Century City Historical Remembrances

(Originally appeared in the July 1, 2004 edition of the Century City News)

I’m sitting in the living room of the Katz’s. The view is spectacular. As the sun goes down the lights of Century City begin to glow and the view goes from spectacular to breathtaking. Harold begins to thumb through albums that he has carefully prepared over the years for occasions just like this. He reminisces about his role in the development of Century City and I feel the love he has for the people and the buildings that have become such a Mecca for business.

The whole theory of the Centers mode was to have public transportation. The Beverly Hills Freeway and the Subway were supposed to be built to support the Century City. The Beverly Hills Freeway was killed by Beverly Hills because they wanted it cut and covered. Harold suggested that they issue a bond to pay for the cover and Caltrans would pay for the cut. The state had bought most of the right of way from the Hollywood Freeway and had torn down most of the homes. In the end Ronald Reagan killed the project sighting the protection of Beverly Hills’ property values as the reason.

The subway didn’t fare much better. The metro was going to come down Wilshire and Santa Monica then it was going to angle into Century City then it would angle back to Wilshire to catch Westwood and then follow Wilshire Blvd. to the beach. A bill was passed in the United States Congress that forbids the Metro to extend west of Vermont. If the subway is every going to connect with Century City it will now take an act of Congress.

Century City was originally intended by Alcoa to be a city where everybody walked to work.  The executive the secretaries, the mailroom clerks. What happened is that the land values escalated so quickly that none of the workers could afford to own property.

“Life is what happens while you are making plans”, says Harold, quoting Jon Lennon. People were going to walk to work and that didn’t happen. There was going to be a Beverly Hills Freeway and that didn’t happen. There was supposed to be subway stations and that didn’t happen. Traffic steadily worsened and the solution was a few “well placed” Traffic Control Officers that really improved the traffic. The Officers would direct traffic through a red light if it improved the flow. The job those Officers did has been replaced by computer assisted signals.

Harold’s wife Jan reminisces about her time in Century City. Jan remembers Jerry Asher showing her a mock up of Century City that was in the first building built – one of the Gateway buildings. Her business (Janway Staffing) now resides in West Los Angeles around the corner for Century City but many of her clients are still located in Century City. Jan was the founder of the “Women’s Network” which later became the woman’s council.

It all began when Alcoa bought the land from Fox so that they could prove buildings could be built with aluminum. Alcoa built the two gateway buildings, the shopping center and the two 1901 buildings. In 1969 I began with Bob Hatfield. I went to Hatfield and told him it was time to have a chamber of commerce. He assigned John McComb to me and it began as the Century City Civic Council which later became the Century City Chamber of Commerce. In ’72 Harold became the president serving two consecutive terms.

They welcomed Harold into the Alcoa family and listened to his advice and guidance. They sold off the east side of Century Park East to developers. Here we find very little space around the buildings. The Alcoa guys were top notch. “Look at the setbacks on Avenue of the Stars - look at the fountain, and the greenery. These guys just wanted a showplace.” Says Katz.

During Katz term as president the chamber sponsored “Girl Watching Week” which stirred the following response from the Los Angeles Chapter of NOW:

Mr. Harold Katz

Century City Chamber of Commerce

In these days of social awareness it’s regrettable that responsible professional women and men must still take time from their busy schedules to protest remnants of social injustice such a remnant is Century City’s laughingly outmoded but none the less outrageously offensive girl watching week. We protest Girl Watching Week because it invades the privacy of women who must work or shop in Century City. It invades the privacy of Century City Girls your terminology not ours by forcing them either to remain indoors for a week or submit meekly to the unwanted leering scrutiny of girl watchers. Since you remain unaware of the fact that women  deplore being unwitted participants in a vulgar circus please expect that we will use all means available to us including economic pressure to enlighten you to the damage that girl watching week does to your civic image and to the bitter resentment that it inspires in the majority of your shopping public.

With all sincerity,

Virginia L. Carter President

Los Angeles National Organization of Women

Century City Officials have defended the celebration  as a light hearted tribute to the beauty and charm of the women who work and visit the new city complex. We’ve had constant comments from people all over the world that Century City was unique as a location for seeing lovely women, stated Harold Katz, and every one refers to it as girl watching consequently we decided to stage an annual girl watching week. We certainly did not consider the event in any way to be offensive or a vulgar circus as the women’s lib advocate insists on describing it. It’s a good humor tribute to women and the fact that men love looking at beautiful women.

It must be time to go the Hyatt has just turned off their lights.

