Eat. Move. Lose.

Photo contributed by Bay Area Hospital

from TheWorldLink.com:
Want to lose weight this year? Take some advice from Coos Bay’s Gregory Crew.
Eat less. Exercise more.
And no grilled cheese for breakfast.
Following that simple regimen, Greg lost 60 pounds in five months. And he’s just getting started.
Greg, 37, has Down syndrome. It’s a genetic disorder that causes lifelong intellectual disability and, in some cases, chronic health problems. He’s a cheerful soul who loves board games, Power Rangers movies and karaoke. He’s a former Special Olympian.
But pneumonia put him the hospital for a week last year. He has relied on an oxygen tank since then, and last summer Greg’s doctor delivered a life-changing verdict. At 5-foot-3 and 283 pounds, Greg had to shed some weight if he hoped to be healthy.
Linda Devereux soon became a prominent figure in Greg’s life.

Vallejo woman determined to be healthy, loses 200 pounds

by Irma Widjojo from the Times-Herald:
Gone are the days of super burritos, pepperoni pizzas and cheese nachos.
Angelique Nabours went from 324 pounds to just a little more than 130 within a few years. The 39-year-old woman was born with Down Syndrome and had a lifelong weight problem -- until a few years ago when she had a seizure. "That really scared me," her mother Anne Nabours said. "We are still not sure what caused the seizure, but her weight had a lot to do with it." Angelique then moved into a major lifestyle change, including starting a diet and exercise regimen. In a little less than two years, she has lost nearly 200 pounds. "I work out every day," she said. "I feel fine, and I have more energy." The Vallejo woman works out either at the gym, or at home on her cardio machines while watching her favorite daytime talk show, the Ellen DeGeneres Show. In fact, Anne Nabours had the idea to call the Times-Herald about her daughter's journey after a comment she had made while watching a recent episode of the popular show. Angelique was exercising on her Air Walk when the show was featuring a winner of the popular weight-loss competition show "The Biggest Loser" who had lost about 100 pounds. "She stopped dead in her tracks and said, 'Hey, what about me?! Check it out!' " Anne Nabours said. "And I thought, that's right. She does deserve recognition." Anne Nabours said their goal was to get Angelique to 140 pounds. She reached the goal about a year ago, lost a little more, and has never weighed more than 140 since.
"She's such an inspiration," her mother said. "What's amazing is that she's doing it all on her own, and she keeps (the weight) off. It's her own determination." Angelique Nabours also meets regularly with a nutrition management consultant from Kaiser Permanente Vallejo Medical Center. She said she misses all of her favorite foods, which have now been replaced by vegetables, fruit and other healthier choices. "I still like them, but I know they are bad for me," she said. However, she's more excited about her whole new wardrobe. Due to her weight loss, she dropped 16 dress sizes and is now a size 10. "I can now wear cute, skinny clothes," she said. Her healthy habits also affected her parents. "I used to be a smoker, and I had to quit. That was hard," her father Ed Nabours said. "But what she's doing is ever harder." Angelique Nabours' simple advice to other people trying to lose weight is: "Don't give up." Contact staff writer Irma Widjojo at (707)553-6835 or iwidjojo@timesheraldonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @IrmaVTH.

Nurse’s intervention helps obese child with Down syndrome

from Nurse.com by Lois Gerber, RN, BSN, MPH:

The nurse practitioner at the health department handed me a new referral. "Evan’s a healthy 6-year-old with Down syndrome," she said. "No cardiac problems. He’s short with a body mass index at the 90th percentile. Can you make a home visit?"

Two days later I was sitting in the family’s apartment talking with Leslie, Evan’s mother, a stocky middle-aged woman wearing khaki slacks and a white T-shirt.

Dressed in a navy sweatsuit, Evan sat in the corner of the room in an oversized children’s rocking chair watching Sesame Street on television. A box of Cheez-Its sat on the table beside him.

Piles of men and women’s clothes were stacked on top of a sewing machine by the back wall. "I alter people’s clothes," Leslie said. "I have to work. We need the extra money."

I smiled at her. "Let’s talk a bit."

"There’s nothing a nurse can help with," she said. "Evan’s doing OK. So what if he has a little baby fat?"

"He’s really not a baby anymore," I said.

Leslie swallowed hard. "You don’t know what it’s like. I’m here every afternoon with him. Mornings, too, when he doesn’t go to school." She sighed. "Evan sits watching television while I sew. He loves to rock and eat. I know it’s bad for him but … ." Tears filled her eyes.

I learned Leslie and her husband, Sam, felt overwhelmed with caring for their son even though they’d adjusted to the fact that he would always have developmental challenges. Sam worked long hours as a security guard and was emotionally detached from the family.

Although toilet trained, Evan had poor muscle tone and a lumbering gait and was prone to upper respiratory infections. His tongue protruded slightly. Developmentally, he functioned as a 3-year-old.

On another home visit, I said, "Obese children tend to have weight problems all their lives."

Leslie smoothed her T-shirt over her stomach. "What else can I do?"

"Let’s write down some ideas," I said. "You first — something you think could help."

"Not giving him Snickers bars after supper."

"Good idea," I said.

Together, we developed the care plan. She agreed to complete a three-day food diary, including snacks, which showed the family’s regular meals contained too much bread and dairy and not enough fruits and vegetables.

I tailored my teaching to the family’s food preferences and eating style. The goals were for Evan to maintain his present weight until it fell within the normal range for his age and to eat foods daily from each of the major food groups.

Leslie agreed to a referral for food stamps, allowing her to purchase more fresh fruits and vegetables. I taught her healthier food choices using pamphlets with heart-healthy recipes. She prepared more low-calorie, low-fat meals with fruits, vegetables and whole grains.

To encourage Evan’s physical activity, Leslie enrolled him in an afternoon playgroup for developmentally delayed children. On Saturdays, the family shopped for groceries together. The parents compared food labels and let Evan participate in the final selections. Leslie declined referrals to a nutritionist and the National Association for Down Syndrome, but agreed to save the phone numbers for future reference.

On my last visit, a smiling Evan met me at the door. Leslie had limited his television watching to two hours a day and replaced his candy and cookie snacks with granola bars or small dishes of dry cereal and raisins. Instead of buying milkshakes at fast food restaurants, she prepared them at home with skim milk and fruit juice.

"Sam and I are losing weight," Leslie said proudly. "We have more energy and feel more like a family now."

Nurses must be creative and look beyond the obvious to find long-term solutions to complex health problems. Referrals to community resources broaden the family’s base of support and increase the likelihood that care plan goals will be met and maintained.