Caring for children and family can often be more than a full time job. It pays to be organized. But are you as organized about your own healthcare needs. The number one killer of women today is heart disease and few women know their risks. Do you know the signs of a heart attack in men or women? Symptoms vary but having baseline EKG at your well visit will help pick up on abnormalities early-and maybe save your life. Only 30% of women survive their first heart attack. Often there…

Spring has given us some warm, sunny weather. It is nice to have sunny days and more opportunities to be outside. Even if it is just laying on a park lawn, the fresh air helps rejuvenate after a long winter. Maybe hiking, biking, climbing, running and outdoor sports are on your weekend agenda. Getting active it is great. But take precautions, too. Now that we have had weather over 60/62 degrees for many days, the bugs will come. With the flies and mosquitos, there will also be ticks. Just walking through a…

Family caregivers face a higher risk of depression than do non-caregivers. In fact, estimates show that between 40 to 70% of caregivers have clinically significant symptoms of depression.[i] And rates of depression increase as the health status of the care recipient decreases[ii] — higher levels of depression are seen in people caring for someone with a disorder that requires a great deal of hands-on care, such as dementia. According to the Family Caregiver Alliance, 30 to 40% of dementia caregivers suffer from depression and emotional stress. 

What are some of the reasons family caregivers…

From the day we are born, we age. It is inevitable. But did you know that the more sedentary you are, the less efficient all your organs become? And as we age, our ability to make up for this sedentary lifestyle decreases dramatically. As more children are diagnosed with what I refer to as ‘TOO MUCH Sitting Syndrome.’ From urinary incontinence, skin rashes on their laps from laptop computers, lack of normal sleep and chronic backpain and eyestrain, where will our children be at 30? 40? 50? Probably not well.…

Remember when you were a teenager and you had some big test, activity or responsibility coming up, how you tried but just could not sleep? Does it still happen today? Our ability to adjust to stressful events is often also reflected in our children. Yes, does our son or daughter react as you did? How difficult it was for you then and how difficult it is to watch your child going through that anxiety now. What is a parent to do? First, a certian level of anxiety is normal and…

The greatest impact on health can often be found in the mouth. Yes, the health of our teeth when they are first errupting (at a rapid rate in some young children) is when daily dental care should begin. Many pediatric dentists feel that as soon as teeth begin to show, the child should see a dentistm and “baby bottle tooth decay” should be discussed and prevented. Brushing, cleaning and overall oral hygiene should be a natural part of all children’s care. As they age, kids will become more independent and more efficient…

Hearing aids have come a long way in the past decade.  According to Dr. Paul Y. Takahashi of the Mayo Clinic, “In recent years, hearing aid manufacturers have made great strides in developing hearing aids that are more effective for all types of hearing loss — including high-frequency hearing loss, the most common type of age-related hearing loss.”¹ Of course, you may have to prepare your loved one for the fact that finding the right hearing aid, in terms of effectiveness, cost and comfort, may take some time.  They may have…

The latest research from Johns Hopkins University and the National Institute on Aging showed that seniors with hearing loss are significantly more likely to develop dementia over time than those who retain their hearing.¹ When I read this, I was expecting to see the suggestion that the use of hearing aids can, therefore, help prevent dementia. Unfortunately, that recommendation did not come (hearing aid use is the subject of the researchers’ next study).  So are there any lessons for a family caregiver of an elderly person who is exhibiting signs of hearing loss?

First, it…

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Our lifestyles are killing us. From the day we are born to the day we leave this world, a lot of us seem to be making the wrong choices. Why? Could it be that we think good health is not that important? Or could it be that we are not thinking so clearly given our poor diets, lack of exercise and electronic lifestyle?

Consider this: When was the last time you walked anywhere? If you live in a city, you may have walked to work. But if you are like most people,…

As news of the past week’s event in Newtown, Connecticut, flood all media, it is most difficult to understand why. Why a school? Were there any warning signs? What about the survivors? Children exposed to violence at any age need to have the compassion of a resposible adult to make sense out of the senseless acts that have occurred. Please do your best to curtail media exposure to your children. My television and internet were off most of the weekend, as I felt my children needed to understand, each in their own time, what…