According to some experts, medication errors cause more deaths per year than car crashes, breast cancer or AIDS. The medical, nursing and pharmacy professions as well as your local hospital are all working very hard to minimize medication errors, but you need to do your part as well.

A recent article on this subject ends with the following advice, “Patients should understand their medications, maintain their own medication records, and take responsibility for monitoring them. Patients need to tell their providers how new medications have affected them, and the physicians need to listen.”

You should keep an up to date list of all of your medications, the dosages taken and the condition they are being used to treat. You should also know the most common and most serious side-effects of each medication. You can get this information from your doctor or pharmacist. Finally, when any new medications are being prescribed, whether by a specialist, an emergency doctor or a physician caring for you in the hospital, you need to ask what they are for and if they could interact with any of the medications you are already taking.

You can trust others to do this for you and hope they don’t make any mistakes, or you can take responsibility and make certain they don’t.

The World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research have published a 500-page report highlighting ways to prevent cancer through diet and exercise.

Recommendations include the following:

• Maintain a healthy body weight. Being overweight is linked to at least six types of cancer.
• Exercise 30 to 60 minutes a day.
• Eat no more than 18 oz. of red meat per week,
• Avoid processed meat.
• Limit alcohol to one drink a day for women and two a day for men.
• Consume less than 6 g of sodium daily.
• There is no good data that dietary supplements prevent cancer.

For the complete report on pdf, click the link below
American Institute for Cancer Research report(Free PDF)p>

Falls are a major cause of injury and even death, especially in older adults. (Kurt Vonnegut and George Burns both died from head injuries after a fall.) Injuries can range from simple sprains and lacerations to wrist and shoulder fractures to severe injuries such as hip fractures, neck fractures and intracranial bleeding.

There are many ways to prevent falls. Here are a few.

Prevent slips by immediately cleaning up any spilled liquids from the floor, and by being extra careful whenever it is wet outside.
Prevent trips by installing proper lighting, using caution when you must walk in the dark, keeping floors clean and removing throw rugs that tend to catch your feet.

Prevent fainting spells by getting up slowly from bed, especially if you have been sleeping or have been ill or injured in any way. When you wake, stretch out for about a minute, then sit up leaning slightly backwards for 30 seconds before standing.  Don’t stand up if you feel light-headed, wait.

Be cautious when standing at or after using the toilet, especially in the morning. People often have a drop in blood pressure after using the toilet.  It may be safer to do your business in the seated position (men).  Don’t get up if you feel light headed.

Some gym machines and excercises may not be as safe as others!

For gym excercises to avoid, click here.

Burnt foods, especially meats, may cause an increased risk of cancer. Higher peak temperatures may even increase risks in foods that don’t burn. To minimize risk avoid burning or charring foods, cook for longer times at lower heat and cut foods into smaller pieces prior to cooking. Continue to avoid heating foots in plastic containers, even if they are “microwave safe” as this may produce dioxanes, potential carcinogens, that can leach into the food.

IN THE NEWS:
A Dutch study finds that foods containing acrylamides, chemicals produced when foods are fried, grilled or roasted, may significantly increase the risk of developing cancer, especially in women. Those women who ate 40 micrograms of acrylamide a day, or the approximate equivalent of half a package of cookies or a single serving of French fries or potato chips, were twice as likely to get ovarian or womb cancer. Researchers say more study is needed to confirm the potential link, however.

Think Twice before insisting on that CAT-scan or MRI. Medical tests such as CT-scans, X-rays and MRI’s are important tools used by physicians to diagnose a variety of medical conditions. However, like everything, they do have risks. Sometimes things are discovered on these tests that “might” be abnormal, leading to further tests or treatments, each of which have their own risks, and in the end everything would have been better off left alone. Some tests expose the patient to high doses of radiation or to dyes that occasionally cause kidney damage or allergic reactions. In the U.S. we spend a lot more on health care than other countries, but are no healthier. So the next time your doctor advises you against a certain test, if you trust him or her, listen. Often there is a safer approach. Sometimes less is more.

This post brought to you courtesy of my uncle who wanted more people to know about the shingles vaccine and other adult vaccines.

Flu shots have been available since October 1st. If you haven’t had yours yet, ask your doctor. For most of us the benefits far outweigh any risk. Contraindications include allergy to eggs.

