Gastroenterology
How healthy is your poop?
Research for this column won’t qualify us for the Nobel Prize in Medicine. In fact, readers may say that discussing whether poop sinks or floats is just idle conversation. Years ago, when this column covered this topic, many readers admitted they peeked into the toilet bowl. One complained this triggered a stiff neck! But what you see in the toilet bowel exposes a lot about your health. It’s worth a peek. It’s well known that the North American diet is too low in fiber. In the 1950s, D.P. Burkett, a British surgeon and epidemiologist, reported that Africans, unlike the English, had large bulky stools and didn’t suffer from constipation, diverticulitis (small hernias in the large bowel), appendicitis or colon cancer. His...Read More
Lungs, Neurology
Do We All Need Respiratory Masks?
Will the so-called progress of civilization eventually destroy us? Indigenous Peoples, hundreds of years ago, did not devastate nature the way we do today. Oceans are loaded with plastics and soil with dangerous contaminants. Now, is the air we breathe gradually destroying our brains? A report published in Proceedings for the National Academy of Sciences has grim news. We’ve known for decades that breathing in dirty air damages lungs. But research now reveals that long-term exposure to particulate matter, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide is linked to decreased brain function. The lungs are a vital gateway to the body. Their surface area is the size of a tennis court and during a 24-hour period we breathe in 10,000 liters of air. The World...Read More
Surgery
When Is the Right Time for Knee Replacement?
Ask a comedian, tennis player, or chef, what’s important in their work. They will tell you, it’s timing. Every year 1,200,000 knees are replaced in North America. And just as comedians need good timing, so too this elective surgery. If COVID-19 concerns have you delaying treatment, you may want to think again. Researchers at the Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University report in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery that many people are getting it wrong. Their eight-year study involved 8002 patients aged 45 to 79 who were at risk of osteoarthritis. Assessing patients for knee replacement involves consideration of age, severity of symptoms, and what x-rays show of knee damage. Researchers found that 90% of people with knee osteoarthritis...Read More
Lifestyle, Sports
What Are the Benefits of Walking?
Dr. Paul Dudley White, former Professor of Cardiology at the Harvard Medical School, used to ride his bike to class even in his later years. He remarked, “If you want to see how good your brain is, feel your leg muscles!” Biking may not be for everyone, but research shows the simple act of walking is tremendously good for you. Stronger brain and leg muscles are just the beginning. If COVID has got you hunkered down, you’d do well to get out in fresh air for a daily walk. Metabolic benefits A study in Atherosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology reports that a brisk walk can decrease the risk of hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, and heart disease just as much as running....Read More
Genitourinary
Treat Your One Million Nephrons With TLC
Why don’t we learn from history? Years ago, Australians began to use mixtures of powders containing Aspirin, codeine, phenacetin and caffeine to ease pain. By the 1970s, 25% of those dying of kidney disease had consumed too much of this powder. They also suffered hardening of arteries (atherosclerosis) and heart attack. Now, Dr. Richard Glassock, Emeritus Professor of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, says that more than half of North Americans over 75 have chronic kidney disease (CKD). Kidneys, he says, need tender loving care (TLC) to avoid this avoidable common problem. One must never forget the wise counsel of Sir William Osler who remarked, “The one thing that separates man from animals is man’s desire to take...Read More
Infection
Hepatitis C Is Silent Like the Fog
It’s a shame when you are slowly dying from a disease you don’t know you have. To boot, what a tragedy if there is a cure. Yet this ignorance is a reality for many aging boomers who don’t know that they are infected with the hepatitis C virus. For these unfortunate people, their health exists in a state of fog, when it could be all sunshine and roses. Anyone can contract hepatitis C. Infection occurs through transmission of tainted blood. It’s rare to be infected today through the healthcare system, as we’ve gotten much better at screening blood products and of course sterilizing medical equipment. Today, it is likely the reuse of injection needles by users of street drugs that leads...Read More
Vitamins
Vitamin D to Survive the Pandemic
An effective vaccine against the coronavirus may be the only way to end the pandemic. Wouldn’t we all love a return to social normalcy and easier sleep? But until scientists deliver a vaccine, or until the virus runs its course and goes away, we need to use other measures. Among them, medical authorities should be sharing more information with the public about natural ways to build up immunity against viral infections. Vitamin D is one of the crucial components of your immune system. Many people are deficient in it, but perhaps because there are no headlines about it, some people don’t seem to care. Now, a report in the Irish Medical Journal says it’s vital to have the right amount of...Read More
Infection, Vitamins
How Safe Is It To Send Your Child Back To School?
