Tag Archives: SterlingMedicalAdvice.com

Straight No Chaser: Your Stress Management Plan

Mental Health, , , ,

stress_graph

The path to “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” isn’t as simple as the song suggests, but if the song had a heart, it would be in the right place. Today’s contribution to your New Year’s resolution of less stress in your life is the development of your individual stress management program.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-diB65scQU]
YOUR INDIVIDUAL STRESS MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

  • Learn to smile. Force it if you have to. Wear one when you walk. Your brain receives signals based on your physical appearance.
  • Learn to be optimistic. Force it if you have to. When you’re in a difficult situation, learn to ask yourself, “What’s the best that could happen?” Let optimism become your goal, and plan with achieving it in mind. Even if you don’t achieve your best, embrace positivity. Focus on the opportunities, not the obstacles.
  • Learn to have fun. Force yourself to have fun, whatever that is for you. Plan specific activities that will make you smile and laugh. Your brain and body need this outlet.
  • Learn variety. Force yourself to switch your routine. Even if you’re a workaholic or in a stressful environment, maneuver between activities.
  • Learn to break. Force yourself to rest, both mentally and physically. Turn it off and recharge. You’ll be more efficient when you return and won’t be as stressed about the activities you must perform.
  • Learn to add by subtraction. At some point you’ve got to learn to move past those things in your life that produce physical and mental stress. This includes foods, habits and sometimes people. I recently came across this quote:

“Show me your friends, and I’ll show you your future.”

That should either be a ringing endorsement of your choices or a warning sign. Make good choices!

Remember, these activities address both physical and emotional stress.

“Sound mind = sound body” is a real thing!

 
Physical activity creates good blood flow and healthy muscles and other tissues. This will reduce your levels of stress.

  • Don’t just sit there. Commit to do something. Commit to a routine.
  • Strive for 150 minutes/week of aerobic activity.
  • You’ll perform best with a personal trainer, but you don’t even need to join a gym. If you engage in brisk walking for 20 minutes/day, you’re good.
  • If you don’t have a trainer, get a workout partner or group. This is using peer pressure in a positive way.

Nutrition is the fuel for your body’s normal functioning. It will keep your brain and body sharp, your immune system powerful and you less susceptible to physical and emotional stress.

  • Use the food plate guide to facilitate making healthy choices.
  • Increase the amounts and varieties of fruits and vegetables you eat.
  • Stop eating when your body tells you that you’re full. Don’t worry so much about “finishing your plate.”
  • Avoid super-sized anything unless you’re splitting the servings.

Social support—an effective support network—can serve to dissipate your stress. Stress without an outlet is a force multiplier.

  • Wear a smile as your shield from stress. It invites positivity and positive people. Bringing new friends into your life is exciting for most people. Make an effort to socialize and enjoy the benefits of friendship, family and strong networks.
  • You are your own best support. If you hardwire positivity into your personality, you will find yourself less stressed. Take care of yourself, and be good to yourself and those around you.

Relaxation is for many people a distant memory that should go high on your New Year’s  resolution list.

  • If you don’t have time to relax, make time. If you can’t make time, take time. Enjoy your family, hobbies and life!
  • You must learn to connect mentally with your body’s cues. If you’re tired, rest. If you’re in pain, don’t push it. These early signs of physical stress are meant to be warnings. Take heed.
  • Don’t laugh, but relaxation techniques work! Consider mediation, yoga or just
    “resting your eyes.” Appreciate the healing power of music and the arts. The deeper you get into these effects, the better they become at relaxing you.
  • Sleep is your body’s way to reset and replenish. Good sleep habits are an important way to alleviate your stress.

Professional Support
We multiply our stressors by failing to take advantage of the resources that are available. If your efforts to put a stress management program in place are unsuccessful, and you’re still addressing more than you can handle, you have a wealth of talented caring professionals ready to provide assistance. Licensed social workers, psychologists and psychiatrists can teach you additional stress management techniques and strategies. Nutritionists and personal trainers can fine-tune those factors that may otherwise contribute to physical stress. Your communities likely have resources to help. Of course, you also have access to 844-SMA-TALK and www.sterlingmedicaladvice.com, both of which offer you trained mental health professionals to get you through whatever issues you’re confronting.
Feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant any questions you may have on this topic.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.
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Why Wait LongER?

General Health and Wellness, Health Prevention, , ,

ERWhy-Wait-Longer

Have you ever waited and waited in an emergency room only to find out that you could have stayed home in the first place?

There are two things we’d like to say about that:

  1. If you take SterlingMedicalAdvice.com up on our offer, you can chat with your personal healthcare expert before you even leave home and find out if you really need to make that trip.
  2. The problem with long emergency room waits will only worsen as more people are added to the rolls of the insured. Click on this graph to see how long these waits were back in 2009.

ERwait2009

Register at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com or call 844-SMA-TALK. Connect with your personal healthcare consultants 24/7. Then SHARE us with your friends and family, please. Thank you.

Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress, Facebook @ SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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Straight, No Chaser: Here's How You Stop Smoking – Quick Tips to START Smoking Cessation

General Health and Wellness, Health Prevention, , , ,

smokingcessation1

Don’t pick your birthday to stop when New Year’s has just passed. Do it now. Can’t do it now? Do it Monday. In fact, do it every Monday. It’s a fight. If you fall down, start it back up again. It’s the fight of your life (or should I say for your life)!
Try all of these tips to help you:

  • If you decide to quit after your current (last) pack, throw away one cigarette for every one you smoke.
  • Count (figuratively or literally) all the money you’re saving by not smoking.
  • Throw away (not give away) all cigarettes, cigars, matches, lighters, humidors, cigar cutters and anything else you associate with smoking. You’ll realize how sad it is if and when you find yourself rummaging through the garbage to get a fix.
  • Tell everyone (loudly) that you’ve quit. Empower them to help and hold you accountable. Enlist another smoker friend to go through the journey with you.
  • If you do fall off the wagon, smoke a different cigarette brand. Odds are you won’t like it as much, and that will help combat the natural ease you have with smoking.
  • Contact your physician and ask for help.

