May Plank Challenge: Side Plank Addition

Posted on 05/13/2013 by NurseBridgid

I am so excited that so many of you decided to join me on the April (Squat) and May (Plank) Exercise Challenges, it is VERY challenging month, and since the end goal is a long period of planks per day, it would not only be beneficial to your body, in strengthening different muscles, but it will also break up the monotony of the exercise! I have encouraged you all to do leg and arm lifts, along with alternating leg/arm lifts at the same time, which is great addition to the exercise and makes it a little more challenging, but adding the side planks will add a whole new level of strengthening and benefits!

Why Side Planks?

Side planks help to strengthen your core muscles, as we have been working on, but it adds a different dimension, and we can do beginner to more advanced side planks. Side planks target your gluteal (butt) muscles, quads, hamstrings, and thigh (inner and outer muscles), along with those core abdominal and back muscles. This will really help to tone and strengthen those muscles that assist your abs and back, so you will have a much stronger body, which will lead to less back pain (unless you have a medical reason for it), improved posture, and you will feel better and stronger, which will improve your self-esteem!

How do I perform a Side Plank?

You can start either from a plank position, and turn to the side so that the side of your foot is on the floor, the other foot is directly stacked on top ankle to ankle, knee to knee, and your hips are directly in line with the floor. For the beginner, you can do this pose on your elbow (arm flat on the floor perpendicular to the shoulder). More advanced, you can have your arm straight, with your hand placed flat on the floor, directly under your shoulder. From this position, you can get more advanced, keeping your core muscles engaged and tight, lift the top arm directly above your shoulder into the air, and also lift that top foot 6-9″ into the air.

Top: beginner side plank
Bottom: more advanced

Top: Advanced side plank with arm and leg lift

I do suggest starting at a more beginners level and then advancing as you feel stronger, and as you can get hurt if you push yourself too hard and you do not have the proper body positioning. You don’t want to fall or topple over or overstrain muscles. Make sure to engage your core muscles, breathe through the exercises (holding your breath is never good, but especially when exercising!), and if it gets to the point that you do not feel like you can breathe, take a break! Yes we are all challenging and we have goals as a group BUT you need to listen to your body and do what feels right. If you have pain (not just “this is new muscle I am working” type of pain but real pain), stop and take the day off, and if the pain comes back you may need to see your healthcare practitioner (HCP), if the pain goes away, maybe you pushed yourself too hard, and go to a more beginner position.

Keep planking your way to that beach body, we are almost halfway through a very difficult challenge: just focus on how strong we will be and how good we will look at the end!

Yours in Good Health

Are you a part of the Clean Plate Club?

Posted on 05/08/2013 by NurseBridgid

Growing up, I remember sitting at the kitchen table and staring at a plate of goulash, trying to mentally will it to go away….but my mother telling me I couldn’t leave the table without cleaning my plate because there were some children who didn’t have food. Ugh. I remember thinking, they wouldn’t want the goulash! But, when there were foods that I liked, I was in the “Clean Plate Club” in no time flat (I am a ridiculously fast eater for some reason.) But despite us not wanting to waste food, this may be a bad thing to teach children; it can cause some bad habits later on.

How can it be bad?

A few studies have been done recently to look at how often parents these days are actually pushing this “clean plate club” idea on kids, and the journal Adolescent found that 2/3rds of parents actually still push this idea on their adolescent and teenage children. When you encourage your children to eat based on how much you offer them, and teach them to eat ALL of the food, they learn to eat what is in front of them, and not to eat based on what their body is feeling and needing, or on satiety. As portions seem to get bigger and bigger, and children are just eating what’s given to them, they are consuming more and more fat and calories than necessary. They will consume more than their bodies need, and tend to gain weight over time. While they are growing quickly and hormones are changing, it doesn’t always take effect immediately, but it will lead to bad habits as an adult too. Also, the study (which looked at around 2200 children and 3500 parents) found that parents of overweight children, despite encouraging the clean plate club earlier on in life, started encouraging less food consumption (possibly under eat), while children that were skinnier were still being encouraged to eat large amounts (possibly overeat). The Center for Disease Control has found that in the past 3 decades, childhood obesity has increased by 2 fold and adolescent obesity has tripled, and in 2010 alone 1/3 of all children were noted as obese.

