Moody quaranteen? What parents should watch for and do
To keep us safe from COVID-19, health experts tell us that we need to stay home and away from other people. This is particularly hard for teens, because their stage of life is all about their peers and becoming independent from their family.
So it’s not surprising that the pandemic has been hard on the mental health of teens.
Harder on some teens, easier on others
It hasn’t been hard on all of them. Some of my teen patients who get stressed by social situations have been relieved to be home, for example, and teens who get along with their parents and siblings enjoy being with them more. And it certainly helps that many...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 27, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Claire McCarthy, MD Tags: Health Source Type: blogs
2 easy, affordable, plant-centered dinners
Plant-based diets have taken root in American culture in recent years, mostly thanks to the growing realization about the health benefits of this eating pattern. But contrary to what some people think, plant-based doesn’t necessarily mean you must forego all animal products. Rather, you might just eat meat or dairy products less frequently, or in smaller portions. To replace those lost calories, you should eat more beans and legumes, vegetables, whole grains, and fruits. These mostly low-fat, nutrient-rich foods have been linked to improvements in many health-related issues, including high blood pressure, diabetes, and h...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 25, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Julie Corliss Tags: Cooking and recipes Food as medicine Healthy Eating Source Type: blogs
The sequence of hormonal therapy and radiation affects outcomes in men treated for prostate cancer
A common treatment for men with intermediate-risk prostate cancer is to combine radiation with drugs that block testosterone — a hormone that makes the tumors grow faster. (This type of treatment is also called androgen deprivation therapy, or ADT).
New research is suggesting the sequence of these treatments may be crucially important.
Dr. Dan Spratt, a professor of radiation oncology at the University of Michigan, led the research. He and his colleagues pooled data from two previously published clinical trials (here and here). Taken together, the studies enrolled just over 1,000 men who had been randomly assigned to one...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 24, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Charlie Schmidt Tags: Living With Prostate Cancer Prostate Knowledge Treatments HPK Source Type: blogs
Age-related macular degeneration: Early detection and timely treatment may help preserve vision
Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) is the leading cause of blindness in adults over the age of 60. As its name implies, the condition primarily affects the macula, which is the region of the retina responsible for central vision. A person whose macula is impacted by retinal disease may develop difficulty with tasks such as reading and driving, but maintain good peripheral vision.
If you have ARMD, understanding the signs and symptoms, proper monitoring, early detection of advancing disease, and timely treatment are all key to preserving vision.
Stages of age-related macular degeneration
ARMD may be classified as early...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 24, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Anthony Joseph, MD Tags: Eye Health Source Type: blogs
Driving equity in health care: Lessons from COVID-19
Editor’s note: Third in a series on the impact of COVID-19 on communities of color, and responses aimed at improving health equity. Click here to read part one and here for part two.
If there is a silver lining of COVID-19, it’s that it has required us to address monumental health care disparities, particularly racial and ethnic disparities. I’ve been working on health care disparities for more than two decades, yet I’ve never seen our health system move so fast. Across the US, those of us in health care have been scrambling to bridge gaps and better understand why COVID-19 disproportionally impacts communities...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 23, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Aswita Tan-McGrory, MBA, MSPH Tags: Coronavirus and COVID-19 Health Health care disparities Health policy Source Type: blogs
Treating the pain of endometriosis
Many women suffer through years of painful menstrual periods before they are able to get an answer about what’s causing them: a common and often undiagnosed condition called endometriosis.
What is endometriosis?
Endometriosis is a condition that occurs when tissue much like the tissue that lines a woman’s uterus — called the endometrium — starts to grow in other places inside the body. Most commonly, these growths are within the pelvis, such as on the ovaries, the fallopian tubes, the outer surface of the uterus, or the bladder.
During the menstrual cycle each month, the tissue lining the uterus grows thicker, then...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 20, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Kelly Bilodeau Tags: Pain Management Stress Surgery Women's Health Source Type: blogs
Masks save lives: Here ’s what you need to know
Surging COVID-19 rates throughout the country and in many parts of the world make our efforts to protect ourselves and others more important than ever. Yes, the predictions are dire, but we are not helpless. Experts estimate we can save hundreds of thousands of lives and considerably boost the chances of controlling the pandemic if we all commit to wearing a mask and follow familiar preventive measures: maintain physical distance; wash hands frequently; avoid others if you’re sick; and isolate yourself and get tested if you have close contact with someone who has the disease.
So, why do we believe masks work?
Early in th...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 19, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Robert H. Shmerling, MD Tags: Behavioral Health Coronavirus and COVID-19 Infectious diseases Prevention Source Type: blogs
7 strategies for partnering up with ED
Erectile dysfunction (ED) doesn’t affect only men; it extends to their partners as well. After all, the sexual difficulties are also theirs.
Still, men are often reluctant to talk about their ED. They feel embarrassed and guilty, and consider themselves less “manly.” It’s a lot to deal with. But significant others can help by offering much-needed emotional and physical support.
