R-Questions, Answered, Vol. III

We continue our new practice introductions in Hamilton, home of R-Health Hamilton and Dr. Cindy Geng. A doctor with extensive routes and unique specialties, Dr. Geng was kind enough to answer a few of our questions. If you’re curious for more answers, you can always partake in our meet and greet sessions with the doctor, but for now, here’s a look into Dr. Geng’s background, passion for medicine, and why she’s excited for this new opportunity.

  1. Where are you originally from?  China
  2. Why did you study medicine? I’d like to help people get healthier, and I love to play a detective’s role to figure out what is the real culprit for their medical issues.
  3. What was the hardest part of medical school? I am OK with exams, but there were just too many exams in med school.
  4. What do you do on a day off? If the weather is nice, I would prefer to get close to nature – near a lake or a trail. I also enjoy have a party or tea time with friends.
  5. What’s your favorite TV show? Can we skip this one – as I watch TV shows mostly in Chinese. 🙂 
  6. Do you have bad handwriting? (They say all doctors do) NOT really.
  7. What’s is different about Direct Care that excites you? I love having more time to get to know my patients, to build a rapport and be able to have a positive impact in their long-term health.
  8. What’s the simplest piece of medical advice you can give? Have a healthy life style suitable for you, it will make your days more enjoyable.

Dr. Geng’s office is open and accepting new members, so don’t hesitate to sign up and see what else you may have in common.

[Healthy] Thanksgiving!

If you haven’t heard already, there’s a pretty big holiday coming up soon: Thanksgiving. In a time of reminiscing and gathering of friends, family, and loved ones, the main star on this day is the food. With an assortment of people and traditions, there’s always an abundance of dishes available to consume. However, how can we distinguish what’s healthy and will benefit our health? There are a few tips we all can follow without sacrificing our appetites.

Studies have shown that people gain on average, between 5-10 pounds during the holiday season (from Thanksgiving to New Year’s). WOW!!! While just averages, this can mean that people gain less than this range, or in the unfortunate instance, gain more. It’s important during the holidays, especially Thanksgiving, to be proactive in maintaining your health and keeping the extra pounds off, so you may have an easier time with your upcoming New Year’s Resolutions.  WebMD has offered a few tips that won’t impede satisfaction of the yummy holiday feasts.

  • Get active
    • Exercise before eating your favorite foods
    • Increase the number of days, and length of workouts before Thanksgiving
    • Plan a post-meal walk and/or workout the following day
  • Eat breakfast
    • Eating a small meal in the morning can give you better control over your appetite
    • More disciplined appetite makes for healthier food and beverage choices
  • Lighten up
    • Whether preparing the meals, or bringing add-ons, try and make your dishes with less sugar, no added fat, and less calories.
    • Use sugar substitutes, and reduce oil/butter when you can
  • Police your proteins
    • Survey the options and select reasonable sized portions
    • Smaller portions allow you to enjoy whatever you’d like
    • Resist the urge for second helpings
    • Stop eating when you’re satisfied. If you wait til your full, it might be too late 😉
  • Slowly savor
    • Eating slowly allows you to taste every bite while being satisfied after one plate
    • Try eating only two meals on holidays and keep them within 8 hours of each other. So perhaps skip breakfast if you expect to eat a big lunch or dinner. This style of eating is called Intermittent Fasting and has been very helpful in weight loss/weight maintenance.
  • Go easy on alcohol
    • Have a glass of wine or sparkling water in between alcoholic drinks to avoid dehydration and the calories that alcohol provide
  • Be realistic
    • During the holiday times, it’s very difficult to try and lose weight, therefore shifting focus to maintaining weight provides more desirable outcomes.

If you’re looking for which foods to include in your Thanksgiving menu you can turn to the Mayo Clinic and/or EatingWell for an assist. They provide countless recipes that are not only fresh, but contain less fat, sodium, and calories to provide guests with healthy options that are equally flavorful. If you have a particular diet or health plan that you’re on, reach out to your R-Health doctor for any meal suggestions. Otherwise, enjoy the holiday and celebrate this time with your family and friends!

Defeat Diabetes!

With Thanksgiving approaching, it may seem like a joyous occasion for most, but for a segment of the population, it may be another day of battling your urges, for the sake of long-term health. November is recognized as American Diabetes Month; and with diabetes affecting nearly 30 million people and their families, it’s important to remind them that they are not alone, and to share information to those who are newly diagnosed.

For a quick summary of the condition, we turn to the Mayo Clinic. Diabetes affects how your body uses glucose. Glucose, or blood sugar, is a major source of energy for the cells in your muscles, tissues, and your brain. However, too much glucose in your blood can cause major health risks such as:

  • Cardiovascular Disease
  • Nerve, Kidney, Foot, and/or Eye Damage
  • Hearing Impairment
  • Skin infections
  • Alzheimer’s

Since there are different types of diabetes (Type 1 and Type 2) there are different risk factors associated with each, and we’ll share a few below:

  • Type 1 Diabetes – more prevalent during childhood/adolescence – removes insulin production from the body.
    • Risk Factors
      • Family History
      • Dietary Factors
      • Environment Factors
      • Geography
  • Type 2 Diabetes – more prevalent during adulthood – body becomes insulin resistant.
    • Risk Factors
      • Family History
      • Age/Weight/Race
      • Inactivity
      • High Blood Pressure
      • Abnormal Cholesterol levels

Consequently, knowing these risk factors, what should you do if you’re diagnosed? Binge eating will certainly not be the answer, however, Diabetic Living shared a few tips on how to approach a new diagnosis.

