We got our first dog, Mitchell, a year ago and just got our latest puppy, Marin, in early December. They are so much fun! As one of my friends said, it’s kind of like having two perpetual toddlers in the house–FOREVER! We love our dogs and want to keep them healthy and happy. There are so many things we all need to do to keep our wonderful pets healthy, right? Today, I’m focusing on vaccinations. I don’t know about you, but this is confusing–which ones to get, and how often. I can hardly remember which vaccines I’ve had, much less Mitchell & Marin!
The first thing to do is get a good, physical exam for your dog or cat. I spoke to veterinarian Mike Escobedo, D.V.M., of Cornerstone Animal Clinic in Dallas, (pictured here with our new baby, Marin!) who was a wealth of information. According to Dr. Escobedo, a new puppy should begin vaccinations at 6 weeks of age, and no earlier. Then, administer vaccines at 6, 9, 12 & 15 weeks until they are about 4 months old. The goal is to build up an immunity and maintain it.
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Here are the guidelines & timeline:
First set/6 weeks: Distemper, Parvo, Corona (yes, it’s a vaccine, not beer being injected!)
9 weeks: Boosters for Distemper, Parvo, & Corona;
12 weeks: Boosters again for the previous 3, plus they are old enough to get their first Rabies vaccine. Also, they are old enough for the Bordatella vaccine. Bordatella is the “kennel cough” that you hear about dogs catching when they are boarded in kennels, dog parks or any scenario where they are around a lot of other animals. While not required, many pet owners choose to get Bordatella boosters if their dog is going to be around a lot of other dogs.
16 weeks: Distemper, Parvo Boosters
Also, a heartworm prevention regimen should begin. This medication is administered by pill or liquid and is prescribed by your pet’s weight. I personally prefer giving this to my dogs in pill form rather than the liquid. I just wrap it in a piece of cheese and slyly give it to them as a “treat”! Dr. Escobedo says heartworms, which are carried by mosquitoes, are a problem in many states, including Texas. “We see a lot of cases in my practice. We often use a drug called Immidicide to treat heartworms and it is very effective,” he says.
For cats, the basic core vaccines include: Feline Distemper at 6, 9, 12 & 15 weeks; Rabies at 12 weeks; Leukemia at 9 & 12 weeks.
So, what about the controversy surrounding overvaccinating pets? Dr. Escobedo agrees that the push to do less is good, and that’s what he does. “The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) has done a lot of research studies. These studies have helped shape the basic core guidelines of what vaccines to provide to your pet.”
Hope this helps. Let us hear from you–do you have a dog or cat? Do you believe in the “less” is more mentality of getting pet vaccines?
Paramount Communications is pleased to announce that Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten and his official charity, the SCORE Foundation, just completed a successful season with the Center for Spine Care, one of the nation’s premier institutions for treating back and neck pain, to help fight domestic violence.
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Witten’s SCORE Foundation, which has become one of the leading advocates for the fight against domestic violence in the state of Texas, teamed with the Center for Spine Care to raise awareness and funding for the issue. Just prior to the start of the 2009 regular season, Center for Spine Care made a pledge to donate money for each reception Witten made during the year. The all-pro tight end finished the season with 94 receptions, and Center for Spine Care recently donated $6,000 to the SCORE Foundation for its efforts against domestic violence.
The foundation, which operates the groundbreaking SCOREkeeper male mentoring program at six shelters across the state, is joining the Texas Council on Family Violence to start the brand new “Coaching Boys Into Men” domestic violence education program at high schools in Arlington this year. The program focuses on educating high school boys on appropriate behavior toward women.
The SCORE Foundation also works closely with The Family Place, the state’s largest women’s shelter, and will help keep vulnerable women and children from returning to violent homes where they are in grave danger. Violence has escalated with the suffering economy, resulting in more victims calling the agency’s hotline in need of shelter. Through the donation from the Center for Spine Care, women and children who desperately need a safe bed can find one at The Family Place.
“We are very proud to partner with Jason and his foundation in the fight against domestic violence,” said John Peloza, M.D., Medical Director of the CSC. “We take our work in the community very seriously, and Jason does as well. That’s why it makes perfect sense for us to work together on this cause we both care so deeply about. We congratulate Jason and the Dallas Cowboys for a successful season.”
Dr. Peloza and the Center for Spine Care attract patients from all over the country because of their expertise in Minimal Access Spinal Technology (MAST), which uses very small incisions and surgical instruments to get patients back on their feet and back to everyday life faster.
A happy, healthy new year to all! A new year signals a fresh approach to how we are living. What are your goals for 2010 to live a healthier life? It doesn’t have to be dramatic–even small steps to a healthier lifestyle can be easily attained.
