Category: Health

These posts cover all sorts of topics related to health and wellness. For tips and tricks to stay healthy or improve your health, check out these posts!

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Health

Is Diabetes Genetic? Here Are the Facts to Know

Diabetes generally runs in families. That makes a lot of people wonder – is diabetes genetic? Gain clarity on this subject by reading on.

There is no right and wrong answer to the question above as other factors such as diet, lifestyle, and overall environment also play a major role in whether you will get diabetes or not. For most people who have diabetes, it is caused due to a combination of environmental and genetic factors.

November – Diabetes Awareness Month

November is known as National Diabetes Month. It is a time when communities across the country come together to bring attention to diabetes. The focus this year is prediabetes and steps one can take to prevent the disease.

Prediabetes is a serious health condition that is indicated by higher blood sugar levels (not high enough to indicate diabetes 2). As per a report published by CDC, 1 in every 3 US adults is struggling with prediabetes. The majority of the people go about their everyday lives without realizing that they have it. With the right information and a few lifestyle changes, it is possible to reverse prediabetes and prevent type 2 diabetes.

Family History and Risk Factors Related to Type 1, 2, and Gestational Diabetes

The role of genes in diabetes is linked with the type of diabetes. Here is some insight:

Type 1 Diabetes

When your natural immune system destroys the cells in the pancreas that are responsible for making insulin, it is termed Type 1 diabetes. People with type 1 diabetes have to inject insulin to replace the natural production of insulin in their bodies. Type 1 diabetes affects nearly 5 percent of individuals and usually appears in childhood or early adulthood. Autoantibodies that attack the insulin-producing cells can be detected years before Type 1 Diabetes is diagnosed.

This is found to be more common in ethnic groups. Research shows that individuals who have a family history of type 1 diabetes might be predisposed to developing it. The inheritance pattern is still unclear at this point. Nutritional infancy might also play an important role in diabetes type 1.

Type 2 Diabetes

This particular type of diabetes is caused when your body fails to produce insulin properly. In the case of diabetes type 2, your body is still producing insulin, but it isn’t enough to keep the blood glucose at normal levels. About 90 to 95 percent of diabetic patients are impacted with type 2 diabetes. It is most common in people who are 45 years of age or above.

One of the major factors that lead to type 2 diabetes is being overweight or obese. Anyone with a BMI of 25 or above is at a higher risk. Cardiovascular diseases, depression, PCOS are also associated with type 2 diabetes.

While obesity and other factors play an important role, type 2 diabetes is also caused by genetics. If you know someone with type 2 diabetes, chances are they have some people in their family struggling with the same condition. The disease is not caused by genetic variation alone. Diet, lifestyle, and exercise also play very important roles.

Gestational Diabetes

During pregnancy, women can develop a certain level of insulin resistance to ensure enough glucose is being provided to the fetus. This phenomenon is termed gestational diabetes. With that being said, most women will not develop the condition. The women who do develop gestational diabetes have at least one close family member who has had gestational diabetes. Other factors such as diet, exercise, and other lifestyle factors also come into play.

Primarily the condition is caused due to high blood pressure, which is fairly common in pregnancy. With the maternal age increasing, gestational diabetes impacts nearly 14 percent of all pregnant women.

Is Genetic Testing Useful?

This question has remained a mystery for so many years. Let’s dissect why? Genetic mutations impact the function of a protein that is responsible for the production of insulin. Genetic testing is able to identify this mutation in certain cases. The information provided from the test is rarely useful and depends on the fact that whether the patient is dealing with monogenic or polygenic diabetes.

Monogenic Diabetes

Nearly 4 percent of diabetic patients have monogenic diabetes, which results from the mutation of a single gene. It is easy to pinpoint and can be tested for one single gene. The two most common monogenic diabetes forms are MODY and NDM.

Polygenic Diabetes

Most people struggling with type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes are polygenic, meaning that multiple genes are involved. Hence, the effectiveness of genetic testing is quite limited. You won’t be able to see if you have a chance of developing a disease or not.

Preventing Diabetes

Now that we have learned that genes and lifestyle factors play a fairly crucial role in diabetes, we can control the lifestyle aspect. Here are a few tips that can help prevent diabetes:

  • Try to eliminate unnatural sugars and white carbs from your diet. Replace them with healthy alternatives. These days you can find a healthy option for nearly anything.
  • Exercise regularly. You don’t have to hit the gym every day. Walk, jog, play sports, dance, or do any form of activity that you enjoy.
  • Choose water over other drinks every single time and say no to juices, sodas, alcohol, etc.
  • Keep your weight in check. You don’t have to be model thin but staying within your healthy BMI range always helps.
  • Quit smoking as it is generally bad for your health and can certainly play a role in diabetes and other diseases.
  • Eat everything but in moderation and watch your portion sizes. Eat small frequent meals throughout the day.
  • Say no to sedentary behaviors. Take stairs instead of the elevator, walk during your work breaks, try to do the house chores by yourself, etc.
  • Focus on eating a high-fiber diet.
  • Get regular checkups and do not skip them.

Final Takeaway

Diabetes is oftentimes a mix of genes and a bad lifestyle. By leading a healthy lifestyle, the risk can be greatly minimized. Once you are diagnosed with diabetes, it is important to listen to your doctor and take all your meds on time to lead a healthy life. This can include taking the best supplements.

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Health

National Pharmacy Buyer Day 2021 – The Value of This Recognition

What is National Pharmacy Buyer Day? It’s a day to recognize those who handle medications and pharmacy needs – a crucial responsibility. Read on.

National Pharmacy Buyer Day is held on the Friday in the last full week of October. This year it will be celebrated on October 29, 2021, to honor people who have been managing changing inventory of pharmacies for years across the U.S. We all like our pharmacy shelves to be stocked with the right drugs at all times. Hence, it is important to celebrate National Pharmacy Buyer Day to acknowledge the people who work tirelessly to do so.

History of National Pharmacy Buyer Day

Let’s dial backward and look into the history of National Pharmacy Buyer Day. Pharmacies have been around ever since humans start using medications. The first pharmaceutical science evidence dates back to 2100 B.C. When it comes to a recorded compilation, an ancient Indian Ayurvedic test from the 6th century B.C. takes the credit. Various Chinese, Egyptian, and Greek versions of pharmacies have been recorded. In the ancient Middle East, the study of botany and chemistry grew at a swift pace that led to medieval Islamic medicine that led to pharmacology. Many physicians, alchemists, and others have spent their time and energy in what we know as the pharmaceutical industry.