Here’s a marvelous best-practices schemata of appropriate interplay between a physician and a patient trying to stop smoking.
smoking cessation As
If your physician and you decide to place you on a patch or otherwise medicate you, follow instructions carefully and precisely.
More tips:

  • Practice deep breathing. Part of the euphoria of smoking is nothing more than the physiologic sensations produced by deep inhalations.
  • Keep other things in your mouth. Mints and chewing gum (low-calorie) are great. Brushing your teeth also serves many purposes. Drinking water when you want to smoke will often remove the urge.
  • Make it past the first day. Then make it past the first week.

I personally love the START method, which includes several of the above methods. Let me know if it works for any of you.
S: Set a quit date.
T: Tell your friends, family and associates that you’re quitting, and enlist their help.
A: Anticipate and act on the plan you’ve set and challenges you’ll meet.
R: Remove (trash) cigarettes, cigar and other paraphernalia from your environment.
T: Talk with your physician about options and additional support.
For those of you affected (either first or second-hand), this is huge and important. I really wish you all the best. I welcome any comments or questions.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.
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Call or Chat: It's Your Choice

General Health and Wellness, , , ,

call or chat 2

If you prefer making a quick call rather than purchasing a month’s subscription (which, by the way, costs the same and in one month gives you more immediate, live contacts, more contacts via email reply within 24 hours, and unlimited access to thousands of healthcare questions, answers and blogs), feel free to call.
Call 844-SMA-TALK. Your SterlingMedicalAdvice.com personal healthcare consultants are available 24/7.
Then SHARE us with your friends and family, please. Thank you.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress, Facebook @ SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.
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Straight, No Chaser: Diet and Nutrition Tips

Diet and Nutrition, Health Prevention, , ,

 nutrition1

If you’re serious about keeping your New Year’s resolutions, so are we. Today, we move from explaining how to eat (as we did here), to giving you practical steps and choices to make in several critical areas—intake of fluids, plants, proteins, grains, salt and junk food. The more of these you can check off as part of your dietary inventory, the healthier you’ll be.
Fluids

  • Drink water as your primary beverage.
  • Enjoy coffee or tea without excessive sugar or other additives.
  • Avoid sugary beverages. These are a dangerous source of “empty calories,” meaning they lead to weight gain with little or no nutritional value. This increases your risk of high blood pressure and diabetes.
  • Drink alcohol in moderation if at all. It is true that alcohol has some health benefits, but moderation is key before you introduce the negative health consequences of overconsumption.
  • Limit daily intake of dairy products to 1-2 servings/day.
  • Ease up on juices, as they’re very high in sugar content.

Plants

  • When in doubt, you won’t go wrong eating plants; a plant-based diet is your healthiest option.
  • Make half your plate vegetables and fruits.
  • Learn to cook with healthy plant oils, like olive and canola oil.

Protein

  • Pick most or all of your protein from healthy choices such as fish, chicken, beans, nuts and seeds, and tofu. Eating these choices in place of red meat and processed meat can lower the risk of heart disease and diabetes.
  • Avoid burgers and hot dogs.
  • Limit red meat—beef, pork, or lamb—to twice a week or less (if you must at all).
  • Replace your red meat intake with seafood.
  • Avoid processed meats such as bacon, cold cuts and hot dogs. They significantly raise the risk of heart disease, diabetes and colon cancer.

Grains

  • Grains are not essential for good health.
  • Any grains you eat should be whole grain. They are not as prone to increasing your risks for diabetes, and they better assist your weight loss efforts.
  • Whole grains include products such as brown rice, whole wheat bread and whole grain pasta. Whole grains lower the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

Salt

  • We get more than enough salt in our diets without adding salt. Lose the salt shaker!
  • Your dietary intake of salt should equal about one teaspoon of table salt a day, which you’ll obtain without thinking about it or ever adding additional salt.
  • Think you’re a good cook? Prove it. Lose the salt, both when cooking and on the table. Use spices, herbs and oils instead.
  • Rethink all those condiments. Soy sauce, ketchup, pickles, olives, salad dressing and seasoning packets are typically very high in sodium. Seek out low fat, low sodium alternatives, or sprinkle enough of the condiments to produce the taste you want instead of using the entire packet.

Calories

  • We’ve discussed calories and calorie counts at length. Refer to this edition of Straight, No Chaser for a review.

Junk food

  • In a word, no. See the above discussion on “empty calories”. Junk food (and you should include sugary drinks in this category) contains lots of calories and next to no nutritional value. Furthermore, it doesn’t make you feel full, so you tend to overeat, leading to more calories and more health risks.
  • Save desserts for special occasions, and eat just enough to enjoy the occasion. Sometimes just a taste will ease that sweet tooth.
  • Substitute healthy snacks when you have junk food cravings. Fruits, a handful of nuts or whole grain crackers can do the trick if you give them a chance.
  • Substitute a serving of your favorite fruit for those routine desserts.

Please remember that diet isn’t enough. You must stay active, as discussed here and here. A healthy diet with regular physical activity keeps your weight in check.
Feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant any questions you may have on this topic.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.
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Peace on the Job – Guaranteed!

General Health and Wellness, Health Prevention, , , ,

Have you sensed grumpiness related to healthcare around your workplace? The bosses grumbling about healthcare costs? Understand why they feel that way? Well, here’s a great chance for you to be the peacemaker.
Invite your benefits coordinator or EAP manager to visit www.SterlingMedicalWellness.com. They’ll find out how our Wellness offerings outshine all the rest on the planet and have the potential to solve sooo many of their corporate problems! Our Wellness product is guaranteed to save your employer money and provide employees with the health/medical information and advice they need to make more informed decisions about their care.
After you share the peace at work, SHARE it (and our page) with your friends and family so they can be peacemakers, too!
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress, Facebook @ SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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Straight, No Chaser: Here's Steps for You to Take – Get Active!

