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Yearly Archives: 2015

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To eat fat or to not eat fat is a question that has been dogging the medical community for years. It would seem, at least on the surface, that this should be a simple answer, and it is. Of course, we should eat fat. However, what type of fat is good for us and what type of fat may be detrimental is where it gets downright murky. Is low fat beneficial, or is a normal fat or even a high fat amount okay in our diet? We are constantly discussing fats because they could have an impact on chronic diseases, such as heart disease, stroke, cancer and obesity (1).
The problem is that we are focusing potentially on the wrong issue. It may not be about choosing one macronutrient over another. There are three macronutrients: fats, carbohydrates and protein. You would think with just three macronutrients there can’t be that many permutations to find a diet that works. The upshot is that it may be more important to focus on the diet as a whole rather than on the individual macronutrients. Unfortunately, there is no one specific balance that will fit the population at large.
The reason for writing this article is twofold: There is a recent study touting that fat consumption is not an issue; and there are potential new dietary guidelines on the horizon from the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture as a result of advisory committee recommendations. The government usually follows the recommendations of the advisory committee.
The advisory committee has suggested lifting the current dietary recommendation of 35 percent fat restriction (2). Does this mean we should eat more fat? Not necessarily. However, they have maintained that saturated fat remain less than 10 percent of the diet. This is not as severe as the American Heart Association, which recommends limiting saturated fat to 5 to 6 percent of your diet. Another significant advisory panel recommendation is that the 300-mg cholesterol restriction be removed. The advisory panel emphasized the importance of consuming unsaturated fats including nuts, fish, olive oil and vegetable oils.
It is difficult to cut fat. Do you replace it with protein or with carbohydrates? Food manufacturers have been replacing fat with sugar in processed foods. I know because when fat-free cookies were popular in the 1990s, my wife and I felt guiltless eating them all, although we were overwhelmed by the sugar.
The government is now more interested in reducing sugar than fats. We overconsume sugars by at least twofold. The advisory committee was in line with my comments above about focusing on the whole rather than looking at the parts. We cannot see the forest for the trees.
Let’s cut through the fat and look at the research, metaphorically speaking of course.

SHOULD WE LIMIT FAT AND
SATURATED FAT?
This is a loaded question. In a recent meta-analysis involving a group of six randomized controlled trials, the gold standard of studies, results showed that there were no statistically significant changes in the treatment groups (which one would think would be a “low fat” group) and control groups in regard to overall mortality and heart disease (3). The actual trials were performed from 1977 to 1983. The intent of the meta-analysis was to determine whether or not the original recommendations regarding fat and saturated fat restrictions were based on solid results. The researchers concluded that they were not.
Interestingly, five of six trials did not actually look at limiting overall fat to less than 30 percent or at reducing saturated fat to less than 10 percent. Instead, the trials replaced saturated fat with vegetable oils, which are high in polyunsaturated fats, specifically omega-6s. What is the significance of omega-6s? Keep reading!

ULTIMATELY, WHAT IS THE PROBLEM IF FAT IS NOT THE ISSUE?
There are two questions that stem from either reducing fat overall or replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fats. The first is: With what are you replacing the fat? The second is: Are all polyunsaturated fats safe or harmful, compared to saturated fats? Studying saturated fats is complicated because studies that show equivocal  non-harmful results with these types of fats also contained unsaturated omega-3s as well (4). Even if saturated fat has shown no harmful effects, it has not demonstrated beneficial effects either.

REPLACING FATS WITH
CARBOHYDRATES
We had this long-standing belief that fats were the culprit in obesity, metabolic syndrome and diabetes. However, studies have shown that replacing fats with carbohydrates has resulted in an increase in obesity and diabetes, rather than a decrease. In an epidemiologic study, results show that refined carbohydrates, specifically corn syrup, increase the risk of diabetes, while fiber decreased the risk. Fat and protein had no effect (5). In other words, reducing fat may not be the best idea, depending on whether you’re replacing that fat with refined carbohydrates or not.

