Author: Jacob Thiede

What are Chronic Conditions and How do I know if I Have One?

Chronic diseases are defined by the CDC as conditions lasting for a year or more that require on going medical attention and/or limit activities of daily life. More than half of all American adults have a chronic condition and many of them have a least two. Around two-thirds of deaths and 75% of healthcare spending are attributed to these diseases. The good news is that they are preventable, but what are the best ways to prevent them? First, we need to know some of the diseases that we are up against, and how to know what signs and risk factors to look for that indicate that we may be at risk.

Diabetes

First up we have a disease that effects roughly 30 million Americans, Type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is when the cells in the body can’t properly handle insulin, or the pancreas does not release a sufficient amount of insulin to properly control the blood glucose levels in the blood, resulting in high blood sugar. High blood sugar (hyperglycemia) can lead to a number of symptoms like slow healing, the feet and legs having numbness or pain, dehydration, and yeast infections (yes men, you can get those too). If left unchecked, it can eventually lead to severe dehydration and a diabetic coma, which can be fatal. Some early signs include increased thirst, increased urination, fatigue, and blurry vision. Diabetes has a long list of risk factors including lifestyle, diet, age, obesity, and family history. Knowing which risk factors you may have can be your best friend when it comes to preventing chronic illness.

Heart Disease

The leading cause of death in the United States is heart disease, accounting for around a quarter of deaths, with almost 50% of the population being at risk. Heart disease is a blanket term for several conditions relating to your heart, blood, and arteries. Due to the number of conditions in this group, the symptoms are wide ranging and it can be difficult, if not impossible, to create a helpful list. Heart disease shares a lot of the same risk factors that diabetes does, and high blood sugar can increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. Smoking doubles the risk of heart disease, and it makes you smell bad, so that’s two great reasons to quit smoking.

Obesity

Obesity is another serious problem in the United States, with around 40% of the population suffering from it. Obesity is defined as an individual having a body mass index of over 30. Lifestyle is obviously a major factor, with those that with poor diets and inactive lifestyles being far more likely to become obese, but genetics also play a large role as well, as obesity often runs in families. Obesity can influence almost everything a person does and has many symptoms like sleep apnea, increased stress, and fatigue, but it also greatly increases the risk of developing other chronic conditions. Two of these chronic conditions are, big surprise, diabetes and heart disease, but obesity also increases the risk for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, arthritis, some cancers, and stroke. Working to avoid obesity or being overweight is vital to also keeping yourself from developing these other conditions.

Prevention

As I stated above, these diseases have a lot of common risk factors, but that’s not all bad news because that means trying to prevent one of them can also help prevent the others as well. Eating a healthy diet and being active for example will help prevent all of the conditions in this article, as well as other chronic conditions and common short-term illnesses. If you have risk factors through family history like I do, it’s important for to know how well you are doing with the risk factors that you are able to control like blood sugar and cholesterol levels. Our blood tests do just that, helping you treat those risk factors before they even become a problem. Having that knowledge and having a more in-depth idea of how to keep those things in check, was my biggest goal with Ways2Well, and it is for many of our patients as well. Diagnosis of some chronic illnesses like heart disease and diabetes often require blood testing anyway, so it’s definitely better to get it done before it gets to that stage.

Want to learn more?

Check out our Getting Started page and set up a free consult with our medical provider. It’s time to get you on the path to great health and keep you that way.

With Covid-19 still posing a major threat to the health and wellbeing of the entire world, and with a vaccine still far off in the distance, researchers and medical experts are hard at work to find any information they can that can help prevent or treat the virus. Determining what factors cause greater risk for developing a case that is severe and requires hospitalization and intensive treatment has been one of the main priorities of expert around the world. One question grabbing much of their attention is why men are experiencing fatal cases of Covid-19 more often than women. Recent studies suggest that low testosterone could be a risk factor that is contributing to this higher rate of severe illness and death in men.

One recent study was conducted in Germany, where 45 intensive care patients (35 of them males) with Covid-19 had their testosterone levels tested. Lowered testosterone levels were found in about 70% of the admitted patients and in all but two of the patients that died. Similar results were found in studies from China and Italy as well [1].

