General health news

...now browsing by category

 

Low-Income Equals High-Energy Diets Equals Low-Nutritional Value

Monday, April 8th, 2013

When you’re in an income rate, it seems like you just can’t win sometimes.  You have to live somewhere cheap, which usually means a bad neighborhood.  You have to cut corners, which usually means paying bills late and accruing late fees.  Also, you have to make the most of your grocery list, which means cheap food that isn’t necessarily good for you.  Unfortunately, health becomes a low priority when people are struggling to make ends meet, and a balanced diet is almost always the first thing that gets cut.

A study by the University of California and the Western Human Nutrition Research Center set out to determine if low-cost diets were affecting the quality of nutrition in low-income households.  It’s not too surprising that their results showed a positive correlation.  Specifically, they found that low-income women who bought low-cost foods had a diet that was energy dense but low on nutrition.  In other words, they bought a lot of carbs, quick prepackaged meals, and not too many fresh vegetables or meats.  The cost was inversely proportional to energy, meaning the more they spent, the lower energy and more nutritional their foods.  Consequently, those trying to save money and not spend much had diets severely lacking in the protein, fats, vitamins, and minerals they needed.

Because of the study, the research center is calling on the US Department of Agriculture to create policies that would make it easier for low-income families to buy nutritious foods.  In the meantime, these families are going to have to get creative with the way they get their next meal.  I’m a big supporter of community and backyard gardens, though I know not everyone has the time to maintain one.  Also, there are a plethora of coupons online these days, so put the kids to work planting veggies and hunting down discounts, and you’ll be a lot healthier in the long run.


– Yvonne S. Thornton, M. D., M. P. H.

Posted in General health news | No Responses »
Tags: , ,

A Simple Survey Could Determine Your Risk for Ovarian Cancer

Monday, October 8th, 2012

As women, we have to go through countless medical tests throughout our lives. Mammograms, pregnancy tests, HIV tests, and bone-mineral density tests are all par for the course when you become an adult. In fact, few women haven’t gotten all of these tests and more. Don’t get me wrong- as a physician, I genuinely appreciate our ability to screen for life-threatening conditions, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. However, as a woman, I understand the patient side of it as well.  Wouldn’t it be easier if medical screening tests were simpler? According to a new study, simplicity might just be attainable.

Researchers have developed a new screening tool for ovarian cancer that can be completed in minutes by a simple survey. That’s right, no heavy machinery, foul-tasting chemicals, or drafty hospital gowns required, just a simple pen and paper.  The study questionnaire that was tested was based on a symptom-screening index developed in 2006 by M. Robyn Andersen, Ph.D and co-author Barbara Goff, M.D., professor and director of Gynecologic Oncology at the University of Washington School of Medicine.   The survey asks women three questions about their current symptoms that have been most commonly associated with women that screened positive for ovarian cancer. A few of the symptoms might be passed off as menopause or menstruation symptoms, so the key in early diagnoses is recognizing the symptoms as they are happening. Some of these symptoms include abdominal or pelvic pain, a sensation of feeling full too quickly, and abdominal bloating. You have to admit, you’d never attribute any of these symptoms to cancer.

Traditionally, ovarian cancer is thought to have no early warning signs, such as bleeding or an abnormal Pap smear, as one sees in uterine cancer or cervical cancer, respectively.  In comparison to breast cancer, which is the most frequent cancer in women, with about 212,000 new cases a year, ovarian cancer has only 25,000 new cases a year. But, because there are no early warning signs or tests to detect ovarian cancer, and the cancer has progressed to a more advanced stage prior to diagnosis, the death rate is higher—about 62 percent in ovarian cancer, as opposed to 18 percent in breast cancer and 32 percent in cervical cancer.  With that said, this new study takes into consideration symptoms, which are commonly dismissed by many patients and by combining them together, have proven to be significant factor in trying to diagnose ovarian cancer at an earlier stage.