General Health and Wellness, Personal Training, , ,

ltnmf

Here’s how you get started with a work out regimen. Joining me in this conversation is another SMA expert consultant, Fitness Guru and owner of Loving The New Me Fitness, Shina Michelle.
As we left off in the previous post, fitness is for everyone. If you’re currently inactive, worried about becoming active or worried about boosting your level of physical activity because you’re afraid of getting hurt, fear not. Moderate-intensity aerobic activity (e.g., brisk walking) is generally safe for most people, and even if it’s been a long time and/or you have medical problems, the health benefits of being active are far greater than the risks of getting hurt and the consequences of remaining inactive.
First things first: Get cleared by your physician.
If you have a chronic medical illness like diabetes, heart or vascular disease, arthritis or asthma/COPD, talk with your physician about your ability to be active. Your doctor will work with you to develop a plan matching your capabilities, and you or you and your personal trainer can execute it. You’d be surprised how much health can be generated with a reasonable amount of effort. As little as 60 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity (e.g., brisk walking) produces measurable health benefits. The key is to avoid being inactive.
You’re not going to run a marathon on your first day back working out.
Strokes and heart attacks are rare during physical activity. The risk that does exist comes from someone who figuratively goes from 0–60. Don’t go from inactive to hyperactive, engaging in vigorous-intensity aerobics (e.g., that includes shoveling snow, running stairs, etc.). It’s a good idea to work with a personal trainer if it’s within your means. You need to have a plan in place to get from zero to hero.
We’ve previously discussed losing weight in the context of the caloric index (click here for details). Just remember that in order to lose one pound, you need to burn an average of 500 more calories per day than you eat or drink—for an entire week. We’ll get back to the dietary consideration in an upcoming post, but for now let’s focus on the exercise/activity component of the equation.
To translate what “500 more calories per day than you eat or drink” looks like, follow these tips:

  • Strive for 150 minutes/week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity (e.g., brisk walking) or
  • Strive for 75 minutes/week of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity or
  • Strive for an equivalent mix of the two

Be advised that your metabolism may play a role on whether you need more or less aerobic activity to accomplish your goal.
Now these aerobic recommendations represent a minimal amount likely to help you maintain your current weight. Increase these amounts and/or use the dietary intake side of the equation to help you lose weight. Check back tomorrow for a review of those.
Feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant any questions you may have on this topic.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.
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Private Chat

General Health and Wellness, Health Prevention, , ,


Need privacy? Chat online 24/7 with your personal healthcare consultant at www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com. We’ll protect your privacy as well as your health. We’re prepared to discuss medical, preventative, psychological, dental, pharmaceutical, nutritional and most any other health matter you have. www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com offers the highest level of security on the internet. Join the service. Reap the benefits. We’re ready when you are.
SHARE us with your friends and family.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress, Facebook @ SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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Straight, No Chaser: Pass The Stress Test

Mental Health, , , ,

Stress-Management-Checklist-to-Survive-and-Thrive

Let’s agree not to go into the New Year filled with last year’s tension or without a plan to avoid new stress. In fact, let’s take this time to lay the groundwork for one now.

Stress is a feeling of emotional or physical tension. Stress by itself isn’t the problem; in fact, stress can be a powerful motivator. After all, that’s what the “fight or flight” response is – a response to stress. The issue becomes when you can’t manage your stress.

stress_management

Remember that stress comes in different forms, including emotional and physical. Emotional stress is mental and impacts your ability to respond to situations you find challenging. This type of stress is individualized – what one person considers stressful, someone else might not. Physical stress is the body’s response to triggers. A simple example is what happens if you place your hand in fire. Your body gets burned. That burn is a physical stress on your body. Interestingly, each type of stressor may result in the other. For example, that burn causes you to have emotional pain to accompany the physical pain. In another instance, your emotional stress may produce physical stress such as sweating, vomiting, blackouts or abnormal heartbeats.
You have to get in front of tough situations and learn stress management. You need to learn to reduce, control, defect and channel tension away from its potentially crippling effects. Don’t think it can’t be done: just as the fireman runs into a burning building, the pilot navigates a crashing plane to safety or the emergency physician saves a live without being swallowed up by the magnitude of the moment, you can conquer the challenge confronting you.
Today, I want to focus on 5 factors that play into your development of physical and emotional stress: attitude, diet, physical activity, relaxation habits and support systems. These factors not only work against you if they’re not healthily managed and working to your advantage, but they are the basis for the stress management program we’ll build for you.

  • Attitude: Your perspective and attitude make you interpret the same situation or trigger either negatively, positively or indifferently. A negative attitude goes along with more stress.
  • Diet: One’s poor eating habits literally place the body in a state of physical stress and weakens the immune system, resulting in an easier ability to contract a variety of diseases. Poor nutrition eventually will affect the brain and result in additional physical and emotional stress resulting from sub-optimal function of the brain.
  • Physical activity: Insufficient physical activity will eventually put the body in a stressed state due to diminished blood flow to your organs. Just as a feeling of well-being will reduce stress, being ill and/or out-of-shape will increase stress.
  • Relaxation: Your inclination and willingness to allow your body to rest and recharge has ramifications for both physical and emotional stress. This involves taking time to sleep as well as enjoy life. If you’re not relaxed, you’re probably going to be stressed.
  • Support systems: The presence or absence of individuals and groups to help you through potentially stressful situations has the power to diffuse or magnify a situation and its associated stress.

Please take the time between this post and the upcoming post on developing a stress management program for you to assess your own situation, including the factors just mentioned. You’ll learn a lot about yourself and be better prepared for what comes next.
Feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant any questions you may have on this topic.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.
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Call Me

Uncategorized, , ,


I have dear friends and family who rely on me as a medical expert when scary (Berry) concerns arise. Well, I’ve disconnected my personal number (not really). However, I am giving all of you all my new number!
Call 844-SMA-TALK, and I or another SterlingMedicalAdvice.com expert will answer, 24/7.
Then SHARE us with your friends and family!
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress, Facebook @ SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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Straight, No Chaser: Smoking Cessation RESOLVED

Respiratory/Lungs, Health Prevention, , ,


smoking stop
Ok. On our New Year’s resolutions list, we’ve covered diet and exercise. Now what? Of course. Several of you have promised me that you would stop smoking for the new year. (I’ve made my list and am checking it twice.) The thing about smoking is there really is no time like the present to stop.
You’ve all been asked what things you’d take with you on a desert island. I’ll pose and answer the opposite question, but not on an island but regarding your life. Getting you to stop smoking is certainly one of the three gifts I’d offer you if it was within my power. This post won’t be about the dangers of smoking. (I’ll continue to hit you over the head with those at every opportunity.) Given that I’m into producing positive outcomes, I’m going to discuss with you effective means to stop smoking and the benefits of stopping.
The question on your mind is obviously how to stop. Personally, I’m of the Yoda mindset. You know, when he was teaching Luke Skywalker, he famously said, “Do or Do not. There is no try.” I can hear you now, “But Doc, I’m addicted!” Sure you are. There are many things in medicine about which I’m absolutely sure. One of these is the most effective way to stop smoking is to quit. Cold turkey. The moment you’re motivated. Not only is this premise supported by the data, which I’ll discuss momentarily, but here’s the benefit of over 20 years in clinical emergency medicine practice and having seen hundreds of people stop, stay stopped, and letting me know months and years later that they stayed stopped. Despite being addicted, people are amazingly able to quit cold turkey, and they will do it in one of five circumstances.