We’ve put together a poll for you to answer–please do and feel free to comment on what you are doing to help continue or change your lifestyle to a more healthier one! Here’s to 2010!
Here we are–right in the middle of the holiday season… Parties, food, drink, and there’s a sneaky little culprit that makes its way into a lot of prepared foods, especially in restaurants: Salt!
I’m a firm believer that salt can actually be one of the more worrisome ingredients in food if used in excess. This is because oftentimes it is already abundantly present in food and then people add even more with the salt shaker, sending their sodium intake soaring! A recent large-scale study proves that eating high amounts of salt is linked to a significantly higher risk of strokes and cardiovascular disease.
The study, published in the British Medical Journal, was a joint effort reviewing 13 prospective studies from the United Kingdom, Japan, the United States, the Netherlands, Finland, and China. It included more than 170,000 participants followed up for 3.5 to 19 years. The study provides conclusive evidence of the direct link between high amounts of salt intake and increased risk of stroke and cardiovascular disease.
The study also proved that reducing daily salt intake averted more than 1.25 million strokes and almost 3 million cardiovascular events worldwide each year. So, try not to use the salt or eliminate it altogether. A tip I use at my house when cooking is to use a lot of other spices in our food for flavor. I even order meals in restaurants specifically without salt. Pile on the pepper! Get creative with cumin! But pass on that salt! Your body will thank you!
Let’s hear your comments on how you reduce salt intake!
Most of us that run are close to being fanatical about it. It’s addictive. With the addiction can come a sobering fact: Injuries! If you are a runner, you have probably experienced some kind of injury. If you haven’t, you are very lucky. I’ve had achilles tendonitis, knee pain, and back pain, all from running.
Many of you may be in training for various winter races such as the White Rock Marathon so I thought I’d seek some expert advice. I consulted with Rich Silliman, M.S.P.T., Founder of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy Institute of Dallas. Rich is a Master’s-degreed Physical Therapist who works with high-level athletes in the NFL, NBA, Major & Minor league baseball, PGA golfers, collegiate and high school athletes, runners for Team Nike, Ironman Triathletes, as well as regular everyday athletes like many of us.
I’ve been to Rich for many of my sports injuries and he is amazing! Physicians from all over send their patients to him for rehab as his technique of manual physical therapy is extremely unique.
According to Rich, lately he is seeing many runners with knee pain. The reason? He says most of the knee pain is a byproduct of a muscle imbalance of the hip complex. “Hip rotators are the most overlooked when it comes to this injury. Weak hip rotators influence the knee position at heel strike during running,” Rich says. “In addition, the Gluteus Maximus, the Gluteus Medius weakness and Iliotibial Band (ITB) get tight and begin to cause excessive rotation on your femur and/or pelvic obluity and subsequent sacroiliac joint dysfunction that causes the knee to hurt.”
The IT band is a thick, fibrous band that spans from the hip to the shin; it lends stability to the knee joint, and is attached to muscles in the thigh. The glute muscles, well, you know where those are! This is a classic case of the hipbone’s connected to the knee bone…..a definite cause & effect.
Rich initially rules out any stress fracture and any structural abnormalities (i.e. cartilage or ligament damage) in a patient, then in a team approach with the patient’s sports medicine doctor, prescribes various rehabilitation that may include manual physical therapy, stretching and various strengthening exercises.
“Stretching for runners is essential,” says Rich. “I also think it’s more important to stretch after a run, not before. Muscles are warmer after a run and this helps prevent injury.”
Here are some of Rich Silliman’s top injury prevention tips for runners:
Hip rotator & gluteus medius strengthening
Stretching of the hamstrings & IT Bands
Core strengthening exercises (this also stabilizes the back)
Wear appropriate footwear
Allow enough recovery time between runs
Remember, often the injury is because of a muscle imbalance, so stretching what is tight and strengthening what is weak is is extremely important to not only get rid of the problem, but more importantly, to keep it from coming back and becoming a chronic recurring problem.
For more information, visit Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy Institute of Dallas at:
Any comments from the runners out there? By the way, you don’t have to be a runner to benefit from these tips–these are helpful no matter what activity you are involved in.
More than 80% of Americans will experience back pain at some point in their lives. I hope you are not one of them, however, the odds are that you will be. And these odds increase as we get older because the discs in our back begin to age, or what the spine surgeons refer to as “disc degeneration”.
I got to find this out last year when I had lower back pain with tingling going down my leg, then numbness. Not good! I found out it was an annular disc tear. These are tricky to treat medically because they are not quite a bulging disc which can be treated successfully with some minimally-invasive procedures. There is not a lot you can do for an annular tear. So, I stopped running on pavement, which was causing the problem, and the running withdrawal almost killed me but that’s another story!!!! I started some serious back-strengthening exercises and stretches to add to my regimen. I still do them every single day and feel great!