Treat The Cause Not The Symptom

(Originally appeared in the July 15, 2004 edition of the Century City News)

  

Holistic medicine looks at the causes of ailments and aids the human body in drawing upon its own healing powers. The human body is an intelligent self-sufficient system that holds enormous healing powers. It is an entire universe constantly working to maintain a state of balance. When the weather gets too hot, you sweat in order to lower the body’s temperature. During cold weather, your body keeps heat inside itself. During this process alone, there are millions of cells working together to keep the body in proper function. Each cell is well programmed to do its own job and keep you healthy. Disease usually enters the body when cells become confused and deprogrammed so they stop working for you and thus you are thrown off balance.

Homeopathy, a prominent form of medicine, draws from the body’s inherent strengths to heal itself. This form of science works on a sub-physiological level. Meaning, it works with the energy of the body to create a state of balance where all the cells are harmoniously working together. This 200 year old system of medicine treats the person and not the disease whether the condition is acute, chronic or even life debilitating.

The Encino-Acu Medical Center, run by Dr. Salar Farahmand, has been dedicated in the research and unique practices of this science. Dr. Farahmand has helped many people overcome disease and reach a state of balance by giving them individualized homeopathic treatments.

Homeopathic medicines are tiny doses of naturally occurring substances used to stimulate the body's innate healing powers. Because the doses are so small, these remedies are completely non-toxic, non-addictive and there are no side effects. Yet their effectiveness has been proven repeatedly in double-blind clinical trials. With its therapeutic properties, low expense and two hundred year history, homeopathy has the potential to become the medicine of the future. Homeopathy is gaining recognition throughout much of the world, comprising a significant part of the national health program in many European countries. For example, in England there are entire hospitals within the national health program devoted to the homeopathic care of patients.

Based on the Greek words homoios, meaning "similar", and pathos, meaning "disease", Homeopathy works through the Law of Similars, or likes curing likes. This means that if a substance produces certain symptoms in a healthy person, then a homeopathically prepared dilution of that substance will help treat similar symptoms in a sick person. Homeopathic medicines are chosen holistically, taking into account the patient's physical, mental and emotional symptoms and characteristics.

The process of immunization is similar to homeopathy: a vaccination is a minute dose of a substance that can cause physical symptoms, given to increase the body's resistance to similar, but more serious symptoms. The difference is that the vaccine usually of actual killed microorganisms, and creates a controlled immune response, whereas homeopathic remedies are usually taken from natural substances which stimulate more than just the immune system to facilitate healing.

A medical doctor named Samuel Hahnemann is recognized as the father of modern Homeopathy. He stumbled onto the concept when he was identifying and cataloguing new medicinal herbs. He often experimented on himself, and carefully noted his symptoms and their duration with each new medication. When he took a large dose of cinchona bark, which was used to treat malaria, he was amazed to experience symptoms of malaria. They lasted only a few hours, and recurred consistently every time he took another dose. If large doses of a substance create certain toxic symptoms in a healthy person, then homeopathic doses of the same substance can be used to cure the same disease, or one with similar toxic symptoms. Further experimentation revealed that this principle was true for hundreds of substances. Hahnemann spent the rest of his life testing and documenting the effects of micro-doses of medicinal herbs.

These micro-doses are prepared by taking an extract of the original herb, mineral, or animal substance and putting it through a series of dilutions. Between each dilution, the preparation is succussed, or vigorously agitated with impact -- a process which is believed to capture in the diluent fluid (usually water) the living essence or biological information of the herb. Unlike allopathic drug, with every step of dilution and succussion, the potency or strength of the substance is increased. How homeopathy works is not completely understood, but it is clearly the succussion process which is responsible for transferring or incorporating therapeutic properties to the diluent, as preparations which are diluted but not succussed are ineffective.

Homeopathic remedies offer a wide variety of benefits:

•      Effectively treat the symptom of disease.

•      Release toxins from storage sites in tissues.

•      Facilitate drainage of toxins and their elimination from the body.

•      Desensitize the body to prevent and treat allergic reactions.

•      Increase one's ability to withstand stresses without undue harm.

•      Antidote to substances which poison the system.

•      Aid in the assimilation and absorption of nutrients in the body.

•      Neutralize the action of free-radicals and help to repair and regenerate the damaged cells and tissues.

•      Revitalize and support the immune system.

Ingredients for these remedies are obtained from plants, naturally-occurring chemicals and minerals, animal substances, and other biological sources. More than half of the 3000 commonly used homeopathic remedies are derived from plant sources, such as roots, stems, leaves, bark, flowers, buds, fruits, berries, seeds, and whole plants. Other sources of homeopathic ingredients can be mineral (such as calcium), chemical (sulphur, etc.)or animal extract (snake venom).

Upon taking a homeopathic remedy, one may initially experience a mild, brief worsening of symptoms, called a healing crisis. This is taken as a sign that the remedy has allowed the disease to express itself and it is indeed correct for that illness. The healing crisis is usually followed by a disappearance of symptoms. Hahnemann felt that the remedy artificially reproduced the illness in the body, to stimulate the body's natural defenses to destroy the disease, and his observations of hundreds of patients supported this theory.