NOT ALL POLYUNSATURATED FATS ARE EQUAL
Certain types of fat may be more beneficial than others. A study comparing polyunsaturated fats, which include omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids, and their replacement of trans fats and saturated fats showed mixed results (6). Diets that contained both omega-3s and omega-6s had reductions in the risk of heart attack and heart disease death when compared to those containing omega-6s alone, which appeared to increase the risk of heart disease mortality. Certain vegetable oils contain high amounts of omega-6s such as safflower oil.
In the Sydney Diet Heart Study, there was a trend toward increased cardiovascular disease when replacing saturated fats with polyunsaturated omega-6 fatty acids referred to as linoleic acid (7).
Both of these trials were not without their statistical weaknesses. However, caution should be advised when replacing saturated fats with polyunsaturated fats; you should include an increase in omega-3 fatty acids and not necessarily an increase in omega-6s solely.

WHAT TYPE OF DIET IS BENEFICIAL?
Diets rich in heart-healthy foods are better than low-saturated-fat diets at reducing LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels, a risk factor for heart disease, according to the results of a randomized controlled trial (8). Patients were randomized into three groups: one low-saturated-fat group and two portfolio diet groups, one with intensive counseling and one with moderate counseling. The portfolio diet was a heart-healthy plant-rich diet consisting of viscous fibers (referred to as sticky fibers), nuts, plant sterols, vegetables and soy proteins. Both portfolio diet groups experienced significant reductions in LDL similar to that of an early type statin while the low-saturated-fat diet did not. The study duration was six months, and it involved over 350 participants.
Thus, we need to focus on the diet as a whole, such as the Mediterranean diet, not on a single component, for that is when we get ourselves in trouble. Also, just because the fat is unsaturated does not mean it is necessarily healthy. Omega-3 fatty acids are most likely beneficial. Some vegetable oils are loaded with omega-6 fatty acids that induce inflammation and may be no better than saturated fats. It is important to maintain a reduction in saturated fat as long as it does not mean replacement with refined carbohydrates or potentially harmful omega-6s, though not all omega-6 fatty acids are created equal either.
REFERENCES:
(1) uptodate.com. (2) health.gov. (3) Open Heart 2015;2. (4) Ann Intern Med. 2014; 160(6):398-406. (5) Am J Clin Nutr. 2004;79(5):774-779. (6) Br J Nutr 2010;104:1586–600. (7) BMJ 2013;346:e8707. (8) JAMA 2011; 306:831-839.

Dr. Dunaief is a speaker, author and local lifestyle medicine physician focusing on the integration of medicine, nutrition, fitness and stress management.  For further information, go to the website www.medicalcompassmd.com and/or consult your personal physician.

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In winters like this one, most people focus on the weather for the day or week. That’s not the case for Minghua Zhang, who is much less concerned about whether to buy more salt for the next snowstorm than he is about global changes in the weather over the last 100 years.

The dean of the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at Stony Brook University, Zhang studies weather around the globe, exploring changes in temperature, precipitation, clouds, convection and atmospheric and oceanic circulations.

Working with a team of scientists from Britain, Switzerland and Germany, Zhang recently discovered that the industrial revolution has had severe consequences in the northern tropics in the Atlantic.

Zhang, who worked with graduate student Tingyin Xiao on the study, said precipitation in that area decreased by 10 percent in the last 100 years. This decrease could have implications for farming in Central America, experts said.

“These findings may help to reveal shifts in seasonal rainfall in Central America, which is critical for agriculture in the area and may, therefore, have potential impacts on agricultural and environmental policies in the region,” wrote Provost Dennis Assanis in response to emailed questions.

Zhang said sulfate aerosols in the atmosphere moderated temperatures in the northern hemisphere by reflecting radiation from the sun. This shifted the intertropical convergence zone, which is a tropical rainfall belt near the equator, toward the southern hemisphere.

Led by Harriet Ridley from the Department of Earth Sciences at Durham University in the United Kingdom, the scientists published their work in the journal Nature Geoscience.

Zhang addressed the challenge of predicting or understanding global patterns even as computer models, which are at the center of predicting and understanding weather, raised alarms in New York City for a record-breaking blizzard that never came.

“The fluid system is chaotic,” he suggested, “which prevents a deterministic prediction with long lead time.”

The predictive ability of the model for approaching storms are limited by the computing power to resolve key processes, the lack of understanding of turbulence and condensed water processes, such as ice crystal aggregation and the lack of sufficient data in remote areas, such as over the ocean.

“In the short term, the weather is chaotic and there is a limit” to how well these models predict the movement of approaching storms, he said.

More broadly, Zhang, whose research contributed to the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 headlined by former Vice President Al Gore, said his research goal is to improve global climate models.

