A study recently came out in August that looked at 1,176 hospitalized patients in Israel with Covid. It found that those with severe or critical cases of Covid were more likely to have very low levels of Vitamin D than those with mild or moderate disease. Among those who were hospitalized and not Vitamin D deficient, only 3% died. Among those who were hospitalized with a deficiency, 26% died. Here is an article that examines the study with more detail. Paragon Orthopedics Center encourages you to talk to your healthcare professional about whether you should be taking Vitamin D and how much you should be taking. It might be what keeps you out of the hospital as we navigate life with the Delta variant of Covid that is overtaking our hospitals in Southern Oregon right now. Please educate yourself and educate others.
Paragon Press August Newsletter: Vaccines
Dr. Rob Bents took some time to read the most recent COVID research and local developments concerning its spread through our counties, state, and country. He has condensed what he found into the August Paragon Orthopedics Center Newsletter. Click here to educate yourself:
Frustrated About Smoke Interfering With Your Workout?
Unfortunately, Southern Oregon is being hit by smoke that is coming at us from multiple directions from multiple forest fires. Paragon Orthopedics is always encouraging our patients to get out and get exercise, but maybe your plans have been foiled by this unhealthy air. Or maybe you don’t know how to check the air quality in your area. Athletes like you are breathing 10 to 20 times more air than a sedentary person, so you should give some thought as to what’s in the air you’re breathing. Here is an article that will tell you how to find information about air quality in your area and the levels that are not healthy, the differences between what might be in the air (smoke, smog, and allergens), and addresses the question about whether you should wear a mask while you exercise. Be safe Southern Oregon!
Experiments in Space to Explore Bone Loss Prevention Using Wine Byproduct
SpaceX is set to take off later this month and has technology on board to perform a variety of experiments, one of which explores bone loss in space and is using a byproduct of wine making. The bioactive metabolites found in food that is broken down, such as what is normally discarded after wine is made, might protect bones during spaceflight and a group of researchers is going to be testing this theory. With the possibility of private space travel becoming more of a reality for more than just a select few astronauts, this could not only benefit future space visitors, but also help us understand how to maintain strong bones of those who live under the weight of gravity.
Read more here about this experiment, as well as other intriguing research they are preparing for this journey:
Which Olympic Athletes Have The Highest Bone Density?
In order for you to take a guess as to which Olympic athletes have the highest bone density, you need to know what makes bone dense. That answer is: force that is placed on the bone. It makes sense, knowing this, that gymnasts have the highest bone densities among the Olympic athletes at the games in Tokyo. Among those with the least dense bones: swimmers, rowers, and cyclists. When a gymnast dismounts, he or she is putting up to 5 times their weight on their bones. Five times! Not all of us can be Olympic athletes, but we can all have strong bones by making sure you put some stress on them through walking, running, or jumping-type exercises. Paragon Orthopedic Center wants you to be the healthiest you can be with strong bones throughout your lifetime! Read more here:
