Are You Having Merry or Blue Christmas?

As the holiday season approaches, we start hearing Christmas songs everywhere, holiday lights are popping up at dusk and everything makes us enjoy the holiday spirit. Right?

Maybe everything isn’t all that perfect. The holiday season brings the pressure of holiday shopping, the stress of hosting a family visit, and traveling during the busiest time of the year. Even feeling happy during the holidays can be a challenge.

Christmas Movie

One of my favorite Christmas movies is Mixed Nuts. It is a Christmas comedy which was based on the French movie Le père Noël est une ordure. My favorite part of the movie is when the main character Philip, played by Steve Martin, said: ”…Christmas is a time when you look at your life through a magnifying glass and whatever you don’t have feels overwhelming. Being alone is so much lonelier at Christmas. Everything sad is so much sadder at Christmas…” These words are simple, but they seem to cut deeply into my soul. Somehow, we have a higher expectation for ourselves during the holiday season than we do the rest of the year.

Higher Expectation During The Holidays  

During the year, we are so busy with our daily activities that we do not have the extra time to think about things, we did not achieve or the things that did not happen for us. However, over the holidays, disappointing dreams seem to be more painful. On top of this, the media gives us a clear message regarding the proper way to celebrate the holidays. Beautiful and seemingly harmless Christmas commercials want to sell us material things, which are supposed to bring happiness to our lives and make our holidays truly jolly. Real life is different from the images presented to us on television. A simple toy can make a child feel delighted, but it takes more to make adult feel truly happy.

Tips How To Stay Healthy Over Holidays

As grown-ups, we can be realistic with our expectations and stay in a healthy mind during the holidays.

If you are getting stressful over the holiday season, try to plan ahead, stay under budget and take the opportunity for online shopping to save time and stay away from crowded malls. You do not need to be a perfectionist.  Do not forget to give yourself a break from the holiday preparation. Try to find some time to go for a walk, read a few pages of your favorite book, or even take a nap.

Remember that we are all different and our family members and friends are not perfect. Things can happen. There is nothing we can do about the behaviors of other people towards us, but we can manage our reaction towards their attitude. Try to stay in a healthy mindset by keeping up with your physical activity program, eating healthy and finding time for yourself. The exercise program can be shorter over the holidays, but do not stop exercising.  Keep up with it!  Try to eat healthy snacks before holiday parties.  This will help you to make better choices for your holiday meals and stay on a nutritionally balanced diet over the holidays.

If you cannot spend the holidays with your loved ones for any number of reasons, try to concentrate on a positive time you shared with them during the year or at some time in the past. Volunteer work may be a good option to help others.  People who need your support will surround you with their gratitude.  Concentrating on the religious part of the holidays makes you think deep about life and become a wiser person.

  

In The End

Preparing for the holidays often takes many hours, but a holiday is a day filled with 24 hours. It will pass by like any other day. The next dawn will bring a new morning and new beginning. The holiday will become a part of your past made up of (hopefully) happy memories.  

No matter how stressful the holiday season can be, it brings color to our life. Only we can create holiday spirit for ourselves. Every December, the same story repeats itself but there is always a place for the hope of holiday magic. “ … The holidays are not over yet… Who knows…”, what magic awaits us this year?

Health, Happiness, and Harmony

Kay

References

Healthy Lifestyle Stress Management. (2017, Sept.16). In Mayoclinic. Retrieved December 4, 2017 from https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/stress/art-20047544

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Synchronous Telemedicine is the Future of Health Care

Introduction

With emerging technologies such as digital X-rays, over-the-phone consultations, videoconferences, and remote surgery telemedicine will become increasingly popular in the future. The biggest advantage that telemedicine presents is the opportunity for the vast majority of people to access medical care easily and quickly. A virtual doctor’s chart is an alternative to a traditional in-person doctor’s visit. Telemedicine is more affordable. It provides an easy way for patients to communicate with their doctors and get medical advice and consultation from any place and time (Zhang & Zhang, 2016). Heart disease is a leading cause of death in the United States (AHA, 2017). Telemedicine can improve the ability to monitor patients with heart failure, which may lead to preventing deaths from heart disease and stroke. There are many benefits of telemedicine but it first needs to overcome significant challenges to become a practical and useful tool in our society. 

Three Barriers

Scott Frederic emphasizes three main barriers to telemedicine. The first is the lack of access to high-speed internet service by healthcare facilities. Many hospitals are still unconnected to wireless networks. An internet connection plays a big part in the future of telemedicine. Even if the majority of hospitals have a high-speed internet connection, problems may still appear. Test runs are an important part of training to prepare hospital workers to become comfortable with telemedicine technology; these test runs should be able to identify and resolve any problems in a quick matter of time. The second barrier is the legal and administrative issue of using telemedicine and how it relates to potential malpractice cases involving healthcare providers. Malpractice lawsuits may result from potential disconnections of virtual consultation due to internet service issues. A disruption in a virtual consultation may lead patients to follow the wrong treatment, which can injure a patient. The final barrier is the comfort level involved with physicians and patients using new technology. Most people tend to be skeptical about emerging and innovative technologies. Technology is a strong platform for telemedicine. To practice telemedicine, both parties (patients and physicians) need to come to an agreement to invest in the necessary technology that can support telemedicine and then to become comfortable users of this technology (Frederic, 2013).

