Benefits Of Wearing Compression Socks

If you are suffering from spider and varicose vein conditions, then you fully understand the frustration of dealing with itching, swelling, burning, fatigue, and leg cramps. A compression sock has been medically known to reduce the signs of painful varicose veins. Furthermore, they also help in slowing down the progression of vein diseases.

NOTE: Compression socks alone does not correct or solve the main cause of the vein problem.

Compression Socks Benefits

Prevents Swelling

Compression footwear technology has been changing for the last decade. Today, these products help users by preventing or limiting foot or leg swelling; especially to those people who spend the whole day standing. This is why this product is popular with nurses and waitresses.

Improve Venous Blood Flow

Compression socks help boost the blood flow back to the heart overcoming the effects of gravity. Medically graded compression socks have been designed stronger at the feet and it gradually decreases in pressure as it extends to the thigh. This means that a correctly designed and trim compression sock prevents blood clot, blood pooling and other leg symptoms.

Prevent Blood From Pooling and Clotting in Your Legs

If you sit down for long periods of time, either when travelling or when sitting at your desk at work, there is a risk of your blood pooling in your legs if you have bad circulation. When you wear your compression socks while sitting, a gentle pressure will be applied to your legs with allows your blood to flow back to your heart. This stops blood from pooling in your feet or ankles, and it also lowers the risk of having blot clots.

Fashion and Everyday Use

With new designs and technology for compression socks, even people with no symptoms of varicose or spider veins are starting to wear them day-to-day. Compression socks now come in various colours and styles including open/closed toe styles, sheer fabric, thigh high, knee high, and different flesh tones, meaning you can wear them to fit your own style! Athletes are also using compression socks to promote better circulation and to have better stamina while they perform their sport.
If you are looking to get a pair of compression socks, stop by MacDonald’s Prescriptions #3 in Vancouver to get fitted today! Whether you are in the market to help promote better blood circulation to stop varicose and spider veins, or you just want a stylish pair of compression socks to wear out on the town or while you are working out, our professional team will be happy to find the best option that will fit your needs.

If you are looking for compression socks for medical needs, we can prescribe a pair based on the degree of compression that you need. The most common types of compression socks will range from 15-20, 20-30, and 30-40 mmHg. Our certified and trained compression stocking fitter will measure your legs and find the best sock that will work right for you. We carry high quality compression socks and garments and they are available in a wide range of colours, shapes, and sizes that will fit both males and females of all ages. Call us at 604-738-0733 or email pharmacy@macrx3.com to book your compression sock appointment today!


How good sleep decreases your risk of cardiovascular disease

When it comes to our health, along with eating healthy and getting plenty of exercise, one of the things that we are told is to get plenty of sleep. For many of us, getting a full eight hours of sleep, is more of a pipe dream than anything. Our lives are getting busy and more interconnected than ever, making it harder for us to disconnect and get the sleep we need. This decrease in sleep can lead to an increase in cardiovascular disease.

At night, during sleep, our body naturally lowers our blood pressure and our heart rate. By lowering our blood pressure and our heart rate, our heart is able to slow down and relax. The slowing down of our heart is important to ensuring that our blood pressure remains low. Without the ability to lower our blood pressure at night, our blood pressure rises throughout the day. Higher blood pressure is not something to scoff at.

In addition to regulating your blood pressure and heart rate, our bodies also regulate our hormone levels. The hormone levels that are regulated are responsible for regulating stress, our immune system, and our appetite. This means that our mood, how we feel, and how we function are all maintained by our sleeping.

In a study done in South Korea, researchers found an alarming problem among those that they researched. In the participants that had on average five hours of sleep or less, the researchers found an increase of calcium buildup and arterial stiffness. These two symptoms are importants signs of oncoming heart disease.

In other studies done, researchers found that there were increases in risk for other cardiovascular diseases. Some of the other cardiovascular diseases that had an increased risk were: high cholesterol, diabetes, and obesity. Some of these diseases are a larger issue in that they lead to other issues that compound in more sleep problems.