Of course, these symptoms are minor and can easily be associated with other issues. However, the results are proving the survey effective so far. Of 60 women who submitted the survey with positive indication, one was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Of the 1,140 women who did not claim to have the symptoms, none tested positive for ovarian cancer over the course of the following year.

 

The survey will also serve as a research tool for doctors. Women who take the short survey and indicate that they have all of the symptoms will also be asked to write any additional symptoms. If those women screen positive for ovarian cancer, those additional symptoms will be analyzed, and common additional symptoms might be added to the survey to further screen patients.

Early detection is extremely important in treating ovarian cancer.  If you have these symptoms, talk to your physician about ovarian cancer to rule out the possibility that you might have it. If he or she thinks you should get tested, do so, as it could save your life.

 – Yvonne S. Thornton, M. D., M. P. H.

Posted in General health news, Women's health issues | 1 Response »
Tags: , ,

Legitimate Rape or Legitimate Ignorance?

Thursday, September 6th, 2012

In February, there was a hearing chaired by Daryl Issa for the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Hearing on the Contraceptive Coverage Rule.  Unfortunately, the panel was entirely male.  Talk about oversight!  This prompted many female members of congress to walk out of the hearing in protest, much to the confusion of the chair.  When asked about the walkout, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand said, “If our republican colleagues want to continue to take this issue head on, we will stand here as long as necessary.”  In August, women received a fresh reminder of the Republican male’s perspective on rape when Representative Tod Akin proclaimed, “If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.”

Women around the world are wondering what constitutes the difference between rape and legitimate rape.  John C. Wilke, who is not an obstetrician, but a general practitioner of almost 90 years old, and who is the former President of the National Right to Life Committee is the only doctor who supports Akin’s remarks regarding whether or not the reproductive system of a woman shuts down during rape.  With such credentials, it goes without saying that he may have a bias and outdated view of rape and the female body, and experts disagree with his supposedly medical explanation for his belief.  In fact, one in 15 raped women become pregnant, no matter what definition of rape you choose.  Are Akin and Wilke suggesting that those rapes were not legitimate?  I doubt it seemed that way to the women when it was happening.

The most disconcerting part of all of this is that representative Akin has the power to influence laws in our country.  In this day and age, we hope that men have at least the decency and empathy to listen to the voices of women in our country, and, heaven forbid, include us in panels and decision-making regarding our own reproductive rights.  Hopefully, there are a lot of women and understanding men out there willing to make their vote count in order to make a positive change for all of us.  I wonder, is it pure prejudice keeping men like Akin in the dark when it comes to women’s health issues and reproductive rights, or is it legitimate ignorance?

 

– Yvonne S. Thornton, M. D., M. P. H.

Posted in Childbirth & delivery, Contraception (birth control), Fertility & Infertility, General health news, Health care policy, Pregnancy, Women's health news | No Responses »
Tags: , , ,

Is Your Blood Type Bad for Your Heart?

Monday, August 20th, 2012

You probably already lament any risks for illness you inherited from your family’s gene pool, but unfortunately, there is now yet another concern to consider.  Your blood type may determine your risk for heart disease, which means yet another aspect of your life that you can’t control but that impacts your health.

Researchers at Harvard Medical School and the Harvard School of Public Health combined and analyzed information from two large and long-term studies.  These studies involved more than 90,000 people and at least two decades.  After taking into account age, gender, as well as other important factors, they found that people with Type O blood seemed to be at much less of a risk for heart disease than those with other blood types.  To be exact, their findings showed that people with Type B blood are 11% more likely to develop heart disease than those with Type O.  Type As had a 5% higher risk, and Type ABs were at the highest risk, being 23% more likely to suffer from a heart disease.  Their results are yet to be confirmed or explained, but some theories suggest it could have to do with varying levels of LDL and inflammation linked to certain blood types.

Unfortunately, we cannot change our blood type, so if you are in the higher risk categories, this study may cause some concern.  However, these results do not prove that you will definitely have heart disease if you have Type AB blood.  It only shows that you are more likely to suffer from it.  You can still control other factors such as your weight, exercise, and nutrition, which can do a lot towards preventing heart issues. Forewarned is forearmed.  So, if your blood type is one that places you at higher risk for heart disease, you will simply need to work harder to keep heart disease at bay.