How can you broach such a sensitive topic, and what role should a partner specifically play? Here are seven suggestions.
Discuss the issue
Good communication is the foundation of an enduring relationship. Confront any concerns you may have a...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 19, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Matthew Solan Tags: Health Healthy Aging Men's Health Relationships Sex Source Type: blogs
Hypertension, health inequities, and implications for COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic has led many people to forego follow-up and treatment of chronic health conditions such as hypertension (high blood pressure). It is now quite evident that people with hypertension are also more likely to develop severe complications from the coronavirus. In the US, African Americans and other racial and ethnic minorities, including Hispanics and Native Americans, are more likely to have hypertension, and consequently have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
What is the link between high blood pressure and heart disease?
Hypertension is the most common modifiable risk factor for...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 18, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Hanna Gaggin, MD, MPH Tags: Coronavirus and COVID-19 Health care disparities Hypertension and Stroke Source Type: blogs
Migraine headaches: Could nerve stimulation help?
Are you one of the 20 million to 40 million people in the US suffering with migraine headaches? If so, here’s news worth noting: The FDA has just approved an over-the-counter nerve stimulation device that delivers mild electrical shocks to the forehead as a way to prevent or treat migraine headaches.
This might seem like an unlikely way to treat migraines, so how did we get here? And what’s the evidence that it works? Is this a game changer? Hype? Or a treatment that falls somewhere in between?
Our changing understanding of what causes migraines
Blood vessels throughout the body, including those near the brain, narrow ...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 17, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Robert H. Shmerling, MD Tags: Headache Health Migraines Pain Management Prevention Source Type: blogs
College student coming home? What to know and do
Because of the pandemic, many college students are coming home to finish the semester, either because of cases on campus, or because colleges are sending everyone home for Thanksgiving and not having them come back until the next term.
This situation requires some thought and planning, so as to keep everyone safe — and sane. Here are some things families need to think about.
Will your college student bring the COVID-19 virus home with them?
Many colleges have been having outbreaks, and infections can be asymptomatic. How you handle the return of college students to your household depends on the situation at their school,...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 16, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Claire McCarthy, MD Tags: Adolescent health Coronavirus and COVID-19 Parenting Source Type: blogs
Birth control and high blood pressure: Which methods are safe for you?
Three effective forms of birth control contain the hormone estrogen: the birth control patch, combined hormonal birth control pills, and a vaginal ring. Doctors have typically recommended that women avoid birth control with estrogen if they have high blood pressure, which current US guidelines define as 130 mm Hg systolic pressure and 80 mm Hg diastolic pressure, or higher. A recent clinical update in JAMA clarifies whether it’s safe for some women with high blood pressure to use these forms of birth control.
Why does blood pressure matter when choosing birth control?
Birth control containing estrogen can increase blood ...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 13, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Huma Farid, MD Tags: Adolescent health Family Planning and Pregnancy Hypertension and Stroke Women's Health Source Type: blogs
Quarantine snacking fixer-upper
The “battle of the bulge” gained a new foe this year: quarantine snacking. Sales of snack foods like cookies and crackers shot up in the early days of lockdowns, and recent consumer surveys are finding that people have changed their eating habits and are snacking more.
We don’t yet have solid evidence that more snacking and consumption of ultra-processed food this year has led to weight gain. While memes of the “quarantine 15” trended on social media earlier this year, only a few small studies have suggested a link between COVID-19-related isolation and weight gain. But you don’t need scientific evidenc...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 12, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Heidi Godman Tags: Diet and Weight Loss Healthy Eating Nutrition Source Type: blogs
A new Alzheimer ’ s drug: From advisory panel to FDA — what ’ s at stake here?
It’s been more than 17 years since the FDA last approved an Alzheimer’s drug. Will Biogen’s drug, called aducanumab, end this drought? The FDA will decide by March 2021, based on its own analysis of clinical trial data and an advisory panel’s review of the evidence.
How does the drug work?
Aducanumab is a monoclonal antibody engineered in a laboratory to stick to the amyloid molecule that forms plaques in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s. Most researchers believe that the plaques form first and damage brain cells, causing tau tangles to form inside them, killing the cells. Once aducanumab has stuck to the pl...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 12, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Andrew E. Budson, MD Tags: Alzheimer's Disease Brain and cognitive health Healthy Aging Medical Research Memory Source Type: blogs
Drugstore skincare: Science-backed anti-aging ingredients that don ’t break the bank
With a sharp increase in working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, more people are noticing age-related skin changes up close on their videoconference calls.
The good news? You don’t need to rush to the dermatologist for your anti-aging needs. The best skincare regimens to combat the cardinal signs of aging, which include uneven skin tone, fine lines, roughness, and dryness, can start from the comfort of your own home. You don’t need a prescription, time to get to a dermatologist, or deep pockets to score quality products.
Here are a few science-backed, dermatologist-favorite ingredients that can help to slow, or...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - November 11, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Neera Nathan, MD, MSHS Tags: Skin and Hair Care Source Type: blogs