“We have uncertainties in the models, especially those related to clouds,” Zhang said.

Indeed, despite advances in technology, computers are still not powerful enough to resolve large cloud systems, he said. The current fastest computer in the United States can do about 27,000 trillion calculations per second, he said, which is the equivalent of the speed of about one million desktop PCs. That only resolves the climate in units that are about 25 kilometers apart.

Zhang said the scientific understanding of liquid clouds is much better than before, but the knowledge of ice clouds in a turbulent environment is “still not sufficient.”

When he’s not conducting research, Zhang oversees a school that has 120 faculty and staff, with about 150 graduate students and 350 undergraduates.

While the Ph.D. program is ranked sixth in the category of marine and atmospheric sciences by the National Research Council, Zhang wants to continue to move up the ladder. He also wants to improve the teaching at Stony Brook and has put the syllabus for all the courses on the website and  urges all faculty to be involved in advising undergraduate students.

Zhang has established a faculty mentoring program that allows junior faculty to receive tips from senior faculty.

Zhang “has helped to grow the school” of faculty that are “working together to better understand how our marine, terrestrial, and atmospheric environments function and are related to one another,” Assanis explained in an email. “The current expertise [at the school] places them in the forefront in addressing and answering questions about immediate regional problems, as well as long-term problems relating to the global oceans and atmosphere.”

Zhang and his wife Ying live in East Setauket, where they raised their daughters Grace, who is studying art at Brown University, and Harley, who works for the Singapore branch of a consulting firm based in New York.
Born and raised in China, Zhang said that, in his rare free time, he enjoys visiting the beaches through all the seasons.

As for his work, Zhang finds his role as the dean of the school and as a researcher rewarding. In his research, he focuses on “improving the mathematical formulas that go into the models.”

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Stony Brook University runs a lab on the waterfront at Flax Pond and researchers there say they worry about the deteriorating water quality there and its impact on the wildlife. Photo by Phil Corso

The Village of Old Field is looking to do some ecological spring cleaning.

Flax Pond, a 146-acre tidal wetland on the North Shore, is in dire need of dredging before it deteriorates into an environmental disaster, nearby residents and advocates have contested. The pond’s last dredge was in 1947.

Residents’ names have been flooding a petition touting more than 210 signatures to date calling for action at the inlet there.

John Robinson, who lives near the water with his wife Fredelle and is at the mercy of the declining water quality there, has been helping circulate that petition and said the buildup of sand within the inlet has prevented the pond from properly emptying at low tide. He said he fears the region is just one major storm away from forcing the inlet to close off completely, which would have devastating effects on the ecosystem there, as the inlet acts as a marine nursery for the Long Island Sound.

“We have been watching the pond deteriorate over the last quarter of a century,” he said. “I’ve seen really major changes in the vegetation, the depth and the sea life. There are a lot of things going on, but one key aspect of this is the loss of adequate outflow.”

Fredelle Robinson, an avid fisher and nature lover, said the negative impacts were both aesthetic and environmental. Not only is the wildlife changing, but her waterfront home could be at risk if the water does not drain, she said.

“I used to stand in the inlet at night and fish. We could hear the striped bass and their tails flopping in the water,” she said. “You just don’t hear that anymore. Saltwater marshes all over are under stress and this is just another example.”

Old Field Mayor Michael Levine and the board of trustees also called on legislators from the county, state and town levels to join with Stony Brook University and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to see the pond dredged and protect the fin and shellfish populations known to once thrive there.

A throng of concerned citizens, elected officials and Stony Brook University researchers gathered at the Childs Mansion near the inlet Sunday for a lecture sponsored by the Friends of Flax Pond to explore ways to address the clogging.

State Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket) has been at the forefront of the Friends of Flax Pond’s efforts to address the deterioration on the water and spoke at the group’s Sunday panel. He said there were many factors that went into the best course of action for both the inlet and the surrounding community, all of which needed to be ironed out before taxpayer dollars get thrown into the mix.

“While we’re searching for money to do something to make sure the inlet doesn’t close, we’re also searching for answers to the questions of how to actually write a description of what we’d like to have done,” Englebright said. “We don’t have a scope of work yet that is well defined.”

Nancy Grant, program director with the 12-year-old grassroots Friends of Flax Pond group, said the large mound of sand in the middle of the inlet has gotten worse with each passing year. And if not addressed, the saltwater pond could potentially revert back to a freshwater body, which it has not been for nearly 200 years, she said.