Parents are wondering if it’s safe to send children back to school when so many are still becoming infected with coronavirus. What are the factors to consider? And what can parents do to help ensure children are protected? The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) reports the academic, physical, and mental benefits of in-person learning outweigh coronavirus risks. Negative impacts on children during school closures include social isolation, substance abuse, depression and suicidal ideation. In fact, the detrimental effects of children missing out on school are well known, even before COVID-19. Millions of youngsters around the world suffer lifelong social and economic consequences when lacking access to quality education. But when it’s our children, the list of negatives grows longer by the hour...Read More
Nutrition
How Safe and Nutritious Are Stored Canned Goods?
Are you sufficiently prepared for another crisis? What might possibly be the next disaster? You might argue, we are not yet out of the mess of the current one. And this should have us all thinking about keeping stock of essential supplies. Have you got the things you need? Hopefully not guns to protect your toilet paper! More importantly, what about canned foods? How nutritious are they compared to fresh produce? How long do they last stored under the bed? And when can they kill you? Even without a pandemic it’s prudent to have a supply of canned goods. Remember the last snowstorm, flood, or natural disaster, when it was too dangerous to get to a store or no power to...Read More
Dental, Infection
Is It Now Safe to Visit the Dentist?
Visiting the dentist is rarely a high priority, even in the best of times. We can always find reasons for delay. But what level of coronavirus threat should justify more waiting? There is increasing concern that all these closures of “non-essential” healthcare service providers may, in some cases, be doing more harm than good. There’s serious concern regarding delays in some cancer treatments. And some heart attack victims have also been delayed in getting help until it is too late. However, it’s understandable that non-emergency dental care has been on hold. As time goes by though, we must heed the importance of a regular dental cleaning and check-up. And many will need more involved dental work. So as dental offices reopen, how...Read More
Cancer
Physical Activity Decreases Risk of Seven Cancers
Is physical activity good for you? During COVID times, it might be prudent to avoid cramped, indoor gyms. But outdoor activity in open spaces is invariably a healthy choice. We know that getting off the couch and out for a walk helps prevent obesity, Type 2 diabetes, and heart attacks. And good news! A recent report from the American Cancer Society says exercise also lowers the risk of seven types of cancers. Dr. Charles Matthews of the National Cancer Institute in the U.S. pooled data from nine studies about how leisure-time activity affects 15 types of cancer. His results should act as a huge incentive to get people of all ages moving. Matthews and his colleagues report that those who engaged in...Read More
Infection, Lifestyle
Can Flushing the Toilet Spread the Virus?
Why do so many people leave the toilet seat up all the time? After all, it’s not the most attractive display object. Now, convincing medical evidence confirms we should cover the potty before flushing. Researchers at Yangzhou University in China utilized computer modeling to show that flushing toilets does not keep all viruses and water in the bowl. They report in the journal Physics of Fluids that spray can fly as high as three feet! Ji-Xiang Wang, one of the researchers, added that the velocity of the spray could be even higher at public toilets. Readers will understand that researching toilet seats has not been high priority for this column. But years ago, a female reader triggered curiosity about potties. She wrote,...Read More
Cardiovascular, Diabetes, Obesity
How Apples Work for Your Waist
As this long period of isolation eases, are you noticing your friends and neighbours have put on weight around their middles? How unfortunate it is if the coronavirus crisis piles on additional chronic health problems for individuals and society due to weight gain, or what has come to be known as metabolic syndrome. The World Health Organization defines metabolic syndrome as a new non-communicable disease characterized by abdominal obesity, insulin resistance, high blood pressure, and high blood fats. To make the diagnosis, doctors measure the waistline, blood pressure, and glucose, triglyceride, and cholesterol levels. The risk of metabolic syndrome is a progression to Type 2 diabetes. The prescription to avert this preventable disease is to lose the extra weight through exercise...Read More
Philosophy
What Needs to Change for Society’s Health?
