WARM UP:

One Joke: 

Question: What you call a bone specialist from Egypt? 🦴 

Answer: A Cairopractor!

One Fact: 

Only about 3 in 10 U.S. adults (34%) have confidence in the American medical system, according to Gallop.

One Quote:

"Sow a thought and you reap an action; sow an action and you reap a habit; sow a habit and you reap a character; sow a character and you reap a destiny." 

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

One Guess…Name That Disease: (Answer at bottom)

• Description:  Highly contagious bacterial infection of the skin mainly affecting infants and children. Typically caused by group A Streptococcus and Staphylococcus aureus.

• Signs and Symptoms:  Symptoms usually occur about 10 days after exposure.  Causes red sores that form around the mouth and nose but can also affect the limbs.  The sores rupture, ooze, and form a yellow brown crust (“honey-colored” scab).

• Treatment:  Topical or oral antibiotics.

• Prognosis:  Serious complications rare. 

• Prevention: Good hand and wound hygiene.  Regular washing of clothes.  Avoid hot tubs, pools, natural bodies of water if you have an open skin lesion.

HEALTHCARE HEADLINES:

** Obamacare is back in the news again after former President Trump said he would renew efforts to replace the law if he wins a second term.  The ACA’s protections for people with pre-existing conditions have remained popular with 79% of Americans, including 66% of Republicans.

** Health care jobs continue to grow.  Home health aids, registered nurses, health services managers, nurse practitioners, and medical assistants are expected to be among the fastest growing jobs in the county over the next decade.

TOGETHER WITH FULTON:

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WATER COOLER WONDERS…the stuff we found interesting this week:

** Tribute:  Former first lady Rosalynn Carter passed away at the age of 96.  Read the heartwarming love letter President Jimmy Carter wrote her 75 years ago:

** Tweet: On the other end of the affection spectrum, DK Metcalf knows how to talk trash…in sign language!  

FOCUS ON HEALTH:

We all know that salads are good for us.  The main reason is the leafy greens that form the base of the salad.  Greens are high in dietary nitrates, which have been found to have benefits on cardiovascular disease.

One Danish study showed that people who ate just one cup of nitrate-rich vegetables had a 26% lower chance of getting heart disease!

So, are all greens created equally?  Not quite.  Check out this excellent review article that ranks greens based on nutritional value. Here are the rankings of some of your favorite greens:

• Kale (#1)

• Spinach (#2)

• Collard Greens (#7)

• Romaine (#9)

• Lettuce (#10)

• Arugula (#13)

• Iceberg Lettuce (#14)

So why is kale the king of greens? 

1 cup of kale has 93 filling calories (on the high end) but contains 19% of your daily requirement of Vitamin A (good for vision, reproductive system, cardiovascular system), 23% of vitamin C (growth, immunity), 400% of your necessary Vitamin K (clotting, bone health), and 14% of your daily calcium (bone health). 

Unfortunately, popular greens like arugula and iceberg lettuce are very low in the same essential nutrients and should be chosen sparingly in your daily salads.

THANKS FOR READING!

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DISEASE ANSWER: Impetigo