Monthly archive

5 tips to reduce your chances of developing breast cancer

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and it’s estimated that 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. Although we may not be able to completely prevent breast cancer, the risk can at least be reduced. Here’s how: 
 
Physical activity - Healthy, physical activity is great for a lot reasons – heart, lungs, metabolism – and yes, even in reducing breast cancer risk.

How do you stay motivated in your weight loss journey?

“This is a big issue and all of us have been there,” says Lovelace Bariatrics Director Dr. Duc Vuong. “Before we know it, we’re off track.” The journey to a healthier life is not always an easy one. Yes, you’ve made the decision to make healthier decisions and yes, you were successful the first day, maybe the first week or even first month. But old habits die hard, right? It’s why we keep going back to old ways and therefore get the old results we’ve dealt with time and time again. To help get us back on track, Dr.

Dr. Vuong’s Tips on Mindful Eating

We live in a fast-paced world. Convenience is king and when it comes to eating, fast tends to win over more times than healthy. Whether than means grabbing a snack at your desk, in the car or while watching your favorite show on television, you may not be fully aware of what or how much you are eating. However, Lovelace Bariatrics Director Dr. Duc Vuong says doing that over and over again forms a bad habit that can affect our waistlines and overall health.

5 Reasons We Need Diabetes Education

Diabetes is something nobody wants to have. However, there is good treatment for diabetes if you actively manage it. The best way to fight diabetes or pre-diabetes is to be educated on the subject. Our resident dietician Teresa Anderson, CDE teaches regular classes on diabetes self-management.

What is a STEMI?

Maria Atencio the CP/STEMI Manager of Heart Hospital of New Mexico @ Lovelace Medical Center answers an important question we should all know about STEMI. If you or a loved one are in experiencing heart trouble, know what to look for and what to do.

Questions about asthma with Dr. Glenn Vogelsang MD

Summer has officially transitioned into fall. Unfortunately the changing season makes breathing a little difficult for those of us with asthma. The first step to deal with symptoms of asthma is to know things about it. We spoke with family medicine practitioner Dr. Glenn Vogelsang M.D. from our regional clinic in Roswell on the subject of asthma and what an asthmatic should do to take care of him or herself. 
 
What is Asthma?
 
Asthma is an inflammatory and autoimmune condition.

Set Free with Bariatric Weight Loss Surgery

In 2014, it was time for Katie McClain. She had spent years hiding behind others in photos, putting off trips and coming up with reasons to avoid certain restaurant tables. There was one thing in between Katie and her life that was holding her back. “After losing almost 150 pounds, I am able to finally be myself,” she says of making the decision to have bariatric weight loss surgery. “I no longer feel confined or defined by my weight. I no longer worry about fitting in restaurant booths or rollercoaster seats.

MRI Sedation now offered at Lovelace Regional Hospital - Roswell

If you need an MRI but struggle with claustrophobia or any sort of involuntary movement, you might consider having a sedation MRI. In this video, Dr. Gary Clark of Lovelace Regional Hospital – Roswell explains why. While an open MRI may be an option for patients who would be uncomfortable during a traditional, closed MRI, the open MRI offers lower resolution in the resulting images, so a closed MRI is preferable in many cases. According to Dr. Clark, the sedation MRI allows patients to be calmer, and possibly fall asleep, during a closed MRI.

Lovelace Women's Hospital gets a Mayoral Proclamation for Neonatal Nurses Day in Albuquerque

 
September 15 is Neonatal Nurses Day. Although it is a nationally recognized day, the City of Albuquerque had not officially recognized it until now. Eva Budzinkski, a career neonatal nurse from Lovelace Women’s Hospital, spearheaded the effort to get a Mayoral Proclamation on Neonatal Nurses Day from the City of Albuquerque.

A Turning Point in Life with Lovelace Bariatrics

Daphne Mitchell, 35, doesn’t take an opportunity to go with friends on a short road trip outside of Albuquerque to pick wild raspberries for granted. “It blows my mind,” she says. It was a day she didn’t think was possible just a few years earlier. Walking any distance at all, let alone standing for more than five minutes, was a struggle for Daphne, who at her peak reached 530 pounds. “The doctor said I had almost bone-to-bone arthritis in both knees. He said if I didn’t lose weight that would be the least of my health concerns.”