When they develop the will

After the birth of their first child

After their first heart attack

After their first stroke

When they die

For those of you convinced that you can’t, here’s a fact: Today there are more former smokers than current smokers.

I want to point out that I appreciate the difference between cigarette smoking and nicotine dependence.  My particular concern for your health lies in the delivery of smoke (containing over 7,000 other toxins, approximately 70 of which can cause various cancers) into the airway system that is supposed to deliver oxygen throughout your body for the maintenance and health of your organ systems.  Still, I want you to know I understand and appreciate the difficulty of smoking cessation.

  • Nicotine dependence in the most common chemical dependence in the U.S.
  • Quitting smoking often requires multiple attempts.
  • Nicotine withdrawal produces bothersome symptoms (e.g., irritability, reduced concentration, increased appetite with possible weight gain and anxiety).

The good news is more than two-thirds of smokers profess a desire to stop smoking, and yearly over half of smokers attempt to stop. That’s likely a result of knowing that no matter when you stop, you will improve your health outcomes. Each incremental inhalation of cigarette and cigar smoke produces damage better left unproduced. Let’s just hope you don’t wait until it sets up permanent damage. Consider a sampling of the following benefits that are sitting there waiting for you.

  • Reduction of the risk for cancers of the lung, esophagus, larynx (voice box), mouth, throat, kidney, bladder, pancreas, stomach and cervix, as well as certain leukemias
  • Reduction of the risk for heart disease, stroke and peripheral vascular disease
  • Reduction of the risk for COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
  • Reduction of the risk for infertility

In a subsequent post, I’ll review specific methods and tips to help you and/or your loved one stop. Today’s as good of a day as any.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.
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For the New Year, Lose the Co-Pay! Resolve to Talk.

Health Prevention, , ,

 

Have you ever made a resolution to be more proactive about your health? Do you ignore your health until some level of emergency demands your attention?
Let the SterlingMedicalAdvice.com personal healthcare consultants help you NOW in the middle of an emergency (844-SMA-TALK) or over the course of the year, as you thoughtfully make informed quality of life decisions and finally realize the benefits of being healthy. You’ll wonder why you waited.
Call us at 844-SMA-TALK. Then SHARE us with your friends and family!
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress, Facebook @ SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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Straight, No Chaser: Do You Even Know How to Eat Healthy?

Diet and Nutrition, , ,

We’re still in New Year’s resolutions mode! Yesterday we introduced you to why you exercise, and later we’ll teach you how. Today’s post is about your diet. So many times we hear “Eat Healthy,” as if we actually know what that means. Well today you’ll learn. Of course, whether you choose to do it is up to you!
HEPApr2013
For many years, pyramids were the way nutritionists would communicate about healthy eating. In case you weren’t aware, there has been a paradigm shift, and plates are in. Of course it seems rather obvious that it’s easier to communicate these things in a way representing how we eat. For the definitive source, I return to the Harvard School of Public Health. See the lead picture above. (Go Crimson!)
I’m going to make this very simple (or should that have been “digestible”) and simply discuss the contents of your plate.
Here’s your Healthy Eating Plate blueprint for a typical meal:

  1. Fill half of your plate with produce—that means fruits and vegetables. The broader the variety, the better. Sorry, but potatoes and French fries don’t count as vegetables!
  2. Fill a quarter of your plate with whole grains. Whole grain foods help lower the risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, obesity and diabetes. The sure way to know you’re choosing a whole grain food is simply in the name. When you’re grocery shopping, the product will actually say “whole grain.” This is not the same as multigrain.
  3. Fill the rest of your plate with a healthy source of protein such as fish, poultry, beans or nuts.
  4. You may have noticed a glass bottle in the picture. This is meant to represent a reminder to use healthy oils—such as olive and canola—when cooking, on salad, and at the table. You’ll notice the absence of butter and fatty salad dressings on the plate.
  5. Regarding beverages, do yourself a favor. Try to drink water, and rediscover how refreshing it is. You don’t have to pay for another beverage just because you’re used to doing so. Tea or coffee are healthy options if you use little or no sugar. Milk and other dairy products should be limited to one to two servings a day.

In a subsequent post, we provide a series of healthy eating and dieting tips to get you through your days. I hope you take the time to integrate this basic scheme into your eating habits. If you do, you will be well on your way to a sustainable lifestyle change that should have been the basis of any diet-related New Year’s resolution!
Feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant any questions you have on this topic.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

Copyright © 2014 · Sterling Initiatives, LLC · Powered by WordPress
Copyright © 2008. For more information about The Healthy Eating Pyramid, please see The Nutrition Source, Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, www.thenutritionsource.org, and Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy, by Walter C. Willett, M.D., and Patrick J. Skerrett (2005), Free Press/Simon & Schuster Inc.

