Latest Stories

Most often, cognitive decline and dementia in adults is a result of Alzheimer’s disease. And poor sleep is a common Alzheimer’s symptom that actually makes the disease progress more quickly. But researchers dug into what makes the most difference: more sleep or deeper sleep?

Experiencing a UTI is miserable. They cause stomach and pelvic pain, nausea, an almost constant feeling that you need to urinate, and a burning sensation when you do. But a new discovery has pointed the way to a potential non-antibiotic treatment based on the body’s response to the infection that might stop a UTI before it starts.

Tryptophan is the amino acid that we all associate with that post-Thanksgiving meal slump. The truth, though, is that blame falls on the carbs. In fact, the maligned amino acid carries powerful benefits that can help us live happier and healthier, especially if you’re on the mature side…

Pomegranates have an extremely high antioxidant content. In fact, its juice has three times more antioxidants than either green tea or red wine! That’s just one of many reasons it’s considered a superfood. Another may be proof of what it did to particularly troublesome cholesterol numbers when it was put to the test…

As a whole we may be approaching a “leveling off” point in terms of life expectancy. In other words, we likely won’t live any longer than we do now, but worse, our life expectancy may actually grow shorter. Why? Blame these four key symptoms tied to one in five deaths — all with one thing in common…

If your vision just isn’t as sharp as it used to be, you might not think much of it. After all, many of us simply believe that failing eyesight is just a normal part of aging that’s nothing more than an inconvenience. But new research has found a suprising relationship between vision loss and risk of death….

The battle of the bulge isn’t just a challenging one, it can also be extremely confusing. There are so many questions… What diet will benefit me most? What foods should I not eat to lose weight — and what foods should I eat to lose weight? At least when it comes to grains, we have an answer: in a head-to-head weight loss battle, there’s one proven winner…

Thanksgiving is approaching and I am already full just thinking about how much I’ll eat that day. Then it’ll be December with Christmas parties. Come January 1, I’ll make the same New Year’s resolution I make every year—get skinny! But this year, I have an edge…

Focusing only on your brain to avoid dementia may be a big fail. That’s because blood pressure has been found to quietly accelerate brain aging. That’s worrisome enough for any of us with high blood pressure, but anyone relying on the changing definitions of what constitutes normal blood pressure could be in for a big surprise.

You may be one of the nearly 4 million Americans who take a daily probiotic to help support good health. If so, you’ll be happy to know that research shows caring for your gut microbiome can do more than keep your gut healthy — it may actually help you keep your muscles…

Mindful breathing has been shown effective at reducing pain — but not for everyone. If you’ve tried it for chronic pain and been disappointed, there’s good news. The way that traditional mindful breathing “engages the brain” doesn’t work for everyone. This simple hack can turn all of that around…

Cutting back on sodium can improve your blood pressure readings. You’ll reduce your risk for heart and kidney problems, and can try out some delicious herbs and spices so you don’t cheat your taste buds. But don’t be fooled! If you’re eating any of these 11 foods, you’re probably eating a lot more sodium than you think.

A hallmark feature of Alzheimer’s disease is the progressive accumulation of toxic protein deposits within the brain called beta-amyloid. Though we’ve learned a lot about the disease, researchers haven’t been sure where the amyloid originated from, or why it deposited in the brain. New research indicates a surprising source…

You already know poor oral health can lead to heart disease. Well, there’s another concerning connection, especially if you’re already experiencing tooth loss. A large meta-analysis of scientific studies found that once you start losing teeth, dementia could be just down the road. That means the sooner you tackle the underlying cause, the better. These supplements can help…

If you eat right and take a multi-vitamin, the thought of suffering a nutrient deficiency is the furthest thing from your mind. Besides, your doctor would let you know about it when he does your yearly blood work, right? But a silent deficiency is driving new cases of heart disease, partly because doctors could be unknowingly assessing a less accurate measure.

When it comes to your health, there are few things exercise can’t improve. It’s great for your muscles, bones, heart, brain and weight. Exercise also can even help you sleep better — as long as you stick to this golden rule that’s entirely about the one time of day to avoid exercise…

Images of the hearts of heavy, moderate, and light coffee drinkers reveal that people who drank coffee daily had hearts that were of a healthier size, and that functioned more efficiently. But it was the association between habitual coffee intake and the incidence of heart attack, stroke, and death that really raised eyebrows…

If you’re trying to maintain a certain weight or lose a few pounds, you may be relying on diet drinks to reduce the number of calories you consume. But in a sick twist of fate, those drinks may do the opposite, especially for women who seem to be the target of a newly discovered side effect of artificially sweetened drinks…

The image most people have of a heart attack comes from the movies. Suddenly and without warning, someone clutches their chest, moans, and falls to the ground, dead. But that cinematic version of a heart attack is misleading. Often there are signs that, if caught early enough, can turn that bad ending around.

