2026 is the year we get healthy. Thanks to these tips from South Jersey health experts, we’re going into the new year with a head start.
Energy drinks may be a quick fix for tired mornings or late-night deadlines, but their impact on your heart can be lasting. “These drinks are loaded with stimulants that can spike your heart rate and elevate blood pressure,” says Ayobamidele Balogun, MD, a cardiologist with Cooper and Inspira Cardiac Care.
Vulnerable groups should avoid energy drinks altogether, while others should limit consumption and carefully read ingredient labels.
Help combat menopause brain fog
Dr. Wendy Martinez of Advocare The Womens Group for OB/GYN recommends focusing on getting the best quality sleep to fight brain fog, and she has four tips to help:
Cut out caffeine
Don’t drink water leading up to bedtime
Exercise consistently
Regulate your hormones
For women, add lifting heavy weights to your workout routine
Strength training offers critical health benefits, particularly for women over 30. “After age 30, women lose about 1% of their bone density each year,” says Dr. Julie Magallanes-Montone of Jefferson Health–New Jersey. “When you lift weights, your muscles pull against your bones, which stimulates them to grow stronger and helps preserve bone density.”
Know when bloating isn’t “normal”
“If you wake up in the morning with a bloated abdomen and it never goes down, that’s different,” says Dr. Beth Gardner, a gastroenterologist with Jefferson Health in Sewell. “That could mean fluid in the abdomen, which is never benign. It can be caused by heart or liver disease, and in rare cases, ovarian cancer.”
Dr. Riyadh Hammod of Inspira Health adds: “Pain that wakes you at night, unexplained weight loss, blood in the stool, persistent nausea or vomiting – those are reasons to see a doctor quickly.”
They can screen for celiac disease – an immune reaction to gluten that damages the small intestine. There’s also SIBO, when bacteria build up in the small intestine. Both can be identified with tests, and addressing them often brings significant improvement.
You know the saying no pain, no gain? Well that’s only kind of true. We don’t want to push our bodies too far, says Dr. Laura Ross of Ross Center For Orthopedics. “You need to listen to your body,” she says. “And you have to let your muscles recover, so give yourself one or two days per week of not doing any exercise to allow for that recovery time.”
This is especially important if you’re feeling under the weather, she adds. You want to go slow if you’ve been feeling bad, and if you have any kind of infection, you definitely want to take a break from your workouts.
Save these tips to lessen inflammation
Jefferson Health’s Dr. William Torelli advises his patients to consider the Mediterranean diet, which emphasizes whole grains, colorful vegetables and lean proteins for its anti-inflammatory properties. Supplements such as turmeric, vitamin C and fish oil are also thought to have anti-inflammatory effects.
Over-the-counter anti-inflammatories like ibuprofen (Advil) or naproxen (Aleve) can offer relief if you’re dealing with inflammation after an injury, adds . “Advil is shorter acting, while Aleve lasts longer,” Dr. Amanda Deal of Inspira Primary Care says.
Make those doctor appointments. Now.
“When you come to us with symptoms, it’s already a problem,” says Dr. Emmanuel Amofah of Inspira Health. “When we see our patients regularly, we have the chance to catch issues earlier and start treatments earlier. If we’re early enough, we could even try making diet and lifestyle changes instead of prescribing medications. So it’s important to tell your doctor any issues or concerns you may be having.”
Taking measures to catch disease early also includes health screenings, like prostate cancer screenings and mammograms, regular STD screenings for sexually-active patients, annual OB/GYN visits for people with female reproductive systems and more. And your doctor can help you stay on top of all of it.
