By SUSAN ASCHOFF and Times wires
Published May 11, 2004
PORTRAITS of people with mental and addictive disorders reveal the power of their struggle in an exhibit opening this month in Tampa. The works by artist Michael Nye are on display in the former Sharper Image space at Old Hyde Park Village from noon to 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and from noon to 5 p.m. Sundays through June 20. The exhibit is free and one of several events in May marking the 30th anniversary of the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute at the University of South Florida. Organizers want to raise public awareness about advances in mental health research and treatment. For more information, phone (813) 974-4694.
STARTLING RESULTS from the Women's Health Initiative, which found that hormone therapy can increase the risk of heart disease, prompted many women to stop taking medication to ease menopausal symptoms. But researchers still have questions about the therapy's effects on women younger than 60. A new study to look at whether hormones could thwart cardiac disease if begun earlier and taken in smaller doses will begin enrolling participants in September. Called the Kronos Early Estrogen Prevention Study, or KEEPS, it will follow 90 women between 40 and 55 at eight U.S. medical centers. The women will be given either a low dose of Premarin (the same drug used in WHI) or a skin patch with estradiol. If results suggest benefits, a larger clinical trial would be warranted, researchers say.
LATINA magazine focuses on health issues for Hispanic women in this month's issue. Coverage includes a story on the difficulty of a doctor's visit if there is no one to translate for a Spanish-only speaker; an interview with first lady Laura Bush about the No. 1 killer, heart disease; discussion of why more than half of Hispanic women do not get screened for breast cancer; and a report on their higher incidence of cervical cancer. One-third of the more than 40-million Hispanics living in the United States have no health insurance, the magazine says.
EATING MORE FISH, particularly varieties high in omega-3 fatty acids, has been shown in multiple studies to protect against heart disease, bad cholesterol and, perhaps, many cancers. So how much does one have to eat to reel in the health benefits? The spring issue of Eating Well magazine cites a Harvard University study that found risk of heart disease was reduced by more than 60 percent in women who ate fish five or more times a week vs. a 30 percent reduction in those who ate fish only one to three times a month. Of course, we're not talking deep-fried here. The best sources of omega-3 are anchovies, herring, salmon, striped bass, sturgeon, sardines, mackerel (except king), rainbow trout, oysters, smelt and tuna. The magazine's experts caution consumers to pay attention to warnings about mercury levels in certain fish, particularly shark, swordfish and some tuna. There have been news reports of people, particularly children, suffering mercury poisoning as a result of daily diets of the same fish.