Security Risks

There are several security risks with digital communication. The first one is medical identity theft.  In telemedicine, a virtual meeting between a patient and doctor is an easy way for someone to steal personally identifiable medical information. The second concern is the protection of private health information over a potentially insecure connection. Telemedicine providers must supply services by special applications that utilize end-to-end encryption to prevent patients’ health data from being tampered with or stolen. If patients’ electronic medical records need to be transferred from a provider’s computer or from a patient’s device to another provider for referral or additional consultation, telemedicine applications need to quickly erase copies from a provider’s computer or a patient’s device. Physicians that practice telemedicine must follow the same HIPAA privacy requirements as traditional doctors. Patients should not connect to a public wi-fi network to participate in telemedicine appointments. Patients should never share logins and passwords with others (WHO, 2010).

Background

The term telemedicine was first used in 1970. It literally meant “healing at a distance”. The use of telemedicine was documented for the first time in the early 20^th century, when electrocardiograph data was transmitted over a telephone line. However, in the 1960s telemedicine began to be utilized in its modern form. It was largely promoted by military and space technology sectors. In the present day, telemedicine is considered to be the use of telecommunications technology to provide health care services to patients who are geographically separated from a physician. Telemedicine is continuously developing because it is based on advanced technologies. Telemedicine also evolves to respond to emerging health care needs (Field, 1996). 

Over time, digital methods have started to transform traditional person-to-person communication, which makes it possible to connect to a speaker through technology and overcome the barrier of distance. Recently, there has been a wide interest in the application of telemedicine among health care providers, who are focused on more efficient ways of providing care to patients (WHO, 2010).

Monitoring Patients with Heart Failure

Telemedicine can improve the ability of physicians to monitor patients with heart failure by non-invasive approaches. With emerging technologies, devices such as smart glasses and smart watches will be able to monitor patients’ health data and transport it to healthcare providers’ devices immediately. Daily monitoring by telemedicine can reduce mortality in patients with heart failure. Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) management programs are being developed. They are based on instantaneous interaction between the patient and health care provider. Both parties will upload, share, and discuss vital information online. Mobile devices allow daily screening for weight, blood glucose levels, cholesterol, blood pressure, and many other factors, which can contribute to heart failure. Telehealth devices can also include daily questionnaires about warning signs associated with CHF, such as shortness of breath and lightheadedness. The results of the questionnaire can be processed and analyzed immediately by professionals (Stefan, Friedrich, & William, 2011).

Conclusion

   Telemedicine will become increasingly important to the future of health care. It can serve as a useful tool to physicians and patients in the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases and conditions such as heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and arthritis. Telemedicine can improve clinical outcomes for many patients. When the majority of people become more comfortable users of modern technology and when telemedicine overcome security risks and three main barriers; all these facts will help telemedicine to grow into a primary source of affordable and high quality health care. 

References

The American Heart Association, (n.d). Retrieved September 10, 2017 from https://onlineaha.org

Field, M. (1996). A Guide to Assesing Telecommunications for Health Care. Washington, D.C. : National Academies Press. Retrieved September 12, 2017 from http://web.a.ebscohost.com.mutex.gmu.edu/bsi/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=075abb58-3d44-43d8-aac3-b774964a55a7%40sessionmgr4010&bdata=JnNpdGU9YnNpLWxpdmU%3d#AN=819&db=nlebk

Frederic, S. (2013). The key to making telemedicine work. Health Management Technology. 34 (4), 12.

Sun, L. (2015, December 8). Getting mental health care virtually – at your regular doctor’s office. The Washington Post, p. D3. Retrieved September 10, 2017 https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/getting-mental-health-care--virtually--at-your-regular-doctors-office/2015/11/25/403938b0-8e32-11e5-acff-673ae92ddd2b_story.html?utm_term=.1b5ef85d9e40

Stefan, A., Friedrich, K., & William, A. (2011). Heart failure 4: telemedicine and remote management of patients with heart failure. The Lancent, 378(9792), 731-739.

Zhang, X.Y., & Zhang, P. (2016). Telemedicine in clinical setting. Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine, 12(4), 2405-2407. doi: 10.3892/etm.2016.3656

The World Health Organization, (n.d.) Retrieved September 17, 2017 from http://www.who.int/goe/publications/goe_telemedicine_2010.pdf

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Regular Exercise Throughout Life

 

Food provides energy to our body. Sleep recharges and heals us. The benefits of exercise are tremendous, from improving our overall health to stimulating our brain activity. However, many of us exclusively associate exercise with weight loss programs because the exercise goal focuses on losing 10, 20 or 30... pounds. When we lose the weight, we achieve our goal. We are happy about our hard work but slowly we tend to return to our old habits and several months later, we see a familiar big number on the scale. We are disappointed about our weight gain and we try to lose the same 10, 20 or 30 pounds again and again (and again).

