Month: March 2016

In our previous post, we discussed the importance of maintaining a healthy weight.  While a healthy diet contributes more significantly to our weight loss efforts, regular physical activity is still a good habit to develop.  Benefits of exercise include lowering our blood pressure; decreasing our risk of diabetes;  decreasing our bad (while increasing our good) cholesterol; improving our mood; boosting our energy; helping to relieve stress; and improving our sleep.

There are 2 types of exercise, and it is important that we find ways to do both.

• Aerobic activities make us breathe harder and cause our heart rate to increase.  Examples include walking/running, swimming, cycling, dancing, etc. and are more commonly known as “cardio” exercises.  These exercises generally help us to burn calories.
• Muscle-strengthening activities make our muscles stronger. Muscle-strengthening activities include lifting weights, using resistance bands, and doing push-ups, sit-ups, planks, etc. These exercises help us build muscle tone.

These are some ways for us to integrate an exercise routine into our daily lives:

• Start slowly.  If it has been a while since you’ve worked out, start slow and work your way up.  Walking is usually a good place to begin.  As your endurance increases, you can make your workouts more challenging by increasing the duration, frequency, and/or intensity of your sessions.
• Choose activities that you enjoy.  You are much more likely to enjoy your workouts if they are fun.  Be adventurous and try new things.  There are so many new forms of exercise available.  Some that I’ve enjoyed include boot camp classes, high intensity interval training, Zumba, and even pole dancing.
• Find a partner.  Ask friends or family to work out with you.  Participate in group activities like obstacle courses, tennis, softball, kickball, flag football or basketball.  If you’re new to your city, see if there’s a local Black Girls Run group in your area.  You are more likely to stick with an exercise routine if you have someone holding you accountable or depending on you to be a part of the team.
• Find ways to burn extra calories throughout the day.  Park in the back of the parking lot.  Take the stairs instead of the elevator.  Take a walk during your lunch break.  Stand vs. sitting as often as you can.
• Mix it up. Try to avoid doing the same workout all the time.  Mix more difficult exercises with easier ones.  Alternate upper body and lower body exercises.  This helps to minimize both risk of injury and also “muscle memory”.
• Strive for 150 minutes of mild-to-moderate exercise per week. Whether that be 30 minutes 5 days a week or 60 minutes 2-3 days per week doesn’t really matter.  What’s important is that you find the time to get your exercise in each week.
• Reward yourself.  When you reach new milestones, do something to treat yourself.  If you drop a clothing size, buy a new dress to celebrate.  If you reach a weight loss goal, buy those shoes you’ve had your eyes on.

What types of exercises do you enjoy?  Have you come up with any creative ways to fit exercising into your busy schedule?  If so, please post your tips in the comments section!

When thinking about “healthy living” our weight is commonly one of the 1st things that comes to mind.  Beyond the effects our weight has on our appearance (and self-confidence in some instances), we know that obesity is linked to high rates of many diseases including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some cancers.

But how do you know what’s a healthy weight for you?  In the medical world, body mass index (BMI) is a common way to determine your ideal weight based on your sex and height.  BMI is often preferred over other calculations because it is strongly correlated with various metabolic conditions and diseases.  A BMI of 18.5-24.9 indicates a normal weight, 25.0-29.9 indicates being overweight, and a BMI>30.0 indicates obesity.  You can calculate your BMI here: http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/adult_bmi/english_bmi_calculator/bmi_calculator.html. 

After calculating your body mass index, you may have learned that you are considered overweight or obese.  So what next?  First and foremost, remember that your weight does not define you.  You are so much more than a number on a scale.  But if you’re inspired to lose some weight, you’ll want to focus on your eating habits to make the greatest impact.  We all know that when thinking about our weight, the 2 major components are our diet and exercise.  But what you may not know is that when trying to lose weight, our diet actually accounts for about 80% of our results (or lack thereof).  Regular exercise is still beneficial, but our efforts won’t account for much if we don’t get our eating habits under control first.

Make smart food choices

Your body needs to get enough vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. Making healthy food choices means getting plenty of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat dairy products.  For sources of protein, seafood, lean meats/poultry, eggs, beans, peas, seeds, and nuts are optimal choices.

• Cholesterol, sodium (salt), and added sugars
• Trans fats, which may be in foods like cakes, cookies, stick margarines, and fried foods
• Saturated fats, which come from animal products like cheese, fatty meats, whole milk, and butter
• Foods made with refined grains, like white bread, noodles, white rice, and flour tortillas

Read the Nutrition Facts label 
Understanding the nutrition facts label on food packages can help you make healthy choices.

• Look at the serving size and the number of servings per package.
• Pay attention to the number of calories per serving size.  Calories are the amount of energy food provides when eaten and digested.  Calories that we don’t burn through our daily activities are stored as fat.
• Check out the percent Daily Value column.  Look for lower percentages (5% or less) of fats, cholesterol, and sodium.
• Generally you do not want to exceed 1500mg of sodium per day.
• Look for foods that have 20% or more of fiber, calcium, potassium, and vitamin D.

Keep a food diary.
Knowing what you eat now will help you figure out what you want to change.  Write down:

• When you eat
• What and how much you eat
• Where you are and who you are with when you eat
• How you are feeling when you eat

If you desire to lose some weight, I encourage you to revisit our SMART goals post to help you develop realistic and attainable goals.  If anyone has any other tips they have found beneficial on their weight loss journeys, please share them in the comments section.

As we now know, there are certain precautions we should take when administering our medications to make sure we are taking them safely.  But there are EXTRA precautions we should take when administering medications to children.

• Avoid diagnosing your child yourself.  Discuss your child’s symptoms with a doctor or pharmacist to determine if prescription medications are needed (i.e. an antibiotic) or if over-the-counter meds will suffice.

• Generally, children under the age of six years old should not be given over- the-counter medications.  This is especially true for children under the age of two.  If an infant or toddler shows any signs of illness, it is recommended that you bring them to the doctor as soon as possible.

• Make sure to use children’s formulations of over-the-counter medications.  Usually they are available in liquid or dissolvable tablet formulations, which makes them easier for children to swallow.

• Read medication labels carefully, and be sure to follow the directions closely.  The dosing of many children’s medications is determined by the age or weight of the child, and children are more susceptible to overdose.  When reading the instructions be sure to pay attention to not only the dose, but also the dosing frequency.

• Use medicine cups, syringes, droppers or spoons when measuring liquids.  Kitchen utensils are not exact, and therefore, may cause you to accidently give too much or too little medication to your child(ren).

• Avoid giving aspirin to children under the age of 19.  Use of aspirin in children increases their risk of Reye’s syndrome, particularly when recovering from a viral infection (i.e. the common cold, the flu, or chicken pox).  Reye’s syndrome is a potentially fatal disease, and symptoms may include diarrhea, vomiting, rapid breathing, severe fatigue, seizures, and loss of consciousness.

• Keep medications out of reach of children and pets.  Easy access without supervision may lead to accidental overdose.   In 67% of emergency room visits for medicine poisoning, the medicine was left within reach of a child.

• Don’t coax your children into taking their medication by saying it’s candy.   As we’ve discussed before, this increases their chances of taking the medication without supervision, which may lead to possible overdose.

• If your child resists taking the medication because of the taste, you have several potential options.  You can consider mixing it with a small amount of applesauce or yogurt.  Many pharmacies also offer flavoring options for liquid medications.  Our cheeks don’t have taste buds, so if using a dropper or syringe, you can squirt the medication on the inside of the child’s cheeks a little bit at a time.  Please be sure to check with your pharmacist first, but in some cases, tablets can be crushed, or capsules can be opened and the contents poured into a soft food like applesauce.

• If your child spits up or vomits the medication, call your doctor or pharmacist to determine if the dose should be given again.

• Keep the National Poison Control Center number saved in your cellphone.  They can be reached anytime at 1-800-222-1222.

Do any moms have any additional tips/tricks they would like to share?  I’m also interested to know how old your children were when they were first able to swallow tablets/capsules, and how you knew they were ready.

Picture this…a friend says she wants to set you up on a blind date.  After rolling your eyes, you’ll likely have several questions for her.  What does he look like?How did they meet?  How long has she known him?  What kind of job does he have?  Does he have any kids?  Any baby momma drama or crazy exes?  Is HE crazy?  And if he’s so great, why doesn’t she want him?!

You ask those questions because you want to make sure you’ll be safe with him.  Or maybe you don’t want to invest time in someone you know won’t complement your lifestyle.  You want to know he will potentially help make your life better in some way.

If you ask lots of questions before you’ll agree to coffee or dinner with a blind date, don’t you think you should do the same before blindly taking a new medication?  Something that you will ingest, and will quite literally run through your bloodstream, thereby potentially affecting every organ it touches?

I encourage you to ask questions at the doctor’s office and/or pharmacy prior to starting any new medication.  The more you know prior to taking a medication, the better prepared you are to know what to expect from it.  Additionally, it is almost always easier to ask questions while you already have the provider’s attention, versus trying to call the office/pharmacy after you’ve left or having to make another trip back.

The following are some questions you may consider asking your provider the next time s/he recommends a new medication for you:

• How will the medicine help me?  How does the medication work in my body?

