Lifelong Health from Creators Syndicate

Alzheimer's Progress Is Cruel and One-Way for 05/24/2012

Thu, 24 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Alzheimer's is a gradually progressive disease that eventually leads to relentless declines in memory, with loss of virtually every aspect of intellectual function. Early on, the disease is nothing more than a minor disability.

Short-term memory is impaired, but with strong family support, compulsive medical care and perhaps the use of medications to slow the rate of progression of the ...

Updated: Thu May 24, 2012

Outcome-Based Payments Have Cost-Saving Potential for 05/17/2012

Thu, 17 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

A New York Times article also published in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette discussed a slowdown in the growth of health spending. Before 2009, health care spending invariably rose at 3 or 4 times the rate of inflation. But in 2009 and 2010, costs increased by only 4 percent and remained flat at 18 percent of our gross domestic product.

Experts suggest that the major reasons for the declin ...

Updated: Thu May 17, 2012

PSAs Ill-Advised in Men of Warren Buffett's Age for 05/10/2012

Thu, 10 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Warren Buffett's recent disclosure that he has been diagnosed with stage 1 prostate cancer made front-page news in virtually every newspaper and business website in the nation.

The billionaire investor is 81, and questions have long been raised about who would be his successor as chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

At his age, Buffett has an average life expectancy of 8-1 ...

Updated: Thu May 10, 2012

Dental Care Essential to Maintaining Health for 05/03/2012

Thu, 03 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700

At every age, a trip to the dentist is important. Having all your teeth pulled and wearing dentures and plates is no fun and most importantly, readily preventable.

Thanks to improved dental care, fluoride in water, and more healthful lifestyles, dental cavities are less common and many more Americans are able to keep their natural teeth throughout their lives.

Sadly, 108 million A ...

Updated: Thu May 03, 2012

Doctor Groups Diagnose When Tests Are Overdone for 04/26/2012

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Leaders in the field of medicine are embracing the fact that we do far too many unnecessary tests and procedures that could account for a third to a half of our $3.2 trillion annual health care spending.

In the past few weeks, nine major medical groups have each come up with five commonly ordered tests in their practices that are overused. This is part of the "Choose Wisely" ca ...

Updated: Thu Apr 26, 2012

Personalized Responsibility Has Role in Cancer Fight for 04/19/2012

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

The news about cancer continues to be good. A report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that death rates decreased by 1.6 percent annually from 2004 to 2008 for lung, colorectal and prostate cancer. Death rates from breast cancer have remained stable — but steep declines occurred in the early 2000s because of reduced use of hormone replacement therapy.

But the ...

Updated: Thu Apr 19, 2012

Marriage in U.S. Is Occurring Later for 04/12/2012

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that more and more couples are choosing to live together before getting married. From 1982 to 2010, the number of women below age 45 who lived with a domestic partner out of wedlock increased from 3 percent to 11 percent. Marriage is still occurring but later in life so that by age 40, 90 percent of women and 80 percent of men ha ...

Updated: Thu Apr 12, 2012

Primary Care Physicians Must Know Cancer Details for 04/05/2012

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0700

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports there are more than 12 million cancer survivors, and that number will likely double in the next few decades as the population ages.

In 2005, the Institute of Medicine published a report highlighting the special concerns of cancer survivors. Their report, "From Cancer Patient to Cancer Survivor: Lost in Transition," pointed ...

Updated: Thu Apr 05, 2012

Side Effects of Statins Can Outweigh Efficacy for 03/29/2012

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0700

I must start with a warning. If you are taking a medication for whatever reason and learn it has a possible side effect, do not stop taking the drug without informing your doctor.

Many people have stopped taking osteoporosis and diabetic drugs and various antidepressants because of reports in the news of serious side effects. This is a big mistake! And now the Food and Drug Administrati ...

Updated: Thu Mar 29, 2012

Eye-Opening Study Lists Perils of Sleeping Pills for 03/22/2012

Thu, 22 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0700

Insomnia is one of the most common symptoms affecting us. Almost daily, my patients complain they cannot sleep, and the request is invariably the same — "Please, doctor, I must have a sleeping pill." And most of us take the path of least resistance and prescribe something — a mistake!

Many people have tried Tylenol PM. The active ingredient is the antihistamine Bena ...

Updated: Thu Mar 22, 2012

Colonoscopy Is a Trial and a Proven Lifesaver for 03/15/2012

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0700

March is colorectal cancer awareness month. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in men and women.

The disease is slightly more common in men, affecting 55 per 100,000, compared with 41 per 100,000 women. And of these, 20.7 per 100,000 men and 14.5 per 100,000 women die from the disease. The lifetime r ...

Updated: Thu Mar 15, 2012

Osteoporosis Deadly as Cancer for Women for 03/08/2012

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Osteoporosis is as common as cancer and heart disease, and it's a leading cause of fractures, chronic disability, difficulty with walking, severe pain and a poor quality of life. The World Health Organization reports that osteoporosis ranks second to cardiovascular disease as a global health care problem. And research shows that a 50-year-old woman has the same risk of dying from complications ...

Updated: Thu Mar 08, 2012

Unnecessary Testing Harmful, Boosts Costs for 03/01/2012

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Frequently, I see asymptomatic patients who report a "clean bill of health" from their cardiologists. Their electrocardiogram, stress test, echocardiogram and CT scan of the heart are normal.

Occasionally, these patients are being screened because they have a known coronary artery disease. But quite frequently, they are middle aged or older and are being screened to assure no ...

Updated: Thu Mar 01, 2012

Heart Attack Fatalities Down 63 Percent in a Decade for 02/23/2012

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800

There has been much good news about heart attacks in recent years. From 2000 to 2010, the number of heart attacks decreased by 27 percent and encouragingly, fatalities fell by 63 percent.

While the benefits have been seen at every age, in every ethnic and racial group and in both sexes, declines have been far greater in men than in women. The reason for this remains unclear.

The ...

Updated: Thu Feb 23, 2012

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