Spindrift March 5, 2020
President Ken DuFour began the meeting with a prayer recognizing our gratitude and bewilderment. Deane Bottorf once again asked us to assume the position, we complied, and then we saluted the flag.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Ed Romeo put together a scrap album of the Field of Honor (2010 - 2019) and dedicated it to Jerry Nininger and Bill Bechtel.
Jim Fournier told us a couple of jokes, got a few laughs, and continued to regale his lunch companions non-stop.
Ken DuFour announced the annual fundraiser held by our CAP Center on Saturday, March 21. Each $3,000 donation for a table seats 10. That makes it $300 per person as with prior years. In prior years, our club picked up half the tab for our members and guests to go. Ken expects that will be the same this year so please plan on attending!
At about this point, Ken gave in to the nonstop chatter at the talkative table and handed the microphone over to acknowledge their rude behavior. Unfortunately, the chatter went on unabated.
Flamingo Bingo is a great fundraiser put on by our friends in the Exchange Club of Tustin on Saturday, March 28 at the Clifton C. Miller Community Center, 300 Centennial Way, Tustin from 6 to 9 pm. It’s a well-spent $45 that includes dinner, dessert, many bingo games valued at $20 or more. Buy tickets online at http://bit.ly/Flamingo2020 or call M’Lis Fox at (949) 233-9726.
As a gentle reminder to support their efforts, Ken noted we had guests from three other Exchange Clubs as well as from the District Office at our inaugural Valentine’s Fundraiser. Please consider supporting Flamingo Bingo!
Needing the microphone to continue our meeting, Deane Bottorf, apologized on behalf of the behavior at the table and handed the microphone back. Thank you, Deane, unfortunately, those who needed to hear that were too busy talking.
FIELD OF HONOR
Richard Swinney gave an update on the Field of Honor. We have a commitment from the 1/1 Marines as it looks like they’re not going to be deployed at that time. We have a choir committed as well. Things are looking good!
INVESTMENT FUND
Richard also updated us on our investments given the recent stock market turmoil. We’re in the black from the start of the year… our protective strategy is working.
Save The Date!
DISTRICT CONVENTION is slated for June 12, 13, 14. We’ll have more information soon, in the meantime, save the date!
THANKFULLY the table chatter stopped when one of the talkers left after eating. At least our speaker wouldn't be treated as rudely as we treat ourselves.
MAIN PROGRAM
Dr. Dung Trinh (pronounced “Young”), Chief Medical Officer at Irvine Clinical Research. He came to talk about Alzheimer’s, the disease of our brain that’s increasingly on our minds.
Dr. Trinh’s approach to brain health is two-fold: education and clinical trials. Education covers food, nutrition, and lifestyle. Clinical trials are needed because there is currently no cure for Alzheimer’s; it’s the #3 killer behind #2 Heart Disease and #1 Cancer.
There are 100,000 people in Orange County with Alzheimer’s and nowhere near enough beds for them. In the US, the progression of the disease doubles every 5 years from age 65 onward. People in other countries don’t have much Alzheimer’s so it’s clearly not just age as a factor of progression.
40% of people in their 80’s have memory loss. Memories are connective patterns in the brain. Plaque proteins adhere to brain cells and block communication. This beta-amyloid plaque builds up for 15 to 20 years prior to memory loss symptoms becoming evident.
There is a gene associated with Alzheimer’s. The gene is worldwide; with 25% having it, they are predisposed to developing the disease. Lifestyle is very important to the development or deterrence of its onset and progression. Women have a higher risk of having it, in part from living an average of 4+ years longer than men.
Just 6 years ago, only an autopsy could con-firm plaque in the brain. Now, there is a PET scan to detect it. This means that we can catch early-onset! Clinical trials give one the opportunity to receive a free brain scan. These trials show that 4/5 have no plaque. Thankfully for the 1/5 who do have it, there are medicines being developed to help remove the plaque.
Immunotherapy is a technique that trains the immune system to respond and eliminate the disease. This has been useful in dropping the rate of cancer deaths in 2019. Immunotherapy is being used in 12 trials for Alzheimer’s with one of them showing great promise having passed phase 3 trials. This candidate therapy is going to the FDA for approval. It removes 100% of plaque! n the last 5 years we’ve made progress in being able to detect plaques on the brain. It’s called Aducanumab.
Aside from immunotherapy, there are three “buckets” of issues that we can work with to reduce our risk: circulation, inflammation, and toxins. High blood pressure or high cholesterol causes poor circulation that can lead to the development of plaque in our brain. If one takes medication that controls these factors there is no increased risk. Take your meds!
Inflammation, a normal and required response for the body to heal from injury, is very problematic if sustained for a long period of time. Most of our issues from disease are attributable to inflammation and Dr. Trinh considers Alzheimer’s to be inflammation of the brain.
Toxins are shown to be a contributing factor, with higher rates of pollution correlating to higher incidence of Alzheimer’s. The food we consume contain pesticides and hormones that don’t naturally occur. These toxins create inflammation. Dr. Trinh says: go organic!
There are six things we can do:
1) Physical exercise of 1/2 hr a day to address circulation.
2) Brain exercise to cause your brain to work on its wiring.
3) Sleep well, 7 hours or more, it allows toxins and wastes to be removed from the brain.
4) Socialization, the stimulus of being with others lowers risk.
5) Keep medical conditions under control.
6) Nutrition: avoid inflammatory foods and consume antioxidant foods, they reduce inflammation. A proper diet reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s by 54%.
Dr. Trinh has a background that’s very interesting as well. He was 5 years old when he boarded a Chinook departing for the USS Midway on April 29, 1975. Yes, he’s one of the fortunate few who were rescued from the US Embassy rooftop during the evacuation from Viet Nam. At 18 he joined the US Marine Corps to serve his adopted country. Oo-rah, Semper Fi!
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RAFFLE
$10 & $20 - Bob Kinton and Don Smith
Greeter this Week
Mike Campbell, give him $2 and a smile!
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