We are starting another new year and that tends to be accompanied by those resolutions that all of us make and most of us break! I would like to propose a little different approach this year. It involves finding small ways to make a big difference. Most people break their resolutions because they are too hard to fulfill. Here are five suggestions: Eat healthy Rather than focusing on weight loss, why not focus on just eating healthy and cutting out the junk. Pick one food that you tend to splurge on. For me it is French fries! Decide not to eat that food unless you are going to have a time that... Read More

With all the good will and cheer of this season, how can it be a dangerous one? Because it is often the season of “too much.” We may party too much, spend too much, drink too much alcohol, smoke too many cigarettes, and of course, eat too much. But this isn\’t a lecture on moderating all of those activities we overdo every December. This is about sweets. Sugar. Simple carbs. (A clarification here: by “sweets” I mean simple carbohydrates only, or those foods that go directly into your bloodstream as sugar, such as cakes, candy, pastries, white breads and ice cream.... Read More

Do you have a daughter; granddaughter or a friend who you think might be involved in an abusive relationship with an intimate partner? There may be real cause to worry. According to a national survey, twenty-two percent of women 18 and over will experience domestic violence in their lifetime. One of the red flags is a partner who is possessive. Young girls are particularly vulnerable. In the beginning of a relationship, they may mistake possessiveness for caring. Initially it may make them feel loved and special. What you need to watch for if you are worried about your friend or loved one is... Read More

All the talk about this past summer being the 40th anniversary of the famous “summer of love” got me thinking. Do you actually remember the “summer of love,” or at least the years surrounding it? The invention and availability of “The Pill,” and the then-new practice of “free love” (remember, “Make Love, Not War?”) led directly to the sexual revolution for which our generation became famous. What you maybe did not hear so much about was the increase in sexually transmitted infections (STIs) as a result of that revolution. Take genital... Read More

No, this month\’s column is not about your memory. Nor is it about weight. Rather, it\’s about an all-too-common problem that many of us face at this age – urinary incontinence. And why discuss it now, during the last days of summer? Because of the unusually hot weather this summer, hopefully you\’ve been drinking lots of fluids to keep from getting dehydrated. Increasing fluid intake is just one of many things which can increase urinary incontinence. But more on that in a minute. Exactly what is urinary incontinence (UI)? First of all it\’s a symptom, not a disease,... Read More

It\’s officially summer, and with this season comes a more relaxing pace for you (hopefully), an increased variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, water sports, beach reading, and of course more exposure to the sun. Regardless of how much is out there about sun protection, I still find the topic, and the array of products, confusing. First, what we do know. Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the United States, with over one million cases diagnosed each year. The most common type of skin cancer, squamous cell carcinoma (scc), has been proven to be caused by sun exposure so... Read More

For the past couple of months, we\’ve been talking about the risk factors for heart disease. This month we\’ll discuss cigarette smoking. We all know the dangers of smoking, but for some, it is really hard to quit. That is especially true for women. Women have a harder time quitting than men. No one is quite sure why this happens, but it is something that psychologists are studying. The Evils of Smoking Smoking is the number one preventable cause of premature death in our country. It accounts for over 400,000 deaths a year. It increases the risk of heart attack and stroke by causing... Read More

Many women have high cholesterol and are totally unaware of it. Nearly two thirds of women at highest risk of heart attack, and death from heart disease, are not being treated appropriately to lower their cholesterol. That is why it is so important that you know what your levels are and what they mean! What is cholesterol? Cholesterol is found in every cell of the body. It is important for building hormones. When there is too much cholesterol in the body it can deposit in blood vessels and cause inflammation. Eventually it can cause a build up of plaque with narrowing and eventually... Read More

Since the last two medical columns were about heart disease and the risk factors for it, Janet and I decided that it made sense to talk about those individual risk factors in detail. I\’ll begin with high blood pressure, also known as hypertension. This is another of those health problems which most often has no symptoms. But don\’t let that fool you. Though silent, high blood pressure can be deadly. According to recent research 40% of postmenopausal women have “prehypertension”. This is a condition where the blood pressure is not normal but is not quite at the hypertension... Read More

Since the last two medical columns were about heart disease and the risk factors for it, Janet and I decided that it made sense to talk about those individual risk factors in detail. I\’ll begin with high blood pressure, also known as hypertension. This is another of those health problems which most often has no symptoms. But don\’t let that fool you. Though silent, high blood pressure can be deadly. According to recent research 40% of postmenopausal women have “prehypertension”. This is a condition where the blood pressure is not normal but is not quite at the hypertension... Read More