PEORIA, Ill. (Sept. 16, 2013) ? October is Liver Awareness Month, and the American Red Cross reminds eligible donors that organ transplant patients often rely on donated blood products. Liver transplant patients may need 30 or more transfusions during the surgery.

Recently, a liver transplant patient at a hospital served by the Red Cross was treated with more than 75 units of red blood cells, platelets and plasma.

Liver transplants are the second most common transplant, with more than 6,000 performed every year in the U.S. ? and more than 16,000 Americans are currently waiting for a liver transplant, according to the American Liver Foundation.

Ways to protect your liver from disease

There are a variety of ways to help protect your liver from disease. The American Liver Foundation offers these simple tips:

- Maintain a healthy diet low in fatty foods.

- Limit alcohol intake.

- Do not smoke.

- Manage medications appropriately.

- Limit contact with toxins.

- Exercise regularly.

For more information, visit liverfoundation.org.

Please visit redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS to make an appointment to donate blood or platelets to help patients like these and many others.

Upcoming blood donation opportunities:

Carroll County

Oct. 14 from 12-5 p.m. at Savanna Moose Lodge, 125 Main St. in Savanna, Ill.

Henry County

Oct. 7 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Black Hawk College-East, 26230 Black Hawk Road in Galva, Ill.

Oct. 9 from 2-6 p.m. at First Christian Church, 105 Dwight St. in Kewanee, Ill.

Oct. 14 from 2:30-6 p.m. at Hooppole Community Center, 1404 Washington St. in Hooppole, Ill.

Mercer County

Oct. 3 from 1-6:30 p.m. at Calvary Lutheran Church, 121 N. Meridian St. in New Windsor, Ill.

Oct. 15 from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at VFW Hall, 106 SW Third Ave. in Aledo, Ill.

Whiteside County

Oct. 2 from 2-6 p.m. at American Red Cross, 112 W. Second St. in Rock Falls, Ill.

Oct. 3 from 9:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. at CGH Medical Center, 100 E. LeFevre Road in Sterling, Ill.

Oct. 8 from 1-6 p.m. at Robert Fulton Community Center, 912 Fourth St. in Fulton, Ill.

Oct. 9 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at American Red Cross, 112 W. Second St. in Rock Falls, Ill.

Oct. 14 from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Prophetstown-Lyndon-Tampico CUSD 3, 79 Grove St. in Prophetstown, Ill.

Oct. 15 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Morrison Institute of Technology, 701 Portland in Morrison, Ill.

The need is constant. The gratification is instant. Give blood.®

How to donate blood

Simply call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or visit redcrossblood.org to make an appointment or for more information. All blood types are needed to ensure a reliable supply for patients. A blood donor card or driver's license or two other forms of identification are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age (16 with parental consent in some states), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements.

About the American Red Cross

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. The Red Cross is supported in part through generous financial donations from the United Way. For more information, please visit redcross.org or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.

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One Month. One Cause. One Million Miles.

Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation to host Million Mile Run to raise awareness and funds during National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, September '13

Philadelphia, PA - In an effort to raise the profile of National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation will go the distance this September introducing the Million Mile Run. With firsthand knowledge of just how far parents of children with cancer would go to find a cure for their child, the Foundation will challenge supporters across the country to do just that,  collectively walk or run one million miles during the month of September to work toward better treatments and ultimately cures.

The brainchild of Foundation Co-Executive Director, Jay Scott, a running enthusiast, the Million Mile Run will invite ambitious individuals, as well as teams, to pledge to walk/run and contribute to the one million mile goal during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Drawing from the inspiration of Foundation creator Alexandra "Alex" Scott, who set out to raise $1 million through lemonade stands in 2004, Jay Scott feels that through combined efforts, reaching one million miles in just thirty days is attainable.

"The Million Mile Run will act as an easy way for walkers and runners of all abilities to contribute to the fight against childhood cancer and raise the profile of the awareness month," says Scott. "Though some people have commented that one million miles might be a crazy goal, and maybe they are right, my daughter Alex taught me that when you set your mind to something and garner the help of others, anything is possible. She reached her million, and I think we can too."

