_ Work-Related Stress Linked to Diabetes By Jane Farrell article Work-related stress has been linked to illnesses, including heart disease. New research proves that it is a risk factor for Type 2 diabetes as well. The findings, by researchers from the Helmholtz Zentrum M├╝nchen, in Germany, were published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine. The scientists, headed by Dr. Cornelia Huth and Prof.
_ Pain Management If You've Been Diagnosed with Shingles By Jane Farrell article Shingles is a disease that affects nerves and causes pain and blisters in adults. ItΓÇÖs caused by the same varicella-zoster virus that causes chickenpox in children. After you recover from chickenpox, the virus doesnΓÇÖt leave your body, but continues to live in some nerve cells. For reasons that aren't totally understood, the virus can become active instead of remaining inactive. When it's activated in adults, it produces shingles. Most adults live with the varicella-zoster virus in their body and never get shingles.
_ Lack of Vitamin D May Mean High Dementia Risk By Jane Farrell article A deficiency in Vitamin D has been linked to a high risk of AlzheimerΓÇÖs and dementia in older people, according to new research. An international team of investigators studied 1,658 elderly Americans who participated in the Cardiovascular Health Study. They concluded that the participants who were severely deficient in Vitamin D were 125 percent likelier to develop dementia of any kind. People who were moderately deficient in Vitamin D had a 53 percent higher risk. The subjects were followed for six years after the initial assessment.
Coming Next Week! August 11th to August 15th 2014 By Sondra Forsyth article HereΓÇÖs a sneak preview of the articles, slideshows, and blogs weΓÇÖll be posting during the coming week on ThirdAge, the biggest and best site for ΓÇ£boomer and beyondΓÇ¥ women since 1997. As always, weΓÇÖll bring you the latest information from top experts about maintaining a healthy body, mind, and spirit as you navigate both the challenges and the joys of being a ThirdAger.
_ Hep C Could Become a Rare Disease By Sondra Forsyth article Newly implemented screening guidelines and improved, highly effective drug therapies could make hepatitis C a rare disease in the United States by 2036, according to the results of a predictive model developed at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health. The results of the analysis, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and performed with the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, were published in the August 5th 2014 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
_ Doctors Often Don't Talk to Patients about Aspirin By Jane Farrell article Although the health benefits of aspirin have been proven, there arenΓÇÖt many doctors recommending it to patients at risk of heart attack or stroke. Researchers from the University of Rochester based that conclusion after studying a national sample of more than 3,000 middle-aged patients, both men and women. Most of the participants said they couldnΓÇÖt recall their doctor telling them to take aspirin.
_ Breast Cancer Mammography Benefits Women Over 75 By Sondra Forsyth article Mammography-detected breast cancer is associated with a shift to earlier stage diagnosis in older women, subsequently reducing the rate of more advanced, difficult-to-treat cases, according to a study published online in the journal Radiology in August 2014. The researchers said the findings lend support to regular mammography screening in women ages 75 and older.
_ High blood pressure / hypertension BP, Lower May Not Be Better By Sondra Forsyth article The mantra for treatment for high blood pressure has been "the lower, the better," but that goal can potentially put patients at risk of kidney failure or death, according to a study done Kaiser Permanente in Los Angeles and published August 4th 2014 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Researchers examined the electronic health records of nearly 400,000 Kaiser Permanente patients in Southern California who were taking medications to treat high blood pressure from January 2006 through December 2010. They found that:
_ Is It A Sore Throat - or Strep? By Jane Farrell article If youΓÇÖre not sure whether youΓÇÖve got strep throat ΓÇô or just a sore throat ΓÇô the experts at the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have some answers. Sore throats, which can be either mild or severe, have a variety of causes. Some of them, the CDC experts say, include viruses, bacteria, allergens, irritants, post-nasal drip and fungi. But whatever the reason, the result is the irritating and painful condition known as sore throat. Most cases will heal without treatment. But others, including strep throat, may need antibiotics.
Not My Circus, Not My Monkeys By blog This is the ninth blog in a series. To read the earlier entries, click here: Archive: The ThirdAge Romance Saga of Sally Franz. I just heard this phrase: ΓÇ£Not My Circus, Not my MonkeysΓÇ¥. It is purportedly translated from an old Polish saying. And it has become so popular you can buy T-shirts with the saying plastered across the front. I wish I could buy one for every stepparent alive.
5 Surprising Reasons a Good Relationship Is the Best Stress Reliever in the World By blog The stress response was our secret weapon for success through most of human history. It saved our lives, making us run from predators and enabling us to take down prey. The problem is that we are no longer responding to a wild animal attack that might occur once every six months, but instead we are dealing with hundreds of stresses every day. Human beings are turning on the same life-saving physical reaction to cope with aging parents, unhappy teenagers, costly gasoline, increasing food prices, traffic jams, and job insecurity.
_ Living With and Treating Peripheral Artery Disease By Sondra Forsyth article If you have P.A.D., you may feel pain in your calf or thigh muscles after walking. Try to take a break and allow the pain to ease before walking again. Over time, this may increase the distance that you can walk without pain. Talk with your doctor about taking part in a supervised exercise program. This type of program has been shown to reduce P.A.D. symptoms.
_ Obesity Clue to Curbing Obesity By Sondra Forsyth article Preventing weight gain, obesity, and ultimately diabetes could be as simple as keeping a nuclear receptor from being activated in a small part of the brain, according to a study done by Yale School of Medicine researchers andp ublished in the August 1st 2014 issue of The Journal of Clinical Investigation (JCI).
_ Healthy Diet & Nutrition Fish Really Is Brain Food! By Sondra Forsyth article Eating baked or broiled fish once a week is good for the brain, regardless of how much omega-3 fatty acid it contains, according to researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. The findings, published online in 2014 the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, add to growing evidence that lifestyle factors contribute to brain health later in life.
_ Prostate cancer Prostate Cancer Risk Calculator Online By Sondra Forsyth article A free updated calculator to help men and their doctors assess their risk of prostate cancer is available online. Developed at the University of Texas Health Science Center, the tool has had a major upgrade in order to enhance how men and their physicians better understand a man's risk of prostate cancer. A description of the update's needs and benefits is described by the Health Science Center authors in a viewpoint published online August 4th in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
_ Don't Get Fooled by Poison Ivy By Jane Farrell article If you think you know what poison ivy looks like, think again. Poison ivy can take the form of a vine, shrub or ground cover. It has leaves that are shiny and leaves that are dull. Its edges can be smoothed or notched. So how can it be recognized and avoided? The old phrase ΓÇ£leaves of three,ΓÇ¥ let it beΓÇ¥ is a good way to do it, says Lou Paradise, president and chief of research of Topical BioMedics, Inc., makers of Topricin.
_ Vision Health How to Know You Need Bifocals or Progressives By Sondra Forsyth article A gradual loss of the ability to see well up close is a natural part of aging. The condition is called presbyopia, from the Greek for ΓÇ£elder eyeΓÇ¥. If you already wear glasses or contact lenses for distance vision because you have myopia, the medical term for nearsighted, youΓÇÖll need to switch to a new prescription. Options include bifocals, vari-focals, and progressives. For contacts, you could also choose monovision in which one eye is corrected for distance and the other is corrected for close work.
_ Exercise 5 Exercise Myths Debunked By Sondra Forsyth article By Brett Osborn M.D. As a neurosurgraon and an avid bodybuilder, I know that you will do more harm than good if youΓÇÖve bought into some of the myths and ΓÇ£conventional wisdomΓÇ¥ about exercise that is simply wrong. HereΓÇÖs the truth about are those misconceptions: