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Smoking
Alcohol
Activity
Diet and Obesity
Immunisations
Screening
We will be delighted to advise you regarding helping you to stop smoking, which is the greatest single cause for premature death in the adult population. If you are a smoker ask you doctor about the four ‘A’s. Your doctor hopefully should Ask about your smoking status, Advise you to stop, Aid you to stop, usually with nicotine replacement advice and Arrange follow-up to review and help you succeed.
Unfortunately excess alcohol has a damaging effect on both your health and often causes distress to family and friends. The current recommendations are to have an intake of no more than fourteen units of alcohol per week for a woman, or twenty-one units for a man. A unit of alcohol is a glass of wine, a pub measure of spirit, half a pint of beer of a quarter of a pint of strong lager. Alcohol as well as damaging your liver has a tendency to put on weight, and has been shown to cause raised blood pressure, and also to make its treatment more difficult.
Although the Gold standard for activity is heavy exertion for twenty minutes three times a week, the vast majority of us are unable to undertake this, and for the health of your heart and lungs there is ample evidence that all that is required is half an hour of moderate activity such as stride walking, dancing, swimming and cycling each day of the week, enough to make one feel a little short of breath and slightly warm.
Unfortunately there is an epidemic of obesity in the British population with now at least 15% of men and 10% of women being defined as obese, i.e. their weight in kilograms divided by their height in metres squared is greater than thirty. This alone doubles their risk of heart disease and premature death. A simple test to tell whether you have a weight problem is easily detected by standing naked in front of the mirror! Measure your waist circumference this should be less than 80cm for a woman, and if it is greater than 88cm your health is being damaged. In the case of men normal is up to 94cm and measurements in excess of 102cm cause health problems. Unfortunately there is no simple answer for weight, and although people claim large bones and hormone problems it is now definitely proven than all the people with weight problems eat more than they require, and usually undertake inadequate activity.
The good news is we should all follow a simple eating pattern which is based on the Cretan Mediterranean diet, which means fruit, vegetables and cereals, marked reduction in red meat and milk products, i.e. cheeses, butter etc, restriction in the use of salt and eating breakfast, lunch and something light in the evening. The majority of fat is hidden in sauces, gravies, crisps, cakes and manufactured products. Fatty fish such as trout, salmon and sardines should be eaten at least three times a week. Both the doctors and nurses would be very pleased to help you in life-style changes, which have been shown to result in the reduction of heart and lung disease, radically reduces the risk of cancer, and makes one able to control stress, and reduces the incidence of anxiety and depression. Unlike most things once one establishes a change on ones life-style this is for life not for six weeks of a crazy diet. Fascinating fact if you are aged forty with a BMI of 21 you have a vanishingly small risk of developing adult onset diabetes, which has an annual mortality of in excess of 3%. If your BMI is 25 your risk is increased by nine fold. If your BMI rises to 30 your risk is increased forty fold, and if your BMI is greater than 35 (morbid or malignant obesity) you have a hundred fold increase in risk.
We strongly recommend full immunisation for all children.
Women are invited to participate in the cervical screening programme for the detection and early treatment of cervical cancer, and the mammography screening in the over 50’s, for the early detection and treatment of breast cancer. Although we do not run a formal screening programme for men’s health, regular self examination of the testes is recommended for all men, and if there are any causes for concern the doctor would be happy to advise.