PROTECT

BY PETE ALFANO

We all know the saying a dog is “man’s best friend.” The question is, are we returning the favor? Anyone who has watched an infomercial on cable TV showing how some dogs are mistreated or neglected by their owner knows how upsetting this can be. Sometimes, however, people don’t even realize they are neglecting their pet’s health.

Summer, for example, is a dangerous time for dogs, especially those that spend most of the day outdoors. They are more prone to heat stroke than humans because people sweat more readily than our furry friends, whose meager sweating is mostly through their paws. Instead, dogs try to regulate their body temperature by panting. Not leaving a dog in a yard with enough shaded areas, drinking water, or sunscreen on their nose, ears, and belly can lead to heat stroke and death. A word of warning — do not use your human sunscreen on a dog. It has ingredients such as zinc oxide that are harmful to animals. Purchase sunscreen formulated for dogs instead.

You should not leave a child or a pet in a car as they can overheat in minutes. Statistics show that the interior of a vehicle can reach 120 degrees in 10 minutes, even if you leave the window open a little.

Hydration is essential. Dogs, like people, need to drink plenty of water during the summer. Water should be cool, but not necessarily ice cold, which can cause gastric problems.

Puppies and older dogs are more at risk for heat stroke, as are dogs that are overweight, have exceedingly thick fur coats, or are bred for colder climates, such as Siberian Huskies and Malamutes. A dog with a respiratory condition or is on medication should be closely monitored and have their time outdoors monitored during the summer. Veterinary experts say dogs with short noses (Pugs, Boxers, Bulldogs) are also at a higher risk. And resist the urge to have your dog shaved. Their fur coat is a form of insulation and protects them from sunburn.

Many dog breeds need regular exercise for their wellbeing; thus, summer poses a challenge when the asphalt and concrete heat up. So, avoid taking your dog for a walk in the late morning or afternoon.

Walk dogs in the morning and shorten their walks because heat and humidity can result in dehydration at any time of the day. Walk your dog on the grass, if possible. And invest in a set of booties even if you believe it will be a waste of time. It’s worth seeing if your dog will tolerate them because asphalt will burn the pads on your dog’s paws.

A pool can be a great place to cool off, but swimming is strenuous exercise, and your dog will still be exposed to the sun and heat. Limit their time in the pool, and rinse them with a hose afterward to eliminate chlorine. Also, dry your dog’s ears thoroughly to avoid infections.

Despite taking all precautions, your dog may suffer from heatstroke. Symptoms include vomiting, increased panting, difficulty standing, and difficulty breathing. Try to cool down your dog with a hose and go to your veterinarian or an emergency animal clinic as soon as possible.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Around 75% of menopausal women experience symptoms, with one-third reporting that they negatively affect their lives.

• Some supplements herbal/ botanical treatments, and prescription medications may disrupt your endocrine system and circulating hormone levels. Always check with your practitioner before taking anything new.

• Testosterone treatment in just as important for women as it is for men.

HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY Combats Symptoms, Restores Quality of Life

Endocrine glands in women include the ovaries. They produce female estrogen hormones (estradiol, estrone, and estriol), as well as progesterone and testosterone. Important for regulating the menstrual cycle and for childbearing, estrogen also helps keep cardiovascular tissue healthy and cholesterol within desired ranges. It protects the brain with proper blood flow and affects mood, fat mass, and bone density. With all this and more, it’s easy to understand why depleted estrogen levels can wreak havoc with women’s health and sense of well-being.

Significant changes in a woman’s mental status, body composition, and mood occur due to decreasing estrogen and progesterone levels that occurs during perimenopause which generally starts between ages 45 to 48, menopause (the average age for menopause is 51 in the U.S.), and continue through postmenopause. Symptoms include hot flashes, night sweats, chills, chronic insomnia, mood swings, low libido, vaginal dryness, weight gain, thinning hair, dry skin, loss of breast fullness, feelings of depression and anxiety, and cognitive changes, including brain fog, resulting in complications such as osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, and urinary incontinence may also occur. Testosterone levels typically start declining in the late 20s and early 30s, and results in loss of energy, loss of libido, cognitive changes, loss of muscle mass, anxiety, depression, and more.

Laboratory tests measure hormone levels in blood, urine, or saliva samples, and your provider may recommend hormone replacement therapy (HRT) based on the results and your health history. HRT treatment options include prescription pharmaceutical medications that deliver estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone via pills, creams or gels, pellets, or patches. Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT) is a safer alternative to historically utilized synthetic HRT. Bioidentical means that the hormones look chemically identical to those your body produces. Derived from plant-based sources such as soy and wild yams (don’t worry, no cross allergy here), BHRT is considered a natural treatment that is readily absorbed into the body. BHRT is commercially available (pills, patches, & gels) but is also available in customized, compounded creams, pills, troches, and small pellets that can be placed under the skin.

Initiation of BHRT should include hormone testing to analyze and determine the appropriate treatment plan for each individual person and to detect if changes need to be made to the personalized plan of care.

Fortunately, women are no longer relegated to silently suffering with “the change of life.” We have more treatment options today than ever before to help combat the symptoms of female hormone imbalance and restore quality of life.

DID YOU KNOW?

According to data from the nonprofit Hearing Health Foundation (HHF):

• Women with hearing loss are more likely to feel depressed.

