WASHOUGAL, Wash. — Coal had been transported around the country by rail for decades before the recent push to bring it by train to ports in the Northwest.
And yet, scientists don’t really know how much coal dust could escape from rail cars, how far it might travel, and what coal-borne mercury and other contaminants might do to aquatic life.
With the permitting process moving forward for two large coal terminals in Washington, a team of scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey is trying to find out how the chemicals in coal might interact with the environment.
“We really don’t know what the effects are and whether it is an issue,” says Bob Black, a scientist with the USGS.
Black is the lead scientist on the new study, which has him squelching through the muck at the Steigerwald Wildlife Refuge near Washougal, Washington. The refuge is sandwiched between the Columbia River to the south, and train tracks to the north.
Black and his team are gathering data for a first-of-its kind scientific study of coal and its potential impacts on wetland ecosystems. As he sloshes through the shallow marsh’s waters to plant minnow traps, Black says he knows that he’s also wading into a controversial issue.
“There are communities that are economically interested in this and then there are suggested environmental impacts and ultimately I can have my own personal views but I can’t let those come into play and essentially that’s our role. We can’t let that be part of our science,” Black says.
The team fans out across the marsh as a BNSF Railway train screeches along tracks less than a quarter-mile away. This train is not hauling coal. Right now, roughly one coal train per day travels along the Columbia River before turning north and following the shoreline of Puget Sound to service Canadian coal terminals. But if terminals are built in Longview and near Bellingham, that number could jump to more than 20 coal trains per day.
Some coal does escape from trains, as BNSF has testified publicly in the past. Environmental groups have sued BNSF Railway for violating the Clean Water Act by allowing coal and coal dust to escape from trains and get into waterways along tracks in the Northwest. A judge ruled this month in favor of local groups in Seward, Alaska after they sued a nearby coal terminal for similar Clean Water Act violations. However, supporters of coal exports have called the coal escapement issue a red herring, used by anti-coal environmental groups to spark public alarm.
Looking For Coal Clues
The USGS is gathering samples of muck, fish and insects from two sites in this wildlife refuge, one close to the tracks, the other farther away. The goal is to find out whether more mercury and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are showing up near the train tracks and how those contaminants are behaving in the environment.
Collin Eagles-Smith hunts for dragonfly larvae at Stiegerwald
Lake National Wildlife Refuge. Credit: Ashley Ahearn
Collin Eagles-Smith, an ecologist with USGS, stands thigh-deep in the marsh, net in hand. He’s sifting through handfuls of black muck, looking for dragonfly larvae. When he finds one, he opens his palm to display the specimen before putting it in a little plastic baggy to take back to the lab for analysis. Eagles-Smith says dragonflies can serve as vectors to transmit mercury contamination out of the aquatic environment and into land-based ecosystems because they feed on all kinds of plankton and other tiny organisms. When they grow up and fly out of the muck they are in turn eaten by birds, frogs, fish and other animals, potentially transferring mercury contamination up the food chain.
“So what we’re looking at is essentially, is there mercury in this dragonfly and then we’re going to be using a fairly sophisticated approach to fingerprint the isotope ratios of the mercury to see if we can say whether the mercury in this dragonfly was from coal dust,” he explains.
By comparing dragonfly larvae, sediment and fish samples from this site with those from another site farther from the tracks, the team hopes to see how far contamination from coal trains could travel. But Eagles-Smith says there are still a lot of questions about how active the mercury in coal might be if it gets into the environment. Mercury is believed to be inert and less harmful to the environment until it goes through a complex biological process known as mercury methylation.
“I like to think of it as activating the mercury, and it makes it more biologically available, more toxic. Do you smell that rotten egg smell?” Eagles-Smith asks from his mucky perch. “That is the smell of tiny organisms breaking down organic material. Those same organisms are the ones that take the mercury, the less toxic form of mercury, and convert it into the methyl mercury.”
Once it’s methylated, mercury has been shown to be a potent neurotoxin, Eagles-Smith explains. “It can influence stress hormones, thyroid hormones, and sex hormones so it can impact wildlife reproduction, fish behavior, their survival, their ability to hunt for prey or their ability to avoid predation.”
The unique rotten-egg decaying process that takes place in low-oxygen marshy environments like this means that wetlands could be hotspots for transforming inert mercury from coal into a more toxic and biologically-available form that can then make its way up the food chain, the scientists worry.
Emerging technology is helping scientists zoom in on more specific sources of mercury pollution in the environment. Mercury can travel in air pollution for thousands of miles. But scientists want to know if coal trains that pass through wetlands like this might serve as a sort of direct deposit of mercury pollution.
The USGS expects to have preliminary results within the next 6 months, though the researchers caution that this is a small sample size and more study is needed. The results will be shared with the state and federal agencies that are studying the environmental impacts of the two proposed coal terminals in the Northwest.
A story of weight loss, self-esteem and learning who you are beyond the scale
By Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
Jade Parks and her fiancé Leonardo Carela before her sleeve gastrectomy. Photo courtesy/ Jade Parks
TULALIP – On January 17, of this year, Tulalip tribal member Jade Parks was in Mexico, following a major surgery, she was 350 pounds and a dress size 26. She was alone except for her best friend and had just started a journey that would alter her life drastically to reveal a woman she never knew existed.
Growing up, Jade was always larger than her peers. Shopping in plus size stores became regular as she entered adulthood. She didn’t shy away from life despite her larger size, she learned to accommodate it instead. Yet as her weight continued to increase, her usual bubbly personality began to shrink, eventually leading to depression after years of losing and gaining weight. Something had to change.
Parks sought help from her tribal council to pay for a surgical procedure to help her lose weight. Due to a policy that required her to be experiencing two major health issues as a result of her weight, she was denied. She weighed over 300 pounds and suffered high blood pressure and sleep apnea. These did not qualify.
Despite being denied the monetary help, Parks was determined to lose weight. Through diet, exercise and enrollment as an outpatient in treatment for food addiction, Parks lost 73 pounds in 9 months. But it didn’t last. Parks eventually gained back the pounds she lost, plus seven more.
“It was extremely depressing. I was really sad and I didn’t know what I was going to do. You wake up in the morning not wanting to eat bad things, wanting to make good choices, wanting to work out and then you look in the mirror, and you just feel like a failure because of your weight. You think, how could I let myself get like this,” said Parks, about a typical day for her.
“It is hard. For plus size people, when you walk into the room everyone knows your issue. It is not something you can hide. I can’t hide my addiction. I can’t hide what my issue is, because it is the first thing you see when you see me, because it is my weight. A lot of times drug addicts can hide their substance abuse, people do not know that they abuse drugs. For us, as soon as we walk into a room, every single person is going to know and that makes it hard. It came basically down to: I can’t live like this anymore. I can’t live at being 350 pounds. I decided to pay for the weight loss surgery on my own, so I went to Mexico because it is cheaper.”
Although risks can be associated with medical treatment in other countries, Parks’ research led her to a private hospital and a surgical staff that she was comfortable with and she made plans to travel.
“I have never had surgery in my life before. I was worried about it, but I was more worried about not ever being able to have kids because of my weight,” said Parks, who developed polycystic ovary syndrome as a result of her weight, which caused her to stop menstruating.
Parks had a sleeve gastrectomy, which involves a portion of the stomach being separated and removed from the body. According to the Mayo Clinic, the “remaining section is formed into a tube-like structure. The smaller stomach cannot hold as much food. It also produces less of the appetite-regulating hormone ghrelin, which may lessen your desire to eat. However, sleeve gastrectomy does not affect absorption of calories and nutrients in the intestines.” This type of surgery, unlike other weight loss surgeries such as the gastric banding, is irreversible and still considered a relatively new procedure in America, meaning its long-term effects are still being evaluated.
Jade Parks, six months after her sleeve gastrectomy in January 2014. Photo courtesy/ Jade Parks
“People think that weight loss surgery is the easy way out, but I am here to say that it is not an easy way out. It is extremely hard, because you still battle cravings and wanting foods. I can eat about four bites of food and I am full,” said Parks, who had 80 percent of her stomach removed during the surgery and can only take quarter sized bites while
After her sleeve gastrectomy surgery in January 2014, which removed 80 percent of her stomach, Jade Park, with fiancé Leonardo Carela, has lost 131 pounds and wears a 14 pant size, at the time of the article.
eating.
“There are a lot of people who get weight loss surgery and abuse it. They stretch out their stomachs and gain the weight back. I have followed the diet from the doctor very strictly. For instance, you cannot eat and drink at the same time. You have to do it within half an hour of each other, and that’s because there is not enough room. If you do, it will stretch out your stomach,” explains Parks, who also cannot have carbonated beverages and will need to maintain the strict diet for the rest of her life.
Due to the diet’s strict portion control, Parks takes a regimen of vitamins to ensure she receives the proper amount of nutrients for her body, including choosing portion options that include the natural nutrients in them.
Weight loss surgery creates dramatic changes in physical appearance, causing unexpected emotional impacts in patients. These sudden changes often leave patients unprepared to cope with the lifestyle and dieting required following surgery, leading to a continuance or return to the eating habits that led to their weight gain. A majority of patients view weight loss surgery as a cure-all to their weight issues which can mislead them, resulting in unsuccessful weight loss. Patients considering weight loss surgery should consider the pros and cons related to the surgery and following it.
“You have to be careful because you are getting rid of one of your addictions,” said Parks, who was on a liquid diet the first month following her surgery. “That first month I was a wreck. I couldn’t smoke. I couldn’t workout and I couldn’t eat. Those are my vices. I did a lot of crying, a lot of sitting with my feelings and having to just deal with life. At the same time, it helped to prepare me for the rest of my weight loss journey, because I can’t continue to use food as my coping mechanism. It helped me learn to sit with my feelings and learn that feeling emotions is not going to kill you, and that you have to let yourself feel emotions.”
“My biggest fear about getting the weight loss surgery was that I would get the surgery and then I would regret it. There is nothing that I have experienced through this journey that has ever made me regret my surgery. It truly is the best decision I have made for myself,” said Parks, who has lost a total of 131 pounds at the time of this article.
Although weight loss surgery is not recommended for everyone, or may not be successful for everyone who has it, Parks explains that the nine months following her surgery has taught her more about herself than she ever expected.
“I have always known I am a strong woman, but now I truly believe it. To know that so many people get weight loss surgery and it just doesn’t work for them, it makes me feel stronger and gives me such a sense of pride to know have come this far. That I am able to follow the rules and stick to what I am supposed to and not throw up, is a huge thing. Now I don’t need a seat belt extender on an airplane. When I park really close to another car, I can squeeze out without my car door hitting the other car. I can fit into chairs. I can cross my legs. I have had to move my seat up in my car. I have been able to shop in non-plus size stores. Normal jewelry fits me,” said Parks about the little things she enjoys about her weight loss.
Before her sleeve gastrectomy surgery, Jade Parks weighed 350 pounds. Parks with her nephew Cyles Parks and niece Kerrigyn Parks shortly before her surgery. Photo courtesy/ Jade Parks
“You really have to know that this is something that you want and you are willing to make the sacrifices it takes to get it done, and do it the right way. A lot of people think they are ready because they are just tired of being big for so long, but it is a hard road. It is a good idea to be in therapy or something to help you through the journey, because when you can no longer use food as your coping mechanism, you need to be able to work through your emotions and whatever life is throwing at you. In the end it is worth it. I wouldn’t take it back for anything,” said Parks, who plans to continue her doctors’ diet plan, working out and living a healthier life.
“I am never going back to 350 pounds. I am never going to go back to a size 26. I am never going back to using food as a way to deal with life.”
Steelhead out-migrating from North Sound rivers appear to have better marine survival than steelhead smolts from South Sound, and researchers are studying salmon poisoning disease as a potential cause.
Salmon poisoning disease, or Nanophyetus salmincola, is best known as the parasite that can make dogs sick when they eat raw salmon. It also has been found to affect the swimming performance of infected salmonids, potentially reducing their marine survival.
Fish pathologist Martin Chen is studying steelhead smolts for the NWIFC as part of the Salish Sea Marine Survival Project. Chen is sampling steelhead from the Tahuya, Skagit, Snohomish, Green and Nisqually rivers.
“We thought Skagit and Snohomish would be negative for the parasite based on historical records, and that was true,” Chen said. “We found lots of heavily infected fish in the Green and Nisqually rivers. I can see the parasite even as I’m dissecting them. Parasite numbers are as high as 18,000 per gram of kidney tissue.”
Both of those results were expected, but Chen was surprised not to find the parasite in any of the 24 steelhead sampled from the Tahuya River in Hood Canal. The Tahuya is across the canal from the Skokomish River, which has Nanophyetus in at least three tributaries.
South Sound fish also have their marine survival challenged by swimming through the Tacoma Narrows and Point Defiance, and facing more predation from seals. To make a more even comparison, researchers placed infected South Sound fish and uninfected North Sound fish in the same saltwater environment to compare survival. After 90 days in saltwater tanks at the USGS Marrowstone Island Laboratory, both groups had the same high survival rate.
“The fish from the Green River are still heavily infected,” Chen said. “It’s possible that infected fish have some disadvantage and they’re less able to escape predators. They don’t just hit the salt water and roll over and die.”
Chen also is testing drugs that could eliminate the parasite from infected fish. Two drugs are being tested on small numbers of coho at the Nisqually Tribe’s Clear Creek Hatchery, with some coho getting a 24-hour bath of each drug, and other fish having a drug mixed in their food. None of the fish from this initial test will be released or eaten.
“If the drugs were effective and you were rearing fish in a parasite-positive environment, you could clean up a group of fish before releasing them,” Chen said. “You would no longer have to compare survival of fish between two river systems, making our studies more valid. In addition, being able to eliminate Nanophyetus before release could have a practical application for Northwest hatcheries.”
Most Americans are supposed to have health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. But up to 50,000 Alaska Natives and American Indians in Alaska are excused from the requirement. They have to apply for that lifetime exemption though. And the federal government is mishandling many of those applications.
The form Alaska Natives and American Indians need to fill out to get an exemption from the individual mandate.
Evelyn Burdick thought it would be easy to apply for her American Indian exemption. As a member of the Cherokee Nation, the Anchorage resident sees a doctor at the Alaska Native Medical Center. Burdick likes the care she gets there and has no plans to sign up for private insurance under Obamacare. So she sent an exemption application to the federal government almost as soon as it was available, on January 9th:
“I have yet to receive any correspondence from them back whatsoever. Not even to let me know they’ve received my application.”
Burdick is not alone. The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium has helped hundreds of Alaska Natives and American Indians in the state who have had problems with their exemption applications. The exemption is a simple six digit number applicants need for their tax forms to avoid paying a penalty ($95 dollars or 1% of income, whichever is greater) for not having health insurance. Monique Martin, with ANTHC, has been working with the federal government to resolve the problems:
“Every time we call it’s a bear with us sort of request but we’ve been bearing with them since February when we first started reporting issues and we are anxious for a resolution to this issue.”
The Federal government has fumbled the applications in several different ways. Martin works closely with three other people at ANTHC who all applied for the exemption for themselves. Martin’s exemption number came back with no problems. But her three colleagues were not so lucky:
“One of our coworkers received her letter twice, with two different exemption numbers for her and her kids. One received the wrong exemption… and another one is still waiting to hear on her application. So we’ve seen all the errors come to us, so we have real world examples that we can show the federal government.”
No one from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services was willing to do an interview for this story. In an e-mail, a spokesperson with the agency wrote that they are working to improve the process daily and committed to providing consumers with their exemption numbers in time for tax filing season. Martin says she’s cautiously optimistic that can happen:
“We are the squeaky wheel in Alaska and we’re really pushing the federal government to resolve this issue and to get this addressed for people so they aren’t negatively impacted.”
Martin worries about how the federal government will handle the rush of exemption applications as tax time approaches. She expects many Alaska Natives and American Indians haven’t even thought about sending in the application yet. Evelyn Burdick, who was proactive and applied early in the process, says the nine month long wait for a response has been frustrating:
“I don’t want to be penalized for not having the healthcare.gov insurance. I’m trying to follow the rules and regulations that healthcare.gov set up and they’re not making it any easier.”
Late last month, Monique Martin was able to get Burdick’s exemption number for her from a contact at the federal government. Burdick is happy to have the number, but she still wants to see it in writing. She says she has no idea when it will arrive in her mailbox, but at this rate she’s not expecting it any time soon.
This story is part of a reporting partnership between APRN, NPR and Kaiser Health News.
This is the first story in a series exploring the study of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) and the intersection of chronic health and addiction issues among American Indians. The series focuses upon contributing factors of disproportionately high ACE numbers in American Indians to disproportionately high substance abuse and behavioral and physical health issues. The underpinning historic, social, legal, political, and economic realities of American Indian tribes and members are ever present.
The ACE scientific breakthrough unexpectedly originated with an obesity clinic led in 1985 by Dr. Vincent Felitti, chief of Kaiser Permanente’s Department of Preventive Medicine, San Diego. He was mystified that over a five year period, despite their desperate yearning to lose weight, more than half of his obese patients dropped out. Then, in conducting interviews with those patients, he was shocked to discover that the majority had experienced childhood sexual trauma. That led to 25 years of research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Kaiser Permanente’s San Diego program. Their research resulted in a study that revealed adverse childhood experiences are strongly linked to major chronic illness, social problems, and early death.
According to the CDC, “the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study is one of the largest investigations ever conducted to assess associations between childhood maltreatment and later-life health and well-being.” It includes more than 17,000 Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) members who upon “undergoing a comprehensive physical examination chose to provide detailed information about their childhood experience of abuse, neglect, and family dysfunction. To date, more than 50 scientific articles have been published and more than 100 conference and workshop presentations have been made.”
The ACEs study considered three types of abuse–sexual, verbal and physical; five types of family dysfunction (mentally ill or alcoholic parent, mother as victim of domestic violence, an incarcerated family member, and loss of a parent through divorce or abandonment); and added emotional and physical neglect for a total of 10 types of adverse childhood experiences or ACEs. These are the ten categories utilized in today’s screening.
The CDC’s study uses the ACE Score, which is a total count of the number of ACEs reported by respondents. The ACE Score is used to assess the total amount of stress during childhood and has demonstrated that as the number of ACE increase, the risk for the following health problems increases in a strong and graded fashion:
Alcoholism and alcohol abuse
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
Depression
Fetal Death
Health-related quality of life
Illicit drug use
Ischemic heart disease (IHD)
Liver disease
Risk for intimate partner violence
Multiple sexual partners
Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)
Smoking
Suicide attempts
Unintended pregnancies
Early initiation of smoking
Early initiation of sexual activity
Adolescent pregnancy
The CDC said, “It is critical to understand how some of the worst health and social problems in our nation can arise as a consequence of adverse childhood experiences. Realizing these connections is likely to improve efforts towards prevention and recovery.”
The ACEs study and others specifically focused upon the American Indian community provide information and support for those struggling to overcome ACEs by building resilience–competencies and supports that enable individuals, families, and communities to recover from adversity.
A 2009-2010 statewide study of the Prevalence of 6-8 ACEs among Washington adults ages 18-44 found ACEs to be common among Washington adults with 62 percent having at least one ACE category, 26 percent having 3 categories; and 5 percent having 6 categories. Of interest to Tulalip, the study found Snohomish County among the group scoring two lower than the median.
State research shows part of the key to overcoming ACEs is building both individual and community resiliency and some have suggested a move from technical problem solving to adaptive. Some of the discussions around improving coherence of systems will be explored in subsequent stories.
It is generally understood that ACE scores between 4 and 10 can explain why we have chronic disease or identify those at risk for developing chronic diseases. It’s been said that knowing our ACEs score is as important as knowing our cholesterol scores. Knowing can help us take steps to change or prevent behavior likely to result in disease and it can help us to prevent it in our children as well to ensure their healthy development. It can help communities to address often-taboo issues to begin healing from trauma as well as to build resilient communities.
An Indian Health Service (IHS) report, “Trends in Indian Health,” finds American Indians are 638% more likely to suffer from alcoholism compared to the rest of the U.S. population.It is no secret that alcohol and substance abuse is a prevalent tragic reality destroying loved ones and communities in Indian Country. Every one has been touched by its pain. Yet, despite herculean efforts to address it through a wide variety of treatment options, American Indian communities feel at a loss when traditional treatment too often fails.
According to the National Indian Health Board (NIHB), “behavioral health” is an “integrated, interdisciplinary system of care related to mental health and substance use disorders that approaches individuals, families, and communities as a whole and addresses the interactions between psychological, biological, socio-cultural, and environmental factors.”
In recent years, there has been a general shift toward more holistic treatment of health issues; but, particularly in Indian Country with a prevalence of multigenerational trauma issues, practitioners find it more effective. American Indians struggling with addiction and/or mental health issues generally find the infusion of traditional cultural and spiritual practice makes treatment more accessible for them. Perhaps a basis for this is found in the relatively new science of epigenetics. Could it be that traditional treatment methods are especially insufficient for American Indians?
In the report, “A Framework to Examine the Role of Epigenetics in Health Disparities among Native Americans,” the authors affirm, “Native Americans disproportionately experience ACEs and health disparities, significantly impacting long-term physical and psychological health.” In addition to these experiences, the persistence of stress associated with discrimination and historical trauma converges to add immeasurably to these challenges.” [Teresa N. Brockie, Morgan Heinzelmann, and Jessica Gill, “A Framework to Examine the Role of Epigenetics in Health Disparities among Native Americans,” Nursing Research and Practice, vol. 2013, Article ID 410395, 9 pages, 2013. doi:10.1155/2013/410395]
Harvard researchers, neurobiologist Martin Teicher and pediatrician Jack Shonkoff, and neuroscientist Bruce McEwen at Rockefeller University, report, “Childhood trauma causes adult onset of chronic disease.” They determined that “the toxic stress of chronic and severe trauma damages a child’s developing brain. It essentially stunts the growth of some parts of the brain, and fries the circuits with overdoses of stress hormones in others.”
