The Digital Health Update by Paul Sonnier
April 25, 2017
Greetings!
Is chocolate good for you? Well, the recipe I use to make my own at home certainly is, as you can read (and download) below, but the typical store-bought chocolate bar may be bad for both your health and the size of your waistline.

By analyzing data from 818 adults of European ancestry (~50/50 men/women), researchers have discovered that the oxytocin gene variant, aka the 'love hormone', is linked to higher chocolate intake  and, unfortunately, a larger waist circumference. But this downside of chocolate consumption runs counter to evidence that chocolate may help reduce blood pressure and lower body weight, plus it can also help prevent diabetes and insulin resistance. In other experiments, scientists have found that friendly bacteria/microbes in our gut gobble up the antioxidant polyphenols and fiber in cacao powder and turn it into compounds that reduce inflammation (helping the heart) and help tell us when we're full. So why the discrepancy? More than likely it's due to the unhealthy additives in most commercial chocolates. 

Pictured  at right is my h ealthy superfood chocolate that I make using raw cacao paste/liquor (a solid, despite what the name implies), raw vanilla powder, raw honey, raw coconut oil, maqui berry powder, and matcha green tea powder. It's sugar- and milk-free, plus doesn't contain soy lecithin, an emulsifier added to most commercial chocolate to bind the cacao butter (fat), cacao solids, and dairy together plus impart a 'silky smooth' mouth feel. Unfortunately,  there is evidence that emulsifiers disrupt our gut microbes and makes us fat. In other words, lecithin—along with sugar, milk, and high-heat processing (which destroys flavonoids, beneficial enzymes, and other nutrients)—defeat the massive health benefits of consuming raw cacao.

You can download my chocolate recipe for free, here (PDF).
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HEALTHCARE NEWS
Whenever I hear criticism of digital health from for-profit healthcare systems, medical association representatives, big pharma, or other healthcare industry establishment stakeholders that benefit from the status quo, I'm reminded of my tenure at Boeing where, among various roles I held there over several years, I worked as a process engineer. Since the dawn of the digital revolution, aerospace and most other industries have embraced digital and other technologies as tools to help improve efficiencies and increase productivity, which can drive down costs, especially for labor. But healthcare has largely resisted this trend and always pulls out a convenient excuse when criticizing digital health. As such, it's no wonder that we have seen employment in the healthcare industry grow at a rate far exceeding that of other industries...
As Kaiser Health News' Chad Terhune reports in "Health Care In America: An Employment Bonanza And A Runaway-Cost Crisis" and an op-ed in the NY Times "Our Costly Addiction to Health Care Jobs", "labor accounts for more than half of the $3.4 trillion spent on U.S. healthcare" and "the industry has been a great friend to the U.S. economy. Its plentiful jobs helped lift the country out of the Great Recession and, partly due to the Affordable Care Act, it now employs 1 in 9 Americans". While I'm all for good-paying jobs, it would be nice to see productivity also increasing along with improved health outcomes. In other words, it would be great to obtain more value out of increasing healthcare costs versus just the jobs benefit.
In this regard, I love this quote by Harvard University economist Katherine Baicker: “The goal of increasing jobs in healthcare is incompatible with the goal of keeping healthcare affordable. There’s a lot of evidence we can get more bang for our buck in health care. We should be aiming for a healthcare system that operates more efficiently and effectively. That might mean better outcomes for patients and fewer jobs.”
NantHealth (Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong is the CEO) offers a $11,000 diagnostic test, "GPS Cancer", which reportedly has just 6 payments out of 670 commercial orders. According to Bloomberg, while doctors are showing interest, the company may be providing commercially-ordered tests for free. NantHealth's Jen Hodson stated that “We will not turn away a patient or physician that wants to order GPS. That said, it does create a lag on reimbursement if the underlying insurance of the patient is not one of our contracted employers or payers.” NantHealth earned $100 million in 2016, which includes software services for payers and hospitals.
The brand new Kaiser Permanente San Diego Medical Center has finally opened and, as indicated in this  video , it includes some great digital health features. The 565,000 sq. ft. facility located in the Clairemont Mesa neighborhood of San Diego utilizes renewable energy at the LEED-certified platinum level for healthcare and is the first hospital in the world to use 100% LED lighting. The hospital has 321 beds (with ultimate capacity of up to 461) and, apparently, each room includes a 75-inch 'patient care wall', which provides virtual doctor visits, medication information, education, nurse connections, and food orders. 
IN OTHER NEWS
The NFL Players Association will use WHOOP wearable tech for NFL players , who will own their own digital health and performance data to use as they wish. The company's continuous biometric monitors gather physiological information that show physical work habits, discipline, and more, which can be used in contract negotiations and, of course, to improve athletic performance. As I previously shared, MLB recently approved the company's device to continuously measure biometrics of professional baseball players during games. The sleep, recovery, and muscle strain data collected amounts to 100 megabytes of data each day.
In a TV segment on the TODAY showMario Armstrong reviewed several digital health apps.  The segment description: "Digital lifestyle expert Mario Armstrong visits Hoda Kotb and Kathie Lee Gifford with an array of apps to help you get centered, including Headspace, which features guided meditations of various lengths; Happify, designed to reduce negative thinking; Smiling Mind, which is customized for different ages, and Relax Melodies, which offers soothing sounds to help you relax." 
An autonomous robot suitcase by Travelmate is currently crowdfunding on Indiegogo. What struck me from a digital health perspective is that this device would be great for people with physical disabilities. The self-moving suitcase can follow you wherever you go and comes with a smartphone app, Bluetooth connectivity, GPS, USB chargers (connected to a removal battery), and a built-in scale that measures the weight of your suitcase's contents. Other nifty features planned include a camera and VR for people to join you on your travels. 
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