Sound Health P4 Medicine

Older Athletes Need To Mix-it-up!

2012-01-29T16:44:00.000-08:00

On a recent run I pondered my previous sports injuries and the events that led up to each injury. My "Aha" moment occurred when I realized that I feel the best when I am doing something different each day and lifting weights regularly.

Working the same joints or muscle groups leads to fatigue earlier. Studies have shown that recovery from exertion takes longer the older you are (see abstract at the bottom of this blog). It makes sense to change muscle groups each time you exercise to prevent fatigue.
Our muscles develop "memory", that is, the muscle groups get more efficient at a particular exercise, so they don't work as hard. If you've done aerobic dance or bench aerobics you probably remember how hard it was when you first started, but when you completed several weeks of the same routine, you notice that the exercise becomes very easy; you barely sweat.
Boredom. Yes, doing the same thing everyday leads to exercise burn-out. We exercise primarily because it is fun. Exercise should be fun before considering the health benefits. Exercise is an adult form of "recess". I always recommend choosing an exercise or activity that is fun when considering exercise. You will have a higher motivation to put on your work-out clothes if you are going to do something fun rather than something boring.
Resistance exercise becomes more important the older we get. Muscle strengthening exercise if done properly will improve strength, endurance and agility. Twice weekly resistance exercise is essential to prevent injuries. I like to combine balance with strength; I choose exercises like military press while standing on a BOSU ball or using a swiss ball to do push-ups. Improve your strength, improve your balance and you will have few, if any injuries.
Stretching muscles properly, especially core muscles like abdominals, para-spinals, hamstrings, and quads will help prevent back pain, prevent falls and help you improve your sports skill.

Remember, changing what you do will keep your body and your mind fresh.

For more help on cross training, stretching and strength training contact us at Sound Health Physicians. We can also help you develop a great cross training program that is fun and helpful!

Cheers,
Jim

Curr Sports Med Rep. 2007 Jun;6(3):200-6.

Training in the aging athlete.

Foster C, Wright G, Battista RA, Porcari JP.

Source

Department of Exercise and Sport Science, 133 Mitchell Hall, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, La Crosse, WI 54601, USA. foster.carl@uwlax.edu

Abstract

The number of healthy older individuals who are active in sports has increased significantly during the past generation. These individuals continue to perform at a high level, although there appears to be a loss in functional capacity that cannot be overcome by training. No accepted theory of aging exists, but older athletes may be limited primarily by the inability to maintain the same volume and intensity of training. Also, older athletes appear to respond more slowly to the same training load than do younger athletes. The principles of training in older athletes are similar to those in young athletes; however, additional days of recovery and cross training may be necessary to prevent orthopedic injuries. Strategies for maintaining exercise intensity, including resistance training, are advisable to prevent sarcopenia and selective loss of type II muscle fibers.

Smart app for your smartphone to help you lose weight

2012-01-21T11:56:00.000-08:00

The secret to any weight loss program is tracking your activity and your food intake. Smartphone technology has spawned many apps that help you do this task easily. Some are simple, like photographing everything you eat, to ones that track your steps and activity automatically.

One that I have been using for the last three months is MyFitnessPal an app that you can get on most smartphone platforms including iPhone, Android, and Blackberry. They also launched a new app for the iPad. If you have a FitBit then you can also integrate this easily into your MyFitnessPal account. The app is free, but if you don't have a smartphone, you can log into www.MyFitnessPal.com to sign-up and start tracking your food intake.

At the beginning of each day you have a total number of calories that you can eat. As you add the foods you eat the number goes down allowing you to track your total calorie intake for the day. It's not as fancy as other apps, but the list of foods is exhaustive and it is easy to add foods to your list. It also remembers the foods you have entered in a "my list" section.

If you are a "seasoned pro" when it comes to weight loss strategies or a beginner and you would like to shed some extra weight, I highly recommend that you give MyFitnessPal a shot. Give it two-months and I am sure you will agree that it works well.

To learn more about MyFitnessPal you can login to the website or read their blog.

We are moving soon!

