If you’re a trauma survivor or dislike physical touch, health care visits may be hard. Physical touch has long been linked to the healing process of medicine. During physical exams, the laying on of hands — broadly known as therapeutic touch — offers many clues to help health practitioners decide on the best course of …
How to safely explore the joys of winter hiking. By midwinter, our urge to hibernate can start to feel constricting instead of cozy. What better antidote to being cooped up indoors than a bracing hike in the crisp air outdoors? Winter backdrops are stark, serene, and often stunning. With fewer people on the trail, you …
A new study provides encouraging evidence. Do you want to eat a healthier diet while helping to save the planet? Try becoming a vegetarian. You’ll avoid supporting an animal agriculture industry that emits huge amounts of greenhouse gases, and the foods you eat will lower your odds of developing heart disease and diabetes. Plant-based diets …
Can plant-based diets lower your risk of prostate cancer? Read More »
Chronic pain often fluctuates during the day and for some it worsens at night — but why? As many as one in five adults in the US — 50.2 million — experience chronic pain, according to a recent survey. These people usually encounter fluctuations in pain during the day: sometimes it’s better in the morning …
Research suggests regular outdoor time lowers risk for myopia, a vision problem on the rise worldwide. Turns out that when your mother told you to stop sitting near the TV or you might need glasses, she was onto something. Myopia, or nearsightedness, is a growing problem worldwide. While a nearsighted child can see close objects …
Curbing nearsightedness in children: Can outdoor time help? Read More »
It’s hard to care about anything when you feel exhausted, burned out, or ragged around the edges. Your once-fiery enthusiasm may seem more like charred rubble due to overwhelming family responsibilities, a job that drains you, or financial struggles. Or maybe an illness, the uncertainty and disruptions of the age we live in, or a …
Pouring from an empty cup? Three ways to refill emotionally Read More »
Pregnancy is often painted as a time of elation and joy, emotions many people may indeed feel. As doctors, though, it’s hard to ignore the health risks and the fears that can arise in the wake of a positive pregnancy test for some of our most vulnerable patients. Simply being pregnant poses significant short-term and …
All parents want their children to be successful in life — and by successful, we mean not just having a good job and a good income, but also being happy. And all parents wonder how they can make that happen. According to Harvard’s Center on the Developing Child, it’s less about grades and extracurricular activities, …
5 skills teens need in life — and how to encourage them Read More »
A long-term study explores risk factors for glaucoma and treatment options for people with high eye pressure. Often described as the silent thief of sight, glaucoma is the most common cause of irreversible blindness in the world. High pressure in the eye damages the optic nerve, first stealing peripheral vision (what you see at the …
Let’s file this under unsurprising news: many American adults report drinking more since the pandemic began in March 2020, according to a survey on alcohol use in the time of COVID-19. If you’re among them, you might want to start the new year on a healthy note by joining the millions who abstain from alcohol …
Thinking of trying Dry January? Steps for success Read More »