Mountain Views News          Saturday, October 1, 2011

16

THE GOOD LIFE

Mountain Views-News Saturday, October 1, 2011 

YOUR HEALTH MATTERS

Today’s Subject: 

THE BIG FIVE, THE SENSITIVE SEVEN AND SNAACs

SENIOR HAPPENINGS

RECIPE OF THE WEEK

SEPTEMBER IS SENIOR 

CENTER MONTH

NCOA’s National Institute of Senior Centers 
has designated September as Senior Center 
Month

“It Happens at My Senior Center”

Even though the Hart Park House Senior 
Center is under renovation, things are still 
“happening” at the center’s temporary home 
in the Community Recreation Center (611 
E. Sierra Madre Blvd.)so please join us:

September 2nd - The Senior Lunch Café is 
serving a special menu of Cheese Burgers 
with all the fixings & apple pie for dessert in

celebration of Labor Day; Noon . $2 donation- 
advance reservations required by calling 
355-0256.

September 7th - Community meeting regarding 
the proposed assisted living facility 
being built in Sierra Madre. Come to the

Recreation Center at 6:30 pm to hear more 
or to ask questions.

September 15th - Senior Excursion to the 
Historic Graber Olive House (see below for 
more details).

September 21th - Lunch & Learn; 12:20 pm. 
Join us for this special presentation by Lending 
a Paw, Therapy Dogs & meet some of 
their certified dogs. A special dry dog food 
collection will take please so please bring a 
bag to donate to families facing financial difficulties 
(donation not required to attend).

September 24th - Wellness in the Park; 9 am 
to 12 noon in Memorial Park. Free information 
including hearing & osteoporosis

screenings and flu shots (Medicare participants 
- $25 for others) plus the Senior Commission 
will be handing out the File of Life

medical information packet to residents.

Come early and enjoy the Kiwanis Pancake 
Breakfast 7 am to 11 am at $5 per person

September 30th - The Final Scoop - come 
build your own ice cream treat as we end our 
month of activities; 12:30 pm

For more information about the activities 
listed, please call the Senior Desk at (626) 
355-7394.

Banana Apple Bread

INGREDIENTS

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, melted

2 cups white sugar

4 eggs

1 cup plain Greek yogurt

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 large very ripe bananas, mashed

2 apples, cubed

3/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons butter, softened

banana slices for garnish

apple slices for garnish

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease 2 
7x3-inch loaf pans.

In a bowl, whisk together 2 3/4 cups of flour, 2 teaspoons 
of cinnamon, the baking soda, and salt until thoroughly 
combined. In a large mixing bowl, beat the melted butter 
with 2 cups of sugar until smooth, and mix in the eggs, 
one at a time, followed by the Greek yogurt and vanilla 
extract. Stir in the bananas, apples, and chopped walnuts 
until well combined; do not over mix. There should be 
small chunks of banana visible in the batter. Pour half the 
batter into each prepared loaf pan.

Mix the brown sugar, 1/2 cup of white sugar, 1 tablespoon 
of cinnamon, 1/4 cup of flour, and 3 tablespoons of 
softened butter together in a bowl until the mixture 
resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle half the crumb 
topping over each loaf. Garnish each loaf with banana 
and apple slices.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, then remove 
and cover each pan with aluminum foil. Return to oven, 
and bake an additional 15 or 20 minutes, or until a 
toothpick inserted into the center of the loaves comes out 
clean. Allow to cool before serving.


Dr. Elson Haas, M.D., is a bay-area physician 
who has been writing and teaching on the subjects 
of preventative medicine, nutrition and 
detoxification for over thirty years. His unique 
work combines natural, oriental, and western 
medicines into the new specialty of Integrated 
Medicine. This information offers the general 
public an effective, often drug-free, approach to 
wellness. Part of his genius is to highlight various 
aspects of daily living which contribute significantly 
to our health or disease process. The 
Big Five, Sensitive Seven and SNAACS are good 
examples of this.

