Clover Internal Medicine Associates

Our office will be closed Monday, May 27,2024 in observance of Memorial Day!

Happy Birthday to our AMAZING nurse practitioner Gaby!

A little late but Happy Halloween from Clover Internal Medicine!

Meet another one of our patients. She went from 156 lbs to 137 lbs for a total of 19 lbs down! We want to spotlight her because it shows everyone's journey is different. Her desired weight was 138 lbs and she reached that goal! She was able to titrate off the medication while maintaining her exercise and nutritional foundation.

Meet one of our patients. She went from 250 lbs to 157 lbs for a total of 73 lbs down! She is looking and feeling amazing! We want to congratulate her on her journey. She has followed our weight loss guidance that includes diet, exercise, and medication regimen. Weight management is recommended based on individual patient consultations. Please visit our office for more details!

InBody is a service we offer with our weight loss program. It’s a quick way we can analyze your body composition to track trends and adjust your treatment plan. It can track weight, skeletal muscle mass, body fat percentage, extracellular water and more! Looking for a way to start? Ask us how!

OptiLight is a quick 15-minute procedure that will relieve your dry eye symptoms. It’s the first FDA approved treatment for dry eyes! Current treatment course is 3-4 sessions 4 weeks apart. Call for questions!

Counting carbs is sometimes recommended to type 1 or type 2 diabetics. It is commonly seen in advanced insulin management done by endocrine specialist. Even if you are not on a management plan of counting carbs, being aware of how many carbs a meal has is something to be mindful of. Reading the nutrition labels and checking serving sizes are two easy steps in making healthier options.

https://diabetes.org/healthy-living/recipes-nutrition/understanding-carbs/carb-counting-and-diabetes

Carb Counting and Diabetes | ADA Get Smart On Carbs Carb Counting and Diabetes Carbohydrates, or carbs, are naturally found in certain foods. For example, grains, sweets, starches, legumes and dairy all contain different amounts of carbs. Get up to speed on the three types of carbs, and what foods have them. When foods and drinks w...

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a progressive disease that is increasing in numbers. Per the National Institute of Health as of 2022 the adult population with this condition in the U.S is 24%. Some patients may have elevated liver enzymes and be asymptomatic while some may have vague symptoms like fatigue. Maintaining a healthy diet and weight by limiting or avoiding processed foods, fast foods, high sugar/fried foods, and alcohol are ways to reduce your chances of having NAFLD.

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/nonalcoholic-fatty-liver-disease

Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Fatty liver disease means that you have fat deposits inside your liver. These deposits may keep your liver from doing a good job of removing toxins from your blood.

Do you have dry eyes? The Meibomian glands are sometimes who to blame! They are the glands that keep the eye lubrication working. With OptiLight it can help reduce inflammation, restore the meibomian glands, and decrease demodex mites which increase your risk of eye infections. https://lumenis.com/vision/products/optilight/

Optilight - A Bright Solution For Dry Eyes | Lumenis Dry Eye Medical Device Lumenis light therapy is the first and only IPL dry eye FDA-approved device for management of dry eye disease due to Meibomian Glands Dysfunction (MGD). Find out more about OptiLight.

With OptiLight we can stop the dry eye vicious cycle of inflammation. Ask us how!

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans for 2020-2025 state that “Emerging evidence suggests that even drinking within the recommended limits [2 drinks per male and 1 per female] may increase the overall risk of death from various causes, such as from several types of cancer and some forms of cardiovascular disease. Alcohol has been found to increase risk for cancer, and for some types of cancer, the risk increases EVEN AT LOW LEVELS of alcohol consumption (less than 1 drink in a day). Caution, therefore, is recommended.” For specifics, “one alcoholic drink equivalent is defined as containing 14 grams (0.6 fl oz) of pure alcohol. The following count as one alcoholic drink equivalent: 12 fluid ounces of regular beer (5% alcohol), 5 fluid ounces of wine (12% alcohol), or 1.5 fluid ounces of 80 proof distilled spirits (40% alcohol).” They also make it clear that “Alcoholic beverages are not a component of the USDA Dietary Patterns.” For more information use the links below!
https://www.dietaryguidelines.gov/sites/default/files/2020-12/Dietary_Guidelines_for_Americans_2020-2025.pdf

https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/factsheets/alcohol.htm #:~:text=To%20reduce%20the%20risk%20of,days%20when%20alcohol%20is%20consumed

Excessive Alcohol Use Excessive alcohol use is a leading preventable cause of death in U.S.

Did you know that grilling meat, poultry, or fish might increase your risk of cancers like colore**al cancer? There have been studies done that found consuming well done, burnt, or fried foods increased your intake of heterocyclic amines (HCA). Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) is another cancer forming substances that is form when fat drips on to the heat source. You might wonder what quantity of consumption is safe? While we are not recommending avoiding grilling all together, it is safe to say any amount increases your risk. Good news is there are ways to avoid these substances! Read ways on how to avoid by checking out the links below.
https://www.mdanderson.org/newsroom/does-eating-meat-cause-cancer---meat--cancer.h00-158672634.html

https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/diet/cooked-meats-fact-sheet #:~:text=In%20laboratory%20experiments%2C%20HCAs%20and,muscle)%20react%20at%20high%20temperatures.

Keep Cancer Off the BBQ Grill If you are ready to make an appointment, select a button on the right. If you have questions about MD Anderson’s appointment process, our information page may be the best place to start.

