Primary Eye Care Associates - May/June 2019

Primary Eye Care Associates - May/June 2019

INSIGHT ON EYESIGHT WWW.WEHELPCHICAGOSEE.COM / 773-788-6974 / MAY–JUNE 2019

My Mom Doesn’t Teach Life Lessons

SHE LIVES THEM

When I think of what I love most about my mother, many things come to mind. She’s strong, resilient, loving, and so much more. She and my father came to Canada from India without any other family or support network at all. She had me when she was 19, the age my son is now. Throughout my life, I can pinpoint countless occasions when Mom sacrificed time and money so that my brother, Neil, my sister, Monica, and I could be happy and achieve our dreams. Mom encouraged us to dream and dream big. To this day, I still practice this. And many of those dreams, thanks to Mom, have come to life. Examples of my mother’s sacrificial and hardworking spirit manifested in the little things most of the time. Once, when I was young, I was at the store with her and saw a pair of shoes I really liked. I don’t remember a lot about them except that they were cool and expensive. Even at that age, I knew they were out of my family’s budget. And yet, I very clearly remember walking out of the store with those new shoes that day, and my mom came home later than usual from work for a few weeks after she bought them. Knowing I wanted those shoes, she found a way to fit them into the budget without ever discussing those extra hours she worked to make it happen. As I grew older, I discovered it was my dream to become an eye doctor. The problem was that there was only one

optometry program in all of Canada, and it only accepted about 60 students per incoming class. After being waitlisted, my parents encouraged me to apply to programs in the United States, even though it would be more costly and mean I had to live farther away from home. Mom knew it was my dream, and she wouldn’t let money or distance get in the way of that. Since

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visits us regularly from her home in Canada, and she always makes the weekend a party. Mom and my kids play the same card games she taught them as toddlers, and as teens, they still won’t go to bed until they beat her. She makes their favorite Indian dishes, and though I try to mimic her culinary excellence, “It’s never the same as Bhari-ma’s.” All the while, she works subtle life lessons into everything she does. Even as an adult, I still learn from her actions every time she visits. When my kids ask her what I was like when I was their age, she always makes me out to be a super kid. I think my kids know there’s no way I was that perfect, and between you and me, I wasn’t! But that’s my mom, thinking I was this perfect kid. She doesn’t know I’m the one who’s always trying to be like her. Her love, wisdom, guidance, and advice are truly priceless to me. If I can give half of what my mom gave to me growing up to my kids, I know they will do well in this world. Happy Mother’s Day to all my staff and patients who are moms — you are all amazing; and to Mom, eye’ll see you soon!

HER LOVE, WISDOM, GUIDANCE, AND ADVICE ARE TRULY PRICELESS TO ME. IF I CAN GIVE HALF OF WHAT MY MOM GAVE TO ME GROWING UP TO MY KIDS, I KNOW THEY WILL DO WELL IN THIS WORLD.

I was an international student in these programs, I didn’t have access to the loans and scholarships that American students did. Mom and Dad worked extra so I could afford to finish school. They never made me feel guilty about moving away from home, no matter how much they missed me.

–Steven Chander

Mom’s impact on me growing up is still shaping not only me but also my kids. She

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used as directed.” So read the directions and enjoy a great summer tan while keeping your skin safe.

Soak Up the Sun Without Damaging Your Skin 4 TIPS FOR HAPPY SUMMERTIME SKIN

TAKE COOL SHOWERS.

Hot showers are relaxing, but they also dry out your skin, especially in the heat of summer. Do your skin a favor and turn down the temperature. As a bonus, taking a cool shower after sweating can reduce acne breakouts. Hydrated skin is happy skin, so keep a water bottle handy. Start by swapping a sugary beverage at mealtime with a glass of water instead. Another healthy way to get extra water is by snacking on fresh fruits and vegetables. Certain summer fruits, like melons, have high water content and are full of vitamins your body craves. There’s a lot to love about the summertime. With these tips, your skin can love it too. STAY HYDRATED.