It is really important to teach portion sizes, but also healthy eating, and proper eating: fill your house with healthy foods and snacks, let them make the right choices. If they choose to fill up on carrot sticks (even with peanut butter), great, it’s much better than potato chips! They can learn when they feel full on their own without parents hovering; sometimes pressuring them to eat more or less makes the situation worse, they can learn to eat on their own. When they are growing, they will eat more because their bodies need the nutrition, and when it slows, so will their intake. As parents, we need to supply the healthy foods for them to eat, and to teach them to make the right choices.

So don’t push that clean plate club! Just push the healthy foods. And sometimes having your child talk to their Healthcare Practitioner (HCP) or a nutritionist can help them to learn better food choices, if they are making poor choices on their own, and so they can also learn the long-term implications of poor eating habits. Regulate what they eat by making healthy food available, not by forcing, and you will have a better chance of them learning to eat healthy!

Yours in Good Health

May: Mental Health Awareness and Suicide Prevention Month

Posted on 05/06/2013 by NurseBridgid

May is mental health awareness and suicide prevention month; many people start to feel desperate with their depression symptoms around the first couple weeks of spring. Mostly because people think once the “winter blues” are over, and spring has sprung, they will start to feel better miraculously. When that doesn’t happen, the true feelings of depression can sink in: helplessness and thoughts of harming themselves (i.e. suicide) can become overwhelming. It can be hard to see the signs in people who are really close to you, but it is important to know the signs and see them in others, as over 1 million people attempt suicide annually.

What are some signs of Depression/Suicide?

-Clinical Depression is usually emphasized by a loss of interest in life, sadness, disinterest in previously enjoyed hobbies, difficulty concentrating, trouble with eating and sleeping.

-Thinking about death a lot (verbalizing, drawing, or referring to death a lot)

-Feelings of hopelessness or worthlessness

-Making changes to wills, plans, or making statements about not being around much longer

-A sudden switch from someone being really deeply depressed and sad to very happy

-Calling people to say goodbye

-Previous suicide attempts (50% of those with prior attempts will try again and be successful)

Risk Factors:

-Previous suicide attempts

-Family violence

-Physical or sexual abuse history

-Firearms in the home

-Chronic illness or pain

-Mental illness history

-Substance abuse problem

What do you do if you think someone is at risk?

-Listen to them, and reassure them that you care about them, you are listening, and you care. If they say that they want to kill themselves, it is an emergency, call 911 (or emergency services where you live), do not leave them alone, and remove any firearms, knives, other weapons, or drugs and alcohol.

-If they are not actively threatening but you feel they are at risk, have them call a Suicide Hotline 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) or 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255). And, assist them with finding a mental health professional and you can always start with your Healthcare Practitioner (HCP) to help with a referral.

Many times we missed the subtle signs and symptoms, especially when we are close to the victim. It has happened to me in my very own family, and right after it happened all you think about is “how did I miss the signs?? I spent so much time with them?” It’s important to remember that we all have comfort levels with people, and sometimes you are too close, it almost takes an outsider to see the situation for what it is; you are so used to the persons behaviors or traits, that it is not abnormal to you. And you might just think they are finally out of their funk when they become happy again; but really they have made a plan. It is important to not blame yourself, if someone you love takes his or her own life. It is not your fault, and the symptoms are very hard to see. What’s important is learning and seeing the symptoms in others and helping them.

Knowing when you see the symptoms, and what to do is important. So pay attention to the signs, and how you can help.

Yours in Good Health

May Plank Challenge: Join Me, Won’t You?

Posted on 05/01/2013 by NurseBridgid

For the month of May, as we are focusing on getting healthier, getting stronger, toning our bodies, and encouraging one another to accomplish our goals (especially when some of use really do NOT enjoy the exercises), we will look to the plank! And, no I am not talking about just laying various pieces of furniture and posting pictures via social media, I am talking about the real deal plank (AKA a hover.)

To perform a proper plank:

You should rest on your elbows, should length apart (your hands can come together at the center or go straight forward, but your forearms need to stay on the ground) and your toes should also be on the ground. Keeping your entire core tight, and in a straight line, relaxing your head/neck so that you are looking straight down, you should hold this position.

