COVID boosters for the fall and beyond
While many Americans are trying to move on with their lives after two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. health officials are debating the best way to use vaccines to stay ahead of new variants of the coronavirus. A panel of U.S. vaccine experts met in early April to discuss key questions for future COVID-19 booster campaigns. The Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisers... READ MORE
Psoriasis study at NIH seeks volunteers
Three million Americans live with psoriasis — a scaly, itchy red skin rash — and so far, there’s no cure. Doctors don’t know what causes the condition, but the immune system and genetics are partly to blame. Researchers at NIH’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute are trying to determine how psoriasis affects the heart because “people who have inflammation conditions... READ MORE
Amazon’s Alexa can get you a doctor 24/7
If there is no doctor in the house, Amazon’s Alexa will soon be able to summon one. Amazon and telemedicine provider Teladoc Health are starting a voice-activated virtual care program that lets customers get medical help without picking up their phones. The service, for health issues that aren’t emergencies, will be available around the clock on Amazon’s Echo devices. Customers... READ MORE
When is it time to get cataract surgery?
Starting around age 40, the lenses of your eyes start becoming cloudy, a condition known as cataracts. In many people, cataracts eventually become so dense that their vision becomes blurry or distorted. By age 80, more than half of Americans will have developed a cataract or had cataract surgery. This surgery — a quick, safe procedure that involves replacing the clouded lens with a... READ MORE
Make meatballs with pesto for big flavor
For a new spin on meatballs, add basil pesto for big flavor. The pesto replaces the minced herbs, minced garlic and grated cheese in standard meatball recipes. Buy pesto from the refrigerated section of the supermarket — it has a fresher flavor than the jarred pesto sold in the grocery aisles. [Non-dairy vegan pesto made with nutritional yeast may also be used.] This kid-friendly... READ MORE
Beer-braised chicken with root veggies
Did you know that the grocery store isn’t the only place to get fresh produce? A growing number of companies, such as Imperfect Foods, Seasonal Roots and Hungry Harvest, will deliver a basket of fresh fruits and vegetables to your house every week. With these subscription-based services, you can receive fresh-picked local produce — and, in some cases, unique, artisanal products like... READ MORE
Ways to maintain your feel-great weight
Does this pattern sound familiar? You follow a strict diet and lose weight but then, on reaching your goal, you ditch the diet and gain the pounds back. If you want to shed weight once and for all (and stop torturing yourself with restrictive dieting and constant hunger!), focus on adopting healthy eating and exercise habits that are balanced and livable. Small changes to your daily... READ MORE
For more happiness, try fewer choices
If the events of the past two years have left you feeling emotionally deflated, you’re not alone. Cheer has been in short supply during the pandemic, and you may be in serious need of a mood boost. Yet while this slice of time may have been unusually stressful, people often struggle to find happiness even in normal times. This is why the field of positive psychology first emerged in... READ MORE
What do they mean by male menopause?
Q: Do men go through a phase of menopause similar to what women experience? A: Like women, men experience a drop in sex hormone levels as they age. But in men, the pace of these changes is quite different. In women, levels of estrogen — the primary female sex hormone — remain high for many decades. Then, around age 50, the levels plunge over a period of about five years. The... READ MORE
What supplements can and can’t claim
Today, I was reminded about the special regulations required for dietary supplements. It occurred when an Amazon representative called me to tell me that one word describing my sleep formula supplement implied it was for a disease. That word was “aid,” as in the term “sleep aid,” which was on the description page. That wording implies it treats the disease of... READ MORE
