Comments for Personalized Medicine http://www.scientahealth.com/blog Wed, 26 May 2010 18:40:15 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 Comment on The Q-Gap by Scienta Health http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?page_id=232&cpage=1#comment-3614 Scienta Health Wed, 26 May 2010 18:40:15 +0000 http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?page_id=232#comment-3614 Jim, please know that BMI is not a measure of being overweight. It is a statistical metric that estimates a healthy body weight in relation to one’s height. The way it is calculated is by dividing body weight by the square of one’s height. Of course, certain level of BMI are healthy and others are not: * Underweight = <18.5 * Normal weight = 18.5-24.9 * Overweight = 25-29.9 * Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater The WHO uses BMI as an important indicator of healthy or unhealthy weight. Your BMI of 25.5 puts you just above the top end of ‘normal’ indicating, possibly, a tendency toward being a touch overweight. Keep in mind that being just slightly ‘overweight’ may possibly be accounted for by body fat (adipose tissue), but may also reflect other factors such as muscularity. The measurement is not perfect, but it is the most relevant indicator. Jim, please know that BMI is not a measure of being overweight. It is a statistical metric that estimates a healthy body weight in relation to one’s height. The way it is calculated is by dividing body weight by the square of one’s height. Of course, certain level of BMI are healthy and others are not:

* Underweight = <18.5
* Normal weight = 18.5-24.9
* Overweight = 25-29.9
* Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

The WHO uses BMI as an important indicator of healthy or unhealthy weight. Your BMI of 25.5 puts you just above the top end of ‘normal’ indicating, possibly, a tendency toward being a touch overweight. Keep in mind that being just slightly ‘overweight’ may possibly be accounted for by body fat (adipose tissue), but may also reflect other factors such as muscularity. The measurement is not perfect, but it is the most relevant indicator.

]]> Comment on The Q-Gap by Jim Gouk http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?page_id=232&cpage=1#comment-3613 Jim Gouk Wed, 26 May 2010 18:38:05 +0000 http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?page_id=232#comment-3613 I took the quiz, but it’s credibility suffered from the start. Before beginning, I was asked my height, weight, etc. I am 5’10” and weigh what I think is a healthy 178 pounds. According to the quiz bmi, I am 25.5 pounds over weight. Get serious! If I weighed 152 ∏ pounds, I would look like a walking xray and have zero muscle mass which weighs 10 times the same volume of fat. Why don’t you get a quiz that measures realistic expectations instead of some outlandish theoretical ideal that frankly sounds rather unhealthy? Jim Gouk Castlegar, BC I took the quiz, but it’s credibility suffered from the start. Before beginning, I was asked my height, weight, etc. I am 5’10” and weigh what I think is a healthy 178 pounds. According to the quiz bmi, I am 25.5 pounds over weight. Get serious! If I weighed 152 ∏ pounds, I would look like a walking xray and have zero muscle mass which weighs 10 times the same volume of fat.

Why don’t you get a quiz that measures realistic expectations instead of some outlandish theoretical ideal that frankly sounds rather unhealthy?

Jim Gouk
Castlegar, BC

]]> Comment on The Q-Gap by Scienta Health http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?page_id=232&cpage=1#comment-3612 Scienta Health Wed, 26 May 2010 18:34:25 +0000 http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?page_id=232#comment-3612 Hello Cathy! Thank you for taking the time in answering the Q-Gap survey! First, the Q-Gap survey actually does take the respondent’s gender into account. The body system scores are also adjusted for age and gender. Second, regarding the idea of compensating for symptoms that are typical at various stages of life, our viewpoint is that, since symptoms are conditions that cause discomfort, possibly worse, regardless of life stage, we should recognize and be cognizant of them. Certainly, as we age our ability to mitigate or avoid symptoms becomes more challenging but, if we simply assume they are ‘normal’ and we can do nothing, the risk is that the symptoms worsen and develop into disease. Knowing one’s symptom load, especially in relation to a ‘healthy’ benchmark, creates an opportunity for you to initiate a dialogue with your doctor about what symptoms drove your score and what you might do to alleviate the issues. The Q-Gap is intended to raise your awareness and have a focused conversation with your healthcare provider. Maria Virginia Florentin, B.Sc. Pharm., M.S. Epi., M.D. Clinician Manager, Health Analytics | Scienta Health Center Hello Cathy! Thank you for taking the time in answering the Q-Gap survey!

First, the Q-Gap survey actually does take the respondent’s gender into account. The body system scores are also adjusted for age and gender.

Second, regarding the idea of compensating for symptoms that are typical at various stages of life, our viewpoint is that, since symptoms are conditions that cause discomfort, possibly worse, regardless of life stage, we should recognize and be cognizant of them. Certainly, as we age our ability to mitigate or avoid symptoms becomes more challenging but, if we simply assume they are ‘normal’ and we can do nothing, the risk is that the symptoms worsen and develop into disease. Knowing one’s symptom load, especially in relation to a ‘healthy’ benchmark, creates an opportunity for you to initiate a dialogue with your doctor about what symptoms drove your score and what you might do to alleviate the issues. The Q-Gap is intended to raise your awareness and have a focused conversation with your healthcare provider.