 

– Yvonne S. Thornton, M. D., M. P. H.

 

Posted in General health news, Women's health issues | No Responses »
Tags: ,

Estrogen and Anxiety

Thursday, August 16th, 2012

While some men may believe that fear and anxiety in women comes down to all that estrogen, it’s actually quite the opposite.  It is low estrogen that is more likely to make an anxious woman according new research from Harvard.

During your menstrual cycle, your estrogen levels tend to ebb and flow (no pun intended), and your mood and mental state are then prone to these fluctuations.  Extremely high estrogen levels seem to protect women from emotional disturbance, and low levels make them more vulnerable to trauma.  This knowledge isn’t being limited to PMS and birth control though, they are also considering a much more widespread use.  Researchers believe that they can create a pill that will influence estrogen levels, much like birth control does, but to prevent post-traumatic stress disorder.  Their research shows that women who experienced traumatic events while their estrogen was low suffered emotional trauma for a much longer period.  Before heading into perilous situations or even right after, an estrogen pill could protect their mental states.  Even in men this tactic could be used.  Men’s testosterone is converted to estrogen in the brain, so even though they are less likely to suffer from depression and anxiety disorders as a whole, they still use estrogen to remain stable.

Professor of Psychology Larry Carhill says that, “The single biggest bias in neuroscience research is the belief that sex differences are insignificant or small,” but the truth is there are many differences and learning them could be the key to treating clinical disorders in the future.  As with any good treatment plan, it is best to treat the individual as a whole person, and not just as a statistic.  That means understanding what makes their systems work, even when it comes to gender differences, so we can restore both men and women to good health.

 

– Yvonne S. Thornton, M. D., M. P. H.

 

Posted in General health news, Women's health issues | No Responses »
Tags: , , ,

Scalp-Cooling Cap Freezes Chemo Hair Loss

Thursday, August 9th, 2012

Breast cancer, or any kind of cancer for that matter, is scary and stressful, and it doesn’t help that the treatment can cause hair loss.  Then, not only must you brave the disease, but also the beacon that your bald head becomes, proclaiming to everyone that you have cancer.  Recent experiments though show that a hat could stop or slow hair loss due to chemotherapy.

When you go through chemotherapy, its intent is to attack the rapidly dividing cancer cells.  Unfortunately, the drugs can’t always tell which rapidly-dividing cells are harmless.  Because your hair follicles divide quickly too, they often get attacked by the drugs.  These effects vary depending on the type of chemotherapy drugs you’re using, the regimen you’re on, and of course, the rate at which your hair follicle cells divide.  That’s why some people do not experience hair loss, while others experience it temporarily or even permanently.  Researchers at Laval University in Quebec sought a way to prevent or slow hair loss during chemotherapy.  They found, that by using a scalp-cooling cap, they could constrict the blood vessels around the follicles, preventing some of the chemotherapy drugs from giving their full dose to those areas.  When tested on a small, preliminary group, they found that the cap did show promise.  The cap was used for 20 minutes before the treatment and for an hour or more after the treatment.  Overall, their results showed 69% of women who tried it saw hair loss at the “not at all,” “a little,” or “moderate” levels.

If further trials test the cap and find it successful, it may be another option to add to your chemo treatment down the road.  That could mean a lot longer stays at the clinic, but it could also make for a slightly less stressful road to recovery in the end.  A scalp-cooling cap that freezes chemo hair loss in its tracks could be one more thing breast cancer survivors have to be thankful for.

 

– Yvonne S. Thornton, M. D., M. P. H.

Posted in General health news, Women's health news | 2 Responses »
Tags: , , ,

It’s Called an Annual for a Reason

Thursday, August 2nd, 2012

It’s not news to OB/GYNs that women don’t exactly look forward to their annual exam.  We understand that it may feel more like a chore than a checkup when you’ve been told you have to do it every year.  Some experts though, have new recommendations, saying most women don’t need yearly cervical cancer screenings.  Before you start celebrating though, you may want to consider the many long-term benefits annuals have on your health.  As I have mentioned many, many times on this blog, ”A PAP SMEAR IS NOT A PELVIC EXAM.”

The new recommendations by the U. S. Preventive Services Task Force and the American Cancer Society were released March 15, 2012.   They recommend:

  • Women between ages 21 and 65 without risk factors (such as DES exposure or immunodeficiency) should undergo cytologic screening (a Pap smear) every 3 years.
  • Those aged 30 to 65 wishing to extend the screening interval could undergo screening with both cytologic exam and human papillomavirus (HPV) testing every 5 years.
  • Women younger than 21 should not be screened.
  • Women older than 65 who have been adequately screened previously should not be screened.

 The above recommendations may cause women to shirk going to their OB/GYNs for that dreaded pelvic examination because they are not having an annual Pap smear.

However, as we age, there’s no doubt our bodies change.  For the most part, those changes are normal.  Sometimes though, medical issues can develop.  Every time you go to an annual exam, you are getting checked to make sure everything is in healthy working order.  If you catch issues before they get too big, treatment and even cures can be more effective.  With the rise in so many types of cancer, you’ll want a professional checking to make sure there are no signs of tumors.  That is why pelvic exams, mammograms and cervical screenings are so important.  If you were to wait two or three years, it may be too late.  My health book, “Inside Information for Women” will explain all the aspects of a pelvic exam and an annual gynecologic examination.

You also have the chance during your visit with an OB/GYN to discuss your health and how it’s affecting your life, or how your life is affecting your health as the case may be, and that can bring up symptoms that you didn’t even realize were connected.  It can also provide you with valuable advice that will help you take care of your body.  With all the change people go through in a single year, it’s nice to know that someone with knowledge and compassion is there to make sure you remain in good health for many years to come.

The fact is women are such multi-taskers trained to take care of everyone that we forget to take care of ourselves. The point is, if we don’t take care of ourselves, we won’t be there to take care of others. Don’t have time for your annual checkup? It’s time that you find the time.

 

– Yvonne S. Thornton, M. D., M. P. H.

Posted in Fertility & Infertility, General health news, Menstruation, Women's health issues, Women's health news | No Responses »
Tags: , ,

Yet Another Risky Pill for Weight Loss

Monday, July 23rd, 2012

Are you ready for a miraculous weight loss pill?  Aren’t we all?  As much as we’d all love to believe that they finally came up with a pill that will melt away the pounds, most of us are also worrying about the side effects, and rightly so.  The FDA just approved yet another wonder drug, but it will still be up to the public to find out just how safe it is.

On Tuesday, the US Food and Drug Administration allowed another weight loss pill to be put on the market.  It’s called Qsymia, and though it does have risky side effects, they believe the benefits outweigh the dangers.  Dr. Janet Woodcock, Director of FDA’s research department said that “Obesity threatens the overall wellbeing of patients and is a major public health concern.”  Because obesity impacts two-thirds of Americans, it does indeed seem like a major issue, but taking care of that problem with a pill is quite another matter.  Some past weight loss drugs approved by the FDA were found to have very dangerous side effects that cost people their lives.  You might remember the rise and fall of the popular diet pill Fen-Phen for example.  Even after years of testing in the lab, some drugs can prove to have side effects that either weren’t observed in the controlled tests or were ignored as minor drawbacks.

Qysymia is a combination for stimulants and anti-seizure drugs and is one of the first new diet pills to become FDA approved in 13 years.  Its side effects and risks include a fast heart rate, metabolic acidosis, birth defects, and heart damage.  It is only approved for those considered obese, which is a BMI of 30 or more, and those with a BMI of 27 or more and who have a weight-related medical condition.  The two experts on the FDA panel who voted against the approval of Qsymia worry that it will have “severe, even fatal, consequences.”  Dr. Woodcock, however, believes that if it’s used properly and in combination with a healthy diet and regular exercise, it could be just the thing we need to halt the obesity epidemic.

I don’t know about other physicians, but I plan to stick to the less-miraculous prescription for a health weight- eating right and staying active.  There just can’t be a pill for everything!

 

– Yvonne S. Thornton, M. D., M. P. H.

 

 

Posted in General health news, Women's health news | No Responses »
Tags: , , ,

Lung Cancer in Women is on the Rise in the South

Monday, July 9th, 2012

Have you seen an anti-smoking ad recently?  Odds are, you probably have not, and if you have seen them, there most likely haven’t been many.  About twenty years ago, anti-smoking campaigns were extremely prevalent due to the high numbers of lung cancer deaths related to the habit.  As a result, both smoking and lung cancer have declined significantly.  At least, they’ve declined in most places around the US.  Unfortunately, statistics are now showing that in the south and some parts of the Midwest, lung cancer among women is once again on the rise.

According to the Journal of Clinical Oncology, the risk of dying from lung cancer was highest in women born in the 1930s, but that rate dropped in the following decades.  Among the baby boomer generation, that rate has dropped further or remained low, except for in southern and Midwestern states.  For example, in Alabama, lung cancer deaths increased from 6.9% to 10.7% as opposed to rates in California which fell from 6.1% to 2.8%.  These statistics came about after a 23 state comparison meant to find out the current rates of lung cancer in connection to smoking.  There is much speculation as to the causes of these differences which appear to be regional issues.  Some experts believe it is due to a letting up of anti-smoking campaigns and strategies like cigarette taxation.  Others though, feel that a study on the availability and cost of health care for lung cancer treatment in those areas is needed to determine if that may be the actual cause.

No matter the reason for these regional differences, there is obviously still a significant amount of the population who are smokers and who ignore the warnings about the harmful effects of such a habit.  It’s likely to take both an improvement in the medical care available in those areas as well as an anti-smoking campaign as aggressive as California’s to make any kind of difference.  In the meantime, it’s up to parents like us to continue to warn our children to stay away from tobacco products.

 

– Yvonne S. Thornton, M. D., M. P. H.

 

 

Posted in General health news, Women's health issues, Women's health news | No Responses »
Tags: , ,

Stressing Out Trumps Family Nutrition

Thursday, July 5th, 2012

Let’s face it.  Whether you’ve been at work all day dealing with stress, or are like many who are stressed because of their daily unsuccessful job hunts, the last thing you want to do is come home and cook a big, balanced meal for your family.  Researchers have found that this is becoming more of a problem as more Americans are either out of work or feeling increased pressure from their jobs.  This means that the stress of parents is now affecting the nutrition and health of their children.

According to a study published in the Journal of Science and Medicine, parents with high stress levels were more likely to serve fast food, unbalanced meals, and less fruits and vegetables each day.  Although their study included people who were unemployed and had more time to cook for their families, stress still played a bigger role.  Whether parents were stressed out because of work or lack of it, their teens received less nutritional meals.  The study compared the meals of 3700 parents with teens in the Midwest, about half of which, were unemployed.  Professor of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University in Boston, Dr. Alice Lichtenstein, says that “work stress can affect many areas of daily life, including meal times and quality.”  In most families, it was the mother who did most of the meal prep, despite employment.   Lichtenstein suggests helping each other to lighten the load by sharing kitchen and cooking duties with any able family member.  Perhaps this would help stressed out parents increase the amount of balanced family meals they provide each week from the average of 4 to 7.

When you are raising a family, there is certainly a lot of stress to deal with, and nobody should have to bare that burden alone.  Whether that means being open and honest about the family’s financial situation and day-to-day stresses or simply sharing chores around the home, the purpose of family is to share life, not to be the burden of it.  So if you know your partner could use some support, be sure to give it freely, and if you are the one taking on the majority of the work and stress load, don’t be afraid to ask for help.  Both your and your family’s nutrition and overall health could depend on it.

 

– Yvonne S. Thornton, M. D., M. P. H.

 

 

Posted in General health news, Women's health issues | No Responses »
Tags: , ,

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »