Celebrate the exceptional talent of Long Island artists at the Annual Invitational Exhibition at the Atelier at Flowerfield, 2 Flowerfield, Suite 15, St. James. The juried show runs from March 5 to April 30.
Exhibiting artists include Ludovico Abejar, Lucia Alberti, Ross Barbera, Marta Baumiller, Marlene Bezich, Nariman Boyle, Al Candia Kenneth Cerreta, Anthony Davis ,Paul Edelson, Dan Fusco, Shelley Holtzman, Frances Ianarella, David Jaycox, Jr Laurence Johnston, Liz Jorg Masi, Raymond McGraime, Jane McGraw-Teubner, Fred Mendelsohn, Joseph Miller, Annette Napolitano, Meriel Pitarka, Irene Ruddock, Oscar Santiago, Lori Scarlatos, Ilene Silberstein, Rosario Stine-Barry, Judy Stone, Angela Stratton, and Helena Weber.
Meet the artists at an opening reception on Thursday, March 5 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
For more information, call 632-250-9009 or visit www.atelierflowerfield.org.
Increasing fiber can reduce hemorrhoid inflammation
By David Dunaief
Dr. David Dunaief
Many of us have suffered at one time or another from inflamed hemorrhoids. They affect men and women equally, though women have a higher propensity during pregnancy and child birth. For some reason, there’s a social stigma associated with hemorrhoids, although we all have them. They’re vascular structures that aid in stool control. When they become irritated and inflamed, we have symptoms – and often say we “have hemorrhoids” – when we really mean our hemorrhoids are causing us pain.
When they’re irritated, hemorrhoids may alternate between itchy and painful symptoms, making it hard to concentrate and uncomfortable to sit. This is because the veins in your rectum are swollen. They usually bleed, especially during a bowel movement, which may scare us. Fortunately, hemorrhoids are not a harbinger of more serious disease.
There are two types of hemorrhoids: external, occurring outside the anus, and internal, occurring within the rectum.
How do you treatexternal hemorrhoids?
Fortunately, external hemorrhoids tend to be mild. Most of the time, they are treated with analgesic creams or suppositories that contain hydrocortisone, such as Preparation H, or with a sitz bath, all of which help relieve the pain. Thus, they can be self-treated and do not require an appointment with a physician. The most effective way to reduce bleeding and pain is to increase fiber through diet and supplementation (1). However, sometimes there is thrombosis (clotting) of external hemorrhoids, in which case they may become more painful, requiring medical treatment.
How do you treatinternal hemorrhoids?
Internal hemorrhoids can be a bit more complicated. The primary symptom is bleeding with bowel movement, not pain, since they are usually above the point of sensation in the colon, called the dentate line. If the hemorrhoids prolapse below this, there may be pain and discomfort, as well. Prolapse is when hemorrhoids fall out of place, due to weakening of the muscles and ligaments in the colon.
The first step for treating internal hemorrhoids is to add fiber through diet and supplementation. Study after study shows significant benefit. For instance, in a meta-analysis by the Cochrane Systems Data Review 2005, fiber reduced the occurrence of bleeding by 53 percent (2). In another study, after two weeks of fiber and another two-week follow-up, the daily incidence of bleeding was reduced dramatically (3).
There are several minimally invasive options, including anal banding, sclerotherapy and coagulation. The most effective of these is anal banding, with an approximate 80 percent success rate (4). This is usually an office-based procedure where two rubber bands are place at the neck of each hemorrhoid. To avoid complications from constipation, patients should also take fiber supplementation.
Side effects of the procedure are usually mild, and there is very low risk of infection. However, severe pain may occur if misapplication occurs with the band below the dentate line. If this procedure fails, hemorrhoidectomy (surgery) would be the next option.
How do you prevent hemorrhoids?
Adding more fiber to your diet will help prevent hemorrhoids. Stock photo
First, sitting on the toilet for long periods of time puts significant pressure on the veins in the rectum, potentially increasing the risk of inflammation. Though you may want private time to read, the bathroom is not the library. As soon as you have finished moving your bowels, it is important to get off the toilet.
Eating more fiber helps to create bulk for your bowel movements, avoiding constipation, diarrhea and undue straining. Thus, you should try to increase the amount of fiber in your diet, before adding supplementation. Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, beans and legumes have significant amounts of fiber. Grains, beans and nuts have among the highest levels of fiber. For instance, one cup of black beans has 12 g of fiber.
Americans, on average, consume 16 g per day of fiber (5). The Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommends daily fiber intake for those <50 years old of 25 to 38 g, depending on gender and age (6). I typically recommend at least 40 g. My wife and I try to eat only foods that contain a significant amount of fiber, and we get approximately 65 g per day. You may want to raise your fiber level gradually; if you do it too rapidly, be forewarned – side effects are potentially gas and bloating for the first week or two.
Get plenty of fluids. It helps to soften the stool and prevent constipation. Exercise also helps to prevent constipation. It is important not to hold in a bowel movement; go when the urge is there or else the stool can become hard, causing straining, constipation and more time on the toilet.
If you have rectal bleeding and either have a high risk for colorectal cancer or are over the age of 50, you should see your physician to make sure it is not due to a malignancy or other cause, such as inflammatory bowel disease. The message throughout this article is that Americans need to get more fiber, which is beneficial for inflamed hemorrhoid prevention and treatment.
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, visit www.medicalcompassmd.com.
In the span of a few months, Lingbo Zhang, a Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory fellow, has made discoveries involving two deadly blood cancers.
In September, Zhang, collaborating with researchers from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, found a drug target that might eventually lead to a new treatment for myelodysplastic syndrome, which is a common form of blood cancer. The scientists published their work in the journal Science Translational Medicine.
In January, Zhang published work that analyzed the genes that are active in acute myeloid leukemia, which has a five-year survival rate of only 33 percent.
By studying 230 genes, Zhang found that this form of blood cancer is addicted to higher concentrations of vitamin B6, creating a potential target for future therapy. The CSHL scientist published this work in the journal Cancer Cell.
“We feel humbled that we found a target” for a future AML therapy, Zhang said of his latest discovery. “My lab partners and I think one day we can potentially translate our knowledge into a real therapy. The translational part gives us the energy and encouragement to work hard.”
Indeed, Zhang explained that his work broadly focuses on blood cancer, in which he looks for questions of medical importance. With MDS, he started with the view that many patients with this disease do not respond to the typical treatment using a hormone called erythropoietin, or EPO.
Lingbo Zhang
People with MDS typically have too few red blood cells, which are made in bone marrow. The hormone EPO converts progenitor immature versions of red blood cells into the ones that function in the body. A small percentage of MDS patients, however, respond to EPO. This occurs because people with this disease have a smaller pool of progenitor cells.
Zhang and his colleagues went upstream of those progenitor cells, searching for defective processes earlier in the pathway. They found that a protein receptor, CHRM4, decreases the production of cells that might become red blood cells.
By inhibiting that receptor, they hoped to restore the red blood cell making process. In mice that have the same blood features as human MDS, this approach worked, restoring the machinery that leads to the production of red blood cells.
With both the MDS and the leukemia studies, these discoveries might lead to a future treatment, but are not necessarily the final step between understanding molecular signals and developing treatments. These findings are transitioning from basic discoveries into the preclinical development of novel therapies, Zhang said.
For MDS, the treatment may be effective with the inhibitor itself, while for AML, it will potentially be effective as part of a therapy in combination with other treatments.
In his work on leukemia, Zhang said the research went through several phases, each of which took several months. For starters, he screened all the potential target genes. Once he performed the initial work, he conducted a validation study, exploring each gene, one by one. Finally, he worked to validate the study.
After all that work, he discovered the role that the gene that makes PDXK, the enzyme that helps cells use vitamin B6, plays in contributing to cancer. Normal, healthy cells use vitamin B6 during metabolism to produce energy and grow. As with most cancers, leukemia involves more cell division than in a healthy cell, which means that the PDXK enzyme is more active.
Scott Lowe, a collaborator on the research and former CSHL fellow who is now the chair of Cancer Biology and Genetics at Memorial Sloan Kettering, expressed surprised at the finding. “While the action of certain vitamins has previously been linked to cancer, the specific links between vitamin B6 identified here were unexpected,” he said in a press release.
A postdoctoral researcher in Zhang’s lab who has been working on the project for two years, Bo Li plans to continue this research and hopes to find a more mechanistic understanding of the discovery.
While this vitamin contributes to cancer, people with leukemia shouldn’t reduce their consumption of B6, which is necessary in healthy cells. If normal and cancer cells both need this vitamin, how could this be a target for drugs?
The difference, Zhang explained, is in the concentration of the enzyme and, as a result, the B6.
PDXK is higher in leukemia. Reducing its activity by inhibiting this activity could affect the disease.
Working with a collaborator at Memorial Sloan Kettering, Zhang is hoping to develop a better chemical compound with the right property to target the activity of this gene and enzyme.
To conduct research into different diseases and pathways, Zhang works with a group of “very talented and hard working people,” in his lab, which includes a few postdoctoral researchers, a doctoral student, a few undergraduates and a technician, bringing his lab’s staff to eight people. “We also have very good collaborators at other institutes and we are able to manage several projects in parallel,” he said.
Zhang said he likes basic and translational science. The basic science brings “beautiful new theories that identify a detail nature created.” He also feels driven to “translate some of these basic discoveries into a potential treatment,” he said. He is working with a foundation and the hospital and receives patient information from them, which encourages him to work hard to seek ways to “benefit them.”
Down the road, he hopes to understand the hierarchical process that leads from stem cells to mature blood cells. By identifying a majority of the players or the regulators, he may be able to understand the different processes involved in the course of numerous diseases.
As for his current work, Zhang is pleased with the potential translational benefit of both discoveries. “I feel very happy that we can identify a target for leukemia and MDS,” he said.
I’m sitting here listening to the rain pelt the windows while the wind howls, and all I can think of besides lighting a fire and curling up in front of it is to stand in my fuzzy slippers at the kitchen counter and chop veggies and meat into chunks for a hearty stew. I’m going to go to my recipe files, find something that doesn’t require any ingredients I have to go out in the rain and wind to buy (and if it does, I’ll tweak it to accommodate what I have on hand). I’ll put a big pot on to simmer, then I think I’ll light that fire and curl up in front of it while the savory aromas of the stew waft through the house.
Beef Stew with Root Veggies
YIELD: Makes 8 servings.
INGREDIENTS:
½ cup flour
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 pounds stewing beef, cut into 2-inch cubes
½ cup olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cups dry white wine
1 quart beef broth
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into2 -inch pieces
1 pound parsnips, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
½ pound turnips, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 large fennel bulb, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 pound baby potatoes, scrubbed
1 pound pearl onions, peeled
3 tablespoons minced flat-leaf parsley
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 F. In a large bowl combine flour, salt and pepper. Add beef cubes in small batches and toss to coat thoroughly. In large Dutch oven or heavy casserole, heat two tablespoons oil. Add flour-coated meat in four batches, adding two more tablespoons oil with each batch, and over medium-high heat, brown it on all sides, about 6 minutes; transfer to bowl to keep warm. Add chopped onion, and stirring frequently, cook until soft and transparent, about 3 minutes. Add white wine, broth and thyme; bring to boil; return beef to pot; cover and braise in oven for one hour. Add veggies, potatoes, onions and parsley and cook for another hour, until veggies are tender; add more salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot with a crisp salad and warm crusty French bread.
