Fatty liver disease: Should you be tested?
Even a little exercise linked with lower stroke risk in people with afib
Testosterone therapy without evidence of deficiency may boost heart risk
Weight-loss drug may lower risk of heart attacks and infections
Migraine: How it's diagnosed and what that means
Tricep workouts you can do at home
Mindfulness practices to reduce stress and improve focus
Antihistamines may not offer meaningful relief from eczema symptoms
Overweight and taking blood pressure medications: Study finds it's a trend that's working
FDA approves first mRNA-based flu vaccine
Advance care planning Archive
Articles
Surviving the flu season
The odds of beating the bug are increasing as another new vaccine for seniors debuts.
Image: Bigstock
The flu season is upon us. Like that other season—winter—it can be unpredictable. But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is doing its best to see that we're informed and as prepared as possible for whatever is in store. For updates throughout the flu season, check the CDC website, www.cdc.gov/flu.
How well does the flu shot work?
Why the flu shot is worthwhile
Flu vaccination may make your illness milder if you do get sick. A 2016 study indicated that people 50 or older who got a flu vaccination had a 57% lower risk of hospitalization for the flu than their contemporaries who weren't vaccinated. Flu vaccination has been associated with lower rates of heart attacks and related problems among people with heart disease and with reduced hospitalizations among people with diabetes and chronic lung disease.
Getting vaccinated yourself also protects people around you, including those who are more vulnerable to serious flu illness, like babies and people with certain chronic health conditions.
Vaccines for seniors
Ask the doctor: Are activity trackers worthwhile for weight loss?
If wearing an activity tracker results in more daily exercise but not a significant weight loss, it still provides health benefits.
Two options for replacing lost teeth
Missing teeth can lead to additional dental woes, but implants and bridges can restore your smile and improve your dental—and overall—health.
Few of us will make it through life with a full set of 32 teeth. By age 50, the average American has lost 12 permanent teeth to decay, gum disease, or injury. Losing teeth not only affects your smile, but can also alter your bite and weaken your jawbone as well.
There is little reason to let that happen. Advances in prosthetic dentistry have made it possible to fill the spaces with bridges and implants that are more functional and attractive than the teeth they have replaced. "Your mouth is the first organ of your digestive system. Missing teeth affect not just your appearance but your overall health," says Dr. German Gallucci, executive director of the Harvard Dental Center. "We view dentistry as an integral part of comprehensive health care."
Holiday weight gain is a worldwide phenomenon, study suggests
A study of people in the United States, Germany, and Japan found that holiday weight gain was common.
Trade bad habits for good ones
Understanding the three Rs —reminder, routine, and reward—can help you create healthful habits.
Image: gguy44/ThinkStock
Everyone has bad habits they want to break, but instead of scorning yourself for being helpless to break them, use the fundamentals of forming habits to your advantage.
Habits, good or bad, follow a typical three-step pattern. One way to describe this is as three Rs: reminder, routine, and reward. By breaking down the cycle of a bad habit, you can identify what triggers the routine and begin to address what really needs to change. This way you can establish a pattern for new and healthier habits.
Ask the doctor: Best protein: animals or plants?
Men need about 0.36 grams of protein per pound of body weight every day. Animal products contain some of the highest amounts, but many sources also include high levels of saturated fat and cholesterol. Plant proteins might be a healthier choice since they also include essential vitamins, minerals, and other micronutrients.
Give grip strength a hand
Your ability to grab, hold, twist , and squeeze is essential for many everyday functions.
Image: JannHuizenga/Thinkstock
Think how much you rely on a strong grip every day. It helps you open cans, grip a golf club, hold a steering wheel, brush your teeth, and pick up a grandchild. "The ability to stay active and independent often begins with our hands," says Maria Cole, a physical therapist with Harvard-affiliated Spaulding Outpatient Center. "Weak grip strength can limit your enjoyment of many life pleasures, so you need to ensure your hand and grip strength always are up to the task."
A measure of health
A grip on mobility
Grip strength also may predict your future loss of mobility. A May 2014 study in The Journal of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences analyzed data from more than 20,000 adults ages 65 and older to evaluate the link between weak grip strength and lack of mobility, in this case slow walking speed.
Among the men in the group, those with a weak grip—less than 26 kg using a dynamometer—were seven times more likely to be facing mobility issues compared with men who had normal grip strength.
You can take steps to improve grip strength and possibly avoid problems down the road. "You need to exercise your hands and wrists just like every other part of your body to keep them strong and supple," says Cole.
Exercise your hands
The year in health and medicine
Changes to food labels and health guidelines, and the arrival of another mosquito -borne illness, topped health news in 2016.
Image: sultancicekgil/iStock
The new year is approaching fast, and with it, the promise of better health. Before we bid farewell to 2016, we'd like to reflect on the news that got our attention this year.
The Zika virus
Guideline changes
Some new health guidelines made their entrance in 2016, and others underwent updates. The CDC announced its first-ever guidelines for prescription painkillers, encouraging doctors to stop treating chronic pain by prescribing opioids, such as oxycodone (OxyContin) and hydrocodone (Vicodin). Long-term use of the drugs carries risks for dependence, addiction, overdose, and death.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) strengthened its guidelines granting access to one's own medical records. Among the rules: you do not have to give a reason for a records request, you can ask for the records by mail or email, and most requests should be granted within 30 days.
Also of note, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force updated its guidelines to screen for depression, now recommending screening in all people 18 or older, including older adults, when there are systems in place to ensure accurate diagnosis (as opposed to selective screening based on judgment and patient preference).
Healthier food
New medications
This year also brought the news that we'll have to wait for an antidote to stop rare uncontrolled bleeding episodes linked to some newer types of blood thinners, such as apixaban (Eliquis) and rivaroxaban (Xarelto). In August 2016, the FDA rejected the potential antidote AndexXa (andexanet alfa), saying it wanted more information before it could grant approval. Another of the newer blood thinners—dabigatran (Pradaxa)—already has an approved antidote called idarucizumab (Praxbind).
The newer blood thinners are alternatives to warfarin (Coumadin). People who use warfarin require frequent blood tests to see if the dose needs to be adjusted, but if dangerous bleeding does occur, there's a treatment to reverse it. The newer blood thinners don't require lab monitoring. Apixaban and rivaroxaban do not yet have approved treatments to reverse bleeding.
Fatty liver disease: Should you be tested?
Even a little exercise linked with lower stroke risk in people with afib
Testosterone therapy without evidence of deficiency may boost heart risk
Weight-loss drug may lower risk of heart attacks and infections
Migraine: How it's diagnosed and what that means
Tricep workouts you can do at home
Mindfulness practices to reduce stress and improve focus
Antihistamines may not offer meaningful relief from eczema symptoms
Overweight and taking blood pressure medications: Study finds it's a trend that's working
FDA approves first mRNA-based flu vaccine
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