So don’t panic if you have back pain! Thankfully, there are lots of preventive strategies to keep you out of the doctor’s office. I consulted with renowned spine surgeon John Peloza, M.D., Medical Director of the Center for Spine Care, and he offered up some helpful tips on keeping your neck & back healthy. In upcoming blogs, we’ll go in to further detail, because back pain is the second leading cause for visits to the doctor!
Here are some helpful tips:
Exercise! Don’t be sedentary. Of course, sometimes as in my case, the exercise itself causes the back pain.
Cross train–it keeps the entire body strong.
Do core-strengthening exercises. This stabilizes the spine and keeps it strong. I do a series of these every day. Details in a later blog.
Check your baggage and minimize carry-on luggage when traveling.
Achieve & maintain an ideal body weight.
Maintain good posture. You’ll feel good & look good!
Create an ergonomically-friendly workstation.
Wear comfortable shoes. Ladies, limit the high heels if you have lower back pain!
Buy a good, quality mattress to sleep on.
You can read more about spine health at the Center for Spine Care web site:
A quick shout out to everyone to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving! As we are now officially in the holiday season, there are lots of events and parties that tempt us to overeat with delicious, holiday feasts. A few quick tips to think about:
Eat slowly and in moderation; savor the food. Enjoy a sensible portion of your Mom’s cornbread dressing (My Mom’s is delicious and I’ll be enjoying it!)
Load up on fruits & vegetables, but go light on or skip the butter & sauces
Turkey is great, & low-fat if you remove the skin
Get plenty of exercise–this will help keep off the pounds. After the meal, take a walk with your family. Pete & I will be taking our dog Mitchell for a post-meal walk and inviting the family to join us!
It all began last November. I was going about my life when one morning while doing stretches before a run, I got dizzy. Real dizzy. I thought it was odd, and tried to brush it off. Until it happened again. And again. It was almost always when I was laying down. The room would start spinning. I also had a “full” sensation in my ears, like they needed to be popped. And I felt out of balance. Alarmed, I called my awesome internist, who got me in immediately.
She told me she thought it was an ear infection, that it would eventually clear up, and to call her if it did not. I patiently waited, but the dizziness and imbalance were worsening, and since it was happening every time I lay down, it was making sleep difficult. Weeks of dizziness, imbalance and no sleep began to wear on me and then worry and anxiety began to set in. Since my line of work involves medicine and I work with multitudes of physicians of various specialties, I began to fear it was something more serious and began conjuring up various diagnoses. The good and bad of working in the medical world! This of course fueled the anxiety even more, which was fueled by lack of sleep, with a hefty dose of dizziness thrown in daily. One was feeding the other. Of course I was researching vertigo on the internet and was stunned at my findings.
The treatments I found all involved prescription medications, anti-anxiety drugs and other powerful drugs. People who posted their experiences were depressed, scared, had lost jobs over it, were worn out, and were on drugs that knocked them into a semi-coma! I was terrified that I was going to have to get on some powerful medication. A friend of mine told me she had vertigo and was on a medication that “knocked her out for 18 hours”…..that was not what i wanted!
I went back to my Internist who said it was time I see an Ear, Nose & Throat specialist. I then called Presley Mock, M.D., one of the best otolaryngologists in Dallas. I was half-expecting him to prescribe me drugs. I was still afraid it was something very serious. After running extensive tests, Dr. Mock diagnosed me with Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV), probably caused from the ear infection. He prescribed Vestibular Rehab. What the heck is that, I wondered? That’s when I met Connie Thomason, with Texas Health Presbyterian Dallas, who is the most knowledgeable, wonderful Occupational Therapist who is medically certified to treat this specific disorder through physical rehabilitation.
By the time I met Connie, I had experienced daily vertigo & sleeplessness for almost two months, it had ruined my holidays, and it had taken a toll. I was a basket case. Connie assured me that very first day that it was treatable by a series of maneuvers called the “Canalith Repositioning Procedure” (CRP), or “Epley Maneuver” named for the inventor, Dr. Epley. It has an 80% cure rate! I also should add that Connie reinforced to me that vertigo is “extremely debilitating and disruptive to one’s life.” I could certainly attest to this!” She told me that people are often prescribed “anti-vertigo” medications that are only a Band-Aid, not a cure. These only suppress the vertigo for awhile, leaving the patient drowsy and feeling out of it.