Pharmacies began to emerge as tiny shops across England by the 12th century. Believe it or not, some of those pharmacies are still operational today. During this period, pharmacies and medicines were cleaved into two practices; Emperor of Germany and King of Sicily, Frederick II. As the pharmacy practice evolved with the industrial revolution, it became a mass-produced industry that gave rise to pre-packaged medication. The technology created in the 16th century paved the way for the biggest era; the 20th century.

Pharmacy buyers today are a specialized subset of medical professionals that perform the complex dual-toned role for the medical community. They stock the shelves with the drugs, manage costs for pharmacies and larger clinics as well as check expiration dates. Their role comes with a huge responsibility and requires extensive knowledge of medicine and accounts management.

Owing to this responsibility, the former pharmacy buyer Beth Meese came up with the idea of celebrating these amazing fellow pharmacy buyers that deserved all the recognition and respect in the world. Beth initially worked at the Provena United Samaritan Medical Center in Danville, Illinois, as a Pharmacy Purchasing Agent.

Today, she works as the Service Excellence Liaison at the same hospital. She got this idea of dedicating a day to the celebration of pharmacy buyers in the year 2005. Two years later, the National Pharmacy Purchasing Association (NPPA) took her suggestion and made it into an entire movement. Since then, it has been celebrated as a national day in the U.S.

How Should I Celebrate the National Pharmacy Buyer Day?

Wondering how you can appreciate pharmacy buyers and recognize them? Follow these simple steps:

Petition to Recognize National Pharmacy Buyer Day

It is important to make it official. Get your hands on a copy of the NPPA’s Pharmacy Buyer Day Proclamation form, and send it to your mayor to recognize this day officially.  This is not it. Follow up on your petition as often as you can.

Educate Yourself and Attend Workshops

You cannot celebrate a day without learning about it. Check-in with your local pharmacies or visit official websites of pharmacies and see if there is a workshop nearby that is done to raise awareness.

Attend a Career Fair

If you are interested in becoming a pharmacy buyer, it is best to walk into a career fair to educate yourself about the process. It is important to be aware of the career path as well as the job prospects in your own city. You can always take help from a career adviser or someone from the industry to guide you through the process.

Five Fun and Important Facts about Pharmacy

Here are the top fun facts about pharmacy:

Agatha Christie Used Pharmacy Experience to Write Mysteries

Agatha Christie was not only a pharmacy physician but also an English writer. She volunteered as a nurse during the World Wars and combined the two experiences to write her famous mysteries.

A Pharmacist invented Coca-Cola

Yes, you heard me correct. We all drink Coca-Cola or at least know about it. Initially, it was created as a treatment for most ailments (kind of ironic) but was later sold as a fountain drink.

Pharmacists Invented a Lot of Things (Iconic Things)

Charles Alderton created a syrup that smelled like a drugstore and ended up Dr. Pepper. Similarly, Pepsi was also created by a pharmacist who wished to replicate the success of Coca-Cola.

Medicine Can Get Expensive

Myalept is a drug that costs $71,306 for treating a rare disease called ‘generalized lipodystrophy,’ One single vial of the drug costs $5,000.

A Bit about Pharmacy License

Initially, it wasn’t necessary for pharmacists to get a license. This was changed later when Louisiana became the first U.S. state that required it.

Importance of National Pharmacy Buyer Day Is Important

Learning about Profession

It is important to celebrate this day to raise awareness about the profession. The right knowledge makes people feel grateful for when they get the right medication at the right time.

Give Recognition to Pharmacy Buyers

Pharmacy buyers are truly the hidden heroes of the medical profession. A day dedicated to them ensures that their contributions are not overlooked.

Pharmacy Buyers are Incredibly Important to Our Health

Pharmacies serve as the first healthcare provider for a lot of us. The buyers stock up the pharmacies, which allows us to get the medications timely. If the medications are not in stock, it affects us badly.

Final Takeaway

We hope that you learned about National Pharmacy Buyer day and the importance of celebrating it. We tried to include some interesting facts to keep you all entertained. It is very important to celebrate those people who work tirelessly in the health industry to ensure we get the medications when we need them.

If it wasn’t for these heroes, our health would be at stake.  So, appreciate the pharmacy buyers around you!

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Health

What Are the Most Effective Muscle Recovery Supplements?

A good workout isn’t complete until you care for your body afterward. Learn about these effective muscle recovery supplements.

If you have just started your fitness journey or working towards a very specific goal, it is important to understand that muscle recovery is critical. You need to ensure that your muscles are healing properly from workouts. This is what gives them strength. Working out day after day will have an opposite effect on strength and can lead to overtraining syndrome.

The first thing you need to do is avoid working out the same muscle groups consecutively and give at least a day’s break in between. For instance, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays can be leg days. Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays could be reserved for upper body and core strengthening exercises. And, everyone needs a Sunday off.

The next thing you have to do is to consume a healthy, nutrient-rich diet and high-quality muscle recovery supplements. These supplements allow your muscles to heal effectively and enable you to get the most out of your workouts.

Without further ado, let’s look at the best muscle recovery supplements:

Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs)

They are undoubtedly one of the most popular workout supplements. Trainers recommend it to their clients all the time. The reason behind this is that these supplements contain a trio of key amino acids; isoleucine, leucine, and valine. These amino acids are naturally produced by the human body but some of them are lost during exercise. Hence, popping one tablet right before/after working out will help you significantly with muscle recovery.

Proteins

While protein isn’t the first thing that comes to your mind with the word supplement, it is one of the essential macronutrients for building muscles over time. Most people like to consume protein just before working out. While there is nothing wrong with it, experts suggest taking a protein supplement right after you are done with the workout. It helps people keep fuller for longer and minimize cortisol levels. It is advised to consume at least 15 to 20g of proteins immediately after exercise. Whey protein, vegan protein, and paleo protein are the most popular options out there.

Creatine

If you are a gym buddy, you might be familiar with creatine as it helps you to maintain energy during workouts. This is a naturally occurring substance that helps your muscles to power through but producing ATP/energy. What you probably don’t know is that it helps with the post-workout recovery. It helps boost the recovery at cellular levels and also improves strength output.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids

Aches and pains are a normal part of a new workout routine. Omega 3 fatty acids help minimize inflammation and improve overall heart health. It helps with muscle soreness and bone repair. Moreover, workout-related injuries will be greatly reduced by consuming the supplement regularly. Omega 3s support the flow of blood and oxygen to the muscles that improve the range of motion. Omega 3 Fatty Acids also reduces joint soreness.

Fish Oils

Fish oils contain very powerful anti-inflammatory compounds such as EPA. They are proven to reduce joint pain, stiffness, and tenderness. They are known to speed up recovery, help with muscle soreness and minimize pain. It also helps with distinct muscle pain and stiffness that typically arise 48 hours after working out and are referred to as DOMS. Taking these supplements, combined with loads of water and an adequate rest period will help you heal and recover faster after a workout.

