Online Features
Health & Wellness
How to get a discount on expensive health care prescriptions
(BPT) - After Carol Vanderploeg’s family experienced a double-job loss last spring; she worried about affording the $1,300 average monthly cost of her husband’s epilepsy prescriptions. The couple only had enough pills to last a few months when they moved to Augusta, Ga., in search of new jobs. Even after finding anothe...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
Flu season etiquette tips from The Emily Post Institute
(BPT) - When the flu hits, manners may not be the first thing that comes to mind. Yet, good “flu etiquette” and hygiene can go a long way in helping to prevent the spread of influenza. While most Americans recognize that the flu virus spreads easily, they admit to sometimes forgetting their manners when they have the ...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
Is fraud in your future? Protect yourself from medical identity theft
(BPT) - With millions of Americans slated to gain access to healthcare under the Affordable Care Act, many may find themselves unknowingly at risk for medical identity theft, a crime that costs the country $41.3 billion annually. In the United States, an estimated 1.5 million people have their ID stolen each year. “It ...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
How to talk to a loved one about the difficult subject of hearing loss
(BPT) - Full of festive gatherings, this time of year brings us close to friends and family. But if you know someone suffering from hearing loss, it may be hard for you both to fully enjoy time together. You can help improve your loved one’s quality of life by addressing the problem with understanding and care. With a f...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
Tips for traveling safely with your food-allergic child
(BPT) - Traffic delays, long wait times and hungry little tummies – for all the rewards of spending time with your children, traveling with kids can be a challenge. But when the child has food allergies, those challenges can start to look like insurmountable - and even life-threatening - obstacles. “It is possible to t...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
Help stay healthy this holiday season with a flu shot [Infographic]
With flu season in full swing, older adults need to know that getting a flu shot doesn’t just help keep them healthy, it also helps prevent the spread of the flu to family and friends. This is particularly important during the holidays because family members of all generations spend time together in close quarters increasing the risk of spreading the flu. Individuals may be infected with the flu and spread it several days before showing symptoms. Older adults are particularly at risk for in...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
A new year brings opportunity for a new you
(BPT) - The new year is widely accepted as a time to start fresh, and every year people make resolutions to better themselves. For many, this means vowing to make lifestyle changes to improve how they look and feel. However, sticking to restrictive diets and intense workout programs can be difficult and not sustainable ...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
Women urged to speak up about silent symptom of menopause
(BPT) - Mood swings, hot flashes and night sweats are common complaints from women going through menopause. But there is another common menopause symptom that is affecting millions of women, yet only 25 percent of sufferers seek medical help. Vaginal discomfort, which may be caused by a condition called vaginal atrophy...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
The health secrets that women keep
(BPT) - Secret bottles in the medicine cabinet? Frequent trips to the bathroom? Moodiness, fatigue or changes in social behavior? Everyone has secrets – that’s no surprise. But whether little or big, secrets can make a real difference in quality of life. When it comes to women keeping their health issues to themselves,...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
Often overlooked, monitoring bone health is key for patients with blood cancer
(BPT) - An aching back is painful and inconvenient for anyone, but for people living with multiple myeloma, an incurable blood cancer, pain in the back and ribs can signal that the cancer has spread to their bones. Multiple myeloma is the second most common blood cancer in the U.S., with an estimated 70,000 adult Americans living with the disease and another 21,000 new cases expected to be diagnosed in 2012. According to Dr. James Berenson, medical and scientific director at the Institute f...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
Commitment is the new resolution
(BPT) - The tradition of new year’s resolutions has been around 4,000 years, when Babylonians saw fit to start the year off right by making promises to the gods. Today, such promises are a media phenomenon, designed to be broken. “One reason most new year’s resolutions usually fail before the end of January is because ...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
Seven ways to a healthy home: Make wellness a priority this winter
(BPT) - During the winter months, it’s important to take extra care of your home, your family and especially yourself. In addition to taking steps to prevent cold and flu viruses that are common at this time of year, you should also pause to relax and recharge, if only for a few minutes each day. Luckily, there are a...
by
ARA
Site 1
full story
By Richard Cowan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Supporters of U.S. immigration reform are hoping that the smooth and drama-free passage of their legislation through a Senate committee - a departure from almost everything that has happened in Congress over the past four years - will boost the likelihood of the bill winning full Senate approval. Even Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa, the senior Republican on the Judiciary Committee who voted against the immigration bill on Tuesday, told Reuters TV that the "very fair" debate by the panel "does improve its chances. ...
By Carey Gillam and Ian Simpson MOORE, Oklahoma (Reuters) - Tornado survivors thanked God, sturdy closets and luck in explaining how they lived through the colossal twister that devastated an Oklahoma town and killed 24 people, an astonishingly low toll given the extent of destruction. At least one family took refuge in a bathtub and some people shut themselves in underground shelters built into their houses on Monday when the powerful storm tore through the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore. ...