Originally published May, 2019. Revised April, 2021; March, 2022, March, 2026 There’s a good chance you take at least one prescription medication or dietary supplement. Almost three-quarters of us do, and 20% of us take five or more. The older we get, the more likely we are to have health problems. And medications are the mainstay of treatment for chronic health problems like heart disease and diabetes. That’s because so
Have you seen articles or ads about the wonders of creatine supplementation for older adults? Wondering if you should try it? A reader asked me about creatine recently, so I looked into the research. What I learned was quite interesting. Creatine is a compound that our bodies need to build muscle. We get some of it from animal protein in our diet and some from our body’s manufacturing processes. Though
Until the early 2000’s, hormones were used pretty routinely to treat women with uncomfortable menopausal symptoms. Then a study by the Women’s Health Initiative changed everything. It seemed to show that the risks of hormone replacement far outweighed the benefit. So for the past two decades or so, doctors have discouraged the use of hormones. But a reanalysis of the research results found that some conclusions didn’t apply to women
Pharmacogenetics (AKA Pharmacogenomics) Pharmacogenetics (PGx) — the study of how genetics affects your response to drugs — is an exciting field in healthcare. Read our recent post to learn the basics of PGx and why it’s important in predicting your response to certain medications. But who needs testing? How does it work? In this post we’ll talk about practical issues of pharmacogenetic testing. First, WHO should consider pharmacogenetic testing and
We all want our healthcare to fit us as individuals. An important piece is having good communication with our healthcare providers. But let’s talk about something even more personal — something totally unique to each one of us. The role of genetics in medication effectiveness and safety Our DNA makes us unique. We differ from one another in eye and hair color, height, gender, physical ability and more. All of