Low Testosterone and the Immune System

Several theories have already emerged about how low testosterone is related to more severe cases of Coronavirus. Testosterone is one of the many things that play a part in regulating immune system response, which means that a lack of the hormone can cause the immune system to not work properly. An unregulated immune system can lead to a cytokine storm, where the immune system begins to attack the disease so hard that it causes the body to suffer damage as well. The enzyme ACE2 is important for protecting the lungs, and testosterone helps in the expression and regulation of that enzyme as well [1]. Since Covid-19 is a respiratory virus, it’s very important that anything that protects the lungs works properly, and testosterone deficiency is obviously a detriment to that.

Low Testosterone and Chronic Conditions

Many of the risk factors for Covid-19 are underlying medical conditions, and many of the fatal cases are in patients that have one or more of them. All of the patients in the German study had one or more of these underlying conditions, and many of them had conditions that also have links to low testosterone. Obesity, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes are conditions with links to low testosterone that were prevalent in patients in the study [2]. A couple of other medical conditions that have relationships with both Covid-19 and low testosterone are chronic kidney disease and high blood pressure. This does not mean that low T is the primary cause of severe and fatal cases of Covid-19, but it does seem to suggest that it could be a contributing factor in how difficult it can be to recover from more serious cases.

While the studies conducted are relatively small, the data makes a compelling case for further research into the connection between low testosterone and Covid-19. Further research could be helpful in giving healthcare providers another tool for treating the disease. Even if it doesn’t lead to another treatment for the virus, it could at least help us identify more individuals that might have a higher risk of developing a more intense or even fatal case of Covid-19, and provide a possible explanation as to why the virus has been more fatal to men than it has to women.

Want to Learn More?

Check out our Getting Started page and set up a free consult with our medical provider. It’s time to get you on the path to great health, and keep you that way.

References

1. Rowland, S.P., O’Brien Bergin, E. Screening for low testosterone is needed for early identification and treatment of men at high risk of mortality from Covid-19. Crit Care24, 367 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13054-020-03086-z
2. Schroeder M, Tuku B, Jarczak D, Nierhaus A, Bai T, Jacobsen H, et al. The majority of male patients with COVID-19 present low testosterone levels on admission to Intensive Care in Hamburg, Germany: a retrospective cohort study. medRxiv.2020. https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.05.07.20073817v1.

The biggest topic in the world right now is how to stay healthy, but most of the attention is being given to wearing masks, hand washing, and social distancing. While those measures are important, immune health needs to be put in the spotlight as well, and not just during a pandemic or during flu season.

What is the Immune System?

A pathogen is the general term used to describe anything that can cause disease or illness, and it’s the job of the immune system to fight off these pathogens before they are able to make you sick. The immune system has two main parts, the innate portion that we are born with, and the adaptive portion that learns how to fight off infections and diseases through being exposed to them. The innate component includes mechanisms from all over the body like the skin, mucous, stomach acid, sweat, and even tears. These act as a first line of defense before our adaptive response kicks in and sends out specialized white bloods cells to attack and destroy the intruding pathogen. We are able to strengthen our adaptive immune system against many of the worst diseases by using vaccines, which help the immune system teach itself to fight against those pathogens.

Vaccinations for Covid-19 could take awhile to develop, but the immune system is still capable of fighting off the virus without one, which is why a healthy immune system is more important than ever. If your immune response stops you from contracting the virus, you are less likely spread it to other people, which means that you help out your community just by helping yourself. Many cases of Coronavirus have been mild with some patients not experiencing any symptoms at all, and though it’s likely that many factors contribute to a milder case, it’s very possible that a stronger immune system could be one of the reasons that these cases don’t become more severe. Not only will a stronger immune system help prevent one from catching disease, it also will help that person recover more quickly if they do end up getting sick.

Immunodeficiencies

Being immunocompromised is when the immune system is weakened or unable to work properly. Most of the time it is the adaptive component that is affected, but occasionally the innate portion can suffer as well. Immune deficiencies have a number of causes and can even be present from birth. AIDS, cancer, chronic diseases like diabetes, certain injuries, and organ complications are common reasons why someone might be immune deficient, but some medications and treatments, like chemotherapy, can be responsible.

