Although over 3 million New Yorkers live in places where the air is so bad it can be detrimental to their health, the American Lung Association’s (ALA) report “State of the Art 2012,” has found that there has been an improvement in quality of the air that New Yorkers are breathing.  Indeed, only 6 out of the 34 New York counties that were tested failed the air quality test.  A year earlier, this number was 16. Nonetheless, the report did suggest that there are still too many people in the city breathing in unhealthy air. 

The way the test was conducted was via color-coding: an orange was given for unhealthy air for those who are particularly sensitive; a red for anyone and a purple for air that was deemed extremely unhealthy.  Counties were also tested on ozone layers, annual particle pollution as well as short-term particle pollution levels.  Both Putnam and Westchester counties were graded F for ozone, despite the fact that both counties did encounter a slight improvement in air quality since 2011.  However, viewing Westchester as compared to other counties, it was deemed the dirtiest in the region for ozone and the third-dirties in the state.

For sure it is to be commended that there has been such an improvement in quality air.  But, as president of the American Lung Association in the Northeast Jeff Seyler said, “air pollution in our communities continues to be a major threat that cuts lives short, routinely sends people to the hospital and makes it hard to breathe.”  The issue is, there are protections from the Clean Air Act (approved in 1970 and amended in 1990) that must be enforced and a tightening of standards has to be implemented. 

Viewing the report in its entirety – vis-à-vis the whole nation – it seems that since it was first composed back in 1999, air quality is today at its cleanest.  Indeed, as the president and CEO of the ALA, Charles D. Connor pointed out, the report “shows that we’re making real and steady progress in cutting dangerous pollution from the air we breathe.”

Ultimately it has been proven, that the cleaner the air, the less disease.  As ALA’s project director, Janice Nolen said, “cleaning up air pollution has measurable public health benefits.  During the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, morning traffic levels decreased by 23 percent; the region’s ozone levels by 28 percent and pediatric asthma energy room visits dropped by approximately 42 percent.”  As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes, “these results suggest that efforts to reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality also can help improve the respiratory health of a community.”

Hopefully therefore, although there is still much work to be done, for New Yorkers, their cleaner air will lead to reduced pollution and better health.

It should be the most natural thing in the world to take a few days sick leave from work, when one is unwell.  However, in New York City, many individuals do not get paid for sick leave.  And of course, it is those individuals who anyway are getting paid very low wages who are denied the paid sick leave.  So it’s not like they can afford to lose a day or two of paid work.  Typically, the workers denied the paid leave are in the following industries: many in the service industry like hotel employees, cooks, waiters, etc.  So they end up facing a very difficult choice:  either go to work sick, or forego a day’s pay on an already low income.

What is irresponsible here is that when sick employees go to the office, they tend to get other workers sick too.  In addition, they won’t be nearly as effective in their work.  Thus ultimately, not paying someone for sick leave is counterproductive.  As well, this only has a negative impact on the economy.

Good News for NY Employees

So while this isn’t exactly news, what is, is the fact that both Diana Reyna, councilwoman for Bushwick and Nydia Velázquez, representative for Brooklyn, voiced their support at a rally last week at City Hall on changing this situation with a bill on paid sick days.  (Reyna is also head of the Council’s Committee on Small Business.)  Their efforts attempted to increase pressure on Council Speaker Christine Quinn in this regard.

Thus it really is time something happened in New York City – and throughout the nation – to change this.  The fact of the matter is, people get sick and they shouldn’t be punished for this by not getting paid sick leave so that they can get better without the pressure of losing out on a day’s pay.

In an effort to save money within Governor Cuomo’s plans, Medicaid is cutting the choices of contraceptives available for women living in the New York area.  What this means in reality, is that it is becoming a lot harder to obtain monthly or weekly contraceptives (such as the patch/NuvaRing) and instead move to daily pills. 

In theory this means that for those who want the name brand, they have to prove the other one “failed” for them: that they experienced nausea, bleeding or pregnancy.  However, in practice, since they will have to go through an appeals process to obtain their preferred contraceptive, the first two symptoms will probably be harder to prove – or at least nausea – since that is just based on the woman’s word.

Problems with the System

But this new attempt to save money comes with a lot of problems.  According to Cuomo’s deputy secretary for health, James Introne, New York Medicaid will ultimately suffer because if it’s not responding to its patient’s needs, it will no longer have the privilege of being one of the city’s contracted health plans.  The state of New York will simply have to intervene in such a case.  Ultimately, according to CEO of Family Planning Advocates, Albany, M. Tracey Brooks, contraceptives work best when the users are comfortable with them.  As well, for those accustomed to using monthly or weekly contraceptives, suddenly (and somewhat forcibly) moving to daily ones, will be a hard pill for them to remember to swallow on such a regular occurrence.  Nonetheless, it still has to be remembered that moving to generic contraceptives does lead to a huge cut in government costs, so it is a tough call.

Fighting Back

Naturally, protest groups are already cropping up against this measure. It is not just women using contraceptives who are going to be negatively impacted by Cuomo’s cost-cutting initiatives either. Those suffering from various chronic diseases including: mental illnesses, AIDs, diabetes and more will be targeted too. The problem is, say the protesters, that rather than qualified doctors and physicians making the call on what medication works best for their patient, Cuomo’s costs are turning the reigns over to health benefits managers.  It is extremely problematic for example, for a mentally-ill patient – who may have spent years balancing and finding the medical combination that works for them – to be suddenly told to move to a generic brand.  Should this happen, costs will ultimately be greater as these people on failed medication will require substantially more medical care.

Ultimately, while turning to generic drugs may initially seem like an easy idea to save money, the problems it comes with will probably ultimately lead to greater costs for the state of New York.

Vegan Benefits and Problems

There are many advantages to going vegan, but there are also some potential problems with it.  On the pro side, vegans are definitely helping the environment and in many cases, studies have shown that they are significantly slimmer, and have better cholesterol and blood pressure levels than their non-vegan counterparts.  On the negative side, however, vegans run the risk of being deficient in Iron, Calcium, and Vitamin D which increases their susceptibility to bone fractures.  This is due to the elimination of dairy in a vegan diet. Nonetheless, pro-vegans argue that this does not have to be the case since there is plenty of calcium in dark green leafy vegetables; soy; cereals; tofu; tahini, etc.

NYC Vegan Options

For those who have already decided it’s the new health path they want to take, should they want to dine out in New York City, what are their choices like?  There are online vegan restaurant guides for the area that provide listings via various categories.  These include:  the newest vegan restaurants; restaurants by price; neighborhood; level of “veganism”; cool features offered; price and more.  It provides a great resource that should be consulted on a regular basis for new updates.

Healthier Eating?

In addition, if you want to find out more about veganism (or at least vegetarianism) in New York City, check out the upcoming annual NYC Vegetarian Food Festival March 3^rd to 4^th.   For health benefits of this eating style, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)’s director of Public Health and Animal Agriculture, Dr. Michael Greger, will be one of the  main speakers.

The new measures work to promote awareness of eating disorders in the modeling industry, as well as to encourage education on nutrition and lifestyle decisions. One of the main goals is to relate the “overwhelming concern about whether some models are unhealthily thin and whether or not to impose restrictions in such cases.”

According to CNN, this year’s Spring 2012 New York Fashion Week’s models will be the first to walk the runway under the new guidelines, which include tobacco and alcohol free backstage areas, healthy meals, snacks and water provided throughout the shows, and a 16+ age restriction. The measure also requires models with eating disorders to pause their careers and seek help until they are approved to resume work.

The new guidelines are part of the fashion industry’s recent recognition of the serious issue. The National Eating Disorders Association is also involved in the efforts to make a change, stating that the fashion industry is one of the main causes of eating disorders in young women.

“Designers share a responsibility to protect women, and very young girls in particular, within the business, sending the message that beauty is health,” CFDA said in a statement.

When children are presented with appealing sugary and salty snacks, they are more inclined to skip the healthier, more balanced meals for trips to the vending machines.

According to Lindsey Turner of the University of Illinois, elementary school is “really a crucial period where the preferences and behavioral habits are being developed.

“If kids are early on in that environment where that junk food is around, then it potentially becomes a habit that’s harder to break,” she said. She added that the recent findings are “disappointing.”

The first study to imply that the practice may affect pregnancy rates in women undergoing IVF took place in Germany ten years ago. Over the past decade, research implications have been relatively inconsistent.

Dr. Frederick Licciardi of the New York University Fertility Center’s mind and body program explained: “I counsel women that the literature is not convincing yet that (acupuncture) helps you get pregnant.”

He continued, saying that the center offers acupuncture sessions as well as other mind/body programs, like yoga, but that they focus mainly on easing stress and boosting ‘wellness,’ and not necessarily IVF success.

He believes that “if acupuncture helps you feel well, if it helps you get through the IVF, then great.”

Bombarded with questions on a daily basis, the organization has launched a campaign aimed at educating and proving the public with helpful information on the topic.

Representing hospitals throughout Long Island, the council’s campaign will be using their website as well as various social media veins, said Wendy Darwell, a member of the organization.

She continued, stating that the campaign aims to help patients make informed health care decisions based on their individual situations under the Affordable Health Care Act.

A council spokesperson added that the council has no intention of commenting on the political aspects of the reform, and hopes merely to help people adjust to the new policies and procedures.

A pediatric neurologist Dr. Jennifer McVige is working with a number of the affected students at the DENT Neurologic Institute. She explained: “Conversion disorder is a physical manifestation of physiological symptoms where there is traditionally some kind of stress or multiple stressors that provoke a physical reaction within the body.” McVige was careful to stress that the symptoms, however, are real. “This is unconscious. It is not done purposefully.”

Officials have confirmed that the school conducted mold and air quality tests, but have yet to find an environmental cause for the strange illness. The school’s website broadcasted a statement, saying: “The medical and environmental investigations have not uncovered any evidence that would link the neurological symptoms to anything in the environment or of an infectious nature.”

The case is still being investigated, as is the medical condition.