$70 Easy DOT Physical Exam Grand Junction Colorado

6 Ways Truck Drivers Can Get Restful Sleep

6 Ways Truck Drivers Can Get Restful Sleep (and improve sleep apnea without a CPAP or drugs)!

Many commercial drivers face the challenge of managing consistent sleep.  On top of that, some even struggle with sleep apnea. With overnight drives, social isolation, and inconsistent working hours, drivers who have obstructive sleep apnea are still driving through sleeplessness.  As a result, the driver can fall asleep at the wheel, culminating in deadly crashes and incurring major equipment and infrastructure costs.  

Some drivers sleep with a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Therapy (CPAP) machine to get adequate sleep to help prevent them from falling asleep at the wheel. Some drivers use anti-sleep drugs while driving and sleep-aid drugs for sleeping.  However, these drugs might cause some severe health issues – and even addiction. First Aid Occupational Health, your DOT Physical exam specialist, has some natural methods for drivers to help reduce sleeping challenges.

Ensure a proper sleeping position

For long haulers, drivers can become over-tired, making it hard to fall asleep. Thus, the first thing a driver can address is her or her sleeping posture. Try to elevate your head slightly and sleep on your side.  This can reduce snoring and sleep disruptions.

Use a humidifier

In dry areas, when a humidifier is running while you are sleeping, breathing can become easier, lessening the chances of snoring, which can cause sleeping disruptions. Also, consider adding a diffuser with your favorite essential oil scent, as it can calm your body and muscles for more sound sleep.

Lose weight

Being overweight is one of the major causes of sleep apnea.  By its nature, driving limits physical activity and it’s easy to consume extra food and put on weight. When you stop for a break, try doing a brisk 10-minute walk around the truck stop to get the blood pumping.  

Reduce or eliminate tobacco and alcohol products

Both tobacco and alcohol cause the release of hormones just like a fight or flight situation. This can place the body in an active mode, making falling asleep and getting restful sleep a chore. Ensure you have a wind-down period in which there is no substance consumption before sleeping.

Choose healthier food options

Some drivers have heartburn and digestion problems as a result of poor food choices on the road.  This makes it hard to sleep. Try replacing a processed sugar snack by pre-planning.  Have healthy whole food options on hand during your trip such as fresh fruit, avocados, or crunchy vegetables like carrots or broccoli in order to reduce heartburn and digestion problems.  

Hire a Health Coach

Did you know that First Aid Occupational Health now has a certified health and wellness coaching program to help improve your health while you’re on the road? Health coaches help you set weekly goals and help hold you accountable so you can achieve your goals. Coaching call help you implement the strategies mentioned in this article. Call (970) 812-3864 today for a free consultation or visit www.firstaidocchealth.com to inquire.  Your company may even pay for the program!

Healthy Eating For Truck Drivers

As a truck driver possibly you are thinking, with these long hours I put on the road, how can I maintain a healthy lifestyle in terms of food? Well, Healthy Eating For Truck DriveHealthy Eating For Truck Driversrs is not impossible, please read on to understand why.

It has been suggested that road truck drivers have an advantage in achieving a healthy eating lifestyle compared to office workers. Maybe its access to different restaurants along the long roads, or being able to cook with your portable stoves as you camp under the night sky, or maybe it’s that there is no stress on the open road, ensuring you don’t eat unnecessarily and unhealthy. When it comes to healthy eating habits, the core aspect is being realistic and commitment to changing your eating habits. It is unnecessary to go way overboard with all that fancy organic, low fat diet, gluten free, and sugar free and everything-free, basically a monk’s cuisine.

Instead be realistic and just eat what you need at the right time. Here are some tips to help you out;

  1. Start your day Big and end it Small

This is in tandem with the necessary daily energy requirements, it doesn’t make sense eating a huge supper only to go to sleep and skipping out on breakfast. Unless you are exercising in your sleep, eat small portions before bedtime. As you start your day keep in mind you need energy for your day and eating a huge healthy portion in the morning will do you just right.

