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RussellHavranekMD

About Russell Havranek

Russell Dean Havranek, MD is a board-certified gastroenterologist in San Antonio TX that has been in private practice since 2005 as a member of the Gastroenterology Clinic of San Antonio medical group, which specializes in the comprehensive treatment of all digestive symptoms and conditions. Dr. Havranek received his medical degree from the University of Nebraska Medical Center in 1998 and completed his Fellowship in Gastroenterology & Hepatology at the University of Texas Health Science Center in 2005. He has a special focus on promoting colon cancer awareness and prevention with colonoscopy. Also, his practice has a special focus on IBD and IBS digestive conditions and their symptoms. His gastroenterology clinic is located at 8550 Datapoint Drive, Suite 200, San Antonio, TX 78229.

Having Digestive Issues? You Might Be Missing This Vital Element

During summertime, the sun in San Antonio starts getting brighter. We can feel the effects of the water loss on our bodies when trying to get out of our car after a long drive, our legs get stuck to our seats with sweat. Or when we pass out on our beach towels in the sun and wake up drenched in sweat– and probably a little sun-burnt too. We lose a lot of water through sweat in the summer and it’s important that we put back as much as our bodies are losing – because it’s vital to our health.

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By |2019-07-16T18:29:10-05:00June 25th, 2018|Nutrition|Comments Off on Having Digestive Issues? You Might Be Missing This Vital Element
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Colon Cancer Home Tests vs Colonoscopy

For most colon cancer screening has always been synonymous with a colonoscopy procedure. Other screening test options have been available for years, but not until recently have the colon cancer home tests received so much attention due to increased consumer advertising.

As a result of the ads, several patients have been asking if colon cancer home tests are a viable option to screening option. These questions prompted my interest in writing this article to better educate on the pros and cons of various screening options.

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By |2023-02-22T13:10:37-06:00May 24th, 2018|colon cancer, Colonoscopy|Comments Off on Colon Cancer Home Tests vs Colonoscopy
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Colonoscopy FAQs

With March being Colon Cancer Awareness month, I wanted to help spread the awareness message in San Antonio, TX that following the recommended screening guidelines is the key to beating this cancer. This year I thought I would do something different by sharing a few Colonoscopy FAQs to help dispel some of the misconceptions and educate on why it is best way to screen for colon cancer.

If you know someone 50 years or older, make sure they know about the importance of colon cancer screening. Thank you in advance for helping to promote this awareness message in San Antonio and let me know if you have any questions related

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By |2018-03-27T17:13:52-05:00March 8th, 2018|colon cancer, Colonoscopy|Comments Off on Colonoscopy FAQs
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Which Diet is Best for You?

There are a lot of food choices for us to make and choosing the right diet for you can feel a little overwhelming at times. To help you sort through the noise and get you off on the right track, I’ve outlined four great diets worth considering.

  1. The Paleo Diet
  2. The Low FODMAP Diet
  3. The Specific Carbohydrate Diet – SCD
  4. The Mediterranean Diet

Each of these are great for different reasons. You may even find you feel your best when you take elements from each and combine them to make your own personal plan. Fortunately, once you have a good idea which diet is best for you and your personal goals there’s mountains of

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By |2018-09-06T11:49:33-05:00February 14th, 2018|Digestive Health, Nutrition|Comments Off on Which Diet is Best for You?
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Eating for a Healthy Gut

I often get asked for recommendations on dietary choices that will help promote a healthy gut, so I wanted to provide a brief background on the gut along with a few things to keep in mind when making food choices. My hope is that this information will help to educate those reading the article on the important role the gut plays in our overall health.

The gut is often referred to as the gut flora or gut microbiota, which are the names given to the microbe population living in our intestines. Since this is a non-scientific article, I’ll just keep it simple and refer to this area as “the gut”. The intestines contain approximately 100 trillion microorganisms and 10 times more

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By |2018-01-31T01:21:52-06:00December 23rd, 2017|Digestive Health|Comments Off on Eating for a Healthy Gut
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Exercise and Digestive Health

Much of the content that I’ve written on my website relative to improving digestive symptoms and conditions almost always includes recommendations promoting a healthy diet and an active lifestyle. As a result, I wanted to give a more detailed explanation regarding how exercise can benefit your digestive system, so that you better understand the direct correlation between an active lifestyle and better digestive health.

Exercise and Overall Digestive Health

Before discussing how exercise can contribute to improving our digestive health, I wanted to briefly explain the gut/intestinal microbiome and the importance of keeping it in balance. The gut microbiome is defined as the collection of microbes or microorganisms that inhabit an environment and create a sort of “mini-ecosystem”. Our gut microbiota contains

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By |2020-04-30T13:32:25-05:00September 11th, 2017|colon cancer, constipation, Digestive Health|Comments Off on Exercise and Digestive Health
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7 Reasons to see a Gastroenterologist

Are you considering seeing a gastroenterologist in San Antonio, TX? In most cases, my recommendation to those experiencing things like stomach pain or other digestive symptoms is to see your primary doctor first and they can decide if the cause is less severe than anticipated or needs the attention of a GI specialist. However, if you don’t have a primary care physician or if you’re experiencing chronic ongoing GI issues, you should ask to be referred to a gastroenterologist or contact one directly that participates in your insurance network.   

I often have conversations with first time patients where they let me know that they were unsure of what type of doctor to see for their symptoms, so

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By |2019-02-07T11:47:27-06:00August 7th, 2017|Bloating, Bowel Movements, colon cancer, Colonoscopy, hemorrhoids, IBD|Comments Off on 7 Reasons to see a Gastroenterologist
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Constipation – When to see a Doctor

I’ve written previously on the common condition of having constipation, which provides a good overview of the causes and initial treatment options. However, my practice receives a lot of calls from patients wondering what the determining factors are regarding when they should see a doctor for this condition. These questions were the inspiration for creating more guidance on how constipation should be perceived and treated by patients. While this is never a pleasant topic to discuss or experience, a normal occurrence of bowel movements is important for everyone’s overall health. I hope those reading this information in the San Antonio, TX area find this information helpful, and if you need to see a

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By |2018-01-31T01:21:53-06:00April 17th, 2017|colon cancer, constipation|Comments Off on Constipation – When to see a Doctor
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2017 Colon Cancer Awareness

“I’m an avid sports fan.  I am proud of what the sports community has done to help raise awareness for breast cancer.  If you watch sports enough you will frequently see the “pink” awareness color of breast cancer in the stands, on uniforms, on athletic equipment and on signs and banners.  We need this constant reminder because breast cancer is preventable, yet still takes way too many lives.  Colon cancer awareness color is “dark blue”.  This color, and reminder, I don’t see nearly enough.  Colon cancer, also preventable, is the second leading cause of cancer death in our country.  It’s my job as a gastroenterologist to

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By |2020-09-17T14:01:36-05:00March 1st, 2017|colon cancer, Colonoscopy|Comments Off on 2017 Colon Cancer Awareness
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Improve Your Digestive Health – Juice Cleanse?

The start of 2017 brings out a variety of new year resolutions… better diet, more exercise, avoid alcohol, etc. With the popularity and media coverage on various cleanses, I’ve had several patients ask me recently about whether they should do a juice cleanse to improve their digestive health. As a result, I wanted to provide the opinion of a gastroenterologist on this topic. I did write an article on colon cleanses in August 2016, so this time I’ll focus just on juice cleanses and the pros/cons in regards to effecting your digestive health.

Spoiler Alert: I do not recommend doing a juice cleanse.

What is a Juice Cleanse?

Juice cleansing is a diet

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By |2018-01-31T01:21:53-06:00February 13th, 2017|Digestive Health|Comments Off on Improve Your Digestive Health – Juice Cleanse?
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