• If you have diabetes, you’re about twice as likely to experience hearing loss.

• Many of the same lifestyle behaviors that affect the heart impact hearing.

• Addressing hearing loss may benefit cognitive function.

Hearing Health

Don’t Ignore Hearing Loss

AS MANY AS ONE-THIRD OF U.S. WOMEN IN THEIR 50S EXPERIENCE SOME DEGREE OF HEARING LOSS. BY THE MID-60S, THAT NUMBER GROWS TO NEARLY TWO-THIRDS. FOR MOST OF THEM, HEARING AIDS CAN HELP, BUT ADDRESSING HEARING LOSS ISN’T SOMETHING YOU SHOULD PUT OFF. THE SOONER IT’S ADDRESSED, THE BETTER YOUR CHANCES OF MAINTAINING YOUR QUALITY OF LIFE AND AVOIDING A NUMBER OF HEARING-LOSS-RELATED HEALTH CONCERNS.

Addressing your hearing loss has to do with more than just hearing. It’s about maintaining and improving your relationships at home, work, and socially. Hearing can impact your earning potential and increase your chances of experiencing depression and feelings of social isolation. Extensive research has shown that hearing loss is associated with depression, particularly in women, because women with hearing loss are more likely to withdraw socially when interacting becomes too frustrating. That isolation is strongly linked to depression and even dementia.

Additionally, according to the nonprofi t Better Hearing Institute, your ears may be a window to your heart, as cardiovascular and hearing health are closely linked. Some experts believe the inner ear is so sensitive to blood flow that possible abnormalities in the cardiovascular system can be noted in the ear earlier than in other parts of the body. This is important because, according to the American Heart Association, heart disease is the number one killer of women.

Several recent studies indicate that the same lifestyle behaviors that affect the heart impact hearing. One found that a higher level of physical activity is associated with a lower risk of hearing loss in women. Another found that smokers — and even second-hand smokers — are more likely to suffer hearing loss. And a third found that regular fish consumption and higher intake of heart-healthy longchain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids are associated with a lower risk of hearing loss in women.

Hearing loss has also been linked to diabetes, with diabetic women being twice as likely to experience hearing loss, particularly as they age and when diabetes is not well controlled with medication. And about 11% of women in the U.S. are affected by diabetes.

Now for the good news. Addressing hearing loss at its onset can benefit all these areas and improve cognitive function and mood. Research showing a link between hearing loss and dementia has also shown that interventions, such as hearing aids, can help delay and even prevent dementia.

For all these reasons, scheduling a comprehensive hearing test by a hearing healthcare professional as part of your annual health screenings is important. So, this year when you plan your mammogram, pelvic, and dermatological screenings, call your local audiologist and schedule your hearing screening.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Seventy percent of those living with chronic pain are women.

• Chronic pain is pain that lasts for over three months. The pain can always be there, or it may come and go.

• Research shows that men and women experience pain differently and are more likely to suffer from multiple chronic pain conditions.

Pain Management

Make Sure You’re a Member of the Team

FOR ONE IN FOUR AMERICAN WOMEN, MOST DAYS BEGIN AND END WITH SOME DEGREE OF PAIN. FOR THEM, THERE ISN’T AN ASPECT OF LIFE — WORK, FAMILY, FRIENDSHIPS, FITNESS, EMOTIONS — THAT ISN’T MARKED BY THAT PAIN. IF YOU JUDGE THE QUALITY OF EACH DAY BY HOW MUCH OR HOW LITTLE PAIN YOU’RE ENDURING, IT’S IMPORTANT TO PARTNER WITH THE RIGHT PAIN MANAGEMENT TEAM AND TO PLAY AN ACTIVE ROLE IN YOUR OWN PAIN MANAGEMENT.

Recent scientifi c studies have explored how men and women cope differently with pain and even speculated that women experience more pain than men yet receive less treatment. Whether your pain is due to fibromyalgia, endometriosis, arthritis, cancer treatment, migraines, gastrointestinal distress, injury, or any number of things, pain management professionals are specifi cally trained to diagnose and manage chronic (ongoing) pain. Some practices focus on specifi c diagnoses or pain in a particular region of the body, while others offer comprehensive pain management.

Because pain management is often an ongoing reality — lasting months, years, or a lifetime — it’s important to find a team that emphasizes empowering and educating you, encouraging you to take an active role in your pain management. Your team should comprise a number of professionals in the areas of interventional pain management, neuromusculoskeletal medicine, sports medicine, and osteopathic manipulative medicine who works cooperatively and collaboratively with each other and with you, offering you the tools to enjoy the best life you can regardless of the pain you may be experiencing.

Pain management isn’t about covering up symptoms with medication but about diagnosing the root causes of your pain and fi nding ways to increase your productivity, minimize your medication use, maximize your physical activity, and improve your quality of life. There are many ways you can — and should — be part of these efforts. Physical therapy, for instance, may include active and passive exercises performed by the physical therapist but also strengthening exercises for you to complete on your own. You may receive PRP injections or a pain pump but also be advised to lose excess weight exacerbating your pain or eliminate certain foods from your diet. You may also be asked to keep a pain journal to help evaluate the success of ongoing treatment.

Your pain management professionals should serve as your teachers, advocates, and cheerleaders as together you work toward regaining function and improving your quality of life regardless of the pain you may be experiencing.