Chicken Stew with Green Chilies
YIELD: Makes 6 servings.
INGREDIENTS:
½ cup olive oil
2 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs cut into 2-inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped
1 pound poblano or Anaheim chilies, halved lengthwise, cored and thinly sliced
3 serrano chilies thinly sliced
4 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 cups chicken broth
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
¼ cup chopped cilantro
6 lime wedges
DIRECTIONS:
In large heavy casserole or Dutch oven heat oil until very hot. Season chicken with salt and pepper, then add it to oil and cook, turning at least once, over high heat, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add onion, both kinds of chilies and garlic. Season again with salt and pepper. Cover and cook over medium high heat until chiles are softened, about 5 minutes. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Cover partially and simmer until everything is tender and liquid is reduced by half. about 15 minutes. Stir in cilantro, garnish with lime wedges and serve immediately with taco chips and rice
Lamb and Chick Pea Tagine
YIELD: Makes 8 servings.
INGREDIENTS:
¼ cup olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
Peeled (not grated) zest from half a lemon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
½ teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
Pinch crumbled saffron threads
1 cinnamon stick
3½ pounds boneless lamb shoulder, cut into 2-inch pieces
4 cups water
8 carrots, peeled and cut into ¼-inch slices
1 onion, diced
2 cups pitted green olives
One 14-ounce can chick peas, rinsed and drained
1 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
2 to 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
DIRECTIONS:
In large bowl, mix together oil, garlic, lemon zest, ginger, coriander, cumin, salt and pepper, dried pepper flakes, saffron and cinnamon and lamb. Cover and refrigerate 6 to 8 hours. Transfer to a tagine or heavy Dutch oven. Add water, carrots and onion; bring to simmer, cover and cook over low heat until lamb is very tender, about two hours. Skim any fat from broth, add olives and chick peas and cook another two or three minutes. Remove from heat, stir in parsley, cilantro and lemon juice. Serve immediately with couscous and a cucumber salad.
Theodore Kleppe captured this touching moment from Shore Road looking out at the harbor in his hometown of Mount Sinai on Feb. 17. He writes, ‘I caught the swan chasing another one away. I then captured him with this one. I guess it was a late Valentine.’
‘Smithtown Center for the Performing Arts, 2 E. Main St., Smithtown presents “Shrek The Musical Jr.” through March 1. In a faraway kingdom, Shrek finds his swamp invaded by banished fairy tale misfits, runaways who’ve been cast off by Lord Farquaad, a tiny terror with big ambitions. Farquaad tells Shrek he can get his swamp back if he rescues Princess Fiona from the dragon-guarded tower. But every fairy tale has its unexpected twists and turns! Performances are held on Saturdays and Sundays at various times and Feb. 17 to 21 at 1 p.m. for Presidents Week break. All seats are $18. For further information or to order tickets, call 631-724-3700 or visit www.smithtownpac.org.
Ellis Paul heads to the Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook on Feb. 23 for his 13th appearance in WUSB’s Sunday Street Series. The concert, held in the Carriage Museum’s Gillespie Room, will take place at 3 p.m. The program will feature many of the songs from Ellis’ latest album, “The Storyteller’s Suitcase.” Tickets are $25 in advance at www.sundaystreet.org through Feb. 21, $30 at the door. Call 751-0066 for more information.
Running a museum is far from simple. Consider this: The Long Island Museum in Stony Brook is home to more than 2,500 pieces of artwork done on paper, 500 paintings and 100 pieces of three-dimensional art. Each piece must be catalogued, maintained, protected and stored. It’s a delicate and meticulous process that takes a lot of work.
Recently, the LIM received a grant from the New York State Council on the Arts to expand and upgrade its storage facilities. They’ll need to clear out some of their existing storage space to prepare for renovation, and fortunately its visitors will reap the rewards of the process.