This week, the second of a two-part column. Last week W. Gifford-Jones shared his perspective on race relations and health and this week are the view of his daughter, Diana Gifford-Jones. Last week’s column focused on how racial and gender inequities can impact medical access, diagnosis, treatment and follow up – even when the health professional involved is deliberately intending to offer high quality care equally to every patient. Implicit bias, built on unconscious racial and gender judgments, continue to shape the medical care people receive. But it is not just the healthcare system that determines our health. It is every other aspect of society as well. Where we live. Where we work. How much we earn. How much our food costs. ...Read More
Philosophy
Does Your Doctor Have Harmful Bias?
This week, the first of a two-part column – this week from W. Gifford-Jones and next week from Diana Gifford-Jones – offering our perspectives on race relations and health. Racial inequities have been a sore on society for as long as I remember. During my youth, racism was endemic, systematic and blatant. Two occasions stand out from my time at Harvard Medical School, where I had two black classmates. One lived in Atlanta, and when planning a road trip to Florida, I said I’d drop by to see him. He replied, “Don’t do it. This will cause trouble for me.” On another occasion, travelling by train to Boston, I asked a black student to join me for lunch. He replied, “I’m...Read More
Infection
Lyme Disease – The Black-Legged Tick Can be Deadly
What a relief to be outside after being isolated by the coronavirus. But beware! Warmer weather means that ticks are in the woods around you. Or even in your own back yard. A report in the Canadian Medical Association Journal shows, a tick bite can trigger diverse and deadly consequences. One case involved a 37-year-old man complaining of flu symptoms, fever, sore throat and joint pain. He had been in a tick-infested area several weeks earlier but did not recall a tick bite. His doctor diagnosed a viral infection and the patient improved. Weeks later heart palpitations, shortness of breath, and chest pains sent him to the emergency room. There was no evidence of the typical tick rash. But an ECG showed...Read More
Alternate Treatments, Cardiovascular, Diabetes
Artificial Intelligence to Help Avert Blindness
How can doctors diagnose and treat 425 million worldwide diabetes patients? That number keeps going up and up, projected to reach 700 million by 2045. There are millions more with undiagnosed prediabetes. Add more millions with undiagnosed hypertension. All these people are destined to lives defined by cardiovascular problems and complications that include debilitating conditions like blindness. Diabetes is swamping healthcare systems worldwide. Let us be clear: whatever we have been doing to fight the problem, it is not working. But now, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is offering new possibilities. Using new technologies, data science, vast quantities of medical images, and computer algorithms, it is possible to fight diseases differently. The medical model of a patient and a doctor is outdated. We...Read More
Alternate Treatments, Dermatology, Pain
What You Should Know About Light Therapy
What could you do if you sprained your ankle during the COVID-19 pandemic? Or if you suffer a bad cut? You may feel that the last place you want to visit these days is a hospital. But do you have options? Maybe it’s time to learn more about light therapy. It’s sometimes called low-level laser therapy or low-intensity light therapy. And with one of the many portable devices available on the market, you can safely treat yourself at home. So, what should you know about this therapy as you get older and invariably develop various aches, pains, injuries and infections? Dr. Mary Dyson, Emeritus Professor at King’s College, University of London, England, is an international expert on wound healing. She reports...Read More
Diabetes, Obesity
Obese Patients at Higher Risk of COVID-19 Complications
In the play, Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare wrote, “Let me have men about me that are fat. Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look. Such men are dangerous.” Caesar saw no risk in well-fed men. But fast ahead 500 years, and we now know that being overweight is a major health hazard. Several reports show this is especially true for those attacked by COVID-19. A study of 17,000 hospital patients with COVID-19 in the UK showed that those overweight had a 33% greater risk of dying than those who were not obese. Another study by the British National Health Service showed the risk of dying from COVID-19 doubled among obese people. Researchers noted that having additional risk factors related to obesity,...Read More
Lifestyle, Nutrition
Will Saying No to Meat Save Us?
