Sammy Davis Jr. has a harrowing experience with a lion.
Hollywood Humor: Sammy Davis Junior Found Religion by Stephen Schochet
In 1954, Sammy Davis Jr. converted to Judaism, which led to him being the subject of several anecdotes. One time he boarded a bus in the deep, segregated south. “Git to the back of the bus”, said the rude driver.”But I’m Jewish”, protested the entertainer. “Then get off.”
Another time Sammy was filming Porgy And Bess(1959) when he announced he would not work on Yom Kippur. Word got back from the set to Porgy’s frugal producer Sam Goldwyn, he immediately called his idle performer who was costing him $30,000. “Sammy, is it true? You refuse to work on the holiday? “Yes it’s true Sam.” There was a tense pause then Goldwyn said,” Bless You.”
Then there was the night of the 1971 Oscars when Sammy hosted the show and remarked,” Tonight, the academy honors both my peoples with Fiddler On The Roof and Shaft.”
But there was one occasion when Sammy came to doubt his conversion. He and Frank Sinatra were asked to perform at the MGM Grand hotel in Las Vegas with the MGM Lion in between them. They were assured it would be safe, the lion would be handled by a trainer with a choke chain. In the middle of the number the lion looked at Sammy and licked it’s lips. The lion hunched back like it was going to leap for Sammy, and Sammy scared to death made the Sign of the Cross. Luckily nothing happened. Later after the show they were having drinks in the lobby and Sinatra said nervously,” Boy Smokey, I thought that cat was going to come after you there– Hey Smokey didn’t you turn Jewish? Why did you make the Sign of the Cross when the cat came at ya?”
“Well babe, I didn’t think I’d have time to make the star of David!”
About the Author
Author/Narrator Stephen Schochet researched Hollywood and Disney stories and lore for 10 years while giving tours of Hollywood. He had the unique idea the stories could be told anywhere and that’s what led him to create the audiobooks “Fascinating Walt Disney” and “Tales Of Hollywood”. The Saint Louis Post Dispatch says,” These two elaborate productions are exceptionally entertaining.” Realaudio samples can be heard at his website www.hollywoodstories.com.
Bacterial Vaginosis is benign infection of the vagina. It goes by the names non-specific vaginitis, Gardnerella vaginitis, or simply Gardnerella. It is also referred to by its acronym of B.V.. Gardnerella is the most common bacteria involved. But it can be caused by a large variety of organisms. These are mostly categorized as anerobic bacteria.
Who gets it?
All women. It the common vaginal infection, especially among reproductive age women. But, it occurs in girls, and post-menopausal women as well. It is not considered a sexually transmitted disease. It is seen in virgins. Nevertheless, some vaginal infections recur because the woman’s partner harbors them. It is suspected, but not proven that bacterial vaginosis’ cure or recurrence rates will improve, if her male partner is treated.
It is a sponataneously arising infection. One or more of the offending bacteria overgrows in the vagina. It is a change in the normal bacteria and organisms of the vagina from aerobic to anerobic. Aerobic vs anerobic simply refers to the bacteria’s metabolism — does it need oxygen or not. (No vaginal bacteria is in there doing Tae Bo). The offending organisms were always there, just the ratios have shifted. It is much like a yeast infection.
Douching, bubble baths, or other solutions women use to flush their vaginas are associated with more Bacterial Vaginosis.
Symptoms
A bad smelling discharge is what usually brings the woman into the doctor. It is described as whitish with a gray or yellowish tint. It is thin and watery. It may get worse after her period or vaginal sex. Some have sensations of itching or burning. Women sometimes confuse this with yeast infections. Yeast does not look, nor smell, nor feel like Bacterial Vaginosis. The reason women mix them up is because they are the two most common vaginal infections.
How Serious Is It?
Still, it is estimated 5%-30% of reproductive age women have it and have no symptoms. It is not currently thought of as a dangerous infection. In typical circumstances, it will not threaten her health, future fertility or life if it is unnoticed or untreated. In most women, it can go away on its own. However, more recent studies are beginning to implicate B.V. in Pelvic Inflammatory Disease. Part of the uncertainty here, stems from the numerous changes in the definition o BV and the uncertainty of diagnosis. And it is known to lead to serious complications in pregnancy or those undergoing gynecological surgery.
The Diagnosis and Test Results and Why
A sample of the discharge is sent to the lab. The test is called a wet prep. Signs of Bacterial Vaginosis can be seen on routine Pap smears as well, but often misses it.
Clue cells. These are the big red flag. Clue cells are actually big globs of bacteria stuck to vaginal wall cells. Once the doctor sees this, she usually stops reading the report and starts writing the prescription.