Glucosamine and Chondroitin

These two are natural compounds, typically found in cartilage. It helps you avoid any injuries related to work out and kick starts the post-exercise muscle recovery. You cannot consume enough glucosamine or chondroitin from your regular diet. That is why trainers recommend Glucosamine and Chondroitin supplements.

Electrolytes

Electrolytes refer to minerals such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium. These electrolytes are lost through sweat during workout sessions. The depleting electrolyte levels lead to muscle cramping and make you feel wobbly. Hence, it is advised to use electrolytes either before or after the supplements to get the best results.

Magnesium

If you find it difficult to sleep through the night of the intense workout, magnesium is your best friend. It helps speed up muscle recovery, improve muscle function, maintain electrolyte balance, minimize fatigue and help you sleep. Without enough magnesium, you are bound to get muscle cramps and spasms. Magnesium can also be added to your baths. The combination of warm water combined with magnesium will allow your muscles to relax and minimize soreness.

Cherry Juice Concentrate

This supplement has gained a lot of popularity in recent times. A study was carried out in the year 2010 which stated the runners who were given cherry juice concentrate for five days prior to the marathon, the day of the marathon, and the day after had significantly less damaged muscles. They had lower inflammation and regained their strength quickly as compared to those who didn’t consume the concentrate. It is rich in antioxidants, flavonoids, and anthocyanins. Moreover, the cherries also contain melatonin that improves the quality of sleep and helps people heal faster.

Choosing the Right Supplement

Not all supplements are created equal!

Now, that you are well aware of the supplements that will help you recover faster after a workout, you should learn the importance of choosing the right kind. The healthy industry is flooded with all different kinds of brand names. Make sure you are choosing the one that is clean and not full of preservatives. You can always ask a health coach or a nutritionist to recommend you. Pharmacists can also help you find the right supplements for your particular needs.

Final Takeaway

It is crucial to prioritize your recovery if you wish to get the most out of your workouts. Getting fit is more than selecting the right exercise and diet. Warming up the muscles prior to working out and stretching the muscles post work out is critical for recovery. Incorporating a good supplement into your diet also helps immensely.

Best of luck with your fitness journey!

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Signs and Symptoms of Vitamin Deficiency (and How to Address Them)

Even with the right diet and lifestyle, you may find yourself not getting enough of certain vitamins. What are the symptoms of vitamin deficiency and how can you address them?

Vitamins are an important part of our health and fitness especially when we are not eating a healthy diet. Most of us are not too particular about what goes into our bellies and as a result, we are deficient in vitamins that leads to plenty of health issues. If that’s the case, it’s time to consult a healthcare professional and get everything sorted. But first, you need to look at some of the symptoms of vitamin deficiency.

Symptoms of Vitamin Deficiency

If you are not receiving enough vitamins, you will begin to notice a few signs and symptoms of vitamin deficiency. Without further ado, let’s get started:

  • Constant, unexplainable fatigue throughout the day despite taking sufficient rest and eating.
  • You experience shortness of breath even when you move a little bit.
  • Feeling lightheaded throughout the day without any apparent reason.
  • You have pale and yellowish skin despite eating enough throughout the day.
  • Irregular heartbeats are one of the most obvious symptoms of vitamin deficiency.
  • Weight loss without diet or exercise or trying to lose weight.
  • Numbness or tingling sensation in hands and feet.
  • Muscle spasms are also a common indicator that your body is lacking essential nutrients.
  • Mood changes and swings without any apparent reason.
  • Unsteady movements are an uncommon sign of vitamin deficiency but some people do experience it.
  • Brain fog, confusion, and forgetfulness are your body’s way of telling you that you lack important vitamins.

Symptoms of Vitamin Deficiency & How to Solve Them

Now that you have a clear idea of general symptoms, let’s dissect the symptoms based on specific vitamins so you can get to the root cause.

Symptom: Unpleasant Changes in Hair, Skin and Nails

Vitamin B

I am sure we all have experienced these symptoms at one point or another in our lifetime. Most people jump to the beauty store to stock up on skin and hair care products but rarely pay attention to their inner health. If you are shedding hair, noticing cracked and broken nails, or notice that your skin looks dull or flaky, signs are you are deficient in Vitamin B7, aka biotin.

The best way is to include more biotin-rich foods in your diet such as egg yolk, fish, coconut oil, dairy, bananas, cauliflower, and blueberries. You can also visit a pharmacy and get your hands on some high-quality biotin supplements.

Symptom: Muscle Cramps

Magnesium, Potassium, Calcium and Vitamin B

If you experience painful and unexplainable muscle cramps, you may be deficient in:

  • Magnesium
  • Potassium
  • Calcium
  • B vitamins

Make sure that you are keeping yourself hydrated in addition to consuming these vitamins.

It is a good idea to include plenty of leafy green veggies in your diet. Fruits like apples and grapefruit are also great to snack options to have throughout the day. If you cannot pay close attention to your diet, it is advised to visit a pharmacy and get your hands on b complex vitamins along with calcium, potassium, and magnesium supplements.

Symptom: Tingling Sensation and Numbness

Iron, B6, B12 and Folate

A lot of young people experience tinkling and prickly sensations in their hands and feet. These are neurological symptoms that can be caused by deficiency of one of the following vitamins:

  • Iron
  • B6
  • B12
  • Folate

If you constantly move your leg while sitting and standing, you might as well get your iron levels checked. Iron deficiency often causes Restless Leg Syndrome.

Eating red meats, eggs, and dark leafy green vegetables is the best way to fuel your body properly. On the other hand, a combination of iron and b-complex vitamins will do the trick.

Symptom: White or Red Bumps on the Skin

Vitamin’s A, C, and D

If you experience tiny white and red bumps on your skin (mainly on the back of your arms, cheeks, butt, thighs, or legs), you may be dealing with a deficiency of:

  • Vitamin A
  • Vitamin D
  • Vitamin C

This condition is called keratosis pilaris. Sometimes, genetics or lacking essential fatty acids may cause these symptoms as well.

You can deal with this problem by consuming fatty acids, Vitamin D, C, and A-rich foods or applying topical creams. Carrots, sweet potatoes, nuts, bell peppers, fatty fish, and seeds are a great way to nourish your body. Incorporating all these foods into your diet regularly can be quite tough. Hence, it is advised to visit a pharmacy and get your hands on oral vitamins and topical creams to treat your problem.

Symptom: Poor Night Vision

Vitamin A

If you are experiencing vision problems, especially the condition night blindness, you might be low on vitamin A. It is an essential vitamin to produce rhodopsin which is a pigment in the eye that helps you see in the night. This is a serious condition that can lead to blindness when left untreated.