• How long does it take for the medication to work?  Will I feel it working?  Do I need to take it all, or should I stop when I feel better?  There are some diseases that don’t necessarily exhibit symptoms.  As a result, we don’t necessarily “feel” ourselves getting sick.  An example would be hypertension (high blood pressure).  Most of us don’t “feel” our blood pressure rising, unless it’s really extreme.  As a result, we don’t necessarily feel the effects of the medications used to treat that disease.  This does not mean the medication isn’t working.  On the other hand, if a medication is used to relieve symptoms of pain, nausea, or allergies, we know the medication is working when we no longer experience those symptoms.

• How long will I need to take it?  Some medications may only be prescribed for a few days/weeks, such as pain medicine right after an injury.  Other medications may require lifelong treatment, such as those used to manage chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, or high cholesterol.

• Can I get a refill?  How often/how many times can I get a refill?  Some controlled medications, also referred to as “C-II” medications, are never allowed refills as limited by DEA regulations.  Examples include medications that have a high risk of addiction such as strong pain medications (i.e. morphine) and amphetamines used for treatment of ADD/ADHD (i.e. Adderall).  For lesser controlled medications like benzodiazepines (i.e. Valium) and sleeping medications (i.e. Ambien), up to five refills are allowed on each new prescription.  However, early refills (usually less than 28 days from the previous fill date) are prohibited.

Your insurance company may not pay for early refills on any medication, regardless of whether or not they are controlled substances.  So if you need an early refill because you’re going out of town for an extended period, or the dog really did eat them, be prepared to either ask for an authorization or pay the “cash price”.  The cash price is the price an uninsured person would pay for that medication.

• How should I store my medication?  As we discussed in our last post, be sure to learn how your medication should be stored. The majority of medications can be stored at room temperature, but some require refrigeration, or storage in a dark area.  Other medications must be stored in the original manufacturer bottle.  Again, kitchens and bathrooms are generally not ideal due to heat and humidity.

• What side effects may I experience?  As we know, all medications have potential side effects.  Discuss the most common ones with your provider, and what you should do if you experience them.

• What can be done if I get side effects?  Discuss management of side effects with your provider.  There are some easy fixes for many side effects.  Stomach upset can usually be alleviated by eating a small meal prior to taking the medication.  If a medication is making you sleepy, it is likely best to take it at night.

When possible, try to avoid adding yet another medication to manage a side effect of a previous one.  For example, if a pain medication irritates your stomach, try not to add yet another medication to treat your GI upset.  Each new medication carries new potential side effects and drug interactions, creating a snowball effect.  Alternatively, see if eating a small snack just before or with the medication is helpful.

• Will I need labs or other tests to make sure I am receiving the correct dose?  Some medications like Dilantin, Depakote, and lithium require periodic blood tests to make sure you are receiving the appropriate dose.  The lab will determine the concentration of the medication in your blood to make sure it is within “therapeutic range.”  This means you have enough in your system to work effectively, but not so much that we worry about toxicity.  If the doctor learns that your medication level is too high or too low, s/he should adjust your level accordingly.

• What happens if the medication doesn’t work for me?  Ask how long it may take for your medication to start working, and how long before you feel the full effect.  Some medications, like mental health medications, can take up to 12 weeks to reach their full effect.  But if that window of time has passed, and you still aren’t feeling better, you should request a follow-up appointment with your provider to discuss alternative medications or therapies.

• Are there foods, drinks (including alcohol), other medications, or activities to avoid while I’m taking this medicine?  Grapefruit interacts with most statins, a common class of cholesterol medication.  Dairy may interact with certain antibiotics.  Some other meds may require that you avoid direct sunlight to minimize skin irritation (chemotherapy medications for example).  You will want to be aware of these limitations to be sure they are practical for you.  Someone who works outside in construction or landscape, for example, should not agree to take a medication that forces them to limit their time in the sun.

• Should I take this medication with food, or on an empty stomach?  Food, or lack thereof, can alter the absorption of certain medications in our body.  Again, discuss this with your doctor or pharmacist to make sure you are administering your medication properly.

• Does this new prescription mean I should stop taking any other medications?  Be sure to clarify if this new medication is an addition to the medications you are already taking, or a substitution for one of your other meds.  If it is a substitution, you should stop using the 1st medication before starting the 2nd (unless otherwise instructed).

• What happens if I miss a dose?  Should I take the dose when I remember it, or should I wait until the next dose is due?  For many medications, you will want to take your medication as soon as you remember it.  The exemption would be unless you’re within a few hours of taking your next dose.  Oral contraceptives (birth control pills) are one major exception here.  Follow the instructions that come with the medication carefully, but in most cases, if you miss a pill one day, you should take two pills the next day.

In summary, the more you know regarding any new medications, the better prepared you are to tackle any situation that may arise from taking that medication.  What are you thoughts?  Are there any questions you like to ask your doctor or pharmacist that I didn’t think of?