Summer is a wonderful time of year for your health. The warm weather encourages outdoor activities, and the vitamin D produced by sunlight can boost your mood. Unfortunately, sunshine can also do a number on your skin. Here are a few tips to protect your skin while having fun in the sun. People of all complexions should wear sunscreen every day. Even if you aren’t at the beach, harsh sunlight can still damage your skin when you’re walking around or driving your car. Dermatologists recommend applying sunscreen with SPF 30 DON’T FORGET THE SUNSCREEN!

first thing in the morning and reapplying periodically through the day.

Pro Tip: Don’t put the sunscreen away when it gets cold. The sun is still harmful in the winter months.

WANT A TAN? GO SUNLESS!

Though popular, that “sun- kissed” look is actually a sign of skin damage caused by harmful UV rays. If your summer look just isn’t complete without a tan, consider using a sunless tanning product. The Mayo Clinic states, “Topical sunless tanning products are generally considered safe alternatives to sunbathing, as long as they’re

LOOK THEM IN THE EYES How Eyes Convey Character

THE KUBRICK STARE

The eye is one of the most complex organs in the human body. It only makes sense that storytellers endlessly emphasize their characters’ eyes and constantly make them an object of symbolism. Whether they’re described in a book, drawn on paper, animated for the big screen, or viewed in person, a character’s eyes and what they do with them can reveal a lot about who they are. Below are a few ways that eyes can reveal character in fiction. Just as colors by themselves can have symbolic meaning in a story, a character’s eye color can reveal things about them. If they have baby blue eyes, it could symbolize their innocence, or their brown eyes could mean the character is down-to-earth. Unnatural eye colors like black or red can connote dangerous or evil characters. Green eyes are exotic and wild, while gray eyes are wise and knowing. Just understanding colors can give great insight into who a character is. COLOR-CODED EYES

Sometimes it’s not the eyes themselves, but how characters use them that indicates character. “The Kubrick Stare” is named for director Stanley Kubrick because some iconic characters, such as Jack Nicholson’s character Jack Torrance in “The Shining,” use it to show when a character is losing their mind. To do the Kubrick Stare, all you need to do is tilt your chin downward while staring straight forward. In other contexts, it can also make characters more intimidating. Often used to indicate a fourth wall break in movies and TV shows, characters who look away from an interaction with another character to look into the camera do so to acknowledge the absurdity of their current situation. The show that perhaps best exemplifies this is the TV show “The Office,” a mockumentary about office life. More situationally aware characters would often look at the camera right at the climax of some of the bizarre interactions they found themselves in. The complexity of the eye itself means that even the simplest of gestures can convey a world of meaning. THE ASIDE GLANCE

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CREATIVES AND COLORBLINDNESS

5 Celebrities Who Are Colorblind

Colorblindness affects 8 percent of men and 0.5 percent of women of Northern European descent. You would think that not being able to see certain colors would negatively affect a person’s creative abilities, but some of the best-known names in entertainment and popular culture are actually colorblind. Here are five well-known creatives you might not have guessed are colorblind.

CHRISTOPHER NOLAN

Nolan might be one of the greatest film directors working today, with films like “The Dark Knight,” “Inception,” and “Dunkirk” under his belt. But, like Mark Zuckerberg, Nolan is red/green colorblind, which affects the color palette of his movies. Nolan’s movies have lots of blues and browns in them.

MARK ZUCKERBERG

BING CROSBY

Known for being the creator of Facebook and one of the youngest billionaires in the world, Zuckerberg cannot distinguish between red and green, which is the most common form of colorblindness. He chose the color blue for the Facebook logo because it was the color that looked richest to his eyes.

Crosby’s smooth voice still echoes through many houses during the holiday season, as he is best known for his hit renditions of “White Christmas” and “Let It Snow.” Reportedly, he regularly confused the colors green and blue.

