Texan ENT - July 2018

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JULY 2018

‘EAR, NEWS, AND THROAT’

TAKE TO THE SKIES

SomeThings Never Change

It’s such a beautiful place in terms of scenery and geography, so different from anywhere else in the world. You’ll find snowcapped mountains, sandy beaches,

I knew things would change after I became a parent, but I wasn’t quite prepared for the extent of that change or the fact that things would keep changing week by week. Audrey is growing up right before my eyes. She’s developing her own personality, which is really cool. She loves to look at you and talk, reach for things, and laugh. Gosh, her laugh is so cute. I’m starting to see the fun part of being a parent, even if I haven’t had a regular sleep schedule in a while. Some nights we put Audrey to bed at 7:30 p.m. and she’ll sleep until 7:30 the next morning. Other nights we’re reminded that it’s impossible to get a baby to keep to a schedule. I’d like to think Renee and I have adapted to a lot of changes that come with parenthood, but there’s one thing we promised to keep the same. Early on, my wife and I decided that we wanted to keep traveling, even after we had kids. My parents already volunteered to fly down and take care of Audrey if we ever needed to get away. Even better, we could just bring her along with us! Renee’s family wasn’t big into traveling, so she’s always liked to explore new places because she didn’t have the opportunity before. We both share that sort of wanderlust. During our first year of dating, Renee and I went to France together. I had the travel bug long before that, though. After my residency, before moving to Texas, I spent a whole year and a half traveling. I’d go somewhere new for a month, come back to work for a while, and then do it again. I traveled all over, from Australia to Asia, but my favorite place in the world is New Zealand. “Early on, my wife and I decided that we wanted to keep traveling, even after we had kids.”

and tropical rainforests in fairly close

Little Audrey is ready to travel!

proximity to each other. The towns are all on the smaller side; you don’t see the highways or the bustling metropolises. Plus, the people there are really friendly. If you need a change in scenery and have the opportunity to travel to the other side of the planet, I highly recommend visiting New Zealand. I hope to bring Audrey there someday, when she’s old enough to appreciate it. Renee and I have been trying to pass our love of travel on to our daughter since before she was born. We went to Hawaii a few months before the due date. A few months after she arrived, we flew out to Deer Valley in Utah, and at the end of May, we went to visit my parents in Virginia. Audrey is already a little jet-setting baby.

Traveling on my own was awesome, but I am glad those days are behind me. I have an amazing woman by my side and a daughter to whom I get to show the world. That’s another change I didn’t anticipate, but I am grateful for it.

–Dr. Seth Evans

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To many people, summer is all about heading outside to enjoy the weather. But getting too much sun can be dangerous. To have a fun-filled summer with your family this year, remember that it’s essential to protect yourself from harmful UV rays. COVER UP Covering your skin is one of the best ways to avoid skin damage. Wide-brimmed hats, long-sleeved shirts, and long pants or skirts can protect your skin from direct exposure to UV rays. While this tactic protects you from the sun, it offers poor defense against the heat. So, if you opt for cooler attire, it’s important to cover all exposed skin with a copious amount of sunscreen. Be sure to reapply every two hours for maximum skin protection. SPEND LESS TIME IN THE SUN If you’re planning to spend a significant amount of time in the sun, consider your environment. Will there be plenty of shade? Will you have to bring your own? What’s the best way to step out of the sun for a few minutes? Wearing sunscreen and protective clothing are great ways to shield yourself from UV rays, but it’s important to avoid being in direct sunlight for long periods. Taking a break from the sun gives your body the time it needs to recuperate and helps prevent sunburn and heatstroke. COMMON MYTHS ABOUT SUN EXPOSURE Many people think that a tan is better than a sunburn, but the result of tanning is still sun damage. When your skin tone changes due to the sun, regardless of whether it tans or turns red, it’s a result of the epidermis reacting to damage caused by UV rays. Both are symptoms of harmed skin. While vitamin D is important, the sun does not contribute to its creation as much as you might think. Doris Day, a New York City dermatologist, explains that if your skin were to constantly produce vitamin D from being in the sun, it would reach toxic levels. Vitamin D is the only vitamin that your body can produce on its own, through a common form of cholesterol or 7-dehydrocholesterol. Spending time in the sun does help vitamin D form, but you need far less exposure than you think.

SOURCING THE SWEET-SMELLING STUFF Call it a pseudoscientific fad or a medical revolution; either way, essential oils are more popular today than they have ever been. Though research on the efficacy of lavender, ginger, and the dozens of other sweet-smelling oils is conflicting at best, people are using them at an astonishing rate. In fact, according to Stratistics MRC, essential oils were a $5.91 billion industry in 2016 and are expected to reach $12.85 billion by 2023. Whether you’re an essential oil acolyte or you fly into a rage at the faintest hint of bergamot, your mind is probably already made up about aromatherapy. The question remains, though: Where does all this delicious-smelling stuff come from? Most essential oils are derived from a process called steam distillation . Soon after harvest, the plants are placed on a mesh inside a sealed still, into which steam is injected. As the steam rises and envelops the plant, it breaks it down and lifts its constituent components up through a tube and into a condenser. The condenser cools the resulting vapor and collects it in liquid form at the bottom. Since essential oils do not mix with water, they float on the surface, where they’re siphoned off, bottled, and shipped off to a distributor. There are other methods, such as expression (aka cold pressing), but because steam distillation is so easy to do, most essential oils you see on the shelf will have gone through this process. Lavender essential oil is harvested from sheaves of lavandula angustifolia , that purple herb you see all over gardens across the United States. There are lavender farms all over the world, from California to Japan to Brazil, but the biggest world producer of lavender is, interestingly, Bulgaria. Tea Tree oil comes from the leaves of melaleuca alternifolia , commonly known as narrow-leaved paperbark, a short, bushy tree that produces white, fluffy flowers in the spring. The trees are endemic to Australia, but today are usually farmed in New South Wales or Queensland. Bergamot is distilled from the peels of lime-green Bergamot oranges, or citrus bergamia . Most of it comes from coastal areas around the Ionian Sea. Whatever you do with it, use it sparingly on your skin — it can amplify skin damage from the sun! WHERE ESSENTIAL OILS COME FROM

Knowing how to protect yourself from UV rays is the first step to having a safe, fun-filled summer!

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Chronic migraines are detrimental to a person’s quality of life, but hope may be on the horizon. In May, the FDA approved Aimovig, an injection designed to prevent migraines altogether. The first of its kind, this drug blocks a type of protein known to cause migraine attacks. In clinical trials, half of all participants reported a 50 percent reduction in the number of days they suffered from a migraine each month. Dr. Amaal Starling, a neurologist and migraine specialist at the Mayo Clinic, called this approach to migraine relief a “paradigm shift,” saying, “This is very significant and may lead to more effective medications with reduced side effects.” Unfortunately, this breakthrough comes with a hefty price tag. At $6,900 annually, the cost of Aimovig may be out of reach for some patients. Fortunately, this is not the only treatment for migraine relief. At Texan ENT, patients can undergo a sphenopalatine ganglion block (SGB), a procedure that uses lidocaine to numb the nerves associated with migraines and facial pain. Research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found patients who receive an SBG are twice as likely to experience a 50 percent reduction in headaches within 15 minutes than patients who were treated with a placebo. Nearly 90 percent of patients have experienced an increase in their quality of life with regular SGBs. If you struggle with migraines, you can’t wait for drugs like Aimovig to become more readily available. You need pain relief now. Call Dr. Seth Evans at 512.550.0321 and learn how a simple in-office procedure might be able to free you from the stress and pain of migraines.

AN END TO MIGRAINES?

New Drug Stops Migraines Before They Start

Those who do not suffer from migraines can have a hard time understanding how a “simple headache” can cause a person’s world to come crashing down. Do you really have to miss work to lay in a dark room all day? Why did you cancel lunch plans? How can my voice be causing you so much pain? It’s difficult to imagine the intense, piercing pain migraine sufferers are forced to endure, but migraines aren’t just ordinary headaches. They are a severe neurological disease that, in addition to excruciating pain, also cause nausea and vomiting. People who suffer from chronic migraines live in fear of the next attack and will go to great lengths to avoid any of their triggers.

LAUGH! HAVE A

Watermelon Salad This simple, delicious salad is the perfect summer refresher. In under 30 minutes, you’ll have a dish that will inspire rave reviews at your next summer cookout.

Inspired by Food & Wine magazine

Ingredients

• 1 pinch of cayenne pepper • 1/2 cup mint leaves, torn • Salt to taste

• 8 cups seedless watermelon, cut into 1-inch cubes • 1/4 cup fresh lime juice

Directions

1. In a large mixing or salad bowl, toss watermelon with lime juice and cayenne pepper. 2. Gently fold in mint leaves. 3. Sprinkle with salt and serve.

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512.550.0321

PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411

Satellite Offices: 601A Leah Avenue San Marcos, TX 78666 Tuesday and Thursday afternoons 1009 W San Antonio Street Lockhart, TX 78644 1st and 3rd Mondays of each month

1180 SETON PARKWAY, SUITE 330 KYLE, TX 78640

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Page 1 Jet-Setting Baby

Page 2 Battling the Summer Sun!

Page 2 Where Do Essential Oils Come From?

Page 3 The Future of Migraine Relief Is Here

Page 3 Watermelon Salad

Page 4 Word From theWesties

Hours: Monday-Thursday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Friday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A PLACE TO PLAY Be s t Pa r k s f o r t he Who l e Fami l y

seat We-saw, Liberty Swing, and more. It’s

Izzy and Emma here, and we are so happy to spend some time playing in the summer sun. A game of fetch in the backyard is always fun, but sometimes you want to go somewhere new. Fortunately, we have some pretty awesome parks nearby. Here are a few of our favorites. Lockhart State Park 2012 State Park Road Lockhart, TX Ready to explore the great outdoors? Lockhart State Park is the crown jewel of local parks. Get close to wildlife on the hiking trails, enjoy a leisurely day of fishing, go for a swim in the pool, tee off at the golf course, or just spend the day away from the busy city. This beautiful state park has something for the whole family. Children’s Park 205 S CM Allen Parkway San Marcos, TX Over 25 years ago, the community of San Marcos came together to build the city’s first playground. This year, San Marcos came together again, replacing the old wooden playscape in Children’s Park with new, inclusive equipment featuring a roller slide, four-

really cool to visit a park where kids of all abilities can swing, slide, and play together! Puppy Playland Dog Park 1240 Landa St. New Braunfels, TX

Let’s go off leash! Puppy Playland in New Braunfels is one of the best dog parks in the area. There are special areas for big and small dogs to run free, as well as an agility area where dogs can really test their skills. This is a great place for the four-legged members of your family to get some exercise and play. These are just a few of the great local parks your family can explore this summer. What are you waiting for? Grab some water bottles and enjoy a day in the sun!

Izzy & Emma

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