A National Nurse to Help Reform Health Care?
It has been proposed that an Office of a National Nurse be established in Washington. The National Nurse would be empowered to lead an army of nurses into a national campaign of disease prevention and health education. Here’s a brief overview of the National Nurse proposal. If you like the idea, click here for a petition you can sign in support of it, I signed it.
Whether You are Democrat or Republican You Should Be a Maverick about Your Health
The media branded the current Republican presidential candidate a “maverick” and that has made the word popular and common but politics has obscured its meaning. Being a maverick means more than not always voting with one’s own political party.
Being a maverick means you make up your own mind about things, you determine a plan of action and you then have the guts to follow through on your plan. Maverick Health was founded on these principles. Here, on the eve of the election, are some thoughts on why – whether you are a Democrat or a Republican – you should absolutely be a maverick about your health.
Wishing You a Healthy Flu Season and a Pneumonia Free New Year
It’s that time of year again – the leaves are turning, the weather is cooling off, the holidays are fast approaching - and that means flu season is, too. Yearly flu vaccination starts in September and continues throughout the flu season.
Here’s a tip - late October and early November are the best times to be vaccinated. Read this little primer on a yearly ritual. If you need vaccinated, now’s the time!
How a Heart CT Scan Led to My Bypass Surgery
At his regular checkup, this man’s doctor recommended he get an expensive screening test called a heart CT scan (aka EBCT). This test is not covered by insurance and is not recommended by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Even though he was having no symptoms, he chose to go ahead pay for the test himself and he’s glad he did. He has graciously allowed me to publish his story hoping it might help others. Read it here.
Take5Moment – Recharge, Regroup, Refocus, Relax
If you have a job that keeps you seated in front of computer screen for hours each day or if you have a lot of physical and mental stress in your life, there’s a website called Take5Moment I want to tell you about where you can “take 5” minutes and recharge. Check this out.
This Week’s Post is Postponed Because I’m Post-Op
This week’s post is postponed because I had to have rotator cuff surgery last week. Wish me well and wish me luck - this is a rough ride. I’ll be back with a new post next week. Be careful out there!
Shocking Statistics about Weight in America
Using statistics gathered by the federal government’s Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, researchers recently published predictions about future trends in weight in the journal Obesity. Using past trends they calculated where our collective weight is heading. This really is shocking - if current trends continue for the next 40 years the same way they have for the last 30 years:
100% of the American population will be overweight or obese in 2048.
Exercise Trumps “Fat” Genes New Study Reports
A study published in The Archives of Internal Medicine this month found that physical activity is more powerful than “fat” genes in determining whether a person becomes overweight or not. Read on to see how you can shape yourself for a healthier future.
Your Health: Whose Responsibility Is It, Anyway?
This week a couple of articles came to my attention that focused on the following issues: the chronic disease epidemic, how health care can be reformed, over-burdened doctors, who is going to pay for prevention and just who is responsible for keeping you healthy.
Vitamin D - Let the Sunshine In
I’ve been seeing a lot of headlines lately about vitamin D. I recently read that one of the largest labs in the country reports vitamin D blood testing has risen for the last four years and is already up 90% so far this year. So does vitamin D really prevent disease and death or is it just a lot of hype? I reviewed the literature to learn more about vitamin D - and here is what I learned.