BPPV occurs when small crystals in the ear get displaced in the inner ear canal sending false signals to our brain, thus causing vertigo & imbalance. These “ear rocks” are actually small crystals of calcium carbonate. The goal of the Epley Maneuver is to reposition the ear rocks in the ear canal. These maneuvers involve a series of specifically patterned head and trunk movements performed by a trained professional like Connie, who closely watch eye movements with each position change. It is done in the office in about 15 minutes! I was given specific instructions to ensure that the repositioned crystals stayed intact along with some home exercises. The dizziness was gone immediately and the imbalance feeling was gone in a few weeks with the exercises.
Here’s a web site with illustrations of the Epley maneuvers:
I have talked to so many people about this safe, effective, non-drug treatment for vertigo and am surprised at how many people don’t know about it, including some physicians. So, if you are experiencing the terrifying effects of vertigo and imbalance disorders, please know there is help. The VDA website above can help you find a trained medical professional in your area to treat you with the Epley maneuver.
I hope this helps! Have you or someone you know experienced vertigo? Let me hear from you. Share your comments!
I recently blogged about the benefits of the Mediterranean diet, and there are many! A major part of that diet is fresh fruit. We should be eating several servings of fresh fruit every day.
Berries are a great way to add powerful antioxidants to your diet. Antioxidants are important disease-fighting compounds that can prevent cell damage and help boost your body’s immune system. Berries and other foods were featured in a major study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. This research study provides a large comprehensive report of antioxidant content in fruits and vegetables. Berries were at the top of the list in providing the most antioxidant values.
One of the great things about berries is that they are easily found year-round across the country. Blackberries, strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries are some of the best sources.
One very easy & elegant dessert I serve frequently is a half cup of rinsed blueberries, a half-cup rinsed & sliced strawberries, sprinkled with a handful of raw, unsalted almonds. I top it off with a dollop of low-fat, low-sugar whipped cream. To add some elegance to this easy, delicious dessert, serve it in a chilled martini glass or other pretty glassware or bowl.
I’ve been a big fan of the Mediterranean way of life for years. Note how I didn’t refer to it as a “diet” but a way of life. There are so many heart-healthy, delicious aspects to eating this way that it’s hard to call it a diet.
Don’t get me wrong–I’d love to be in Greece or southern Italy right now blogging away but since I’m not, let’s zero in on some of the components of the Mediterranean diet that can be found anywhere in the world:
Olive oil
Fresh fruits & nuts
Fresh vegetables
Cheese & yogurt
Fish & poultry
Wine (moderate consumption such as a glass of wine per day)
Moderate exercise (20-30 minutes a day)
I was so thrilled to see a large clinical research study’s results earlier this year. As part of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study, researchers followed more than 23,000 Greek men and women for 8.5 years to see how various aspects of a Mediterranean diet affect mortality rates by lowering them. There have been many other studies that show the benefits of this diet from lowering blood pressure to lowering cholesterol levels but this was one of the largest to date.
I love to cook and I use some or all of the above components in almost every menu in some form. It’s easy, it’s healthy and it’s fun. Here are a few simple suggestions to get you started:
Try using a tablespoon of olive oil on your salad as a dressing.
Grab some raw, unsalted almonds as a snack instead of chips.
Try fresh blueberries with a dash of low-calorie whipped cream as dessert
We will offer some simple, easy recipes soon so subscribe to the blog so you can receive them. So pour yourself a glass of red wine and start cooking the Mediterranean way!
The first thing to do is get a good, physical exam for your dog or cat. I spoke to veterinarian Mike Escobedo, D.V.M., of Cornerstone Animal Clinic in Dallas, (pictured here with our new baby, Marin!) who was a wealth of information. According to Dr. Escobedo, a new puppy should begin vaccinations at 6 weeks of age, and no earlier. Then, administer vaccines at 6, 9, 12 & 15 weeks until they are about 4 months old. The goal is to build up an immunity and maintain it.
Many of you may be in training for various winter races such as the White Rock Marathon so I thought I’d seek some expert advice. I consulted with Rich Silliman, M.S.P.T., Founder of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy Institute of Dallas. Rich is a Master’s-degreed Physical Therapist who works with high-level athletes in the NFL, NBA, Major & Minor league baseball, PGA golfers, collegiate and high school athletes, runners for Team Nike, Ironman Triathletes, as well as regular everyday athletes like many of us.
So don’t panic if you have back pain! Thankfully, there are lots of preventive strategies to keep you out of the doctor’s office. I consulted with renowned spine surgeon John Peloza, M.D., Medical Director of the Center for Spine Care, and he offered up some helpful tips on keeping your neck & back healthy. In upcoming blogs, we’ll go in to further detail, because back pain is the second leading cause for visits to the doctor!
You can read more about spine health at the Center for Spine Care web site: