Pharmacy questions

As patients switch insurers and Medicare providers in the new year, they might also get a new pharmacist.

To make sure you're aware of any changes in medication, Dr. Mark Alberts of Northwestern University suggests a few questions to ask:

• Is this the exact drug my doctor prescribed? Pharmacists might change to a lower cost drug, which might save them and you money, but the patient should be consulted.

• If there's a change in prescription, have you notified my doctor for his records, and will it affect my health?

• Is this the same dosage as my previous prescription?

Obesity and diabetes

Local researchers have found an alarming increase in the rate of obesity among people with diabetes.

A Loyola University Health System study found that one out of five people with Type 2 diabetes is 100 pounds or more overweight.

Among African-Americans with Type 2 diabetes, the morbid obesity rate is one out of three. People with a body mass index greater than 40 are considered to be morbidly obese.

Between the survey periods of 1976-1980 and 2005-2006, the rate of morbid obesity increased 141 percent for Type 2 diabetes patients.

Beyond those extreme cases, almost two-thirds of adults with Type 2 diabetes are just plain obese.

Obesity increases the risk of complications from diabetes, such as cardiovascular disease, kidney disease and sleep-disordered breathing.

STDs in teens

Researchers say one in four girls ages 14 to 19 has a sexually transmitted disease.

The study of 838 girls, based on a 2003-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination, found that by far the most prevalent STD was human papillomavirus, or HPV, at 18 percent, followed by 4 percent with chlamydia. Some subjects also had gonorrhea, trichomoniasis and herpes. The study was published in the journal Pediatrics.

Most of the girls contracted a disease within a year of first having sexual contact.

The study authors recommended early and comprehensive sex education, HPV vaccination at age 11 or 12, and chlamydia screening of sexually active girls.

Seasonal flu shots

Drugstores are again starting to get seasonal flu vaccines.

Take Care Clinics, at 355 Walgreens drugstores nationwide, are offering vaccines first-come, first-served while supplies last.

For information, go to takecarehealth.com or call (866) 825-3227.

Phone aid

If bad cell phone reception drives you crazy, imagine dealing with fuzzy calls while wearing a hearing aid.

Wheaton audiologist Sheri Billing often fits hearing aids that are Blue Tooth compatible to work wirelessly with cell phones, GPS systems and televisions.

That way, users can hear their portable devices without taking out their hearing aids.

Billing also recommends a Web site by the industry-sponsored Better Hearing Institute listing the most compatible cell phones at betterhearing.org/blog under "technology corner" and "previous entries."