*If this position is too difficult or you are unable to hold it because of any medical/health conditions, you can hold this position on your hands (in push up position)

There are also some alterations that you can add in:

Leg Lifts: lift one leg at a time approximately 6 inches off the floor, hold for 5 seconds, then alternate with the other leg, all while holding your back, torso, and shoulders straight.

in the side view my leg is lifted a little high- only around 6″ off the ground

leg height is better here

Plank with arm lift

Arm lifts: Lift one arms at a time to shoulder height, and hold for 5 seconds, then alternate with your other arm, and maintain that straight back, torso and shoulders. You can do these by themselves OR when you lift the opposite leg.

Plank with alternating leg/arm lift

How are planks going to transform my body?

Planks work to strengthen the core muscles in your body (your abdominal and back muscles) directly. Then there are other muscles that help to stabilize you in this pose and they strengthen as well: shoulder muscles, pectoralis (chest), quads (upper legs), gluteals (butt), sartorius (thigh), serratus anterior (side of chest), tensor fasciae latae (thigh/hip), and gastrocnemius (calves).

Increasing your ability to hold these plank positions will help to strengthen and tone those muscles, which will not only make you appear leaner in your core, but also tighten your legs and butt too! Because we are strengthening your muscles, you will be burning more calories, even at rest, so when you feel sore, that is your muscles strengthening, and your body burning fuel. So, feel the burn, and love the burn: it means you are making progress!

The Challenge (…if you choose to accept it):

And for those of you who did the April Squat Challenge, keep maintenance squats ranging from 50-100 5 days a week (if you are able physically and medically). If you have any specific medical and/or physical limitations, you should speak with your personal healthcare provider before taking on a strenuous challenge.

Day 1: 1 minute

Day 2: 2 minutes

Day 3: 2.5 minutes

Day 4: 3 minutes

Day 5: 3.5 minutes

Day 6: 4 minutes

Day 7: REST DAY

Day 8: 5 minutes

Day 9: 5.5 minutes

Day 10: 6 minutes

Day 11: 6.5 minutes

Day 12: 7 minutes

Day 13: 7.5 minutes

Day 14: REST DAY

Day 15: 8 minutes

Day 16: 8.5 minutes

Day 17: 9 minutes

Day 18: 9.5 minutes

Day 19: 10 minutes

Day 20: 10.5 minutes

Day 21: REST DAY

Day 22: 11 minutes

Day 23: 12 minutes

Day 24: 13 minutes

Day 25: 14 minutes

Day 26: 15 minutes

Day 27: 16 minutes

Day 28: 17 minutes

Day 29: 18 minutes

Day 30: 19 minutes

Day 31: 20 minutes

This is a HARD challenge BUT you can split up the planks into any set of reps and times that works for you and your body (i.e. split up the 20 minutes into 2 sets of 10 minutes in the morning doing 2 minute reps, so 5 planks in the morning and at night and you hit your 20 minute goal.) You should be able start with reps of 30 seconds and be able to increase that pretty quickly, adding in the arm and leg lifts to make it more challenging and to improve your core strength.

So let’s do this and get healthy, fit, and ready for summer!! And don’t forget to join the Facebook Page for the May Plank Challenge, where you can ask questions, get support, and (for those that dare) post their pre/post challenge bodies!

Yours in Good Health,

Does eating yams increase fertility or rates of twins?

Posted on 04/24/2013 by NurseBridgid

Well, I heard one of the “housewives” on the Atlanta series make a statement that eating yams increases ones rate of conceiving twins, but I honestly did not think much of it….until I was sent numerous emails to from various readers asking about this one. There is some research on the topic, but since it seems to be a hot topic with my readers, I wanted to just settle this one, once and for all.

What is the deal?

There was a study in 2008 focusing on an African tribe that as rather high numbers of twins and multiple births in their village. A main source of their diet is yams, and yams are said to effect certain female hormones, that may relate to a 1% higher rate of twins, but yams would need to be ingested in significant amounts to have even a minimal effect (think three times a day). So because the people of this tribe, who eat yams as a mainstay of their diet (due to a their environment), so the conclusion was made that the high yam diet was related to the multiple births by the women of the tribe. The research has not been validated (proved again), so I am not convinced that eating yams will help you conceive twins.

