Staying Healthy Archive

Ask the doctors

 Image: © BraunS/Getty Images

Q. After I had cataract surgery and facial surgery, I loved sleeping in my recliner for days on end. Does sleeping while sitting up put my brain and vital organs at risk since the blood supply has to travel uphill?

A. Sleeping sitting up in a recliner shouldn't be harmful. It could, in some cases, raise your risk of deep-vein thrombosis, a blood clot in a limb that can occur if your arms or legs are bent and you are motionless for hours. This sometimes occurs in people who sit still for long periods of time in an airplane seat. But provided you are comfortable and can recline back slightly, there should be few risks to sleeping upright, assuming it doesn't interfere with your ability to get a good night's sleep.

 Image: © Hunterann/Thinkstock

Research we're watching

For years, many have speculated that taking vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acid supplements might help to prevent heart attacks, strokes, and certain cancers. But a study by Harvard researchers published online November 10, 2018, by The New England Journal of Medicine has found that the benefits may be more limited than originally hoped.

The results of the Vitamin D and Omega-3 Trial (VITAL), which enrolled more than 25,000 people and ran for more than five years, showed that while omega-3 supplements did appear to reduce the risk of heart attack, particularly among African Americans, they did not appear to be effective in preventing stroke or cancer. Vitamin D supplements also saw few benefits when it came to preventing heart attack, stroke, or cancer — but they were associated with a drop in cancer deaths in people who had taken the supplements for at least a year or two.

Healthy-sounding claims on food packaging can be misleading. Here's how to find impostors.

 Image: © DjelicS/Getty Images

The New Year may have you thinking about a healthier diet, but you may need to do some detective work to find the healthiest foods in your grocery store. Food manufacturers often use terms that make products sound healthier than they are.

"Finding the healthiest foods takes time and effort, and we want things that are quick and easy. We need to take a couple of steps back and look beyond the flashy labels to see what actually is — and isn't — in the foods," says registered dietitian Kathy McManus, director of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital.

Weak gluteal muscles can overload the muscles in the backs of your thighs.

 Image: © izusek/Getty Images

The hamstrings are the unsung heroes of the upper legs. The three muscles in the back of each thigh enable you to bend your knees and pull your legs back as you walk. They also assist the gluteal muscles (or "glutes") in the buttocks — the powerhouses that propel your body forward when you get up from a chair, bound across a room, or climb stairs. The glutes also help you come to a stop from a run or walk and lower your body to sit down or squat.

But weak gluteal muscles wind up overburdening the hamstrings. "When the glutes are weak, which is common in the age of sitting too much, the hamstrings are continually overworked and overloaded," says Matt Natanson, a physical therapist with Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital.

Remove expired medications to avoid hazards such as accidental poisoning or ineffective treatment.

 Image: © SelectStock/Getty Images

Like any cupboard in your house, the medicine cabinet can easily become overstuffed with pills, potions, and creams that have expired or are no longer needed. But holding on to them can be dangerous. That's why experts recommend weeding through your medicine cabinet regularly. "Check it every six months or when you change your clocks," recommends Joanne Doyle Petrongolo, a pharmacist with Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital. "Make it a regular habit to protect your family."

Medicine cabinet risks

For all their value, the substances in your medicine cabinet pose some risks beyond the side effects of the drugs:

You're ready to head for sunnier climes. But have you thought through your evolving health needs? Here's a checklist.

 Image: © kali9/Getty Images

When we get close to retirement age, we're all a little guilty of deluding ourselves into thinking how rosy it'll be — long walks on the beach at sunset, meaningful volunteering to engage the mind, the warmth and conviviality of friends and family.

It's great to approach retirement in a positive state of mind. But it's also a good idea to consider your future health needs when it comes time to select a community where you can live out your golden years.