“Flax Pond serves as a buffer to that whole area as far as flooding is concerned. It has also been supporting a lot of the health of the Long Island Sound,” Grant said. “It absorbs the crashing of the waves. There are homes at risk. There are species at risk.”

Grant’s group hosts a lecture series each winter and also sponsors various environmental workshops in conjunction with Stony Brook University, which works out of a lab directly on the inlet. Steve Abrams, manager of the lab, described Flax Pond as one of the most pristine marshes on all of Long Island. He said a dredging was necessary in order to sustain marine life at the inlet.

“It has been really important for studying plants and animals in a relatively natural state. But over the last number of years, serious storms have changed things,” he said. “Tides don’t drain the way they should. It would be unfortunate if species there lost their place to live and it would be less than desirable for research.”

Shawn Nuzzo, president of the Civic Association of the Setaukets and Stony Brook, said Flax Pond was an example of what the Long Island Sound faces as a whole and includes factors beyond the small Village of Old Field. He said old-fashioned power plants, like one in nearby Port Jefferson, dump warm water into the sound, which translates directly into the Flax inlet. He cited recent legislation out of the Town of Brookhaven requiring improved wastewater standards in the Carmans River on the South Shore and said similar action was needed on the north end.

“We must take a hard look at how we are going to stop this loop if we intend on preserving our waterways for future generations,” Nuzzo said.

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"Remembering Things Past"

Waugh's painting from her exhibit "Across the Pond" looks at how the same language renders different meanings "across the pond."

When it comes to the power of Annemarie Waugh’s art, the writing is on the wall — elegantly scrawled in technicolor chalk on a black cloud of paint that remarkably, though unintentionally, resembles a map of the United States.

Her latest work, “Across the Pond,” features 166 “Britishisms” brought to life in paintings on canvas and with expressions written directly on the walls of the Islip Museum of Art.

It’s all part of the show, “Remembering Things Past,” running at the museum until the end of March.

The small room where her art is displayed is filled with wonderful British idioms, like “snog,” (to kiss), “faff,” (to waste time) and “mucky pup”, (dirty child). My personal favorite is “all fur coat and no knickers” (to have a sophisticated appearance but no substance). They’re the sort of expressions that would make you feel oh, so witty, were you to slip them into your daily conversation. Though, I’m not sure they’d sound nearly as nifty without the equally smart British accent.

Annemarie says the idea for the project began to percolate last Christmas when she was at home in England. The almost clichéd advice, “write what you know,” got her thinking.

“I know England. I know these expressions,” she says.

Inspiration to begin her text series, illustrations of some of these expressions — almost like an onomatopoeia in pencil and acrylic— soon followed. She describes the process as “thinking about the differences of the two countries and finding a visual voice that brings those memories and experiences into the work.”

Before she picked up her tools though, she started with a short story — about a paragraph long — to go with the words. Her first word was “snog.” From there, she went on to do more research in books and dictionaries, rediscovering and uncovering more expressions. She still uses some. Some, she’d forgotten. Her list has grown so much that she is actually compiling it into a book.

Annemarie told me that when she first showed the series in Patchogue last October, she didn’t want to display only paintings, so she had to figure out a way to showcase additional expressions.

“I started thinking of England and chalkboards and schools… chalkboard brings you back to remembering days long ago. It was a natural fit,” she says.

So she started practicing on the chalkboard in her son’s playroom. Though she’d used stencils for her paintings because she thought of her handwriting as “chicken scratch,” the artist says she found chalk freer and less inhibiting.

As the whole concept formed, “It was like another person stepped in and did it for me,” she says.

Installing the chalked portion of the exhibit was a project in itself. Annemarie says she was at the museum from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. — leaving in time to get her son off the bus —for four straight days.

She painted the wall and wrote the 166 British expressions on one wall and the corresponding “American translations” on another. She very nicely numbered everything so they can easily be matched. On the fifth day, she worked with a proofreader. After all, that is a lot of writing!

Annemarie_definitionsAs Annemarie explains it, evenings were spent going through her lists of expressions to choose which would fit thematically and physically in her piece.

To see how she has managed to perfectly alternate each color — red, pink, blue, yellow, green, orange, purple and white— for each expression, so that the same color is never contiguous, is an impressive and powerful feat.