844-SMA-TALK

Uncategorized, , ,


Chat with your doc recently? Probably not. I can tell you from experience that s/he isn’t ignoring you. Just swamped and bracing for an avalanche of newly insured patients per the Affordable Care Act and expansion of Medicaid developments.
Not to worry. Your personal healthcare consultants at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com can inform and advise you whenever the need arises.
Call us at 844-SMA-TALK. Please SHARE us with your friends and family!
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress, Facebook @ SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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Straight, No Chaser: The Benefits of Exercise and Other Physical Activity

General Health and Wellness, , , , ,

exercise

At Straight, No Chaser, we understand it’s the most optimistic time of the year. You’ve made many New Year’s resolutions, usually related to smoking cessation, eating better, lowering your levels of stress and starting an exercise routine. We’re here to help. The next several posts will feature our best advice to educate and motivate you as you pursue those goals.
As we begin the conversation on exercise, we will split the conversation into the “why” and the “how.” This post will remind you of why keeping your body moving is so important and why, no matter your age, sex, ethnicity, physical condition or presence of existing disease, you can improve from your current state.
Remember that your heart is a muscle, the purpose of which is to pump blood with its nutrients and oxygen around the body, supplying your organs. The more efficiently that muscle performs, the healthier you’ll be, because your vital organs will stay nourished. It’s important to restate that everything is relative, so starting with most any regular activity that’s more than your current baseline will improve your conditioning and eventually your health.
How, you might ask! Here are medically established ways that a routine of regular exercise provides physical and mental health benefits.

exercisebens

  • Exercise controls your weight by burning calories.
  • Exercise reduces your risk of cardiovascular disease by improving your heart’s function. It lowers the risk of both heart attacks and strokes.
  • Exercise reduces your risk for type 2 diabetes and combinations of high cholesterol, high blood pressure and high glucose levels (together known as metabolic syndrome).
  • Exercise specifically reduces your risk of colon and breast cancers, and it probably reduces your risk of endometrial and lung cancers.
  • Exercise improves the functioning of your immune system.
  • Exercise strengthens your bones and muscles, and it keeps your joints functioning well.
  • Exercise maintains your mobility and agility, it improves your ability to perform the activities of daily living and prevent falls as you age.
  • Exercise slows the development of arthritis.

exercisebrain

  • Exercise improves your mental health and mood by stimulating pleasurable parts of your brain and improving blood flow to your brain.
  • Exercise reduces the rate of depression.
  • Exercise reduces the development of insomnia and other sleep disorders.

The sum total of these facts is that exercise increases your chances of living longer.

At Straight, No Chaser we talk a lot about healthy and unhealthy decisions and the impact these decisions have on the length and quality of your life. There aren’t many lifestyle decisions you can make that will more positively impact those than the decision to stay physically active. Furthermore, that decision doesn’t need to be followed by the fear that in order to improve your health you have to turn your body into that of a stereotypical teenager, body builder or model. Moderate activity will produce measurable health improvements. In a subsequent post, we will explore the “how” of physical activity to improve your health, but for now, don’t just sit there. Do something!

If you can sprint, do so.

If you can’t sprint, jog.

If you can’t jog, walk.

Even it you can’t walk, move what you can!

Feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant if you have any questions on this topic.

Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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Straight, No Chaser: The Gall(stones) of Some People

Gastrointestinal, , , , , , , , , ,

gallbladder2

Now that we’ve gotten past the twin holidays associated with large meals, it’s a good time to discuss topics related to your New Year’s resolutions of eating less, eating healthier and exercising more. Let’s start with a condition especially associated with eating large meals—gallstones.
To know them is to hate them. If you’re 40ish and in most instances overweight and/or obese, you may have been told you have gallstones. Many of you reading this will have already had their gallbladders removed; some are scheduled to do so. Today’s topic is one that points out how a little maintainence can go a long way in preventing a lot of trouble.
To understand the topic, I’ll provide some basic medical information.
gallstones

  • The gallbladder is part of the digestive system, specifically the biliary tract. The biliary tract produces enzymes and the bile in the liver that helps the small intestine digest food. The gallbladder is where the bile gets stored. It releases bile when you eat.
  • Gallstones are hard particles that develop in the gallbladder as a result of an imbalance in these enzymes, such as occurs when bile contains too much cholesterol.

Your risk for gallstones increases if you’re in the following (independent) risk classes:

  • Female: Estrogen may increase cholesterol levels in bile. It may also decrease the contractions of the gallbladder that expels the juices from it. That stagnation produces an environment in which gallstones may form.
  • Obesity and a bad diet: Obesity increases the amount of cholesterol in bile, promoting stone formation. A bad diet (i.e., high in calories/carbohydrates and low in fiber) also increases the presence of gallstones.
  • Over 40 years old
  • Family history of gallstones
  • Mexican American
  • Native Americans have the highest rate of gallstones in the U.S., with almost 65% of women and 30% of men having them. They have genetic factors that increase the amount of cholesterol in their bile.
  • Rapid weight loss: Those of you on extremely low-calorie diets and having bariatric surgery increase your risks. As the body breaks down fat during fasting, the liver secretes increased levels of cholesterol into bile.

The symptoms of gallstones (a “gallbladder attack”) are pretty typically pain, nausea and vomiting, although many people with gallstones go without symptoms for a long time. Gallstones become especially problematic when they block the tubes (bile ducts) that transport the “digestive juices,” either through size or location. These attacks usually occur in the right upper portion of the abdomen (right below the chest and liver), which is where the gallbladder is located. Attacks tend to occur after a heavy meal, and they usually produces symptoms in the evening or late into the night.
See your physician ASAP if you develop any of the following symptoms:

  • Abdominal pain in the right upper portion of your abdomen that lasts more than four hours
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Fever with abdominal pain
  • Jaundice (a yellowish coloration of the skin and/or the whites of your eyes)
  • Changes in the color of your stools (lightening) or urine (assume a tea-like color)

After diagnosis, treatment typically involves pain management and prevention of excessive fluid losses and dehydration. Surgery to remove the gallbladder due to excessive stones or symptoms is one of the most common adult operations in the U.S. Patients normally do fine after gallbladder removal, as the digestive tract can redirect the flow of bile and other digestive enzymes. Those that cannot undergo surgery have different treatment options, involving dissolving gallstones.
In summary, if this topic was particularly unappetizing, remember that in most cases, the risk and rate of formation of gallstones can be reduced by a high fiber, lower calorie diet, measured weight loss and exercise. Use this information to your advantage as you pursue those New Year’s resolutions!
Feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant any questions you have on this topic.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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Straight, No Chaser: The Affordable Care Act and The Math of the US Healthcare System