2011-12-12T13:31:00.000-08:00

Sound Health Physicians has moved to a larger, moreconvenient location with plenty of free parking in Alderwood, across fromAlderwood Mall. Our new office is beautifuland spacious and has a shower in the dressing room so you can shower after yourenhanced physical exam or personal training session. While we are sad to leave our NorthwestHospital location, we are excited to be closer to many of our members’ homes aswell as the brand new Lynnwood recreation center. We are offering to members passes to theLynnwood recreation center which includes a fantastic swimming pool and walkingpool as well as the latest in cardio-equipment, weights and great classes.

18631 Alderwood Mall Parkway, Suite 304, Lynnwoood WA

Bellevue High School Water Polo 2011

2011-11-15T06:07:00.000-08:00

Food and Drug Administration recommends genetic testing

2011-07-31T13:41:00.000-07:00

Medication prescribing has become more and more difficult as more Americans consume myriad complicated medications. Genetic technology has made it possible that biomarkers for medication metabolism can be measured giving physicians clues as to medication dosing as well as medications that should be avoided in certain people.
Today, genetic testing can easily test for more than 1200 genetic conditions that may predispose one to a medication side effect. For example, the drugs Warfarin and Plavix are metabolized differently in different people. Simple genetic tests can determine who and how these medications should be dosed.
The price for genetic testing has dipped below $1000 for the first time earlier this year. The price will continue to follow to the point that very soon everyone will have the ability to have this testing done before expensive and possibly unsafe therapies are considered.
Personalized P4 Medicine is advancing at such a fast rate that physicians are unable to keep up with the technology. Physicians, however, need to make these tools available to their patients. Sound Health uses Existence Genetics to do this testing. The current cost of a battery of genetic tests runs $250. The entire genetic battery runs $750. So far, insurance companies are not covering the costs of these important tests. I believe that soon with pressure from both the health consumer and the science lobbies they will indeed pay for these tests as a matter of safety.
Please contact us if you are interested in the Existence Genetic test. We can give you an example copy of a report as well as our recommendations for testing.

Do credit scores drive you nuts?? Now they are trying Medication Compliance Scores!

2011-07-08T12:47:00.000-07:00

FICO, the credit score company is trying to break into the business of medication compliance by scoring people on their compliance with medications.

The New York Times reported in the June 20th issue that FICO is going to rate compliance with medications. This program was started after learning from research that 3 out of 4 people are not taking their medications appropriately and that this is causing 125,000 people to die each year because of medication non-compliance. The compliance scale ranges from 0-500. People with a score above 300 are considered to be compliant with their medications.

While this may be a good idea on paper, tracking medication usage is fraught with inaccuracies and inconsistent data (like the FICO credit score). Additionally, it adds another layer of complexity to healthcare and likely will increase the costs of healthcare as insurance companies will hire people to track these scores and make those with low compliance scores to either pay more for their health insurance or drop them for non-compliance. I am all for improving medication compliance; I am not happy that this program is a "stick" rather than a "carrot".

Medication treatment needs to be part of a team approach; the physician, pharmacist and especially the patient need to take a big role in choosing medication therapy. I am afraid that many people don't want to tell their doctor that they disagree with a medication therapy or perhaps they don't feel their doctor listens to concerns about medication. Furthermore, discussion to start a new medication is often in the hurried office and proper time is not given to discuss treatment alternatives, risks and benefits.

I entertain your thoughts on this issue.
-Jim

New guidelines on Vitamin D

2011-06-15T16:36:00.000-07:00

The Endocrine Society just announced new recommendations for the treatment and prevention of Vitamin D. A panel of experts looked at all of the research on Vitamin D and have determined that the current recommended daily amounts (RDA) are too low. The new recommendation is that healthy adults take 600 units per day if they are under 70 and 800 units per day for those over 70. For people who are obese, on corticosteroids or anti-fungal medications the Vitamin D recommendation is 6000-10,000 units per day!

The expert panel recommends that people in high risk groups (obese, African-American, Hispanic, on corticosteroid medications) be screened for Vitamin D deficiency with the 1,25-dihydroxy-Vitamin D test. The experts state that deficiency is under 20 ng/mL. I should mention that many others believe that deficiency is under 40 ng/mL.