From Feb. 22 to June 26, the museum will present Off the Rack: Building and Preserving LIM’s Art Treasures, an exhibit of approximately 90 works of art from its permanent collection, in the main gallery of its Art Museum. Many pieces in the exhibit are only put on view rarely, if at all.
‘Dance of the Haymakers,’ 1845, oil on canvas mounted on wood, by William Sidney Mount
“We could have taken the artwork to off-site storage, but we thought, ‘Why not put it on display?’ In order to make more space, we thought this would be a great time to assess the state of the collection and share its history and highlights with our visitors,” said LIM Deputy Director and Curator Joshua Ruff. “This is an opportunity for people to see things they may not have seen before.”
Ruff said that choosing pieces for Off the Rack was a team effort by the museum staff, who sought to put together a cohesive story of how the museum’s collection has grown and evolved over the years.
Visitors will be able to explore a time line of the LIM’s conservation efforts. In addition, each work in the exhibit will include its accession number, which will help teach visitors how the museum keeps track of each piece.
Off the Rack is divided into loose sections celebrating particular themes and standout artists. Not to be missed is a section dedicated to one of the museum’s “anchor” artists, William Sidney Mount. Among Mount’s included works are an 1841 painting of Crane Neck Marsh, which Ruff says is “an example of his extremely detailed craftsmanship while creating a natural setting,” and “Dance of the Haymakers,” a painting of a fiddler playing music for dancing farmhands, which made Mount a household name in 1845.
Other high-profile artists with dedicated spaces in the exhibit include Arnold Hoffman, Samuel Rothport, Winslow Homer, Joe Reboli and Helen Torr, among others.
There are also sections of artwork focused on coastal and marine environments, abstract work and contemporary artists, including some local Long Islanders like Janet Culbertson, Bruce Lieberman and Dan Pollera.
Ty Stroudsburg of Southold also has artwork at the LIM — her 2000 oil painting on linen “Pumpkin Field at Sunset” is one of many views that have caught her eye on the North Fork.
“I love color. I used to drive around with a sketch pad in my car, and it was always color that would lead me to pull over and either do quick sketches with pastels or take a photograph to use for later,” said Stroudsburg, whose work has hung in exhibits and museums throughout New York and New Jersey for more than 60 years.
“I didn’t strive for notoriety, I just painted because I love to paint and it keeps me going. I feel extremely fortunate that curators believe my art is worth being a part of their museums,” she added.
For LIM Executive Director Neil Watson, Off the Rack provides the chance to see their continuously evolving collection in a new light.
“As we began to do the work required for the renovations and take pieces out of storage, there were things in the collection I hadn’t seen in several years, and even some pieces I didn’t even know we had,” he recalled.
“That’s the beauty of this exhibit -— we get to share parts of our collection that people may have never even seen before. Of course, there will be plenty of ‘old friends,’ like the work from William Sidney Mount, but there is so much more to see. Ours is a living collection — it’s not sealed or stagnant, and it continues to grow.”
The Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook presents Off the Rack: Building and Preserving LIM’s Art Treasures, from Feb. 22 through June 26. The museum is open Thursdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. Admission for adults is $10; discounts are available for children, college students, seniors and the disabled. For more information, visit www.longislandmuseum.org or call 631-751-0066.
Lucy Hale, Austin Stowell and Michael Peña in a scene from the film.
Photo by Christopher Moss/Columbia Pictures
By Jeffrey Sanzel
Few who lived through the late-seventies to mid-eighties could avoid an awareness of the two cultural − and, ultimately, cult − monoliths that dominated Saturday night television: The Love Boat (nine seasons; 1977 to 1987) and Fantasy Island (seven seasons; 1977 to 1984). Both were introduced in TV movies, played on ABC, and boasted a parade of guest stars, ranging in both level of celebrity and talent.
Each episode of Fantasy Island, the darker of the pair, featured two to three separate stories. The island’s visitors all came away wiser if a bit bruised from the experience. The theme, week after week, was clearly “careful what your wish for.”
