Tinnitus Awareness Week Hits the Right Note

(PRWeb UK) February 18, 2011

Tinnitus Awareness Week 2011, organised by the British Tinnitus Association (BTA) - the only national charity solely dedicated to supporting those with tinnitus - ran from 4th to the 11th February and proved to be a huge success in raising the awareness of the condition. With a staggering 10% of the adult population experiencing the condition at some point in their life, the UK-wide awareness campaign aimed to ensure that as many people as possible were informed about the condition and the free support services that the BTA provides.

The 2011 campaign focussed on risks associated with prolonged exposure to loud music and the BTA teamed up with its ambassador radio presenter and international DJ Eddy Temple Morris to reach the music community via events, promotional activities and media interviews.

A comprehensive events programme was compiled and promoted in order to reach people across the UK. To mark the launch of Tinnitus Awareness Week an event was held at Quo Vadis in London which was attended by members of the press and the general public, including BTA members and many musicians. Representatives of the BTA gave out information and advice, radio presenter and international DJ Eddy Temple Morris was interviewed and shared his personal experiences of tinnitus, and bespoke fitted earplugs were available.

Throughout the week hospitals and health care centres across the country also held tinnitus awareness events, and regional and local tinnitus support groups got involved by providing information and hosting talks on tinnitus. The Royal College of Nursing hosted a conference Tinnitus and Me during Tinnitus Awareness Week and the speakers at the event included representatives of the BTA and the Charitys Ambassador. Also NHS Evidence released the 2011 Annual Evidence Update on tinnitus to coincide with the Awareness week.

Support was also received from the Rt Hon Malcolm Bruce M.P. who submitted an Early Day Motion in support of Tinnitus Awareness Week, the BTA and the need for greater awareness amongst G.P.'s. The BTA is now urging its members as well as people with tinnitus or an interest in supporting those with tinnitus to encourage their MP to sign this motion.

The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness Calls Upon Apple Inc. to Change New IMAC Campaign Claiming That, "You Can't Be Too Thin. Or Too Powerful."

North Palm Beach, FL (PRWEB) August 20, 2007

The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness reacted today to the new Apple Inc IMAC Campaign, "The new iMac. You can't be too thin. Or too powerful." The Alliance questions, "What kind of message is Apple sending our youth with an ad campaign of this nature?"

The truth is one CAN be too thin. According to the American Psychological Association, in the United States alone 7 -10 million individuals are struggling with eating disorders. Of that 10 to 20 percent of them will not survive their struggle. Eating disorders not only have extreme physical and mental repercussions - including the highest mortality rate among all psychological disorders but they also act as a barrier for personal growth, achievement, education, and success. We live in a society in which Messages from the media are influential and they do make a difference.

"As not only the Executive Director of The Alliance, but also a recovering anorectic and exercise bulimic, I must say that I find the new IMAC campaign troubling and extremely triggering," said Johanna Kandel. "Apple's revamping of the Duchess of Windsor's adage draws a direct connection between being thin and being powerful. While this concept may work well from a technological perspective, it can become deadly in the eyes of an individual that is genetically predisposed to developing an eating disorder."

According to a study by Gaesser (1996), over 1/2 the females between the ages of 18-25 would prefer to be run over by a truck then be fat, and 2/3 surveyed would rather be mean or stupid. Many individuals define their self worth, their happiness, their successes on their ability to achieve the ultimate "ideal." The struggle goes on indefinitely until death demands it cannot go on anymore. This is the struggle that The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness and like organizations fight on a daily basis. This is the struggle millions of Americans, both male and female, endure.

The Alliance is concerned that the new IMAC Campaign, while well intentioned, has the potential to push a young girl with low self-esteem into a deadly disease or trigger a person struggling with recovery back into the throws of an eating disorder. "The negative implications are too numerous to count. There must be a better way to sell computers then to utilize this dangerous slogan," said Ms. Kandel.

In October of 2000, The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness (The Alliance) was created as a source of community outreach, education, awareness, and prevention of the various eating disorders currently plaguing our nation. Since its inception, The Alliance has offered presentations on eating disorders and their prevention to over 60,000 individuals, as well as advocates for change in eating disorders legislation. Through presentations, workshops, phone and email support, treatment referrals, support groups, and information packets, the Alliance offers opportunities for individuals to receive the information the need free of charge.

