Don’t let arthritis become a pain this National Arthritis Week

Monday 12 October happened to be both World Arthritis Day and the first day of National Arthritis Week 2015, which will be running until Sunday 18 October.

The awareness week is organised by the charity Arthritis Research UK and is used as an effective way to highlight the huge day-to-day impact that arthritis has for those with it, in addition to providing their friends and family, information to successfully manage the condition.

As a long-term provider of a wide range of treatments for both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis such as brufen (ibuprofen), celebrex (celecoxib), diclofenac, naproxen, etc., at Medical Specialists® Pharmacy we are fully aware and sympathetic to arthritis sufferers; the pain associated with the condition can be excruciating, constant and cause otherwise ‘simple’ tasks in life, difficult to perform.

However, Arthritis Research UK want people to use National Arthritis Week as an opportunity to share their story to help boost awareness about what exactly it is like to live with the invisible pain of arthritis, in the hope that one day, people will be able to enjoy a life without pain.

In the UK alone, there are an estimated 10 million people with arthritis. There are many different types of arthritis (such as ankylosing spondylitis, gout, lupus, etc.), but the two most common types of arthritis by far are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. 

Osteoarthritis

  

Osteoarthritis afflicts 8 million people in the UK, making it the most common form of the condition. It is most prevalent in people over the age of 50 years of age, but can occur in younger people, following injury or another joint-related condition. The joints that are most commonly affected are those in the hands, hips, knees and spine.

Movement can prove difficult as osteoarthritis begins to impact the smooth cartilage lining of the join resulting in pain and stiffness. The cartilage can then thin, and tissues within the joint may become more active, causing swelling and the development of small bony spurs, called osteophytes. With osteoarthritis, the cartilage (connective tissue) between bones withers away, causing the bones to rub against one another.

Rheumatoid arthritis

Over 400,000 people are believed to suffer with rheumatoid arthritis in the UK. The condition tends to arise when a person is between the ages of 40 and 50, with women three times more likely to have it.

Rheumatoid and osteoarthritis differ due to the fact rheumatoid arthritis arises as the body's immune system impacts the affected joints, resulting in the pain and swelling. 

The first area often affected is the outer covering (synovium) of the joint, before spreading across the joint, with the shape of the joint altered as the swelling increases. The bone and cartilage are then eroded. Those suffering with rheumatoid arthritis are also susceptible to other problems related to tissues and organs.

It is not just in Britain that the problem is prevalent though - arthritis and other types of musculoskeletal pain are in fact common, global problems that can impact any person irrespective of age (children can develop arthritis), sex, ethnicity or job.

Arthritis Research UK provide the funding for around 20 grants that have a combined value of about £6 million, dedicated to the research into understanding the cause of pain and attempting to develop new therapies and drugs to treat it.

Symptoms of arthritis

The symptoms of arthritis that people will experience can vary according to the specific type of arthritis he or she has, so therefore it is crucial to receive an accurate diagnosis if you suffer with one or more of the following symptoms:

•     Difficult moving a joint.
•     Fatigue.
•     Inflammation in and around the joints.
•     Joint pain, tenderness and stiffness.
•     Muscle weakness.
•     Poor sleep.
•     Warm, red skin over the affected joint.
•     Weight loss.

Treatment of arthritis

Unfortunately, there is no definitive/outright cure for arthritis, however health experts often recommend a good intake of omega 3 fats as they can prevent or subside symptoms, as the fats help to reduce inflammation. Moreover, Vitamin D – also known as “the sunshine vitamin” - can help to prevent rheumatoid arthritis. Excellent Vitamin D-containing foods include fatty fish such as mackerel, salmon and tuna. In addition, there are many arthritis treatments provided by Medical Specialists® that can be taken to slow down the condition.

