Category Archives: Scaffter Thoughts

SCAFFTER THOUGHTS is authored by Jack H. Scaff Jr., M.D., FACSM, Honolulu Marathon Clinic Director and President of the Hawaii Sports Foundation. Dr. Scaff will address subjects of specific interest to him. While some article’s format may be lighthearted and occasionally humorous, rest assured the information offered has turned out to be profoundly accurate and based on decades of medical experience. Dr. Scaff likewise will be regularly answering questions on a regular basis, which will be cross-referenced for later retrieval.
Your comments, thoughts and feedback are always appreciated.

Scaffter Thoughts 05-20-2012: Football Injuries and Concussions

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As a member of the American College of Sports Medicine, Jack H. Scaff Jr., M.D., F.A.C.S.M., is part of a panel of experts who, from time to time, are consulted by organizations such as the New York Times or the Wall Street Journal on various questions about sports and health.  The members of the American College of Sports Medicine endeavor to set those seeking their input onto the path of accurate information.

Recently, we have been reading a lot in the paper about football injuries and concussions.  What you have to remember is that football is a blood sport and that is why we watch the games.  The same can be said of the Indiana 500, people don’t go to watch the driving, they go for the accidents!  Continue reading →

Dr. Scaff’s Fitness Flyer

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[This post is derived from the contents of Dr. Scaff's Fitness Flyer.
The flyer itself is downloadable here as an Adobe Acrobat PDF.]

I. Problems & Solutions Need Action

Problem
“The federal government now spends $952 billion a year on Social Security, Medicare and other beneits for the elderly, which come to a record $27,289 per senior citizen, up 25% since 2000. About 35% of the federal budget is now spent on seniors.”
Source: THE WEEK, Feb. 29, 2008
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Shin Splints

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QUERY:

A reader and marathon clinic participant writes, “Hey Doc, last year when I joined the Honolulu Marathon Clinic, I developed shin splints.  Fortunately they went away and I completed my first marathon.   Now I’m beginning to run again and I don’t want them back.

RESPONSE:

This is a good news bad news situation.  The good news is shin splints are usually a “first year” phenomenon and when individuals train properly, shin splints rarely return in the second year of training. 

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