It can also sometimes cause foamy, white growth in the white part of your eye. The first step is to visit a pharmacist or a health care professional to treat the underlying symptoms of vitamin deficiency and then proceed with further treatments. In this case, a good diet is not enough, you will need to consume a vitamin A supplement.

Symptom: Mouth Ulcers

Vitamin B

Mouth sores and ulcers are yet another very common condition and are often caused by Vitamin B deficiency. Adding a b complex vitamin to your diet will do the job when combined with a healthy balanced diet and lots of hydration. Fish, eggs, beans, legumes, starchy vegetables, and nuts will also play the part.

I am Noticing the Signs, What Next?

If you are noticing some of the signs from the list in your body, skin, hair, or nails, it’s time to have a close look at your diet and lifestyle habits. You are what you eat. It is crucial to eat healthy regularly. The next step is to visit a pharmacy and speak with an expert pharmacist on which vitamins will suit you best. A combination of nutritious foods and vitamins will fix all your problems and the symptoms you experience will be a thing of the past.

Final Thoughts

We live in a fast-paced world, and we often neglect the needs of our bodies. If you are facing certain health issues, it is important to take a health care professional on board and make healthy eating, exercising, and taking vitamins a lifestyle.

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Are Statins Bad For You? Your Guide to Cholesterol Medication

Cholesterol is naturally built by the body, but too much cholesterol can cause negative reactions in the body. Statins can help reduce the amount of cholesterol, but are statins bad for you?

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports 55%, or 43 million, Americans could benefit from taking cholesterol medicine. High cholesterol can lead to heart disease, which is the leading cause of death.

Cholesterol is used by the body to build cells and make vitamins. The liver makes it. Other cholesterol comes from foods like meat and dairy products. If the foods you eat are high in fat, the liver produces even more cholesterol. Higher levels of cholesterol in the body are not good.

Cholesterol circulates in the blood. Too much of it will start to build up in the arteries. The more buildup, the less freely blood can flow to your major organs.

The food you eat is not the only contributor to cholesterol levels in the body. Genetics plays a significant role. For some, changing diet and increasing exercise may not reduce the risk of cholesterol problems. In either case, treatment is needed.

Statins are the most common medicines prescribed to regulate cholesterol.

What Are Statins?

There are over 35 million Americans with a statin prescription. As mentioned, the liver makes enough cholesterol for the body. Statins work by limiting the amount of cholesterol liver enzymes can create. They are also known to:

  • Act as an anti-inflammatory
  • Prevent existing plaque from growing
  • Reduce platelet activity
  • Reduce cholesterol oxidation so it can’t build up on the walls of the arteries

Statins have helped many people avoid major heart-related problems by keeping cholesterol levels low.

Who Benefits From Statins?

There are certain groups of people who may benefit more from the use of statins than others. This includes people who already have heart disease. Further, people aged 40 or higher with Type 2 diabetes or have a ten-year risk of heart disease of 7.5 or higher. This is based on the results a risk calculator provides when the doctor enters information regarding your health history. Examples include a family history of high cholesterol, diet, and fitness regimen.

Your doctor must also consider factors that would make you a bad candidate for taking statins, like are you at greater risk for side effects.

Side Effects of Statins

Common statin side effects include muscle aches, weakness, and pain. Some people may feel:

  • Cramps
  • Stiffness
  • Joint or bone pain
  • Digestive problems
  • Sexual dysfunction
  • Memory problems
  • Become easily fatigued

Side effects may appear more frequently in people who have low muscle mass, thyroid disease, and low vitamin D levels.

Increased chance of getting Type 2 diabetes, liver problems, rhabdomyolysis is rare but still possible.

Statin Interactions

It’s always a good idea to talk to your pharmacist before taking statins. Your pharmacist can discuss which medicines and foods may interact with statins. Reports show grapefruit juice, antacids, antibiotics, fibrates, warfarin, and some high blood pressure medications may increase the chances of interaction.

In addition, there are some antidepressants, oral contraceptives, and over-the-counter acid reflux medicines that may produce interactions.

Common Statins

Cholesterol medicines come in both generic and brand names. The list includes:

  • Atorvastatin (Lipitor)
  • Fluvastatin (Lescol, Lescol XL)
  • Lovastatin (Mevacor, Altoprev)
  • Pravastatin (Pravachol)
  • Rosuvastatin (Crestor)
  • Simvastatin (Zocor)
  • Pitavastatin (Livalo)

These statin medicines are mass-produced and designed as a one-size-fits-all type of drug. The only thing that can be altered is the dose. That means everyone prescribed statins is taking one of three or four-dose options.

There is a better way to getting a better statin. Your pharmacist can create compounded statins.

What Are Compounded Statins?

Compounding is a process in which your pharmacist creates a statin from scratch using a specific recipe. Ingredients used to create your statin are based on your needs. If you have allergies to particular components, they are left out.

If you need to combine two types of statins, your pharmacist can create one medicine that includes both drugs.

A compounding pharmacy gives you options. You can choose a pill, tablet, or liquid version. You can add flavoring and color. Compounding makes you the priority, not the drug.

Your pharmacist will also be able to educate you on alternatives to statins.

Alternative Medicines to Lower Cholesterol

The FDA has approved non-statin medicines and foods to help lower cholesterol, and some of them have been around a lot longer than the statins prescribed today. For example, bile acid-binding resins, PCSK9 inhibitors, red yeast rice, and fish oil.

Other options include fibric acids and niacin. Also, foods high in soluble fiber, including legumes, avocados, broccoli, fruits, vegetables, fish, nuts, and whole grains.

Your compounding pharmacist can create herbal remedies that benefit cholesterol levels. They can even combine herbals to provide additional benefits like boosting the immune system or raising vitamin D levels.

Your local pharmacist can provide you with additional tips and ideas on how to lower cholesterol levels.

Tips for Lowering Cholesterol

Diet and exercise play a crucial role in lowering cholesterol. Tips your pharmacist may recommend include reduce saturated fats, avoid trans fats, add whey protein, and increase fiber. Increasing exercise provides benefits far beyond reducing cholesterol levels.

You can quickly see positive results with just thirty minutes of exercise a few days a week. Make exercise fun by doing things you enjoy. Play a sport you enjoyed in elementary school, ride a bike, jump on a mini trampoline, go swimming.

Lifestyle changes you can make to lower cholesterol stopping unhealthy habits. If you smoke, quit. If you need help, ask your pharmacist to recommend products to help you quit, and if you drink alcohol, limit how much you consume.

Learn to stress less and laugh more.

Final Thoughts on Statins

The answer to whether statins are harmful is not a simple yes or no answer. For some, statins are a lifesaver. For others, they can cause discomfort. To get the answer to whether statins are bad or good for you, consult with your pharmacist and physician.

