Lifelong Health from Creators Syndicate

High Blood Pressure Kills Silently, Worsens With Age for 02/16/2012

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800

High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke, and peripheral vascular and kidney disease. In the United States, 30 percent of the entire population over the age of 18 has hypertension as defined by a top or systolic pressure above 140 or a bottom or diastolic pressure above 90.

The prevalence rises with advancing age. The disease affects 50 percent of the populat ...

Updated: Thu Feb 16, 2012

Research Grants Kindle Medical Breakthroughs for 02/09/2012

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800

America has long been a world leader in pioneering medical research discoveries. The scientific breakthroughs in the last century were breathtaking, and now the future looks even brighter.

Two cornerstones of our nation's research accomplishments are the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation. The NIH tries to understand every aspect of health, from basic mecha ...

Updated: Thu Feb 09, 2012

Aspirin Health Benefits a Matter of Risk Vs. Risk for 02/02/2012

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Aspirin, first developed as a painkiller almost a century ago, is still viewed by many as a miracle drug. While rarely prescribed for pain, aspirin's major use is its effect on platelets.

Aspirin prevents the formation in platelets of a molecule called thromboxane A2 that is essential for normal platelet aggregation. Platelets play a central role in stopping bleeding by first attaching ...

Updated: Thu Feb 02, 2012

Alternative Therapies Can Help but Also Harm for 01/26/2012

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0800

In every aspect of our lives, natural is touted as being better, and health care alternative therapies are all the rage. A recent report published in the Journal of the American Geriatric Society stated that 80 percent of people over the age of 65 are consuming at least one alternative remedy and 40 percent are taking three or more.

Why do we lean so readily toward these treatment option ...

Updated: Thu Jan 26, 2012

Post-50, Annual Exams and Select Screenings Are Crucial for 01/19/2012

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0800

If you are over 50, it is time to have an annual physical. At an earlier age, provided there are no known medical conditions, a screening every two to three years may be adequate. Not every 50-year-old receives an annual physical, and when they do, they often receive more testing than needed. It is important, therefore, that everyone know what should and should not be included in the examinatio ...

Updated: Thu Jan 19, 2012

Electronic Records Can Curb Duplication, Costs for 01/12/2012

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Communication, communication and more communication. To me, this is the cornerstone of a functional health care system, in which patient, doctor and insurance companies truly understand the nature of a patient's medical problem.

There must be documented justification and interpretation of each element of the patient's evaluation, and the plan of care must make sense to all involved. Reac ...

Updated: Thu Jan 12, 2012

Over 50? Now's the Time to Boost Your Exercise Pace for 01/05/2012

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Though you may not know it, scientists have already found the one magic bullet that will prevent disease, promote longevity and ensure lifelong independence. It's neither sexy nor groundbreaking. It's easy and hard, simple and complex all at the same time. It's exercise.

Whether you start early or late, the benefits of moving more are astounding. Exercise helps your body work at its opt ...

Updated: Thu Jan 05, 2012

Driving After Imbibing Is Never Worth the Risk for 12/29/2011

Thu, 29 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0800

For me, the thought of being drunk makes me feel ill to my stomach. I have personally experienced how alcohol abuse can wreak havoc in a family. Only when I learned that red wine had medicinal properties did I start having a glass on occasion.

Alcohol abuse ruins families, is a major underlying cause for violent crimes and contributes to many behaviors that can have disastrous results. A ...

Updated: Thu Dec 29, 2011

The Meaning of Christmas Is Love, Faith and Hope for 12/22/2011

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0800

I write this on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. I finally feel as if I have recovered from the eating, eating and more eating. And as I look forward to the holiday season, Christmas and the new year, I am sure I will eat more and spend a lot. These, together with a higher risk of depression, constitute the downside of this wonderful time of the year. But the upside is substantial.

I doubt ...

Updated: Thu Dec 22, 2011

Resolution: This Year, No Holiday Weight Gain for 12/15/2011

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0800

Recently Consumer Reports issued a report about what we like the least about Christmas.

As many as 68 percent of us complain the most about the long lines, followed by gaining weight (37 percent) and getting into debt (37 percent). Other pet peeves include shopping for gifts (28 percent), seeing relatives we dislike (24 percent), having to be too nice (15 percent), attending too many par ...