All of these problems are not only symptoms of a lack of sleep but are also problems that come from people who result in too much sleep. Too much sleep can also result in health problems as our bodies need only a certain amount of sleep. By increasing the amount of sleep someone receives, their body produces an abundance of hormones and chemicals that results in a negative effect of their body. This included an increase in potential for stroke in participants.

While a day or two of missed sleep might not have an effect on our well being, prolonged periods of lacking sleep will start to have negative effects on our bodies. While much of our mental state is regulated by proper sleep, the increase in risk for cardiovascular disease is great concern. Increased blood pressure, greater calcium buildup, and arterial stiffness are huge warning signs of major cardiovascular disease. The increase in risk of stroke, heart failure, heart attack, and other cardiovascular disease are not worth missing a few hours of sleep at night.

When it comes to our health, along with eating healthy and getting plenty of exercise, one of the things that we are told is to get plenty of sleep. For many of us, getting a full eight hours of sleep, is more of a pipe dream than anything. Our lives are getting busy and more interconnected than ever, making it harder for us to disconnect and get the sleep we need. This decrease in sleep can lead to an increase in cardiovascular disease.

At night, during sleep, our body naturally lowers our blood pressure and our heart rate. By lowering our blood pressure and our heart rate, our heart is able to slow down and relax. The slowing down of our heart is important to ensuring that our blood pressure remains low. Without the ability to lower our blood pressure at night, our blood pressure rises throughout the day. Higher blood pressure is not something to scoff at.

In addition to regulating your blood pressure and heart rate, our bodies also regulate our hormone levels. The hormone levels that are regulated are responsible for regulating stress, our immune system, and our appetite. This means that our mood, how we feel, and how we function are all maintained by our sleeping.

In a study done in South Korea, researchers found an alarming problem among those that they researched. In the participants that had on average five hours of sleep or less, the researchers found an increase of calcium buildup and arterial stiffness. These two symptoms are importants signs of oncoming heart disease.

In other studies done, researchers found that there were increases in risk for other cardiovascular diseases. Some of the other cardiovascular diseases that had an increased risk were: high cholesterol, diabetes, and obesity. Some of these diseases are a larger issue in that they lead to other issues that compound in more sleep problems.

All of these problems are not only symptoms of a lack of sleep but are also problems that come from people who result in too much sleep. Too much sleep can also result in health problems as our bodies need only a certain amount of sleep. By increasing the amount of sleep someone receives, their body produces an abundance of hormones and chemicals that results in a negative effect of their body. This included an increase in potential for stroke in participants.

While a day or two of missed sleep might not have an effect on our well being, prolonged periods of lacking sleep will start to have negative effects on our bodies. While much of our mental state is regulated by proper sleep, the increase in risk for cardiovascular disease is great concern. Increased blood pressure, greater calcium buildup, and arterial stiffness are huge warning signs of major cardiovascular disease. The increase in risk of stroke, heart failure, heart attack, and other cardiovascular disease are not worth missing a few hours of sleep at night.

Do you suffer from sleep problems and exhaustion? Our Hormone Testing can help you uncover hormone balances that cause sleep difficulties.


How to Tell If You Have the Cold or the Flu

Though some people get things mixed up when it comes to differentiating between the influenza, which is called the flu for short, and the common cold. While many others think they are the same, they are however both types of upper respiratory infections, caused by viruses, and both can actually take a week or more to clear out of your system. Both infections are highly communicable, so can easily be contracted. Also, they have similar symptoms which include, coughing, sore throat, nasal congestion, headache and fever.

Though some people are of the idea that the cold and flu are the same and treated same way, but in reality, they are not the same and the way to treat them may vary too. Below are some things you need to know when you are not sure of which ailment you are down with.

Cold

The common cold is an upper respiratory infection triggered by a virus. Although, a cold can be caught at any time of the year, it is however, more rampant during winter months. It is more during this season because most viruses that cause cold thrive in low humidity.