Bacteria There’s 100 to 1000 times more of them. Gardnerella may be mentioned specifically. Also, Hemophilus, or Bacteroides, Mobiluncus, Peptostreptococcus, and Mycoplasm.
pH this indicates the acidity of the vagina. It may be about 5.
No inflammation The types of bacteria called anerobes produce a substance called succinate. This suppresses the normal inflammatory reaction that this huge influx of bacteria would otherwise cause. There are few white cells (WBCs) on the report.
Purulent cervicitis, Trichomonas , and yeast infections must be excluded to diagnose Bacterial Vaginosis. Cervicitis would show signs of inflammation. Trichomonas would show the organism itself and WBCs. Its discharge may be greenish, but also gray or yellowish, so it is hard for the average woman (or average doctor) to tell it from B.V. Trichomonas discharge is described as ‘frothy’ (good luck knowing that one when you see it!) Yeast would show the organism in the lab sample. The woman experiences itching much more often than with BV and yeast doesn’t have much of a smell.
Treatment Options– Pros and Cons
Metronidazole (brand name Flagyl). By mouth, 500mg, twice a day, for one week. This is the most common regimen. Medicine tends to upset the stomach, leading some women not to finish it. Using generic metronidazole in this way is the most cost-effective treatment. Price about $1.50
Metronidazole (brand name Flagyl) By mouth, a single 2gm dose. The single dose has a bit lower cure rate and the relapse rate is higher. But there is no risk of quitting before finishing. Using generic pills, this is the cheapest treatment.
Metronidazole Gel (Metrogel) 0.75% inserted vaginally twice a day for 5 days. Good as 7 day oral, no stomach upset, but messy and inconvenient. No generic at this point, so it is pricey. About $20.
Clindamycin By mouth, 300mg twice a day for 7 days orally. Clindamycin 2% vaginal cream once a day for 7 days For 100% cure rate: oral (500mg. Twice a day for 5 days) and vaginal ornidazole (500mg/day for 5 days) OR Oral secnidazole (2gm single dose) and vaginal metroniazole (500mg, twice a day for 7 days).
As you wander the aisles of your local health food store, you stumble on one that is full of bottles that look like they belong in a drugstore. Looking up, you notice that the name of the aisle is “Alternative Medicine.”
Seeing the phrase “alternative medicine” might conjure up images of pungent herbal teas, poultices, chanting, or meditation. In fact, both herbal remedies and meditation, as well as dozens of other treatments, fall under the heading of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM).
Although there is no strict definition of alternative medicine, it generally includes any healing practices that are not part of mainstream medicine — that means any practice that is not widely taught in medical schools or frequently used by doctors or in hospitals.
But the boundaries of alternative medicine in the United States are constantly changing as different types of care become more accepted by doctors and more requested by patients. A few practices (such as hypnosis) that were dismissed as nonsense 20 years ago are now considered helpful therapies in addition to traditional medicine. So, are any alternative medicines right for your family?
Types of Alternative Care __________
In the United States, the lead agency that’s charged with scientific research into CAM is the The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
NIH classifies four general areas of complementary and alternative care:
1. Mind-body medicine. This includes practices such as meditation, prayer, Tai Chi, and music therapy, which are intended to develop the mind’s ability to affect physical symptoms. It focuses on the mind’s role in conditions that affect the body.
2. Biologically based practices. This includes substances such as herbs, foods, vitamins, and dietary supplements that are geared to help heal the body. Herbal remedies include a wide range of plants used for medicine or nutrition. They are available in grocery stores, over the Internet, in health food stores, or through herbalists and are often in the form of teas, capsules, and extracts. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not regulate these.
3. Manipulative and body-based practices. These practices are based on the manipulation or movement of body parts. It includes methods like massage therapy and therapeutic touch, which manipulate and realign body parts, to help alleviate symptoms. You may have heard of chiropractors, who focus on affecting the nervous system by “adjusting” the spinal column.
4. Energy medicine. This area of medicine is based on the theory (which has not been proved scientifically) that certain energy fields surround and penetrate the body. This includes practices such as Reiki, qi gong, and therapeutic touch. Also included are therapies based on bioelectromagnetics, the theory that electrical currents in all living organisms produce magnetic fields that extend beyond the body.
In many cases, there is overlap between each of these areas. Acupuncture, for example, is a healing practice that originates in traditional Chinese medicine. It involves stimulating different points in the body, mostly with thin solid metallic needles, in order to balance Qi, certain energy pathways. In addition, NIH classifies medicine systems, such as homeopathic medicine and Ayurveda, which may include elements from several of these four different areas.
How Does It Differ From Traditional Medicine?
Alternative therapy is frequently distinguished by its holistic methods, which means that the doctor or practitioner treats the “whole” person and not just the disease or condition. In alternative medicine, many practitioners address patients’ emotional and spiritual needs as well. This “high touch” approach differs from the “high tech” practice of traditional medicine, which tends to concentrate on the physical side of illness.