For osteoarthritis, painkillers, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin, celebrex (celecoxib), diclofenac and brufen (ibuprofen), and corticosteroids, are usually prescribed. However, revolutionary osteoarthritis treatment flexiseq gel has also proved highly popular with patients of Medical Specialists® since the pharmacy started to provide it almost 2 years ago. The gel is remarkably free of any drug – meaning there are none of the side-effects of oral painkillers - and dries onto the skin, travelling into the affected joint(s) to reduce pain and restore mobility in the joint(s). Flexiseq gel may be particularly beneficial to those that don’t like to take tablets, or struggle to swallow them.

For the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, the primary focus is limiting the progress of the condition as well as limiting the damage to the affected joints. The treatments usually include analgesics (painkillers), disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), regular exercise and physiotherapy.

Exercise may benefit asthma sufferers after all!

If you are asthmatic, you may want to consider adopting a more active lifestyle, as new research suggests that adult asthma sufferers could see their symptoms relieved somewhat with just 30 minutes of exercise per day.

In the Canadian study – published in BMJ Open Respiratory Research – the researchers assessed the exercise habits of 643 participants diagnosed with asthma.

The researchers discovered that those who had completed optimal recommended levels of physical activity on a regular basis, were actually almost 2.5 times more likely to have good control of their asthma symptoms, in comparison to the participants that had not done any exercise.

The good news is, the physical activity required to significantly reap the benefits doesn’t appear to have to be too strenuous, such as competing in a marathon, and can be something simple such as walking, riding a bike or doing yoga.

Lead author Simon Bacon, a professor in the Department of Exercise Science at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada, saw how whilst there was evidence of exercise benefits for asthma patients, the majority of the findings emanated from studies involving children. Therefore, the decision was made to investigate exercise and asthma control within adults.

In the past, those that suffer with asthma have typically been told to severely limit exercise, stemming from the belief it will cause a shortness of breath and asthma attacks. Bacon explains that simple precautionary measures can be taken to avoid the discomforts brought on by physical activity.
However, Professor Bacon says that there are basic precautionary measures asthmatics can take to limit symptoms that can arise as a result of physical activity.

“The issue of exercise-induced bronchospasm is real but if you use your reliever medication, blue puffer, before you exercise, and then take the time to cool down afterwards, you should be okay. Even if you have asthma, there’s no good reason not to get out there and exercise,” he said.

Professor Bacon and his team of researchers found that only 100 of the study’s 643 participants reported doing the optimal 30 minutes of exercise a day. In addition, 245 admitted to doing no exercise whatsoever.

According to Professor Bacon, this statistic does indeed reflect the general population, as 40% of people do not do any exercise at all.

He states that doing some exercise is better than nothing, and more is better than less. “Even the smallest amount of activity is beneficial,” he says. “We are not talking about running marathons here.”

He adds that exercise is vital throughout the year, which includes the winter season, when people tend to ease off with exercise in line with temperature and cold air can cause a flare-up of asthma symptoms.

Professor Bacon appreciates that not everyone can or even wants to exercise outside, and suggests maybe going to the gym, or if not, use the stairs as much as possible. Indeed anyone can be creative and indoor environments, where the cold is not such a major problem. “It would be great to see physicians recommending physical activity to patients with asthma, alongside traditional pharmacological treatments”, he concluded.

Don’t miss a beat! Get involved with October’s National Cholesterol Month

As a long-term provider of popular high-cholesterol treatments such as Lipitor and Crestor, Medical Specialists® Pharmacy are proudly supporting October’s National Cholesterol Month 2015, organised by the charity HEART UK to raise more awareness about what cholesterol is, the often underestimated serious health risks associated with high cholesterol, and what can be done to lower the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) – also known as ‘bad cholesterol’.

What is cholesterol?

For those unaware of what cholesterol actually is, it is a fatty, waxy substance known as a ‘lipid’, located in all of the body’s cells. The body requires some cholesterol to produce hormones, vitamin D, and substances to aid food digestion, and will produce what it needs, but some of the food we eat also contains cholesterol.

Cholesterol travels through the bloodstream in small packages that go by the name of lipoproteins. The two main types of lipoprotein are:

. High-density lipoprotein (HDL) – HDL carries cholesterol away from the cells and back to the liver, where it’s either broken down or passed out of the body as a waste product. For this reason, HDL is referred to as ‘good cholesterol’ and higher levels are better.

. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) – LDL carries cholesterol to the cells that need it. If there’s too much cholesterol for the cells to use, it can build up in the artery walls, leading to disease of the arteries. For this reason, LDL is known as ‘bad cholesterol’.

High cholesterol – i.e. high levels of the bad LDL cholesterol – itself will not usually cause any symptoms, but it increases a person’s risk of serious health problems.

For example, plenty of evidence shows that high cholesterol can raise the risk of suffering with heart attack, heart disease, stroke, narrowing of the arteries (atherosclerosis), transient ischaemic attack (known as a ‘mini-stroke’) and peripheral arterial disease.

These risks are due to the fact cholesterol accumulate within the artery wall, reducing blood flow to the heart, brain and other areas of the body. In addition, the risk of a blood clot is also increased with high cholesterol.

What causes high cholesterol?
There are a number of contributing factors to a person having high blood cholesterol, some lifestyle choices, others being related to underlying conditions and there is also a risk if there has been a family history of such problems.

Lifestyle choices that can cause high cholesterol include a lack of exercise or physical activity, drinking too much alcohol, having a diet high in saturated fat and being a smoker. People with diabetes or high blood pressure usually also have high cholesterol.

Highlighting the risks of ‘The Silent Killer’ high cholesterol is imperative for HEART UK during National Cholesterol Month for many reasons, but one of those is to educate people about a condition many will not be aware of, but can be deadly – Familial hypercholesterolaemia (often shortened to FH).

FH is inherited, passed on by one of your parents and can cause incredibly high levels of cholesterol. Those with FH have high cholesterol levels from birth, whereas most people’s cholesterol increases with age and could be 50, 60 or 70 years of age before their cholesterol is deemed to be at a level linked to an increased risk of major heart problems.

Some people may never display any symptoms, but the common signs of FH are lumps and bumps around the knuckles or Achilles tendon (due to cholesterol deposits), yellow cholesterol build-up around the eyes and eyelids, or a pale ring around the iris.

If, after going to the doctor for a cholesterol check and it is found to be significantly high, the doctor may refer the patient to a specialist for an assessment if he or she believes that patient has FH, which could include gene tests. The specialist will then explain which family members need to be assessed too and medication will likely be required, as healthy lifestyle choices alone are not enough to reduce cholesterol for anyone with FH.

Treating high cholesterol

Adhering to a healthy diet that is low in saturated fat and engaging in regular exercise to maintain a healthy weight/BMI can lower the level of cholesterol in the blood, or prevent cholesterol levels being too high to begin with. The higher the cholesterol level, the higher the risk of stroke or heart disease and therefore the overall risk of having a heart attack.

Statin medication available today from Medical Specialists®, such as Atorvastatin, Pravastatin or Rosuvastatin, work to lower the LDL (‘bad’) cholesterol and raise the HDL (‘good’) cholesterol. Statins may be prescribed to certain people with risk factors for heart conditions, such as those with high cholesterol or high blood pressure, older patients, smokers, or those with family history of early heart disease. Between eight and ten million Britons take statins, making them the most widely prescribed drugs across the UK.

Get involved with National Cholesterol Month

HEART UK are providing expert, independent advice on statins and other cholesterol treatments, in addition to campaigning for improved detection of those at risk of high cholesterol and offering training for health professionals.

National Cholesterol Month 2014 was a roaring success, with more than £25,000 raised, but HEART UK are hoping to smash this amount for 2015, continuing with the theme the ‘Great Cholesterol Challenge’.

HEART UK state on their website how people can get involved and acquire a fundraising pack, saying: “Treat your heart by pledging to adopt a new healthy habit and raise funds for HEART UK at the same time! For this year’s campaign we have developed some really exciting ‘virtual challenges’ which we know you will love – see how you can get involved!