Colds can be spread, when someone who is infected with the virus coughs or sneezes, releasing virus-contained driblet into the air, while those present inhale the contaminated air. Another way it can be caught is, if you touch a surface, a doorknob or table, that has been earlier touched by an infected person and then touch your eyes, nose or mouth with that same hand.

The time you are most contagious is in the first two to four days after you have caught the cold virus.

 

Flu

The flu as it is shortly and commonly called or influenza for full, is also an upper respiratory infection. But, in contrast to the cold which can spread at any time of the year, the influenza is seasonal. The influenza season kicks off from fall to spring and reaches its peak during winter.

Just like the way a cold can be caught, the flu can be caught same way during its season. That is, by being inhaling contaminated air sneezed out by an infected person. If you catch the flu, the symptoms will be obvious after about 5-7 days, but you are contagious 1 day before you get sick till after the symptoms are obvious.

There might be a couple of similarities between the flu symptoms and that of the cold. Know how to spot the difference between them below.

If you are down with a cold, the possible symptoms include:

  • Sneezing
  • Tiredness
  • Headaches
  • Stuffy nose
  • cough
  • Sore throat

While the flu symptoms include:

  • Runny and stuffy nose
  • Nausea and vomiting, this is common in children
  • sore throat
  • Serious fatigue that may last for a week or two
  • severe muscle or body aches
  • Dry cough
  • Headaches, muscle or body aches
  • Moderate or high fever, though not common.

Colds, often times are not as serious as the flu, and they come on slowly over a couple of days. Colds will normally get better within 7-10 days, with symptoms persisting for about 2 weeks while the flu symptoms come on faster and can be severe, lasting 1-2 weeks.

The symptoms you show should be used as a guide to knowing which ailment you have. If it is the flu, ensure to see your doctor within the first 48 hours of showing symptoms.


Why We May be in for a Bad Flu Season for 2017/18

Every year, we as Canadians take measures to prevent getting the flu, and the most common of these measures is the flu shot. Each year, millions of people visit their nearest clinic or flu shot location in order to stay healthy and avoid getting sick. The 2017/2018 flu season, however, is looking to be worse than recent seasons, and here is a quick look at why this is the case.

Global flu troubles
Australia, Hong Kong, and other areas in the southern hemisphere have been dealing with particularly bad flu seasons this year, and this is a strong indication that Canada and North America as a whole could be in for a season just as troublesome. Health officials have always kept a close eye on the southern hemisphere, as the patterns in viruses that are seen there often lay the groundwork for what is to come further north.

The H3N2 strain
The strain of flu that is especially worrying health officials this season is the H3N2 strain, which is the same virus that did lots of damage just three years ago. This strain is known to affect older patients, which can easily lead to more serious complications that often see those afflicted ending up in the hospital. This season, however, the strain seems to be worse because it has started creating sub types of H3N2, and this creates difficulties when it comes to matching the vaccine with the new subtypes.

Which strains can we expect to see?
There are three different types of influenza, A, B, and C. Influenza A is typically the most worrisome of the three, and Influenza C is usually inconsequential. Influenza B is the type that usually hits children more often than adults. For these reasons the common flu shot usually protects against two strains of influenza A and one strain of Influenza B. This year, public health officials are bracing for three major strains that are based on H1N1, H3N2, and a B-strain. The problem is that this year’s vaccine is not an exact match for both the H3N2 and B strain.
Despite the worrying circumstances, health officials are still encouraging people to get the flu shot. It’s suggested that there will be an overlap between the circulating strains and the vaccine, so getting the shot is still a valid way of protecting yourself this season, and even if you do end up with the flu, people with the vaccine usually end up experiencing much more mild symptoms.

When will the flu hit?
This year, experts are predicting the flu to hit starting in November, and really pick up steam before hitting a climax by January. This strong period could last about 4 weeks before finally dying down. Though January usually sees the biggest spike in flu cases due to the increase in frigid temperatures, there is another spike in December as kids return from school with plenty of germs collected from their classmates.

Getting the flu shot is the best thing you can do for you and your family this flu season, so make sure to get vaccinated!