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Spring Cleaning Your Health Routine

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Spring Clean Your Habits for a Healthier You

Longer days, warmer weather, and fresh starts – ah, spring. This season inspires many of us to “spring clean” by decluttering and bringing new life to neglected areas of the home. While this is not only practical, it is also therapeutic to get rid of the old and bring in the new for a fresh start. Since spring is all about new beginnings, take a moment to renew your health routine as well. Your physical wellbeing may need some sprucing up, too. Here are some simple steps to get started.

Make Time for You

Spring is the perfect time to re-evaluate how you view yourself and your health. If you are constantly putting others’ needs before your own, now is the time to break this pattern. Bump yourself and your health up to the top of your daily line-up and make time for yourself. This can be meditating for 10 minutes in the morning, reading a book, enjoying time with friends, going to the gym, or whipping up a healthy lunch. Self-care is a key component to increasing overall productivity and wellbeing.

Get Outdoors

Spring is a time when you can get back outside and enjoy activities, walks, and more. Studies have shown that being in an outdoor setting can help relieve stress and provides an opportunity to be present in the moment. Whether you take a walk, exercise outdoors, or soak up the sun for even as little as 10 minutes, aim to get outside more this spring.

Unplug

In this age of technology, it’s hard to disconnect ourselves from our gadgets. Our smartphones, smartwatches, laptops, tablets, and TVs are always connecting us to the Internet world. Make spring your seasonal reminder to slow down, disconnect and practice mindfulness. Instead of checking your email as soon as you wake up, take the morning for yourself and check it after you’ve had breakfast. Turn your phone off for a day or the entire weekend for a digital detox. Leave your phone on silent in the evening so you’re not tempted to check it before bedtime. Whatever works for you, find more time to unplug.

A few simple healthy habits can help to boost your mental and physical health this spring. If an injury does occur, visit your closest Sand Canyon Urgent Care facility. Call our Irvine location at (949) 417-0272 or our Laguna Hills urgent care at (949) 206-4633. We welcome walk-in patients and offer a wide variety of medical treatments.

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Why Your Cold or Flu Won’t Go Away

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Common Reasons Your Cold Won’t Go Away

Do you ever get a cold that lingers on for weeks? Or perhaps you come down with the flu and it knocks you out for a long time? The common cold and the flu share many features: they’re both caused by viral infections, have similar symptoms, can be treated at home, and can last for a seemingly long time. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases say that an average cold can last 7 to 10 days. However, in some cases, it can linger for several weeks. If you are one of those people who struggle to kick the cold or the flu, here’s where you could be going wrong.

 

Common Reasons Why Your Cold or the Flu is Lingering:

  • Stress

Stress is a major immune suppressant and something that we experience every day. There’s no hiding from stress, but you can work to minimize the effects of stress. If you’re already ill, you can try meditating, writing, talking to a friend, and practicing mindfulness to ease your tension levels. According to the Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences, stress can make the body highly vulnerable to diseases.

  • Exercise

Sure, skipping your workouts may make you feel agitated or irritable, but if you have a fever or a cold, you must reschedule your gym dates and let your body heal. It’s best if you don’t exercise while you are ill, as physical exertion will only hinder your progress. If you have a cold that is above the head, you may be able to introduce your training sessions slowly. However, if you have body aches and chest congestion, it’s best you stay in bed until you are fully recovered.

  • Sleep

When suffering from a cold or the flu, it’s important to get at least 8 hours of sleep every night to allow the body to replenish itself. Even the healthiest of us fail to get enough rest on a nightly basis, but it becomes increasingly more important when fighting a virus. Experts say that lack of sleep can suppress the immune system like nothing else, so make sure you are sleeping well before, during, and after getting a cold.

Even though a cold and the flu can last several days and sometimes even weeks, be mindful to notice any signs of complications. Severe symptoms include:

  • Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
  • Purple or blue discoloration of the lips
  • Pain in the chest or abdomen
  • High fever
  • Seizures
  • Flu-like symptoms that improve but then return with fever and worse cough

If you have any of these symptoms, you should promptly seek medical attention.

For all of your health concerns and medical needs, visit Sand Canyon Urgent Care. We welcome walk-in patients. Call us at (949) 536-7892 or visit us here to get started!

Allergic Reaction

Symptoms of an Allergic Reaction

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Know the signs of an allergic reaction.

Allergic reactions (hypersensitivity reactions) are responses of the immune system to a normally harmless substance. In essence, it’s the body’s way to responding to an ‘invader’. When the body senses a foreign substance, called an antigen, the immune system is triggered. The body’s reaction to the allergen comes across visually as an allergic reaction.

Allergens may cause an allergic reaction when they land on the skin, eye or are inhaled, eaten or injected. A reaction can occur in several different ways:

  • Seasonal allergy
  • Drug allergy
  • Food allergy
  • Year-round allergy (e.g. Dust, animal dander or mold)
  • Triggered by touching certain substances (e.g. latex)
  • Triggered by insect bites or stings

A mild allergy, such as hay fever, can produce symptoms such as:

  • Watery, runny eyes
  • Runny nose
  • Sneezing
  • Nasal congestion

Luckily, these symptoms are rarely life-threatening. However, instances can occur when someone can have what’s known as anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction that needs immediate medical treatment.

Anaphylaxis symptoms can include two or more of these symptoms.

Lungs

  • Trouble breathing
  • Coughing, wheezing
  • Tightness in the chest

Heart and Blood Vessels

  • Chest pain
  • Low blood pressure
  • Weak but rapid pulse
  • Dizziness

Skin

  • Pale or flushed skin
  • Hives or welts
  • Itchy skin
  • Sweating 

Mouth

  • Swelling of the throat, face, lips or tongue

Stomach and Digestion

  • Abdominal pain
  • Nausea, vomiting
  • Diarrhea

If you or a loved one experience any symptoms of anaphylaxis, visit Sand Canyon Urgent Care. If a higher level of care is needed, our triage staff and/or providers will direct patients to the appropriate specialist or to an emergency room for further treatment. Call us today for more information!

Quick Breakfast Ideas for Busy Mornings

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Healthy, Fast, and Filling Breakfast Ideas for Busy School Days

School is back and session and that means you, as a parent, have incredibly busy mornings. It can seem like there simply isn’t enough time to feed your child breakfast and get him or her out of the door in time. However, as the saying goes, breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and you would be doing your child’s development a disservice by letting them skip breakfast every morning.

Breakfast is a must to help our kids do their best at school. Many studies have found that there is a link between eating a healthy breakfast and higher achievement on standardized tests, improved concentration, and classroom behavior. Breakfast doesn’t have to be extravagant – just a bit of substance can help your kids get out the door with full bellies and brains eager to learn.

Although mornings can be a crunch, there are a few quick and easy breakfast ideas to make busy days a breeze.

  • High protein granola bar and a piece of fresh fruit
  • Toast a bagel, cover with a light coating of cream cheese and add two or three slices of apple
  • Whizz up ½ cup milk, a frozen banana, ¼ cup of oats, ½ cup of blueberries, and a few ice cubes in a blender for a delicious blueberry smoothie
  • Put a banana on a stick, dip it in yogurt, and then roll it in granola. Place it on wax paper and freeze for 1-2 hours or overnight
  • Make the night before: Breakfast sandwich made with an English muffin, jam, and peanut butter
  • Make the night before: Oats, soaked in soy milk with fresh berries and a sprinkle of cinnamon and left to chill in the fridge overnight
  • Make beforehand: Roll apple chunks, raisins, cinnamon, flaxseed, soya milk, and oats together. Roll into bite-sized balls, and bake in the morning for a hot oatmeal breakfast treat.

If you have more time in the mornings, whip up some whole wheat pancakes or frittatas to keep your kid full until lunch.

To ensure that your child is getting the right nutrients, let the team at Sand Canyon Urgent Care help. We provide the medical attention that has your child’s best interest in mind. With facilities in Irvine and Stanton, we can help treat your child quickly. We welcome walk-ins and have an expert team of medical professionals ready to help you.

Tips to Dodge Dehydration in Winter

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How to Stay Hydrated in Cold Weather

Although cool winter days can be a welcome change to the summer’s stifling heat, you may not have realized that you’re more at risk of dehydration in winter than in summer. Dehydration is often thought of as a summer health problem, but the risk can be more threatening during the cooler months.

The body is made up of 70 percent water. It is essential for our health to maintain that level of water to regulate the metabolism. If this percent drops, the heart will be deprived of fluid and will need to pump harder to circulate the blood, decreasing the blood volume. For preservation, the body directs blood flow to the body core and the organs. To prevent dehydration in cold weather, check out these tips.

  • Keep Sipping

We lose water throughout the day from respiration and perspiration. Just because you’re not sweating as much as during the cooler months doesn’t mean you’re staying hydrated. You may feel less thirsty when you’re cold than when you’re warm, but try to make it instinct to keep sipping on water. Set your watch or phone alarm to ping every 15 to 30 minutes and have a big swig of water. If you don’t feel like drinking cold water, opt for a warm, non-caffeinated drink, such as a hot tea.

  • Eat Your Water

Believe it or not but your diet can help you stay hydrated when you’re not guzzling down water. Food counts for 20 to 30 percent of our daily water intake. Aim to eat more water-rich fruits and vegetables like cucumber, watermelon, tomatoes grapefruit, oranges, pineapple, and eggplant. Other water-rich foods are brown rice, black beans, and quinoa.

  • Know Common Symptoms of Dehydration

It can be harder to recognize dehydration in winter, which makes it more dangerous. Keep in mind these symptoms that could indicate you’re not reaching your fluid requirements:

  • Headaches
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Increased fatigue
  • Lightheadedness
  • Irritability

If you do get dehydrated this winter despite your efforts, IV hydration can help. IV fluids start to rehydrate you immediately and works faster than drinking water. If you’re in need of hydration therapy, contact Sand Canyon Urgent Care. With facilities in Irvine (949 -417-0272) and Stanton (714-604-2850), we are ready to help.