Preventing the Pickling Process

     Some diseases, such as bronchitis, are curable. Others, like diabetes, are not. I once heard it explained like this: Once you have diabetes, you will always have it. You can manage it, but you will never again not be diabetic. It’s like a cucumber and a pickle. Once a cucumber is pickled, it will never again be a cucumber. It will always be a pickle.

     But what if you could stop the pickling process before the cucumber turns into a pickle? Well, I don’t know if you can stop that process, but you can stop (maybe forever, or at least for a while) the progression of Type 2 diabetes.

How?

Beyond the CT Scan Scare

     We all know bad news sells. Turn on the news and you’ll see raging wildfires, random shootings, and drought-stricken cornfields. In the last few months, the media has spotlighted an increase in people getting larger and perhaps more dangerous doses of radiation from CT scans. Could we be getting too much of a good thing?

Vaccines: Good or bad?

     In recent years, vaccination was the topic of much debate and discussion. There were claims that vaccines were causing autism spectrum disorders, and some parents decided to not vaccinate their children. I spoke with Dr. Gail Callaway from Smithsburg Family Medical Center to clear the air.

Why is it important to vaccinate your children?

Keeping Your Child Healthy this School Year

     It’s a happy time of year for many parents: back to school means back to a standard schedule. But rejoining twenty-some classmates can mean back to germs. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 40% of children aged 5–17 years miss three or more school days in the school year because of illness or injury. Younger children, or those with compromised immune systems, are even more likely to be on the receiving end of germs. 

Thinspiration

     Some of you may have heard of thinspiration, or “thinspo” as it is commonly called. Thinspo is generally defined as anything that provides inspiration for people to become thin. This includes sayings such as, “Nothing tastes as good as being skinny feels,” or pictures of very thin models or celebrities. Thinspo can also be pulled from books or song lyrics, such as this line, “I don't care if it hurts, I wanna have control, I want a perfect body,” from the song “Creep” by Radiohead.

      Thinspiration is often found on sites that are “pro-ana”(pro-anorexia) or “pro-mia” (pro-bulimia). Pro-ana sites are, at best, sites that provide a support group for people battling with anorexia, and at worst, sites that offer a how-to on becoming anorexic. Pro-mia sites are similar, except they focus more on bulimia.

Who Knew a Liver Could be Fat?

     There’s a silent liver disease gaining momentum and it’s riding on the heels of the obesity epidemic. I recently sat down with gastroenterologist Dr. Shahin Rahimian of Digestive Disorders Consultants to learn about nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and a more serious condition called nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

     Most of us know that drinking too much alcohol can harm the liver, causing scarring and inflammation known as cirrhosis. But did you know that carrying excess weight could be just as harmful to your liver as drinking too much alcohol? When fat accumulates in the liver—an organ that is not supposed to store fat—the liver’s health can be seriously affected, and possibly lead to liver failure or cancer.

Exercise and the Active Recovery

     Did you know that when you do a new or challenging workout, your muscles get stronger by breaking down and rebuilding? When this process occurs, muscles create waste products that can cause muscle soreness. A workout recovery period circulates blood through the muscles, removing waste product and re-oxygenating the muscles, according to Karla Trotta, physical therapist at Total Rehab Care.

Who Needs a Recovery Period?

Up All Night

Everyone knows someone who snores. Maybe it’s your spouse and you have resorted to wearing earplugs to bed. Perhaps it is Grandpa John who sounds like a freight train in the guest bedroom every Christmas. We have all had long and sleepless nights because of a snorer, but did you know that snoring can be a major health risk?

For some people snoring is the most recognizable symptom of a condition called Sleep Apnea. Additional symptoms of sleep apnea are excessive daytime sleepiness, morning headaches, snoring, breathing stopping during sleep, memory and concentration problems, restless tossing and turning, and waking with an unrefreshed feeling after a full night’s sleep.

Fast Action Required for Brain Attack

     You probably know someone who’s suffered a stroke. I know of two people, and both of them were under the age of sixty. Well, I guess you could say that I knew Dick Clark–I spent many New Year’s Eve parties with him. For people who experience an ischemic stroke (caused by a blood clot blocking a blood vessel or artery in the brain), the sooner treatment begins, the better the chances for recovery.

     Why is fast action so important for stroke victims?