Updated: Thu Dec 15, 2011

Depression Is Real and Not the Sufferer's Fault for 12/08/2011

Thu, 08 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0800

December is here, and Christmas is around the corner. It's the best time of the year — a time for family, togetherness, friendship and good will. We should all be so happy, yet this is the time of the year that depression is most common. Instead of joy, many feel sadness, loneliness and a yearning for a time when things were better.

This particularly applies to older people. Instea ...

Updated: Thu Dec 08, 2011

Bypassing Primary Doctor Swells Costs, Risks Mistakes for 12/01/2011

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0800

A new Gallup poll shows that only 44 percent of Americans receive healthcare insurance through their employers. And those who do are paying more than they used to — with greater deductibles and co-payments.

This reflects a 5 percent decrease in insured employees in the past three years. Information from the Kaiser Family Foundation indicates that there are now 44 million uninsured ...

Updated: Thu Dec 01, 2011

Sitting Down Too Long Is Hazardous to Health for 11/24/2011

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0800

When visiting my mother in South Africa, my biggest pet peeve is how much she expects me to sit. Here are the almost-daily comments from my mom: "Come and sit and have breakfast with me;" or "Come and sit. Your sister is coming for tea;" or "I haven't seen you for a year and all you want to do is rush around! Come and sit and spend time with your mother."

N ...

Updated: Thu Nov 24, 2011

Unhappiness Is a Disease That Often Shortens Life for 11/17/2011

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0800

How many of us are pessimistic about opportunities, the future of our nation or the chance that we will live out our lives with sufficient resources to meet our needs? Pessimism is rampant, and this is associated with poor health and a shorter life expectancy. By contrast, the happier you are, the healthier and the longer you are likely to live.

A study just published in the highly prest ...

Updated: Thu Nov 17, 2011

Couple Antidepressants With Robust Counseling for 11/10/2011

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0800

Approximately 11 percent of Americans 12 and up take antidepressants, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics. Since 1988, the number has increased by 400 percent.

Those in the 18-44 age group most frequently use antidepressants, and women are 2.5 times more likely to receive medication than men. Whites are prescribed an antide ...

Updated: Thu Nov 10, 2011

Data Looking Ironclad That Supplements Harm for 11/03/2011

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Until the late 1970s, iron deficiency anemia was a serious health threat that — although rarely fatal — led to fatigue that annually cost the nation billions of dollars in lost productivity in the workplace.

The cause was almost always excessive menstrual blood loss. Because of blood loss and inadequate iron in diets, 30 percent of premenopausal women had too little iron in t ...

Updated: Thu Nov 03, 2011

Two Long-Term Studies Find Fault With PSA Test for 10/27/2011

Thu, 27 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Another diagnostic test is being reconsidered, and it's one that is likely to elicit as much passion and disagreement as the recent recommendations on mammograms.

The influential government group, the United States Preventive Services Task Force, recommends that healthy men of any age no longer be screened for prostate cancer by measuring the prostate-specific antigen in the blood.

< ...

Updated: Thu Oct 27, 2011

Cleanliness Important When Preparing Food for 10/20/2011

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0700

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported that more than 1,000 food-borne disease outbreaks occurred in 2008, the latest year information is available.

This led to more than 23,000 illnesses; nearly 1,300 reported hospitalized and 22 dead. The actual number of food-borne illnesses is almost certainly higher as the vast majority goes unreported. The CDC believes tha ...

Updated: Thu Oct 20, 2011

Cardiac Rehabilitation Key to Life After Attack for 10/13/2011

Thu, 13 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Until the early 1970s, people who survived a heart attack were admitted to the hospital, stayed in bed for two to three weeks — not even allowed to use a bedside commode — and then spent another three months in bed at home.

The goal was to "rest the heart" and give it a chance to fully recover. Exercise was discouraged, and many with heart disease were referred to a ...

Updated: Thu Oct 13, 2011

I love my work, took on a new challenge at age 65 and plan to continue working until I drop. I have no outside interests; it is work, my family and nothing else. No hobbies, no volunteering outside of work hours, no golf, hiking or tennis -- just work. for 10/06/2011

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Voluntary or forced retirement does not affect physical or mental health. However, the way you plan for and conduct yourself after quitting work is critically important to your risk of illness and life expectancy.

As baby boomers reach the age of 65 and beyond, a key question facing many is: Should — and can — you retire? Here wealth and health are closely entwined. The evide ...

Updated: Thu Oct 06, 2011