Washington has been a leader in research and education on ACEs on state government and foundation levels. Laura Porter, formerly served as director of ACE Partnerships for the Washington Department of Social and Health Services, but now directs the ACEs Learning Institute for the Foundation for Healthy Generations (FHG), founded in 1974. FHG, formerly Comprehensive Health Education Foundation, has a 40-year history of providing social and emotional learning tools in schools to prevent youth substance abuse, support self-esteem, anti-bullying and other kinds of related social-emotional tools for teachers. This past year, the board decided to include ACEs in its strategic plan and hired Porter to direct the program.
Porter oversees analysis of ACEs & resilience data and works with local and state leaders to “imbed developmental neuroscience and resilience findings into policy, practice, and community norms.” It would be exciting to see some coordination with tribes whose members are disproportionately affected.
This past year, Porter conducted a webinar on the “Science of ACEs and the Potential Role of Public Health in Addressing Them.” She found that only about one-third of her audience had an ACE-informed public health initiative. She hopes to help local jurisdictions to learn how to apply the science in their work.
In her presentation, Porter explained, “Health equity occurs when the distribution of determinants of health are fairly spread across the population,” and added, “When the determinants of health are unevenly spread in ways that we could have prevented, then we have health inequity.” She argues that “ACEs are one of the most powerful drivers of health inequity of our times and maybe of all times. And for that reason, taking a public health approach is critical to solving this problem and bringing about the conditions for enduring health equity for our nation and throughout the world.”
Porter noted that the neuroscientists “working on impacts of toxic stress on development tell us that people who grew up in very dangerous periods of time have increased levels of stress hormones and neurotransmitters in their blood stream at sensitive developmental times.” Accordingly, that effects both their brain development and the expression of their genetics. That is affirmed in a new field called epigenetics. [Epigenetics is the study of changes in gene expression caused by certain base pairs in DNA, or RNA, being “turned off” or “turned on” again, through chemical reactions].
According to Porter, people who grow up in adversity and a lot of danger in sensitive developmental years can generate typical kinds of characteristics. She said, “They can be more hyper-vigilant, more hyper-responsive, quick to anger, and slow to soothe. They can be very mission-focused and have a hard time taking advantage of the array of opportunities that might pop up around them. They can have a very small amount of stress and end up feeling like a major crisis in their lives. So, they’re actually responding differently to the moment by moment reality based on the adaptation they had during childhood.”
Conversely, she noted that people who grow up in very safe environments also develop typical characteristics. They might be more relationship-oriented, more likely to talk things through even when action may be more appropriate.
The important teaching from neuroscience is that both tracks are adaptations. “In both cases, people are adapting to danger or they’re adapting to a safe childhood, either way they’re helping a species to survive,” said Porter. She added, “Society has developed great accommodations for helping people who grew up in very safe environments navigate more dangerous times. We have stranger danger, we have martial arts, we have lots of public education campaigns, etc.”
Importantly, and most applicable to Indian Country, Porter goes on to emphasize that we have not yet “created the kinds of programming that can help to accommodate people who grew up in very dangerous times so they can navigate a more peaceful adulthood well. And that’s really one of the big challenges of our times, to develop those accommodations at every level of public health.”
Because American Indians are disproportionately affected by violence and the ten factors identified in ACEs, it makes sense that the community is disproportionately impacted by the related disorders.
Porter stressed the importance of looking at the determinants of health and how science is applied as well as paying attention to ACEs in terms of the life course. She emphasized the “Role of Time and the “life course approach that recognizes the role of time in shaping health outcomes.” Different kinds of supports are more meaningful in different times of life.
Sherry Guzman, Mental Health Manager, Tulalip Family Services Photo/Julie Corley
Asked if Tulalip Tribes had conducted any research on ACEs, Sherry Guzman, Mental Health Manager in the Family Services Department, said Tulalip Tribes was one of a handful of tribes that agreed to participate in a statewide network a few years ago. She said, “Most tribes were very leery at first, but I went forward with it because I saw the value of it. It enabled me to see the difference in average of WA State versus Tulalip Tribes. I like the ACEs model because it gives a base to compare something to.”
Guzman noted that Tulalip conducted a sampling test, but the findings are clinical information, so she was unable to discuss it. However, she noted that she “was really amazed at the results,” which is not unlike responses in non-Indian communities as well.
