1. An Israeli study recently found that boosted individuals at 30 days had a 93% reduction in COVID-positivity compared to their non-boosted peers.                           
2. A recent analysis comparing Florida and California is enlightening as well.  Although both states had roughly 10% of the population test positive for COVID in the recent Omicron wave, the death rate per capita in California was 33% less than Florida.  After controlling for age and other factors, the author speculates that the much higher booster rate in California explains this difference.

So, get your booster!  It will help prevent you from getting COVID and, equally important, reduce the chances for a severe infection if you do become positive.

Vaccination locations can be found at Vaccines.gov.

As always, please contact us if you have any questions.

Forty-two percent of Americans are obese, and another twenty percent are overweight. Inactivity and poor dietary choices can contribute, but it is not as simple as calories in, calories out. We have many patients who are active and eat carefully but still feel punished by the inability to lose weight. Why does this happen?

For one thing, calorie absorption varies depending on a complex interaction between the food you eat, your intestinal lining and the bacteria that colonize your gut.

In addition, what you eat influences hormone secretion, fat deposition, metabolism and even the feeling of hunger. New studies show that diets high in starch and high fructose corn syrup and/or sugar increase fat deposition and increase appetite by making you resistant to Leptin, the hormone that helps you feel satiated.

So, what are you to do?

• Avoid stress/boredom/mindless eating
• Eat when hungry and eat mindfully, set your fork down between bites
• Avoid processed foods including sweets, chips, crackers, bread, pasta, white rice and sweetened drinks and replace with "whole foods" like fruit, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and seeds
• Exercise daily

If these efforts don’t get you to a healthy weight, there are new medication options that can lead to a 15% loss of your body weight. However, these drugs are VERY costly ranging from $900-$1500 a month if insurance does not cover them, which is typically the case in the absence of diabetes or another qualifying condition. So give the low-cost options above a try first, and if that's not working for you, reach out to us for more information on medication options.