Most alternative practices have not found their way into mainstream hospitals or doctors’ offices, so your doctor may not be aware of them. However, new centers for integrative medicine offer a mix of traditional and alternative treatments. There, you might receive a prescription for pain medication (as you might get from a traditional health care provider) and massage therapy to treat a chronic back problem. Such centers usually employ both medical doctors and certified or licensed specialists in the various alternative therapies.
Despite the growth of the field, the majority of alternative therapies are not covered by medical insurance. This is largely because few scientific studies have been done to prove whether the treatments are effective (unlike traditional medicine, which relies heavily on studies). Rather, most alternative therapies are based on longstanding practice and word-of-mouth stories of success.
What Are the Risks?
The lack of scientific study means that some potential problems associated with alternative therapies may be difficult to identify. What’s more, almost all of the studies that have been done involved adults as test subjects; there is little research on the effects of alternative medicine on children. Although approaches such as prayer, massage, and lifestyle changes are generally considered safe complements to regular medical treatment, some therapies — particularly herbal remedies — might harbor risks.
Unlike prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medicines, herbal remedies are not rigorously regulated by the FDA. They face no extensive tests before they are marketed, and they do not have to adhere to a standard of quality. That means when you buy a bottle of ginseng capsules, you might not know what you’re getting: the amount of herb can vary from pill to pill, with some capsules containing much less of the active herb than stated on the label. Depending on where the herb originated, there might also be other plants, even drugs like steroids, mixed in the capsules. Herbs that come from developing countries are sometimes contaminated with pesticides and heavy metals.
“Natural” does not equal “good,” and many parents don’t realize that some herbal remedies can actually cause health problems for their kids. Medicating a child without consulting a doctor could result in harm. For example, certain herbal remedies can cause high blood pressure, liver damage, or severe allergic reactions.
Consider these examples:
* Ephedra, also called ephedrine and often sold as the Chinese herb ma huang, was on the market for years until it was linked to several deaths in people with heart problems. The FDA decided the health risks associated with ephedra were too great, and banned it in December 2003.
* Alone and in combination with prescription drugs, several dietary supplements — such as chaparral, comfrey, germander, and ephedrine — have been linked to severe illness, liver damage, and even death.
Parents might also give their children much more of an herb than recommended, thinking that because it’s natural, higher doses won’t hurt. But many plants contain potent chemicals; in fact, approximately 25% of all prescription drugs are derived from plants.
Choosing a practitioner can pose another problem. Although many states have licensing boards for specialists in acupuncture or massage, for instance, there is no organization in the United States that monitors alternative care providers or establishes standards of treatment. Basically, almost anyone can claim to be a practitioner, whether he or she has any training.
Perhaps the greatest risk, however, is the potential for people to delay or stop traditional medical treatment in favor of an alternative therapy. Illnesses such as diabetes and cancer require the care of a doctor. Relying entirely on alternative therapies for any serious chronic or acute conditions can jeopardize the health of your child.
Can Alternative Care Help Your Child?
Many parents turn to a cup of chamomile tea or ginger as first-line treatment against the flu or nausea. Anxious kids can learn to relax with the help of meditation or yoga. Some alternative therapies may be helpful for a child when used to complement traditional care.
If you want to try alternative medicine for your child, you should first talk with your doctor or pharmacist to make sure it is not dangerous and will not conflict with any traditional care your child receives. Your doctor also can give you information about treatment options and perhaps recommend a reputable specialist.
By coordinating alternative and traditional care, you don’t have to choose between them. Instead, you can get the best of both.
Reviewed by: Steven Dowshen, MD
Date Reviewed: March 2007
Originally reviewed by: Steven Dowshen, MD, and Sandra Hassink, MD
‘Allergic Girl’ teaches how to eat out with allergies
Story Highlights
Woman organizes dinners at restaurants for people with food allergies
If you have a food allergy, call ahead and tell the restaurant management, she says
12 million Americans have food allergies, though some kids outgrow them
Food allergies are on the rise, but no one is sure why
By Elizabeth Landau
CNN
(CNN) — Since 2½-year-old Ava Zinna ended up in the emergency room this summer after an allergic reaction to peanuts, her mother, Tara, has worried about her daughter’s food whenever they eat out. But when the family went to Blue Smoke restaurant Sunday afternoon in New York, someone had already asked to hold the peanuts.
The Zinnas took part in Worry Free Dinners, a series of monthly meals for people with food allergies. Sunday’s 16-person barbecue — complete with ribs, chicken, burgers and brownies — was the first event aimed directly at parents and children affected by food allergies.
“When you’re going into a restaurant environment, you’re putting your child’s safety and livelihood into other hands,” Tara Zinna said. At the Worry Free Dinners event, “not only was the food phenomenal, but it’s wonderful to have an opportunity to interact with other families who are dealing with similar issues.”