It’s almost like performance art, because to show the exhibit elsewhere, Annemarie would have to do it all over again!

When I asked her if the thought made her want to take a nap, she laughed. “Oh no! I’d love to do it again!” she said.

“Remembering Things Past,” can be seen at the Islip Museum of Art, 50 Irish Lane, East Islip, through March 29. Viewing is 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursdays and Fridays, and noon to 4 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays. Call (631) 224-5402.

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Linda Ventura, center, holds up a picture of her son Thomas, who overdosed on heroine three years ago. She will be one of the many speakers at a Kings Park drug forum in March. File photo

By Jenni Culkin

A forum will be held at William T. Rogers Middle School, 97 Old Dock Road, Kings Park, on Wednesday, March 4, at 7 p.m., with the hope of keeping the next generation of Kings Park residents safe and informed, event organizers said.

The event is going to be geared toward middle school students and their parents, making a point to intervene while the middle school students of Kings Park are still young and impressionable.

“The best way to stop addiction is through prevention,” says Kimberly Revere, president of Kings Park In The kNOw.

Attendees can expect Kym Laube, the executive director for Human Understanding & Growth Services, to speak to the parents about understanding trends in addiction and other decisions that have potentially destructive outcomes. She will also be discussing the role that parents play in their teenagers’ attitudes and provide them with the tools and information that they need to navigate the challenges of their children’s teen years.

“Parents are still the number one influence on their teenagers,” Laube said.

There’s also going to be a speaker for the adolescent attendees. Linda Ventura, a mother who lost her son to an overdose. She will be sharing the journey that she and her family went through.

Suffolk County Legislator Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga) will also be speaking. All of the attendees will listen to a brief overview of laws like the Social Host Law and the 911 Good Samaritan Law that affect those who are involved with, or know somebody who is involved with, drugs and alcohol. Trotta is a retired Suffolk County police detective who was assigned to the FBI’s Violent Crime Task Force for over 10 years.

In The kNOw’s goal is for each of the communities in the state to take care of itself in order to take care of the overall problem.

Even those who have no substance abuse are still affected, and they are advised to attend to learn about what the community can do to prevent any possible damage.

“We are facing an opiate epidemic in this country,” Revere said. “Something has to be done.”

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Suffolk County Legislator Rob Trotta with his dog Buddy. Photo from Susan Eckert

By Jenni Culkin

Suffolk County Legislator Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga) will be holding a food drive for pet food in his office from now until Thursday, April 30.

Donations will be accepted during the normal business hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the normal business days of Monday through Friday.

The drive is going to bring pet food to the Harry Chapin Food Bank so that those who are assisted by the food bank can feed their pets as well as themselves.

Trotta also said he believes that pets can be an extremely important part of people’s lives, especially when they’re down on their luck.

“Pets keep many people going, giving them comfort and a reason to survive in difficult times,” said Trotta.
Trotta himself has a dog named Buddy.

The office is currently accepting donations of canned and dry cat or dog food, dog treats, birdseed, fish food, kitty litter and small toys that are unused.

According to Long Island Cares, the organization that runs the food bank, dog and cat food are items with high demand because the costs of heating a home, buying medications, paying the bills, and putting food on the table prevent some people with financial hardships from properly caring for their pets without assistance.

Long Island Cares has been providing pet food for its clients since 2009. There is hope that the people of Suffolk County can continue the pet food donation trend well into this frigid winter over five years later.

Donations can be dropped off at 59 Landing Ave. in Smithtown throughout the duration of the drive, Trotta said.

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Looking through binoculars from the bleachers at a baseball game, at an eagle as it alights on a distant tree or at a constellation in a cloudless night are all much easier with a clear lens. A smudge, crack or even a hair on the lens can make that long-distance gazing considerably more challenging, as the images become blurry and our eyes struggle to interpret the difference between what’s out there and the defect in our binoculars.

The same holds true for radiation detectors. Constructed with bars of crystals, the detectors have applications in everything from medical imaging to see tumors to peering deep into the universe for signature radiation signals to detecting the movement of nuclear materials to help prevent an attack or accident.

A significant challenge with these detectors has been the defects that appear as the crystal grows. Scientists work on two fronts to deal with these imperfections: They improve the quality of the crystals, and they develop ways to compensate for the imperfections.

At Brookhaven National Laboratory, physicist Aleksey Bolotnikov has made significant contributions to improving detector performance despite the flaws in the crystal.

