How to Avoid Excessive Bathroom Visits & Bad News for Purchasing Health Insurance

I was reading an article which discussed ideas as to how to avoid making so many trips to the bathroom...mostly at night.  Many of their suggestions made sense:
don't smoke           don't drink 2 hours before bedtime          
decrease coffee consumption        perform Kegel exercises    
practice waiting until the first urge to urinate passes

However, one suggestion is of questionable value, in my opinion.  The author suggests that you drink 8 ounces of water all at once, instead of drinking smaller quantities throughout the day. 

If one drinks many ounces at one time, the hydrochloric acid in the stomach is significantly diluted.  Not a great idea for those trying to avoid heartburn or attempting to digest protein after drinking.  Drinking large quantities can also affect the electrolyte balance, especially in those who are dealing with electrolyte problems.... those taking anti-edema meds are particularly susceptible.

The authors state that sipping throughout the day encourages one to urinate very frequently and drinking 8 ounces at once won't.  Interesting.  We encourage people to hydrate ( 4 ounces per half hour) throughout the day, especially in hot conditions.  Drinking large quantities of water at a time while one is sweating won't allow the body to hydrate itself continuously and that could be problematic.

The next bit of news is particularly bad for those hoping for more choices in their health care coverage.  Anthem has just bought Cigna and a few weeks ago also bought Humana.  So, now we have three huge health care conglomerates instead of five.  Can anyone say, "monopoly"?  Wow.

The only suggestion I have is for you, the consumer, to use your voice with your health care source and let your desires for alternative care be known. 

I'm going to give you a little insider tip about health care coverage.  Many people believe that if you have chiropractic care coverage that you are covered when you utilize this option.  Theoretically, you are.  In reality, Cigna and Humana (now Anthem) and United Health Care have so many limitations in place that it simply isn't worth the necessary volume of paperwork that is required to accept that health care coverage.  Limitations include number of visits for any one diagnosis, number of visits in a calendar year, clinical submissions for care that are frequently denied, fee limitations that make it more expensive to submit paperwork than the amount that is reimbursed and outright denial of any service by some faceless registered nurse employed by the insurance company.  Real health care doesn't exist for the insurance companies; in reality, they only pay for sickness care.

All the insurance companies limit what chiropractic services they'll pay for, usually only a simple adjustment--no physiotherapy, no neuromuscluar therapy, no soft tissue work, no myofascial therapy and zero for nutritional counseling or supplements. If any of those are important to you, you'll have to fight for them.  I wish you luck in trying.

Dr. Esther
drkollars@gmail.com
fixdhealthcare.com