Maria Virginia Florentin, B.Sc. Pharm., M.S. Epi., M.D.
Clinician
Manager, Health Analytics | Scienta Health Center

]]> Comment on The Q-Gap by cathy http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?page_id=232&cpage=1#comment-3574 cathy Sat, 08 May 2010 14:35:11 +0000 http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?page_id=232#comment-3574 I took your test and ended up in more reds than anticipated. I believe this is because the test does not adjust for any existing conditions such as pre-menopause, or for a woman who has reached puberty. When in this stage of life, women will have any one or several of the symptons such as sensitivity to temperature, lightheadedness, dizziness, night sweats, hot flashes, breast tenderness and swelling, cramping, bloating and gas, fatigue, distrubed sleep patterns, and several more symptoms on a monthly basis which would put them in the RED. These symptoms do not indicate prediposition to disease, they are simply a fact of a woman's lifecycle. It seems to me that the questions to this test do not allow for these "symptoms" and therefore, mean that your results are false. Nowhere in your instruction of how to answer the questions (that I could find) does it provide advice as to how adjust for these "symptoms". Perhaps the test should have different questions for each gender in order that your results of the population's health could be accurate! I took your test and ended up in more reds than anticipated. I believe this is because the test does not adjust for any existing conditions such as pre-menopause, or for a woman who has reached puberty. When in this stage of life, women will have any one or several of the symptons such as sensitivity to temperature, lightheadedness, dizziness, night sweats, hot flashes, breast tenderness and swelling, cramping, bloating and gas, fatigue, distrubed sleep patterns, and several more symptoms on a monthly basis which would put them in the RED. These symptoms do not indicate prediposition to disease, they are simply a fact of a woman’s lifecycle. It seems to me that the questions to this test do not allow for these “symptoms” and therefore, mean that your results are false.

Nowhere in your instruction of how to answer the questions (that I could find) does it provide advice as to how adjust for these “symptoms”.

Perhaps the test should have different questions for each gender in order that your results of the population’s health could be accurate!

]]> Comment on • Third annual Q-Gap survey results now printed May 17th edition of Maclean’s Magazine by Tweets that mention Health. Maximized. » • Third annual Q-Gap survey results now printed May 17th edition of Maclean’s Magazine -- Topsy.com http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?p=296&cpage=1#comment-3571 Tweets that mention Health. Maximized. » • Third annual Q-Gap survey results now printed May 17th edition of Maclean’s Magazine -- Topsy.com Fri, 07 May 2010 22:14:06 +0000 http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?p=296#comment-3571 [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Eddie Wemple. Eddie Wemple said: Health. Maximized. » • Third annual Q-Gap survey results now ...: These are the major patterns reported as Scienta... http://bit.ly/aNygtr [...] [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Eddie Wemple. Eddie Wemple said: Health. Maximized. » • Third annual Q-Gap survey results now …: These are the major patterns reported as Scienta… http://bit.ly/aNygtr [...]

]]> Comment on The Q-Gap by Health. Maximized. » Third annual Q-Gap survey results now printed in May 17th edition of Maclean’s Magazine http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?page_id=232&cpage=1#comment-3566 Health. Maximized. » Third annual Q-Gap survey results now printed in May 17th edition of Maclean’s Magazine Thu, 06 May 2010 16:56:45 +0000 http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?page_id=232#comment-3566 [...] The Q-Gap [...] [...] The Q-Gap [...]

]]> Comment on • The Scienta Health Series Inaugural LectureDr. Martin Samuels by C.L. http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?p=79&cpage=1#comment-3565 C.L. Wed, 05 May 2010 19:07:15 +0000 http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?p=79#comment-3565 I quite enjoyed the speaker yesterday. My father suffered from Alzheimer's disease before he passed away last year, and I certainly was interested in what Dr. Samuels had to say on the subject. Looking forward to the rest of the series. C.L. I quite enjoyed the speaker yesterday. My father suffered from Alzheimer’s disease before he passed away last year, and I certainly was interested in what Dr. Samuels had to say on the subject. Looking forward to the rest of the series.

C.L.

]]> Comment on • The Scienta Health Series Inaugural LectureDr. Martin Samuels by Suzanne Wong http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?p=79&cpage=1#comment-3564 Suzanne Wong Tue, 04 May 2010 15:52:50 +0000 http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?p=79#comment-3564 Congrats on a wonderful inaugural lecture! It was fabulous and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks again for the invitation. Dr. Suzanne Wong Department of Obstetrics St. Joseph Health Care Centre Congrats on a wonderful inaugural lecture! It was fabulous and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks again for the invitation.

Dr. Suzanne Wong
Department of Obstetrics
St. Joseph Health Care Centre

]]> Comment on • The Scienta Health Series Inaugural LectureDr. Martin Samuels by Michael Flux http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?p=79&cpage=1#comment-3563 Michael Flux Tue, 04 May 2010 15:49:22 +0000 http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?p=79#comment-3563 I was very pleased with yesterdays lecture. I received nothing but glowing feedback. Michael G. Flux Vice President Connor, Clark & Lunn Private Capital Ltd. I was very pleased with yesterdays lecture. I received nothing but glowing feedback.

Michael G. Flux
Vice President
Connor, Clark & Lunn Private Capital Ltd.

]]> Comment on • The Scienta Health Series Inaugural LectureDr. Martin Samuels by Wayne Jackson http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?p=79&cpage=1#comment-3562 Wayne Jackson Tue, 04 May 2010 15:46:29 +0000 http://www.scientahealth.com/blog/?p=79#comment-3562 Congratulations on the success of the inaugural Scienta speaking event. Dr Martin Samuels did a great job as he was able to take a subject that is rather complex and made it very meaningful, entertaining and informative to a layman like myself. Also, the turnout appeared to be successful and I'm sure all in attendance shared my positive view of the presentation. Wayne Jackson Sr. Account Manager RBC Health Care Professional Banking Congratulations on the success of the inaugural Scienta speaking event. Dr Martin Samuels did a great job as he was able to take a subject that is rather complex and made it very meaningful, entertaining and informative to a layman like myself. Also, the turnout appeared to be successful and I’m sure all in attendance shared my positive view of the presentation.

Wayne Jackson
Sr. Account Manager
RBC Health Care Professional Banking

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