Online Features
Health & Wellness
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Staying at the top of your game
(BPT) - We feel our best when we do our best. At the top of our game is where we all want to be. This is as true in the workplace as it is on the basketball court. But to stay at the top of your game at work and in life, you need to stay primed – ready for that next big play. It requires staying alert; keeping your skil...
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Nurses lead revolution toward improved health care delivery
(BPT) - The health care industry has evolved since a series of sweeping legislative reforms began to take effect in 2010. New policies and regulations, millions of new patients and the introduction of advanced technology have added pressure to an already complex system. As this transformation continues, health care lead...
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Scratching the right itch: Does your pet have seasonal allergies?
(BPT) - Humans may sneeze and sniffle when trees and flowers start to bud in the spring, but many pet owners wouldn’t know if their pet was suffering from treatable allergy symptoms, which are likely to occur at the same time of year. According to the Pet Allergy Worldwide Survey (PAWS) sponsored by Novartis Animal Hea...
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Salty snacks reduce stress
(BPT) - Stress affects everyone and can cause problems at work, home and with health. Researchers have found that stress is a leading cause of illness, affecting as much as 20 percent of the population. Economic factors, such as a recession, have also been shown to significantly increase population-wide stress levels. ...
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Free birth control gives women more choice
(BPT) - Thanks to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) also known as “Obama Care,” an estimated 47 million women are gaining access to all FDA-approved methods of birth control free of charge. This new law provides access to birth control methods that may have been too expensive for many women with private health insurance p...
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The impact of rare diseases on patients and caregivers in the United States [Infographic]
The first-of-its-kind Rare Disease Impact Report, commissioned by Shire HGT, uncovers the health, psycho-social and economic impact of rare diseases in patient and medical communities. Based on survey responses from a multi-stakeholder sample of more than 1,000 patients, caregivers, physicians, payors and thought leaders, the report shows that the patient journey to diagnosis can take up to seven-plus years in the United States. While on this journey, a patient typically visits up to eight d...
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What is weighing us down? [Infographic]
Obesity is one of the most challenging health issues in the U.S. One of the primary contributors to obesity and being overweight is calorie imbalance, or when people consume more calories from food and beverages, than they burn through physical activity. This graphic is intended to provide information about where calories are coming from in the American diet and why physical activity has declined. It shows that managing weight is all about balancing calories in with calories out.
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Rare Disease Impact Report quantifies patient and caregiver challenges on journey to diagnosis and beyond
(BPT) - Getting a diagnosis is just the first of many challenges patients with rare diseases – and their caregivers – face. “We went through a number of specialists until we found a team that finally looked at my daughter, Hannah, as a patient with unique needs,” says Carrie Ostrea of Las Vegas, Nev. “The process was f...
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What is the 'Obamacare' Bronze Plan?
The open enrollment period begins for the new health plans created by the Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. Obamacare) on Oct. 1, yet most Americans couldn’t name one of the new health plans let alone describe all the services they cover. The Bronze Plan is the entry-level option of these new health plans. It is a private ...
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Baby boomers and driving vision - maintaining safety and independence
(BPT) - Baby boomers, those born between 1946 and 1964, are aging differently than any generation in U.S. history. Today, older Americans remain more active later in life, working longer and engaging in hobbies and recreational activities. It is estimated that by 2030, nearly one in five adults will be 65 and older. In...
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A 'not-so-rare' story in the journey of a rare disease diagnosis
(BPT) - In the year 2000, Lisa Wollman, a young, vibrant woman in the prime of her life, was pregnant with her second child, and like many expectant mothers, was experiencing changes in her mood and body. However, she knew something was not quite right. Lisa started experiencing anxiety and insomnia, which had not occ...
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Listen up: For better hearing, work with an audiologist
(BPT) - When it comes to startling health statistics, here are several you may not have heard: 36 million American have a hearing loss, yet only one out of every four people who could benefit from a hearing aid actually wears one, according to the National Institutes of Health’s National Information Center on Deafness a...
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national news
Michelle Obama lays roses at bloodiest site along Berlin Wall

U.S. first lady Michelle Obama and her daughter Sasha place flowers as they visit the Berlin Wall memorial in Bernauer Strasse in BerlinBy Sarah Marsh and Alexandra Hudson BERLIN (Reuters) - Michelle Obama and her daughters threaded roses through the narrow slots of a Berlin Wall memorial on Wednesday, honoring those who died trying to cross the Cold War barrier at a site which holds special poignancy in the once divided city. Accompanied by Angela Merkel's husband Joachim Sauer, who like the German leader hails from the former East Germany, President Barack Obama's family toured the Bernauer Strasse memorial where desperate residents of East Berlin once tried to jump from their windows into the western half of the city. ...


2013-06-19 10:24:45 -0500
Confessed killer says did not dictate deal to turn on 'Whitey' Bulger

Undated handout photo of Bulger holding Martorano's youngest son, John Jr., during his Christening ceremonyBy Daniel Lovering BOSTON (Reuters) - An altar-boy-turned-gang-enforcer told jurors at the trial of accused mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger on Wednesday that he did not set the terms of a deal with prosecutors allowing him to serve just 12 years in prison for 20 murders in exchange for details against his former boss. The witness, John "The Executioner" Martorano, was the first member of the ruthless Winter Hill Gang to testify against Bulger, who is on trial for charges including racketeering and 19 murders that occurred in the 1970s and '80s. ...


2013-06-19 10:25:54 -0500
FBI director says IRS tax exemption probe a top priority

Robert Mueller speaks before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee at an oversight hearing about the FBI on Capitol Hill in WashingtonWASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than a dozen FBI agents are assigned to the criminal investigation into the Internal Revenue Service's added scrutiny of conservative political groups seeking tax-exempt status, FBI Director Robert Mueller said on Wednesday. "It's a high-priority investigation and it needs to be handled with care, but it also needs to be pushed aggressively because it's a very important case," Mueller told the Senate Judiciary Committee at a hearing. ...


2013-06-19 10:57:49 -0500
TWA Flight 800 crash not due to gas tank explosion, former investigators say
The producers of an upcoming documentary on TWA Flight 800—which exploded and crashed into the waters off Long Island, N.Y., on July 17, 1996, killing all 230 people on board—claim to have proof that a missile caused the Paris-bound flight to crash. And six former investigators who took part in the film say there was [...]
2013-06-19 09:16:24 -0500