Aging can be a challenge to body image. For some women, it may bring on — or rekindle — an eating disorder.

Many baby boomers are experiencing a disconnect between how old they feel and the birth date on their driver's licenses. In a 2009 Pew Research Center survey, half of people in their late 60s and early 70s said they felt at least 10 to 20 years younger than their actual age.

Feeling youthful inside is great, but a glance in the mirror may bring you up short. No matter how young you feel, you're likely to see some ...

 

It once seemed that only people who drank excessively were at risk for fatty liver disease. Not anymore.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the leading cause of chronic liver disease in the United States. Almost unheard of before 1980, NAFLD is now believed to affect as many as 30% of adult Americans and is expected to become the main reason for liver transplant by 2022. NAFLD is not a single disease but rather a spectrum of disorders, all marked by the accumulation of fat inside liver cells. Under the microscope, this fatty buildup looks just like alcohol-induced fatty ...

A book outlines what you can do to heal as well as possible.

During the year or two after surgery or treatment for a serious medical problem, many people find they need help to feel better emotionally and physically but don't know where to turn. In You Can Heal Yourself (St. Martin's Paperbacks, 2012), Dr. Julie Silver, assistant professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Harvard Medical School and chief editor of books at Harvard Health Publications (which publishes Harvard Women's Health Watch), details practical steps you can take for optimal healing. Her recommendations are based on research and, says ...

About 10 million people in the United States have essential tremor (ET), a movement disorder that causes uncontrollable shaking of the hands and often the head as well, and sometimes a quavering voice. ET is an action tremor, meaning that the shaking is largely absent when you're at rest but increases when you try to use your hands — for example, to pick up a cup or use a fork. (ET is sometimes mistaken for Parkinson's disease, in which it's the other way around: the tremor is noticeable during rest and stops with activity.)

There's no cure for ET, but ...

Q. I have varicose veins and would like to get rid of them. Could that lead to venous insufficiency?

A. Having varicose veins removed doesn't make you any more likely to develop venous insufficiency. It might even help to reduce the likelihood of developing chronic venous insufficiency by removing a source of increased pressure in the leg veins. Whether you go ahead with treatment or not, there are some things you can do to help reduce the risk of vein problems progressing or recurring.

Venous insufficiency is a decrease in blood flow from the leg veins to the heart that ...