I’d been hearing about amino acids for a while, mainly in the context of athletic performance. I’m not a triathlete or marathon runner, so I didn’t think they held any value for me. Boy was I wrong. Amino acids are the catalyst for nearly every physiological function that occurs in the body. Think energy, hormones, metabolism, sleep, cognition and more…. see what I mean?

For reasons doctors aren’t exactly sure about, some people with high blood pressure don’t respond as well to medication. Their hypertension is called “resistant.” Does that mean you’re at the end of the rope? Not at all. But you may have to work harder at it by going for a two-punch combo to bring it down…

Fall is a great time to try all the nutritious varieties of squash. Whether you pick acorn, butternut, or Japanese Kabocha, you’ll be getting your fill of fiber, vitamins, and carotenoids, with few calories and a low carb content. Best of all you may get a life-lengthening boost from this popular ‘blue zone’ superfood!

Obstructive sleep apnea doesn’t just steal sleep. It can wreak havoc with the heart, leading to problems like metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, stroke and type 2 diabetes. It’s certainly a condition to take seriously, especially now that we know it can double the risk of sudden death…

Not all fat is created equal. Belly fat, also called visceral fat, causes unhealthy chemical reactions in your body. Fat around your midsection puts you at greater risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke than being obese or overweight. To lower your risks, ditch these 12 habits…

Exercise is key for good health. But while some studies indicate walking does the trick, others suggest high-intensity interval training is the way to go. And what about the time you spend sitting? Can exercise counter those consequences? Here are the answers to all these questions and more, including what exercise boosts your fitness level three times as much.

Plaques are a hallmark sign of Alzheimer’s disease that accumulate in the brain over time. While there are drugs used in the treatment of Alzheimer’s, they don’t affect the pathophysiology of the disease at its source. But as research into CBD has revealed, there may be another way to halt the damage these plaques do…

HBOT treatment involves spending time in a special chamber, where air pressure levels are 1.5 to 3 times higher than average, breathing pure oxygen. The goal is to fill the blood with enough oxygen to repair tissues and restore normal body function. And that’s how it appears to have reversed the development of biological hallmarks that lead to Alzheimer’s.

With all of the symptoms women can experience during menopause, nighttime hot flashes may be the worst, as well as the most common. While most of us think of them as pain in the rear, there’s a darker side to them every woman should be aware of. As well as the one thing she can do to reduce the threat they pose to her heart health.

It’s been hammered into our heads that processed meats like bacon and sausage make us sick. That doesn’t make it any easier to eat less of these tasty foods. Luckily, researchers have identified a plant extract that not only may act as a substitute for the dangerous preservatives in processed meat, it may counteract their ill health effects.

CT scans help produce a coronary artery calification (CAC) score widely used to gauge the accumulation of arterial plaque. But that gold standard test meant to help you and your doctor stay ahead of any potential danger isn’t getting the complete picture…

A night out with friends, dinner or just a few relaxing minutes at the end of the day. Nothing caps off the moment like a glass of wine, beer or a shot of your favorite liquor. Responsibly, of course. But is any amount of alcohol safe? Exhaustive research has the answer most of us won’t like…

The number one priority of anyone living with diabetes is having the right amount of insulin at the right time. That usually means injections or insulin pumps. For most diabetics, a lifetime sentence of needle sticks. But what if you could get the insulin you need from a pill?

What if you could knowingly take a sugar pill and still experience real healing power? It sounds far fetched but there’s proof it works. In fact, chronic low back pain sufferers knowingly taking a placebo pill had far less pain than people taking painkillers. We think we know why…

These tips were shown to impact a key component that could turn off premature aging much quicker than creams. But it’s about more than how you look. You can protect yourself from age-related diseases, like heart disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers…

Even though people don’t always respond predictably to every kind of treatment, there are clear patterns of how your body works. Sometimes standard treatments and prescriptions work, and sometimes they don’t. You’ll be lucky to know those avenues are not your only choices…

Terrific snacks on their own, these dried fruits can be added to salads, baked goods, yogurt and any number of cooked dishes. And after you see how much they can impact your health, you won’t have an excuse not to incorporate them into your daily diet!