March is colore**al cancer awareness month!
Colore**al cancer screenings can be done as early as age 45. There are a couple of options for screening; f***l occult testing (FOBT) which uses chemical detection for blood, f***l immunochemical testing (FIT) which uses antibodies to detect for blood, Cologuard and it uses DNA biomarkers with a f***l immunochemical testing to detect for blood, or a colonoscopy. Colonoscopy is usually recommended as first line in increased risk populations. Increased risk patients are anyone with a first-degree relative or multiple relatives with colon or re**al cancer or polyps. Ask your provider what is recommended! For more information visit the American College of Gastroenterology.

https://gi.org/topics/colore**al-cancer/

Colore**al Cancer - American College of Gastroenterology Colonoscopy decreases your chances of getting and dying from colore**al cancer. Getting sick and dying from colore**al cancer – especially due to delayed screening – is real. Screening with colonoscopy saves lives.

The main causes of iron deficiency are blood loss from heavy menstrual cycles, acute bleeding from injury, gastrointestinal ulcers, urinary bleeding, from long term usage of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen, lack of dietary intake, or abnormalities in absorption due to intestinal tract diseases. Iron deficiency can cause anemia. Some symptoms that are common with iron deficiency anemia are dizziness, lightheaded, weakness, fatigue, shortness of breath, PICA (craving items like paint, chalk, clay, ice chips) and more. Once blood loss is ruled out as being the cause of iron deficiency anemia the next step is treating it with dietary adjustments in combination with oral supplementation or IV therapy. If you have chronic fatigue and are always tired, please discuss with your provider on if you need to check your iron levels!

Vitamin d3 is a fat-soluble vitamin. You can get it through diet or sunlight. It is difficult to get it through diet due to the limited amount in food sources and significant quantity of intake needed. It is also difficult to get it through sunlight as the length of time needed to get the adequate amount of vitamin d3 is out weighted by the excessive sun exposure causing increased risk of skin cancer. Wearing sunscreen can also limit the absorption of vitamin d3 by up to 90%. So, what do we do? We can get our labs tested and if deficient taking a supplement is our best option. Vitamin d3 is needed for bone health, the immune system, reduces inflammation, and much more!

Do I need the Pneumonia vaccine? We will be discussing adults in this post.

The CDC does not recommend receiving the conjugated vaccine if you have a history of severe allergic reaction to the pneumonia vaccine, or its components, of any type (PCV13, PCV15, PCV20, or PCV7) or to the diphtheria toxoid vaccine like the DTaP. They do not recommend taking the PPSV23 if you ever had a severe allergic reaction to PPSV23 or any of its components. PCV and PPSV are different vaccines. The PCV is also known as pneumococcal conjugated vaccine while the PPSV is pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine. Patients ages 19 to 64 with certain medical conditions may receive PCV15 followed by PPSV23 (with the recommended interval being at least 1 year) or a single dose of PCV20. Patients 65 years or older may receive PCV15 followed by PPSV23 (with the recommended interval being at least 1 year) or a single dose of PCV20. A reminder to discuss with your physician if you have any questions!

Clinic will be closed on Tuesday 1/31/23 and Wednesday 2/1/23 due to weather. Please call our office if you have any questions! Call: 817-386-3632

Vitamin b12 is a water-soluble vitamin. Deficiency in this vitamin can be caused by a lack of b12 intake, digestive diseases that prevent absorption, gastric surgery, chronic alcohol usage, or pernicious anemia where there is a lack of intrinsic factor that is needed to absorb b12. Common medications like metformin, acid reflex medications like pantoprazole, or birth control can affect the absorption of b12. Some symptoms include fatigue, numbness or tingling in extremities, sore mouth or tongue, vision problems, memory issues, or becoming easily confused. If the deficiency becomes chronic, it could lead to neurological diseases that may not be reversible. Ask your provider if you should get your vitamin b12 checked!

The CDC reported that in 2022 a total of 130 million adults are living with diabetes or prediabetes. FreeStyle Libre and Dexcom are different brand names, but both are continuous glucose monitors. It allows our diabetic type 1 and type 2 patients to check their glucose without sticking their finger. It allows us as providers to get accurate results via a discrete sensor that is placed on a specific location on the body, depending on the brand, that is replaced every 14 days. The sensor is then connected to Bluetooth and allows the patient to download their specific app for monitoring, scanning, alarm adjustments and more!

Meet one of our patients and staff member! She has lost 35 lbs with our weight loss guidance that includes diet, exercise, and medication regimen. Weight management is recommended based on individual patient consultations. Please visit our office for more details! We also IV infusion therapy, allergy testing with allergy shots and more. Contact our office at 817-386-3632.

Meet one of our patients! He has lost 42 lbs with our weight loss guidance that includes diet, exercise, and medication regimen. Weight management is recommended based on individual patient consultations. Please visit our office for more details! We also IV infusion therapy, allergy testing with allergy shots and more. Contact our office at 817-386-3632.

Hey everyone, we have a virtual healthcare assistant Mary, with phone number 682-382-3757 so please save this number in case she calls you!!

Our patients love us!

FDA shortens duration between second dose of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, booster to five months from originally six months.

Such a great idea! The FDA proposes to “make hearing devices more accessible and affordable for millions of patients with mild to moderate hearing loss....” and make hearing aids over-the-counter.

"Under a law that took effect this month and is the first of its kind in the U.S., physicians who have a 90% prior authorization approval rate over a six-month period on certain services will be exempt—or “gold carded”—from prior authorization requirements for those services." We hope we can achieve the "gold card" so we can cut prior authorization delays for medications and imaging for our patients!

Clover Internal Medicine Associates updated their address.

We are Tier 1 Cigna Care (highest) status and 3 stars for cost efficiency and quality patient care!