Public Health, , , , , , , , , , , ,

healthcareranking_graphic-6eff0c2bd2a652909496b46ab1151c20ccf871f1-s6-c30

As we begin 2014 with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act and states’ implementation of Medicaid expansion (well in most of the country), it bears reviewing why this was necessary. Joining me in this conversation is Dr. Bill Vostinak, a prominent orthopedist.
Prior to approval of the Affordable Care Act, and in spite of the loud and incorrect proclamations that we have the “best healthcare system in the world,” the U.S. would have been easily challenged on its purported effectiveness of our healthcare system based on a simple review of the following objective data points. (Our apologies in advance to those who value opinions over facts—or math.)

healthcarespending_expenditure200-3135fdaf60226020bef119d47535ab3022860d7c-s6-c30

Let’s start by appreciating just how much the U.S. has been spending on our healthcare system and what type of access Americans have had to it.
The U.S., by a large margin, has the highest healthcare expenditures in the world. We spend approximately 17% ($1 in every $6) of our gross domestic product (GDP) on healthcare. The next closest nation spends 11%. (For clarification, that’s an incremental increase from the above chart of 2000.)
Despite our exorbitant national costs, only 84.9% of U.S. citizens have healthcare insurance. That translates to 50 million Americans who were uninsured prior to today. We rank 33rd in the world.
Have you ever heard the quote that “85% of Americans are happy with their healthcare?”  (Congratulations if that statement applies to you.) Do you realize that in a nation of over 320 million, that leaves 48 million Americans unhappy? Even if you got past the “48,000,000″ number, which is a massive number of citizens, consider the 85% number.
This is America. 85% is barely a B-grade in school. Is that the standard we seek? And … do the math. Notice the nearly exact match, likely not coincidental, between the number of individuals dissatisfied with their healthcare and the number of uninsured Americans. Basically, you’re satisfied if you have insurance, and if you don’t … not so much. Alternatively, 85% satisfaction may be based on the perception of insurance carrying the individual’s burden of medical costs.
Now let’s move to quality.
In an infamous ranking of healthcare systems around the world, the World Health Organization (WHO) ranked the U.S. system 38th based on routine outcomes-based metrics such as disability-adjusted life expectancy, speed of service, protection of privacy, quality of amenities, and fairness of financial contribution. WHO Ranking
Amid predictable criticism of the U.S. regarding the WHO study, Bloomberg performed its own analysis  and discovered that among advanced economies, the U.S. spends the most on healthcare (on a relative cost basis) with the worst outcome. Bloomberg ranked the U.S. 46th among all nations in efficiency given the average expenditure of $8,608 per year per individual. Bloomberg Report
In terms of infant mortality, about 11,300 newborns die each year within 24 hours of their birth in the U.S., with 50 percent more first-day deaths than all other industrialized countries combined. Infant Mortality
Save the Children’s 14th annual “State of the World’s Mothers” report ranked the U.S. 30th out of 168 countries in terms of best places to be a mother. Criteria included child mortality, maternal mortality, economic status of women, educational achievement and political representation of women. SaveTheChildren.org
An important distinguishing factor in comparing U.S. healthcare with other systems is tying it to employment rather than citizenship. Labor and other costs of American goods and services make it difficult for American corporation to compete in world markets. Add the large fixed cost of healthcare, and competing is nearly impossible.
It is reprehensible to suggest that the effort to cover 50 million uninsured Americans is some socialist plot or anything other than the humane thing to do. Let’s just stop with the selfishness and nonsense about there being no value to the efforts being made to improve access to/quality of healthcare (which reintroduces preventive and mental healthcare considerations) than we had previously. If you don’t believe us, just do the math. Even after a full implementation of the ACA, estimates suggest than some 20 million Americans will still be uninsured.
America is alone among the major industrial nations of the world in not having universal healthcare. That’s the collective decision of the country. Hopefully, these most recent steps through the ACA will represent significant steps toward efficiency, effectiveness and full inclusion. So, how do other countries deliver quality care for less? We’ll save that for another discussion.
Feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant if you have any questions on this topic.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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The Straight, No Chaser Comprehensive Safe Sex Guide

Infectious Disease, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Health Prevention, , , , , , , , , ,

safe-sex-no-regrets
This edition of Straight, No Chaser is a keepsake, whether for your own reference or as a conversation piece/teaching guide for others. I suspect that due to the volume and wealth of information contained within, you’ll refer to this post time and again (or so I hope). For additional information, refer to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention and/or the National Institutes of Health websites.
Talking_Partner_STD
STAYING STD-FREE
The best ways to stay STI free is to confirm it and then avoid it. If you want to reduce your risk of acquiring HIV and other STIs (sexually transmitted infections) through sexual contact, here are your options.

  • Abstain from sex.
  • Be monogamous.
  • Prove both you and your partner(s) are negative. Get yourself and your partner(s) tested, preferably prior to engaging in sexual activity and subsequently every three to six months, especially if you and/or your partner have more than one sexual partner.
  • If and once you establish that you’re STI-free, learn how to use condoms and do so every time you have sex.

A special note about protecting yourself from HIV
HIV can be spread by having unprotected sexual contact with an HIV-positive person. “Unprotected” means any vaginal, anal or oral sex without barrier protection, like a condom or dental dam. Some of the ways to reduce your risk of getting HIV through sexual contact include the following:

  • Don’t have sex. Abstinence is the best way to be certain that you won’t contract HIV. Although HIV is occasionally transmitted in other ways, vaginal, anal and oral sex are the most common ways that HIV is transmitted.
  • Be monogamous. To be clear, this means you are in a sexual relationship with only one person and both of you are having sex only with each other. For the purposes of contracting HIV, sex includes vaginal, oral or anal sex activity. Monogamy is optimally effective if you also confirm early and often that both you and your partner are not infected with HIV.
  • Get yourself and your sexual partner(s) tested: Knowing your own status is important for both your health and the health of your partner. Talking about your HIV status likely will be difficult and uncomfortable, but it’s important to start the discussion BEFORE you have sex.

Repeal DADT logo-2
FRANKLY, “DON’T ASK, DON’T TELL” IS JUST DUMB WHEN IT COMES TO STIs.
This is actually quite simple. No excuses. You need to ask your sexual partner(s) and any possible future partners the following questions.

  • Have you been tested for HIV, herpes, gonorrhea, syphilis and/or chlamydia?
  • When was the last time you were tested for HIV, herpes, gonorrhea, syphilis and/or chlamydia?
  • If you’ve been tested, what were the results of your tests?

