The old saying about an apple a day keeping a doctor away has been repeated plenty of times – but it when it comes to fiber in the diet, Dr. Margarita Murphy said that one apple won’t even come close.
In fact, the sad truth is that most of us don’t get the brow-raising 30 grams of fiber recommended per day in our diets.
“I refrain from asking my patients to do something I can’t do myself,” remarked Dr. Murphy. “I stay busy, with little time to prepare meals, so I recommend regular fiber supplements.”
Fiber, which is all too scarce in American culture thanks to our trend of eating processed food products, can prevent plenty of digestive issues, including hemorrhoids and colon disease.
“It is amazing how something so simple can transform your health,” she added.
Dr. Murphy is the president of Gastrointestinal Surgical Specialists, LLC, located in Mount Pleasant – though she hasn’t always practiced medicine on this side of the Cooper River. She was originally working in downtown Charleston but decided that Mount Pleasant is preferable because of traffic, parking and a few other reasons. She stressed her aim to be part of the Mount Pleasant and East Cooper communities, which she called “wonderful.”
“I feel committed,” she said. “And that means having both of my businesses here – I have a surgery center, too – plus putting my kids in Mount Pleasant schools and living here.”
Dr. Murphy spends ample professional time teaching other surgeons, either in Mount Pleasant or around other parts of the world, regarding the benefits of the Sacral Nerve Stimulator. SNS, which has been available and approved by the FDA since 2012, is an amazing treatment for patients suffering from fecal incontinence, who had very few options before this treatment was developed. Prior to SNS, many who suffered did not seek help. Unfortunately, they remained homebound and downright repressed by their digestive issues.
Among the few national or international teachers of the procedure, Dr. Murphy is thrilled to be able to use SNS to help her patients.
“It has become the gold standard for treating this condition,” she said. “We went from having little or inadequate treatment options to finding a quick, almost painless procedure that is largely curative.”
It’s certain that patients who find themselves in Dr. Murphy’s capable hands credit her care, sense of humor and trustworthiness, as well as the SNS procedure, in helping them get well. Dr. Murphy candidly discussed how she considers working with her patients to be “an incredibly special honor” and strives to make them feel like part of her family.
“My patients often arrive scared and embarrassed to be there,” she admitted. “Then I get to know them – as people, moms, dads and children. I love them, and I feel blessed to have a profession that I honestly enjoy.”
For more information about SNS and Gastrointestinal Surgical Specialists, visit www.colonsurgeonsofcharleston.com or call (843) 853-7730.