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About Atrial Fibrillation
June 13
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Yang Style Short Form T’ai Chi
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VitalSigns is published bimonthly by the public relations and marketing department at Milford Regional Medical Center, 14 Prospect Street, Milford, MA 01757. Material contained here is intended for informational purposes only. If you have medical concerns, consult a physician or other healthcare professional.
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JUNE 2012
Fiber: Why Don’t We Eat More?
What if there was a certain type of food that had been proven to help control weight, reduce childhood obesity, lower cholesterol and blood pressure and decrease the risk of coronary artery disease, diabetes and many cancers? Such a substance already exists, and it’s readily available in foods that are inexpensive and flavorful. It is dietary fiber. Unfortunately, despite the strong evidence in support of eating fiber, the majority of Americans fail to eat enough of the foods that have fiber to gain the substantial benefits.
Perhaps because it was once known as roughage or bulk, Americans tend to think of fiber in terms of prunes, All-Bran cereal and bowel regularity—all very important but hardly ringing anyone’s pleasure meter. But how about a ripe, juicy plum? A bowl of raspberries? A slice of crusty whole grain bread? Or a bowl of black bean soup? You can get your daily dose of fiber from a wide variety of attractive, flavorful foods, mostly fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Yet the average American gets only about 15 grams of fiber a day—less than half the amount recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Read more.
We are hearing in the news lately that sugary drinks are a major contributor to the obesity problem in this country. What healthy beverages can we drink to replace sugary drinks such as soda and sports drinks?
We all know that plain water is the best drink for hydration and it is thirst quenching, but plain water can be kind of boring sometimes.
Some healthy alternatives include:
- Bottled water with added fruit flavors, or better yet, add sliced fresh fruit such as strawberries, lemons, limes or oranges to a pitcher of water, put it in the fridge and let it naturally infuse flavor to the water.
- If you miss the carbonation of soda, try flavored sparkling water. It is very refreshing. If that is still a little boring, add one part juice such as orange, cranberry or pomegranate juice to 2 or 3 parts sparkling water or seltzer. Juice contain lots of sugar, but also gives you important vitamins. By cutting the amount of juice you drink by adding it to sparkling water or seltzer, the sugar is minimized. Read more.
Summer Cookouts with a Twist
By Claire Blais, RD, CDE, LDN
What better way to celebrate the sunny, warm weather than a festive cookout with family and friends? You may be thinking, “Great, there goes my diet” – but a few smart menu choices can go a long way this summer!
Get to the meat of the problem.
- Choose 93% lean ground beef
- Try a black bean or other veggie burger
- Go for grilled skinless chicken breast instead of fried drumsticks, thighs, or patties
- For kabobs/skewers, include a lot of veggies paired with lean meats or fish.
Control your portions.
Cut helpings in half, and slow down before going for seconds. And don’t forget about MyPlate: make half your plate veggies and fruits, and split the other half between a starch and a protein. Read more.
Stroke Gold Plus Award Received by Milford Regional
Milford Regional recently received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. This award recognizes Milford Regional’s commitment and success in implementing excellent care for stroke patients. What does this mean for our patients?
Early recognition of stroke is one of the most important factors that can lead to successful stroke treatment. At Milford Regional, we have a team of providers who are dedicated to the early diagnosis and treatment of stroke. In certain cases, medication can be given in the emergency department to limit the devastating effects of stroke and improve outcomes, but these medications need to be started as soon as possible.
Having a hospital close to home that has been recognized for providing outstanding care to stroke patients is something to feel good about. The stroke team at Milford is available 24 hours per day, 365 days per year, always ready to care for our community at the highest level.
Submitted by Jeff Hopkins, MD, Medical Director, Emergency Services
Amerinet Healthcare Achievement Award
Milford Regional received the 2012 Member Achievement Award from Amerinet, a leading healthcare solutions organization. Amerinet grants these honors yearly in recognition of the efforts undertaken by its membership to reduce healthcare costs, improve healthcare quality and serve the community-at-large. This is the second consecutive year that Milford Regional has received this honor.
Milford Regional was recognized in the Financial and Operations Improvement category for improving patient care and lowering the risk of Clostridium difficile (C.diff) through the reduction of broad spectrum antimicrobials use. C.diff is a bacterium that can cause symptoms ranging from diarrhea to life-threatening inflammation of the colon. It most typically occurs after the use of antibiotic medications. Entries were carefully evaluated by a panel of expert judges and superior member performance was identified in several categories.
Get to Know our Neurologists
Milford Regional has a highly credentialed group of neurologists on our active medical staff. These physicians are specialists in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and disorders of the brain and nervous system. They provide comprehensive neurological care for patients with conditions such as stroke, headaches, Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis.
Milford Regional provides several support groups for patients who have been diagnosed with some neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis and a new program for Parkinson’s disease. We also have a support group for survivors of head trauma and their family members. For more information about our support groups, go to our website, milfordregional.org, under classes and lectures, see support groups.
For MS patients, in addition to the support group, we have The Center for Multiple Sclerosis at Milford Regional which was created several years ago to meet each patient’s specific needs, with an emphasis on compassion and education. Some of the many services include ongoing medical management and symptomatic treatment, nursing services, infusion services, physical or occupational therapy and much more. To find out how to access the MS Center, call 508-422-2697. Read more about our neurologists.
