Health Advice

Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. Blood glucose is your main source of energy and comes from the food you eat. Insulin, a hormone made by the pancreas, helps glucose from food get into your cells to be used for energy. Sometimes your body doesn’t make enough—or any—insulin or doesn’t use insulin well. Glucose then stays in your blood and doesn’t reach your cells.

Over time, having too much glucose in your blood can cause health problems. Although diabetes has no cure, you can take steps to manage your diabetes and stay healthy.

Sometimes people call diabetes “a touch of sugar” or “borderline diabetes.” These terms suggest that someone doesn’t really have diabetes or has a less serious case, but every case of diabetes is serious.

The most common types of diabetes are type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes.

Unsure and have more questions then please just give us a call or pop in for your diabetes checks.

Blood pressure is an indicator of general health, and it’s important to be within a healthy range. High blood pressure means your heart is overworking which can put a strain on your circulatory system. Low blood pressure can cause dizziness, confusion or fainting.

High blood pressure increases your risk of heart disease, heart attacks, strokes and kidney disease – the higher the pressure the greater the risk. Around one in three men and women in the UK have high blood pressure

A healthy blood pressure is in the range 90/60 to 120/80. Blood pressure varies throughout the day and your levels of physical exertion and stress cause it to change, too. So blood pressure should be checked under resting conditions. Single measurements aren’t particularly meaningful. A diagnosis of high blood pressure (hypertension) isn’t normally made unless a high reading is measured on three separate occasions – usually over three months.

Most cases of high blood pressure are reversible through making some healthy lifestyle changes.

Blood pressure typically rises as we get older, but some people manage to avoid this. Regular exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, a low fat (especially saturated animal fat) and low salt diet, quitting smoking and reducing the amount of alcohol consumed will help.

Worried about your blood pressure? Simply pop in for a FREE blood pressure check.

Arthritis is a general term that refers to over 150 different conditions. The accurate term for this group of conditions is musculoskeletal conditions, as they affect the muscles, bones and joints.

Some common conditions that fall under the banner of arthritis are osteoarthritis, back pain, rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, osteoporosis, gout, polymyalgia rheumatica, lupus and ankylosing spondylitis.  Anyone can get arthritis, including children and young people. It can affect people from all backgrounds, ages and lifestyles

Arthritis and other musculoskeletal conditions affect the functioning of the joints, muscles, bones and surrounding structures. The way this happens will depend on the condition you have.

Arthritis affects people in different ways and each condition will have specific symptoms. However, common symptoms are: 

• pain
• swelling, redness and warmth in a joint
• muscular aches and pain
• stiffness or reduced movement of a joint 
• general symptoms such as fatigue and feeling unwell.

At the pharmacy we sell many different type of supplements which help to relieve the symptoms of arthritis and can be used concomitantly with your regular medication. Do make sure to give us a call or pop in to have a chat.

Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood.

Over the course of your life, if you experience mental health problems, your thinking, mood, and behavior could be affected. Many factors contribute to mental health problems, including:

• Biological factors, such as genes or brain chemistry
• Life experiences, such as trauma or abuse
• Family history of mental health problems

Not sure if you or someone you know is living with mental health problems? Experiencing one or more of the following feelings or behaviors can be an early warning sign of a problem:

• Eating or sleeping too much or too little
• Pulling away from people and usual activities
• Having low or no energy
• Feeling numb or like nothing matters
• Having unexplained aches and pains
• Feeling helpless or hopeless
• Smoking, drinking, or using drugs more than usual
• Feeling unusually confused, forgetful, on edge, angry, upset, worried, or scared

If you need any extra support then let us know as we can easily sign post you to the correct groups.

Pain management can be simple or complex, depending on the cause of the pain. An example of pain that is typically less complex would be nerve root irritation from a herniated disc with pain radiating down the leg. This condition can often be alleviated with an epidural steroid injection and physical therapy. Sometimes, however, the pain does not go away. This can require a wide variety of skills and techniques to treat the pain. These skills and techniques include:

• Interventional procedures
• Medication management
• Physical therapy or chiropractic therapy
• Psychological counseling and support
• Acupuncture and other alternative therapies; and
• Referral to other medical specialists

All of these skills and services are necessary because pain can involve many aspects of a person's daily life.

If you are suffering from pain, then do not sit in silence as there are a great deal of interventions available to help ease your suffering.