If you haven’t had the pneumonia vaccine or Pneumovax in the past 5 years and you are older than 65 or have immune compromise, you should ask your doctor. It can prevent pneumococcal disease which is probably the most common cause of fatal pneumonia and meningitis.

The Shingles vaccine is relatively new and is now recommended for adults over the age of 60 by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.  Shingles is an extremely painful reactivation of the virus that causes Chicken Pox.  If you have never had Chicken Pox, keep reading.  The same committee has also recommended the Varicella vaccine for adults without evidence of immunity to this virus. (ask your doctor).

HPV vaccine: This vaccine is indicated for females age 11-26 to aid in the prevention of cervical cancer.

Other vaccines for adults: Hepatitis B, Varicella, Tetanus
Travel Vaccines to consider: Hepatitis A, Japanese Encephalitis, Lyme, Rabies, Typhoid, Yellow fever.

A patient of mine who stayed at home all night while having a mild heart attack, and finally came to the Emergency Department (not Emergency Room) in the morning wanted me to put the following advice into print:

If you have chest pain, even if it is mild, and it radiates to both arms, go to the ED immediately.

Most people worry more if they have symptoms in their left arm along with chest discomfort. Radiation to the left arm may or may not increase the risk. However, if the symptoms radiate to BOTH arms, the chance that the discomfort is due to a cardiac condition becomes very high, regardless of symptom intensity.

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Can a flu shot prevent more than the flu? Possibly. As of October 1st, flu shots are available. Ask your doctor if you should have one.

How many hours should you sleep each night for optimum cardiac health? Click here for the answer provided by a recent study

Daylight savings time and Halloween are coming. Here are some important safety tips for trick-or-treaters and their parents.

Be Crosswalk Safe: When holding a child’s hand crossing the street make sure you are holding their hand rather that the other way around. If they are holding your finger or part of your hand, they could let go. If you have your hand around theirs, then you are in control and they are safer. A little life could depend on it.

Be Street Safe: Avoid dark costumes. Choose light colors or add reflective material to costumes. Carry flashlights. Avoid masks that obscure peripheral vision or teach your children to keep the masks tipped up and back until they ring the doorbell. Stay out of the street except for crosswalks and even then be very careful.

Be House Safe: Check your property yearly, if not more often, for tripping hazards, poor lighting or low branches that could injure a running teen or child. What better month to do this than in October, when on the 31st many strangers may be walking up and back from your front door? Also make sure your pets are not going to put anyone at risk. We see as many injuries from dogs causing trips and falls as we do from bites.

Be Fire Safe: Try to use battery powered lights rather than candles. Avoid costumes with low hanging material or that are not flame-resistant. Teach your children how to “Stop-Drop-and-Roll” (Dropping is the most important part of this)

Be Food Safe: Prepare a large wholesome meal so your family doesn’t overindulge. Inspect candy before your children eat it. Allergies to unfound peanut products are the number one cause of ER visits from halloween candy.

Summer is coming to a close, but protecting your skin from the sun needs to be a life-long habit. 1 in 5 Americans will get skin cancer during their lifetime and 1 in 33 will get melanoma. One American dies of melanoma every 65 minutes. Protecting yourself and your family prevents skin cancer and premature aging of the skin.

SUNSCREEN:

Make sure your sunscreen protects against both UV-A and UV-B rays.

Look for the American Academy of Dermatology’s “AAD Seal of Recognition”. This is new. So far they like Aveeno Continuous Protection. Consumer Reports’ top picks include Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch SPF 45 and No-Ad Sunblock Lotion SPF 45.

Apply sunscreen generously and re-apply every 2 hours or sooner if you sweat or swim.

Avoid combo products that contain insect repellant.

OTHER PROTECTION:

Seek shade, especially between 10am and 4pm.

Wear a hat, sunglasses and as much clothing as comfortable.

Use extra caution near snow, water or sand as these surfaces reflect sunlight well

HIKING ESSENTIALS:

Any time you go hiking in the wilderness, you should be prepared to spend the night in case you get lost or the weather suddenly changes and pins you down. Here are 10 essential items to have with you. Everything but the food, water and clothing should fit into a small kit.

1. Extra clothing (layers)
2. Water & Food
3. Flint, matches or a lighter
4. Compass & Map
5. Flashlight
6. Knife
7. Signaling mirror
8. 50 ft. of nylon chord
9. Poncho or small tarp
10.Whistle