Entries by Chet Zelasko

Why I Believe SAD Is Real

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Let’s take a closer look at the study on seasonal affective disorder (SAD). The questions this study raises are two-fold:

  •  Were the research methods used appropriate to answer the question?
  •  Were the conclusions the researchers made warranted?

Without getting too technical, there are several problems. First, all the researchers could do is see if each of the events were correlated—the Depression Survey, the weather and latitude, and the season of the year. That’s all. Correlation does not mean cause and effect. It’s puzzling that experienced researchers would say there . . .

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How SAD Was Measured

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Let’s take a look at the study that concluded SAD was folklore. The researchers used data from the 2006 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System questionnaire (BRFSS 2006). This is a telephone survey conducted every year in the US. In 2006, over 34,000 people responded to the phone survey. The survey varies from 199 questions for the short version and up to 373 questions for the full survey. The phone numbers are generated at random and reflect the population distribution of the US.

Because the survey is given throughout the year, all areas in the U.S. will be . . .

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Is Seasonal Affective Disorder Real?

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Not according to a recently published study. At least, that’s what the headlines about the study suggested. While not exactly using these words, a group of psychologists said, “We’ve proven that SAD is just a big scam so that pharmaceutical companies can sell more drugs. It has no place in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. It’s folklore and should be removed!”

There is a whole lot in those statements, and I’ll break down this study this week to see if what they said is real or not. To me, SAD is real based . . .

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You’ve Got the Ball

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Two emails. Two men. Two deaths. In each case, the men likely didn’t know what they didn’t know. If they had known they had coronary artery disease or hypertension, they probably would have done something about it. Or maybe like many people, they wouldn’t have—“that couldn’t happen to me” syndrome or simply ignoring the facts. As I said on Thursday, this is American Heart Month. I’m going to give you three things you should do to reduce your risk of sudden death, the most extreme symptom of heart disease.

 

Graded Exercise Test . . .

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The Silent Killer

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On Tuesday, I told you about an article sent to me by a long-time reader. Today’s message is about an email sent to me the same day as the other, but it’s quite different.

In the second email, a woman let me know that her husband had passed away in his sleep several months ago. He was not overweight and seemed healthy. When the medical university nearby did an autopsy, they found he had an enlarged heart, most likely due to high blood pressure. That’s one of the reasons hypertension is called the silent killer.

I . . .

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Death by Donut

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There are times when the topics I write about seem to align like astronomical events; it’s as if I’m compelled because of a series of apparently unrelated actions. This time, emails from two people prompted me to write about heart disease. Yes, it’s American Heart Month and I generally write about it every year. But what would get your attention? What might drive you to take action? Let’s see if the messages this week will do it.

Thanks to S.B., a longtime reader, for sending me a link to a story about a man who . . .

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When It’s 51-49

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I know what you’re probably thinking: Dr. Chet is predicting the Super Bowl score. While that would be a great game, especially if the Broncos win, that’s not what I’m talking about. (Don’t be offended, you Panther fans. I’m an AFC fan every day and especially, a Peyton fan.)

What’s 51-49? Let’s say that you wake up five minutes late on Monday. You will immediately start the process of deciding whether or not you can exercise or fix your healthy breakfast shake; the score stands at 50-50. The arguments begin in . . .

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Ten O’Clock Zombie

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The second tip of the week leading up to The 6th Super Bowl Webinar on Sunday is something I think we’ve all experienced at some time. You eat a carbohydrate-based breakfast before work—cereal and milk, bagel and cream cheese, even one of those breakfast sandwiches you can now buy all day long. Somewhere between 10 and 10:30 a.m., your head drifts toward your chest and you could go to sleep. Just like a zombie, you cannot function. You’re in what some people call a carb coma.

The obvious solution is to restrict those carbohydrates . . .

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The Two O’Clock Fade

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See if this sounds familiar. If you work a typical 9-to-5 job, and somewhere around two o’clock in the afternoon, your body is there but nobody’s home. If you work a second shift, adjust the time to a couple hours after lunch. You can stare at the computer screen or the telephone, know what you have to do, but have no mental focus to get it done.

My philosophy is that the simplest solution is often the correct one. Odds are this fade is caused by dehydration. Make sure you drink two to three cups or . . .

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Who Decides?

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After the past two messages, I hope you’ve taken the time to think about screening tests. There are many ways to respond, from outrage to “Who cares what some obscure researchers say?” To me, it’s complicated but it always comes back to statistics.

In Tuesday’s message, the opinion voiced the concern that going against the evidence presented by the USTFPS by a political body was opening the door to more intervention based on emotion rather than fact. The facts were that more women would be faced with the stress to their minds and their bodies if they . . .

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