Please provide them with enough information that they can make an accurate determination. Together, you can develop the right plan for reducing your cholesterol levels.

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Health

How to Treat and Manage an Arthritis Flare-Up

It’s Arthritis Awareness Month! This month, Burt’s Pharmacy and Compounding Lab will discuss different ways to treat and manage an arthritis flare-up.

This Arthritis Awareness Month, it is essential to spread the word about arthritis. While there are nearly 55 million Americans diagnosed with arthritis, there are even more people out there without a diagnosis, suffering from symptoms they don’t understand.

This is especially true when painful symptoms come and go without warning. When the symptoms get worse and limit your mobility, you are having an arthritis flare-up. Understanding flare-ups will help you figure out how to treat them.

Let’s start by defining arthritis flare-ups.

What Is An Arthritis Flare-Up?

No matter what type of arthritis you have, a flare-up can happen, and it can last for days or weeks. Flare-ups are due to inflammation and can be very painful and have symptoms of swelling, pain, and stiffness in the joints. You may also experience fevers, and many people report feeling overwhelming fatigue.

During a flare-up, the medicines that typically work do not have the same positive effect. No matter what you try, nothing seems to help.

What you may not know is that there are specific things that can trigger an arthritis flare-up. If you can figure out your triggers, you can work with your pharmacist and physician to develop a treatment plan that works.

Potential Arthritis Flare-Up Triggers

Triggers are related to anything that causes inflammation in the body. Yes, that’s a broad answer, but there are numerous culprits you encounter every day. Let’s try to narrow down the trigger list as much as possible.

Every person is different, even when it comes to arthritis flare-ups. Factors like age, gender, weight, and activity level are factors to consider when studying triggers. There are common flare-ups, however, including overdoing it.

When you push yourself past your physical limits while participating in an activity, you may cause a flare-up. Your joints may feel good at the moment, but as you slow down, inflammation can set in. Another trigger is when the joint has been hit or traumatized. If you have ever accidentally bumped your knee on the coffee table or fallen, using your hands or knees to catch you, then you know the pain that can follow.

Other triggers can include:

  • Bone spurs
  • Weight gain
  • Colder weather
  • Stress
  • Infections

Furthermore, allergies, diet, drinking alcohol, smoking, and certain medications can contribute to inflammation in your joints.

There are many viable ways to treat an arthritis flare-up. The first step is figuring out your triggers.

Managing Flare-Ups

Once you know the causes of your flare-ups, you can start implementing actions to prevent them when possible and treat them successfully all the other times.

One treatment is with the use of compounded medication.

1. Compounded Medication

When medicine is compounded, it is made from scratch by your pharmacist. The medication is created with ingredients with only you in mind, unlike the mass-produced pharmaceutical manufacturing drugs by large pharmaceutical companies.

Mass-produced medicines are created with the idea that one pill can treat all people, despite the many physical and psychological differences.

Compounding pharmacists understand mass-produced drugs are not suitable for everyone and can create more problems through side effects and interactions.

Ask your pharmacist to create a topical pain cream to treat your symptoms, considering any allergies and other medicines you are taking.

2. Mobility Devices

When you have arthritis, movement can be limited or even severely impaired, depending on the amount of inflammation at the time of a flare-up. You can’t always stop life or quit your daily responsibilities during a flare-up, however.

Mobility devices have been created that assist you in completing your routine while also preventing your flare-up from getting worse.

Crutches and canes are often used by those with arthritis. They are easily adjustable and provide support for balance when walking and take the pressure off joints that are inflamed. When walking with a cane is not enough to support your needs, you may want to take advantage of the support a walker can provide.

Knee walkers allow you to rest your leg on a padded seat while you guide the device using handlebars and your leg that is not in pain.

Wheelchairs can be used by those who cannot walk for any distance without pain. The same is true for electric mobility scooters. You can choose from light, portable scooters or more bulky but also more stable ones.

3. Self-Care

An arthritis flare-up is a signal of inflammation. It’s essential to pay attention to these signals. Make yourself a priority and do things that can minimize the pain and swelling.

Getting rest is one of the best tips for controlling flare-ups. The body needs time to heal, and if you continually push yourself without rest, your joints will feel the impact. Get the recommended hours of quality sleep each night.

As you work with your pharmacist to create personalized, compounded medicine, get their advice on over-the-counter anti-inflammatory solutions. Talk to them about using hot and cold therapy products, braces, and wraps to mobilize the inflamed areas and proper stretches to ease symptoms.

Stress can lead to internal inflammation that leads to flare-ups. Do whatever you can to reduce stress in your life. Practice yoga, meditation, prayer, massages, physical therapy, counseling, or even take a warm bath with essential oils.

Self-care also means changing lifestyle habits that reduce inflammation. If you smoke cigarettes or drink alcohol, quit. Both are linked to inflammation and stress on the body. Decrease your intake of sugar by switching to lower carbohydrate and lower sugar foods. Sugar is a known cause of inflammation.

Drink a lot of water, which flushes out toxins and encourages your organs to function correctly, allowing your immune system to fight off inflammatory responses better.

4. Ask for Help

Finally, ask for help. You are not expected to overcome arthritis flare-ups all by yourself. Start by asking your pharmacist questions about flare-ups and implement their advice. They are experts with great knowledge about arthritis. You can even start today by reaching out online, by phone, or visiting them in person. Pharmacists are eager to help.

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Health

7 Ways To Improve Heart Health

There are several ways to improve heart health. Know the best tips and tricks to remain healthy and reduce your risk of heart disease.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in America. Reports claim someone dies from a heart attack every 40 seconds.

Risk factors like obesity, high blood pressure or cholesterol, and substance abuse increase the chances of having a heart-related event. The good news is that there are specific things you can do to counteract those risk factors. You can start taking better care of your heart.

Heart health refers to how well your heart is functioning. The average heart beats over 2.5 billion times throughout a lifespan. With each beat, blood flows to all parts of the body. It pushes out toxins while also carrying essential oxygen and cells to organs.

It doesn’t take a lot to improve heart health. Implementing changes, like the ones listed below, can offer huge rewards. Below are 7 ways to improve heart health.

1. Vitamins

Your doctor can order lab work to test vitamin levels in your system. If you are not naturally receiving the daily recommended dose of vitamins for a healthy heart, you can use supplements to increase levels.

Mass-produced vitamins are packaged in specific doses. For example, Vitamin D may come in 2000 of 5000 mg pills. What happens if you only need 1000 mg a day and cannot swallow medicine in pill form?

Working with your local pharmacist can help. He or she probably offers a variety of vitamin supplements in their retail aisles, in multiple forms, from liquid to gummies to tablets.

