At the MediCenter, we love to see and help our patients. Dr. Carlson has put together a list of information that can help you gain or maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Obesity:

· Exercise for 45 minutes per day, mostly aerobic, 6 days per week.

· Keep fat intake to less than 20 % of total calorie intake.

· Limit sweets, white flour, and white rice.

· Eat lots of veggies, fiber.

· Eat 5-6 small meals per day—“graze” on veggies.

· Drink 5-8 glasses of water per day.

· Keep calendar of food intake and exercise.

· Focus more on dropping inches rather than pounds.

· Take a multivitamin and mineral supplement.

· The big key that most people don’t realize: All stressors lower your metabolic rate, and may make it impossible to loose weight permanently.

· Some common stressors are: Starving to loose weight, emotional stressors/negative thought patterns, inadequate intake of essential vitamins and minerals, exercising too vigorously without gradual conditioning, sleep apnea, and other physical problems which could be diagnosed by your doctor. We do not recommend that you use supplements with Ma Huang or Ephedra in them.

Rash:

Use Lotrimin or Lamisil for most rashes in groin, armpits, and on feet.

Do not use Desitin for diaper rash.

Allergic Reactions:

Take Claritin or Benadryl (look at contraindications section on bottle).

Ear Pain:

Buy an otoscope, learn how to use it, and look in your kid’s ears.

Asthma:

Buy a peak flow meter if you have asthma and learn how to use it.

Cigarette Addiction:

Try exercise, nicotine patches, Zyban, acupuncture, 12 steps of AA, prayer, CPGH quit smoking program.

Alcohol Addiction:

See your doctor if you have withdrawal symptoms.

Include exercise, AA, consider inpatient treatment at Serenity House, change friends; you may need counseling or medication for underlying depression.

Eat an adequate diet including thiamine, B12, folate, and lots of vegetables.

Borderline Hypertension:

Limit sodium to 2000-2500 mg/day, exercise, lose weight, take garlic.

Check for sleep apnea, thyroid problems, heart disease, or kidney problems at your doctor’s.

Limit or have no alcohol/nicotine/caffeine.

Cancer Screening:

Yearly complete physical.

Begin sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy for colon cancer screening at age 50, or at least 10 years sooner if there is a family history of colon cancer.

Monthly self breast and testicular exams.

Yearly skin exams if there is a family history of melanoma (a type of skin cancer).

Yearly pap smear, breast exam, mammogram.

Expensive medications:

Live in Canada or Mexico :).

Ask for samples of meds, cheaper but similar meds, or generics.

Ask for free drugs through the drug company’s Medical Indigent program.

Check out themedicineprogram.com.

Expensive Labs:

Ask: “Is this test necessary?”, “Will it change your treatment plan?”

Depression:

Exercise one hour per day (mostly aerobic, eg, jogging), counseling, light box (10,000 lux, in AM, 30 minutes per day).

Medications (multiple options, all non-addicting), SAM-E.

See a healthcare provider to be sure you don’t have sleep apnea, thyroid disorder, manic-depressive illness, or other health problems.

Healthy diet with lots of vegetables.

Set realistic goals, do something difficult every day, live according to what you know is right, review ten things you are grateful for, have fun Ð every day.

Force yourself to say positive things and be positive with others, do service.

If depression is giving you “an out” from life’s responsibilities, “get tough” with yourself.

Non-narcotic treatment of pain:

Tylenol Ð try new or different anti-inflammatory, this often makes a big difference.

New or different muscle relaxant (eg, Skelaxin, Robaxin, Soma).

Ultramm; Acupuncture; Physical Therapy; Chiropractor; Biofeedback; Rolfing.

Raise pain threshold with exercise or acupuncture; Prayer.

Try Effexor, Neurontin or Amitriptyline;

Topical analgesics; TENS unit.

Naturopathic treatment/Alternative medicine treatment.