As part of American Heart Month, the American Heart Association has some wonderful tips to keeping you “heart healthy.”  Here are five goals to Healthy Eating.  If it seems overwhelming, just attempt to integrate one at a time.

1. Eat more fruits and vegetables. Aim for 4-5 servings each of fruits and vegetables every day, if you consume a 2,000 calorie diet. Vegetable or 100% fruit juice counts toward this goal.
2. Eat more whole-grain foods. Like fruits and vegetables, whole-grain foods are low in saturated fat and cholesterol and rich in fiber. Whole-grain foods include whole-wheat bread, rye bread, brown rice and whole-grain cereal.
3. Use olive, canola, corn or safflower oil as your main kitchen fat. Limit how much fat or oil you use in cooking, and use liquid vegetable oils such as olive, canola, corn and safflower oils in place of solid fats.
4. Eat more chicken, fish and beans than other meats. In general, skinless poultry, fish and vegetable protein (such as beans) are lower in saturated fat and cholesterol than other meats (beef, pork and lamb).
5. Read food labels to help you choose healthy foods. Food labels provide information to help you make better food choices. Learn what information to look for (for example, sodium content) and how to find it quickly and easily.

For more tips, please visit www.heart.org.

Anahad O’Connor recently wrote a blog in the New York Times about the correlation between excess weight and acne.  The following is an excerpt from his article:

Replenish Blood

Help your body function more efficiently by allowing it to replenish your blood supply regularly. Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center reports that when you donate blood, your body replaces the blood volume within 48 hours of donation, and all of the red blood cells you lose during donation are completely replaced within four to eight weeks. This process of replenishment can help your body stay healthy and work more efficiently and productively.
Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/96891-health-benefits-donating-blood/#ixzz1hNUL2t8o

Reduce Heart Attack Risk

Improve your cardiovascular health overall by donating blood. Florida Blood Services reports that regular blood donors who donate regularly over years have an 88 percent lower risk of heart attacks and a 33 percent lower risk of any severe cardiovascular event, such as a stroke.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/96891-health-benefits-donating-blood/#ixzz1hqemMSoj

Top Tips to Stay Healthy This Flu Season

Influenza viruses, commonly referred to as the flu, cause highly contagious respiratory illnesses with symptoms that range from mild discomfort to severe illness. Young children, the elderly, and those with health complications are especially at risk when it comes to complications related to the flu. This season, keep yourself and your family healthy by lowering the risk of coming down with the flu.

Consider the Flu Vaccine

The CDC recommends that everyone over the age of 6 months receives a flu vaccine.  High-risk individuals, such as teachers and health care workers, are especially advised to get vaccinated. The vaccine comes in the form of a quick injection or a nasal spray and is widely available during the flu season. Ask your health provider which vaccine is right for you and your family, and what the possible side effects may be.

Be Smart About Germs

You can lower your flu risk simply by preventing the spread of germs. While it’s more difficult to enforce preventative measures with young children, begin teaching good hand washing techniques as early as you can. Cough and sneeze into your elbow or into a tissue, throw tissues away when they’re used, and wash hands frequently. Keep travel bottles of hand sanitizer around for times when you can’t wash with soap and water.

Stay At Home If You’re Sick

Don’t be a hero. Familiarize yourself with flu symptoms such as fever, chills, sore throat, headache, fatigue and body aches. If you’ve got flu symptoms, stay at home. The CDC recommends staying home for at least 24 hours after a fever. This goes for your school-aged kids as well. Leave the house if you need to get medical attention, but otherwise, be good to yourself and get plenty of sleep and fluids.

Practice Healthy Habits

Adopt a healthy lifestyle and good habits as part of your daily routine. This means regular exercise, eating well, and getting enough sleep at night. Stay on top of stress and other factors that can influence your immune system and increase your likelihood of getting sick. Schedule routine checkups with your health care provider and ask for personalized advice on staying healthy year-round.

If you have further questions, you can learn more about flu prevention at Edward White Hospital. Need a physician referral? Just call our Consult-A-Nurse service at 1-888-243-3627.

At Edward White Hospital we are proud to offer a 162-bed acute care facility for patients in and around St. Petersburg. However, did you know that we also offer a skilled nursing unit onsite? This facility offers short-term, in-house rehabilitative nursing care for general patients, as well as those who have just undergone orthopedic and other surgeries. This unit has 30 beds, which include 4 private rooms and 13 semi-private rooms, and an activity center. The average stay for most patients is 10 to 14 days.

In our skilled nursing unit, patients receive rehabilitation therapy that helps them increase range of motion, endurance, strength, and coordination. Our daily activities help patients regain social and personal independence. The goal is to prepare patients for discharge and their transition back into their homes. In addition, our skilled nursing unit offers referrals for patients needing podiatry, ophthalmology/optometry, and dental care.

This unit is staffed by a director, LPNs, RNs and other nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, an activities coordinator, a registered dietician, an MDS (minimum data set) coordinator, and other medical professionals. This team is committed to helping patients recover from medical procedures and conditions, and successfully get back to their lives.

For more information, please contact Edward White Hospital. Visit us online or call Consult-A-Nurse® at 1-888-243-3627 for answers to questions and physician referrals.

Source:

Edward White Hospital

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Nurses Make All the Difference

Maybe you have a weird ache in your left shoulder, and you’re not sure what it is. Or maybe you have noticed a new freckle—or is that a mole?—and you’re worried about it.

When you have concerns like these, iTriage is a remarkable resource for you. When you log on, you will see a diagram of the human body and you can click on the body part that is affected or you can search a list of the symptoms you are experiencing. Then you will be directed to a list of possible causes.