“Great Cholesterol Challenge packs are available now! If you would like a pack or need any further information about this year’s campaign, please email us and we will get one sent to you.”
Moreover, HEART UK offer advice on who should have cholesterol tests and how frequently to get one done:

•     Every 5 years if you are between the ages of 40 and 75.
•     Every 12 months if you are on cholesterol lowering medication.
•     Any child of a parent with inherited high cholesterol (FH) – by the age of 10.
•     First degree relatives of a person with FH – on being told of the risk.

“The NHS will provide you with a free cholesterol test if you fall into any of the above groups, speak to your Doctor or Practice Nurse about arranging your cholesterol test.”

Perfumes and aftershaves pose hospital asthma risk say doctors

Think twice before you next go to visit a friend or relative in hospital whilst doused in your favourite smelly, for perfumes and aftershaves could be triggering asthma attacks and allergies within hospitals and should be banned from them, doctors have argued.

An estimated three in ten people claim they are sensitive to the artificial scents worn by those around them, with around 25% of asthmatics saying that their asthma condition was is worsened by being exposed to perfumes and aftershaves.

Researchers also state that more than half of asthma attacks are caused by various irritants such as cigarette smoke, cleaning fluids, perfumes and strong odours.

There are countless other things that can trigger an attack however, which include animal proteins like animal hair, cat saliva and house dust mites, household cleaners pollens (tree and grass pollens are the most common to affect asthma sufferers, changes to weather/temperature and fumes from traffic.

However, writing in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, doctors Ken Flegel and James Martin have argued the case that perfumed products should be forbidden from inside of hospitals.

In their editorial, they said: “There are many practices that are acceptable outside hospitals – but not inside. One of these is the application of artificial scents to our bodies.

“While artificial scents are designed to make us more attractive, they may result in unintended harm to those who are vulnerable.

“There is emerging evidence that asthma in some cases is primarily aggravated by artificial scents.
“This is particularly concerning in hospitals, where vulnerable patients with asthma or other upper airway or skin sensitivities are concentrated.

“These patients may be involuntarily exposed to artificial scents from staff, other patients and visitors, resulting in worsening of their clinical condition.

“As patients, family members and emergency physicians will attest, the attacks can be quite sudden and serious. There is little justification for continuing to tolerate artificial scents in our hospitals.”

The researchers added that other workers have protection from artificial scents. They said: “The high prevalence of asthma and its adverse effects on health and productivity argue strongly for greater consideration of the air we breathe in our health care centres.

“Hospital environments free from artificial scents should become a uniform policy, promoting the safety of patients, staff and visitors alike.

“As education and promotion programmes have some effect on this practice, these programmes too ought to be part of our accreditation standards.

“Until this happens, individual hospitals must take the lead, particularly in spaces where susceptible patients wait.”

Could Erectile Dysfunction treatment Viagra also help for slimming?

At Medical Specialists® Pharmacy we know that losing weight can sometimes be a hard task. We know this due to the thousands of patients that come to us for weight loss treatments such as Xenical or Alli, after previously struggling to shed the pounds.

However, according to researchers in China, erectile dysfunction drug Viagra may actually be a radical method of losing weight.

Laboratory and animal studies have discovered that ‘the little blue pill’ – as Viagra is often labelled – produces alterations in body fat, causing calories to be burned for energy as opposed to being stored.
As animals have only been assessed, a trial has now begun to see if the same premise holds true for humans. A group of men will be administered either a Viagra tablet or an ineffective placebo, to be taken three times daily for a duration of seven days, with any possible fluctuations in body-fat analysed.

Public Health England say that two-thirds of British adults and a quarter of children between the ages of two and ten can be classified as overweight or obese. The risks from being obese are well-known and include serious health problems such as heart disease, stroke, certain cancers, type 2 diabetes, and pressure placed onto the joints, leading to osteoarthritis.

Fat accumulates within the body when we consume more calories than we burn, however not all fats are generated in the same way. Most of the typical adult’s bodily fatty tissue is white fat, linked to the storage of excess calories. The body also has a smaller amount of brown fat, which actually work to burn calories to generate heat, so the body is kept warm.