If you want to personalize your vitamin supplements, choose a compounding pharmacy. Your pharmacist can make a particular batch using the exact amount of one or multiple vitamins. They can also make it in a form easiest for you to consume.

As vitamin levels improve, you may notice you have more energy. You can start adding exercise to your daily routine for heart health.

2. Exercise

What is the first picture that comes to mind when you hear the words “exercise for heart health“? If it is something strenuous, like training for a marathon or lifting weights at the gym every day, you have the wrong idea.

Exercising for heart health can mean doing anything that gets your heart rate up for ten minutes or longer. If you take a brisk walk for ten minutes, three times a day, you have exercised for half an hour.

Find a fun activity but one that also briefly increases heart rate. Skating, swimming, hopscotch, and dancing are examples of alternative exercise forms that improve heart health.

Thirty minutes of exercise a day is one of many great ways to improve heart health, and may also motivate you to make changes in your diet also.

3. Diet

A heart-healthy diet is not always about the foods you consume. It also means reducing portions. Too much of a good thing can eventually lead to a bad thing. For example, one slice of watermelon is great. Eating the whole watermelon at once will overload your system with natural sugars. For those with diabetes, this can mean trouble.

It is okay to allow yourself a treat, however. Make it a unique, occasional treat, not an everyday treat.

Taking care of your heart can be done by planning meals ahead of time. This helps you avoid the ups and downs of blood sugar, which can lead to impulse eating. For many, worrying about what to eat can be frustrating. To ease the frustration, you may give in to temptation.

Knowing ahead of time what you can eat and when will eliminate impulses and negative emotions.

Other tips for good heart health are replacing high-carb foods with fruits and vegetables, lower salt intake, and choosing high protein and lower-fat foods. Also, select whole grains over processed ones. Improving your diet is one of the best ways to improve heart health.

4. Hormonal Balance

Hormones play a significant role in heart health. When out of balance, you may be at higher risk for heart disease. Ask your doctor to test all your hormone levels. Then, take the results to your pharmacist. Yes, that’s right, your pharmacist.

The best way to ensure hormones are in balance is to work with your local compounding pharmacist. For men, reduced levels of testosterone can contribute to heart disease. For women, low testosterone and estrogen lead to heart disease.

Compounding pharmacies can create bio-identical hormone replacement therapies from scratch, based on your specific needs, and in a cream or other form, you prefer.

5. Know Your Health

Improving heart health involves monitoring vital signs. This doesn’t mean you must go to the doctor every day or purchase expensive equipment. You can visit your local pharmacy to get simple checks of your blood pressure, blood sugar, pulse, and oxygen.

Most people prefer to do this at home and purchase inexpensive monitors at the local pharmacy. Before you buy, talk to the pharmacy staff. They can help you choose the best product, the one that gives you the most function for its price.

Daily tracking of your health can help you, your doctor, and your pharmacist adjust medicines- like lowering doses as your health improves.

6. Medication Protocols

It is up to you to understand everything you put into your body, including medications.

Consult your pharmacist about every medicine you take. A compounding pharmacy can create the medicine in a form that is easiest for you to take. You won’t be tempted to skip a dose if it is not hard to consume. Your pharmacist can also package medicines based on the time of day you need to take them.

You no longer have to keep a pillbox or spend time opening multiple bottles throughout the day.

7. Start Today

When it comes to heart health, start making changes right away. Follow the above ways to improve heart health and don’t wait until the end of the year or even next Monday. Start making small changes today, like completing ten minutes of cardio. When eating a meal, replace one high carbohydrate food with a vegetable. Finally, visit your local pharmacist for advice on ways to improve heart health.

Small changes eventually add up to the positive results you deserve.

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Health

Anxiety and Sleep: How Do They Affect Each Other?

Anxiety and sleep are deeply connected. If you’re feeling anxious, it can be difficult to fall, and stay, asleep at night. Likewise, lack of sleep only increases the feeling of anxiousness. Here’s how the two affect each other, and what that means for you.

It’s 3 a.m. You know because you’ve just rolled over to check the time for the 10th time that night – and you still aren’t even a little bit sleepy. The thought of how you’ll feel the next day at work inspires a sense of dread, making it even harder to doze off into dreamland. Meanwhile, anxious thoughts race through your head as you obsessively review the stressors in your life and try to find solutions.

If you can relate, you aren’t alone. Millions of Americans struggle with temporary or chronic insomnia related to feelings of anxiety every night. We’ll tell you what you need to know about this phenomenon and how to break free right now.

About Sleep and Anxiety

Sleep occurs in stages. Stage one is light sleep where you’re drifting off, but aren’t really fully asleep or awake. From there, you enter stage two non-REM sleep; you’re under, but wake quickly and easily to noises or movement. This is largely because your brain is still “active” up until you enter the next stage.

If you stay asleep for around 90 minutes, your brain and body will enter Random Eye Movement (REM) sleep. This is when dreams occur! Someone watching you might notice that your eyes dart back and forth or that you move slightly. Or, you might even talk in your sleep. Your brain is still semi-active, but much less so than before.

After approximately two to three hours of sleep, the brain enters “deep sleep.” This is the most important and restorative level of sleep. Your body lowers stress hormones, temperature, and heart rate. Your brain goes to work sending out signals for the body to repair tissues and regenerate cells from your head to your toes.

You need to sleep for at least seven to eight hours each night in order to get enough REM sleep and deep sleep. If you aren’t getting enough sleep, or sleep is broken, you might not be entering deep sleep at all, much less getting enough REM.

The Connection Between Anxiety and Sleep

There is a connection between anxiety and sleep. Failing to get good sleep each night is directly linked to increased anxiety levels, and anxiety affecting sleep. On the flip side, high anxiety can make it pretty much impossible to get to sleep in the first place. This vicious cycle can start to feel downright impossible to break the longer it goes on.

Here’s how it works.

When you don’t get enough sleep, you’re less likely to enter important stages such as REM and deep sleep. Stress hormones, which are already high due to the anxiety you’re feeling, remain at a high, which leads to greater feelings of anxiety.

And all that worrying you do over how many hours you’re about to get? It triggers your innate fight or flight system. Stress hormones skyrocket and with anxiety affecting sleep, you instantly become less likely to fall asleep than you ever were before.

Sleep Hangovers Worsen the Problem

Too many stress hormones can leave you feeling almost hungover and fatigued the next morning. You might feel crampy, sore, nauseous, or even have a headache with neck and shoulder tension. And you’re almost certain to feel anxious or at least a little bit stressed, because that’s exactly the effect stress hormones serve in the body.

Going about your day with a sleep hangover isn’t fantastic, either. There’s some pretty compelling evidence to show that chronic exhaustion and anxiety affecting sleep both increase the risk for heart disease, high blood pressure, and other serious health issues.

