Harvard Health Blog

It’s natural to want to shield your children from the vitriol of this year’s presidential campaign — but think twice before you turn off the evening news. We’ve listed three ways you can turn this year’s campaign into opportunities to teach your children about the political process and even have conversations that can help them — and you — come away with a broader perspective.

Being able to react to a fall — throwing out a hand, grabbing a railing — often makes the fall less serious. But our reaction times slow as we age, making this kind of quick adjustment much harder as we get older. We’ve examined some of the biological reasons why falling becomes more serious as we age and some ways to make falling less likely — including the possibility of improving slowed reaction times.

The CDC recently advised all sexually active women of childbearing age, and who aren’t on birth control, to avoid alcohol completely because of potential harmful effects to an unborn child. The science behind the recommendation is sound, but the way it was delivered has raised quite a few eyebrows. In this piece, Dr. Ricciotti examines where the message fell short and describes how she emphasizes shared decision-making and autonomy when she counsels her patients.

Last year, the Alzheimer’s Association predicted that rates of dementia would continue to rise. However, a report recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that rates of dementia have actually dropped steadily over the past three decades. Whether the drop in rates applies to everyone, and whether it will continue, remain to be seen. But the evidence also confirms that there’s quite a lot you can do to lower your dementia risk.

Pediatricians used to recommend that parents hold off on giving their children foods that commonly cause allergic reactions — peanuts, eggs, seafood, wheat — for the first few years of the child’s life. We now know that was bad advice. Recent studies have shown that giving these foods very early in life is perfectly safe — and that it actually decreases a child’s risk for some food allergies.

A recently published study confirms what many of us have already observed: the popularity of yoga in the U.S. is exploding. More Americans now practice yoga than ever before — and they’re enjoying a range of health and wellness benefits associated with it. While there are still some negative perceptions of yoga that can discourage people from trying it, there’s a lot the yoga community can do to help them feel included.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force has recently updated their guidelines on depression screening to include pregnant and postpartum women, which will be a great help to the many new moms who experience mood changes that go beyond the “baby blues.” The updated guidelines offer other benefits, too, that help improve everyone’s access to mental health care — especially those who can’t currently afford it.

Eating healthy is a habit — and, like any other habit, it can be taught and learned. Most kids need guidance as they learn how to enjoy healthy foods and eating patterns. We’ve shared 10 of our best tips for how to help your child become a healthy eater.

Much has been promised about the potential health benefits of vitamin D, but the evidence behind many of these promises is lacking. In fact, a recent study that tested whether vitamin D supplements protected older people from physical decline found that those on higher doses were more likely to have a fall. It’s important to get enough vitamin D in your diet. But when it comes to supplements, more is not always better.

A POLST order goes beyond what a DNR can cover: it allows you to set your preferences for treatments such as nutrition, pain medicine, and antibiotics at the end of life, and it applies both inside and outside the hospital. However, it’s not without its drawbacks. Ultimately, it’s safest to draw up not only a POLST, but other types of tried-and-true directives, to ensure you get the end-of-life care you want.

If you’re planning an escape from the dreary winter weather, and you’re pregnant or trying to get pregnant, you may want to plan your destination carefully. There’s still a lot we don’t know about Zika virus — which is now widespread in several favorite tropical destinations, such as the Caribbean — and its potential pregnancy-related complications. Until we know more, it’s better to be safe and follow the precautions we’ve listed here.

Shingles, an itchy and painful rash that occurs when the chickenpox virus reactivates in your body, shouldn’t be written off as just a nuisance. If it’s not treated promptly with an antiviral drug, it can cause a host of serious long-term complications. Fortunately, there’s a vaccine that can slash your risk of shingles by half, and another, even more effective one in the pipeline.

Over the past few years, research has changed pediatricians’ recommendations for when — and how — to introduce babies to solid foods. For example, many doctors now recommend giving young children peanut products and fish very early, as this actually reduces the risk of developing allergies. Of course, every baby and family is different, so it’s always best to run your baby’s “first foods” by his doctor before giving them.

A recently published study has found that the incidence of kidney stones is on the rise. These stones, which are formed when chemicals in the urine crystallize, can cause serious complications in addition to the usual pain and urinary trouble. It’s not clear why they’re becoming more common, but climate change and rising rates of obesity may be to blame.