As governments, workers, and health authorities debate reopening meat packing plants hit by outbreaks of the coronavirus, maybe now is the time to rethink how much meat we eat. In 1989 Margaret Thatcher, former U.K. Prime Minister, gave an impassioned speech before the United Nations General Assembly. The greatest threat to the world community, she said, “is more and more people, and their activities: The land they cultivate ever more intensively; The forests they cut down and burn; The mountain sides they lay bare; The fossil fuels they burn; The rivers and seas they pollute.” Some would now add, people are eating too much meat. Dr. Walter Willet, Harvard University’s renowned advocate for healthy diets, has argued for years that health consequences...Read More
Neurology, Psychiatry
Another Pandemic We Don’t Understand
There are a lot of things we know about pandemics. We know that the COVID-19 pandemic is the result of widespread viral infection caused by the novel SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. Last week, this column lamented the lifestyle-caused diseases of obesity and Type 2 diabetes and lamented the lack of concerted societal action on the pandemic proportions of these stealthy but determined killers. But there is yet another pandemic, the still-too-frequently hushed-up problem of poor mental health, sometimes resulting in its most devastating form, suicide. The fact is, for more than 100 years, there has been little progress in understanding the factors that result in a state of dismal mental health – the state that must be the precursor to suicide. Medicine has...Read More
Diabetes, Obesity, Philosophy
Who’s Fighting the Obesity and Diabetes Pandemics?
Day after day, health officials stress that the best way to fight the coronavirus is by staying home, keeping our distance from others, and practicing good hygiene. But human isolation is crippling the world’s economy. So, does this approach make sense when other devastating pandemics have been raging for years and killing more people? The number of coronavirus deaths is changing daily. To date, 200,000 people have died worldwide, over 52,000 in the U.S, and over 2,300 in Canada. But the World Health Organization reports that obesity has reached epidemic proportions globally, killing 2.8 million people annually, or 7,671 people per day. Diabetes and high blood glucose annually kill 3.8 million people worldwide, or 10,411 per day. So, what is the difference? The...Read More
Alternate Treatments, Infection
Sometimes It Takes an Apple to Hit You on the Head
Sir Isaac Newton discovered the law of gravity when a falling apple hit him on the head. Now, as the healthcare industry scrambles, an enterprising fruit farmer has discovered a smart way to resolve the shortage of masks. Using technology built to protect consumers from fruit-borne listeria or other bacteria, food industry equipment can be repurposed to sterilize masks in 30 seconds, with tests showing that masks can be cleaned and recycled 50 times. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that the bacteria E. coli 0157:H7 is responsible for 73,000 infections and 63 deaths every year. It produces a toxin that causes bloody diarrhea and abdominal pain, lasting 2-3 days, or longer for some people. E. coli 0157:H7 is...Read More
Alternate Treatments, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous, Obesity
Is Home Confinement a Good Time to Try Fasting?
Today, nearly all of us are in enforced home confinement due to an invisible foe, the coronavirus. So, how do we amuse ourselves? Some pick up books they’ve always wanted to read. Others get household chores done. But how about some of us losing weight? If typical busy schedules have interfered with your efforts in the past, could the current context support a concentrated effort on fasting to shed pounds? And what are the best ways to fast? Fasting diets have generated considerable buzz among diet gurus in the media, not only as an approach to weight loss but also as a way to improve overall health. But do facts back it up? Researchers say that animals and humans share some comment...Read More
Cardiovascular
The Perfect Storm for Hypertension
It’s a devastating time. A pandemic and economic disaster rolled into one that’s killing thousands and bringing society to a standstill. So how can we keep our blood pressure from shooting through the roof during this perfect storm? Keeping our heads cool may help to prevent a stroke, heart attack, even kidney disease and blindness. The World Health Organization says that 1.3 billion people worldwide have hypertension or high blood pressure, including about 1 in 3 North Americans. But extensive research shows that hypertension, a silent killer, can be prevented and lowered. In 1997 researchers published the results of a clinical trial called DASH (dietary approaches to stop hypertension). They concluded that a healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy...Read More