“We veto the interactions in the ‘bad’ regions of the crystals,” Bolotnikov explained.

Working with a team of scientists at BNL, including Giuseppe Camarda, Utpal Roy, Anwar Hossain and Ge Yang, Bolotnikov has been able to measure the coordinates of these defects with high accuracy. This allows the researchers to improve the detecting capability and reduce the cost by increasing the acceptance rates of the crystals.

Recently, Bolotnikov authored a paper in Applied Physics Letters in which he increased the size and thickness of the crystals. The thicker crystals are important in detecting weak sources.

Bolotnikov has “been able to establish new records for the thickness of semiconductor gamma-ray detectors operating at room temperature,” offered Ralph James, who heads Bolotnikov’s department and has collaborated with him ever since he arrived 20 years ago. “This is a critical step in the move to replace many traditional radiation-sensing instruments used today.”

The biggest market for these detectors with thicker crystals is in nuclear medical instruments for oncology and cardiology, James said.

Bolotnikov explained that the team at BNL combines researchers with expertise in a range of areas. Roy grows the crystals, while a group from the instrumentation division led by Gianluigi De Geronimo facilitates the work as a “top expert in readout electronics.” By tapping into his expertise in nuclear physics and nuclear engineering, Bolotnikov is  also able to design and develop new detectors.

James credits his colleague with significant advances in detector technology. “His new position-sensitive device design has rendered outstanding results that have approached the theoretical limits for energy resolution,” James said.

The work of Bolotnikov and the team has earned them national recognition. Bolotnikov was a part of three R&D Magazine’s R&D 100 Awards, in 2006, 2009 and 2014.

Last fall, he received the Room Temperature Semiconductor Detector Scientist Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. The award recognized a scientist who had done the most to impact room temperature semiconductor detectors and could be given either for a lifetime of work or for a single accomplishment.

The award is “well earned,” James said. Bolotnikov’s votes among the awards committee “surpassed others by far.”

Like other members of his team, James said Bolotnikov works most waking hours. “I can count on a quick response from him via emails during the evenings,” James said.

Born in a small city near Moscow, Bolotnikov first came to Long Island around 1991. He now lives in Setauket with his wife Mila, who is a teacher for North Shore Montessori. His daughter Dasha works at BlackRock, while his son Vassili works for a small management company affiliated with Stony Brook Hospital.

Bolotnikov, who said he enjoys his work, suggested that the effort to improve technology generates new ideas, which “creates the new background or basis for writing proposals for the next cycle of work.”

Bolotnikov continues to work on increasing the size of the crystals in the detectors. At some point, the larger sizes can become prohibitively expensive. An alternative, he suggested, is to use gamma-ray focusing optics, concentrating gamma rays coming from large areas toward a reasonably sized detector. “This, he said, “is a new horizon.”

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Emma, one of the Angela’s House children, rides a pony earlier this year. Photo from Bob Policastro

By Jenni Culkin

The Town of Smithtown will host a night of saying thanks to a group known for its generosity.

The Watermill Caterers of Smithtown is set to hold a special gala on Thursday, March 19, to honor two important contributors to the nonprofit group, Angela’s House.

Hundreds of children and their families reach out to Angela’s House each year to provide them with a safe and comfortable place to go to ease the pressure of caring for a child with specific medical needs: 24-hour nursing care, case management, family counseling and other beneficial programs sustain the caring and attentive environment of the organization.

The two honorees, Ron and Rob Brigati of White Post Farms, donate their time, effort and resources toward an annual summer party for the residents of Angela’s House and their families. Their actions provide a carefree summer day to relax and take a breather from their daily responsibilities.

“The smiles and joy that they see as a result makes it very special,” Ron Brigati said.

Now it was time for Angela’s House to return the favor, the organization said. At $100 per ticket, local residents can enjoy an evening at one of the area’s most distinguished wedding halls by socializing at a cocktail hour, a reception and a formal dinner. Guests will also have the opportunity to win prizes during auctions and raffles. The money raised from the event will go toward the children that Angela’s House assist on a daily basis.

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The iconic Smithtown statue, “Whisper the Bull,” welcomes residents as they enter the township and is a symbol of the community’s long and storied past. File photo by Elana Glowatz

By Jenni Culkin

There is cause for celebration among Smithtown residents this year. The town was founded 350 years ago, and the Smithtown Historical Society is preparing to get its residents involved in festivities and immersion in the town’s proud history.

