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In this issue:
Mentoring Celebration The Importance of Nutrition on Older Women Choosing Healthy Foods NIWHRC on the Move Nutrition Fun Fact |
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World Indigenous Wellness Conference
The NIWHRC staff will also participate in a cultural exchange. Kimberley Chaffin will describe the history of the Cherokee Tear Dress, while Melissa Gower, an NIWHRC board member, will relate the history of Cherokee Nation. Janie Dibble along with Kimberly Chaffin’s daughter, Samantha, will give a presentation over the traditional Cherokee game of stickball. Samantha will also assist Linda Kay Baker with a presentation on Traditional Cherokee Storytelling. The group will return on November 19. WIWC Scholarship Recipients A number of women received a scholarship through the National Indian Women’s Health Resource Center to attend the World Indigenous Wellness Conference in New Zealand. These women included professionals and educators in the health field and students interested in the health field. The health professionals and educators who are receiving this award are: Althea Momi Kamau, M.P. H, R.N., Barbra Yamshita, MSW, Chief of Community Health Division, Cheryl Mason, Kimberly Irwin, and Christine Levi. The students who received this award are: Kim Tunnel, Erica Cleaver, and Felicia Mitchell. Congratulations to all the recipients. Mentoring Celebration The mentoring celebration that took place in Santa Anna Pueblo, New Mexico this summer marked the end of the mentoring program Passing on Tradition. The Mentoring Celebration was an opportunity for the National Indian Women’s Health Resource Center to honor outstanding mentors and mentees. Passing on Traditions was a year-long program that recruited and trained sixty Native American women to become mentors. Three regional training workshops were held to educate perspective mentors in leadership activities and to provide free resources for community service projects. The mentors were also given ideas on activities they could do with their mentees. These activities included observing tribal council meetings, job shadowing, and community service projects. There were also workshops on how to encourage positive cultural identity to help strengthen self-esteem and confidence in the young Native women. Two of these workshops How to do Native American Genealogy with Your Mentee and Scrap Booking Your Native Heritage, provided ways to support a positive self image in mentees. During the year-long program, the mentors and mentees were asked to keep colorful scrapbooks called LifeBooks. This, in many cases, created both a meaningful keepsake and provided the mentees with their first link to their tribal heritage Each mentor chose a young Native American woman with which to share their traditional customs and leadership skills. The young girls age ranged from fifth grade to second year of college. The experience not only benefited the young women, the mentors themselves were positively impacted. By sharing their stories and their traditional knowledge, their worth as elder women within their community was reinforced. Many hope to continue their relationships with their mentees. “I plan on continuing this relationship as long as my mentee wants to,” said June Hamilton one of the outstanding mentors honored at the celebration The Mentoring Celebration was held at the Tamaya Resort in Santa Anna Pueblo. Carol Young, the Mentoring Coordinator , invited six outstanding mentors along with their mentees to the Mentoring Celebration to find out what they had done during their time as mentor and mentee. The six mentors honored are: June Hamilton, Jeannie Lunsford, Charleen Fisher, Regina Gros Ventre, Lori Sherman, and Mildred “Candy” Trimble. Their mentees were: Randee Lorentz, Nikki Miller, Keisha Joseph, Patricia Lucero, Waba Sandman-Shelifoe, and Bobbi Perryman, respectively. Each mentor and mentee gave presentations describing their mentoring experiences. These included learning about their cultural traditions, working with the elderly, learning their native language, and community service projects. They also shared the LifeBooks they created together. A video called “Passing on Traditions” documented the event. The video highlights the special relationships that formed between mentor and mentee. To show NIWHRC’s appreciation for their outstanding work each mentor received a shawl embroidered with “Outstanding Mentor of the Year, 2004” and a certificate marking their accomplishments. Thoughts From Executive Director Pamela Iron As we move into the fall season it feels good to look back and reflect on the many rewards and challenges we experienced last year. One of our long time staff, Mary Helen Deer moved on to a challenging career working with HIV/AIDS and teens in a faith related program that takes her throughout Indian Country. Our Breast and Cervical Cancer Project was renewed for another three years. Janie Dibble is now the full time director of this project. The leadership and mentoring project was completed with many outstanding activities happening in this project. Carol Young and the board members did a great job recruiting individuals for this project. The U. S. Census Bureau project on Cultural Competency brought many rewarding training opportunities. As we end projects others begin with a burst such as our smoking cessation and Regional Youth Summit. The California Endowment Communications and Cultural Competency project is a unique opportunity to do work that has never been done before. Although there are many areas that need more attention, it is a great feeling to count the accomplishments of our organization. We have a great group of staff, consultants, board members, and project officers to be thankful for. Wado! Executive Director The Importance of Nutrition to Older Women As women age it’s important to be aware of the necessity for good nutrition. Good nutrition plays a vital role in both the way we age and how we age. The 2005 Dietary Guidelines emphasizes a number of important factors regarding a healthy lifestyle, with the most important being nutrition. Whole-grain foods, fruits, and vegetables plus a diet low in saturated fat, cholesterol, total fat, added sugars, and sodium all contribute to good nutrition. Healthy eating has been attributed to a decrease in all-cause mortality and chronic disorders such as cardiovascular disease (Johnson 262). The purpose of the Dietary Guidelines are to give