Recently added articles from National Women's Health Report:
Women & health care reform.
Mar 01, 2009 ... When Joy Lindquist lost her job as a health educator in 2004, she lost more than just a paycheck. She also lost her health insurance. Although she could have continued her health benefits by paying the entire premium, the $300 a month cost was more than she could afford. Hoping to make it ...
The doctor is in (Online): don't be surprised if the next time you talk to your health care professional it's through a videoconferencing setup, e-mail or a cell-phone text.
Mar 01, 2009 ... These days, clinicians are using electronic texts for quick consults, to send reminders to their patients about appointments and to keep a cellular "eye" on hospitalized patients and by receiving text alerts if their condition changes. Meanwhile, some doctors have turned to ...
Personalized medicine: the time is now; six years after scientists successfully sequenced the entire human genome, the results are changing nearly every aspect of medicine.(AGES & STAGES)
Mar 01, 2009 ... "There have been some spectacular successes with genetic information that are beginning to have a significant impact on the care and treatment of patients today," says Geoffrey S. Ginsburg, MD, PhD, who directs the Center for Genomic Medicine in the Duke Institute for Genome Sciences & ...
Commonly asked questions & answers about being uninsured.(ASK THE EXPERT)
Mar 01, 2009 ... Q: I don't have health insurance. Can local "minute clinics" provide my health care needs? A: Ideally, you should have a primary care provider who gets know you and who can provide the kind of comprehensive preventive, acute and chronic care everyone needs and deserves. Having ...
Navigating the health care system: no matter what happens with health reform over the next year, big changes will take time. So you still need to be savvy about how to get the best possible care at the best price for yourself and your family.(LIFESTYLE CORNER)
Mar 01, 2009; ... Here's what I've learned over the years from being on both sides of the issue. * Know your policy. Do not, repeat, do not, expect your health care professional or his or her office staff to know what your policy covers. They are typically dealing with a dozen or more health ...
Women: living well aging well.
Nov 01, 2008 ... New Jersey-based consultant Kate Nothinger,* 50, views her life in terms of "before" and "after." Before was seven years ago, when she spent 75 percent of her time traveling for business, when her cholesterol remained high despite hours of exercise on the treadmill, and when her attitude ...
Women & vitamin D: what do you think of when you think of vitamin D? Osteoporosis? Rickets? The sun? How about colon cancer? High blood pressure? Muscle aches? Multiple sclerosis?
Nov 01, 2008 ... The truth is, vitamin D, more commonly known as the "sunshine vitamin" because sunlight provides our greatest source, may be one of the most important vitamins we know of in terms of long-term health. Unlike other nutrients, it acts more like a hormone than a vitamin, directly affecting ...
Aging: myths & facts: think you know the facts about growing older? Think again.(AGES STAGES)
Nov 01, 2008 ... Myth: Dementia is an inevitable part of aging. FACT: "Dementia should be seen as a modifiable health condition and, it it occurs, should he followed as a medical condition, not a normal part of aging," said Patricia Harris, MD, a geriatrician and associate professor at ...
Repeat after me: it's not how long but how well we live: aging is not a disease. It is simply the unstoppable passage of time and the effects of time on every cell and tissue in your body. Even if we cured every disease, we'd still only increase average lifespan about 15 years.(LIFESTYLE CORNER)
Nov 01, 2008; ... The question, then, isn't how long you live; it's how well you live. Along those lines, I have two words for you: oxidation and inflammation. The former is the process by which cellular byproducts called free radicals damage healthy cells, triggering changes that can lead to cancer, heart ...
Women & anxiety disorders.
Feb 01, 2008 ... Vicky Marchand * was in her 20s when she had her first panic attack. Always a very religious person, she was in church when a woman wearing a deeply cut V-neck top approached her. "I noticed her cleavage, and that's when the panic attack hit, "said Ms. Marchand, who is now 47. "It felt ...
Women & posttraumatic stress disorder.
Feb 01, 2008 ... If the words "posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)" bring to mind battle-scarred men returning from war, you're not alone. "Until the last 15 to 20 years, we thought of PTSD as battle fatigue," said Jerilyn Ross, LICSW, president and CEO of the Anxiety Disorders Association of America ...
Commonly asked questions & answers about anxiety disorders.(ASK THE EXPERT)
Feb 01, 2008; ... Q I'm worried about my 72-year-old mother. Lately she's been loathe to leave the house. She's quit her garden club and her bowling league for no good reason that I can see. She's in pretty good health and still drives. Any idea what could be going on? A There are a number of ...
Children & anxiety disorders.(AGES STAGES)(Disease/Disorder overview)
Feb 01, 2008 ... Given that anxiety disorders are among the most common psychiatric conditions seen in children and adolescents, it's amazing that, as Jerilyn Ross, LICSW, of the Anxiety Disorders Association of American says, "Twenty years ago we didn't even think children had anxiety disorders." ...
Anxiety: things you can do to beat it.(LIFESTYLE CORNER)(Disease/Disorder overview)
Feb 01, 2008; ... If you suspect you have an anxiety disorder, I urge you to get the appropriate diagnosis and treatment from a mental health professional. But in addition to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and medication, there are some things you can do on your own to enhance your treatment. ...
Women & health screenings.
Dec 01, 2007 ... Jeannie Marcom* knows the value of health screenings more than most women. The 53-year-old NJ woman is a medical writer; she documents the consequences of skipped screenings all the time. And yet, she admits, "I hate doing medical screenings." For instance, she's never had a colonoscopy, ...
Preventive health screenings for women.
Dec 01, 2007 ... <Pre> PREVENTIVE HEALTH SCREENINGS FOR WOMEN (22,23) What When Why Dental exam andAt least once a year; twice a To remove plaque and cleaning year is best. bacteria that could ...
Spirometry: ask about it; Have you ever smoked? Find yourself hacking most mornings, maybe spitting a glob of sputum into the sink? Do you get breathless when you walk with your (much) older neighbor? Then it's time to ask your health care professional about a test called spirometry.
Dec 01, 2007 ... Spirometry is a simple test that measures your lung function, or how well you breathe in and out. It is the only way to definitely know if you have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD. This is a serious medical condition in which your lungs do not completely empty themselves of ...
Colon cancer screening: don't delay it.
Dec 01, 2007 ... "It was no big deal. I don't understand why people stress over it." "The procedure itself was totally painless and relatively easy." "It was a piece of cake." No, we didn't pay these 50-something women to give us these comments about their first ...
Women & cervical cancer screening.(AGES & STAGES)
Dec 01, 2007 ... Your annual gynecologic exam ... While no number of mobiles or creative artwork on the ceiling can change the uncomfortable nature of an exam that begins with putting your feet into the stirrups, it's definitely worth it. As noted on page 2, cervical cancer rates are down 70 percent since ...
Commonly asked questions & answers about screening tests.(ASK THE EXPERT)
Dec 01, 2007 ... Q I am 33 years old and had my second child five months ago. I just haven't been myself ever since. I can't seem to lose the baby weight, even though I'm breastfeeding and exercising. I feel really tired, down and cold all the time. I don't remember feeling like this after my first ...