Transforming Healthcare: A Blog By Gwinnett Medical Center

Cholesterol is a waxy substance that travels in your blood through the blood vessels. When you have high cholesterol, it builds up in the walls of the blood vessels. This makes the vessels narrower. Blood flow decreases. You are then at greater risk for having a heart attack or a stroke. Good and bad cholesterol Lipids are fats. Blood is mostly water. Fat and water don't mix. So our bodies need lipoproteins (lipids inside a protein shell) to carry the lipids. The protein shell carries its lipids through the bloodstream. There are two main kinds of lipoproteins: LDL (low-density lipoprotein) is known as "bad cholesterol." It mainly carries cholesterol. It delivers this cholesterol to body cells. Excess LDL cholesterol will build up in artery walls. This increases your risk for heart disease and stroke. HDL (high-density lipoprotein) is known as "good cholesterol." This protein shell collects excess cholesterol that LDLs

GMC offers a wide variety of support groups. Below are some of the groups which meet at a Gwinnett Medical Center location. Additional groups are held in community locations, and a complete list can be found online at gwinnettmedicalcenter.org. GMC also offers additional cancer support services , from genetic testing to an appearance specialist and a six week program to help people transition when they have completed cancer treatment. Amputees Moving Forward Support Group Second Tuesday each month, 6 p.m. Gwinnett SportsRehab 500 Medical Center Blvd., Suite 130 Lawrenceville, Ga. 30046 For more information call 678-312-4412 FREE. No registration required Crohn’s Disease, Ulcerative Colitis and Ostomy Second Tuesday every other month during the school year, 7 p.m. GMC Resource Center 665 Duluth Highway Lawrenceville, Ga. 30046 For more information call 678-312-2607 FREE. No registration required Jack Jacobs Aphasia Conversation Group Secon

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has declared January National Radon Action Month. According to the EPA, radon is the number one cause of lung cancer among non-smokers and is the second leading cause of lung cancer. Radon is a tasteless, odorless, colorless radioactive gas that occurs naturally in nearly all soil. It enters homes and other buildings through holes and cracks in the foundation. High levels of radon have been found in all states and the EPA estimates that 1 out of 15 homes have high levels. The EPA has determined that Gwinnett, as well as some surrounding counties, has a very high potential for radon exposure.  Testing your home for radon is easy and inexpensive. You can obtain a radon test kit for $10 at the UGA Extension located at Family and Consumer Sciences, 750 South Perry Street, 4 th floor, Lawrenceville, GA 30046. Their phone number is 678-377-4010. You can also purchase a test kit online for $13 and read more about radon at UGARadon.or

All these classes and more will be offered by Gwinnett Medical Center. If a registration number is not listed, please call 678-312-5000 to register, or register online at gwinnettmedicalcenter.org/classes . Scroll to the bottom of the list to see some of our support groups. A full list of support groups is available here . FreshStart Smoking Cessation In this four-week smoking cessation class written by the American Cancer Society, you will learn about the benefits of quitting, strategies for quitting and will formulate a personal quit plan. A certificate of completion, for insurance purposes, is given after all four classes are completed. Wednesdays, Feb. 3, 10, 17, 24 at 6:30 p.m. Cancer Support Center 631 Professional Drive, suite 220 Lawrenceville, GA 30046 FREE Pre-Diabetes Classes If you’ve been told you have pre-diabetes, or are at high risk of developing diabetes, take charge of your health! Learn effective lifestyle strategies that can dramatica

Eating a healthy diet may help prevent many diseases. Two big ones are heart disease and cancer. But what about Alzheimer’s disease? A recent study suggests certain foods may work against this disabling brain illness, too. Diet and your brain People with Alzheimer’s disease slowly lose the ability to remember, think, and reason. In time, they may not be able to do even basic activities. A type of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease can’t be cured. That’s a grim outlook for the growing number of older adults suffering from it. As a result, experts are feverishly studying how and why a person develops Alzheimer’s disease. Prospects for preventing it are still in their infancy. But one area of intense research is diet. One recent study looked at whether a specific eating pattern may help fend off the brain disease. It’s called the MIND diet. MIND stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay. It blends parts of the well-known Mediterranean Diet and DA

A recent study suggests that people who frequently eat spicy foods could have a lower risk of heart disease, respiratory disease and cancer. In the study spicy foods were defined as items like chili peppers. Whether it’s the antioxidants that occur naturally in vegetables (yes, chili peppers are vegetables) or some other anti-inflammatory component, spicy foods and chilly winter weather are a natural fit. And even if you're not a fan of spicy foods, adding spices and herbs to dishes boosts nutrition. Some spices  to try include : basil black pepper cardamom chamomile chili powder cilantro cinnamon cloves coriander cumin fennel seeds garlic ginger nutmeg paprika parsley rosemary turmeric Here’s one recipe to get you started: Crock Pot Turkey White Bean Pumpkin Chili . If you’re a fan of spicy foods, you could amp up the heat with chopped chili peppers or cayenne powder. For more great recipes, browse our boards on Pinterest . 

You are invited to join Gwinnett Medical Center’s Sports Medicine program for a special showing of the movie Concussion , starring Will Smith. A question-and-answer session with experts form the Gwinnett Medical Center Concussion Institute will follow. This showing has limited seating, but free admission. RSVP by Sunday, January 24 by calling 678-312-6002. Concussion will be shown on Saturday, January 30, 2016, at 11 a.m. at Regal Cinemas – Mall of Georgia, 3333 Buford Drive NE, Buford.

By Cindy Snyder, DNP, APNG, FNP-C Advanced Practice Nurse in Genetics Although it’s important to know your family history when it comes to cancer, it’s also important to know that the causes of cancer are multifaceted.  A family history of cancer doesn’t mean that you will get cancer. However, what you do or don’t do can increase your risk for cancer. Here are three areas which can affect your risk of getting cancer: Family history and genetics Health habits and conditions such as obesity, exercise, nutrition, sleep and stress levels Environment, where you live and work When it comes to keeping track of your family’s health history, you should note any changes year-to-year and update your healthcare provider. While having one relative with cancer may not raise your risk much, having a pattern of family cancers increases your risk more. Say, Aunt Mary develops ovarian cancer. Even if you’re male, be sure to let your healthcare provider know about that change.

If you’re wearing a fitness tracker (Fitbit, Garmin, Apple Watch, etc.), then you are not alone. According to cnet.com , about 68-70 million wearable fitness trackers were expected to be sold in each of the past two years in the U.S. Some companies are even giving employees fitness trackers as part of their employee wellness programs.  Whether it’s on your wrist or worn on your clothing, here are some tips to remember as you track your fitness with one of these gadgets: Take the fitness tracker’s numbers with a grain of salt. Your heart rate may not be exactly the number on the tracker, but it’s probably fairly close if you’re wearing it according to manufacturer’s instructions. Even general guidance will nudge you towards better health habits. Use the tracker as a motivation tool. We all like to get credit for doing healthy things, and this is the modern equivalent of the teacher’s smiley sticker on your efforts. If you have friends with trackers, if you're the