I bet that this is not the last you will hear about Vitamin D levels and recommendations. For now if you wish to read the entire recommendation paper you can go to: www.acpinternist.org/weekly/archives/2011/6/14/index.html#1

Cheers!
Jim Bowers MD FACP

Want to know the secret about successful weight loss? Do this!

2011-05-25T09:45:00.000-07:00

I have looked at every diet program and infomercial on weight loss. It doesn't matter if it is a pill, potion, program, book, or sermon on weight loss. The answer is...keeping track. Yes, keep track of what you eat and your activity and you will, you will lose weight.
For the past 4 months, my friend, Kathleen and I have tried out Lose It! on the internet and on the iPhone. We individually signed-up and began keeping track of our exercise and food intake. We linked our accounts so we could keep track of our progress together.
I must say having someone checking up on me has really been helpful and I am proud to say that I've lost 4 pounds in my first few months.
Lose It! is a program free of a lot of adds and annoying emails that our "free" sites have. It also has a pretty thorough list of foods that are very easy to add to your log. I did have to add a few foods that aren't common, but I eat including some energy bars and sushi.
I hope that you are inspired to try Lose It! and connect with me on our mutual quest to become healthier!

You can get to the site by clicking: http://loseit.com

Cheers,
Jim

Sound Health P4 Medicine is more care for less money

2011-05-17T11:22:00.000-07:00

The link below will take you to an article that discusses changes already happening in healthcare and how average Americans are dealing with the changes. I don't know about you, but my current insurance demands a $3000 deductible; I am on the hook for the first $3000 of my healthcare each year!
I would love to have this plan with a health savings account where I can pay for my healthcare with this special account and use the incredible services at Sound Health Physicians:
Personal Physician available to me anytime
Personal Trainer to work with me on improving my overall fitness
Personal Dietician who will help me eat better and lose weight
Nurse Manager who will act as my "mom" and make sure I am keeping up with my health goals

http://nyti.ms/mga2GO

GINA protects your genetic information!

2011-04-22T12:39:00.000-07:00

This past week I learned about a law passed by a unanimous senate and nearly unanimous house of representatives in 2008 called "The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act" or GINA that protects Americans against discrimination based on their genetic information when it comes to health insurance and employment.

GINA prevents health insurers from obtaining and/or using genetic information for coverage, rates or pre-existing conditions. For employers, genetic information can't be used for hiring, firing or promotion decisions nor terms of employment.

The specifics of the law were fully enacted in May 2010 and include protections of genetic information up to 4th-degree relatives or prenatal genetic testing. GINA does not have protections for routine testing such as cholesterol testing.

It does not include provisions for life insurance, disability insurance or long-term insurance. GINA applies to companies with more than 15 employees. It does NOT prohibit health insurers from using genetic health test results in making insurance payment determinations.

To learn more check out www.genome.gov/24519851

Existence Genetics offers genome testing at $750!

2011-04-06T13:44:00.000-07:00

Exciting news sports fans! Existence Genetics (www.existencegenetics.com) just announced that they are now able to map an entire person's genome for $750.00. So far, they are able to give information on about 750 medical conditions.
I must say that I am speechless at the affordability of this test.
Compared to my $1500 charge for a limited MRI that I had on my left leg last year (didn't learn anything from this test) to learning about your entire DNA sequence for half the price...well, there is no comparison. The sample reports that I read on the website are easy to understand and they are very useful.
I suggest checking them out online.
Cheers to good health!
-Jim

P4 Medicine Practice

2011-03-29T13:54:00.000-07:00

This is my first post of I hope to be many in the upcoming weeks. Sound Health Physicians will open its doors by December 2011 with P4 Medicine. We hope that we are important contributors to this incredible revolution.

All of us are dedicated to prevention of disease through use of predictive genomic and proteomic tools to create a personalize, preventive plan that each member can use to fully participate in their best health!

I will continue to post updates here on our blog site as we move in on a clinic site and new practitioners. Let me know if you would like to be part of this exciting healthcare revolution.

Fondly,
Jim Bowers MD FACP