House Call, MD: Health Carefully Explained

PharmD 2011 | lee@myhousecallmd.com

What do Pro Volleyball, Lance Armstrong, and Motor Sports have in common?  Besides making us feel like we should get off the couch more, all of them are sponsored by a revolutionary energy drink that promises “to produce more real energy.”  Real energy?  It turns out we can blame sleep deprivation for America’s craving for alternative energy.  Approximately 20-40% of adults report difficulty sleeping at some point each year due to a myriad of reasons (first date anxiety, work deadlines, World of Warcraft…you get the idea) (1).  It’s no surprise that more people are turning to a quick “natural” fix after a sleepless night to boost their energy level like Pac-man and his power pellets.  Free Radical System (FRS) claims to offer a natural, healthy form of energy.  Should we denounce milk and pour FRS into our cereal bowls instead? Besides questionable after taste, it might not be a bad idea to learn more about the active ingredient in FRS before doing so.

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PharmD 2011 | houspian@myhousecallmd.com

You’ve may have noticed that your grandmother takes an aspirin everyday as part of her arsenal of medications. You may wonder why she’s taking aspirin when she’s in no apparent pain.  When you asked grandma she replied with her sagely tone, “The doctor said its good for my heart.” You nodded, pretending to understand, and wrote the answer off as another one of grandma’s “senior moments.” Well, it turns out that this time grandma is right. Although her answer is a simplified version of the truth, it is the truth nonetheless. Before you start popping aspirin yourself, read on to find out who should take daily aspirin and how it works to help your heart.

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