  1. Inspect your health plan – find the best and most affordable health plan that will cover your upcoming medications and supplies.
  2. Consider medications to lower your blood sugarIt’s now recommended to take at least one glucose-lowering medication as soon as you’re diagnosed (e.g. metformin).
  3. Create a diabetes eating plan – Monitor what you eat, but also track it to see its impact on your blood glucose levels. Most times you don’t have to make drastic changes.
  4. Create a physical activity planJust like your diet, physical activities are important when diabetic. Food provides the energy, and the activity helps burn some of it. Incorporating this into an everyday routine can have great impact.
  5. Shop for Diabetes supplies – Blood glucose meters, test strips, and a blood glucose journal are just a few things that can help you along the way.
  6. Connect with others As we mentioned earlier, you’re not alone in this fight. Connecting with others can relieve you of any anxieties and motivate you to take care of yourself.
  7. Choose your primary care provider

Now if you’re not a diabetes rookie, you’d be more focused on how to manage your diabetes. With help from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), they shared 4 major actions you should take to manage your diabetes throughout your lifetime.

  1. Learn More about Diabetes
    • Get a better understanding about the type of diabetes you have and ones you’re not sure of (e.g. Gestational diabetes).
    • Take classes, join support groups, and talk to your doctors (i.e. dentist, dietician, eye doctor) in your health team to see how it can affect other areas
  2. Know your diabetes ABCs
    • A – A1C test. It measures your sugar levels over a 3-month span
    • B – Blood pressure. Have blood pressure goals and know what gets it too high or too low
    • C – Cholesterol. Like blood pressure, have cholesterol goals and ask your doctor what those numbers should be
  3. Learn to live with diabetes
    • Ask for help, discover new hobbies, voice your concerns to your support system
    • Spend time developing a food palette and compare your sugar levels to see what part of your diet needs changing
  4. Get routine care
    • Getting routine care at least twice a year can help catch any future problems, early
    • Get the A1C test twice
    • Ask your primary care doctor and other members in your health team if any other tests are required

If you’re already an R-Health Member, you’ve already got a great primary care doctor. Your R-Health doctor can spend the time with you to create your own health plan, covering what to eat, medication suggestions, and how to balance physical activity. A strong relationship with your primary can help you overcome some of the obstacles associated with diabetes, including a loaded Thanksgiving plate.

R-Questions, Answered, Vol. II

In our tradition of commencing new locations, we’ve asked our Dr. Snyder, of R-Health Cherry Hill, a few questions to help introduce her to our community. Check out her answers as she discusses her background, interests, and even helpful medical advice. Moreover, if you have any questions for Dr. Snyder, you can always schedule a meet and greet to chat on a multitude of things, not discussed in this fun Q&A. Enjoy.

  1. Where are you originally from?  I was born in Washington Township, NJ and lived across the street from a farm where I fed carrots to horses. Then my family moved to Moorestown for the start of school.
  2. Why did you study medicine? I wanted to be a doctor from the time I was very little. I wanted to help people feel better. I still do.
  3. What was the hardest part of medical school? The hardest part of medical school was realizing that medicine wasn’t the way I had dreamed when I was little. After I had gotten through anatomy lab, physiology, and pharmacology in the first and second year of medical school, third year gave me a broken heart when I saw how dehumanizing medicine could be. Luckily, fourth year I discovered integrative and holistic medicine. It was what I dreamed medicine of being – addressing the care of the whole person – mind/body/spirit/family. This has been my passion ever since.
  4. What do you do on a day off? Spend time with my family. I have five-year-old twin girls. We love to play soccer, go to the playground, have dance parties at home and read together. I also spend a lot of time cooking. Having healthy food prepared for my family is very important to me. If I have a time for myself, I love to take a walk in the woods.
  5. What’s your favorite TV show? I like to watch Modern Family sometimes when I am on the elliptical. Does that count? The only thing that is ever on our actual TV is sports. My daughters love watching the Phillies or the Sixers. Thank my husband for that 🙂
  6. Do you have bad handwriting? (They say all doctors do) My signature is legible. My father taught me the importance of this. I think I have decent handwriting when I am not rushing. But I will admit that it can get sloppy if I have to move fast!
  7. What’s is different about Direct Care that excites you? I am so excited about Direct Care that I moved my family back here to NJ from Abington, PA. This is an amazing opportunity to practice medicine how I dreamed. Allowing time to develop a healing and trusting relationship, and time to focus on wellness, prevention and optimization of health, as well as taking care of illness in a holistic way as it comes up. I think it will be great for patient care and great for actually developing a healthcare system (not a sick-care system).
  8. What’s the simplest piece of medical advice you can give? Eat whole foods that come from nature, get enough sleep, manage your stress, move your body, and appreciate all that you have.

Dr. Snyder’s office is open and accepting new members, so don’t hesitate to sign up and see what else you may have in common.