For more information, please contact The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness at 866.622.1235 or at http://www.eatingdisorderinfo.org

Contacts:

Johanna S. Kandel, Executive Director

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Avon Breast Health Outreach Program Awards Grant for Breast Cancer Awareness Program to Womens Community Clinic

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) February 22, 2011

The Avon Breast Health Outreach Program has awarded a $ 29,000 one-year grant to the Womens Community Clinic to increase awareness of the life-saving benefits of early detection of breast cancer to underserved and uninsured women in San Francisco with a focus on the Western Addition. It is the first year that the program has received funding from the Avon Foundation for Women to support its work on this important health issue.

The breast health outreach program at the Womens Community Clinic will educate San Francisco area women and refer them to low-cost or free mammograms and clinical breast exams in their own communities. The vital program will also help to expand the safety net for direct health services for African American women in the Western Addition.

Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women in the United States, and the leading single cause of death overall in women between the ages of 40 and 55. According to the American Cancer Society, 21,130 new cases of breast cancer will be detected in California this year and 4,230 lives will be lost. Nationwide, there is a new diagnosis every three minutes and a death from breast cancer every 14 minutes. Breast cancer is the second leading cause of years of life lost for African American women in San Francisco. While advances have been made in prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure, early detection still affords the best opportunity for successful treatment. Programs such as the Womens Community Clinics Breast Health Outreach Program help ensure that all women have access to early detection information and options, even poor and medically underserved women.

We are proud that the Avon Foundation for Women shares our mission and has chosen to support our program. With these funds we will be able to provide clinical breast exams and mammograms to 300 new clients and to provide breast health education to 1000 community members, says Ms. Carlina Hansen, Executive Director, Womens Community Clinic.

Since 1993, the Avon Foundation has awarded more than 1,425 grants to community-based breast health programs across the United States, including the Breast Health Outreach program at the Womens Community Clinic. These programs are dedicated to educating underserved women about breast cancer and linking them to early detection screening services.

The Avon Foundation for Women and Breast Cancer Crusade

The Avon Foundation for Women, an accredited 501(c)(3) public charity, was founded in 1955 to improve the lives of women and today is the worlds largest corporate-affiliated philanthropy focused on issues that matter most to women. Avon philanthropy focuses its funding on breast cancer research and access to care, efforts to reduce domestic and gender violence, its women's environmental movement to nurture nature, and efforts to provide relief and recovery in times of major natural disasters and emergencies. Since the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade launched in 1992, Avon breast cancer programs in more than 50 countries have raised almost $ 700 million for research and advancing advance access to care, regardless of a persons ability to pay. In addition to receiving generous support from Avon Products, Inc., and its sale of Avon pink ribbon products, the Foundation raises funds through a variety of events and walks, such as the U.S. Avon Walk for Breast Cancer series, which is the Foundations largest fund-raising source.

The Avon Breast Health Outreach Program

The Avon Breast Health Outreach Program is administered by Cicatelli Associates Inc. to support community-based, non-profit breast health programs across the country. The Fund's National Advisory Board selected the Breast Health Outreach Program at Womens Community Clinic, as one of 125 new grant recipients nationwide in the 2010 cycle of Avon Foundation Breast Care Fund grants. These organizations were chosen based on their ability to effectively reach women, particularly minority, low-income, and older women, who are often medically underserved.

Womens Community Clinic:

The Womens Community Clinic is committed to meeting the sexual and reproductive health care needs of Bay Area women and girls. Our volunteer-based model of care-the only one of its kind in the Bay Area-is highly effective in enabling underserved women to directly access health care services. We honor our mission to improve the health and well-being of women and girls by providing sexual and reproductive health services, outreach services, and health training programs. Since 1999, we have served more than 20,000 women and trained more than 500 health worker volunteers. womenscommunityclinic.org

For more Information

For more information on the Breast Health Outreach Program at the Womens Community Clinic please call Kemi Role at (415) 379-7802 ext. 371. For more information about breast cancer, contact the American Cancer Society at 1-800-ACS-2345 or http://www.cancer.org, or the National Cancer Institute at 1-800-4-CANCER or http://www.cancer.gov.

To learn more about the Avon Foundation for Women, call 1-866-505-AVON or visit http://www.avonfoundation.org, where you can access free printable Breast Health Resource Guides in English and Spanish. For information or to register or support the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer events, visit http://www.avonwalk.org or call 1-888-540-WALK.

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