4 tips you will want to know to keep your baby safe

September is Baby Safety Month, and although we should always be taking the best measures to ensure our little ones’ safety, the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) has dedicated this month to raising awareness about the hidden hazards in our homes. 
Here are some of the tips JPMA suggests to creating a safer home for your infant: 
 
  1. Keep loose change, buttons, beads, and any other small items in a bucket or jar out of the reach of children. Children can easily ingest these.  
  2. Know your recalls.

Back-to-school breakfast ideas with Lovelace resident dietician Teresa Anderson, CDE

 
August is National Kids Eat Right month. It also happens to be back to school month for the kids in New Mexico. Last week we wrote about the importance of nutrition in our kids’ breakfasts. Today we are going to break it down a little more simply with our resident dietician Teresa Anderson, CDE.
 
What happens to a child who goes to school after skipping breakfast?
 
The student will have a lack of concentration, focus and energy, which makes learning, and behaving much harder.

New abdominal stent graft system debuts at Heart Hospital of New Mexico at Lovelace Medical Center

 
Albuquerque, New Mexico rarely gets to claim a “world’s first” in anything, but Dr. Steve Henao, chief of vascular surgery at the New Mexico Heart Institute (NMHI), made big news when he became the first vascular surgeon in the world to use a new abdominal stent graft system at Heart Hospital of New Mexico at Lovelace Medical Center.
 

Back To School and Back to Healthy Breakfasts

 
The summer is winding down and kids are getting back into the struggle of an early morning routine. Some days it feels like a victory that you got them dressed and to class on time. One part of your child’s morning which is often overlooked – but shouldn’t be – is getting a good breakfast.
 
Did you know that children who eat a healthy breakfast perform better in school than those who eat sugary cereal or nothing at all?

Six Tips to get your kids back to bed for back to school

 
Back to school time is in full swing in New Mexico, and while we are hustling to get the kiddos organized and prepped with all the essentials (like the sports physicals we talked about last week), we cannot ignore one of the most basic human needs: sleep.
 
We all know that getting a good night’s sleep helps you perform better throughout the day, but this is even more true for growing children learning how to perform well in school. 
 
Lovelace M

Back To School Sports Physicals

It’s back to school time, a time when we have a ton of things to check off the list: new clothes, new books and supplies, getting enrolled in some fun physical sports for good exercise, and more. Before you completely check off the sports part, you want to consider getting your teenaged-child a sports physical to minimize risk of injury. 

Quick tips on preventing West Nile Virus this summer

Summer in New Mexico means rain, and rain means mosquitoes. Unfortunately, mosquitoes aren’t just an annoyance: they can also carry disease, such as West Nile virus.

The Albuquerque Health Department recently confirmed that there have been mosquitoes in our area that have tested positive for West Nile virus. While the virus does not produce symptoms in most people, some people will develop a fever, headache, body aches, joint pains, vomiting, diarrhea or a rash.

World Breastfeeding Week is August 1-7

Every year in the first week of August, the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA) organizes World Breastfeeding Week, which seeks to bring awareness to the importance of how women and families can make breastfeeding and work function together. The theme of World Breastfeeding Week 2015 is “Breastfeeding and Work: Let’s Make it Work!”

To help mark the occasion, Lovelace Health System has tips to help working mothers plan their return to work or school after the birth of their child with breastfeeding in mind.

While pregnant:

Container Gardens Offer Scalable Gardening for Beginners

Gardening can be easier said than done. There are many factors to consider when growing your own produce – climate, soil, planting season, watering, drainage, harvest time, and pests. And then do you have adequate space and the time to maintain a garden? For those who would like to tip-toe into gardening, without the commitment of half of the backyard, or most of your evenings and weekends spent pruning, container gardens are a great option.

Health benefits of chocolate - six questions with Teresa Anderson, CDE, our resident dietician

Chocolate. Who doesn’t love chocolate? We want it in our breakfast, our lunch, our snacks, our vending machines and after dinner. It’s a staple of almost any holiday, birthday celebration, or just because you wanted chocolate. We are taught from an early age that chocolate isn’t good for us, but have you heard that chocolate candy may not be completely bad for our health after all. We decided to get to the bottom of the predicament by going to Teresa Anderson, our resident Dietician CDE, for the truth about chocolate.

Is chocolate good for you?