Thread by @alvarezzzy

A dear friend and #nutrition expert, Dr. @MaryamSHamidi|@StanfordWellMD: soundcloud.com/cmajpodcasts/h…

In a study of 245 @StanfordMed physicians, researchers found that a better diet is associated with reduced side effects of sleep deprivation.

med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/…

Sleep deprivation. Stress. Mood. Diet. all are interdependent.

⬆️ calories food are more rewarding. Higher added sugar/saturated fat/salt = comforting. Also impairs sleep. Weight gain --> sleep apnea.
Sleep deprivation --> want to eat more even when not hungry

On Food, hydration & performance:
Dehydrated pilots have poor flight performance.
Soccer referees make poor judgment when dehydrated.
Physicians who are dehydrated have impaired short term memory.

HANGRY is real.

https://twitter.com/alvarezzzy/status/1238653129899433984?s=20

#doctorsarehumanstoo #preventburnout

Biobreaks and proper nutrition and hydration:
Dehydration changes our visual acuity and attention
Dehydration leads to more mistakes when feeling tired/doing repetitive work

Hypohydration alone affects mood!

Hydrated people improve mood during night shifts! Less crankiness!

Fruits and vegetables offer time-released hydration.

@MaryamSHamidi, how do you suggest eating fruits and vegetables on shift, while maintaining hand hygiene and food preparation/sharing during the #COVIDpandemic?

FACT: Dr. @MaryamSHamidi shadowed residents and did an 80-hr work/week. She got to see first hand how nutrition and hydration affected performance. Also, the challenges of #scarcity of time conflicting with selfcare including proper nutrition vs. sleep, etc.

#doctorsarehumanstoo

It's difficult to tell residents to try to eat healthy:
"I got to experience this myself.. working 80hr/wk. I realized what they were going through, and how little time they have. I came home, I had 6 hrs. I had to decide whether I wanted to eat, sleep, shower.."--@MaryamSHamidi

"It becomes the responsibility of the healthcare org/#GME to make sure residents/physicians have access to healthy (affordable and accessible) meals, create areas to eat & sit together for commensality, talk around food, have moments of connecting with each other."-@MaryamSHamidi

During these stressful times of #COVID19, it's even more important to have these areas for residents/physicians to allow space for #solitude to have a moment to themselves, away from patients, and not have to be in a long line, to ground themselves.

#doctorsarehumantoo

"Whenever we provided options for healthy food, no one objected to it."--Dr. @MaryamSHamidi on resident/physician nutrition and performance.

Also, patients support physicians eating!

What if we had protected time for eating/drinking on shift?

On sleep and the scarcity of time:
"[residents] are working really hard, sometimes they choose not to sleep. It's almost like they have no life. Sometimes, purposely choosing not to sleep enough so they can talk to their family or hangout with their friends."
#doctorsarepeopletoo

On caffeine: Half-life may be up to 8 hours, even though effectiveness is maximal for first 3-5 hours. Beyond that, only disrupts sleep and no added benefits for alertness.

Green tea is better for monotonous work (charting)
Coffee is better for task-switching/moving around.

PRO-TIP: "Caf nap": have a caffeinated beverage just before taking a nap. The time-lag of caffeine kicks in, reducing sleep inertia, and overcome grogginess.

Let's continue to increase awareness of the importance of nutrition and hydration in short term performance of physicians.

iamse.org/wp-content/upl…

Thank you Dr. @MaryamSHamidi & Dr. @JillianHortonMD for this powerful interview.

#doctorsarehumanstoo #preventburnout #leadership