Health Advice
/Health
New treatment for enlarged prostate -- if you realize the benefits
About 50% of men ages 51 to 60 have an enlarged prostate -- known as benign (meaning it's not cancer) prostatic hyperplasia or BPH. By age 70 and older, it hits 80%. A lot of guys think the discomfort and frequent urination it causes are just a part of aging and not worth talking to a doctor about. Wrong.
The prostate continually enlarges ...Read more
More bad news about artificial sweeteners
When Gwen Stefani croons "Sweet Escape" -- "Woo hoo (I wanna get away) yee hoo (to our sweet escape)" -- she's hoping that will make her damaged relationship better. And when you opt for sweet escape by using artificial sweeteners, you're hoping to dodge the damage you know added sugar can do to your health. Not really turning out like you hoped...Read more
Conquering constipation
Around 2.5 million folks in the U.S. see a doctor each year because they're constipated. And in 2021, Americans spent $1.68 billion dollars on laxatives! The money is flowing a lot better than many folks' bowels, that's for sure.
Constipation means that you have fewer than three bowel movements a week -- although what's normal is highly ...Read more
Try these ways to burn belly fat
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 59% of U.S. adults carry around "abdominal obesity." In other words, belly fat -- the kind that's found in the spaces between your organs, such as the stomach, liver and kidneys. Excess belly fat is particularly bad for your health because it is biologically active and secretes ...Read more
One more heart-healthy benefit of coffee
With all the coffee shops and specialty coffee stores in the U.S., you'd think we would rank at the top globally for coffee drinking -- but, no. A new survey finds that we're 25th in the world in per capita consumption of coffee. Nonetheless, Americans consume 3.3 billion pounds of coffee a year -- or 517 million cups a day.
For coffee-drinking...Read more
Kimchi does more than spice up your life
Kimchi is a Korean dish made from fermented vegetables -- usually cabbage and radishes along with garlic and hot chilies -- although one online kimchi site says there are 180 varieties. It's been a favorite complement to breakfast, lunch and dinner since 935 B.C.
But it delivers more than flavor. It's loaded with gut-friendly pre- and ...Read more
Keep smiling
"When you're smiling/the whole world smiles with you" are lyrics from a 1928 song that's never lost its popularity -- it was recently sung by Helena Bonham Carter as Princess Margaret in Season 3 of "The Crown."
Smiles are good for your physical and mental health, no matter your age. Unfortunately, they're increasingly difficult for many older ...Read more
Foods you probably aren't washing, but should
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 48 million people get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die from foodborne diseases annually in the U.S. Produce accounts for 46% of those cases and germs on fresh produce, such as listeria, salmonella and E. coli, are frequent sources of infection.
One potential source of ...Read more
Are your kids undernourished? Most are
Good nutrition is the fuel for happiness, intelligence, accomplishment and enduring health. But American kids are being deprived of those remarkable benefits in record numbers and to a degree that is hard to wrap your head around.
New information released in the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report ...Read more
To sleep, perchance to dream
Enough quality sleep helps the brain clear out its trash, triggers hormonal shifts that restore energy and revive weary muscles and organ systems. It even bolsters your cardiovascular and immune systems and helps regulate metabolism, including glucose levels.
Unfortunately, we're a nation of sleep-challenged people, contending with insomnia, ...Read more
Diabetes prevention and control update
If you are searching for more ways to avoid or reverse Type 2 diabetes and avoid its consequences, here are four quick tricks.
1. Enjoy four cups of black coffee a day. That decreases Type 2 diabetes risk by over 20%.
2. Taking vitamin D may lower the risk of progressing from prediabetes to diabetes by 15%, according to researchers from Tufts ...Read more
Salt's assault on your immune system
Ocean water is between 33% and 37% salt. The human body contains a variety of salts -- including plain ol' table salt, amounting to about 200 grams of sodium chloride in a 100-pound person. You want to keep it at that level because it's important for nerve impulse transmission and the quality of your blood. Unfortunately, most Americans take in ...Read more
How to boost your youthful longevity
The ancient Greeks said there were five ages of man: the Golden Age, the Silver Age, the Bronze Age, the Age of Heroes and Iron Age. I want to add to that: The Younger Age -- because now we have discovered so many ways that you can live younger longer.
A study out of Columbia University's School of Public Health put 220 healthy men and women on...Read more
Tamp down inflammation and spark up your life
It's obvious how much destruction is done by the flames that lay waste to forests and homes in California's all-too-frequent wildfires. But it's harder to see what chronic inflammation does in your body.
Your body is designed to have temporary, life-enhancing inflammatory immune responses that help heal an injury or defeat an infection. But ...Read more
Your picky eater may be picky about the dish you serve food on!
The animated character Boss Baby (voiced by Alec Baldwin) takes fussy eating to a whole new level, declaring: "You think I'm a fussy eater? ... You want to get me to eat, you'll have to wait and buy my book -- 'Here Comes the Plane, There Goes Your Mind -- A Guide to Mealtime Negotiation.'"
Thirty percent to 50% of parents contend with a fussy...Read more