Entering the realm of iconography was the spritely Hervé Villechaize as Tattoo, and his cry of “The plane! The plane!” This was complimented by Ricardo Montalbán, suavely raising a glass with his, “My dear guests, I am Mr. Roarke, your host. Welcome to Fantasy Island.”
Portia Doubleday and Lucy Hale i a scene from the film. Photo courtesy of Columbia Pictures
Directed by Jeff Wadlow (with a script by Wadlow, Chris Roach and Jillian Jacobs), Fantasy Island has reached the big screen as Blumhouse’s Fantasy Island albeit a decidedly different incarnation. Blumhouse Productions gave us the cutting and insightful satire Get Out, but it also is responsible for more common fare such as Truth or Dare, Happy Death Day 2U, and others. Fantasy Island clearly falls into the latter category.
A group of disparate people believe they have won a contest and are brought to a remote island where they are each told they will received the fantasy of their choice. Gwen Olsen (Maggie Q) needs to undo what she thinks was the worst choice of her life: rejection of a marriage proposal. Former policeman Patrick Sullivan (Austin Stowell) aspires to be a soldier; his wish is wrapped up in a need to connect with his father who died saving men in his platoon. Stepbrothers and “bros” J.D. (Ryan Hansen) and Brax (Jimmy O. Yang) want to “have it all.” Finally, Melanie Cole (Lucy Hale) desires revenge on her childhood bully (played by Portia Doubleday).
They are told at the outset by the not-so-mysterious Mr. Roarke (Michal Peña) that they must see their fantasies through to the end. The machine grinds to life.
All of this might − might − have worked had the film aimed for a modicum of subtlety. The idea of wishes always being a doubled-edged sword is not new but has great potential. Sadly, it is surprising to think that the rather kitsch television series was ultimately more sophisticated.
From the first moments of the film, “THIS IS A HORROR MOVIE” is not so much telegraphed as it is ballistically launched. Generically ominous music, a ghoulish staff that lopes and hovers like refugees from a Halloween walk-through, and images of snakes everywhere (a nod toward the invasion of the Garden of Eden? a sale on serpent knickknacks?), there is no possibility of anything other than waiting for the limp scares. How much more interesting it would have been to let the fantasies emerge and grow before changing into nightmares. For such a dark movie, it is almost completely lacking in tension; even the jump-outs and the mild gore seem lacking in any commitment to frighten.
Instead, the movie immediately devolves into the characters running around the island, hiding and escaping and then being caught … and then hiding and escaping and then being caught. What eventually comes to the forefront is a convoluted mythology of how the island works. It is both simple and overly complicated, dampened by a lot of dripping black blood.
It is not until late in the film that all the strands come together for a very nice “aha” moment of how the characters are actually connected. It is here that the story takes a brief up-tick with an extra twist before once again watching the characters hide and get caught and escape. For just a few clever moments, there is a glimmer of hope before it all slides back down into the mire of its own lore, winding toward a very anti-climactic dénouement. There is one humorous nod to the series in the last moments of the film but it was one of the very few shout-outs and seems a bit misplaced.
With the move toward constant reboots, the real fear is what will come next? Joanie Loves Chachi Loves Satan? Facts of Life: Tootie’s Revenge? One can only hide in the jungle for so long.
Rated PG-13, Blumhouse’s Fantasy Island is now playing in local theaters
Celebrate National Children’s Dental Health Month with Toothpalooza! at The Whaling Museum, 301 Main St., Cold Spring Harbor on Feb. 23 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Explore teeth large and small – including some of the largest teeth in the world. Check out a real whale tooth cavity, see a narwhal tusk, watch a puppet show and see the Tooth Fairy! Carve a scrimshaw box for baby teeth and go home with “toothy” crafts.
Fee is $12 children, $6 adults. Call 631-367-3418 for more information.
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