Indirect Effects of Lack of Sleep

Many people find the less specific effects the most harmful. Most people are cranky, grumpy, and just an all-around bit of a bear when they haven’t slept well for some time. You might find yourself arguing with loved ones, dreading the thought of going to work, or even feeling weepy, angry, or “over it” with your daily life.

It’s only logical to say that fighting with loved ones, struggling at work, and being an emotional wreck can make you feel more stress and anxiety which, in turn, affects your sleep. That makes you even less likely to sleep well the next night when it comes time to bunker down.

But there’s another concerning long-term effect: mental illnesses. Chronic exhaustion and stress can eventually lead to mental health diagnoses such as depression, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), and Panic Disorder (PD).

The longer insomnia and sleep anxiety disorder goes unchecked, the more likely your feelings are to become serious or even harmful. If you’ve been suffering for a while, and you’re having thoughts of suicide, harming yourself, or hurting others, please don’t suffer alone in silence. Help is available.

Call the The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-TALK [8255]) or reach out to your care team for help. This includes your pharmacist, your doctor, people you trust, and even your local emergency room.

How to Stop the Cycle

Lack of sleep and anxiety are immensely difficult – but that doesn’t mean you’re doomed to suffer from them for life. There are some ways to break the cycle.

1. See Your Doctor

First, see your doctor. Although they’re rare, it’s important to rule out physical health conditions such as anxiety sleep apnea and hyperthyroidism. These and other illnesses that change the level of stress hormones in your body can play a role. And if you are suffering from a mental health disorder, your doctor can help by either referring you to someone who can treat you for it or by prescribing medications such as SSRIs.

2. Cut Back on Stress

Next, it’s time to cut back on stress where you can. Think about the core of your anxiety and stress; is it possible to reduce that influence? If work is the source, can you reduce your hours slightly? If it’s relationship problems, can you and your spouse spend some time with a couples counselor? Do what you can, but don’t beat yourself up over issues beyond your control – that’s counterintuitive.

Add stress-busting activities to your day, too. Try a few simple yoga routines, meditation for sleep and anxiety, quiet walks around your neighborhood, taking a bath, art, or even just snuggling up with a treasured pet and a good book. Do whatever helps you unwind as long as it isn’t harming you in the process. You deserve it!

3. Follow Smart Sleep Hygiene Strategies

Try your best to follow a good set of sleep hygiene strategies. Set up your bedroom to be conducive to sleeping: no bright lights, electronic screens, or computers included. Make it a comfortable, welcoming, and peaceful space you look forward to visiting.

Try to avoid using electronic screens for at least two hours before bed. Most digital screens emit a strong blue light that has the potential to interfere with melatonin (a sleep hormone) production in the body. If you absolutely can’t go without your precious devices, try to at least use a blue light filter feature to limit exposure.

Avoid exercising, eating, or drinking alcohol for at least three hours prior to bedtime whenever possible, too. All of these can increase metabolism and interfere with the production of sleep hormones. In fact, the last tip about avoiding alcohol is especially important; the idea of a nightcap is actually counterintuitive. People who drink before bed are more likely to wake up unable to get back to sleep during the night.

Final Thought

There is no doubt about anxiety affecting sleep. However, if you are struggling, you’re not alone. There are ways to break this connection and improve quality of life. Contact your pharmacist or doctor today to begin.

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Health

How Can Stress Affect Your Health?

Make yourself a priority and take care of yourself by managing your stress and health. Start today by asking your pharmacist for help.

The American Psychological Association reports the stress levels of Americans are on the rise. Some experience short-term stress, long-term or chronic stress, or both. It’s important to know that not all stress is bad.

When you encounter danger, it is the stress that can help you escape danger. Stress kicks in your “fight or flight” alarms, telling you to protect yourself.

Other experiences that can cause stress:

  • Project deadlines
  • Exams
  • Illness of a family member
  • Fighting with family members or friends
  • Accidents
  • Other daily struggles

All of these are very common and can cause physical and mental stress. The good news is that stress is a process that takes place in the body. Therefore, it can be dealt with and improved to reduce negative symptoms.

What is the Stress Process?

Stress and health go hand in hand. To learn more about how stress affects your life, it’s crucial to understand how stress develops. When you encounter something stressful, like a minor fender bender, your brain sends a signal by releasing hormones to your body, telling it to start the “flight or fight” mode.

The next step in the stress process is an appraisal of the stressor. You may see a fender bender as a major stressful event. If so, stress hormones will continue to surge throughout your body, and negative symptoms will start to appear.

Symptoms like racing heartbeat, sweating, shorter breaths, and feeling flush are examples of symptoms that can take place. These can vary among individuals. These symptoms are preparing your body to respond to stress. How will you deal with the fender bender?

Will you strike out in anger (fight) or ignore it and put off dealing with it (flight).

The more time your body spends in the process of stress, the more damage it can do to your health.

How Does Stress Affect the Heart?

When you are stressed, adrenaline and cortisol are pumping through your body. They are the hormones that are going to help you deal with the stressor. However, if your body is in constant stress, the continuous release of hormones can be harmful, especially for your heart.

Stress raises both blood pressure and blood sugar. Blood pressure refers to the force in which blood flows through the artery walls, supplying blood to the heart muscle. The higher the force, the more damage is done to the artery walls. Meaning, proper blood flow cannot get to your heart.

This can lead to:

  • Stroke,
  • Kidney failure,
  • And ultimately, heart failure

Stress causes your liver to release extra glucose, or sugar, into your bloodstream. Over time, this leads to diabetes, which is directly associated with heart disease. Elevated blood sugar over a long period can damage the nerves and blood vessels that control your heart.

The heart is not the only thing affected by stress.

How Does Stress Affect the Immune System?

When your body is in a constant state of stress, hormones are being released that suppress antibodies that typically fight off germs and bacteria. With constant stress, your immune system becomes unable to fight off bacterial and viral infections. This means you will catch colds easier, battle more sore throats and lymph nodes, cold sores, and other ailments.

The immune system interacts with the endocrine and nervous systems, impairing them when in constant stress.

Further, stress can affect your reproduction system.

How Does Stress Affect the Reproductive System?

You may have heard stories of couples trying to conceive a child but without success. Then, when they stop trying, they became pregnant. There is a reason this happens, and it is related to stress in both men and women that interferes with fertility.

Stress prevents proper blood flow to your reproductive organs. There have been studies evaluating women trying to get pregnant based on stress levels. The results showed that women with less stress could get pregnant more often than those with higher stress.

There is a risk that the constant rush of hormones can affect menstrual cycles for women with high levels of stress. In extreme cases, it can stop a menstrual cycle altogether.

