Steps to take to minimize winter health risks

Winter is more than just snow, Christmas and cold; it’s the flu, sneezing, coughing and other health risks. Luckily, there are precautions you can take before calling your Harrisburg internal medicine doctor. As one recent article noted:

… the winter weather can also mean issues for senior citizens in health and in getting around.

So, what should you do? Stay covered and wear dry clothing. Before you go out to shovel snow, do some stretching exercises. Don’t overexert yourself when clearing off sidewalks and steps. When you’re taking down holiday directions, don’t tug or pull on outdoor lights. Be sure to wear appropriate shoes when it’s icy out.

Read the entire article: “Minimizing winter health risks.” 

Choosing a Multivitamin

Are you someone who takes a multivitamin every morning? The Capstone Medical Associates staff knows many who take a multivitamin as part of their morning routine. Do you know if you're taking the right multivitamin? The Nutrametrix blog recently highlighted how to choose a multivitamin, and noted that a great multivitamin will have the following:

Most multivitamins will contain approximately 100 percent of the RDA recommendations for 20-25 individual nutrients—in general, the most important of these are the B-complex vitamins, Vitamin D and Vitamin E, and these can certainly be present in higher amounts.

Biotin is critical for B-complex absorption, but is often included in minimal amounts for reasons of cost—a quality multivitamin will contain 100 percent of the RDA.

Zinc is regarded as increasingly important in recent studies, and obtaining the entire RDA from food can be challenging; a quality multivitamin should contain approximately 50 percent of the RDA to make up the difference.

Iodine helps to ensure proper thyroid function, which is foundational to proper metabolism—a sound multivitamin formula will contain 100 percent of the RDA.

Despite debate about iron supplementation, it is almost certainly advisable for pre-menopausal women; their RDA is set at 18mg, while men require 8mg.

Selenium has demonstrated particular potential for men’s health, specifically prostate function, but intake must be moderate, regardless of gender—a balanced formulation will contain 75 to 100 percent of the RDA.

Click here to read the entire post, and click here to shop our Nutrametrix site.