The Behavioral Health Department is continuing its work and has scheduled an all-staff information and training session at the administration building on September 17 at 9:00 am. Asked if her department has planned any community educational sessions, Guzman said it would come later after the staff becomes better educated.
Guzman, a Tulalip tribal member, earned an MSW, and she has worked for the Tulalip Tribes for nearly twenty years, beginning on October 20, 1995. She has 8 children, 35 grandchildren, and 16 great-grandchildren. “I am very blessed,” said Guzman. Guzman added that the Tulalip Tribes are “state licensed for our chemical dependency, gambling, and mental health programs.” She noted that the department has a brochure and website that are nearly ready to be published.
As mentioned, several studies have documented the validity of ACEs testing and its value to healing in American Indian communities. Of course, privacy and anonymity must be assured.
Subsequent stories will also consider federal government obligation to American Indian health; personal interviews, treatment experts; and finally, the series will explore the potential of ACEs science and education in prevention and for building individual and community resiliency for American Indian people and tribes.
Kyle Taylor Lucas is a freelance journalist and speaker. She is a member of The Tulalip Tribes and can be reached at KyleTaylorLucas@msn.com / Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kyletaylorlucas / 360.259.0535 cell
Mr. Electric® has tips to Safely Operate generators
WACO, Texas (Sept. 3, 2014) – September is National Safety Preparedness Month and Mr. Electric wants homeowners to be able to safely use generators when power outages occur. Generators are helpful when temporary power is necessary, but there are hazards that come with using electric generators. Mr. Electric has tips to keep homeowners safe and better prepared to use generators for when disaster strikes or the need arises.
Mr. Electric wants to remind homeowners that permanently placed standby electric generators should be installed by a licensed electrician. Portable generators are used often and these tips should be considered when doing so.
Shock and electrocution
Never directly connect a generator to the electrical system of a home or office.
Attaching it directly to the home without a proper transfer switch installed by a qualified, licensed electrician can cause the wire to be energized for a long distance. This could put workers and others in the area at risk of electrocution.
Protect the generator from the elements
Keep the generator dry
If necessary, protect the generator with a canopy. Never use the generator in wet or rainy weather or manipulate the electrical components if you are in standing water. Correctly storing and maintaining generators will prolong the life of the unit.
Carbon Monoxide (CO2) poisoning
Never use a generator indoors.
Carbon Monoxide is a toxic gas that is colorless and odorless, and can pose a threat when allowed to build up in an enclosed space. Opening windows and doors may not prevent Carbon Monoxide from building up and are not adequate ventilation. Generators should only be operated outside and at a safe distance from housing structures.
Fire Hazards
Before refueling, shut down generator and allow it to cool.
Generators get hot while running and will remain hot for a period after being shut down. Generator fuels can ignite after coming in contact with hot generator parts. Allow the generator to shut and cool down before adding fuel.
Being aware of the inherent hazards of electric generators will help prevent harmful situations. These tips from Mr. Electric will keep homeowners safe while operating permanently placed and portable generators.
About Mr. Electric®:
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MARYSVILLE — The Marysville School District was visited by the Nick of Time Foundation at Marysville Getchell High School.
The school district was on the wait list for three years, and they decided that the MG campus would be the best meeting ground for Marysville students this week.
Nick of Time aims to raise awareness of sudden cardiac arrest, the leading cause of death in young people during exercise.
Nick of Time travels to various schools in Washington to promote its message.
“Kids need to know that their hearts are healthy,” executive director Darla Varentti said.
Varentti’s son, Nicholas “Nicky” Varrenti, was a victim of sudden cardiac arrest. The 16-year-old was a standout football player for Mill Creek High School in 2004, but died of sudden cardiac arrest in his sleep.
The foundation was started in 2006 to educate students and schools about the risk and procedures dealing with sudden cardiac arrest.
Students from MG, Marysville-Pilchuck and Tulalip Heritage were scanned for potential heart defects, trained in CPR and the use of the automated external defibrillators.
“The AED is the only thing that can save you during a cardiac arrest,” Varrenti said.
Doctors use an echograph and sonograph to look for electrical and structural anomalies in the heart that could trigger a cardiac arrest.
“You can’t just hear it,” Varrenti said. “You have to see it.”
“I got to talk to a doctor, and I want to be one someday so that’s really cool,” M-P senior David Gloyd said. “And I learned to do CPR.”
Varrenti was pleased with the turnout.