  1. Ditch the Soda for water

Soda is a big contributor to weight gain, cutting back on soda might actually help you shed off some pounds. As you drink that soda, your body is tricked into thinking its hungry, always asking for more food, thus increasing your weight. Water, on the other hand, disciplines your tummy, sharpening its sense of hunger and fullness.

  1. Get that portable stove

Cooking your own food is better, since you control your ingredients, also it’s not that difficult, cooking a one person’s meal, and you can cook in bulk and store it in a hot pot, keeping it fresh up to the next day, at lunch time.

  1. Temet Nosce (Know Thyself)

Knowing yourself provides the opportunity to adjust yourself and develop healthy eating habits. Do you snack because you are bored? Find a hobby to keep you off snacking carelessly, or rather snack in fruits and whole cereals.

But essentially know your weaknesses to plot their downfall.

By tackling these four bits, you will be on your road to healthy eating success.

So what is a good Diet plan?

A popular question no doubt, different people offer different answers depending on their viewpoint. Ideally a good diet consists of quality nutrient-filled foods with low saturated trans-fats. It should also be highly composite of protein and fiber. Examples of good protein are chicken and beans. Fiber is also in beans, vegetables and fruits.

To help you figure out healthy eating check out this list of certified professionals. These providers have great training in helping people plan healthy diets and eating habits.

Learn more about eating healthy and schedule your DOT Physical Exam in Grand Junction

Here is how the process works:

  1. Schedule and pay for your exam by clicking here
  2. Arrive ready to complete minimal paperwork
  3. We’ll do a thorough examination and determine your certification length
  4. Also, you have the option of having us recommend wellness strategies that’ll improve your health

Make life easier by scheduling and paying for your DOT Physical in Grand Junction, Colorado at www.dotgj.com and save $10

 

Acute Myocardial Infarction

An acute myocardial infarction is just a fancy term for heart attack. It occurs when a section of the heart muscle becomes blocked and affects the flow of the oxygen rich blood. Furthermore, if this happens and isn’t restored fast enough, that section of the heart muscle begins to die.

Symptoms

Acute Myocardial Infarction
Acute Myocardial Infarction

Common warning signs or symptoms are:

  • Chest pain or discomfort – discomfort is often in the center or left side of the chest and lasts a few minutes
  • Shortness of breath – can occur with chest pain or discomfort while resting or after being physically active
  • Upper body discomfort – can be pain or discomfort in the arms, shoulders, back or neck

Other possible symptoms also include:

  • feeling unusually tired and sluggish
  • light headedness/dizziness
  • Nausea/vomiting

For more information about myocardial infarction, also check out this article on PubMed Health.

How it Affects your DOT Physical Exam

First of all to be physically qualified to drive a commercial motor vehicle you must have no current clinical diagnosis of myocardial infarction. However, if you experience a heart attack you still can be certified if you are being monitored and stabilized on medication.

According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the maximum certification length for someone who has had a heart attack is 1 year if the driver:

  • is asymptomatic
  • tolerates medications
  • obtains a satisfactory exercise tolerance test (ETT)
  • receives a resting left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) greater than or equal to 40%
  • has no electrocardiogram ischemic changes

In addition you will need to bring a medical clearance letter from a cardiovascular specialist who understands the functions and demands of commercial driving to your DOT physical exam.

Consequently a driver will not be certified due to any of the following:

  • chest pain at rest or change in chest pain patterns within 3 months of examination
  • ischemic changes on rest electrocardiogram (ECG)
  • intolerance to cardiovascular therapy and medications

Schedule Your DOT Physical Exam in Grand Junction

Here is how the process works:

  1. Schedule and pay for your exam by clicking here
  2. Arrive ready to complete minimal paperwork
  3. We’ll do a thorough examination and determine your certification length
  4. Also, you have the option of having us recommend wellness strategies that’ll improve your health

Make life easier by scheduling and paying for your DOT Physical in Grand Junction, Colorado at www.dotgj.com and save $10

