... naturally
Heart disease kills an estimated 630,000 Americans each year. It’s the leading cause of death for both men and women.
In the United States, the most common type of heart disease is coronary artery disease (CAD), which can lead to a heart attack.
You can greatly reduce your risk for CAD through lifestyle changes and, in some cases, medication.
But the good news is…in most cases, heart disease is optional!
One of the questions I still hear in my practice is, “Why do I need to be concerned with my heart? Women don’t get heart disease like men”. So, let’s talk about that for a moment.
The truth is heart disease is the #1 cause of death in women over the age of 50. About one in four women dies of heart disease. And the older we get, the more likely we will suffer from heart disease. While both men and women can suffer from heart attacks, we as women are more likely to die from them.
The good news is, most heart disease (and Type II Diabetes) is preventable and that’s what I try to focus on with my patients. This is good news as more and more people are interested in how to prevent disease so they can live long healthy lives (not to mention, reduce their health care expenditures!). [Read more…] about Women and Heart Disease
When a new patient comes to my clinic, I ask them to list all their medications, including any over-the-counter medications, herbal and vitamin supplements they may be taking. Often times, they don’t know.
While I understand that it’s sometimes difficult to remember everything, I cannot tell you how important it is to your health and safety for you to know what you are taking and communicate that list to your own provider, the hospital or emergency personnel.
Let’s say you suddenly show up in the ER and are unconscious. Medical personal are not going to know what kind of medication you take or what your health problems are. This could be dangerous as they will be treating you somewhat blinded. As we all know, various medications should not be combined. But how will anyone know?
In our clinic, I have cards I give out to all my patients and encourage them to write down everything, each and every medication, and carry it with them at all times.
Here is a medication list I designed for you. It has your information, your providers information, allergies and a place for you to list all your medications, why you are taking them, and how often. Feel free to download it, fill it out and carry it in your wallet or purse at all times. Keep it updated with new medications, or remove medications you are no longer taking.
Let me know how it works for you.
Binge drinking has become nearly synonymous with college students.
But turns out, a study released a couple of years ago shows a significant, worrisome level of binge drinking among those age 50 to 64 as well.
Working with the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, Duke University researchers report that 22% of men and 9% of women ages 50 to 64 engaged in binge drinking — five or more drinks at a time — within the past month of the survey.
The research, based on a survey of 11,000 men and women that took place in 2005 and 2006, was published and reported in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
The survey also found that 19% of the men and 13% of the women had two or more drinks a day, which is considered heavy or “at-risk” drinking under American Geriatric Society guidelines for older people.
Dan Blazer, the study’s lead author and a professor of psychiatry and behavioral science at Duke, says that level of drinking places the older group at more of a health risk than younger counterparts.
“They don’t metabolize alcohol as quickly, they may be on medications, or they may have some health problems that alcohol may contribute to,” Blazer says. “On average, if a young person drinks five beers and an older person drinks five beers, the older person is almost certainly going to have more difficulty.”
You can read the rest of the story here.
Here is another reason to keep your weight under control. Those extra pounds are not worth losing brain cell function! See what you think about this new study.
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Healthy women who put on weight between the premenopausal and postmenopausal years risk losing nerve cells in the brain, research suggests.
Gaining weight is a “highly modifiable” risk factor that may be targeted to prevent or slow the progression of potentially harmful age-related changes in the brain, the University of Pittsburgh-based study team suggests in the June issue of Psychosomatic Medicine. [Read more…] about Menopausal Weight Gain
I am often approached by women either in my practice or online who want to know the most “natural” way to approach menopause.
It’s really quite simple if you think about it. [Read more…] about Natural Menopause