Brown fat is most prominent in new-borns, as they need to be kept warm but are less capable of regulating body temperature. Unfortunately, we lose most of this brown fat as we get older, except for small amounts (particularly around the neck and shoulders) which are used to keep a constant core body temperature.

As we grow into adults, we lose most of our brown fat. But small amounts – teaspoonfuls – remain, particularly around the neck and shoulders, where it is needed to help maintain a constant core body temperature.

Whilst white fat can comprise of around 20 to 25% of a person’s bodyweight, brown fat only takes up between 3 and 7.5% of bodyweight, however, some scientists are looking at methods of boosting the prowess of brown fat – or even ways of producing more of it.

They discovered that exposure to cold temperatures can help to induce a process called ‘browning’ – the conversion of the unhealthy white fat into energy-burning, heat-generating brown fat, and research would suggest erectile dysfunction treatment Viagra can actually kick-start browning.

Viagra (generic name sildenafil) works in erectile dysfunction patients by helping to relax the smooth muscles of the penis and boosting blood flow. However, trials have shown that mice administered the drug over lengthy periods of time were less prone to obesity, despite having a high-fat diet.
With that in mind, researchers based at the University of Bonn in Germany decided to give mice Viagra for a week to see any potential effects on their fat cells.

Remarkably, the researchers discovered that Viagra manage to change white fat cells into ‘beige’ fat – which, similar to brown fat, burns the energy from food and converts it to heat. Writing in the Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, the researchers say that Viagra basically is able to ‘melt’ away the unhealthy fat, but precisely how it does that is unclear at this moment in time, but it is generally thought that sildenafil increases levels of compound cGMP.  This compound passes signals between cells and is thought to be linked to fat browning and speeding up metabolism.

Stoptober is Back! Medical Specialists® Pharmacy urge the nation's smokers to join the annual stop smoking attempt

Let’s be honest – there is never a bad time to stop smoking. Smokers can kick the habit on any given day or week, but if there is an ideal time to try and with a boosted chance of giving up for good, the month of October is a great time of the year to start.

The 1st October will see the launch of what is now a regular addition to the calendar - the annual 28-day Stoptober campaign, created and funded by Public Health England as an effective drive to encourage more of the nation to kick smoking into touch.

Last year saw over a quarter of a million smokers make the pledge to try and stop smoking, with a huge increase in the number of patients coming to Medical Specialists® Pharmacy for information about obtaining the popular smoking cessation treatment Champix (Varenicline), and the pharmacy expects a similar sales surge for 2015, if not much bigger.

Data from the Office for National Statistics show that 18.7% of adults in the UK smoked in 2013 - down from 19.8% in 2012. After the conclusion of last year’s Stoptober, Public Health England say its latest figures indicated that smoking rates had continued to fall during the last few months of 2014.

A 4 week duration is used for the Stoptober challenge due to the fact that research has shown those who manage to abstain from smoking for 28 days are actually 5 times more likely to quit for good. In addition, it is often said for every 28 days a smoker quits for, they could add an extra week onto their lifespan.

At Medical Specialists®, we know that making the leap into tobacco-free territory can be difficult and stressful, but those deciding to stop smoking should realise they are not alone. Literally thousands of others have made the same pledge to stop too, which should provide a welcome boost to willpower.

In addition, those that decide to sign up to this year’s Stoptober will receive a personal helping hand in their efforts, courtesy of some of the UK’s favourite comedians, such as Al Murray, Bill Bailey, Rhod Gilbert and Shappi Khorsandi. Quitters that register for the service can expect to be inundated with light-hearted and humorous messages of support and encouragement, sent straight to the participant’s phone and email during the 28 day period of Stoptober.

Comedian Rhod Gilbert decided to throw his support behind the annual Stoptober campaign after being a smoker himself for 25 years, toiling for 23 years of those attempting to quit. He says: “I know first-hand that it can be hard to find the motivation to quit, but Stoptober is the perfect time to give it a go,” he says.

There are countless benefits to ditching cigarettes. For example, quitters can expect to notice many physical improvements such as a boosted sense of taste and smell, increased energy levels, reduced signs of facial aging and wrinkles, whiter teeth, fresher breath and even better sex due to the improved blood flow and stronger erections for men.