people an idea of how to live a healthy lifestyle through eating. They are used for planning home-delivered meals, nursing home meals, and meals at assisted living facilities. Federally supported meal programs are required to follow these guidelines. There are a number of central elements the guidelines recommend. Whole grains, fruits and vegetables, vitamin D( most commonly found in dairy products) , and calcium are all key to healthy eating. Whole grain has been found to protect against cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and obesity. Three servings of whole grain foods daily are recommended, however, the average adult only consumes 1 serving a day. Most people blame a lack of knowledge about recommended daily servings and difficulties identifying whole grain products as the reasons why they fail to reach their daily recommended intake. It’s helpful to know how to identity whole-grain foods. Whole grain food is defined as containing at least 51 % whole grain by weight. When checking the ingredients, make sure whole grain is the first ingredient. (Johnson 264). The best way to achieve your daily intake is through whole grain breads and breakfast cereals. Fruits and vegetables have also been found to prevent a number of chronic diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, stroke and hypertension. It’s also been recently discovered that fruits and vegetables may protect bone health too (Johnson 264). The guidelines recommend a daily intake of 5-9 servings of vegetables and fruits. Older adults are more likely than younger adults to consume 5 or more a day and women are more likely than men to eat their daily recommended servings. Again the challenge lies in determine ways of incorporating that many servings of fruits and vegetables into your diet daily. Vitamin D and calcium are very important to women’s health as they age. Both promote bone health. A deficiency in vitamin D has been found to cause certain cancers, diabetes, chronic pain, and depression. It’s also been discovered that the elderly and those with dark skin are more at risk of being unable to maintain vitamin D status. The best way to consume your daily recommendation is through calcium supplements, milk and other dairy products. Although this all may seem like common sense, research has found that most adults do not consume the daily recommendations set in the Dietary Guidelines. But, by becoming aware of the number of daily recommend servings and how to identify the sources, a healthy lifestyle is easy to achieve. Johnson, Mary Ann, PhD. “Nutrition and Aging—Practical Advice for Healthy Eating.” Journal of American Women’s Association. 2005. University of Georgia, 262-269. Choosing Healthy Food Eating healthy food doesn’t mean you have to give up good tasting food. There are several ways to meet your daily recommended servings and at the same time enjoy what you are eating. Sometimes the best way to eat healthy is just knowing what to eat. Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta One easy way to incorporate healthy grain products into your diet is to change from white bread to a wheat or whole-grain bread. Whole-grain breads are low in fat and high in fiber and complex carbohydrates. Avoid rich bakery foods like donuts, sweet rolls, and muffins. These bread products can contain more than 50% fat calories. If you need to satisfy your sweet tooth try angel food cake or gingersnap cookies. When choosing cereal steer clear of granolas and instant cereals with cream which can contain high fat oils and extra sugars. Most hot and cold cereals are usually low in fat. Vegetables and Fruits Fruits and vegetables are naturally low in fat and contain fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Pass on dressing your fruits and vegetables up with butter, margarine, mayonnaise, and sour cream. Instead, flavor them with herbs and yogurt. Meat, Poultry, and Fish Baking, broiling, and roasting are the healthiest ways to prepare meat. Also trimming fat before cooking and selecting low-fat, lean cuts of meat are ways to avoid added fat. To identify lean beef or pork look for the words “loin,” “round,” and “leg.” Use herbs, spices, and non-fat marinades to season. When cooking chicken remove the skin and bake, broil, or roast as the healthiest way to cook the meat. Most seafood is low in saturated fat. The healthiest way to prepare fish is to poach, steam, broil, or bake it. Milk, Yogurt, and Cheese
Buy skim milk rather than whole and
substitute evaporated skim milk for cream in soups and sauces. Try
low fat cheeses like mozzarella and skim ricotta. Also be on the
look out for low-fat or natural cheddar cheeses. Use 1% cottage
cheese in salads and cooking. Sherbet is an alternative to ice
cream, however, soft-serve and regular ice creams are lower in fat
than premium styles. Our new address is: 228 S. Muskogee, Tahlequah, OK 74464. Our email, fax, and phone number will all remain the same. The new location gives each of our employees their own individual offices, a luxury that we were unable to enjoy at our former location. Employees will also be able to enjoy the convenience of Tahlequah’s downtown, which includes a number of cafes and eateries. Carol Young, Director of Women’s Leadership and Mentoring , is very excited about the move. “The new offices are wonderful,” said Young. “I love my office and my new desk.” Janie Dibble, the Program Director, is also very happy with the move. “We are in a good location for public relations. I think people will see our office and begin to ask what we are about. The offices are nice. The computers are much faster,” said Dibble. We view this move as an improvement to our organization. Our new location will enable us to improve our organization. We will continue to provide the same services and resources to American Indian and Alaska Native women. Nutrition Fun Fact When grocery shopping try and stay on the perimeter of the store. The perimeter is where the produce, deli, meat department, bakery, and dairy products are found. This is where the freshest and healthiest foods are located. By avoiding the middle aisles you avoid foods high in preservatives, added sugars, and extra calories. Here are some healthy snack ideas to keep in mind when grocery shopping: ¨ Low-fat String Cheese ¨ Baked chips ¨ Flavored rice cakes ¨ Pretzels ¨ Low-fat yogurt ¨ Air-popped popcorn ¨ Vanilla wafers ¨ Frozen fruit bars
228 S. Muskogee Avenue Tahlequah, OK 74464
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