You can also search an alphabetical list of diseases. Each disease listing offers a description of the condition, what the symptoms are, what tests may be necessary for diagnosis, and what treatment is available. The listing may also include helpful photos and videos.

At iTriage, you can learn about a variety of common procedures. You will find a description about what to expect, along with the average cost of the procedure and common side effects.

Have questions about a medication? You’ll find those answers at iTriage, too. The site offers information about what the medication is for, what the dosage should be, and what special instructions you should follow.

What if you read about your symptoms and then need a physician to talk to? You can find a provider at iTriage, just by typing in a location, name, or type of doctor you need.

Not near a computer? No problem! You can also use the iTriage app on your smartphone. Wherever you are, iTriage offers a wealth of health information, right at your fingertips.

For more information, you can also check out the Health Library at Edward White Hospital. There, you will find lists of conditions and procedures, wellness tips, and the latest health news.

Sources:

iTriage

Health Library at Edward White Hospital

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Travel Health & Safety Tips

Staying Safe in Hot Weather

As Americans, we are great at planning ahead. We spend our lives planning for our retirement, we buy life insurance to plan to protect our families just “in case,” and we purchase health insurance to plan for the unforeseeable occurrence of injury or illness. Yet, how many of our have ever taken time to sit down and evaluate our lifestyles and “plan” to avoid stroke or other health complications?

While a stroke can happen to anyone, studies have proven that up to 80% of strokes are preventable. It is important to be aware of your personal risk. It is also critical to practice preventative habits to avoid the future complication of stroke before you need to fall back on one of those other plans.

• Know your blood pressure. High blood pressure, left untreated, is a major risk factor for stroke. Your blood pressure should be checked annually.

• Control your cholesterol. Know your cholesterol level and seek the advice of a doctor if it exceeds 200, as high cholesterol levels can clog arties, causing stroke.

• Manage diabetes. Diabetes sufferers also have many of the health complications that can increase risk of stroke.

• Do a lifestyle check. Healthy diet and exercise habits will go a long way toward preventing stroke. You should strive to exercise for 30 minutes a day most days of the week and eat a diet low in fat.

• Kick the habit. Cigarette smokers are twice as likely to experience a stroke, as the smoke damages the walls of your blood vessels and increases the likelihood of clogged arteries and high blood pressure.

• Establish whether you have atrial fibrillation. Left untreated, this abnormal heartbeat can increase your risk of stroke by up to 500%.

• Avoid excess alcohol. Decrease your risk by avoiding alcohol or drinking in moderation.

• Treat circulation issues. It’s important to treat any circulation problems, as any fatty deposits could potentially clog an artery and prevent blood for reaching the brain.

If you suspect someone is having a stroke:

1. Call 911 immediately.
2. Perform resuscitation breathing if necessary.
3. Make the person comfortable, loosening clothing and turning the head slightly to the side in case vomiting occurs.
4. Do not offer food, drink or aspirin, as the person could begin to have difficulty swallowing. Aspirin could also cause an episode to intensify, depending upon the type of stroke.
5. Reduce the effects of headache and inflammatory stroke reaction by placing ice packs or frozen vegetables around the head while likewise covering the individual’s body in blankets to prevent shock.

To learn more about stroke prevention and treatment, contact the Stroke Center at Edward White Hospital. Visit us online or call Consult-A-Nurse® at 1-888-243-3627 for a physician referral.

Sources:

Edward White Hospital Health Library

National Stroke Association

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

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If you want to live a healthy lifestyle, don’t go it alone! Support from like-minded people can go a long way in helping you meet your fitness and nutrition goals.

If you would like to be part of a fun group of people who want to stay active and well, join Health to You (H2U) at Edward White Hospital.

As a member of H2U, you will have access to a wide variety of benefits and resources that support your well-being. You can enjoy local events while also utilizing national information.

Individuals can join for just $20 a year, and couples can join for $35 a year. For that small fee, you will experience these and other benefits:

· A national health magazine that is produced quarterly and delivered to your home

· Discounts on dental and vision plans, as well prescription drugs

· The use of a confidential online personal health assessment and wellness report

· Current health information from leading publications that is customized and emailed to you

· A health reminder system tailored just for you, helping you stay on track with preventive screenings and periodic exams

· The use of an extensive library of medical content, including videos and a medical research

· Invitations to hospital-sponsored activities

To learn more about H2U, visit the national website or learn more from Edward White Hospital. Serving St. Petersburg and all of Tampa Bay, we want to help keep you healthy.

Sources:

Health to You

Edward White Hospital

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Staying Healthy in Your 60s and 70s

By Wayne Guerra, MD, MBA at iTriage

Recently the rapid death of a 23 yr old woman in Fort Collins, CO from sepsis which the media originally reported as bacterial meningitis has sparked lots of confusion between the two conditions. Yesterday we posted the signs and symptoms of sepsis in our continuing Countdown to Flu 2010 blog series. Today we would like to specifically target the differences between meningitis and sepsis. Here is some of the information available for meningitis on iTriage (available as an iPhone, Android and Palm application, or on any web-enabled device at http://www.iTriageHealth.com).

Want to keep reading? Visit itriagehealth.com!

By Suzy Buglewicz, at www.itriagehealth.com

Keeping kids healthy and safe is a priority for parents, but the inevitable bumps, bruises and sore throats are part of growing up. Fortunately, parents can make an unpleasant experience a little easier to bear with a few time-tested tricks. Below are tips for treating some of the most common and non-life threatening childhood ailments.

Want to keep reading? Visit iTriage!