The Big Five

One of the promises of modern medicine, 
both spoken and implied, is “we can fix it, we 
will be there for you.” This is a tremendous comfort, 
and yet it asks very little of the patient. In 
fact, this somehow gets translated into “we will 
do it for you.” Dr. Haas’ work combines the best 
of technology with self-care. By looking at, and 
possibly reducing or eliminating the Big Five, 
he asks us to try on an approach that will give 
us the tools for long-term health, quality aging, 
and great vitality. What are the Big Five? Sugar, 
caffeine, alcohol, wheat products, and dairy 
foods.

The Sensitive Seven

It’s safe to say that many of us are just dragging 
ourselves around, while others fall into 
the “vertically ill” category, suffering from 
persistent symptoms such as headache, joint 
pain, or skin and digestive problems ~ not yet 
seriously sick. By being aware of the Sensitive 
Seven, we can experiment with how they may 
affect us and eliminate the source of our symptoms. 
The Sensitive Seven are: Wheat, cow’s 
milk products, sugar, corn and corn sweeteners, 
eggs, soy and peanuts. Often, just one or two of 
these foods on a regular basis can cause chronic 
discomfort.

The SNAACs

In Dr. Haas’ book, The Detox Diet, he discusses 
how to let go of the big offenders of our food 
universe: sugar, nicotine, alcohol, caffeine, and 
other chemicals are covered in depth. If the very 
idea of letting go of one or more of these “best 
friends” makes you break out in a low level case 
of the d.t.’s, then perhaps a peek at the relationship 
that you have to them is a good idea. After 
all, a little bit of information never hurts.

In Closing

While we live in a world of miraculous medical 
technology, real wellness cannot come from 
any other source than oneself. Dr. Haas is a true 
visionary when it comes to inspiring us to embrace 
this principle. Check out his many books 
and take on your own healthy life.

To your healthy life! Dr. John

Dr. John Talevich, D.C. has practiced in Sierra Madre 
for thirty years. His clinic, LifeWorks! Chiropractic, 
offers patient-specific approaches to the alleviation of 
pain and individually tailored wellness programs. 

October Birthdays

Pat Birdsall, Sole Krieg, Angela Stella, 
Mary Jane Baker, Barbara Cline, Dixie 
Coutant, Cathleen Cremins, Kari Elder, 
Lillias Eubanks, Margit Johnson, Adelaide “Adie” 
Marshall, Alma Mays, Nara Menjivar, Eva Poet, 
Anne Tyler


John M. Talevich, D.C. 

CHIROPRACTIC: Simple, Elegant, Effective

31 S. Baldwin Avenue Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024

626-355-4710

Meals-On-Wheels


Meals are delivered to home-bound 
seniors by volunteer drivers through 
the YWCA Intervale Lunch Program 
M-F (with frozen meals for the weekend.) 

Meals are delivered to the home-bound seniors 
by drivers through the YWCA Interval Lunch 
Program M-F (with frozen meals for the 
weekend.) 

 

 Call the YWCA at (626) 214-9460 for more 
information. 

EXCURSIONS

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 15th - 

Historic Graber Olive House in Ontario. 
Participants will get a short tour 
& history of the Graber Olive as well as 
learn more about how they are harvested. 
After the tour you will venture to 
a local restaurant to have lunch before 
heading back to Sierra Madre.

 The bus will leave the Community 
Recreation Center at 10 am and return 
around 2 pm. Cost is $8 per person 
(transportation & tour only) so please 
bring additional money for lunch.

SAVE THE DATES

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 22ND - Big Bear 
Oktoberfest ; $36 per person. Registration 
begins September 7th online or in person.

*THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17TH - 

Historic Castle Tour & Lunch at the Mission 
Inn, Riverside.

*THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15TH - 

Candlelight Pavilion Christmas Show

in Claremont. Reservation for this excursion 
will start on September 26th either by 
visiting the Recreation Center in person 
or going online at www.cityofsierramadre.
com/onlineregistration

NEW FLU VACCINE FOR SENIORS PROVIDES 
BETTER PROTECTION

Dear Savvy Senior,

I’ve read that there is a new extra-strength flu 
vaccine being offered to seniors this year. What 
can you tell me about it, where can I find it, and 
does Medicare cover it?

