Health & Wellness

July is UV Awareness Month

I don’t know about you, but I love the hot summer sun. Days spent at the beach or on the golf course rank way up there in my book. But whether you like sand or snow, it’s always important to be mindful of the dangers of UV radiation. Here’s the Skinny. The bad news:...

read more

Heart attacks and strokes linked to PTSD

New research reveals that patients who suffer from a traumatic medical event may develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Typically associated with events such as battlefield combat or sexual assaults, PTSD can have debilitating effects. Studies conducted by Dr. Donald Edmondson and his colleagues found that nearly 25 percent of stroke patients and 12 percent...

read more

Possible Energy Drink Ban

The American Medical Association may recommend a ban of sales and advertising of “high-energy/stimulant drinks” to children and adolescents under the age of 18. As we have warned readers before, energy drinks can be especially dangerous to children. During a debate this weekend in Chicago, The AMA’s House of Delegates, its principle policy-making body,...

read more

Warning for Meat Tenderized with Needles

  Some grocers sell cuts of meat that have been mechanically tenderized.  Now, that may sound no different than machines wielding spikey meat-tenderizing hammers (like the one we all have shoved somewhere in the back of a kitchen drawer.) But for the food industry, the industrial method of meat tenderizing involves piercing the meat...

read more

FDA consider tougher regulations on tanning beds

Do you know how dangerous tanning beds are? Did you know that they increase your risk of melanoma by nearly 75 percent? We are in the middle of peak tanning season, as teenage girls and young women get ready for prom and summer weddings. However, tanning beds could soon be the latest products to...

read more

Is it safe? Gum, other snacks getting a caffeine boost

Most of us enjoy a morning coffee to get the day started, or a bottle of Mountain Dew to help get through the afternoon. Caffeine is part of most of our lives and generally is not thought of as being dangerous. But it can be dangerous if it is used in excess, especially in...

read more

Friends don’t let friends text and drive

By Arthur Elk Often, when we talk about peer pressure, it is in a negative light. But peer pressure can have a positive spin, too. In the battle to get teens to stop texting and driving, it appears that peer pressure may be the greatest weapon. According to a new national survey conducted by...

read more

Lawsuit blames Whirlpool for Clyde Cancer Cluster

Cancer is a horrific disease that has touched every one of us in some way. It is especially awful when children are struck by the disease. And if children are getting cancer because of a company’s wrong-doing, then someone must be held accountable. Can you imagine a company profiting while causing children to get...

read more

Prevent accidental poisonings: Keep medicines away from children

According to a new report released this week from Safe Kids Worldwide, every minute of every day, a poison control center receives a call about a potential medicine poisoning for a child age 5 and under. And 67,000 times each year, or every eight minutes, a young child goes to the emergency room for...

read more

Don’t Drink and Drive: Be Safe This St. Patrick’s Day

Sunday is St. Patrick’s Day and millions of Americans will be heading out to their local bar or pub to celebrate the holiday and drink. It is estimated that $245 million will be spent on alcohol. Every 51 minutes in this country, someone is killed in a drunk driving accident. The majority of the...

read more