Summertime is prime time for ticks, which are becoming more prevalent each year. A combination of changing land use and warmer winters has greatly expanded the ticks’ habitat and they’re now found in more than half of U.S. counties. As a result, tick-borne Lyme disease has doubled over the last two decades to nearly 500,000 cases annually, earning it the …
Dementia and Alzheimer’s: Updates from a Leading Geriatrician
Senior Moments Or Something More? As Baby Boomers continue the inexorable journey deep into their senior years, preserving cognitive function understandably tops the list of worries. While Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias are seen in just 5% of people over 65, that number jumps to 30% for people age 85 and over. Questions abound: is forgetting a name a sign …
Tips for Safe Summer Fun
Stay Safe with Sunscreen, Sunglasses and Plenty of Water The longer, sunshine filled days of summer are upon us and without a doubt, they are one of life’s unrivaled joys, especially when you protect yourself from the powerful impact of ultraviolet rays. With that in mind, we share our tips for safe summer fun; from choosing and using the right …
What Does BMI Really Tell Us?
Definitive Diagnostic Tool or Part of a Greater Health Matrix? It’s an easily understood calculation: Body Mass Index, popularly known as BMI, computes an individual’s measure of body fat as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared. Levels are defined as Underweight if less than 18.5, Normal weight if between 18.5 and 24.9, Overweight if between 25.0 and …
What’s Keeping You Up at Night?
Breaking the Cycle of Anxiety, Insomnia and Sleep Anxiety A good night’s sleep does more than refresh and revitalize. It’s essential to your health, so make it a priority to understand what’s keeping you up at night. “Healthy sleep is as important as proper nutrition and regular exercise for our physical and mental well-being,” says Kannan Ramar, MD, sleep medicine physician …
Pandemic Stress Likely Compounded by Seasonal Affective Disorder
Coping With Sad This Winter As we continue to weather the storm of COVID-19, seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, is once again on our radar. More subtle than an arctic blast, SAD is just as real, with just as much potential to have a chilling effect on our mood, productivity and wellness. Similar to last winter, the emotional stress and …
Pandemic Stress Likely Compounded by Seasonal Affective Disorder
Coping With Sad This Winter As we continue to weather the storm of COVID-19, seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, is once again on our radar. More subtle than an arctic blast, SAD is just as real, with just as much potential to have a chilling effect on our mood, productivity and wellness. Similar to last…
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Staying Well in the New Year A Proactive Guide
In the spirit of starting 2022 with healthy intention, we’ve taken a page from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) latest recommendations, long considered the gold standard for clinical preventive services, and prepared the following proactive guide to staying well in the new year. Back in 1903, Thomas Edison predicted where we were headed: “The doctor of the future …
A Novel Approach to Behavior Change
How to Replace Bad Habits with Healthy, Sustainable Behaviors For entrepreneur physician Kyra Bobinet, MD, the typical reasons behind a failed diet served as the impetus for developing a novel approach to behavior change. “I was doing so well. I knew what to eat, when to eat, how to eat, and then I just stopped doing it…and I don’t know …
Color Your World with Every Hue of Fruit and Vegetable
Eating Your Fruits and Veggies May Help Reduce the Risk of Chronic Disease Fill your plate with a vibrant, colorful array of fruits and vegetables for a naturally delicious way to meet your daily requirement of vitamins, minerals and nutrients. Plant foods contain thousands of natural compounds called phytonutrients, which may have anti-inflammatory benefits that can help reduce the risk …
A Novel Approach to Behavior Change
How to Replace Bad Habits with Healthy, Sustainable Behaviors For entrepreneur physician Kyra Bobinet, MD, the typical reasons behind a failed diet served as the impetus for developing a novel approach to behavior change. “I was doing so well. I knew what to eat, when to eat, how to eat, and then I just stopped…
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Staying Well in the New Year A Proactive Guide
In the spirit of starting 2022 with healthy intention, we’ve taken a page from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) latest recommendations, long considered the gold standard for clinical preventive services, and prepared the following proactive guide to staying well in the new year. Back in 1903, Thomas Edison predicted where we were headed:…