The highest rate of multiples (or twins) are born to those that have a family history of twins, are older when attempting to get pregnant (the eggs can mutate and split causing twins), or the use of fertility drugs. There are also some rumors that immediately after stopping birth control, you are more likely to conceive twins, but that is not necessarily true; what IS true, is that your fertility is usually increased for that first month as your body is surging with hormones.

It’s a bummer for those of you who wanted to eat (or were already force feeding yourselves) yams in hopes of having two babies all at once, it’s not looking like that is the answer for you. Your best bet is to find a man with a history of twins and see what sort of magic you two can create…unless you want a designer baby, in which they are genetically designed, which is quite pricey, but you can talk to your OBGYN about your options if this is something super important to you. I am being tongue in cheek, and not at all suggesting that you daddy shop for a man who has a history of twins! But unless you love those yams, you can chill on them and just eat a healthy well-balanced diet; there is no magical food that can increase your rate of twins.

I can’t believe that a fact from “the Real Housewives…” would ever be incorrect!! 😉 Just goes to show you that you shouldn’t believe everything you hear!

Yours in Good Health

Thoughts on the Marathon Monday Attack….I refuse to say Massacre

Posted on 04/16/2013 by NurseBridgid

It’s so hard to put into words the range of feelings that you have after such an event, which are the same feelings that the healthcare and emergency service workers from 9/11, Katrina, and Sandy must have all dealt with. I honestly felt that nothing like this would ever happen in Boston, I know I was living in a dreamland, and even when I was running to the Emergency Department, hearing about victims, I didn’t really believe it. I kept telling myself that it was just drama….because until I left the hospital, and my family members were telling me what they heard on the news: I had no idea what was going on. Just as all of you at home, watching the news, had no idea what was really happening in the hospitals.

I guess I needed to believe that there weren’t bombs, that it was just a transformer that blew, because it was easier to focus on what needed to be done. I have never been prouder of the emergency response crew in this city, and especially the staff at my hospital. In the face of a complete disaster and chaos, we had organization, and saved as many lives as we could. I cannot describe what I saw, because I just don’t want to relive the horror, but the images of not only victims but their family members and what they must be going through right now: the pain, the suffering, and the loss kept me awake all night last night. I also feel like I didn’t do enough, I don’t know if anyone feels like they did enough, especially in the face of being called a hero: we did our jobs, and we did our jobs well, but we couldn’t save everyone.

We all need to remember that this is also just the beginning, there will be Post Traumatic Stress (PTSD) from this event, and if you have lost a loved one, there are resources available at the local hospitals, police stations, and there will be outreach by the city. If you need to talk to someone immediately, the help hotline is available 800-427-3606.

If you would like to help, please donate blood and/or blood products, contact the American Red Cross. And the Salvation Army is helping victims and their families, so any extra clothes, food, etc, please contact them and see how best you can help.

You can attack us, you can say the Red Sox suck, but all you do is make the city that I love, the city that is my home, grow stronger, bond together, and help each other to overcome this tragedy. It is so unfortunate that this had to happen on one of the best days that Bostonians love to celebrate, young and old alike, and I know there is so much sadness as fall out, but I truly am proud of EVERYONE that helped victims yesterday, we faced something that we never thought we would, and we were kept safe by the men and women in law enforcement.

I saw a war zone in Boston yesterday, but I have never felt safer because of the amazing people in this city. It was an attempted massacre; we said no.

Boston, you are my home.

Yours in Good Health

Not enough sleep? Weight gain will become a problem.

Posted on 04/15/2013 by NurseBridgid

You hear it all the time: If you don’t get enough sleep, you will gain weight. When I think about it, it doesn’t totally make sense because you aren’t sleeping, so you are being more active, right? Then I think about those days after I work a night shift, when I am getting things done in a haze, my brain is not fully functioning, and thinks happen a little bit slower, I feel miserable, and when I have a chance to stop and rest, I take it…so I begin to understand a bit more the whole weight gain portion.

Why exactly does sleep make me gain weight?

