Do I need 10,000 steps a day?

There are many sources that would suggest a 10,000-step daily goal to maintain fitness. This number actually comes from Japan in the 1960s where it was shown that men who burn 2,000 calories per week by exercising had a lower risk of developing heart disease. Two thousand calories per week calculates to about 300 calories per day, which calculates to about 10,000 steps per day. This number: 10,000 steps, became more popular over the years with fitness tracker developers because it was a nice, round, easy number to remember to encourage people to meet a particular fitness goal. Of course, every person is different, and for someone who does not exercise daily, 10,000 steps might be too much at first and depending on one’s ability level. However, on the other hand, 10,000 steps might not be enough if one’s goal is weight loss. For achieving weight loss, a healthy diet and exercise both need to be implemented and again more than 10,000 steps per day may be required. As far as commenting on how well fitness trackers work is beyond my level of expertise, but there are many different fitness trackers out there and they can definitely be helpful for tracking your daily fitness levels and working toward a fitness goal.

Do older people de-hydrate faster than younger ones? My mother lives in a nursing home and I don’t know how much exercise she gets. But she always seems dehydrated. How much water should she drink?

As we age our appetites typically decrease, and therefore we do tend to dehydrate faster in the sense that we often eat or drink less than when we were younger. Moreover, as we age our skin becomes drier, we exercise less, and we sweat less, all giving the appearance of dehydration. How much water we should drink in a day really depends on our activity level and our size and weight. Generally, we should drink between one-half and one ounce of water for every pound of body weight, each day. For example, if you weigh 180 pounds, you should drink between 90 and 180 ounces of water daily: closer to 180 ounces if you are more active and say live in a warmer climate and sweat more and closer to 90 ounces if you are less active and live in a cooler climate and don’t sweat as much. However, you should also check with your doctor about how much water you should drink because other illnesses such as kidney or heart disease can affect how much water may be safe for you to consume.

At what age do you need to be worried about shingles? Should you just get the shot whenever?

Shingles can occur at any age but is more common as we age, especially after the age of 60. A single dose of the shingles (zoster) vaccine is recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at or after the age of 60 regardless of whether one has had a prior episode of shingles. The vaccine is approved by the FDA at age 50 or older but the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that vaccinations begin at age 60. The vaccine is currently not approved for individuals less than age 50.

My son is very anxious about starting school. How do I calm his nerves or keep him from freaking out? Should we see a doctor about this?

It may be helpful to see your doctor about this issue because often the anxiety can stem from multiple aspects and dimensions that your doctor can help you, as a family, sort out. If your son is open with talking about his anxiety and the reason for it, having an honest and open line of communication with him about this issue would be a great start to “feeling out” the overall situation. However, many children often conceal the real reasons for their anxiety due to a variety of different reasons. Therefore, having an outsider’s perspective from a health profession may be of benefit by letting the child talk to someone other than a parent, who he or she may be more open and honest with. However, again, every child is different in how they express themselves and communicate, but if you have any concerns, your doctor would be a great resource in this matter.