Homeopathics are generally regarded by the FDA as safe, due to their extreme dilution. They are listed in the U.S. Homeopathic Pharmacopia and are controlled by the Homeopathic Pharmacopia Convention of the United States, which is responsible for establishing standards for the industry, in collaboration with the FDA.

Dr. Salar Farahmand received his M.D. in Iran where he practiced Pediatric and Preventitive Medicine. He holds a Doctorate Degree in both Homeopathic Medicine and Oriental Medicine, it a Certified Naturopathic Physician and California Licensed Acupuncturist, and holds a Ph.D. in Disorders caused by changes in the environment. He currently works out of his office in Encino, California, specializing in using mineral salt therapy, traditional and clinical homeopathy, acupuncture and magnet therapy on acupuncture points to manage pain, treat disease and rehabilitate the body. You can reach Dr. Farahmand at 818.501.2000

The Shape of Things

(Originally appeared in the July 1, 2004 edition of the Century City News)

The newest villain to invade our psyche (while expanding our waistlines) is the dreaded carb. Naturally, we react in typical fashion by wiping it out altogether, banishing it from breads, snacks, and even beer. Banning it from any public display will undoubtedly render us skinny.

Or so we thought. Here we are, months into the low carb/no carb movement and waistlines are still bulging. It’s time to rethink the calories and rewrite nutritional plans.  Even the USDA is taking a look into how to redesign the classic food pyramid so people have a better understanding of healthy eating.

Rather than practice extreme dieting and eliminating an entire food group, pay attention to the amount of calories consumed each day. Many foods that scream  “low-carb” or “no-carb” contain as many calories as their full-carb cousins. Sometimes even more.’ “The low-carbohydrate claim on a label does not necessarily mean low calorie”, says David Heber, M.D., Heber, director of Center for Human Nutrition at University of California, Los Angeles. “Many of these foods contain sweeteners which may have the same number of calories as regular sugar, and there are ‘low carb’ candy bars available that contain 200 calories”, says Heber. 

Not all carbs are evil; there are the good carbs, think fruits and veggies, and whole grains such as brown rice and whole wheat pasta.  Fruits, vegetables and whole grains have fewer calories ‘per bite’ than do more refined carbohydrates such as white rice, cakes and cookies.  Also, in addition to vitamins, mineral and fiber, these healthy carbohydrates contain a wealth of healthy phytonutrients – plant compounds which provide additional health benefits.    

In addition to watching caloric intake, a high-protein diet can help one lose weight. But eating healthy protein is the key. There’s no point in eating a high protein diet if that protein is clogging your arteries at the same time.  Poultry breast, egg whites, fish and shellfish, soy and whey protein powders and nonfat milk are excellent sources of high quality, low fat protein. 

“Because protein plays a key role in controlling hunger, it is the key to weight loss,” says Dr. Heber.  “Increased daily protein intake, along with exercise, builds muscle and lean body mass. The more lean body mass you have, the higher your metabolism and the more calories you’ll burn.”

A study published in Journal of Nutrition reported on the effects of a diet high in protein compared with a high carbohydrate diet.  Those individuals in the high protein group experienced greater improvements in body composition with an increased ratio of fat to muscle loss over those consuming the high carbohydrate diet.  The same study concluded that test subjects eating higher protein diets reported a higher level of satiety.

The challenge is in knowing how to implement these recommendations.  One option is to substitute a protein-rich meal replacement shake for breakfast and/or lunch.

According to experts reporting at the North American Association for the Study of Obesity annual meeting, studies show that people who follow a meal replacement plan not only lose more weight, but also weigh less over time – on average about 33 pounds less over a ten year time span than those who follow a traditional weight loss plan. Dr. Heber also emphasizes the importance of exercise and eating a healthy, balanced meal when using meal replacement shakes instead of breakfast and lunch.

Products such as Herbalife’s new ShapeWorks™ meal replacement shakes use a combination of soy and whey proteins in an overall meal plan which allows individuals to personalize their daily protein intake.  Pre-mixed protein drinks typically don’t contain enough protein to replace a nutritious meal and to keep hunger at bay.   

Dieting is a personal process; food choices need to be made taking  each body’s specific needs into account.  Someone who is active all day requires more protein than a sedentary person because their bodies have more lean muscle mass. Likewise, men typically need to eat more protein than women.  By knowing how much protein your  body needs to in order to lose weight and build muscle, and how many calories the body burns each day, it is possible to reshape your  body in a positive and healthy manner.

Closing note:

Find out how much protein you should be consuming  daily and how many calories you burn at rest with a free “Shapescan” body analysis from Herbalife. .Call 866-61SHAPE to arrange free body analyses at your office, or go to www.shapeworks.com to arrange an individual body analysis with one of our ShapeWorks coaches.