Stress can also lower the sex drives of both men and women. When you are stressed, you are not relaxed. You have anxiety, your muscles are tense, your mind is racing, and you are exhausted, too tired to enjoy intimacy with your partner.

How Does Stress Affect Mental Health?

Long-term stress has been shown to lead to depression and anxiety. One reason may be because stress can cause physical aches and pains. For instance, your muscles tense up each time you feel stress. Muscle tension can lead to headaches and soreness in different areas of the body.

The longer you feel aches and pains, the longer you are unable to feel joy and happiness. Therefore, you become more depressed.

Stress also interferes with getting a good night’s sleep. During sleep, your brain sends signals to the parts of your body that need restoration. If you are not sleeping well, the repair is not taking place. Lack of adequate sleep can also lead to sleep disorders that affect mental well-being.

How To Reduce Stress

There are many actions you can take to reduce stress. First, talk to a professional. You may not know this, but your pharmacist is a great resource. They can teach you about the different vitamins, minerals, and essential oils you can implement daily to reduce stress. They can also refer you to other professionals who can help with stress reduction.

Holding in your stress is not sufficient, so finding someone to talk to that you can trust is essential in reducing stress. Also, participate in holistic therapies like acupuncture, massage, yoga, and meditation.

Your pharmacist will explain to you how important self-care is in eliminating the effects of stress on your body.

Even if you don’t think you have stress, you have stress. It’s easy to get so accustomed to your busy life that you don’t even realize just how stressed you are. Make yourself a priority, take care of yourself by managing your stress. Start today by asking your pharmacist for help.

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Health

Can Pre-Diabetes Be Reversed?

Approximately 88 million Americans have pre-diabetes, but can pre-diabetes be reversed? Can you avoid Type 2 Diabetes and other health issues?

Do you find it hard to quench your thirst? Do you make frequent trips to the bathroom, even during the night?

These are signs that you potentially have pre-diabetes, a disorder affecting more than 88 million Americans. Statistics show that those with pre-diabetes, who continue living an unhealthy lifestyle, will likely be diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes within ten years.

Someone with Type 2 diabetes will tell you they wish they had made better choices when diagnosed with pre-diabetes. This is because treatment becomes more intense due to the increased risk of adverse health events like stroke or heart attack.

The good news is that pre-diabetes can be reversed. This means you can take steps to avoid further health-related issues by making a few changes in your life. We discuss these simple changes below. But first, let’s better define pre-diabetes.

What is Pre-Diabetes?

Pre-diabetes is a serious health condition. It is the period leading up to Type 2 diabetes. During this time, your blood sugars are higher than average but not yet high enough to be diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes.

Pre-diabetes is a critical period, a time in which simple life changes offer significant health benefits. Some of these simple lifestyle changes are listed below.

1. Check Your Blood Sugar Levels Daily

There is a simple way for you to know how high or low your blood sugar is, and that is to check them using inexpensive tools you can find at your pharmacy.

Your pharmacist can help you pick the right machine and method for your lifestyle. Modern advancements in the way a person can self-test blood sugar have made it quick and easy. They have made the process of pricking your finger gentle, and there are programs to help monitor your numbers via Bluetooth connection to your smartphone.

You can even set reminder alarms so you don’t miss a test.

Checking your blood sugar levels daily can help you reverse pre-diabetes because if your numbers are high, you can immediately implement changes that will lower them within hours. The key is knowing your numbers.

2. Know Foods That Raise and Lower Blood Sugar

You may have already made the connection; the more sugar you eat, the higher your blood sugar levels with rising.  You can do a simple at-home test using your blood sugar monitoring system. After eating a high sugar meal, test your blood sugar. Compare that to the results you get after eating a low sugar meal.

Keep in mind that sugar comes in many forms. Work with your pharmacist or a registered dietician to gather information on which foods have the highest amounts of sugar. You will also learn that carbohydrates when processed by the body, turn into sugar. This means foods containing high amounts of sugar, and high amounts of carbohydrates will raise your blood sugar.

To reverse pre-diabetes, eat foods low in sugar and carbohydrates. You don’t have to give up everything you love, however. Many foods, even sugar-free and carb-free, that you can eat to replace the unhealthier versions.

3. Exercise to Reduce Pre-Diabetes Risk

When you hear the word “exercise,” you may picture yourself trying to train for a marathon or lifting weights like a powerhouse in the local gym.

Exercise to reverse pre-diabetes does not have to be this strenuous. Daily walks of 30 minutes or less can lower blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol associated with diabetes in what is called metabolic syndrome.

The key to exercising is to find an activity you enjoy, something that raises your heart rate, but that is also fun. Ideas can range from gardening, riding bikes, and swimming to playing golf or yoga. Think outside the box when it comes to exercise.

4. Supplements to Lower Blood Sugar

There are specific supplements created just for lowering blood sugar. Your pharmacist may even be able to compound a supplement based on your particular needs. Most pharmacies have a section in their retail space for diabetic supplements. You can take these to help reverse your pre-diabetic symptoms.

Other supplements include vitamins and minerals like Vitamin D. In research, those deficient in this vitamin also had insulin resistance. B Vitamins are also essential in reversing pre-diabetes. It was discovered that those with diabetes who were prescribed Metformin were deficient in vitamin B12, specifically.

Magnesium and Iodine are minerals that can help you prevent the onset of Type 2 diabetes. Magnesium helps your body break down sugar. When low, your body struggles with insulin resistance. Iodine helps with metabolism and thyroid function.

Supplements should not be used alone, but with a plan that includes total self-care.

5. Mindfulness to Lower Blood Sugar

Mindfulness is not something you take, but a process that heals your body. It means finding ways to pay attention to your body’s needs, then addressing those needs.

Some popular mindfulness techniques include meditation or prayer, stress management, relaxation techniques like deep breathing, and acupuncture.

Through mindfulness, you may find implementing positive sleep habits is one of the best ways to start the journey of reversing pre-diabetes.

6. Sleep to Lower Blood Sugar

Many reports suggest sleep deprivation is linked to pre-diabetes, and that getting adequate sleep is a prevention method.

To get adequate sleep, develop good sleep habits. These can include turning off electronics while falling asleep, sleeping in a dark and quiet room, and sleeping on a comfortable mattress and environment. Furthermore, developing sleep habits means creating a routine that helps you fall asleep and wake up in a way that promotes positive mental and physical health.

Your body loves routines because they reduce stress and help set your biological circadian rhythm. The more structured your life, the better decisions you can make regarding food, exercise, supplements, and overall self-care.

Conclusion

In conclusion, there are many ways to reverse pre-diabetes. Working with your pharmacist or doctor, you can get help on which medications, supplements, and activities will benefit you the most.

You can start today with a simple email or personal visit to your local pharmacy.

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