STDlights
SAFER-SEX ACTIVITIES
These activities carry no risk of HIV transmission:

  • Non-sexual massage
  • Casual or dry kissing
  • Masturbation (without your partner’s body fluids)
  • Frottage—also known as “dry humping” or body-to-body rubbing

You can still contract other STIs, like herpes, HPV, or pubic lice (“crabs”) if you have bare skin-to-skin contact with your partner.
howToUseCondoms
CONDOM USE
Here are two questions for both males and females.

  • Have you ever learned how to safely and appropriately use condoms?
  • Do you use condoms consistently?

To maximally reduce your risk of getting HIV or other STIs, you must use a new condom with every act of vaginal, anal or oral sex. If you don’t use them for oral but do for vaginal and anal, you have still lowered your risk, just not as much as you could have. Also, you must use condoms correctly, as depicted in the above diagram, to appropriately reduce your risk. Learning correct usage also will keep condoms from breaking or slipping off, which reintroduces the risks.
I also want you to understand that all condoms are not created equal. Latex condoms are highly effective against HIV and other STIs. Do you or your partner have a latex allergy? If so, the next safest condom choice is a polyurethane or polyisoprene condom. Just tell your pharmacist at the drug store that you’re allergic to latex, and s/he’ll take it from there. On the other hand, lambskin condoms do NOT protect against HIV. The particle size of the virus allows it to maneuver and slip through lambskin.
Condoms alone have never been enough. Did you know that you should always use a water-based lubricant when you use a condom for either vaginal or anal sex?  I want to restate this: that’s water, not petroleum jelly. Water-based lubricants reduce friction and help keep the condom from breaking. Do NOT use an oil-based lubricant (such as petroleum jelly, hand lotion or cooking oil). Oil-based lubricants can damage condoms, making them less effective.
Both male condoms and female condoms will help protect you against HIV and other STIs. If you’ve learned to enjoy sex with a male condom, you can learn to enjoy it with a female condom or a dental dam. Additionally, there are many of you who have contracted STIs. If you wish to continue to enjoy a variety of sexual activities, learning to use the full range of barrier protection may be a better option for you and your partner than abstaining.
Condoms do not provide 100% protection against all STIs, but you are always safer using a condom than not. You can get certain STIs, like herpes or HPV, from contact with your partner’s bare skin, even if one of you is wearing a condom, but condoms lessen the risk. Take the time to explore and inspect each other if you’re confused or concerned about the possibility of your partner having an STI.
Spermicides only serve the purpose of reducing the risk of becoming pregnant. They are ineffective in preventing contraction of HIV and other STIs. They actually irritate rectal and vaginal walls, in effect increasing the chances of HIV infection should infected fluids come into contact with these areas.
sex-toys-300x285
ABOUT SEX TOYS
This is pretty straightforward. Using sex toys can be safe, but think of staying clean and “not sharing.”

  • It is important that you use soap and water to clean your toys after each use. If the instructions allow for a stronger disinfectant, you may do so.
  • As a rule, don’t share your toys. The nature of how toys are typically used likely increases the risk of vaginal or anal irritation, which increases the risk for HIV or other STI transmission.
  • If you “must” share your toy with your partner while still trying to be safe, use a condom on the toy before you use it, and change the condom before your partner uses it.

circumcision None Required
CIRCUMCISION
We’ve discussed circumcision at length in Straight, No Chaser. (Click here for a dedicated post on circumcision.) There has been ongoing interest and research over the past few years about circumcision and its effect on preventing HIV infection. The bottom line? In 2007, the World Health Organization reported that male circumcision reduced the transmission of HIV by 60% from women to men in three randomized, controlled studies in Uganda, Kenya, and South Africa.
There is much less available data for men who have sex with men and how circumcision might affect HIV transmission through anal sex. In addition, recent studies show that circumcision does NOT protect women from contracting HIV from male partners.
Let’s be careful in interpreting the results of these findings.

  • Circumcision is only additionally effective when earlier preventative efforts have not been taken. Advocating circumcision is not an appropriate substitute for any of the numerous safety measures and habits previously discussed to reduce one’s risk for HIV and other STIs.
  • Failure to have a circumcision does NOT increase one’s HIV and other STI risk in the presence of appropriate safe-sex activities.

So there you have it. Knowledge is power. We appreciate that this posting was not balanced by the human decisions and passions that come into place with sexual activity. We recommend that you adopt a posture of “safety first” to create that balance! Good luck, and feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant any questions you may have on this topic.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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Straight, No Chaser: When Good Drugs Do Bad—Drug Interactions

Toxicology/Drugs, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

three-feet-green-iguana-walking-on-the-beach-of-costa-rica

“Be sure to let your doctor know if you grow a third foot.”
Ok, well maybe that is about the only side effect you haven’t heard at the end of one of those commercials that seem to spend half of its time describing the side effects. If you pay attention to a pharmaceutical commercial, though, you’ll appreciate that even though medicines do a world of good, sometimes they cause significant problems. Those problems can become sped up or magnified by the effects of taking several drugs at a time. Alternatively, combinations of medications may make one or more of the drugs less effective. Regarding the medicines you’re taking, you should be clear if drug interactions can be minor and insignificant or serious and  life-threatening. Let’s review the various types of drug interactions.
drug-interactions
Drug/drug interactions: Two or more different drugs taken together may interact and cause an unwanted effect or change how the drug acts in the body. Here are some common examples:

  • An individual who already takes a sedative (e.g., sleeping pill) to help combat insomnia develops an exacerbation of their seasonal allergies. To treat the allergies, they decide to take an over-the-counter (OTC) antihistamine (like diphenhydramine, branded as Benadryl). Diphenhydramine also may cause drowsiness, so the combination of the medications may pose a danger to the person, especially if s/he is operating heavy machinery, such as driving a car.
  • Caffeine (which is a drug) in everyday foods—such as coffee and chocolate—also can interact with certain other drugs. In fact, caffeine is known to interact with over 80 different drugs, including about a dozen with which it produces serious effects. These include commonly used medications like aspirin, ciprofloxacin (branded as Cipro), guafenesin (the generic name for your favorite cough medicines) and diazepam (branded as Valium).
  • Nicotine (another drug) in tobacco products can interact with other medications, especially nicotine-replacement products. So if you’re taking medicine to help with your smoking cessation efforts, and you’re still smoking, you’re making the problem worse!

