On the tip of your tongue, that word you can't dig out. Why not? The tip of your tongue may be the wrong place to look, psychologists suggest. They find that deaf sign-language speakers may hold the keys to finding where those words are hiding. "You know the word, you just can't get it out," says Jennie Pyers of Wellesley College. "Well, it turns out sign-language speakers have the same problem." Only...
October 19, 2009
Oct. 19 - BOWLING GREEN - A senior at Bowling Green State University, Ryan Lasecki said he started smoking cigarettes only last semester. He sees cigarettes - surgeon general's warning or not - as stress reducers. "Lately I've had some bad things happen in my life so I thought I'd give it a shot, and you know it does kind of help out a little," the 21-year-old said while lighting up outside the Student...
October 19, 2009
Mitchell Collins is only 4, but he's a burgeoning gourmet. At an age when many toddlers subsist on macaroni and pizza, Mitchell loves hummus, peas and cottage cheese. He snacks on tomato and cucumber salads. And he begs for his dad's zucchini bread, made from vegetables Mitchell helped grow. He hasn't always had such a good appetite, says his dad, Chuck Collins. At 2, Mitchell ate no vegetables and...
October 18, 2009
As the battle over healthcare reform nears the home stretch, many doctors are worrying more, and more loudly, about how their income and practices will be affected. Specialists worry about proposals that could mean less in Medicare payments for specialists, particularly cardiologists and radiation oncologists. Other doctors argue greater government involvement in medicine means they'll lose more control...
October 18, 2009
Untested? No. Rushed into production? Not really. Full of substances that do harm? Hardly, and especially not compared with the dangers of the H1N1 flu virus. That is the retort of researchers, scientists, federal health authorities and others familiar with how swine flu vaccine is being made, as they listen - at times with disbelief - to the debate about it unfolding around kitchen tables and online....
October 18, 2009
A trip to the doctor is a big enough hassle without having to deal with fear of the unknown. Having a procedure for the first time can fill a patient with dread. For the uninitiated, here's a short lesson on getting a mammogram. Purpose: Examines breast tissue to determine if it is normal or if there is a need for additional tests or treatment. How it works: Traditional film mammography uses low-dose...
October 18, 2009
CHICAGO - Two girls who swam with pet turtles in a backyard pool were among 107 people sickened in the largest salmonella outbreak blamed on turtles in the U.S., researchers report. The 2007-08 outbreak involved mostly children in 34 states; one-third of all patients had to be hospitalized. In many cases, parents didn't know that turtles can carry salmonella. Despite a 1975 ban on selling small turtles...
October 18, 2009
An 11-month-old baby in France died from swine flu on Sunday in hospital, health officials said. The youngster, who had been in a Paris childrens' hospital since Friday, also suffered from a serious heart condition, authorities added. The baby "died this morning from the A(H1N1) flu in pediatric intensive care," the Paris hospital service said in a statement. "This child also had a serious heart condition,"...
October 18, 2009
Oct. 18 - No one wants to get cancer. But those at risk would almost certainly want to pre-empt the disease. That's where people like Julie Nardella, R.N., come into play. As clinical nurse-educator at Physicians Health Alliance, the Green Ridge resident's duties include screening people to find out if their genetic makeup puts them at risk of breast, ovarian, colorectal or uterine cancer. Mrs. Nardella...
October 18, 2009
WASHINGTON, Oct 18, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) - Doctors say the H1N1 strain of influenza, commonly known as swine flu, is more likely to get deep into the lungs than seasonal influenza. When that happens, patients tend to get viral pneumonia, The Washington Post reported. The World Health Organization advised doctors to treat serious cases of H1N1 quickly with antiviral drugs and warned hospitals they...
October 17, 2009
MADISON, Wis., Oct 5, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) - Processes related to heart disease can begin in childhood but 65 percent of U.S. adults say the processes do not begin until adulthood, a survey found. The Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association in Madison, Wis., released findings of a national consumer survey that says 38 percent correctly surmise people should be concerned about living a heart-healthy...
October 16, 2009
TROY, N.Y., Oct 12, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) - A Troy, N.Y., university is directing its students to knock off post-football drinking games because alcohol does not kill the H1N1 flu, officials said. In a message to students, officials at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute said the Troy campus had experienced 21 cases of H1N1 flu and 14 students are currently sick. "Our caseload is still low, but it is...