Boosting the Immune System

Obviously, times like these can be scary for anyone with a weakened immune system, but there are many ways that we can give our immune systems an extra boost. Not so surprisingly, the best way to help out our immune systems is to have a healthy and active lifestyle. Getting enough sleep, avoiding unhealthy habits like smoking and alcohol, being at a healthy weight, exercising regularly, and eating a healthy diet with lots of vegetables and fruit are all important to keeping our immune systems healthy. Of course, this isn’t easy for everyone and sometimes even people with healthy lifestyles need a little extra help. Taking vitamins and supplements to make sure that your body is getting what it needs can help bridge the gap to a stronger immune system.

Nobody likes getting sick, and if you find that you are getting sick often, it is probably time to give your immune system a little more love. With the pandemic going on, there has never been a better time to make sure that your body can fight hard for you when it needs to. Ways2well wants to make that as easy as possible, with treatments and supplements available so you can spend less time being sick and more time enjoying your life.

Ways2Well is a digital healthcare platform that includes patients in their healthcare journey, every step of the way. Our job is to give you control and access to your healthcare experience, something we know can be difficult in a traditional patient/provider/insurance model. We offer a convenient, customizable, cost effective solution for our patients, and we aren’t controlled by restrictions of insurance companies; which means more choice and transparency for our patients. 

How do we do this?

Much like Amazon, Ways2Well was created to go direct to the patient with our healthcare services. As with many direct to consumer brands, cutting out the “middleman” can often result in better pricing and services for the end user and a greater focus on who we serve; our patients. In order to serve our patients best, we considered multiple parts of the patient journey that created barriers for access:

• Lack of access to healthcare services and specialty providers for patients
• Disruption to daily life in your household and workplace with unnecessary time constraints
• Cost prohibitive services and treatment offerings; lack of transparency in billing
• Restrictive insurance policies preventing you from receiving healthcare and preventative care support; reducing the likelihood of a patient seeking care at all

We created a virtual experience for our patients that removes these barriers to care and reduces overhead costs that are often passed on to patients. Our medical team can be seen from anywhere you have access to a phone or a computer, and your charts, lab work and treatment plans are available through your patient care portal 24/7. Our care standard is built upon the foundation of patient needs first – meaning – we listen in order to treat effectively and holistically. We use cutting edge lab diagnostics to do a 360 assessment of a patient’s overall health state; so much more than just a quick visit and vitals check in an exam room. We chose not to negotiate with insurance companies to price gouge and inflate prices – we offer a cash pay solution with transparent billing and pricing for our patients. Our treatment costs are less than current insurance co-pays and deductibles for most patients. The cherry on top, is we have also taken away the annoyances that come along with filling prescriptions at retail pharmacies. Ways2Well partners with ReviveRx and your treatments are ordered by our medical team and mailed directly to your door with 2 day shipping. No waits, no haggling for refills – just simple, effective patient care.

Why should I use Ways2Well virtual healthcare platform?

In our combined 60+ years experience in the healthcare industry, we’ve seen a gap in the marketplace develop that negatively impacts patient care. If you can order almost anything on your phone for instant delivery, then we should be able to evolve healthcare in a way that serves patients faster and more intelligently, with a better standard of care. We spend a significant portion of our lives online, and we think it shouldn’t take weeks or months to see a physician or specialist. Ways2Well is focused on changing that. You can see a Ways2Well medical provider at your convenience – no disruption to work schedules, home life, traffic and parking issues or even waiting rooms crowded with sick patients. Modern technology has afforded us a faster, better, safer and more convenient way to treat our patients – making them happier; and that makes us happy too.

What are the benefits of Ways2Well?

• Convenient
• Cost Effective
• Customizable
• 24/7 Access
• Digital/Online/Virtual
• No wait for specialists
• We have a pharmacy and team of elite pharmacists at partner pharmacy ReviveRx
• Team of experienced medical providers 
• Cash pay with no restrictions
  
  Want to learn more?
  
  Check out our Getting Started page and set up your free consult with our medical provider. It’s time to get you on the path to great health, and keep you that way.