FRED ROGERS

PAUL NEWMAN

Known to children everywhere as Mr. Rogers of “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood” and the subject of the documentary “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” last year, Mr. Rogers was red/green colorblind. While he might never have seen the actual color of his iconic red cardigan, it’s undeniable that he was an inspiration to children everywhere.

This legendary actor took on iconic roles such as Butch Cassidy in “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” Luke Jackson in “Cool Hand Luke,” and Henry Gondorff in “The Sting.” What you might not have known is that Newman’s colorblindness actually kept him from becoming a pilot in the Navy.

HAVE A LAUGH

Classic FRENCH OMELET INGREDIENTS • 3 large eggs • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter Inspired by SeriousEats.com

DIRECTIONS

1. In medium bowl, beat eggs with plastic fork until last traces of white are just mixed in. Season with salt and pepper. 2. In an 8-inch nonstick skillet, melt butter, swirling over medium heat until foamy but not browned. Add eggs, stirring rapidly with fork, while moving skillet to agitate eggs. Break up all curds by scraping bottom of skillet as they form. Stop stirring when eggs are softly scrambled and creamy (but loose enough to come together into a single mass), 1–2 minutes. 3. Using fork, gently spread egg in an even layer around skillet and scrape down any wispy bits around the edges. The top surface should be loose and creamy, but if still liquid, swirl skillet to bring raw egg to the edge where it will set faster. 4. Remove from heat. Tilt skillet up by handle. Using fork, gently roll omelet down over itself until nearly folded in half. Using fork, push omelet to edge of skillet so that the lower edge of egg just begins to overhang. Use fork to fold overhanging edge of egg back over, closing omelet. 5. Turn omelet out onto plate. It should have the seam on bottom.

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773-788-6974 www.wehelpchicagosee.com

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Inside This Issue Appreciating My Mother on Mother’s Day PAGE 1

Is Summertime Bad for Your Skin? PAGE 2

Colors, Stares, Glances, and What They Mean PAGE 2

Did You Know These Celebrities Are Colorblind? PAGE 3

Classic French Omelet PAGE 3

The Healthiest Building in New Delhi PAGE 4

GROWING FRESH AIR A Look at the Healthiest Building in New Delhi

is filled with areca palms, snake plants, and money plants.

Today, the PBC is the healthiest building in New Delhi. Twenty years after Meattle rolled out his plant-based filter system, the results speak for themselves. Employee productivity has gone up 20 percent. Respiratory problems have gone down by 34 percent, headaches by 24 percent, and lung impairment by 12 percent, among other health benefits. Just stepping into Paharpur boosts your health: Blood oxygen levels go up by 1 percent after 10 hours in the PBC. Meattle has remained in New Delhi and is set on helping other Indian businesses replicate his plant-

Imagine you are told you must leave the city you work and live in because it’s killing you. Hard to fathom, isn’t it? But this actually happened to Kamal Meattle, a researcher, activist, and New Delhi native, who was told by doctors that the city’s air quality was a threat to his health. His lung capacity had gone down 70 percent, and doctors suggested he leave New Delhi. Instead, Meattle chose to stay and find an innovative solution to his health problems and the city’s air quality crisis. New Delhi is no stranger to poor air quality. Sometimes pollution gets so bad it warrants a city-wide warning for kids to stay inside. Meattle, who studied engineering at MIT, turned to research by NASA and other organizations to address the issue.

During his research, Meattle found that there are three common house plants that excel at removing dangerous chemical compounds, like formaldehyde and carbon monoxide, from the air: the areca palm, the snake plant (or mother- in-law’s tongue), and the money plant. Using these plants, Meattle created an indoor plant-based air filtering system that allows his building, the Paharpur Business Center (PBC), to cultivate all the fresh air it

based system so they can grow their own fresh air. As he says of his decision to stay, “Either you are overwhelmed by the fact that there are so many problems and so many people, or you find solutions to help in any way you can.”

needs. Air entering the building is cleaned by a scrubber, then is filtered through the building’s extensive greenhouse to remove chemicals and bacteria. The greenhouse, and the rest of the building,

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