October 16, 2009
BALTIMORE, Oct 16, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) - Smoking bans are effective and even relatively brief exposures to secondhand smoke may lead to a heart attack, U.S. researchers say. A report by a committee of the Institute of Medicine confirms there is sufficient evidence that breathing secondhand smoke boosts non-smokers' risk for heart problems. "It's clear that smoking bans work," Lynn Goldman of the...
October 16, 2009
Oct. 15 - EVERY COMPANY HAS THEM - employees who get on the elevator and push the button for one floor down. Even gravitational pull isn't enough to get some people to exert themselves. Maritz Holdings is trying to change that. "Our CEO Steve Maritz was the one who wanted us to capitalize on the stairwells," says Sherry Ward, vice president of benefits. "He said, 'Wouldn't it be great if people were...
October 15, 2009
The words are in larger-than-average type. The message is simple: "The Blood Pressure Miracle." And Frank Mangano, health advocate and natural health writer, says that's all it takes to lower your blood pressure - naturally. Mangano combines stress reduction, herbs, vitamins, foods and exercise in a 60-day program that he says will change your life. "People don't want to read a lot of stuff, they just...
October 15, 2009
Oct. 16 - Maggie Harris can sum up in one word what it is like to be in remission from breast cancer: "wonderful." Harris and fellow breast cancer survivors Wanda Furches and Celeste Feimster, all co-workers at Carolina Office Systems, are celebrating Breast Cancer Awareness Month - and the gift of life. "This has happened to us for a reason," Harris said. "I really do feel like a survivor." Harris,...
October 15, 2009
Oct. 16 - While breast cancer survivors were honored at Thursday's Women Who Care show, Muskogee city employees chose to honor a co-worker who had passed on earlier this year. Sitting around their towering centerpiece, "Rusti's Rebels," wore matching bright pink T-shirts that bore the "We Can Do It" slogan from World War II. The table displayed their version of the muscle-flexing Rosie the Riveter...
October 15, 2009
A high percentage of people in the UAE suffer from chronic diseases related to poor nutrition such as obesity and diabetes due to poor nutrition, said Dr Sufyan Ahmad Othman, specialist clinical dietitian at Rashid Hospital. He was speaking on Thursday at an event to mark the World Food Day on Thursday, in association with the United Nations World Food Programme (UNWFP). "Almost 20 to 25 per cent of...
October 15, 2009
They're tiny pink reminders that someday there may be a cure for breast cancer. Seventy-five-year-old Jessie Williams of Montgomery spends hours, often late into the night, crafting miniature rocking chairs from the simplest of household tools - clothespins. And now Williams, a breast cancer survivor, is rocking those chairs for a cause dear to her heart. With the help of her son, Larry Williams, she...
October 15, 2009
Health-care professionals and other local leaders plan to hold a summit next week to address regional health-care issues, particularly obesity. Obesity is a major health problem, especially in the South. It contributes to many diseases, including diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. "We want to have a broad cross-section of government leaders, business leaders, education and community health...
October 15, 2009
COLLEGE PARK, Md., Oct 15, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) - Retirees who work a temporary or part-time job have fewer major diseases and are able to function better, U.S. researchers said. Study co-author Mo Wang of the University of Maryland and colleagues examined the national Health and Retirement study, sponsored by the National Institute on Aging. They used data from 12,189 participants who were between...
October 15, 2009
BOSTON, Oct 15, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) - U.S. researchers have found Parkinson's disease progresses more slowly in patients with higher levels of urate. Urate is a salt derived from uric acid. When the body cannot metabolize uric acid properly, urates can build up in body tissues or crystallize within the joints. The study, published online in the Archives of Neurology, found the disease progressed...
October 15, 2009
ATLANTA, Oct 8, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) - All U.S. primary care providers should screen adults for depression, officials of the American College of Preventive Medicine say. The ACPM, a national organization of physicians, announced new guidelines it says are in line with the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendation that primary care providers have systems in place to screen and treat depression....
October 14, 2009
As the battle over health care reform rages in Congress, Regence BlueCross BlueShield is using a slick Internet site, social media and billboards to say that consumers bear much of the blame for high premiums. The message isn't that bald, but it's there. "It really is about motivating people about the real cost of health care and how the choices they make each day impact those costs. To motivate consumers...
October 14, 2009
Oct. 15 - The H1N1 swine flu virus claimed the lives of three Utah women over the last week, as the flu season gets off to a rare early start. For two weeks in a row, the percentage of visits to Utah clinics for influenza-like illness has hovered around 3 percent - well above what is considered outbreak level, said Tom Hudachko, a spokesman for the Utah Department of Health. "It's actually considered...
October 14, 2009