Ask Dr. Marie

A 2008 article in the “New England Journal of Medicine” revealed that 25 percent of perimenopausal women and 40 percent of postmenopausal women report leakage of urine. ThirdAge medical expert Marie Savard, M.D., author of “Ask Dr. Marie,” says that the main causes of this annoying condition are decreased estrogen levels and aging pelvic muscles that are losing strength. She adds that obesity can exacerbate the condition, as can asthma, diabetes, a chronic cough, and medications such as diuretics, antihistamines, and antidepressants.

Major medical and consumer groups are coming together to question the carte blanche use of many commonly ordered tests and procedures, including MRI for low back pain and exercise EKG tests in people with no symptoms and low risk for heart disease.

Sometimes these tests can be lifesavers. Other times they are unlikely to do anything except increase costs and anxiety and expose people to unnecessary risks.

So how do you know the difference?

If you’re not always “regular,” you’re definitely not alone. ThirdAge’s resident women’s health expert, Marie (Dr. Marie) Savard M.D., says that women are much more likely to suffer from constipation than men are. The reason is that the contractions of the digestive tract — a process called peristalsis — are slower in females. Dr. Marie also points out that women are especially prone to “holiday constipation,” a phenomenon brought on by changes in diet, long plane or car rides, and the “safe toilet syndrome” in which people “hold it” for too long when they’re away from home. The good news, though, is that preventing and treating constipation is almost always simple and rarely requires a doctor visit. Here’s what Dr. Marie recommends:

One of our favorite experts, Marie Savard, M.D., Medical Contributor to “Good Morning America” and the author most recently of “Ask Dr. Marie,” has given us a comprehensive checklist to help you stay as healthy as possible and catch any problems early. In addition to recommending tests and immunizations, Dr. Marie urges you to request copies of all your own test results. She is a big proponent of patients being actively involved in their own care. “Read your results carefully,” she says. “Doctors are not infallible and you may catch something that was missed. Also, the records are not all that hard to understand.”

People have been searching for libido enhancers ever since ancient times, but most methods have turned out to be bogus. There’s no evidence that the ancient Chinese practice of swallowing ground rhinoceros horns improved sexual prowess. More recently, the hype about bottled pheromones — the odorless secret to many animals’ attraction — proved unfounded.

Even so, Marie Savard, M.D., Medical Contributor to “Good Morning America” and the author most recently of “Ask Dr. Marie,” says that some purported aphrodisiacs do indeed heighten desire. Yet she maintains there is only one surefire way to boost the flagging sex drive that so often plagues women during and after menopause. We’re saving that tip for last – but if you can’t resist skipping ahead to find out what it is, we forgive you!

Marie Savard, M.D., Medical Contributor to Good Morning, America and the author most recently of Ask Dr. Marie, says that when she was in a group practice she had a “panel” of literally thousands of patients. That’s typical of most doctors – probably yours. No wonder office visits are limited to a mere fifteen minutes unless you’re scheduled for your annual full physical exam. Even then, you’ll only have thirty minutes or less of face time with your physician. Add to that the infamous “white coat syndrome” that can leave you tongue-tied, and you can see why Dr. Marie urges you to be fully prepared before your appointment. Here’s her advice:

Plenty of women with five-alarm health symptoms put off calling the doctor in the hope that whatever is bothering them will just go away. Big mistake! Marie Savard, M.D., Medical Contributor to Good Morning America and the author most recently of  Ask Dr. Marie, urges you to trust your “doctor within” by paying attention when your body is telling you that something is really wrong. Here are Dr. Marie’s top ten warning signals that you need to get medical attention, and fast.  

Some women pretty much breeze through menopause while others have to deal with hot flashes, night sweats, memory lapses, and other pesky symptoms. Yet no matter which camp you fall into, “the change” truly does change you. According to women’s health expert Marie Savard, M.D., Medical Contributor to Good Morning America and the author most recently of “Ask Dr. Marie,” your body alters in six significant ways by the time you’ve had your last period ever. Read on to get acquainted with the new you and learn how to stay sexy, slim, strong, and disease-free.

You’re More Prone To Packing On Belly Fat

No one is in a better position than a nurse to give you insider information about your hospital stay – unless she’s a nurse who went on to become a doctor. Marie Savard, M.D., medical contributor to Good Morning America and the author of  Ask Dr. Marie and  How to Save Your Own Life, offers these tips for taking charge of your healthcare when you’re going to the hospital:

Another diet myth bites the dust: Products containing the calorie-less fake fat Olean, of fat-free potato chips fame, may make you gain weight, not lose it.

In a new study released today by Purdue University, researchers found that rats who were fed Olean-containing potato chips as part of a high-fat diet ate more overall and gained more weight than those who were fed a high fat diet and regular, full-fat potato chips.

This counter-intuitive finding shakes the conventional wisdom that substituting lower calorie, lower fat foods for the full-fat versions will help reduce overall caloric intake and encourage weight loss.