Checklist for Newly Diagnosed Diabetics

When you are diagnosed with diabetes for the first time, you get a whole lot of information pushed at you in a very short time. I strongly encourage you to attend formal diabetic education classes. If you are a newly diagnosed diabetic, here’s a checklist of things it’s important to learn about and understand. Once you know this stuff, you’ll find handling your diabetes isn’t such a big hairy deal after all. Everything will start to fall into place.

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Bloating or Ovarian Cancer? Six Common Symptoms of an Uncommon Disease

The risk of having any form of cancer is scary but ovarian cancer is scarier than most. In June of 2007, the Gynecologic Cancer Foundation, the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists, National Ovarian Cancer Coalition (NOCC), and the American Cancer Society agreed on six symptoms that can help detect ovarian cancer early if women and their health providers both keep them in mind. Read about what they are and get some tips on how to avoid unnecessary worry.

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Blood Pressure Meds Don’t Work - Unless You Take Them

High blood pressure is called the “silent killer” because it has no symptoms. I have patients who swear they know when their blood pressure is high, but I remain skeptical. More often than not when I take a BP that’s elevated, the person has no idea and “feels just fine”. I have seen patients in the emergency room with alarming, stroke-range BPs who hadn’t a clue their blood pressure was high. If you are on blood pressure medication - or wonder if you should be - please read this post.

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Tim Russert and Metabolic Syndrome

Tim Russert’s sudden and untimely death should have been preventable. All the risks that contributed to his death were controllable, except his inherited risk. We will never know if he might have avoided his premature death had he taken better care of the controllable risks earlier. But it would have given him a better shot – and the same goes for you.

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10 Ways to Tell If You Are a Normal Eater

Many of us aren’t sure what normal eating is anymore . So I asked an expert.

Val Stec is not only a registered dietitian (RD), she is also a licensed medical social worker (LMSW) and a practicing therapist. She is the owner of Mindful Health, a day treatment facility in Naples, Florida, which specializes in the treatment of eating disorders and substance abuse. I asked Val how she would answer this question, “What exactly is normal eating?” Here’s her answer.

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Osteopenia and Osteoporosis: Keeping Your Scaffold Strong!

Are you confused about osteopenia and osteoporosis? Do you wonder whether you are at risk for a fracture? Do you want to know what steps you can take to prevent it? And whether you need medication?

Note: This post was updated with new information on November, 21 2008. After reading this, click here, for more information about medicaions and how long you should take them.

This is a picture of osteoporetic bone. See how thin and fragile it is? This bone would fracture easily if enough force were exerted, from a fall for example. But there are steps you can take to prevent this so read on.

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Intelligence of Crows

There are rare moments when people and their ideas just rock my world. This 10 minute video, published on the TED website, did just that. Thank you, TED for doing what you are doing and for sharing your content so freely. And thank you, Joshua Klein, for showing us the intelligence of crows and asking, “Why not turn a longstanding rivalry between man and crow into something that profits both species?“ Check this out - it is fun!

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Mental Health, Inner Peace: Are You in Your Right Mind?

Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor is a Harvard-trained neuroanatomist (brain specialist) who suffered a massive stroke in 1996. After surviving brain surgery and 8 years of rehab, she says she decided to come back so she could share what she learned with the rest of us. It seems Dr. Taylor has pinpointed the exact location and established an enduring connection to the very seat of mental health, mental resilience and inner peace. And where IS this fountain of mental and spiritual of health? Ironically and poetically - it is in our right minds (brains). Here is an 19 minute video of a talk she gave at TED telling the story of what happened and what she learned.

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Weight by Numbers or How to Tip the Bathroom Scale in Your Favor

If you are struggling to lose weight, you are not alone. Of all the complaints I hear in my practice, frustration about how to successfully lose weight is absolutely at the top of the list! I warn you, what I am about to show you is not easy - but it is real. So if you are ready to get real about your weight and about learning what it takes to lose weight successfully - read this post.

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The Vytorin Controversy: What’s a Patient to Do?

Note; This post was updated on January 16, 2009. Click here to read the latest conclusions of the FDA and others on the Vytorin controversy.

When all the controversy about Vytorin hit the popular press in January 2008, patients immediately began calling my office for more information. They are asking a lot of good questions. They want to know whether they should stay on the drug or stop it; whether it is doing them any good – or more importantly, whether it is doing them any harm. I’m going to try to explain what the controversy is all about and give you some information that will help you figure out what to do.

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