UAB Briefs: Healing with art, NPR in town, water tips
Welcome to another installment of UAB Briefs.
In this weekly online feature, we keep track of interesting people and events on campus.
Know people, places and programs on the UAB campus that deserve a mention? Email jchambers@starnespublishing.com.
ARTS IN MEDICINE
Many hospital patients, especially older people, are at risk of developing delirium, especially if there is cognitive, functional, visual or hearing impairment or depression at work.
A UAB study — published in a recent issue of Innovation in Aging — suggests that performing arts programs with poetry and storytelling may help lower that risk, according to a UAB news release.
Storytelling and the recitation of poetry and monologues provide patients with cognitive stimulation, according to Dr. Katrina Booth, study co-author and physician and medical director in the UAB Acute Care for Elders.
“There are no proven medication options to prevent delirium, so the only prevention is to optimize the patient’s physical and mental health with non-medications,” Booth said.
The pilot study of 50 patients age 65 or older was conducted in the UAB ACE unit at UAB Highlands Hospital in 2016.
Two artists-in-residence, part of the UAB Institute for Arts in Medicine, visited patients once for 15 minutes of bedside storytelling or poetry during their hospital stays.
A poetry or storytelling experience delivered by a artist-in-residence was associated with a lower delirium score at discharge, researchers said.
The Arts in Medicine program, initiated in 2013, is a partnership between UAB Medicine and the Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center.
NPR PODCAST
Public radio station WBHM will present a live taping of the National Public Radio podcast “Code Switch,” featuring a conversation on race and culture, on the UAB campus, Tuesday, Aug. 14, according to a UAB news release.
The event will take place at the Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center at 1200 10th Ave. South at 7 p.m.
Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin, poet and UAB graduate Ashley M. Jones and WBHM news director Gigi Douban will take part in the event.
“Code Switch” is a team of NPR journalists who are fascinated by the themes of race, ethnicity and culture, and appear in a weekly podcast.
Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for students and senior citizens, and are available at alysstephens.org.
DRINKING WATER
It’s a good idea to drink enough water during hot weather, but it’s possible to drink too much, according to Beth Kitchin, assistant professor in the UAB Department of Nutrition Sciences.
“When people drink too much water, it dilutes the sodium in the blood to a level that’s too low,” Kitchin said in a UAB news release.
Low blood sodium, or hyponatremia, can have the same symptoms as dehydration, including nausea, vomiting, headaches and convulsions, and can even cause death.
Kichin offers the following tips to stay hydrated safely:
- Follow your thirst: Kitchin says thirst is a good indicator of whether you need fluids.
- Drink fluids during activity: People should drink about 4 to 6 ounces of water every 20 minutes while engaged in physical activity, even walking or gardening.
- Weigh yourself after your workout: Kitchin recommends drinking 16 ounces of water for every pound lost during exercise.
- Urine trouble: A simple way to determine hydration status is by checking the color of one’s urine. In general, the more hydrated you are, the clearer the urine.
- The 8-cup myth: “While the average fluid lost from our bodies does turn out to be around 8 cups per day, you don’t need to replace all of it with plain old water,” Kitchin said. Water replacement can also come from fruits, vegetables and other beverages, such as milk, tea and soda.
However, Kitchin said that water is the best for boosting body fluids because it is absorbed faster than any other fluid.