T.J. Samson | Destination Health | December 2018

December 2018 7 Health MEDICINE MISTAKES MULTIPLE PRESCRIPTIONS make it hard to keep doses straight. Older adults often take their medicines incorrectly. Here are some common reasons: VISION PROBLEMS can make it hard to read the label. SIDE EFFECTS can lead people to skip doses. COST can make people cut back on their medicines. MEMORY PROBLEMS can lead to missing a dose. SEEING MORE THAN ONE DOCTOR can lead to duplications. Sources: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; U.S. Food and Drug Administration Diabetes Keep the yum in holiday meals Eggnog and stuffing and cookies— oh, no! When you have diabetes, the holi- days can be an especially tough time to stick to your meal plan. Tough—but not impossible. Try the tips that follow, and chances are you can keep your blood sugar in a healthy range during this food-centered season and avoid any souvenir pounds in January. Here’s your game plan: Use a little discretion. You don’t have to give up your favorite holiday foods—or feel guilty if you do indulge in them—as long as you plan ahead. If you want a slice of high-carb pumpkin pie for dessert, skip the rolls during the main meal. Also, ask for a modest slice, and savor it. Spoil your appetite. Before holi- day parties, eat a healthy snack, such as a few pieces of low-fat cheese. You’ll be less likely to overeat. Show up prepared. Arrive with a dish to pass at holiday gatherings. But make it a diabetes-friendly one, like a low-calorie or low-fat version of a stan- dard recipe. Prioritize. Perhaps most important, focus on what the holidays are really about: friends and family.This year, let food take a backseat to catching up and spending time with the people you love. Source: American Diabetes Association Our dietitians can help you manage your diabetes. Call 270-651-4448 . Heart failure: Pay attention to these symptoms 2 3 4 5 1 OTC medicines: 5 key tips for taking them safely From pain relievers to cold remedies, you can easily buy over- the-counter (OTC) medicines at many stores—and without a prescription from a doctor. But that doesn’t mean these medi- cations are free of health risks. Like prescription drugs, OTC products can cause side ef- fects or bad reactions—for instance, if you take them in the wrong way or mix them with certain other medicines.That’s why you need to be careful when it comes to OTC medicines too. Here are five safety tips: 1 Read the label. This is a crucial first step. For instance, find out if the medicine will treat your symptoms, who should not take it and how to use it. 2 Take the medicine exactly as directed. Check with a pharmacist or your doctor if you have questions about how to use an OTC drug. 3 Keep your doctor informed. Your doctor needs to know about every product you take, including OTC drugs, vitamins and herbal supplements. You can share your list of medicines and supplements at your next doctor visit. But if you also take a prescription medicine, it’s a good idea to check with your doctor or pharmacist before trying an OTC medicine. Make sure it will not interfere with your prescription medicine or cause a side effect. 4 Be careful when taking more than one drug. Some OTC drugs (like cold medicines and pain relievers) may contain the same active ingredients. So if you take more than one medicine for different problems, you could end up taking too much of an active ingredient. Solution: Read the ingredi- ents list, and compare the active ingredients in each medicine. 5 Don’t use a spoon to take the medicine. Use the cup or other dosing device that came with the medicine. Sources: National Council on Patient Information and Education; U.S. Food and Drug Administration Living well with heart failure means keeping a close watch on your symptoms. Your doctor needs to know right away about any new symptom or even the slight worsening of an old one. That way your doctor can suggest changes in your lifestyle or treatment to keep a flare-up from getting worse—and even help you avoid a hospital stay. Here are five symptoms to watch for: Rapid weight gain. Typically, this means a gain of 2 or 3 pounds in 24 hours or 5 pounds in a week. But ask your doctor what you should report. And be sure to weigh yourself daily, ide- ally before breakfast and after urinating. Wear the same type of clothes (without shoes), and try to use the same scale in the same spot. Any swelling from fluids in your body. Most often, this swelling is in the lower legs, ankles and feet. But your abdomen can also swell. Or you might feel pain in your abdomen. Shortness of breath. This is especially impor- tant to report if it happens while you’re at rest or lying down. Frequent dry, hacking cough. Loss of appetite, fatigue or trouble sleeping. In the case of poor sleep, you might wake up short of breath or need to use more pillows to sleep. Sources: American College of Cardiology; American Heart Association