Autumn Years Fall 2024

Consider that you are only as healthy as the food you can digest. What you put into your body is essential—but unless your digestive system can effectively process the fuel you give it, even the most nutritious foods can go to waste or cause digestive issues. Jump-start optimal well-being with integrative health coach and nutritional food chef Ellen Postolowski, working from the inside out. Are you fighting disease or feeding it?

Gut Driven includes over 100 recipes to inspire optimal gut functions and sustainable habits. This personalized approach to healthcare addresses the complexity of each individual’s needs but also encourages a positive mindset, progress not perfection, resilience, sustainable maintenance, self-care, and a flexible approach to life focusing on body, mind, and spirit.

Ellen holds a culinary degree from the Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts in Boulder, Colorado, and is a certified health coach with multiple certifications in gut and hormonal health.

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dizzy or unsteady on their feet and take precautions to avoid falling in the home or outdoors. Physical therapy can help people gain better balance, strength and flexibility, making a fall less likely. He advises people to evaluate their surroundings, making sure the floor is free of clutter and other tripping haz ards, such as rugs that are not securely fastened. Loose or uneven flooring should be repaired. Homes and outdoor areas should have good lighting. Steps should always have handrails, and grab bars should be installed in the bathroom as needed for support. Dr. Sama encour ages family and friends to check the homes of loved ones to ensure they are in a safe environment. (For more about fall prevention, see page 18.)

Dr. Sama stresses the importance of taking preventive measures to avoid a fracture in the first place. “That means doing everything you can to be as safe as you can,” he says. “It means trying to maintain a level of physical fitness to optimize balance, strength and flexibil ity; using appropriate protective gear when participating in sports and athletic activities; and seeing an orthopedic specialist for evaluation if experiencing ongoing pain or a minor injury that is not improving.” Fall prevention is critical, especially for older adults who may have weak ened bones. Some people may have medical conditions that predispose them to falling, such as problems with blood pressure, impaired vision or vertigo, Dr. Sama says. They should be mind ful of medications that can make them

job is to understand our patients’ goals, educate them about what to expect, and encourage them in a supportive environ ment. Motivated patients with positive attitudes have better outcomes.” FOLLOW-UP AFTER A FRACTURE TO ASSESS BONE HEALTH When a fracture occurs from less trauma than normally would be required to break a healthy bone, it is essential to determine the cause, Dr. Sama says. This is especially important for older adults who may have sustained a “fragility” fracture—one that occurs in a bone weakened due to osteoporosis. Patients should be referred for follow-up with their primary care doctor, an endocri nologist or a rheumatologist. It usually entails a bone density scan and appropri ate treatment to help prevent a future fracture.

FALL 2024 I AUTUMN YEARS 17