The White Falcon - 20.02.1976, Blaðsíða 3

February 20. 1976
67is Diet essential
' ^Your
<neaitti to dental health
Tooth decay, one of the most common
human diseases, can be greatly reduced
by the use of one of the simplest pre-
ventive remedies known to man—good nu-
trition.
A proper diet geared for general good
health and started in infancy, including
proper pre-natal care, will provide all
the nutritional needs for developing,
and maintaining oral structures, includ-
ing teeth.
Periodontal disease, which attacks
the gum tissues and bones that support
teeth, has also been linked with diet.
This disease process is the primary
cause of tooth loss in adults. Teeth
|are loosened when they no longer have
fche support of healthy gums and bone,
niadequate diet weakens the tissues and
makes them more susceptible to disease
development.
If you think of your mouth as a ra-
ther comfortable home for millions of
bacteria, it is easy to understand how
oral diseases begin as well as the im-
portant role diet plays.
These bacteria in the mouth live on
the foods you eat, but particularly they
thrive on fermentable carbohydrates,
sugary foods being their favorite. When
the bacteria act on the sugars, they
produce a waste product that has an acid
effect on tooth enamel. The more sweets
in the diet and the more frequently they
are eaten, the more acid that attacks
the tooth enamel. The more candy, cake,
chewing gum and soft drinks which con-
tain sugar, the more dental decay.
Studies have indicated that the most
damage is done within 15 or 20 minutes
after eating decay-causing foods. The
person who eats many between-meal sweet
snacks exposes his teeth to the full
effects of the bacterial acids repeated-
ly throughout the day.
Sweets are not the only villains con-
tributing to tooth decay. Gummy foods
cling to the teeth and pack between them
until the next brushing and flossing.
"Empty calorie" carbohydrates, such
as unenriched white bread and certain
breakfast cereals, provide little pro-
tein or iron needed for building body
tissues and resisting infections. They
also lack the important vitamins and
minerals found in fresh fruits, vegeta-
bles and meats:
The rules governing the prevention of
tooth decay can also be applied to the
prevention of periodontal disease:
—Limit the intake of carbohydrates,
especially sweets. Where possible, sub-
stitute fresh fruits and vegetables like
carrot sticks, cucumber slices and cel-
ery for snacks rather than candy or
cookies. An occasional sweet snack
won't reverse the prevention process,
but serve it after a meal and clean your
mouth afterward, if possible.
—Learn the basic foods your family
needs every day and plan family meals
accordingly.
—Daily, serve enough fresh fruits and
vegetables and other fibrous foods to
give your family's chewing muscles a
good workout.
—Set up a plaque control routine where
everyone brushes and flosses regularly.
—Arrange periodic professional checkups
for the whole family.
Page 3
1Lt. Laura Johnson, USAF-R, assists Madeleine Clements, R. N., in keeping a pa-
tient's chart updated for an accurate outpatient medical record. Ms. Clements is
one of several volunteer registered nurses at the station dispensary. (Photo by
J02 Jerry Foster)
More are needed
Dispensary salutes volunteers
By J02 Jerry L. Foster
Pursuing their pledge to serve hu-
manity, the volunteer registered nurses
here at the station dispensary perform
numerous and indispensable duties and
tasks, especially on Tuesday and Thurs-
day each week.
In the course of their routine they
may administer blood pressure checks and
well-baby checkups. They also help
with obstetrical cases and routine ap-
pointments and treatments.
Some of the other volunteers besides
the registered nurses have had nurses'
aide training. The Red Cross also of-
fers Red Cross volunteer training in the
medical field.
According to the Red Cross here the
Red Cross volunteers undergo a one-day
orientation before they, of course, re-
ceive further training on-the-job as a
volunteer at the dispensary.
Both registered nurse volunteers and
Red Cross volunteers are direly needed
at the station dispensary.
For more information on the R. N. or
Red Cross volunteer program, contact
Lieutenant Commander Jill Jarrett, Nur-
sing Supervisor at the station dispen-
sary.
Bus tours of Iceland planned for Easter
by Suzy Weissinger
The southeastern part of Iceland is
noted as one of the most beautiful sec-
tions. It is here where one finds the
biggest ice-cap in Europe which con-
trasts with the surrounding area along
the coast and to the west of the glacier
which is fertile and green.
Everyone has been asking^about the
bus tours of Iceland and the touring
season will open with a safari to this
fascinating southeast area. This will
be a five day trip over the Easter week-
end, Apr. 15-19, You will be transpor-
ted in a four-wheel drive bus with a
guide telling about the wonders of this
section of Iceland. You will be provid-
ed with sleeping bags and air mattresses
and will sleep in school dormitories
along the route. Breakfast, picnic
lunches and dinner will be served from
especially constructed kitchen trucks.
The tour will depart from Reyjkavik
and go through Haveragerdi, Selfoss and
Hella. It will pass by beautiful moun-
tains and waterfalls and by the volcano
Katla. The first night will be spent at
Kirkj ubaiarklaus tur.
The second day will find you passing
over glacial streams to the Oraifa dis-
trict. You'll edge along the largest
glacier in Europe and go on to Skafta-
fell National Park. The night will be
spent at Hof.
The highlight of the next day will be
Jokullon, a lake under sea level about
100 meters deep. Another night will be
spent at Hof. The fourth day will be
spent mainly in the Skaftafell district
and areas near it. The fifth day will be
the return to Reyjkavik, with side trips
along the route.
