Mens_HealthUSA_December_2016

12 MensHealth.com | December 2016

SAM PEET (icons), JOE McKENDRY (portrait), Looking Glass/Getty Images (tablet and stethoscope)

A Convenient

Alternative

to Eyedrops

The Simplest

Way to Stay on

You r G a me

A Tool for

Prolonging

Endurance

An Easier

Treatment for

Allergies

WHAT PAINS ME

“We’ve all seen some bad

potholes on the road.

Sometimes I’ll see a knee

that looks like one, where

the joint is ground down

to the bone. As a knee

surgeon, I’m really excited

by advances that allow

us to regenerate joint

cushions using stem cell–

type technologies. We can

now grow a new cushion

using a patient’s own

cells. With one variation,

called scaffold technology,

surgeons grow cells on

natural cell-supporting

tissue and lay them into

the knee through a small

incision. One hurdle is

the FDA, which is slow to

approve scaffolds. A lot

of these scaffolds were

developed in the United

States, but right now are

more available overseas

than for our own patients.”

The Prescription

News you can use from the Men’s Health team of expert advisors.

Mark Peterson, Ph.D.,

M.S., is an assistant

professor of physi cal

medicine and reha-

bilitation at the Univer-

sity of Michigan.

Jeremiah Alt, M.D., Ph.D.,

is associate director

of the Rhinology-

Sinus and Skull Base

Surgery program at

the University of Utah.

Kimberly Cockerham,

M.D., is an adjunct

pro fessor of ophthal-

mology at Stanford

University School of

Medicine.

Mike Roussell, Ph.D.,

is a nutrition con-

sultant and author

of The Six Pillars of

Nutrition.

I like it when tech-

nology used for elite

athletes trickles down

to the general public.

For example, a new

wearable device

can predict your

lactate threshold.

With this info you can

adjust your workout

for optimum training

efficiency and also

reduce postworkout

soreness. Lactate is

produced in muscles

during intense exer-

cise, which leads to an

increase in acidity—

that’s when you “feel

the burn.” Your lactate

threshold is the point

when lactate accu-

mulation and acidity

increase faster than

your body can handle.

You can raise your

threshold and running

efficiency with interval

and fartlek runs, which

bring you above and

below the threshold.

The device is $420;

see bsxinsight.com.

Here’s a new catch-

phrase for allergy

sufferers: sublingual

immunotherapy. It

could save you a lot of

time and aggravation.

Basically, you’re pre-

scribed allergen-

laced drops or tab-

lets that you place

under your tongue,

hence the term “sub-

lingual.” Before, peo-

ple with allergies had

to take time off from

work, go to a clinic,

check in, get a shot,

and then wait 20 min-

u tes in c ase of sid e

effects. Now you can

be treated at home,

since these drops and

tablets have a lower

risk of anaphylaxis,

a dangerous allergic

reaction. Many physi-

cians allow patients to

dose themselves. This

therapy isn’t usually

covered by insurance,

but I’m sure if it were,

plenty of people would

choose it over shots.

Nobody likes to put in

eyedrops. But some-

one diagnosed with

an eye disease is

often required to fol-

low a strict eyedrop

regimen. A glaucoma

patient, for example,

might need three dif-

ferent drops at various

intervals throughout

the day. That’s hard.

Thankfully, ophthal-

mologists can now

utilize an “eluting

stent” to administer

eye medication con-

tinuously through-

out the day. This tiny

sili cone device can

b e p lac e d o n the eye

in a minimally inva-

sive procedure. In

the next few years as

companies get FDA

approval, these stents

will become more

routine for glaucoma,

age-related macu-

lar degeneration, and

even dry eye—com-

mon problems that

can be tricky to treat.

You know that drink-

ing plenty of water is

critical for health. Now,

a new study from The

American Journal of

Clinical Nutrition con-

firms something you

may have already sus-

pected: When you

su f fer fro m even ver y

minor dehydration—

something most guys

wake up with—you’re

more likely to lack

focus and attention.

Your memory can

suffer too, and you

might even be more

prone to anxiety. In

other words, your

brain pays the price

for your hydration

deficit which, accord-

ing to another study,

could be due to a drop

in bloodflow. Stave off

dehydration by drink-

ing at least 8 ounces

of water when you

wake up in the m o r n -

ing. Then have a glass

with each meal, and

two after a workout.

The Horizon:

The Internet

of Health

A ll that heal th d at a sw ir ling around is c oming to gether. I n a few year s , all your medical records will

form your own personal health cloud, including your family history and even your searches. Say

you’re at risk for brain disease. It’ll be easy to compare your MRI results with thousands of others,

even on your phone, so you and your d o c tor c an m ake sm ar ter de c isions. —David Liebeskind, M.D.,

is a professor of clinical neurology at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine.

Nicholas DiNubile, M.D., is an

orthopedic surgeon and author

of the FrameWork book series.

EXERCISE SCIENCE OTOLARYNGOLOGY OPHTHALMOLOGY NUTRITION