If we look at the body composition of fit people, it is the same throughout their life. They are able to maintain the same body size for several decades because they do not exercise to lose weight; they adopt exercise as a part of their daily regime. Their fitness program becomes a kind of regular hygiene, something like brushing teeth or taking a shower every day.  

Benefits of Exercise

If we want to get healthy, we should stop solely concentrating on weight loss because physical activities are much more than just a means of losing several pounds. Exercise can bring positive emotions to our everyday life. It also helps us with physical and mental stress relief and improves the quality of sleep. Exercise even stimulates the brain functions.

One of the most important benefits of exercise is prevention of disease. Moderate intensity aerobic activity for at least 2 hours and 30 minutes a week can lower the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention provides this recommendation.

Moderate intensity aerobic activity is 46%-63% VO2max training. It means that 46-63 percent of the maximum amount of oxygen is consumed by the body during aerobic exercise. The effectiveness of exercise depends on staying in the target heart rate zone during an aerobic workout.

The Karvonen Formula

The Karvonen Formula is a mathematical formula for determining a target heart rate zone. It is based on a person’s maximum heart rate (HR) and resting pulse. A simple calculation can be done to find the target zone:

Target Training Heart Rate for moderate intensity aerobic activity equals

resting HR + (0.40 or 0.59 (HRmax– resting HR)).

1). Resting Heart Rate (RHR) equals the pulse at rest. The best time to get an accurate resting heart rate is first thing in the morning before leaving your bed. Try to measure the radial pulse for a full minute, repeat this procedure for three mornings in a row, and after that, calculate the average number.

2). Maximum Heart Rate (MHR) equals 220 minus your age.

3). Heart Rate Reserve (HRR) equals Maximum Heart Rate minus Resting Heart Rate

4). Example of Karvonen Formula Calculation

A 59-year-old male with measurements of morning pulse at rest: 60, 63, and 61 beats per minute (bpm)

Average RHR = (60+63+61)/3 = 61.3 approximately 61

MHR = 220 – 59 = 161

HRR = 161 – 61 = 100

(40% training percentage) = 100 x 0.40 = 40

(Target training Zone) = 40 + 61 = 101 beats per minute (bpm)

(59% training percentage) = 100 x 0.59 = 59

(Target training Zone) = 59 + 61 =120 bpm

The target-training zone for moderate intensity (40%-59% of HRR) is 101 to 120 beats per minute (bpm) for 59-year-old male with resting heart rate of 61 bpm.

It is obvious that exercise plays a big role in our wellness. An exercise program should not be complicated. It should include a moderate intensity activity level, target heart rate zone, regularity (3 times per week), and a lifelong commitment. So, how do we do it?

Exercise Plan

       Dr. Barnard, who is the founder of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, provides a simple way for a person to exercise. He suggests jogging or brisk walking that concentrates on your target-training zone and not on distance. Before starting your exercise program, be sure to discuss it with your primary care provider and follow his/her instructions. Remember that you should feel comfortable, be able to maintain a short conversation, and breathe easily during workout. Stop exercise immediately if you experience any chest discomfort.

Start slowly and don’t push yourself too hard. It is important to remember that exercise is beneficial for your health but it also can cause injuries. We want to get healthy and avoid injuries at the same time.

       If you are a healthy adult and in a good shape, you can start with thirty minutes of brisk walking three times per week. If you are not comfortable with brisk walking you can begin with a ten-minute walk. No matter where you start, you should increase your exercise time by five minutes each week until it increases to forty or forty-five minutes per session. After that, you should exercise at least three or more times per week. When you get comfortable with brisk walking, you can move to jogging.

You do not need to concentrate on distance; rather, you should focus on keeping your heartbeat in the target zone range. When you begin your exercise plan, start with a target training zone of 60 percent. When you get in better shape, stay within a target-training zone of 70 to 79 percent. Remember that highly trained athletes exercise at 85 percent, but this level of heavy physical activity is not recommended for non-athletic people. When you exercise, you can stop as much as you need but the goal is to keep your heartbeat within your target-training zone.

In the End

Make small healthy changes today and include regular physical activities. Small changes are realistic, easy to follow, and simple to adopt. If small healthy changes are consistent, they can make a big impact on our health.  

Football season is here. Many of us are excited about weekend football games. Next time we get together with our family and friends to watch a football game, why don’t we try something new? How about baby carrots with humus instead of potato chips with queso? By the time the Super Bowl is here next year, regular exercise and healthy habits can transform your body and mind.  You will have a more powerful physique, a stronger heart, and a sharper mind.

Just Go for It, Maintain, and Don’t Ever Give Up!!!

Health, Happiness, and Harmony

Kay

References

Barnard, N. (2013). Power Foods for the Brain. New York, NY: Grand Central Life & Style. 

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention, (n.d). Retrieved August 24, 2017 from https://www.cdc.gov

Kenney, W. L., Wilmore, J. H., & Costill, D. L. (2012). Physiology of Sport and Exercise (5^th ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

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