Women's Health Issues Spark New Resolutions at MOPS

Although New Year's Day was nearly four months ago, our moms were encouraged to renew their health-related resolutions at our Health Talk at MOPS on March 16th. It turns out that eating right and working out regularly do more than keep women trim and fit. Diet and exercise can save lives by possibly preventing colon cancer and heart disease.

Our first guest speaker Margo Minissian informed us that more women die of heart disease than men in our country. Margo is a Cardiology Nurse Practitioner at the Women's Heart Center of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Half of women don't have any symptoms at all. In fact, the #1 symptom of a woman having a heart attack is excessive fatigue, something easily dismissed by ER doctors. "This is why prevention is key," said Margo, "It's all about prevention, about really listening to your body." Everyone should get screened for cholesterol starting at age 18, earlier if you have a family history of heart disease. Pay attention not only to your total cholesterol, which should be less than 200, but also to the individual numbers. Your LDL (bad cholesterol) should be 100 or less; if you're diabetic, it should be 70. Your HDL (good cholesterol) should be over 50 for women. The best ways to achieve these numbers are through diet and exercise. "We can reduce heart disease by 80% by the way we eat." Margo recommended eating lots of fish, no sugar, limiting carbs (make them brown), getting 5-7 servings of fruits and vegetables a day, using canola or olive oil, and consuming low-fat milk products. With exercise, the goal is 30 minutes a day. You can break it down to 10 minutes 3 times a day, just make sure you are slightly winded during exercise to get the full benefits. If you eat right and exercise, but you still have high LDL, Margo recommends getting tested and using cholesterol-lowering drugs if necessary. To find more information, check out www.cedars-sinai.edu or contact Margo at minissianm@cshs.org.

Colon cancer is the #3 killer of women in the U.S. This is one of the reasons why Dr. AnaMaria Garza, M.D., of the Colorectal Surgery Institute at Glendale Memorial Hospital, spoke to us about the importance of a healthy colon. Polyps can form in the colon during your lifetime. A polyp takes three years to form, and these polyps can turn into cancer within 12 years. In fact, 30% of 50 year olds have polyps in their colon. This is why it important to have colon cancer screenings once you are 50 years old. (If you have a family history of colon cancer, or have had associated cancers such as endometrial, ovarian, gastric, you may need to be screened at an earlier age.) Colonoscopies can prevent colon cancer, because polyps are removed during the process. 

She recommended the following steps for a healthy colon:

Be active

Stop smoking

Choose a high fiber/low fat diet and avoid red meats

Supplement your diet with calcium, low dose aspirin, folic acid and vitamins

Minimize your alcohol intake


Dr. Garza also explained a little about hemorrhoids, irritable bowel syndrome, and clinical constipation.  She said that usually people go to the doctor complaining of pain, thinking they have hemorrhoids.  But hemorrhoids don't hurt, so patients need to be questioned and examined.  Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is diagnosed when it occurs 12 weeks in a 12 month period.  Patients must have two out of three symptoms: abdominal pain/discomfort relieved only when they go to the bathroom, onset is associated with a change in frequency and abnormal stool consistency.  Clinical constipation must have all of the following symptoms: bowel movements (b.m.) less than three times a week, difficulty when you try to relieve yourself, and feeling like you're not empty after a b.m.


In addition, Dr. Garza gave the following advice if you think you may have a problem: Be aware of your symptoms. Get checked. Most problems can be treated easily if caught early. Don't be afraid or embarrassed to take care of yourself! For more details about colorectal cancer screening and prevention, visit www.colorectalsurgeryinstitute.org or find them on Facebook at csiatgmhfacebook.com.

We played two energizing Minute to Win It Games at MOPS. The first involved dropping a CD so that it landed flat on a paper coffee cup sitting on the floor. This was much harder than it seemed! For the second game, all the ladies had to bring their shoes up to the front of the room and return to their seats. Then, after the shoes were mixed into a couple of big piles, we had to find our own shoes, put them on, and run back to our seats. Gina's table won the CD game; Sona's table won the shoe game. Both tables received a complimentary goody bag of Rodan + Fields skin care samples from sponsor Amie Hanrahan, an R+F consultant. (see MTWI Sponsor Page for more details.)

Don't miss our next MOPS meeting on March 30th, where we will break up into small groups to attend two of four available workshops. Mentor Mom Alice will teach moms to crochet a circular scarf; Dene, a chiropractor, fitness instructor and fellow MOPS Mom, will talk about health and fitness; Kari Roth will show us how to decorate cookies; and Jayme will lead a discussion about Redeeming Conversations. 

POPS and GPOPS Panel Chat about Parenting

The moms at MOPS got great parenting tips and stories from Pops and Grandpops of Preschoolers at our last meeting.  We also learned a little bit about Love Languages, enjoyed a couple of games and knotted colorful fleece blankets for charity that day (see pics below).

Our all-male panel consisted of Keegan Lenker (our coordinator's significant other), Bud Weatherby (Mentor Mom Rosie's hubby), John Fong (our MOP Lyda's husband), and Joe Whitcomb, the onsite marriage counselor at PazNaz.  Moms asked these guys pertinent questions about parenting, and got the male perspective of family, parenthood, and discipline.  Some examples follow:

How do you balance household responsibilities?  
In one home, the shopping is done by the husband and done as much as possible to help at home.  One couple sets up a chore score and decide mutually who does what.  A score is set for each chore based on how long each chore should take.  Then the couple splits the chores so that each has the same total score for the week.  Another family bases their chores on personality differences, and divides the labor accordingly.  Talk to each other about what your needs are rather than criticizing each other, and go from there.

What does a man need to hear in order to feel he have his wife's support and encouragement?  
The dads brought up the Five Love Languages, written by Gary Chapman.  The five languages are Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Gifts, Physical Touch, and Acts of Service.  They explain how a particular person expresses love and what actions make him/her feel loved.  A couple should discover what each other's top two love languages are and try to speak each other's love languages.

When is a good time to talk about issues or problems?
Schedule a specific time to connect to your spouse, instead of confronting him/her unexpectedly.

How to you bridge the gap between parenting styles?
Talk about it at a good time.  Listen, understand, and validate your spouse's perspective.  Remember that you are partners; where your spouse lacks, you can pick up and vice-versa.

What bothers you most at the end of the weekend?
Being busy, but not being able to actually spend quality family time.  Too many things, like birthday parties, to go to during weekends.  Too many sports, schedules too much pressure.

How do you make more quality time in your lives?
Try to do one sport or activity at a time for the kids.  Have a family meeting once a week where you talk as a family, and state your highs and lows of the week, speak an affirmation to each family member ("I appreciate that you..."), play a game, and end your meeting in prayer.  Another way to have quality time, is to make sure that Mom and Dad each have some time to him/herself during the week.


We will focus on women's health issues at our next MOPS meeting on March 16.  Our speakers for the day will be Dr. AnaMaria McElrath-Garza, who will talk to us about colorectal health; and Margo Minissian, a nurse at the Women's Heart Center at Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute and an assistant clinical professor at UCLA School of Nursing, who will discuss heart health for women.