Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, November 21, 1995 TAG: 9511210058
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SANDRA BROWN KELLY
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Thye will talk about what some studies are revealing about food intake. He has been the principal or co-investigator for about a dozen metabolic studies over the past 15 years. Almost all of the studies are related to the effect of diet on blood lipids. Recent studies using hamsters examined the effects of fiber, omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) and exercise.
Thye (pronounced Tee) has been at Tech since 1969. He did his undergraduate work at Iowa State University and his graduate work at Cornell University.
The audience is encouraged to bring lunch and eat while listening. A politically correct menu, endorsed by Thye, would be sliced turkey breast on whole wheat with a slice of lettuce or tomato and a teaspoon of mustard or mayonnaise (low-fat would be kind of nice). Add some fruit, a low-fat cracker or two, some carrot or celery sticks, plus an apple or orange or a banana.
Thye recommends low-fat milk to wash it down, but the center probably will offer soft drinks. To reserve a seat for the free event, call 857-7900.
Type II diabetes
Diabetes that requires daily insulin shots, identified as Type I, is an obvious cause for concern. But Dr. James Gavin III, senior scientific officer at The Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Chevy Chase, Md. said Type II diabetes is a growing problem.
He joined Dr. Richard Eastman of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases in Bethesda recently for a telephone media briefing on the increase in Type II diabetes.
It affected about 1 percent of the population in 1958 and affects 3 percent of the population now, Gavin said.
The complications from this kind of diabetes are controllable, he said, if people would take it seriously. The way some people describe it as a ``touch of sugar'' is an indication that Type II diabetes isn't given the attention it should get, he said.
Once people get diagnosed and learn they don't have to take insulin, they take a non-urgent approach to dealing with the diabetes, Gavin said. They put off measuring blood sugar and delay dietary changes that could normalize blood glucose levels and control the disease.
It's a subtle disease because people can have it in the early stages and not know it because symptoms are not severe enough.
``It makes you drink more and urinate more, but most people tolerate those conditions well,'' Eastman said.
Type II diabetes is a public-health issue, but full population screening is not cost effective yet, he said. The chances of getting Type II are increased by a sedentary lifestyle, smoking and obesity, which means leading a healthy lifestyle is good protection.
Some doctors don't test for glucose tolerance, which will reveal the Type II. Also, some insurance companies don't pay for the test, thereby discouraging it.
It's about a $20 test, Eastman said.
AIDS benefit
A holiday benefit to raise money for persons with AIDS will be held Dec. 3 at 3 p.m. in the Radisson Patrick Henry. It is sponsored by Sisters In the Name of Love of the Roanoke Valley Inc. Tickets are on sale at Phoenix Rising bookstore or through the Sisters group at 982-1124. The event will include educational speakers, a buffet and entertainment.
As of June 30, the Southwest Virginia region had 620 persons with AIDS and another 652 who had tested positive for HIV, according to the AIDS Council of Western Virginia.
by CNB