Dr. Grimes’ Bottom Line – Page 14

WATER: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #5

June 16, 2018January 30, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

WATER: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #5

WATER. Okay, confession time – the one simple health advice that I give but do not consistently follow very well is drinking enough water. Conventional wisdom (and virtually every diet plan) says we should consume 8 glasses of water (8 oz each) daily. However, there is no evidence-based specific “recommended daily allowance” for water, partly because there are so many individual variables (from kidney function to environment to sensible … Read more

BRAIN RECHARGE: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #4

June 16, 2018January 23, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

BRAIN RECHARGE: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #4

MEDITATION. This is something I think about and INTEND to add to my daily routine every year, but have honestly never managed. This week, I will do a 12 minute meditation every day.

Last week, the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease published an interesting study, which is what is pushing me: Meditation and Music Improve Memory and Cognitive Function in Adults with Subjective Cognitive Decline: A Pilot Randomized Controlled … Read more

MEDICATION DISPENSER: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #3

June 16, 2018January 16, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

MEDICATION DISPENSER: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #3

Time to practice what I preach, and get back to using my own weekly medication box! This week’s 20-1-7 challenge is to fill and use my dispenser.

As a doctor, you would think I could manage to take my ONE prescription medication plus or minus a couple vitamins …yet I find on many days that I literally cannot remember whether or not I took them. Like everyone … Read more

NEW SHAPES: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #2

June 16, 2018January 8, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

NEW SHAPES: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #2

This week, I will put a new “twist” on my vegetables by using a new veggie spiralizer ($6 at the grocery store) and I will replace pasta and rice all week with spiraled zucchini or yellow squash.

I love my GF pasta and rice so much that I have one or the other at a minimum of one meal per day. Replacing them with a vegetable should be … Read more

Shades of Black and White: Skier’s Toe (Nail)

June 16, 2018December 14, 2016

Ever been skiing and noticed your toenail had turned black and incredibly painful at the end of the day? Was the entire nail black or only the base? “Skier’s toe” is a common and often very frustrating injury from skiing.

The medical term is a subungual hematoma, which simply means bleeding under the nail. This can occur from a single instance of trauma like dropping something on your toe, or from small, repetitive trauma like a too-small or too-big (so your foot slams back and forth) ski boot.

If this happens to you- do NOT wait to go in to … Read more

Check Your ALTITUDE!

June 16, 2018December 1, 2016

Going skiing for winter break? Whether you prefer downhill or cross country skiing, please remember that the high altitude might add in a few medical challenges. Be aware of signs and symptoms of “mountain sickness” (aka. altitude sickness) and if you are susceptible to this issue, look closely at ski resort ALTITUDES. Full disclosure, my destination of choice is Crested Butte, CO, which is one of the higher resorts…no pun intended.

HOW HIGH do you have to be for altitude sickness?

There is not a set elevation for typical mountain vacations that affects everyone. Symptoms are uncommon at altitudes below … Read more

STDs – The “Underestimated Opponent”

June 16, 2018October 26, 2016

The CDC recently released the 2015 National Overview of Sexually Transmitted Diseases, and the rising numbers are disturbing. The CDC’s forward begins by very accurately labeling STDs as a long-standing “underestimated opponent in the public health battle”. We CANNOT continue to ignore sexually transmitted infections and assume it is “those people over there” and not OUR crowd who gets these infections! While ZIKA VIRUS has definitely opened up more non-judgmental discussions about STDs, we have a long way to go. Here are a few highlights from the report:

CHLAMYDIA, the most common bacterial STD, has increased it’s rate by

ZIKA’s Unexpected Gifts

June 16, 2018October 6, 2016

In no way do I want to minimize the serious complications of Zika. However, the media buzz surrounding Zika offers an unexpected gift- effective STI (sexually transmitted infection) education. What is Zika doing that AIDS did not?

Zika normalizes TALKING about STIs

Zika arrived as the newest “malaria”- a mosquito-borne illness, with the added threat of potentially devastating consequences in pregnant women. Like familiar flu season reports, headlines track Zika’s progress across geographical borders, firmly establishing Zika as a hot topic. Pictures of infants with birth defects tug at our hearts, while reporters jockey to broadcast the latest Zika … Read more

No BULL…Get Your FLU SHOT!

June 16, 2018September 27, 2016

Yes, it’s only September, but we’ve been seeing cases of the flu all month! Today the University of Texas kicked off our 2016 flu shot campaign, and happily, students were lined up and ready to go. Our staff does a wonderful job of efficiently providing vaccines for students, faculty and staff- Hook ’em! The vaccines are widely available now, in your doctor’s office, pharmacies and even grocery stores.

WHO: EVERYONE that is 6 months old & up (*with rare exceptions*)

WHY: THOUSANDS of people die from flu every year, here in the United States- between 3000-49,000 deaths. Hundreds … Read more

Can College Students Get Ulcers?

June 16, 2018September 19, 2016

“Does STRESS cause stomach ulcers?”

In a college health center, this is a question I hear fairly often, especially around midterms or finals. Certainly most of us have experienced stomach discomfort when we are anxious- whether that is nausea, cramping, diarrhea or pain- but the vast majority of people with those symptoms do not have actual ulcers.

However, people who are stressed may have COPING HABITS that can irritate the stomach lining, causing a gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining) which might facilitate the development of ulcers:

Drinking too much alcohol (more than one drink/day for women, or more than