You’ve probably heard the term autoimmune disease before. Up to this point though, glaucoma has never been included in that list despite the fact that it affects nearly 70 million people worldwide. That could be changing, as well as advice on avoiding it…

Do you live alone? Without a husband, wife, girlfriend, boyfriend, brother, sister, son, daughter or roommate? Now, let me ask you another one… Do you feel lonely? Some people are perfectly content to spend time alone. But if you’re not one of them, it can lead to…

Constipation. It happens to everybody on occasion, unless you’re unfortunate enough to suffer from “chronic” constipation. Let’s hope not, because that kind of prolonged constipation is known to significantly boost colorectal cancer risk — and more…

It’s long been thought that increasing the amount of vegetables you eat could help lower risk for colorectal cancer, and that the reason was, well, fiber. But it’s been discovered that the key to stopping colon cancer is a compound produced when your body digests…

For years, we’ve assumed a low-carb diet is best for weight loss… Too much starch packs on the pounds, after all. So, with that nugget of wisdom, taking the bun off the hamburger seemed the right thing to do. If you want to live longer, put it back on…

There are a lot of changes that come with menopause but giving up sleep doesn’t have to be one of them. Use these tips to help overcome the hot flashes that keep you awake, balance your hormones and reset your body’s internal clock for a better night’s rest.

Antibiotics destroy the healthy bacteria we need to balance our gut health and prevent disease. Now, we’re learning that there’s an intimate connection among antibiotic use, gut bacteria and the growing number of people diagnosed with diabetes each year…

Accepted medical wisdom tells us that diabetes is caused by a perfect storm of obesity and over-consumption of refined sugar, causing insulin resistance. But recent studies show that a simple vitamin deficiency may be equally responsible…

If you’ve never had a migraine, you’re one of the lucky ones. But, if you or a loved one suffers from these severe headaches that can come on without warning, last until you don’t know if you can take another second and even land you in the emergency room, there is hope…

As if the worry that you or a loved one could end up with cancer isn’t enough, the costs and side effects of cancer treatment are enough to send anyone running for the hills. Luckily, researchers are looking into a new way to not only fight off cancer but also improve the success of some treatments…

There’s a name for a sudden drop in blood pressure that makes you feel faint, lightheaded or dizzy when you stand up. It’s called orthostatic hypotension. And it comes with obvious and less obvious dangers. Then there’s the huge harm it can do to your brain…

One in three adults has prediabetes. If you do, take healthy living very seriously, and I don’t just mean avoiding sugar. Because if you have prediabetes and you slack off on this ONE healthy habit, you could make the transition to type 2 diabetes faster than you can say “insulin.”

In order to maintain the optimal weight for your body and ward off disease you need to eat a well-rounded diet. At least that’s what the experts have been saying for years. But it turns out that old adage encouraging people to eat a wide variety of foods actually backfires…

Recently, I was reprimanded by a fellow physician. It wasn’t for prescribing antibiotics over the phone for a patient with symptoms that were likely viral, as this doctor did… but for suggesting a treatment that could help my patients rely less on mainstream medicine’s biggest money makers.

You know the saying, “You’re only as young as you feel?” There’s a lot more truth to that saying than you may think… and science is proving it. So, take an inventory of the activities, people, interests and hobbies that make you feel happy and alive, because people who feel younger age better. Believe what you want to believe. But be warned… there’s proof it might affect how you age.

If you’ve ever gone into your basement and smelled that musty, damp basement smell, there’s a good chance that with each sniff you’re breathing in a substance that can be at best unhealthy and at worst deadly.

CBD has strong anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-depressant, anti-tumor and neuro-protective qualities. It has been used to treat health conditions such as Crohn’s disease, anxiety, antibiotic-resistant infections, arthritis and more. Time to add Lyme disease to that list?

If you’re living with high blood pressure and feel like a heart attack waiting to happen, there’s an effective way to get your numbers under control, naturally… sort of from the bottom up. Three studies show your gut is an important tool in effectively managing hypertension…

It turns out, the ancient Chinese were on to something when they used a specialized therapy to tackle tumors. Research shows their go-to cure has serious cancer-fighting powers that target various tumor types. In fact, they say it’s the anti-cancer compound of the future…

If your doctor gave you a medication that worked so-so for it’s intended use, but after taking it you find you’ve traded one problem for a whole set of new ones, you might not be too happy, right? What if the new problems included stroke and risk of early death?

Ticks suck… in every sense of the word. First, they literally suck your blood (which is gross enough on it’s own). Then they have the nerve to inject you with bacteria and viruses that can make you extremely ill or even kill you. So, beware the new tick on the block…

While there have been many natural things that type 2 diabetics have been able to do to control their blood sugar and stave off those risks, so far patients living with type 1 have been left out in the cold. But, a new scientific study may have changed that for good…

Air pollution increases your risk of heart attack, stroke, arrhythmias and heart failure. These risks are especially high when you’re exposed to seriously polluted air. Or when you’re already at risk for heart problems due to age or poor health. But here’s the scary thing…

The traditional take on type 2 diabetes is that once your beta cells (those important cells in your pancreas responsible for creating, storing and releasing insulin) stop producing enough insulin, they’ll never return to normal. Well, that’s been blown out of the water…