DrG's Medisense Feature Article
18121-Present_to_Myself
‘Health’
Gifts that
Work
(or Don’t)
by Ann Gerhardt, MD
December 2018
Print Version
This list is a bit late for this holiday but is reasonably sound advice
for birthdays and random acts of kindness throughout the year.
It all started with my annual read of the Hammacher Schlemmer (HS)
catalogue. Though not intended to be, it’s
hilarious, and
that’s why I read it. Every item is labeled
“The,” as in The Only Six-Person Sandless Beach
Mat, The
Guitar Box Slide Guitar and The Oenophile’s Personalized Lazy
Susan. In those cases, their products may actually be The
only
one available. Many gifts are labelled The Best and The
Genuine,
as in the The Best Nose Hair Trimmer, The Best Bug Vacuum, The
World’s Lightest Carryon and The Genuine Peruvian Alpaca
Cardigan, as if all others are fake. Some are absurd and
outlandishly expensive, fit mostly for a catalogue reader who
appreciates humor or has money to burn.
HS sells numerous health-related massagers (heated, reflexologic,
compressive), stretching devices, and therapeutic braces. Who
knows if they work. Many of the over-the-top claims made me
wonder about their verity. So, leaving the random massagers
and
heaters aside, I did some research about a few of the other
health-related products.
Recommended
Celliant
textile products:
These fabrics reuse body heat to maintain warmth, improve circulation,
reduce arthritis pain and accelerate recovery from hard
exercise.
The new technology imbeds a thermo-reactive mineral matrix into fabric
fibers. Body heat is converted by the matrix into infrared
energy
and transmitted back to the body. Resultant warming increases
circulation by dilating blood vessels, which improves circulation,
potentially aiding healing. The Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) has certified Celliant as a medical device and general wellness
product, presumably based on reasonable studies.
It is made by Hologenix LLC for use in products by other companies,
including
Sheets, blankets, pillows, mattresses and mattress covers
Scuba/Wet suits, hoodie, water mittens and booties
Jackets, active-wear, gloves
Ski boots, socks, shoe insoles
Medical and veterinary products.
Pillow
wedge: Shaped like
a long 3D triangle and generally made of foam, pillow wedges elevate
the head and upper torso gradually, instead of propping the head up
above a flat body. This helps people with heartburn, hiatal
hernia and aspiration while asleep. It can aid sinus drainage
and
might reduce snoring. Propping up the legs of the head of the
bed
on blocks or putting a wooden wedge between the mattress and box
springs also work but are a bit less elegant and condemn a bed partner
to similar elevation.
Heated
foot baths and paraffin wax
hand baths: Sort of
like a liquid heating pad, these baths
improved circulation, reduce rheumatoid arthritis pain, soften cracked
skin and are relaxing. But don’t believe any claims
that
they cure disease.
Gifts
to Charities and Non-tangible
gifts:
It is healthy to do good by giving to charities, whether it be your
time, money and/or expertise. Research shows that giving
increases self-esteem and happiness. It reduces depression,
stress level and blood pressure. Givers even may live
longer.
Most study results apply to volunteerism, emotional support and
charitable donations, though there is a “gift-givers
high”
that might kick in after family members open your tangible
gifts.
Consider how unhealthy plastic and energy-consuming devices are for the
planet, and perhaps give experiences that generate memories
instead.
Not Recommended:
Do-it-yourself
cold lipolysis body
shaping devices:
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
approved CoolSculpting for spot fat reduction on a normal weight person
by a medical professional. Doctors use a specific
technique
to apply just-above freezing cold to a body bulge, killing fat
cells. Belts and paddles are now available for home use, but
not
approved by the FDA. When used for many days, 1-2 hours per
day,
the technique MIGHT reduce an unsightly bulge, but home use has a much
greater chance of not working. Or it can freeze skin, nerves,
blood vessels and muscle without killing much fat. It
doesn’t work if poor diet and couch potato lifestyle
perpetuate
overweight. Rarely, these devices actually stimulate fat
cells to
permanently grow larger.
Wrinkle
reducing facial and neck
massage tools: From
battery-powered vibrators, to
ultrasound, photon or LED heat generator wands, to devices that look
like cheese slicers, electric shavers, and meat tenderizers, these
devices promise what they can’t deliver – wrinkle
and
crow’s feet elimination. There is no
scientific proof
that massage eliminates wrinkles. And
there’s no
proof that smiling or frowning cause wrinkles, which result from
diminished skin elasticity caused by sun, smoking and aging.
With physical and/or thermal skin stimulation, fluid rushes to the
area, puffing out wrinkles. Temporarily. When the
irritation is gone, so goes the fluid. Wrinkles and skin sag
win
the war and you’ve wasted time and money, in my humble
opinion.
Most of us earned our crow’s feet. I rather like
mine. They add character to a face, which is a good thing
unless
you really want the porcelain doll look.
Home
electrolysis hair remover
Professional electrolysis hair removal devices are approved by the FDA,
home devices are not. When a professional uses one, inserting
a
probe into one hair follicle at a time and zapping it with electrical
current, it works well. Do-it-yourselfers can damage
surrounding
skin, leaving unsightly scars.
Another home ‘electrolysis’ device type, also used
in some
beauty parlors, is called transdermal electrolysis and is
non-invasive. It applies electrical current to a large swath
of
skin, supposedly damaging hair follicles. It
doesn’t work,
no matter who administers the treatment.
Most
anti-aging products
I wrote a series of articles in 2015 and 2016 pretty much debunking a
variety of anti-aging product claims, so I won’t re-address
them
here. Search for the articles with the term
‘aging’
at the www.healthychoicesformindandbody.org website.
Instead
of useless anti-aging products
or more and more stuff, Good
Gifts to Self
might
be taking up a sport or joining a team through the city recreation
department, signing up for dance lessons, stopping an obsession with
the mirror and starting volunteering, promising to eat two cups of
veggies every day and/or doing random acts of kindness.