Obstructive Sleep Apnea Requirements

Obstructive sleep apnea is a breathing-related sleep disorder. It affects your sleep, daytime alertness, and performance. If it is left untreated it may be more difficult to stay awake, react quickly, or focus your eyes. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has obstructive sleep apnea requirements in place to ensure the safety of the DOT driver as well as the other drivers on the road. The FMCSA has more information on sleep apnea such as risk factors and symptoms in this article. With a diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea, you will need to be recertified at least annually.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea Requirements DOT Exam Grand Junction

Requirements

When you come in for your DOT Physical we recommend you bring:

  1. Medical opinion letter from treating physician
  2. Compliance Log – If you do not know how to retrieve this log from your CPAP machine please call your medical device representative for further assistance
  3. A list of medications with the correct dosage and prescribing physician

 

 

 

Disqualifications include:

  1. Moderate to severe sleep apnea
  2. Non-compliant with CPAP treatment
  3. You have experienced a crash associated with falling asleep
  4. You are experiencing excessive sleepiness while driving

Schedule Your DOT Physical Exam in Grand Junction

Obstructive Sleep Apnea Requirements DOT Exam Grand Junction

Here is how the process works:

  1. Register and pay for your exam by clicking here
  2. Arrive ready to complete minimal paperwork
  3. We’ll do a thorough examination and determine your certification length
  4. Also, you have the option of having us recommend wellness strategies that’ll improve your health

Make life easier by registering and paying for your DOT Physical in Grand Junction, Colorado at www.dotgj.com and save $10

Ways to help your diabetes

4 ways to help your diabetes:

  1. Eat your food slowly. The slower you eat your food the faster you get full and you eat less.
  2. Eat every meal and snack between meals so you avoid spikes in your blood sugar it will maintain your sugar levels.
  3. Look at your relationship to food, some people eat because they are bored, stressed, or upset so keep that in mind when you eat.
  4. Measure what you eat to the serving of the package labels.

Diabetes is when your body can’t produce insulin or not enough and it can cause your glucose levels to elevate. Over time other health conditions can develop associated with diabetes like:

  • Cataracts  (eye lenses clouding over)
  • Kidney disease
  • Heart disease or stroke
  • Nerve damage in the feet
  • Slow healing sores
  • Peripheral neuropathy: Damage to the peripheral nervous system
  • Postural hypotension- drop in blood pressure

What is your glycemic index on the foods that you eat?
The glycemic index is a system that ranks foods on a scale from 1 to 100 based on their effect on blood sugar levels.  Foods that raise blood sugar quickly have a higher number and foods that take longer to increase blood sugar levels have a lower number. The lower the glycemic index the longer you feel full.  When you are consistently eat foods with lower glycemic index scores you lose weight and decrease your risk of diabetes.

GI of 55 or less = low, GI of 56 to 69 = medium, GI of 70 or more = high        

 Exercising shouldn’t feel like a chore, it should be creative and have fun with it!

  • You should always begin with a warm up of light cardio five to ten minutes
  • Beginners do one set of twelve to sixteen reps of each exercise
  • Intermediate and advanced;  perform two to three sets of ten to sixteen reps with short rests in between
  • If you want to increase your intensity you can by adding weights or slowing your movements down
  • Always switch it up so you aren’t getting bored with the same routine

According to the Journal Applied Physiology you should get at least 150 minutes of physical activity each week.
Why should you exercise?

  1. Live longer
  2. Sick less
  3. More energy
  4. Sleep better
  5. Less Stressed
  6. Boost your confidence
  7. Better posture
  8. Improved memory

Schedule Your DOT Physical Exam in Grand Junction

Here is how the process works:

  1. Register and pay for your exam by clicking here
  2. Arrive ready to complete minimal paperwork
  3. We’ll do a thorough examination and determine your certification length
  4. You have the option of having us recommend wellness strategies that’ll improve your health

To make your life easier you can register and pay for your DOT Physical in Grand Junction, Colorado at www.dotgj.com plus save $

Company Info

First Aid Occupational Health
2140 N 12th
Grand Junction, CO 81501

tel. (970) 712-8193

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