The Million Mile Run will utilize both the MapMyRun application and the ability for participants to manually enter the miles they log daily. Individuals who participate will average 3-4 miles a day, while teams can split up the 100 miles. For instance, a group of 4 employees can walk a mile at lunch every day and easily reach their goal. Additionally, participants are urged to recruit friends and family members to pledge dollar amounts for each mile, or provide a straight donation.

"September has become highly recognizable within the childhood cancer community as an important time of year," says Liz Scott, Alex's mom and Co-Executive Director of the Foundation. "However, for the general public, it still flies highly under the radar. We think the Million Mile Run has the ability and mass appeal to change that, one mile at a time."

Individuals and teams who are interested in participating or learning more about the Million Mile Run can visit MillionMileRun.org where they will find a video detailing the effort.

About Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation
Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) emerged from the front yard lemonade stand of cancer patient Alexandra "Alex" Scott (1996-2004). In 2000, 4-year-old Alex announced that she wanted to hold a lemonade stand to raise money to help find a cure for all children with cancer. Since Alex held that first stand, the Foundation bearing her name has evolved into a national fundraising movement, complete with thousands of supporters across the country carrying on her legacy of hope. To date, Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, a registered 501(c)3 charity, has raised more than $60 million toward fulfilling Alex's dream of finding a cure, funding over 300 pediatric cancer research projects nationally. For more information on Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, visit AlexsLemonade.org.

How far is 1 Million Miles?

A trip to the moon and back, twice.

More than 40 times around the earth.

More than 3,000 trips from NYC to Los Angeles.

Benjamin Franklin's famous quote, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," has never been more apt considering the millions of Americans who suffer from back pain.

"But how can anyone take preventative measures when most back-pain specialists take a one-dimensional perspective on this common problem after back trauma has occurred?" asks expert Jesse Cannone.

Most people experience significant back pain at some point in their lives; unfortunately, the response from the medical community is too often surgery, which fails 60 percent of the time, according to a consensus of surgeons.

"The back consists of many intricate anatomical parts, all of which are dependent on the smooth functioning of each other, but there are many factors people don't know about that affect the back's function throughout a lifetime," says Cannone, author of "The 7-Day Back Pain Cure," (www.losethebackpain.com).

"In order to better heed Franklin's advice, more people need to know how back pain starts. Sadly, in most cases, they won't get this profoundly helpful info from their doc."

Health should always include a comprehensive view, including vigilance for mental, dietary and physical well-being, he says. Below, Cannone covers in detail the physical causes that often lead to back pain over time:

• Minor problems can lead to major back dysfunction: When a physical condition isn't corrected, the body starts to break down. Tight muscles can pull the vertebrae out of alignment, pinching a nerve or creating a herniated disc. Physical dysfunctions can pressure joints and, over time, stress them to the maximum until they develop inflammation and injury. Overworked muscles can go into spasm, causing pain and forcing the body into physical dysfunction. Pain from this condition is often triggered by a specific activity, like heavy lifting, which is why most people believe they've "thrown out" their back in a singular event. In reality, however, it was a long process.

• Muscle imbalances - the tug of war inside your body: We're born with well-balanced bodies, but rarely do they stay that way. Over time, we tend to favor one side of our bodies, and with repetitive activities, we often create imbalances by working some muscles too much while underutilizing others. Sitting is one way of creating imbalance, but various activities - writing, eating, cleaning, cooking, laundry - in which we favor one hand over the other can, too.

• Lack of muscle use: Unlike other machines, which wear out the more they're used, the human body grows stronger the more you use it. When you don't use all of your muscles regularly, the muscles that keep the body balanced wither.

• Loss of muscle flexibility: Women who frequently walk with high heels often suffer a variety of problems as a result. One problem is the shortening of the calf muscle. Imagine the muscle as a rubber band that extends from the back of your knee to your heel. When you wear high heels, the rubber band shortens and, over time, the muscle adapts to this contracted position. When you take off the heels, the calf muscle will feel pulled. This frequently happens to other muscles in the body, throwing off body balance.

About Jesse Cannone

Jesse Cannone is a leading back-pain expert with a high rate of success for those he consults. He has been a personal trainer since 1998, specializing in finding root causes for chronic pain, and finding solutions with a multidiscipline approach. Cannone publishes the free email newsletter "Less Pain, More Life," read by more than 400,000 worldwide, and he is the creator of Muscle Balance Therapy™.