“This town has been inhabited for 350 years,” said Kiernan Lannon, executive director of the Smithtown Historical Society. “It’s self-evident that this is a milestone!”

Lannon said the Smithtown Historical Society’s mission is to “preserve and present the town’s history,” and in order to develop an itinerary for the 350th annual celebration, the town’s historical society developed the 350 Foundation — a group of volunteers comprised of representatives from various organizations in the town.

On March 3rd, 1665, Richard Smythe, the town’s founder, was granted the Nicholls Patent. The patent gave him the right to the territory that encompasses present-day Smithtown. Originally, it was believed that Smythe was told that he could have all of the territory that he could circumnavigate on the back of a bull.

The bull story is so important that it has become the icon that represents Smithtown. The bull statue, affectionately named “Whisper the Bull,” welcomes residents as they enter the town boundaries.

The story proved to be only a legend, but it still has a place in this year’s celebration of the town’s history.

The Bull Smythe Relay is proof that the bull story is still sentimental to the people of Smithtown. The relay is the first of the 350th anniversary events that the 350 Foundation is planning, scheduled for March 1, which will mimic the torch relays that are performed during the Olympics.

The relay will cover approximately 36 miles within the town, each mile sponsored by a different person, organization or family. The public is welcome to come and watch the Bull Smythe Relay and support the participants.

Town historian Bradley Harris helped spearhead the planning of this year’s 350th celebration after Town Supervisor Patrick Vecchio penned a letter to him asking him to help plan the events.

Only two days after the relay, on March 3, there will be a special town board meeting. A time capsule opening will follow the meeting. The capsule was buried in 1965, during the town’s 300th anniversary celebration.

Town Councilwoman Lynne Nowick says that she can remember attending the 300th anniversary and said the events were historically a great historical celebration for the Town of Smithtown.

“The 350 committee is doing a fabulous job,” she said.

The dedicated 350 Foundation has a tentative calendar of events stretching from late February to December of this year. Not all of these events are held by the historical society.

The Smithtown Performing Arts Center is also hosting a musical performance called “The Spirit of Smithtown,” which will be playing in late May and early June. The Smithtown Library is also formulating a schedule of events that is to be announced within the last few weeks of February. Even the public schools in Smithtown’s school districts are planning an art show and contest.

