusion.

All estate plans should include, at minimum, three important estate-planning instruments:

1. A Will. The Will is your written plan for management and distribution of your property after death.

2. A General Durable Power of Attorney. This is for managing your property during your life, in case you are ever unable to do so yourself.

3. A Durable Medical Power of Attorney. This allows for someone else to make medical decisions for you if you are no longer able to make those decisions yourself.

In addition, more and more, Americans also are using revocable (or "living") trusts to avoid probate and to manage their estates both during their lives and after they're gone. A revocable living trust can be a cost-effective, timesaving tool to achieve your estate planning goals.

Many estate-planning attorneys offer free initial consultations to discuss how estate planning can benefit you and your family. D. Marlane Porter is an estate planning and elder law attorney and member of NAELA (National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys).

For more information about this article or specific elder law issues, call 480.464.7024 or email marlane@porterlawgroup.com.