Archive for the ‘General Health’ Category
Throat cultures A throat culture is done to find out if a throat infection is being caused by bacteria and, if so, to identify the specific bacteria. This can provide the doctor with important information. If the infection is due to a virus rather than to a bacterium, the doctor will know not to [...]
Boils are local infections that occur beneath the skin. They are almost always caused by a bacterium called hemolytic Staphylococcus aureus – called “staph,” for short. Boils are identified by redness, pain, and the formation of pus in the center, which tends to “point” (come to a head) and drain through the skin. Pus is [...]
Fancy cars, flowers, and expensive dinners are pretty normal parts of human courting behavior that are well-known for cutting a hunk out of a man’s paycheck, if not occasionally his ego. But does all of this courting also take a slice off his life? One British geneticist thinks so. “It’s well-established in many species that [...]
Just as negative emotions impair heart function, pleasant, relaxing emotions have a positive effect on the heart. It is very important to take time out of your day, even if it is only ten minutes to do something that makes you happy. Our lives can be busy and stressful, leaving no time for fun and [...]
Every day for the final three weeks of his life, the ailing King Charles V of Germany and Spain demanded to have a funeral service and to be carried around in the coffin that would eventually be used for his burial. After all, funerals are for the living, right? Though you won’t likely be able [...]
How can one go about changing personal health behaviour, especially among those whose motivation is low? One way is to control everything by law. Although many of us would resist this idea, our lives are already controlled far more than we often realize. Laws already control certain health behaviours, but where legal regulation is not [...]
Hypothyroidism is easily corrected by taking a daily tablet of T4 (from which the body can make T3). This treatment, taken indefinitely, can be prescribed by your regular doctor. Most people with hypothyroidism feel well after two to three months of taking the pills. Your doctor will probably start you on a low dose of [...]
If sufferers are living on their own, the time will probably come when it is no longer safe for them to be allowed to continue as they are. There is a limit to the amount of help that can be provided, unless a friend or relative can be present all the time or somebody can [...]
Difficulties with dressing fall into two basic categories. The first involves the selection of the right clothes and the second the ability to put them on properly. Selection of appropriate combinations may be helped by keeping clothes together in sets. This means hanging together the trousers, jackets, pullovers, shirts, etc., that go together. As the [...]
When it becomes apparent that a person’s memory is failing and that he or she is becoming muddled, relatives often feel that a good holiday will sort the situation out. This is rarely a good idea. Not only will routine be disturbed, but the environment will be completely unfamiliar and all sorts of problems can [...]