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This article was originally published in the January 23, 2014 issue of Arts and Lifestyles.
Gluten has been gaining in notoriety over the last several years. When we hear someone mention a gluten-free diet, several things tend to come to mind. One may be that this is a healthy diet. Along the same lines, we may think gluten is bad for us. However, gluten-free is not necessarily synonymous with healthy. There are many beneficial products containing gluten.
We might think that gluten-free diets are a fad, like low-fat or low-carb diets. Still, we keep hearing how more people feel better without gluten. Could this be a placebo effect? What is myth and what is reality in terms of gluten? In this article I will try to distill what we know about gluten and gluten-free diets, who may benefit and who may not.
But first, what is gluten? Most people I ask don’t know the answer, which is OK; it is part of the reason I am writing the article. Gluten is a plant protein found mainly in wheat, rye and barley.
Now to answer the question of whether going gluten-free is a fad. The answer is resounding “No,” since we know that patients who suffer from celiac disease, an autoimmune disease, benefit tremendously when gluten is removed.(1) In fact, it is the main treatment.
But what about people who don’t have celiac disease? There seems to be a spectrum of physiological reaction to gluten, from intolerance to gluten (sensitivity) to gluten tolerance (insensitivity). Obviously, celiac disease is the extreme of intolerance, but even these patients may be asymptomatic. Then, there is nonceliac gluten sensitivity, referring to those in the middle portion of the spectrum.(2) The prevalence of NCGS is half that of celiac disease, according to the NHANES data from 2009-2010.(3) However, many disagree with this assessment, indicating that it is much more prevalent and that its incidence is likely to rise.(4) The term was not even coined until 2011.
What is the difference between full-blown celiac disease and gluten sensitivity? They both may have intestinal symptoms, such as bloating, gas, cramping and diarrhea, as well as extraintestinal (outside the gut) symptoms, including gait ataxia (gait disturbance), malaise, fatigue and attention deficit disorder.(5) Surprisingly, they both may have the same results with serological (blood) tests, which may be positive or negative. The first line of testing includes antigliadin antibodies and tissue transglutaminase. These measure a reaction to gluten; however, they don’t have to be positive to have reaction to gluten. HLA–DQ phenotype testing is the second line of testing and tends to be more specific for celiac disease.
What is unique to celiac disease is a histological change in the small intestine, with atrophy of the villi (small fingerlike projections) contributing to gut permeability, what might be called “leaky gut.” Biopsy of the small intestine is the most definitive way to diagnose celiac disease.
Though the research has mainly focused on celiac disease, there is some evidence that shows NCGS has potential validity, especially in irritable bowel syndrome.
Before we look at the studies, what does it mean when a food says it’s “gluten-free”? Well, the FDA has recently weighed in by passing regulation that requires all gluten-free foods to have no more than 20 parts per million of gluten.(6) The agency has given food manufacturers a year to comply with the new standards. Now, let’s look at the evidence.
Irritable bowel syndrome
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a nebulous disease diagnosed through exclusion, and the treatments are not obvious. That is why the results from a randomized controlled trial, the gold standard of studies, showing that a gluten-free diet significantly improved symptoms in IBS patients, is so important.(7) Patients were given a muffin and bread on a daily basis.
Of course, one group was given gluten-free products and the other given products with gluten, though the texture and taste were identical. In six weeks, many of those who were gluten-free saw the pain associated with bloating and gas mostly resolve; significant improvement in stool composition, such that they were not suffering from diarrhea; and their fatigue diminished. In fact, in one week, those in the gluten group were in substantially more discomfort than those in the gluten-free group. There were 34 patients involved in this study.
As part of a well-written March 4, 2013 editorial in Medscape, by David Johnson, M.D., a professor of gastroenterology at Eastern Virginia Medical School, he questions whether this beneficial effect from the IBS trial was due to gluten withdrawal or to withdrawal of fermentable sugars because of the elimination of some grains, themselves.(8) In other words, gluten may be just one part of the picture. He believes that nonceliac gluten sensitivity is a valid concern.
Autism
Autism is a very difficult disease to quantify, diagnose and treat. Some have suggested gluten may play a role. Unfortunately, in a study with children who had autism spectrum disorder and who were undergoing intensive behavioral therapy, removing both gluten and casein, a protein found in dairy, had no positive impact on activity or sleep patterns.(9) These results were disappointing. However, this was a very small study involving 22 preschool children. Removing gluten may not be a panacea for all ailments.
Antibiotics
The microbiome in the gut may play a pivotal role as to whether a person develops celiac disease. In an observational study using data from the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register, results indicate that those who were given antibiotics within the last year had a 40 percent greater chance of developing celiac disease and a 90 percent greater risk of developing inflammation in the gut.(10) The researchers believe that this has to do with dysbyosis, a misbalance in the microbiota, or flora, of the gastrointestinal tract. It is interesting that celiac disease may be propagated by change in bacteria in the gut from the use of antibiotics.
Not everyone will benefit from a gluten-free diet. In fact, most of us will not. Ultimately, people who may benefit from this type of diet are those patients who have celiac disease and those who have symptomatic gluten sensitivity. Also patients who have positive serological tests, including tissue transglutaminase or antigliadin antibodies are good candidates for gluten-free diets.
There is a downside to a gluten-free diet: potential development of macronutrient and micronutrient deficiencies. Therefore, it would be wise to ask your doctor before starting gluten withdrawal. The research in patients with gluten sensitivity is relatively recent, and most gluten research has to do with celiac disease. Hopefully, we will see intriguing studies in the near future, since gluten-free products have grown to a $4 billion industry that the FDA now has begun to regulate.

References:
(1) Am J Gastroenterol. 2013;108:656-676. (2) Gut 2013;62:43–52. (3) Scand J Gastroenterol. (4) Neurogastroenterol Motil. 2013 Nov;25(11):864-71. (5) medscape.com. (6) fda.gov. (7) Am J Gastroenterol. 2011; 106(3):508-14. (8) medscape.com. (9) 9th annual AIM for Autism Research 2010; abstract 140.007. (10) BMC Gastroenterol. 2013:13(109).

Dr. Dunaief is a speaker, author and local lifestyle medicine physician focusing on the integration of medicine, nutrition, fitness and stress management. For further information, go to the website medicalcompassmd.com or consult your personal physician.

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