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Health watch: Superbug infections putting more at risk

by Kimberly Johnson
written by Kimberly Johnson

SuperbugHealth watch: Superbug infections putting more at risk
Superbugs are putting your health at risk. If you’ve ever felt sick or battled a bug, you may have asked your doctor for an antibiotic. Ever since the advent of these wonder drugs, these medications have one common goal: fight bacteria in the body to help maintain a healthy immune system. As new medical breakthroughs emerge, the role of antibiotics has also evolved and helped patients dealing with anything from ear infections to serious lung infections like pneumonia. Health watch: Superbug infections putting more at risk
However, antibiotics are not foolproof. Bacteria, when exposed to antibiotic drugs, can learn how to resist them. These resistant bacteria are known as superbugs, which are harder for antibiotics to kill.
Recently, superbugs have become a greater and far more serious concern. In March 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a warning about a new class of superbugs called Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE), which can cause dangerous infections that can get into the bloodstream – and kill up to 50 percent of people when they do.
So what can you do about it?
“The best way to keep yourself healthy is to be proactive,” says Steve Kennedy, director of infusion pharmacy services at Walgreens Infusion Services. “While there’s no foolproof way to ensure you don’t get a superbug infection, there are steps you can take to reduce your risk.”
To reduce your risk for CRE and other superbug infections, the CDC suggests taking the following actions:
* Be diligent about hand washing. Keeping your hands clean reduces the transfer of bacteria, so this is an easy first step to take to help prevent infections. If you change wound dressings or bandages or handle medical devices, it’s extra important to keep your hands clean.
* Take prescriptions as directed. If your doctor has prescribed oral antibiotics, follow the doctor’s instructions on how long to take them. These instructions typically include that you should not skip doses or stop the course of treatment early. In addition, the CDC recommends that if you have leftover pills after you’ve completed your course of antibiotics, you should not save them or share them with anyone else. Instead, dispose of them in a safe and effective manner.
* Be a critical consumer. The CDC urges patients not to take antibiotics unless their doctors think they really need them. One of the best ways to keep antibiotics working – and to keep superbugs from getting worse – is to ensure they’re used only when needed. Remember that antibiotics do not work when you have a virus (like a cold or the flu), and sometimes infections caused by bacteria can clear up on their own. Patients should discuss with their doctors whether they really need prescriptions and avoid taking antibiotics if they are not necessary.
* When possible, keep your hospital stay as short as possible or stay out of the hospital. Hospitals are life-saving institutions, but they also concentrate a lot of sick people in one place. This can increase your risk of catching a superbug. In many cases, therapy provided in the hospital can be given in a different and oftentimes more convenient setting, like a non-hospital medical center or even in your home. Patients should ask their doctors if their hospital-based therapy can be provided somewhere else. For example, if you are on clinical nutrition support (receiving food through a feeding tube or an IV), your therapy could be provided at home through a home health services provider. Of course, patients should follow their doctors’ orders and seek treatment at whichever facility their doctors suggest. However, if doctors believe home health care is the best option, Walgreens Infusion Services, which offers home infusion in all 50 states, may be able to provide the necessary services to patients.
* Be proactive with your health care providers. No matter where you’re receiving medical care, make sure all those who help care for you (from doctors to nurses to family members) wash their hands before they touch you. Soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub will do the trick.

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Why Compare Part D Plans Annually?
Health Tips

Five Tips to Selecting a Medicare Part D Plan

by Kimberly Johnson
written by Kimberly Johnson

Five Tips to Selecting a Medicare Part D Plan
Medicare_Selecting_PlanEnrolling in Medicare Part D is overwhelming. You may be asking yourself, which plan best fits my needs? Are my prescriptions covered? Do I have to use a certain pharmacy? How much should I pay for my premium? Medicare, Medicare Part D, Medicare premium, Part D formulary.
Considering the high cost of prescription medications, Medicare beneficiaries cannot afford to make mistakes. But the wide variety of plans to choose from can make finding the right plan feel like looking for a needle in a haystack.
However, a little time, some research, and the following tips can help you in your selection process.

  • Tip One – Evaluate More Than Just Premium Price: At first, you may want to pick a plan based on the premium cost, but a low price might mean higher out-of-pocket costs, fewer drugs available or more restrictions. When looking at a plan, compare price based on an estimate of your total annual costs in each plan, including the premium, deductibles, copayments and coverage gap expenses.
  • Tip Two – Look at the Formulary: Not all plans use the same formulary – the list of drugs covered by the plan – so your top priority should be to find a plan that covers the medications, or clinically appropriate alternatives, you currently take.
  • Tip Three – Determine Your Pharmacy Preference: Look for a plan that offers choice when it comes to the pharmacy you use. Plans that offer a “preferred pharmacy network” provide a broad selection of pharmacies that offer deeper discounts than your standard network pharmacies.
  • Tip Four – Find the Right Pharmacist: Consider a plan that offers round-the-clock access to pharmacists. Some plans offer specialist pharmacists that have tailored expertise in medications that treat popular chronic conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure.
  • Tip Five – Consider Your Future Health: Research suggests that members of the baby boomer generation are faced with several chronic conditions. In fact, according to Express Scripts, more than half of people aged 60-67 have high blood pressure or high cholesterol. An unexpected medical diagnosis could result in the need for additional chronic medications and costs. Picking a plan that can protect you from unanticipated medication needs can give you peace of mind and protect your retirement budget

Although selecting a Medicare plan may seem daunting, being aware of what to look for can help make the decision easier. To stay up-to-date with the latest Medicare news, sign up for a free newsletter about retirement planning and Medicare at http://www.roadmapformedicare.com/sign-up/.

