wnyc.org / 93.9fm / am 820

DOUBLE GIFT A LA JANE BRODY

Donating your body to science

Is a move for making merry-all

As interns get hands-on training

And heirs bear no cost of burial.

People often say that they want to 'die with dignity', and so want euthanasia. But it's another idea that one thing that gives human beings their greatness is that they might have to endure great suffering (see the Illiad).

The Catholic Catechism states (2277):
'Whatever its motives or means, direct euthanasia consists in putting an end to the lives of handicapped, sick, or dying persons. It is morally unacceptable...Thus an act which...causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person...the nature of this murderous act...must always be forbidden and excluded'.
So the area of palliative care is very important.

The speakers wondered why Terri Schiavo's husband received death threats. Let me splain, not to defend death threats. Terri Schiavo (her anniversary is March 31) was only on a feeding tube, nothing else. And you can't take away food, water, or shelter, since these are not extraordinary means, but care.
Her husband denied her food and water. Why? Because he wanted her dead so he would be free so he could marry someone else.
He also denied her visits from priests, and had armed guards keep her from receiving the Eucharist.

Jane Brody said that a person can stop eating, and after a day or so the pain stops, and they slip into death. She must have meant that this occurs when the person has many palliative drugs (starvation is very painful).
In Terri Schiavo's case, they denied her pain medicine. She was without food or water for two weeks, and no one knows what she did or did not feel. Fiends.

Leonard, sometimes I wish your guests would follow up on the message boards (some do), as with the "Green Burials" question.

(Of course, in that case, a simple Google or Amazon search would solve the question, but in case Brody had a specific recommendation.)

Re:#23:

I've been distressed with a terrible spate of deaths lately, and amazed at how little public knowledge of the issue is out there--so I found Ms. Brody's segment bringing the subject to the surface "uplifting!"

That was so depressing. I shut it off after 10 minutes. Things are tough enough now with the economic problems, job loss, etc. A program about death is just over the top...or should I say under the bottom.

Jane Brody mentioned a book on Green Burials, but did not specify which one she was talking about?? Do you have any idea?

Thanks~
Anne

I wanted to extend my condolences to the gentleman who lost his partner to breast cancer so suddenly.It is always difficult to say a last goodbye to a loved one. When one leaves this earth too early it is so much more so. Jane & Leonard I appreciate so much of what you said but I think you could have been more sensitive& sympathetic with your grieving callers.

Mycobacterium marinum (M. marinum) is a slow-growing atypical bacteria that is commonly found in bodies of fresh or saltwater in many parts of the world. Skin infections with Mycobacterium marinum in humans are overall relatively uncommon and are usually acquired from contact with aquariums or fish.

My husband came home in September as his most fervent wish after a long stay in the hospital. I arranged for in-home hospice care. The hospice provided a home aide only 4 hours a day, 5 days a week. This was not nearly enough care for him. The aide was not qualified to provide the additional medical care he needed. It cost me $1,000/week to hire additional help for me and him.
I was able to transfer him to Calvary Hospital where the care was outstanding, but he passed away several days later.

Re: the waxed apple question

Yikes! I have a liver to process alcohol, too, does that mean I should feel free to drink massive quantities of booze? I think your caller should look for organic apples (and even better, local organic apples) and avoid coming into contact with pesticides. Pesticides don't just get cleansed away by our livers - they build in our fatty tissue and it's still unclear what effects certain pesticides have on our health.

Your guest suggests that dying at home might be the best option. My father died at home from cancer, and it was horrible. The insurance paid for only the shortest visit each day, and the rest of the time my mother was left tending to my father 24 hours a day for about a month with the best assistance we could provide (with children and work obligations weighing on us.) I'm surprised my mother physically survived.

In order to handle the situation, sometimes people have no choice but to have a love one placed in a hospital or hospice.

My mother had home hospice, but I don't believe she specifically had a DNR order. Despite her condition, she was in no way ready to go (and fought every step, which was probably part of the reason DNR was not specified). I was absolutely terrified I would be held accountable if she passed during my "shift," and it was never made clear what I should do. Of course this was all in my head, but the lack of a specific DNR order definitely contributed to the anxiety.