The recent “worry free” meal event took place just days before the Food and Drug Administration’s September 16 public hearing on food ingredient labels. Since 2006, food manufacturers have been required to clearly label products that contain any of the most common allergens — milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat and soy — but some allergy experts say the labels should be more explicit.
Restaurant dining can be a terrifying experience for people with severe food allergies. When the meal arrives, there’s often no way of knowing every single ingredient that went into it, or what else touched the plate and utensils used to serve it. You also have to pester the restaurant staff with special requests.
But with Worry Free Dinners, everyone has some kind of experience with all of that, which helps build camaraderie, said Sloane Miller, who started organizing the events in April. Read more tips on how to manage food allergies »
“People sit down and start chatting immediately like they’re old friends,” said Miller, known in the blogosphere as “Allergic Girl.” “It’s so nice to be with people that you don’t have to explain [to] why you want something on the side.”
So far, Worry Free Dinners has catered to food allergy sufferers in New York — there are about 12 million in America, according to the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) — but Miller is looking to take the concept to other cities.
A common but mysterious condition
One out of every 17 children under 3 years old in America has a food allergy, and some will outgrow their sensitivities, said Anne Munoz-Furlong, founder and CEO of FAAN. But allergies to peanuts, nuts, shellfish and fish tend to be lifelong, she said. As far as she knows, Worry Free Dinners is the first event series of its kind.
Experts agree that allergies in general — both food and inhalant — are on the rise, but no one is sure why. Research on food allergies has been slow because “for a long time, people thought this was a small problem,” Munoz-Furlong said. The largest group of studies on the subject are in progress, including immunotherapy for people with peanut and milk allergies, she said.
The majority of food allergy cases — about 80 percent — are “cyclic,” with mild symptoms that resemble those of pollen or dust allergies: sneezing, itchy eyes, and nasal congestion, said Dr. Alpen Patel, assistant professor of otolaryngology at Emory University. Other people experience nausea, vomiting and diarrhea consistently in response to certain foods.
But for some people, ingesting something that even accidentally touched tree nuts or peanuts could result in anaphylaxis, a severe reaction that can lead to blocked airways, cardiovascular collapse, and even death. This is called a “fixed food allergy,” he said.
After one severe reaction, he said, most people consistently avoid the offending food and do not experience another severe attack. But they also always carry a shot of epinephrine to self-administer immediately in case they experience signs of anaphylaxis.
Enjoying food in spite of allergies
Miller has made a career of helping people with food allergies and other special dietary needs navigate their meals, whether at Thanksgiving or on a date, without feeling sick. She runs her own coaching practice, blogs and organizes Worry Free Dinners events under her umbrella organization Allergic Girl Resources Inc.
She herself has dealt with allergies all her life — as a baby she developed a rash when her mother switched from breast milk to cow’s milk, and at age 2 she had a reaction to tree nuts. She has since learned that she also has some form of allergy to salmon, lemon grass, eggplant, some types of melons and most tropical fruits.
But Miller, now 36, did not want her food allergies to prevent her from sampling the cornucopia of New York City restaurants. She developed relationships with restaurants that would accommodate her needs, and began organizing dinners for people who have similar allergy problems.
“It is both worry-free for the diner and worry-free for the restaurant,” she said. “Restaurants appreciate that I’m looking out for them as well … I want to make it as easy as possible for them to have people like me come in all the time.”
Where everybody knows your name
So how does someone like Miller, who lives with food allergies plus a “wheat/gluten-free, processed sugar-free, lactose-free, soy-free, low processed food-free lifestyle,” safely enjoy eating out?
Miller calls it the “Cheers” experience. The first time she goes to a restaurant, she always calls ahead and talks with the restaurant management to make sure they can accommodate her before making a reservation.
Once at the restaurant, she’ll meet the manager and give him or her a card with a run-down of her special dietary needs. Often a chef will join Miller and the manager to discuss the menu. By this point, Miller says, everyone has been introduced by name.
After the meal, Miller thanks the server, chef and manager, and tips the server generously. She’ll often call the next day and thank the manager for helping her eat safely.
On her blog, allergicgirl.blogspot.com, Miller finds no shortage of restaurant meals to recommend and photograph. She’ll find creative alternatives to traditionally prepared foods that look no less appetizing than more familiar versions — for instance, she recently had fish-free sushi made of potato tempura, sticky rice, avocado and sesame seeds.
Not every restaurant will accommodate Miller’s special needs — she has been refused service at some restaurants. But in general, she’s found that restaurants have become far more understanding than five years ago, if only because staff members have children with food allergies.
“That changes how they run their kitchen,” she said. “More and more people are touched by this, and do get it.”