When you do not get enough sleep, you are feeling tired and energy levels are low, leading to the use of caffeine and/or sugar to boost your energy levels to help you get through the day, which leads to energy crashes later in the day. For those of you who exercise in the afternoon, it usually means that it doesn’t happen, because your energy is zapped. And if you are a morning exerciser, you tend to feel to exhausted to get to your workout; a lack of energy leads to a lack of drive. And when you become dependent upon stimulants to get through the day, it can become a cycle, as sometimes you can overdo it with the caffeine and then have trouble shutting it down, even if you do have time to sleep. When you are tired and sluggish, you also tend to be more lazy; you don’t shop for healthy foods and/or cook for yourself, so you tend to eat what is available and easy. None of these things are particularly good for your waistline.

There are two main hormones that regulate your eating cycle: ghrelin and leptin. Ghrelin is the hormone that tells you when you are hungry and you should eat, and it is at much higher levels when you are sleep deprived. Leptin is the hormone that tells you to stop eating because you are full, and unfortunately it is in lower levels when you are without sleep. A lack of exercise, high ghrelin, and low leptin levels is basically the trifecta for weight gain.

Add on top of that, your body is not functioning optimally with a lack of sleep, so it’s not just your brain that feels fuzzy, so do the cells in your metabolism, so they aren’t working at their best either. It’s not as if one night with a lack of sleep is going to make you gain 15lbs immediately, but when it becomes a cycle of sleeping less than 7-8 hours per night, and we are frequently reaching for comfort foods, eating more than we normally do, skipping on our exercise, and relying on stimulants to get through the day, it’s not healthy, and you will gain weight.

What can I do?

Cut back on the stimulants and don’t have any after 12pm, and start making a bedtime routine (essentially set a bedtime for yourself) to try to break the cycle. Also, forcing yourself to get some exercise, even though you already feel exhausted, even if it is just a long walk, really will exhaust your body….in a good way! It will help to relax your muscles when you are done, and get your brain ready to shut down and get a better sleep/rest. Also try to avoid heavy meals and alcohol right before bed, it can make you have troubled sleep and increase the risk of heartburn. Also, maybe a soothing lavender bath/shower before bed, to help calm your system and ready yourself for sleep.

Once you start sleeping regularly, you will feel a boost in energy, be more efficient, and be healthier. You can get into a health and wellness cycle by getting regular exercise, and eating healthier, which will lead to a really easy drop in weight…all by making one lifestyle change!

If you DO get 7-8 hours of sleep at night but it is troubled sleep or you always still feel exhausted in the morning you should see your Healthcare Practitioner (HCP) because you may have Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) or another process going on that requires a sleep study or more in-depth review.

Try to set a routine, and breaking the habit of caffeine can be miserable (I used to be a complete caffeine addict and have sleeping issues, so I KNOW how hard this is) but it is so worth it to be able to cut the cord and feel yourself without relying on caffeine and starting to be healthy again. It seems impossible sometimes, but, I promise, it isn’t!

Yours in Good Health

Halotherapy: Is it worth it’s weight in salt?

Posted on 04/04/2013 by NurseBridgid

There are halotherapy centers cropping up all over the US and EU. I had been asked about the effectiveness of these centers in casual conversation, had no idea what it was, and honestly never gave the topic a passing thought….until I passed one in a strip mall in Florida. The sign outside the center offered that it could fix just about every respiratory and skin ailment one could dream of having: asthma, headaches, allergies, COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), Flu, smokers cough, chronic bronchitis, psoriasis, eczema….and the list goes on! But does it work or is it just a trend?

What is halotherapy?

Halotherapy is a type of alternative therapy, in which you go into dry salt mines (or a replicated version of a dry salt mine from the EU) and breathe in the air around you which is a microclimate of a salt aerosol treatment. It is claimed that the created climate with the correct amount of humidity and salt in the air, can not only cleanse your respiratory tract but also your skin and help to basically detoxify you.

Does it work?

People with cystic fibrosis, who get significant build up of mucous in their lungs, do very well, when medically treated, with high salt concentration nebulizers. A nebulizer treatment is basically when you create an aerosol treatment out of oxygen flow and a treatment fluid of your choice, and for cystic fibrosis patients, some very strong studies have shown an improved lung function after these treatments….in hospitals. Also, patients that are smokers, with smokers “coughs” have been found to have relief of their coughs, temporarily and a decrease in mucous production, with high salt aerosol treatments, in a hospital setting. Basically inhaling the high salt treatments, dries out your lungs and mucous production decreases. It is probably a very similar experience to people who live in humid climates go to a desert or somewhere with minimal humidity; breathing feels SO much easier if you have a chronic lung disease (I have asthma and can speak from experience on this end!)

What’s the verdict?

Much like many new alternative treatments, halotherapy has not directly been studied, but because these treatments have been successful with certain subsets of patients, the assumption is that it will work on many more patients, diseases, disorders, etc. People who regularly go for halotherapy treatments seem to report feeling better and they obviously return for treatment. And halotherapy centers like to point out that they are wellness centers aimed at helping people lead healthier lives, which I can totally be on board with, and if you are someone who has quit smoking but can’t get rid of that cough, or has some sort lung disease where you have an overproduction of mucous, it may be worth a shot. That being said, you should see your HCP if you have symptoms (such as a chronic cough or mucous production that are not going away) because it may be something serious, but if you want to alleviate symptoms, at this point, I do not see it doing any harm….it just might not help you a whole lot and cost you a few $. My biggest fear would be sick people coming into this humidified air to cure their bronchitis (or whatever issue they have) and spreading it to others, but you would have to check out the halotherapy center nearest you and see if you are solo in treatment or with others, and how they prevent the spread of viruses and bacteria in their microclimate. Use your best judgement, and be sure to tell your HCP if you are using this alternative therapy….then maybe we can get some real research on it!

Yours in Good Health

April Squat Challenge: Transform your lower Abs and legs

Posted on 04/02/2013 by NurseBridgid

I love that there are random exercise “challenges” that keep popping up monthly. I’m not sure who creates them, but for people like me who are super competitive, even with myself, the April Squat Challenge is the perfect challenge! The goal is to take a picture of yourself before day 1 and then after Day 30 and see the results. This is a very intense regimen, and if you have any sort of lower joint (hip, ankle, knee) problems, this may not be the challenge for you, and if at any point you feel pain (other than the pain of intense muscle-building), you should stop; it may be too intense for you. But there’s no one stopping you from creating your own personal challenge! If you have a partner to join in on the fun, then do it, because you both can make sure that you have proper posture AND it will keep you honest. Feel free to post before and after pics at the end of the month!

Day #1- April Squat Challenge

What is the Challenge?

Squats help to sculpt your lower abs, legs, gluteals (your butt), and they help to improve your muscle strength, your speed when walking running (your gluteals are key when you first start running- even when not up hills), and improve your self image: who doesn’t feel great when their legs and butt look amazing in these warmer weather months? *These are intended to be without weights, but if you are already a ‘squatter’ and you want to add some low weights (after checking with your HCP or after checking with a trainer to ensure it is safe for you- go for it!).

Day 1: 30 squats

Day 2: 40 squats

Day 3: 50 squats

Day 4: 60 squats

Day 5: 70 squats

Day 6: 80 squats

Day 7: REST DAY

Day 8: 90 squats

Day 9: 100 squats

Day 10: 110 squats

Day 11: 120 squats

Day 12: 130 squats

Day 13: 140 squats

Day 14: REST DAY

Day 15: 150 squats

Day 16: 160 squats

Day 17: 170 squats

Day 18: 180 squats

Day 19: 190 squats

Day 20: 200 squats

Day 21: REST DAY

Day 22: 220 squats

Day 23: 230 squats

Day 24: 240 squats

Day 25: 250 squats

Day 26: 260 squats

Day 27: REST DAY

Day 28: 265 squats

Day 29: 270 squats

Day 30: 280-300 squats

As you can see, the final goal is 300 squats!! Let’s do this! Who’s with me?

Yours in Good Health

***Edited 4/2 20:35: To perform a squat appropriately, you want to squat straight down (feet hips width apart) as if you are about to sit in a chair (think butt out) as far down as you can go keeping your balance and posture, then stand back up straight. To maintain a straight upper body posture, you can put an exercise ball between your upper back and a wall, to make sure you are keeping your upper body straight! You can do reps of whatever works for you with 30 second breaks, if you so choose! I am just going straight through and I have added weights (but I do lunges and squats a few times a week anyways). Good Luck and don’t forget to add pre/post pics on the April Squat Challenge Facebook page I have created!!

Beware of “Pneumonia Weather”!

Posted on 03/29/2013 by NurseBridgid

I know that my Mom has many “mom-isms” (sayings that are specific to her), and growing up I believed these to be common knowledge or fact, which now I know that some were completely special to our family. But, to her credit, her declaration of “pneumonia weather” was based upon when I would get it (as I did as a child due to severe asthma) based upon different weather patterns and, by George, she was onto something! The number of respiratory tract infections (RTIs) going around right now are staggering. and for most of us in the US, it is “pneumonia weather”. To be clear, while I am referring to it as “pneumonia weather”, as that is what my mom calls it, I am just referring to RTIs, which are the leading cause of people missing school and/or work annually.

What is “pneumonia weather”?

It always chimes in the back of my head when I see people, who are real positive thinkers, wearing short-sleeved shirts in this cold weather in the end of March and beginning of April because they feel like it should be warm, so they are pushing the limits, and really freezing in the high hopes that it will get warm, which it does in the middle of the day (with sun) then right back to cold. Now, it has nothing to do, per say, with being under dressed for the weather, it is more just a time when not only are humans confused but so is nature. The allergens from the trees and flowers starting to bloom, mold spores from the old leaves from fall that are now seeing the light of day after our winter thaw, are all out in the air floating about, and people are getting outside more (which is great) to get more active as it is more tolerable to exercise outside now. But, that cooler air can still cause airways to become reactive, and add in the allergens (which no one ever thinks about this early in the season), add people starting to get in shape and exercise outside again, and you have the perfect setting for people to get RTIs, especially for those who are high risk: people with asthma (or other chronic lung diseases), seasonal allergy sufferers, smokers, the very young and old, those with weakened immune systems, and people with obesity.

*This “pneumonia weather” can also happen when the seasons change from summer to fall with leaves on the ground, mold spores in the air, and newer chilly weather outside.

What is a RTI?

A respiratory tract infection is any sort of virus that causes a response, in any part of the respiratory tract: nose, ears, throat, lungs. So it can be an ear infection, a sore throat, a runny nose/sinus infection, bronchitis. All of these are considered respiratory tract infections, as all (minus your ears) are a part of the system that our bodies use to breathe and/or to help filter out the air that we breathe before it gets into the lungs. So, the more allergens in the air, the more we are breathing in, the higher the risk of a reaction, especially if you are someone prone to respiratory tract infections. RTIs if severe enough, along with a chronic disease and a lowered immune system, could lead to pneumonia.

How do I prevent it?

Follow the normal precautions that you take to prevent illness, such as eating a healthy diet, drinking lots of water, washing your hands frequently, and staying clear of people who are sick (says the nurse; but you all know what I mean, keep your distance if someone is actively showing signs of illness and coughing/sneezing everywhere, as best you can). But on top of these measures, if you are someone who tends to suffer from seasonal allergies, start taking allergy medication early in the season, i.e. now, because even though the allergen levels aren’t through the roof, they are much more than we have been experiencing, so be aware of that and pay attention to your body. If you are just getting back into shape, ease into it and don’t over-train or over exert your body because on top of your body trying to recover from an increase in exercise and responding to that, if you are also exercising outdoors, you are adding all sorts of allergens too, which can make you more at risk to react to the allergens and get sick. There are some small claims that probiotics can help to prevent RTIs, so it is worth a try, if you are at risk!

If you do get an RTI, rest, drink fluids, eat a clean diet, and stay home from school/work so you don’t infect others. While you feel miserable for a few days, only about 15% of them are actually bacterial infections, so they are usually viral and will clear up on their own. If you have a high fever that won’t break, are not getting better, or have difficulty breathing, you should not hesitate to call your Healthcare Provider to get checked out….but don’t push for antibiotics, they will prescribe them if they are necessary 🙂

Stay healthy and enjoy spring!

Yours in Good Health