News

Everyone is talking about a British study enrolled 900 people who wanted to quit smoking. The United Kingdom National Health Service stop-smoking services did a study where half of the enrollees randomly got e-cigarettes. The other half got traditional treatment: nicotine patches plus gum, lozenges, nicotine inhalers or whatever...

My wife, Denise and I had the privilege of attending a program sponsored by our local Chamber of Commerce, featuring Dr. George Zlupko.  Dr Zlupko is our areas leading pulmonologist, who founded the Lung Disease Center of Central Pennsylvania and has provided services to the Altoona area for 3...

We’ve finished our journey through the vitamin aisle, and many of our patients are in need of our acquired vitamin expertise. This column will address the needs of patients who have undergone gastric bypass surgery.  UPMC Altoona has an excellent Bariatric Surgery Department headed by Dr. Matthew Newlin and...

Alcoholics often eat poorly, limiting their supply of essential nutrients and affecting both energy supply as well as cell and organ system structure maintenance. In general, moderate drinkers (two drinks or less per day) seem to be at little risk for nutritional deficiencies.  Furthermore, alcohol affects all the pharmacokinetic...

We started this journey through the vitamin aisle on November 1,2018 with Clinician’s Corner.  Now 4 and ½ months later we wrap up this journey through the vitamins and supplements with Zinc. Zinc is considered to be an essential “trace element” that has to come from the diet. Involved...

Let’s discuss one of the most common supplements in our vitamin section, calcium. Calcium is most abundant mineral in our body. Calcium is found in some foods, added to others, available as a dietary supplement in out vitamin section, and present in some medicines, we recommend as an antacid...

Let’s discuss another very common element, which approximately 14% to 18% of Americans supplement their diets with. Iron is a mineral that is naturally present in many foods, used to fortify some food products, and available as a dietary supplement. Iron is an essential component of hemoglobin, a red...

Too much of a good thing?  TREATMENT of HYPERkalemia Last week we discussed potassium supplementation and the treatment of hypokalemia. Even more challenging is when the potassium levels rise excessively, due to chronic kidney disease, heart failure, excessive tissue trauma (burns, etc.) or medications. Hyperkalemia: serum potassium level greater...

Potassium is lost through the kidneys when patients take diuretic therapy (fluid pills) for high blood pressure, heart failure, kidney failure to help remove excess fluid. Diarrhea, vomiting and corticosteroid use can also deplete potassium. Thiazide diuretics “lightweight diuretics” – HCTZ, chlorthalidone can cause potassium depletion, but the more...