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Dr. Sasha Fluss ND at NatureMed Clinic Boulder/Denver   Boulder is the Mecca for endurance sports. We see a lot of athlets competing at all levels from professional to weekend warriors and in a wide variety of sports from triathalon to swimming to climbing to cycling. Once reason I love working with athletes is that optimizing performane and athletic capacity is really about optimizing health. It is about the little things that give you that...

Great article. The three main problems masters athletes need to get screened for are plaque in the arteries (atherosclerosis), electrical disturbances (arrythmia), and unhealthy changes to the wall of the heart muscle (cardiomyopathy). One thing that the article failed to mention is the importance of prevention through detailed screening. EKG, stress echo and calcium scoring can be used to evaluate whether an athlete needs to back off on exercis...

A recent European study concluded that niacin (nicotinic acid, B3) had too many side effects and is not worth using. The media quickly got on board to spread the news. The study was funded by Merck pharmaceuticals, the makers of the statin drug Zocor. Two grams of extended-release niacin and 40 mg of laropiprant or a matching placebo daily was given. The primary outcome was the first major vascular event (nonfatal myocardial infarction, deat...

Each patient's cancer has a specific genetic and molecular signature that may dramatically affect how it will respond to different treatments. These test are availible through our clinic in Boulder, CO. Tumor cell analysis N-of-One www.n-of-one.com (biopsy specimen needed). Caris Diagnostics http://www.carislifesciences.com/ (biopsy specimen needed).These may help determine any specific signaling molecules evident on the surface or interio...

A heart scan is a very useful way to individualize a patient’s care in my patient population. The heart scan and coronary calcium score are terms used interchangeably. It allows me to see the burden of plaque in the coronary arteries and helps determine risk along with other testing. One thing I like about heart scans is that often it is the first wake-up call for a patient. This leads to a further workup and can go a long way in preventing car...