This is your opportunity to spend a
unique Easter, viewing one of the more
famous areas of Iceland. Call the Tour
Office, 4200 or 5111, and sign up now.
Canary Islands
For you sun seekers, there are a few
openings in March for the Canary Islands
tour. Beginning in April there will be
package tours to Palma de Majorca. Both
of these places offer sun, a relaxing
atmosphere, beautiful hotels, and good
evening entertainment. Renew that faded
tan in the Canaries or Palma.
The Tour Office is still signing up
people who are interested in going to
Copenhagen during Easter time. The high
school is planning their senioi trip
there and the Tour Office is able to of-
fer the trip at a group reduction.
Travel suggestions
If you are going to Mildenhall on the
C-118 during March, and from there to
other destinationSy come in and get sug-
gestions and assistance in your travel
planning at the Tour Office. If you
plan to stay in London, come in and
browse through our reference material
and pick up a map of the city.
Maybe some of the above travel sug-
gestions appeal to you. Remember that
the high season in Europe begins in June
and these spring months are the time to
travel to avoid crowds- -and for lower
prices.
Getting acquainted with some Icelandic customs
An American has little difficulty
recognizing various cultural differences
in some parts of the world...it is ob-
vious at a glance that the Japanese and
Turkish people live in a different way
than we. It becomes more difficult in a
place like Iceland, where one sees a
Western-style civilization operating at
a high standard of living, with many
creature comforts. There is no immedi-
ate gut-feeling that "this place is dif-
ferent ."
Many Icelandic customs differ subtly
from those with which we are familiar.
A good way to define culture is to
say that it is a machine designed to pro-
duce convenience in dealing with one's
environment. Since Iceland makes fewer
concessions to visitors' social tastes
than many tourist-oriented countries,
learning to operate the "culture-ma-
chine" here is even more necessary than
elsewhere.
Guest and host
Of course, we should remember that,
as the guests, we are the ones who
should do the adapting. It is in relat-
ing to the social role of the guest that
many Icelandic cultural differences ap-
pear.
If you think about it for a moment,
our unconscious social training in-
cludes the "law" that a guest must be
careful not to impose. In addition, the
guest is the one honored by receiving
his host's hospitality. In the Iceland-
ic view, these relationships are subtly
reversed.
When an Icelander issues an inva-
tion, even the casual "drop in any
time" variety, his invitation includes
the unspoken assurance that you will not
be imposing upon him. However, since
the Icelander's social life has become
much busier in the last few years, it
might be wise to phone ahead and make
sure he is home.
Norse custom of shelter
The Icelandic code of hospitality is
very old, and has its roots in the an-
cient Norse custom of shelter..,once a
man had offered his hospitality to a
guest, he was literally responsible for
the person—even to the point of defend-
ing him in mortal combat, if necessary.
Needless to say, the latter extremity is
hardly applicable today.
A modem corollary dictates that one
not attempt to "drop by just for a
second." These "hit and run" tactics do
not allow your host the opportunity to
show his hospitality through a cup of
coffee, the offer of a fine cigar or the
like. The custom of laying a spread of
coffee, cakes, cookies and sandwiches
for unexpected guests has declined a bit
in elaborateness as more and more wives
work outside the home, but it is still
a point of pride for the host.
An evening on the town
A social evening in Iceland generally
begins much later than is the case in
the United States. While some families
may now eat the evening meal as early as
7:30, visits or evenings on the town
seldom begin before 9. Getting off to a
late start such as this, it is not uncom-
mon for the conversation and drinks to
last well into the early morning hours,
particularly on weekends.
In conversation, two tendancies will
be noted. Icelanders seldom engage in
the formal social flattery with which we
sprinkle cocktail party talk. Verbal ex-
changes, on whatever subject, are frank
and direct. However, they are seldom de-
eply personal. Icelanders will sometimes
comment that, by the time one has listen-
ed to an American for five minutes, he
knows the man's entire life story, good
and bad.
Husbands and v/ives
In gatherings of married couples,
wives and husbands tend to separate into
two conversational groupings. It is
quite common for this to extend to little
stag groups of husbands and wives going
out drinking and dancing without their
spouses. While such activity might have
certain suggestive connotations in an
American environment, the Icelanders en-
gage in it quite innocently.
By the way, in Iceland, engagement:
rings do not include mounted stones. A
simple gold band is worn on the left
hand to indicate engagement, and upon
marriage is transferred to the right.
Tip on tiopina
Another aspect of Icelandic society
which should be pointed out is that
there is no tipping. In certain cases
where service is involved, such as a
restaurant or hotel, a service charge of
fixed percentage is added to the price.
If you are eating on a short budget, you
would be well-advised to check the bot-
tom of the menu. Generally, the service
charge is included in the listed price
for each item, but some of the fancier
restautants will have a note (always in
several languages including English)
that a service charge of such-and-so
percent is not included. Make sure you
have enough.
Aside from specified and fixed charg-
es, you should make no payments above
the set price. The rather refreshing
Icelandic attitude is that it is in-
sulting to be bribed to do your job
properly...but don't try to explain this
concept to a New York cabbie.
In an extention of the above, if you
run into trouble and receive help...
such as getting your car out of a mud
hole, or asking directions and getting
an Icelandic escort who goes far out of
his way to take you to your destination,
you should not offer payment. If the
person expected payment for his serv-
ices, he would have made it clear in
advance. There is only one proper way
to repay him—next time you have an op-
portunity to help someone, do so. He
may never know that his favor has been
returned, but you will.