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Health Tips

3 Ways to Make Living with Arthritis Easier

by Jeff Dailey
written by Jeff Dailey

3 Ways to Make Living with Arthritis Easier
shutterstock_228022354When all is said and done, living with arthritis isn’t easy. It’s estimated that more than 25 million adults suffer from osteoarthritis, making accomplishing even the simplest daily activities and tasks around the home exhausting. If arthritis is making your day to day life a struggle, there are ways to fight back. 3 Ways to Make Living with Arthritis Easier

Around the Home

Start by making some practical changes around your home.

  • Swap out traditional toggle wall switches with rocker-panel switches. They require far less fine motor control to be turned on and off.
  • For lamps, install a converter that fits into the bulb socket and bypasses the on-off switch, making the lamp touch-sensitive.
  • Replace round doorknobs with lever handles that are easy to to push down with your hand, arm, or elbow.
  • Raise the level of electrical appliances in the kitchen to a comfortable height to help relieve undue pressure on your hips and knees.
  • Use furniture leg extenders to raise couches and chairs to a more comfortable level.
  • Install faucet turners to make turning on faucets in the sink much easier.
  • Since arthritis contributes to falls, place grab bars in the shower, tub, and around the toilet.
  • Put in and elevated toilet seats to lessen the strain created by getting on and off traditional low toilet seats.

Self-Help Devices

Investing in self-help devices can take stress off your joints and make tasks easier and more efficient — especially when you’re tired or your joints are particularly painful. Here are some common devices that make living with arthritis more accessible:

  • Reach extender/gripper
  • Easy grip utensils
  • Automatic jar opener
  • Sock aids
  • Long handled shoe horns
  • Zipper pulls
  • Foam bath mitts
  • Long handled bath brushes
  • Key grips and turners
  • Large button remotes
  • Book, embroidery hoop, and playing card holders

Exercise

When arthritis is painful, you probably won’t feel like exercising. However, being active can reduce and prevent arthritis pain. Regular exercise can also improve your range of movement and joint mobility, increase muscle strength, and reduce stiffness.
As long as you’re doing the right type and level of exercise for your condition, your arthritis won’t get any worse. If you add a healthy, balanced diet to your exercise regimen, you can lose weight and place less strain on your joints. An occupational therapist can help you develop an exercise program that’s right for you.
Liz Greene hails from the beautiful city of trees, Boise, Idaho. She’s a lover of all things geek and is happiest when cuddling with her dogs and catching up on the latest Marvel movies. You can follow her on Twitter @LizVGreene

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Health Tips

Are You Ready to Accept Wrinkles?

