Benefits of cardio rehabilitation

Q: My grandmother recently suffered a minor heart attack followed by a stent placement. She’s scared about a recommended cardio rehab program. What can I say to get her to go? — Laura G., New York City

A: Recovering from a heart attack can be challenging, not just physically, but emotionally. Cardio rehab helps with both aspects. Unfortunately, only about two-thirds of diagnosis-appropriate patients are referred to cardio rehab, and only about a quarter of those folks enroll in a rehab program. Even at the Cleveland Clinic, where everyone with an appropriate diagnosis is approached separately by a doc and a nurse, only about 22 percent of patients join rehab. This is despite the fact that the program is almost totally covered by every insurance company, Medicare and Medicaid.

Explain to your grandmother that cardio rehab is a wide-ranging wellness program that promotes good health and a good mental attitude by offering everything from exercise to nutritional advice, emotional counseling and stress reduction. It’s individualized and can include help with other lifestyle changes (smoking cessation?) she wants.

She will set up a schedule for attending lectures/ discussions about healthy eating, classes in meditation or chair yoga, and workouts on exercise machines.

We hope you can persuade your grandmother to go. We’ve seen so many people benefit from these programs. They restore physical and emotional self-confidence along with physical strength.

Q: I tell my 16-year-old son that he’s missing out on a lot by spending too much time on his computer and phone. What else can I say to get him to get out more? — Karin B., Tulsa, Oklahoma

A: How about making him aware of the threat to his eyesight that screen time poses? We remember when moms would tell kids, “Get out of the house and don’t come back until dinner!” Yes, times have changed, but past generations of kids who played outside more frequently didn’t end up nearsighted as often.

Recent studies have shown that adolescents and teens who are glued to their computer screens and phones don’t use their long-range sight and end up developing myopia (nearsightedness).

So tell your son it’s shortsighted to make yourself nearsighted when there’s so much fun to be had doing sports, hiking, walking and enjoying nature.

Email questions for Mehmet Oz and Mike Roizen to youdocsdaily@sharecare. com.