Author: Sondra Forsyth

Ring in the New Year with Traditions, Fruits, and Vegetables

Start your New Year with a bit of luck and nutritious eating. Try a few of these food-related traditions and then plan on growing a few of your own to enjoy. Eating grapes on New Year’s Eve is a Mexican food tradition.  One grape is eaten with each stroke of midnight and is believed to… Continue reading Ring in the New Year with Traditions, Fruits, and Vegetables

Nipple-Sparing Surgery is Safe for Women with Gene Mutations

For women with a genetic predisposition to breast cancer, it is shocking to learn that you carry a gene mutation that dramatically increases the chance you will develop breast cancer at some point in your life. Perhaps just as shocking is learning that your best way to prevent breast cancer is to undergo a double… Continue reading Nipple-Sparing Surgery is Safe for Women with Gene Mutations

Why Winter Can Become a Pain in the Back – and Neck

“Oh, the weather outside is frightful,” but your back – and neck — may not be feeling so delightful unless you took the necessary precautions to protect the spine from winter’s cold and activity perils. Falls on ice, especially while carrying grocery bags and packages, and improper snow-shoveling techniques – putting stress on the back… Continue reading Why Winter Can Become a Pain in the Back – and Neck

Using Fat Grafting for Breast Reconstruction

Fat grafting is an innovative form of breast reconstruction that avoids both the artificiality of breast implants and the scarring and complexities of flap surgery. A form of natural tissue breast reconstruction, fat grafting is an option for women with the time and patience to accept its limitations. The most common type of breast reconstruction… Continue reading Using Fat Grafting for Breast Reconstruction

Growing Easy-Care Aloe Vera, Nature’s Burn Ointment

Grow your own burn ointment by adding Aloe vera to your indoor plant collection. This succulent has been used for centuries to treat superficial burns, cuts, sunburns, and more. The gel inside the leaves is the medicinal part of the plant. Just cut away the outer part of the leaf and use just the gel on the problem… Continue reading Growing Easy-Care Aloe Vera, Nature’s Burn Ointment

Inclusive Health and Wellness Tips for Every Body

It’s easy to hibernate when the weather is cold and dreary, but it’s important to stay on top of health and fitness routines. For those who have a disability, suffered from a stroke or other medical condition, it may be hard to find exercises that work with physical limitations that can be done at home.… Continue reading Inclusive Health and Wellness Tips for Every Body

Distinguishing the Differences Detween Psoriasis and Eczema

Millions of Americans have psoriasis and eczema, more specifically some 32 million with psoriasis and 7.5 million with eczema. These chronic skin conditions are often confused and yet a keen eye for detail can help differential one from the other. Both psoriasis and eczema can be painful and uncomfortable and sometimes there is a stigma associated… Continue reading Distinguishing the Differences Detween Psoriasis and Eczema

Selecting and Keeping Your Christmas Tree Looking Its Best

The hunt for the perfect tree is oftentimes an important part of family tradition. Buy local whenever possible by supporting local Christmas tree growers. Purchasing locally grown trees also reduces the risk of spreading unwanted pests into your landscape. Your local University Extension Service and Department of Natural Resources provide updates on any threats. Family… Continue reading Selecting and Keeping Your Christmas Tree Looking Its Best

Brighten the Holidays with Colorful Plants

Garden centers, florists and grocery stores are filling their shelves with a variety of holiday plants; a sure sign the holidays are approaching. This is the time of year to give, receive or fill your home with colorful poinsettias, Christmas cactus, cyclamen, and other holiday plants. Extend their beauty and longevity with proper care. Start… Continue reading Brighten the Holidays with Colorful Plants

Common Types of Warts and What to Do About Them

Warts can be a nuisance, and sometimes painful, but they are usually harmless. These small, non-cancerous skin growths occur from a virus that infects the top layer of skin. Though usually not serious, the virus is contagious, which can cause warts to spread. Most warts eventually disappear without treatment. But many people choose to have… Continue reading Common Types of Warts and What to Do About Them

Vision Health Tips for People with Diabetes

November is Diabetes Awareness Month. Improving health and avoiding diabetes-related complications is essential for millions of people in the United States who have diabetes. One of the most common and serious complications of diabetes is vision loss. There are steps that will help reduce risk and preserve eyesight. Lighthouse Guild offers the following tips: Take control.… Continue reading Vision Health Tips for People with Diabetes

Give the Gift of Preserving the Garden’s Harvest

Give a gift that helps your favorite gardeners enjoy the flavors of their garden well past the end of the growing season. Both new and experienced gardeners often spend their gardening budget on plants and seeds, leaving little or none to invest in food preservation equipment and supplies. Prepare your favorite gardener for the next harvest… Continue reading Give the Gift of Preserving the Garden’s Harvest

8 Strategies for Making Little Choices That Can Lead to Big Changes

Many of us wish to change our lives in some way. The choices we make are the stepping stones on the way to transformation, but even when the way forward is clear, we can find ourselves falling off the path. If we can make the most of those moments of little choices, we’ll have a… Continue reading 8 Strategies for Making Little Choices That Can Lead to Big Changes

Green Tea and Pineapple to Treat Acne? Studies Say Yes

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Can application of lotions or creams containing green tea extract, or a mixture derived from pineapple waste, prove effective in treating acne, a facial skin disorder affecting as many as 50 million Americans annually? Studies suggest yes, according to board-certified dermatologist Cybele Fishman MD, who says both green tea and pineapple contain antioxidants, elements that… Continue reading Green Tea and Pineapple to Treat Acne? Studies Say Yes

Fall Care of Perennials

As you transition your gardens from fall to winter, you may be contemplating a bit of garden clean up. Before reaching for the pruners and rakes, consider all the benefits and beauty of leaving healthy perennials stand for winter. The seed heads of many perennials like coneflower, rudbeckias, liatris and bee balm attract seed-eating songbirds… Continue reading Fall Care of Perennials

How To Shop for a Fixed-Rate Annuity So You’ll Get the Best Deal

One annuity may pay more than twice as much as much as a similar one—comparison websites make shopping easy. If you’re looking for a haven for your money, with a three-year fixed-rate annuity, you can choose one paying 2.00% annually or one paying 4.25%! Other than the rate, the two products are quite similar. If… Continue reading How To Shop for a Fixed-Rate Annuity So You’ll Get the Best Deal

Forcing Spring Flowering Bulbs into Bloom

Brighten your indoor décor, patio, deck, or balcony by forcing a few spring flowering bulbs into bloom.  Just plant, give them a chill and enjoy a few extra daffodils, hyacinths, tulips, crocus and grape hyacinths this winter and spring. All you need is a suitable container, some well-drained potting mix, the bulbs and a place to give… Continue reading Forcing Spring Flowering Bulbs into Bloom