Moreover, people that successfully quit smoking will have much serious longer term benefits, such as a lower risk of suffering from heart disease and a wide range of cancers such as lung cancer, not to mention protecting the health of those in the surrounding vicinity as there will now be no secondhand smoke for them to inhale.

Despite the fact smoking rates have come down in recent years, smoking remains the biggest factor behind preventable illness and premature death in the country - responsible for nearly 80,000 deaths per year in England alone.

Smokers aged 18 or above that want to quit, can use the support Stoptober as a foundation for doing so, along with help from Medical Specialists®.

Begin the road to a smoke-free future today by obtain the smoking cessation medication Champix following an online consultation with one of Medical Specialists’ GMC registered doctors. Champix works out from as little £26.95* a pack. The treatment works by mimicking the effect of nicotine on the body, reducing the urge to smoke and relieving withdrawal symptoms. It can also decrease the enjoyment you experience of smoking if you are still smoking whilst on the treatment.

(*based on private prescription price)

European alcohol, smoking and obesity rates are ‘alarming’ says WHO

The United States is often branded the fattest country in the world (technically true depending on which statistics are used), however Europe is doing its best to take over this unwanted mantle from America, with “alarming” rates of drinking, eating and smoking found throughout Europe in a new report conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO).

In the United States, a staggering 78 million people, or 33% of the adult population, are classified as obese, whilst 74.1% of the people aged 15 and over are either overweight or obese (i.e. with a body mass index (BMI) of 25 or above).

However, health officials have now stressed that Europe has the world’s highest rates of drinking and smoking, with more than half of people now fat, which could ultimately lead to a whole number of serious health problems such as asthma, cancer, heart disease, osteoarthritis and stroke.

In what is the first study of its kind for three years, the European Health Report 2015 looked at 39 countries including European Union member states, in addition to former Soviet republics, to see if the WHO’s ‘Health 2020’ targets are being met.

It was discovered that the average life expectancy for men and women can drastically vary, ranging from 71 years of age in Belarus, Moldova and Russia, to 82 in France, Italy and Spain, according to figures from 2011. Overall, life expectancy for Europeans has risen from an average of 73.2 years back in 1990, to 76.8 years by 2011.

“There is a very real risk that these gains will be lost if smoking and alcohol consumption continue at the current rate. This is especially relevant to young people, who may not live as long as their grandparents”, said Zsuzsanna Jakab, WHO’s regional director, speaking to the Guardian.

WHO noted that many European countries seemed to have lower risk factors for premature death, the rates of obesity, tobacco use and alcohol consumption “remain alarmingly high”. The United Nations health agency calculated that in the previous four years, a growing number of Europeans are now classed as either overweight or obese, with 58.6% of Europeans overweight, and 23% suffering from obesity.

The report states that obesity is “one of the greatest public health challenges of the 21st century”, which “drastically increases a person’s risk of developing several [diseases], including cardiovascular diseases, cancer and diabetes mellitus”.

There is also a great deal of concern about Europe’s drinking and smoking habits. Although between 2005 and 2010, total alcohol consumption lowered by 10% in Europe, the continent still has the highest drinking rates across the globe.

Europe has the world’s highest prevalence of alcohol dependence (4%) according to the report, as well as the highest prevalence of alcohol-use disorders (7%). It is estimated that an average of 11 litres of pure alcohol are consumed per person every year, whilst around 30% of Europe uses tobacco.
“Europeans live long lives and healthy lives. We are the longest living region in the world,” said Claudia Stein, a senior WHO director for Europe.

She continued: “The differences in health status between European countries are inexplicably wide.
“If rates of smoking and alcohol consumption and obesity do not decline we may risk the gains in life expectancy we have seen — which may mean that the next generation may lead shorter lives than that we do.”

Stein warned that this could have the most serious impact on younger people, since their lives may be shortened unless action is taken to bring down consumption levels of tobacco, alcohol and calories.