Thankfully she had first-rate hospice care.

The Jacob Perlow Hospice of Beth Israel Medical Center offers wonderful end of life hospice care at home or in the hospital in several facilities in New York City.

Jane's comments on today's show are refreshing because in general our society views death as a morbid topic something not spoken of in polite company. I couldn't agree more with her comment that bringing an understanding of our mortality into our consciousness will lead to a more positive and engaged life because we will be living in such a way so as to not have regrets at the time of death.

People should know that there is no cremation in NYC other than private cremation. Donating a body to medicine mean burial in Potter's Field unless the family asks for the remains to be returned after research is concluded.

With respect to hospice and care at home, there are financial considerations. The law is exceedingly hard on people. People are effectively required to spend assets down to near-bankruptcy before they can get any financial aid.

Since women tend to outlive men, this can leave women with nothing. Until the last decade or two, many more women were staying at home, leaving jobs, through the married years, so on the death of the spouse, they were left without assets or the means to earn an income.

By contrast, if the disabled or elderly person goes into a nursing home, aid can kick in sooner.

I have a partial solution to the American way of death: After so-called extraordinary care has been concluded, send the bill to the decedent's physicians!

Dear Jane, I heard you say that "good studies" have revealed the ineffectiveness of vitamin E. The trouble with the studies that discount vitamin E is that they were done with synthetic E and not mixed tocopherols. They were administered to people who were already in such ill health that the chance of their improving was limited. I beseech you to look at the studies again and look at Dr. Ronald Hoffman's analysis before you influence people to stop taking a supplement that has important benefits. Thank you for your comments on healthcare proxy. Take care, Naaz

I have found Jane's Nutrition Book very usefeul over the years. Given the constantly changing nutrition advice we hear about all the time, How does she think the book has held up ?

I have two friends each at this time experiencing the stress of a parent in hospice. They complain that nurses will not give quality care to patients who have a DNR order. I'd like to hear Ms Brody respond to this common complaint. It's become common knowledge. If you want your elderly mother to be fed when she has lost her appetite, and she has a DNR, you'll have to be by her side to feed her!

This may seem strange, but I would suggest that if possible, people should take a tour of a nursing home. It can be a sad, important eye-opener.

Many elderly or disabled people go entirely unvisited. The people who provide aid in these homes are often wonderful, fantastically dedicated but struggling with a lack of appreciation, in work that is very difficult and in places that often sadly underfunded.

Most important, visitors can get a sense of how good or how bad things can be. Some residents and patients remain very active (they simply cannot live by themselves). Others are slowly declining. All appreciate that others care, and it is a cliche to say that we will likely someday be in their shoes.

I have trouble with Ms. Brody's seeming advocacy of the starvation option.

I knew an 85-year-old woman who did that. The process took 3 weeks, and except for a brief period of glowing calm and clarity, it was AWFUL. Especially in the last 10 days, she felt she was going crazy.

End of Life decisions, certainly my largest source of anxiety. I wil have to get the book.

Your guest had mentioned having a health care proxy. I was the health care proxy for my brother, and I would never be a proxy for anyone else again. His partner and I agreed on treatment -- administering AIDS drugs -- but this differed from my brother's wishes. After tremendous internal agonizing and horrific arguments with everyone in my family, including his partner, I followed my brother's wishes. To this day, I cannot be 100% sure I made the correct decision.

A great!! book as to why Man fears death so much is : the Denial of Death, by Ernest Becker.

1975 Pulitzer winner

I have heard repeatedly that patients must be their own advocates. It is something that goes against the grain in a culture where we are taught to treat doctors as authority figures, when the healthcare system is brazenly for profit only, and when dealing with health and death issues raise so many taboos for us.

Doctors can be informed (they do not know everything). They can be corrected, cajoled, directed. And we can shop around.

A good doctor can appreciate this. (And there are many such medical professionals.)

I just wanted to thank Jane Brody for her Good Food Book. Despite all the low-carb trends, I've relied on that cookbook for smart, wholesome, nutritious recipes since college. If her new book is anything like this cookbook, it'll become invaluable to its readers.