Drug/food interactions: If you’re a fan of grapefruit or chocolate, then it’s likely that your physician has cautioned you on drug/food interactions. These occur when certain foods or beverages interfere with the metabolism of certain medications. In the example of grapefruit, it’s known to interfere with metabolism of medications used to lower cholesterol levels (called statins). This can lead to adverse drug effects and actual liver damage. Other examples are to be found in the many foods (e.g., red wine, aged cheese) that affect the antidepressant class of drugs known as MAO inhibitors.
Drug/condition interactions: You see these all the time. Many different medication instructions warn you not to take them if you have certain medical conditions, as the medications may make the medical condition worse. Prominent examples include over-the-counter cold, cough and flu remedies that advise you not to take if you have heart disease or high blood pressure. Also if you have kidney or liver disease, any medicine that gets metabolized via one of those routes may have difficulty and delays in getting metabolized and excreted, leading to longer than desired activity of the given drug.
Drug/alcohol interactions: This is actually a subcategory of the drug/drug interaction because alcohol is a drug. It deserves special mention because drinking alcohol while taking certain medications can cause adverse effects related to the additive effects of alcohol and various drugs. Any medication involving the central nervous system or one’s mental state would likely be worsened by alcohol.
The best way to guard against these concerns is to discuss any new medications with your physician or pharmacist prior to taking them. Be smart about medicines you’re putting in your body and don’t be cavalier about them; the wrong combinations can turn a medicine into a toxin.
One final note: don’t be lulled into complacency by herbal preparations as some form of replacement. Herbals are still medicines and work via the same active ingredient as the pharmaceutical drug they’re replacing. As such, they are subject to cause the same types of problems listed above. Even more concerning is that as a class, comparatively less research has been done on herbals. Therefore, the full extent of side effects and drug interactions is not defined. Not knowing the full extend of an herbal medicine’s side effect profile isn’t the same as saying the herbal doesn’t have side effects, and you shouldn’t interpret things that way.
Feel free to contact your SMA expert consultant for any questions you may have on this topic.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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Straight, No Chaser: Straight Talk About Vasectomies

Genital/Urinary, Surgical Care, , , , , , , , , ,

vasectomy
A couple’s conversation about having a vasectomy can either be a tense one or it can be a display of trust and cohesion. The decision by a man to have a vasectomy can be a soul-searching “moment of truth.” In this Straight, No Chaser, let’s look at seven of the issues surrounding vasectomies. At the end there’s an illustration of the procedure. Yes, it involves a clip.
A vasectomy is a surgical procedure that involves cutting the tube (the vas deferens) that carries sperm from the scrotum to the testes. The vasectomy prevents sperm from leaving the testes so that the man can’t impregnate a woman.
Issue 1: Why would you want it?
The answer to this is relatively straightforward. You’d want a vasectomy if you don’t want any, or any more, children. This is a form of sterilization.
Issue 2: When would it be a good option?
If you’re in a relationship and both partners agree that you’ve either had all the children you want or don’t want the risk of having any children, a vasectomy would be a reasonable option. Other considerations may include if you can’t use other forms of birth control, if pregnancy would be medically unsafe, or if the risk of genetic disease or a birth defect in your offspring is greater than you’re willing to accept.
Issue 3: When wouldn’t it be a good option?
This gets a little dicey and relates to levels of instability, either in your relationship or other personal situations. A decision to have a vasectomy to please your partner or salvage a relationship may not be the best choice. If you’re young or unmarried, you are subject to many life changes that may prompt reevaluating whether you really want a child. For example, if you marry/remarry, children may become more important than they currently are. A vasectomy is a surgical procedure with risks. A decision to have it done as a convenience (e.g., because you are unreliable or don’t want to use other forms of birth control) is irresponsible.
Issue 4: How successful is the procedure?
Vasectomies are very successful and have a failure rate of approximately 1 in 2,000. Comparatively speaking, the analogous procedure in females (tubal ligation) has a failure rate of 1 in 200-300. Typical failure rates are due to having sex too soon after the procedure. It takes time for existing sperm to be cleared from both ends of the vas deferens; that existing sperm can still impregnate a woman. This is a major reason why men should wait a week after the surgery and until the sperm count has been documented to be zero in the seminal fluid. To a much lesser extent, rare spontaneous reconnection of the clipped portions of the vas deferens may produce failures.
Issue 5: What complications exist?
Vasectomies are generally very safe, and the complications associated with it are those seen with any surgery. These include pain, swelling and infection. Remember, as we just discussed, the circumstances under which post-vasectomy pregnancies can occur.
Issue 6: What happens should I choose to have it reversed?
It is important for men considering a vasectomy to read and fully understand the next sentence. If you have a vasectomy, you should not consider it reversible. That said, you can spend a lot of money for a microsurgical reversal procedure that is successful about 50% of the time if done within 10 years of the vasectomy and approximately 25% of the time if done after 10 years. Be advised that such reversals are associated with a higher level of birth defects.
Issue 7: About what other considerations should I be concerned?

  • Men seemingly are most often concerned about post-vasectomy ability to have an erection or orgasm. Vasectomies do not diminish a man’s ability to have either.
  • You should be concerned about the spread of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), which a vasectomy does not prevent. A false sense of confidence may exist after a vasectomy knowing that pregnancy is extremely unlikely, but that has nothing to do with STIs. In fact the greater inclination to have unprotected sex after a vasectomy may put men at greater risk for transmitting or receiving STIs.
  • Vasectomies do not increase the risk of testicular or prostate cancer.

Most men are satisfied with vasectomies, because most men who have vasectomies do so in the context of a stable and healthy relationship. Men who are most likely to seek reversals do so in the context of unexpected life events (e.g., new partner/marriage with a desire for kids). Sometimes their reconsideration is in response to a tragedy. If you are considering a vasectomy, please only do so after a solemn view of the rest of your life. If you believe it to be stable, you will likely be satisfied with the outcome.
The following clip (click the link) is courtesy of the National Institutes of Health and demonstrates the logistics of the various approaches to the procedure. Feel free to leave any comments or ask any questions you may have.
Vasectomy
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

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