by Kimberly Johnson
written by Kimberly Johnson

shutterstock_150058412Are you ready to Accept Wrinkles? A wrinkled old man was not one of the things I wanted to be when I grew up. If pushed, I can deal with age spots, skin tags and angiomas. But wrinkles? Maybe a few here or there. But I don’t want to shrivel. I don’t want my skin to dry up and wither.
As skin ages it loses elasticity, becomes drier, and more lined and wrinkled. Do you remember looking in the mirror for the first time when you saw wrinkles on your face? The mirror slapped me silly. How about the first time you saw wrinkles on your spouse? You didn’t dare say anything, did you?
If you are a man, be careful not to say anything about unusual growths or changes in skin texture on your wife’s face or for that matter, any part of her body. You must maintain this heightened sensitivity until age 80 or when your wife has frequent conversations with the coffeemaker.
Some people wrinkle more than others when they age. People in the Rocky Mountain States like Colorado wrinkle more than people in other parts of the nation due to climate. The dry weather in Colorado gives people more wrinkles than if they lived in a more humid state. The low humidity and high ultra-violet levels in the Rocky Mountain state because of high altitude inflicts vengeance on your skin.
People with lighter skin have a propensity to wrinkle more than people with darker skin. The color of your skin is highly correlated to wrinkling. This is the result of the varying degrees of pigment that we produce. The darker your skin, the larger the pockets in skin cells known as melanosomes, and these contain the sticky pigment melanin. In darker skin, the melanin is packed so tightly that it absorbs and scatters more light, giving you more protection from the sun’s ultraviolet rays.
When a man wrinkles he’s distinguished; when a woman wrinkles, she’s aging. That’s society at its worst. Wrinkled men look experienced and wise; wrinkled women look like they’ve been dragged through a thorny rose bush backwards. Some of us need an attitude adjustment.
I’ve read that foods such as vegetable oil, read meats, white bread and sugary processed food can hasten skin wrinkling due to chronic inflammation in your body. Foods that are believed to prevent wrinkles are high in omega 3 fatty acids, and alpha-linolen acid such as flaxseed oil, avocados, salmon and olive oil. Also fruits and vegetables are rich in vitamin C, zinc and beta caretone- nutrients that enable the body to produce collagen which keeps skin firm. So the expression: ‘you are what you eat’ applies to growing old. I need to eat a young person.
The Battle over Wrinkles
Many aging baby boomers have a ‘forever young’ mindset, postponing the inevitability of wrinkling by spending billions of dollars every year on wrinkle creams, Botox and plastic surgery. According to the market research firm Global Industry Analysts the U.S. market for anti-aging products is projected to be more than $114 billion in 2015.
A good face lift might last 8 to 10 years, while facial fillers might last 1 to 2 years, and Botox about three months. There is nothing inherently wrong with wanting to appear young if it makes us feel good, raise our confidence and promote a healthier lifestyle. The problem with forever young attitudes is not individual attempts to maintain a youthful appearance but rather the societal messaging that staying young is superior to growing old; that smooth-looking facial skin is beautiful and a wrinkled face is ugly.
Plastic surgery may be common among celebrities but some refuse to go under the knife and have chosen to age gracefully instead. Here are some of the actors/actresses/models who have joined the resistance movement in the battle against wrinkles:
Brooke Shields (47) Brigette Bardot (78)
Emma Thompson (54) Julianne Moore (52)
Kate Winslet (37) Kate Moss (39)
Rachel Weisz (43) Ursula Andress (77)
Daniel Craig (45) Catherine Deneuve (71)
Brad Pitt (50) Javier Bardem (44)
Jodie Foster (50) Connie Britton (46)
Johnny Depp (49) Judi Dench (78)
Katherine Ross (74) Sigourney Weaver (63)
Julia Roberts (45):
There is a collective denial of aging in America and we need to reverse this trend. American author, Clarence Day, once said:
“Age should not have its face lifted, but it should rather teach the world to admire wrinkles as the etchings of experience and the firm line of character.”
If you decide against anti-aging treatments, here are some ways for coping with wrinkling.
Ice Cream. Eat a lot of ice cream because I’ve never seen a kid with wrinkles.
Cream and Sandpaper. Apply anti-wrinkle cream on face, followed by sandpaper for best results.
Reading Glasses. Remove your reading glasses—out of sight, out of mind.
Meditation. If you deeply meditate- you may convince yourself all that matters is your mind and soul. We just want you to believe that you are not your physical body. Because if you are not your physical body, why worry about physical rotting and the wrinkles that accompany it?
Perhaps a more important reason to take up meditation is the fact that I never met a Buddhist who had plastic surgery on his or her face. Buddhists don’t sweat the small stuff like wrinkles and shriveling. If meditation works for over one billion Buddhists, there must be something to it.
Misery Loves Company. Hang out with people who have as many or more wrinkles than you—select your friends carefully but keep your wrinkled friends closer. Or identify celebrities who are aging and showing wrinkles—the list of celebrities who have joined the resistance movement in the battle against wrinkles presented earlier is a good start.
Home Remedy. My Grandmother had a remedy for how to prevent sagging skin—just eat until the wrinkles fill out. She was always pushing food.
Final Thoughts
It is easy to become fixated on wrinkles, particularly on our face. But as long as we remember aging is something which happens to all of us, a ‘feeling of togetherness’ eases the pain.
The choice is whether we do anything about it and if so, how much are we prepared to do. People who have taken care of themselves through natural remedies like a healthy diet, exercise, and positive lifestyle choices create a healthy appearance while raising self-confidence that helps them deal with the inevitability of aging.
My Grandpa once said: “old age stinks but it’s the only way to live a long life.” A wrinkled face is a work of art that took years to create; be proud to display it.
Dr. David Lereah

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Health Tips

Chiropractic Care Helps Obesity

by Kimberly Johnson
written by Kimberly Johnson

11617.14434Are we overlooking potential help for those struggling with obesity?Chiropractic Care Helps Obesity
With the epidemic now estimated to be costing the nation $147 billion annually, it’s a question that’s very much on the minds of health experts. And many, including lifestyle guru Shea Vaughn, are citing chiropractic care as a crucial part of overall wellness programs.
“Chiropractic care helps patients with many physical ailments. It also represents a proactive approach helping to prevent injury and relieve stress, while providing a positive influence on any individual’s mind, body and heart,” says the much-quoted author of “Breakthrough: The 5 Living Principles to Defeat Stress, Look Great & Find Total Well-Being.”
What’s more, doctors of chiropractic can also counsel patients on their diets – what to emphasize (fruits, vegetables, whole grains and beans) and what to reduce (processed foods, sugar, soda and fats). “The key is to make consistent, small, positive changes,” says the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress’ Gerard W. Clum, DC.
With 149.3 million Americans aged 20 and older considered overweight or obese, check out yes2chiropractic.org for more information.
 
This makes Senior.com a great place for advertisers seeking to reach and influence this target audience. Don’t miss your opportunity to present your brand, products or services at the fingertips for this powerful market.

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