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Color Your World with Every Hue of Fruit and Vegetable
Eating Your Fruits and Veggies May Help Reduce the Risk of Chronic Disease Fill your plate with a vibrant, colorful array of fruits and vegetables for a naturally delicious way to meet your daily requirement of vitamins, minerals and nutrients. Plant foods contain thousands of natural compounds called phytonutrients, which may have anti-inflammatory benefits that…
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Healthier Eating
How to Pare Down Protein & Cut Back Carbs Inspired by a belief that our diets can be redefined to integrate both healthier eating and environmental responsibility, Menus of Change encourages a meaningful “flip” in the emphasis on animal proteins and highly processed carbohydrates to an emphasis on highly appealing alternatives. Menus of Change, a collaboration of the Harvard T.H. …
COVID-19 and The Road Ahead
From Boosters & Breakthroughs to Vaccines & Variants: Where Do We Go From Here? The following reflects an 8/24/2021 discussion; please check the CDC website for real-time updates as the situation continues to evolve. Their answers may not land lightly, but epidemiologist Jodie Guest, PhD, and drug development expert Michael Kinch, PhD, have been immersed in examining COVID-19 since its …
COVID-19 and The Road Ahead
From Boosters & Breakthroughs to Vaccines & Variants: Where Do We Go From Here? The following reflects an 8/24/2021 discussion; please check the CDC website for real-time updates as the situation continues to evolve. Their answers may not land lightly, but epidemiologist Jodie Guest, PhD, and drug development expert Michael Kinch, PhD, have been immersed…
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Healthier Eating
How to Pare Down Protein & Cut Back Carbs Inspired by a belief that our diets can be redefined to integrate both healthier eating and environmental responsibility, Menus of Change encourages a meaningful “flip” in the emphasis on animal proteins and highly processed carbohydrates to an emphasis on highly appealing alternatives. Menus of Change, a…
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Keep it Moving! But Is 10,000 Steps A Day The Right Goal?
Are 12,000 steps better, or will 6,000 work equally well? From casual strollers in the park to purposeful striders in the mall, armed with phones, watches, wearables or pedometers, walkers are everywhere, tracking their daily tallies to reach the magical 10,000 step mark. However, as recently reported in Nature, few are actually reaching it. The average number of steps achieved …
New Lung Cancer Screening Recommendations
Spotlighting Both Challenges and Progress This winter the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released its new Lung Cancer screening recommendations, lowering both the starting age and pack-year criteria. Previously, low-dose computed tomography screening was advised for adults age 55 to 80 years with a 30 pack-year history of smoking who are current smokers or have quit within the past …
A Quick Guide to Seasonal Allergies
Pollen, Grass, Ragweed and Mold spores For more than 24 million Americans, the flowering trees and mild weather of spring and summer, signals another allergy season in full bloom. The cause: substances such as pollen, grass, ragweed and mold spores enter the body and are mistakenly identified as a threat by the immune system, triggering a variety of symptoms. We …
New Lung Cancer Screening Recommendations
Spotlighting Both Challenges and Progress This winter the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released its new Lung Cancer screening recommendations, lowering both the starting age and pack-year criteria. Previously, low-dose computed tomography screening was advised for adults age 55 to 80 years with a 30 pack-year history of smoking who are current smokers or…
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A Quick Guide to Seasonal Allergies
Pollen, Grass, Ragweed and Mold spores For more than 24 million Americans, the flowering trees and mild weather of spring and summer, signals another allergy season in full bloom. The cause: substances such as pollen, grass, ragweed and mold spores enter the body and are mistakenly identified as a threat by the immune system, triggering…
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Cooking without Sodium or Sugar
Executive Chef Stan Hodes Shares Secrets of the Spice Rack The benefits of reducing sodium and sugar in the diet are compelling, backed by well- documented studies. The flip side is an equally powerful human craving for enhanced flavor, compounded by years of exposure to products boosted with salt and sugar and the ongoing quest…
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New Year’s Resolutions Are So 2020!
What are your 2021 Anti-Resolutions? Year after year, the pattern rarely varies. Resolutions made, promptly followed by resolutions broken. The odds of sticking to New Year’s resolutions are, in fact, completely stacked against us, as research shows a paltry success rate of between 10 and 20%. But since the challenges of 2020 have reconfigured every…
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Start 2021 off Right by Sticking to your Winter Exercise Plan
A Winter Workout Routine Will Prepare You For Life After COVID Exercise will reduce pain, improve function and mobility, lower blood pressure and blood sugar, decrease risk of chronic illness and death from heart disease and many forms of cancer, enhance mood and focus, and may even help reduce your risk of contracting COVID-19. Despite…
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Let It Go: The Ancient Art of Meditation
Finding Peace Through Mindfulness and Meditation Mindful, compassionate, serene, happy: emotions that have been in short supply during the pandemic but can be beautifully restored to those who embrace the chance to learn the time- honored practice and art of meditation. For many, it is as easy as downloading the Headspace app on their smartphone,…
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Navigating Uncertain Times with Hope and Optimism
How to Adjust, Adapt and Embrace the New Normal As we emerge cautiously from the safety of home into a world that seems comfortingly familiar yet irrefutably altered, a swirl of conflicting emotions is certain to be triggered. Relief and thankfulness may mingle uneasily with fear, anxiety and uncertainty, making it difficult to cope at…
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Pet Therapy: The Healing Power of Dogs
Unleashed: The Healing Power of Dogs “Who rescued whom?” They’re already considered best friends, trusty companions and beloved members of the family. Now add to the dog’s list of accomplishments, heart healer, exercise coach, and mood enhancer, and the answer to the question above, often used by rescue organizations, becomes even more meaningful. There is…
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Alcohol Affects Women Differently than Men
The Female Factor: Alcohol is Not Gender-Neutral Given the growing popularity of the cocktail culture and wine time, it’s important to know that alcohol affects women differently than men – physiologically, psychologically and socially. It’s worth asking: For women, is the wine glass half full or half empty when considering the risk-versus-benefit ratio? First, there…
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When Are the Best Years of Our Lives?
Life’s Happiness Continuum Is there a predetermined peak age for happiness, before which our normal outlook is gloomy and melancholy and after which we slump back into these non-euphoric ways? When Are the Best Years of Our Lives? Studies Show Two Stages of Life Happiness Like trying to define why some people are born to…
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Fighting Fatigue
Wake-up Call: Fighting Fatigue at Its Roots Feel like you are fighting fatigue throughout the day, the joy in life slowly diminishing and your active lifestyle becoming a distant memory? Are these ordinary signs of aging? No, no and no! Feeling tired all the time is not a normal part of the aging process. Instead,…
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Walk with a Doc: July 21, 2019
According to the American Heart Association, walking has the lowest dropout rate of any physical activity. Think it doesn’t do any good? Think again. Walking is low impact; easier on the joints than running. It is safe – with a doctor’s okay – for people with orthopedic ailments, heart conditions, and those who are more than 20% overweight. Join Dr. …
An Update on the Measles Outbreak in the US
What are the newest guidelines for measles vaccinations? Adults with no evidence of immunity should get 1 dose of MMR. Immunity is defined as documented receipt of 1 dose, or 2 doses, 4 weeks apart if high risk, of live measles virus-containing vaccine, laboratory evidence of immunity or laboratory confirmation of disease, or birthdate before 1957. High-risk people, including healthcare …
Health Studies: Expert Insight
Why Today’s Health News Often Becomes Tomorrow’s Retractions We’ve all seen it played out hundreds of times, as a drug, food or habit is trumpeted as the way to lower the risk of cancer or heart disease only to be walked back the next month in another study. The reasons can be diverse, including a…
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Staying Healthy During the Flu Season
Your Best Shot at a Flu-Free Winter Last year’s flu season was severe in most parts of the country and left many wondering why the flu vaccine hadn’t performed more effectively. However, it remains our best line of defense for averting and lessening the severity of this common but potentially deadly illness. Below we clear…
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Aging Well, Aging Healthy…a continuing series
HealthWise presents an ongoing look at research that provides valuable insights to help today’s seniors – and the generations set to follow – create a vibrant next chapter. We have looked at strategies to keep the aging brain healthy and to protect the aging senses. In this issue, we get under your skin to learn…
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Stressed Out? A Guide to Signs, Symptoms
“I think that you will all agree that we are living in most interesting times. I never remember myself a time in which our history was so full, in which day by day brought us new objects of interest, and, let me say also, new objects for anxiety.” Was the above heard: 1. At a…
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The Connected Patient: Keeping Up with Apps
The ubiquitous smart phone has boosted its useful- ness tenfold in the past decade with a mushrooming library of health and wellness apps. Some aim to help you monitor your condition day-to-day, understand and stay on track with medications, or diagnose your symptoms, while others prepare you for an unforeseen emergency, allow you to share…
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Gut Instincts: Can More Bacteria Mean Better Health?
Healthy bacteria may seem like a contradiction in terms, but years of research and real world experience point toward an unexpectedly promising finding: the microorganisms continually forming in your intestine may confer health benefits that we are only just beginning to understand. Here is what we know: each of us has an individual set of…
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Try a New Approach to Food in the New Year: Stop Dieting and Focus on Mindful Eating
The dieting-overeating-weight regain cycle is almost inevitable, not because people fail diets but because diets fail people. It is important to understand that rebound overeating happens to almost everybody, and should not be viewed as an individual weakness or fault. The main reason diets do not work over the long term is they create deprivation…
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