Nutrition Facts

It seems odd to begin a post like this, considering we are well into March 2011, but Happy New Year (to those of you with whom I only communicate via blog).  My latest hiatus from Vital Signs was a bit longer than one exam cycle, you may have noticed.  However, I have something that resembles a good excuse: The Senate Newsletter.

Recently, the Senate Newsletter Committee underwent a drastic expansion is both manpower and responsibility (I believe Spiderman would argue that one actually follows the other).  In our case, though,  the little team of Brandon and.... well, just me, has expanded to four writers!

So we've quadrupled in size, but that's not all.  Over the past few months, news of the project has spread at a surprising rate.  Let's put some perspective on our reader growth.  The first issue was put out in October and, while it received good reviews, our estimates put the reader number at around 100.  Still, a third of the class reading the thing is no small feat.  Our latest issue was sent out at the beginning of February: 637 views to date.  Not bad, huh?!  Of course, this means there are a large number of readers outside of our first year class, as well as at least a couple dozen administrators & faculty that I received word from personally.  It will be interesting to see where our numbers max out eventually.

If you're interested, below are links to the 2011 Issues.
January: http://ge.tt/4yMCgnC
February: http://ge.tt/3vEln3I
March: Coming this Wednesday

Aside from newsletter activity, I've finally finished up with Physiology and Biochemistry.  In fact, for the past 10 days or so, I've been enjoying my Spring Break! It's an odd feeling to essentially sit around and do nothing after remaining so busy with school for so long.  Dare I say that I feel guilty for not being productive?  It's amazing the way we train ourselves with routine to the point that anything else seems more difficult, whether that new lifestyle is generally considered less hectic or not.

The new round of classes includes the following: Neurosciences, Genetics and Clinical Nutrition (hence, the title of this entry - cut me some slack, wordplay is tough).  At any rate, I'm quite excited for each of them in their own way.  During anatomy they left us wanting more when it came to the brain - we basically learned the names and structure of everything outside the skull.  This time, though, I am assured that lack of depth will not be an issue and I'll be sorry I ever wanted to learn more about the brain at all.  Hopefully we'll be taught the path a nerve impulse must trace to assist my jaw muscle contractions as I eat my words later this month.

Nutrition, which has historically been a weak spot for physicians, will be interesting as well.  Aunt Diane - don't worry, I'll be paying extra attention during those lectures!

The word for me lately has been 'research'.  I've begun working with a vascular surgeon at one of the hospitals nearby on a project having to do with the abdominal aorta (big, honkin' blood vessel that serves as a conduit for dispersion of oxygenated blood to the majority of our tissues and organs).  It's quite exciting for me to see another side of the research world: undergraduate engineering research, selling software to researchers, and now clinical research.  I am eagerly awaiting our summer break in anticipation of a month or two of more rigorous experience as an addition to the part-time exposure I'm accumulating now.

With that, I will sign off with the promise to be a bit more consistent with my posting.  As always, thanks for reading.

Medical Factoid of the Day: Which pain medication should you take for a headache?  Why?  We learned the reasoning behind all that doctor-recommended Tylenol in biochemistry over the past few months.  There are two primary reasons for taking acetaminophen (the technical name) over NSAIDS (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like Advil, Motrin, Aleve, and aspirin).  The first reason has to do with its ability to reach the cerebral cortex and other brain tissue.  Unlike NSAIDS, acetaminophen can pass through the blood-brain barrier, which exists to protect brain tissue from many of the potentially harmful solutes floating around in our blood - most drug metabolites included.  This allows it to reach the tissue that is most likely causing the headache in the first place much more effectively than other analgesics.  Secondarily, acetaminophen selectively inhibits the enzyme activity of COX-3 enzymes that are implicated with many inflammatory processes.  Interestingly, the entire COX family of enzymes are involved in inflammation, but COX-1 and COX-2 (which is more directly inhibited by NSAIDS) are not present at nearly as high a level in the brain as COX-3 enzymes.  Tylenol works best for headaches because it can get there physically as well as halt the most pain-producing pathways.  Interesting stuff, huh?