“It’s been great. We’re really happy,” Varrenti said. “We had close to 400 kids today.”
WASHINGTON, August 21, 2014 – Agriculture Under Secretary Kevin Concannon today announced additional tools to help schools serve healthier meals and snacks as students return for the new school year.
The announcement includes $5.7 million in Team Nutrition grants to state agencies administering the National School Lunch and Child and Adult Care Food Programs. The grants will help states expand and enhance training programs that help schools encourage kids to make healthy choices. Several states will use the grants to increase the number of schools implementing Smarter Lunchroom strategies, which are methods for encouraging kids to choose healthy foods that were developed by child nutrition experts. Research has shown these strategies successfully lead to healthier choices among students. USDA is also funding 2,500 toolkits to provide school districts with the resources they need to take advantage of research on Smarter Lunchroom strategies.
In addition, USDA is re-launching the HealthierUS School Challenge, a voluntary program which provides financial awards to schools that choose to take steps to encourage kids to make healthy choices and be more physically active. All schools participating in the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program have the option to participate in HUSSC. Schools earning HUSSC designation receive a financial award, ranging from $500 to $2,000, based on the level of achievement.
“We’re committed to supporting schools who want to ensure students head back to a healthier school environment this fall,” said Concannon. “Parents, teachers, and school nutrition professionals want the best for their children, and want to provide them with proper nutrition so that they can learn and grow into healthy adults. USDA is proud to support the Smarter Lunchroom movement that provides schools with practical, evidence-based tools that they can use to help their students have a healthier school day.”
Smarter Lunchrooms, developed by the Cornell Center for Behavioral Economics in Child Nutrition Programs (BEN) Center and funded in part by the USDA, is a set of best practices that have been shown to help encourage kids to make healthy choices. By using environmental cues such as better product placement and using creative names for healthier foods, these practical, research-based techniques increase student selection of healthier items and reduce plate waste. By changing the display and placement of fruit, for example, the researchers saw a doubling of sales. Similarly, creative naming and display of vegetables increased selection by 40 to 70 percent. Concannon said the Smarter Lunchroom strategies are also being incorporated into the criteria for HealthierUS School Challenge.
The new support for schools announced today builds on a number of resources that USDA has provided to help schools provide students with healthier food options, including technical assistance, resource materials, and $522 million in grants and additional reimbursements. More than 90 percent of schools report that they are successfully meeting those nutrition standards, which were based on recommendations from pediatricians and other child health experts at the Institute of Medicine. Research has shown that a majority of students like the healthier meals and that the standards have successfully increased consumption of fruits and vegetables. New Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards implemented this school year will offer students more whole grains, fruits and vegetables, leaner protein, lower-fat dairy – while decreasing foods with excessive amounts of added sugar, solid fats, and sodium.
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service administers 15 nutrition assistance programs. In addition to NSLP and SBP, these programs include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the Summer Food Service Program, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) which together comprise America’s nutrition safety net. For more information, visit www.fns.usda.gov.
OLYMPIC — Olympic National Forest has announced four dates on which permits for commercial salal collection will be sold.
The dates are Sept. 10, Nov. 5, Jan. 7 and March 18 at the Forks, Quinault, and Quilcene district offices.
Salal is an understory shrub commonly used in the floral industry.
It grows in dense thickets throughout Western Washington and Oregon.
A total of 100 permits will be available on each of the sale days, divided among different harvest areas.
Each permit will cost $150 and can be used for up to two months.
On each sale day, 50 permits will be offered from the Quilcene office for harvest areas located within Mason County and the east side of Clallam and Jefferson counties.
Twenty-five permits will be offered from the Forks office for the west side of Clallam County.
Twenty-five permits will be offered from the Lake Quinault office for harvest areas within Grays Harbor County and the west side of Jefferson County.
Harvest unit boundaries are defined by roads or recognizable land features. A map of the harvest areas will be distributed with the sale of each permit.
Permit holders will be limited to no more than 200 hands per day. One hand equals about 20 to 25 stems.
The Forest Service recommends that salal harvesters wear at least one piece of high-visibility clothing while in the woods.
A lottery system will be used if the demand for permits exceeds the supply.
A valid United States picture identification will be required at the time of purchase, and those buying the permits must be at least 18 years of age.
Cash or checks only will be accepted; credit and debit cards will not be accepted.
Only one permit may be purchased per person per sale day.
For more information about salal permit sales, phone Chris Dowling, special forest products program manager, at 360-956-2272.
