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Free cessation clinic offered
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Wellness
Wednesday will honor Healthy Lung Awareness Month from 10 a.m. to 1
p.m., Oct. 7 (Ashley River Tower) and Oct. 21 (Children’s Hospital
lobby). Flu shots will offered beginning Oct. 21 during Wellness
Wednesday.
American Lung Association
Few may know that lung disease is the third leading cause of death in
the United States, and lung cancer kills more men and women than any
other form of cancer.
Founded in 1904, American Lung Association (ALA) is the oldest
voluntary health organization in the United States. Several programs in
the Lowcountry support ALA’s mission of saving lives by improving lung
health and preventing lung disease; including advocacy efforts for
clean indoor and outdoor air, asthma education programs for adults and
children, smoking cessation clinics, lung disease research, lung
disease support groups, and our overnight camp for children with asthma
called Camp Puff ‘n Stuff.
ALA offers a free smoking cessation clinic online. Visit
http://www.lungusa.org and click “Quit Smoking” at the top of the page.
Scroll down to FFS (Freedom from Smoking) Online.
Did you know that Charleston received an “F” for its outdoor air
quality? Or that asthma is the leading cause of hospitalization of
children in South Carolina? ALA is working hard to clean up indoor and
outdoor air. To be added to ALA's advocacy e-mail list, e-mail
rdowns@lungsc.org.
To bring awareness to air quality, a Fight for Air Run/Walk will be
held Oct. 31 at Folly Beach. Dress up in your Halloween costume, and
enjoy food and fun provided by Locklear’s after the 5K. Awards will be
given to the top racers and the best costumes.
For more information call 556-8451 or visit http://www.asthma5k.org.
MUSC respiratory therapists
During Wellness Wednesday, Respiratory Care Service will provide
spirometry screening and pulse oximetry for employees. Pulse oximetry
provides information about how well oxygen is delivered to the tissues,
and spirometry will provide an assessment of the lungs and thorax.
Abnormalities in lung function may lead your physician to order further
testing. Interested employees will need to answer several
questions to ensure the short screening tests are necessary.
Massage therapists
Did you know that massage therapy helps the body as a whole? Massage
can benefit the respiratory system by reducing your respiration rate by
relaxing the thoracic muscles; strengthening respiratory muscles and
decreasing the sensation of shortness of breath; and improving
pulmonary function by increasing the capacity to utilize oxygen during
inhalation and exhalation
Dietetic interns present the Portion Distortion Quiz Game (Oct. 21 only)
Americans’ portion sizes have nearly doubled in the last decade, which
has led to high rates of obesity and chronic disease. MUSC’s dietetic
interns will have an interactive game where employees will pour what
they think is a serving of certain foods, and will then compare that to
a measured serving. A drawing and serving size visuals will be
featured.
Editor's
note: The preceding column was brought to you on behalf of Health 1st.
Striving to bring various topics and representing numerous employee
wellness organizations and committees on campus, this weekly column
seeks to provide MUSC, MUHA and UMA employees with current and helpful
information concerning all aspects of health.
Friday, Oct. 2, 2009
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