
Gratitude enhances health, brings happiness — and may even lengthen lives

Respiratory health harms often follow flooding: Taking these steps can help

Could tea tree oil help treat acne or athlete’s foot?

Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c): What to know if you have diabetes or prediabetes or are at risk for these conditions

What could be causing your blurry vision?

Avocado nutrition: Health benefits and easy recipes

Swimming lessons save lives: What parents should know

Preventing and treating iliotibial (IT) band syndrome: Tips for pain-free movement

Wildfires: How to cope when smoke affects air quality and health

What can magnesium do for you and how much do you need?
Medications Archive
Articles
Osteoporosis drugs: Which one is right for you?
Women with osteoporosis have many options for preserving bone strength and preventing fractures. The mainstays of treatment are bisphosphonate drugs.
Packing your hurricane go bag? Make provisions for your health
When you're packing a hurricane go-bag, keep health priorities in mind. If you don't prepare in advance, you might leave behind medicines, medical supplies, important paperwork, and other essentials that can help you stay healthy. Here's how to plan ahead.
More guidance on using the COVID-19 drug Paxlovid
Guidelines advise unvaccinated people at high risk for severe COVID to take Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir with ritonavir) soon after symptoms begin. However, a 2024 study suggests that people who are vaccinated and high-risk or unvaccinated and low-risk don't need to do so.
Do you really have a drug allergy?
Many people believe they have allergies to certain medications, even though they really don't. It could be that they experienced only a drug side effect after taking a particular drug, not a true allergic reaction (which is an immune system response). Unfortunately, inaccurate information can limit treatment options. So it's best to confirm a suspected drug allergy with an allergist. That typically involves getting a simple skin test or taking a very small dose of the medication in question in the presence of a medical team.
Dreaming of a good night's rest
Sleep problems are an all-too-common reality for most older men. They often sleep less deeply and are more easily awakened. They also are more likely to suffer from conditions that affect sleep, such as sleep apnea and restless legs syndrome. Adopting several lifestyle and behavioral changes can help men maintain a proper and healthy sleep cycle.
Health care should improve your health, right?
Modern medicine offers ever-expanding ways to heal and prevent disease, but it's also true that health care can cause harm. Some harms are preventable while others are much harder to control. So how can you reduce your chances of being harmed?
Many older adults still follow outdated aspirin advice
A 2024 nationwide poll suggests that one in four older adults takes aspirin regularly in hopes of preventing a heart attack or stroke, even though updated guidelines from 2019 advise against that practice in many cases.
Rethinking your morning coffee
Coffee and other caffeine sources can interact with many common drugs, changing the way they're absorbed, distributed through the body, processed, and excreted. Coffee (even decaf) makes stomach contents more acidic, accounting for some drug interactions, but caffeine is mostly the cause. Medications vulnerable to coffee or caffeine's effects include those for cold or allergy, depression, high blood pressure, asthma, osteoporosis, anemia, Alzheimer's disease, thyroid problems, and insomnia. Drinking coffee and taking medications at separate times is advised.
Is there a good side to drug side effects?
Not all drug side effects are created equal: some are tolerable, some are dangerous –– and some may turn out to be surprisingly beneficial with weight loss and hair growth as superstar examples. Silver linings like these can lead to a new purpose for some medications.

Gratitude enhances health, brings happiness — and may even lengthen lives

Respiratory health harms often follow flooding: Taking these steps can help

Could tea tree oil help treat acne or athlete’s foot?

Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c): What to know if you have diabetes or prediabetes or are at risk for these conditions

What could be causing your blurry vision?

Avocado nutrition: Health benefits and easy recipes

Swimming lessons save lives: What parents should know

Preventing and treating iliotibial (IT) band syndrome: Tips for pain-free movement

Wildfires: How to cope when smoke affects air quality and health

What can magnesium do for you and how much do you need?
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