Flu-Conscious Connie

 

Dear Connie,

The new extra-strength flu vaccination you’re 
inquiring about is called the Fluzone High-Dose, 
and it’s designed specifically for seniors, age 65 
years and older. Here’s what you should know.

 

Fluzone High-Dose

Manufactured by Sanofi Pasteur Inc., the 
Fluzone High-Dose vaccine was approved by 
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in Dec. 
2009, and was first made available last flu season 
on a limited basis.

The main difference between the Fluzone 
High-Dose and a regular flu shot is its potency. 
The High-Dose vaccine contain four times the 
amount of antigen (the part of the vaccine that 
prompts the body to make antibody) as a regular 
flu shot does, which creates a stronger immune 
response for better protection. This extra 
protection is particularly helpful to seniors who 
have weaker immune defenses and have a great 
risk of developing dangerous flu complications. 
The CDC estimates that the flu puts more than 
200,000 people in the hospital each year and kills 
around 24,000 – 95 percent of whom are seniors.

As with all flu vaccines, Fluzone High-Dose 
is not recommended for seniors who are allergic 
to chicken eggs, or those who have had a severe 
reaction to a flu vaccine in the past.

To locate a vaccination site that offers 
the Fluzone High-Dose, ask your doctor or 
pharmacist, or check the online flu-shot locator 
at flu.gov for clinics or stores offering flu 
shots. Then, contact some in your area to see 
whether they have the High-Dose vaccine. CVS, 
Walgreens, Safeway, Kmart, Rite Aid and Kroger 
are among some of the chains offering the High-
Dose shot.

You’ll also be happy to know that if you’re 
a Medicare beneficiary, Part B will cover 100 
percent of the cost of your High-Dose vaccination. 
But if you’re not covered the cost is around $50 to 
$60 – that’s about double of what you’d pay for a 
regular flu shot.

 

Pneumovax

Another important vaccination the CDC 
recommends to seniors – especially this time 
of year – is the pneumococcal polysaccharide 
vaccine for pneumonia and meningitis (the 
vaccine is called Pneumovax 23). Pneumonia 
causes more than 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each 
year, many of which could be prevented by this 
vaccine. If you’re over age 65 and haven’t already 
gotten this one-time-only shot, you should get it 
now before flu season hits. Pneumovax 23 is also 
covered under Medicare Part B, and you can get 
it on the same day you get your flu shot. If you’re 
not covered by insurance, this vaccine costs 
around $75 to $85 at retail clinics.

This vaccine is also recommended to adults 
under age 65 if they smoke or have certain 
chronic conditions like asthma, heart disease, 
lung disease, kidney disease, diabetes, sickle cell 
disease, have had their spleen removed, or have a 
weakened immune system due to cancer, HIV or 
an organ transplant.

Savvy Tips: In addition to getting vaccinated, 
the CDC reminds everyone that the three best 
ways to stay healthy during flu season is to wash 
your hands frequently with soap and water, 
cover your mouth and nose when you cough or 
sneeze and stay home if you’re sick. For more 
information on the recommended vaccines for 
older adults see cdc.gov/vaccines.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. 
Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. 
Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and 
author of “The Savvy Senior” book.


LUNCH & LEARN 

Join the Senior

Community Commission

at the 

Sierra Madre Recreation 
Center

 for a FREE presentation. 
Lunch is available for a 

$2 donation 

Call (626) 355-0256 by 

12 noon the day before. 

DIAL - A - RIDE 

TICKETS

Tickets can now be purchased at:

Sierra Madre City Hall

Sierra Madre Recreation Center

Sierra Madre Library


Pasadena Highlands, an independent and assisted 
living community, is proud to provide a 
special gift basket on the first Tuesday of each 
month. Accredited In-Home nursing care will 
provide a special prize on the 4th Tuesday of 
each month. Bingo takes place every Tuesday at 
1:30 pm at the Sierra Madre Recreation Center 
while the Hart Park House is under remodeling. 
The game begins at 1:30 pm but those wishing 
to play must arrive 10 minutes before to secure 
your Bingo cards. Join us on the 1st & 4th 
Tuesday of each month 

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