A drug prevention specialist who works with teenagers suggests students are the best ambassadors of the “just say no” approach to drug use. Katie Brown meets with students and student athletes in schools in both Jasper and Polk Counties. “Students listen to other students a lot more than they listen to adults,” Brown says. Brown is warning parents and school administrators about so-called “pharm” parties where students take prescription drugs they’ve stolen from home, dump them all into a bowl, mix the pills up and then take out a handful.

“Which is very, very dangerous,” she says. “We know there are lots of side effects to those (prescription drugs).” A federal report issued this week found about two percent of teenagers surveyed in 2014 had abused prescription drugs. That continues a decline in the abuse of narcotic painkillers over the past decade. Smoking rates among teens are dropping as well. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health did find a drop in the number of teenagers who see marijuana use as dangerous.

(Radio Iowa)

As state health officials strive to make Iowa the nation’s healthiest state, a new study finds more than half of all Americans are either diabetic or pre-diabetic. Dr. ViJay Shivaswamy, an endocrinologist in Omaha-Council Bluffs, says 14-percent of study participants had the disease while another 38-percent were growing dangerously close. What does it mean to be pre-diabetic?

“Blood sugar numbers are not normal but it’s not high enough to be called diabetes,” Dr. Shivaswamy says. “It’s also a state where you are at risk for developing diabetes. If you don’t intervene at this point, then you have a very high likelihood of getting diabetes.” Heredity does play a role in developing diabetes but taking steps can help prevent further complications. Of the people surveyed who were deemed pre-diabetic, more than a third of them had not been diagnosed. He says people in that pre-diabetic category need to take action so it doesn’t escalate.

“You can exercise or do the nutrition but if you don’t actually get the weight loss, you don’t get the benefit of preventing diabetes,” Shivaswamy says. “It’s very important to, at least in the first six months to a year, target for 7% weight loss and increase your activity to at least target 150 minutes a week or 30 minutes a day.” Shivaswamy works at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. The study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

(Radio Iowa)

“Dealing with Life’s Little Leaks: Bladder Health as We Age” is the title of the next session of Healthy U series of events in Atlantic, set for Thursday, September 24th at noon, in Conference Room 2 at Cass County Health System. Kim Kopp, BSN, CWOCN, CFCN will present information about bladder health and incontinence.

Kim Kopp

Kim has worked at Cass County Health System for 32 years, and she has been a certified Wound, Ostomy, Continence (WOC) Nurse for 20 years. WOC nurses provide direct care to people with abdominal stomas, wounds, fistulas, drains, pressure ulcers, and/or continence disorders.

Healthy U is a free educational series offered by Cass County Health System that focuses on a different health topic each month. Attendees receive a healthy sack lunch in addition to an educational program presented by medical professionals. Future topics will include medications, nutrition and diabetes.

For more information, or to make a reservation for the September 24th Healthy U, call 712-243-7479.

The City Administrator in Atlantic reports “In order to follow precedent on interviews and remain transparent,” he has “scheduled a full Council meeting for the City Attorney Interviews.” John Lund says the City Council will meet 6-p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22nd in the Council’s Chambers at City Hall, and, after approving the agenda, go into a closed session for the purpose of conducting interviews with the three candidates being considered for City Attorney.  Once the interviews are completed, the Council will return to their chambers and adjourn for the evening.

During the Council’s regular session on Wednesday (Sept. 16th), they discussed, but took no action on the appointment of a City Attorney, the search for which began early last month after Jamie Arnold announced his resignation. The City’s Personnel and Finance Committee declined to make a recommendation to the Council on the three applicants for the job, choosing instead to let the Council discuss the matter first.

After some discussion, the Council decided to let the Personnel and Finance Committee take written questions from the Council for each of the candidates, with members of the Council sitting in on the interview process with the Committee as observers.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports a Tabor an was arrested Thursday evening on a warrant charging him with animal abuse. 30-year old Andrew David Ethofer was being held in the Mills County Jail on $2000 bond.

And, 30-year old Jennifer Lee Norton, of Bellevue, NE, was arrested Thursday afternoon for Possession of Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Her bond was set at $1,300.