Do you get stressed out during the holidays? From quick stress-survival strategies to mood-brightening foods, here’s your cheat sheet to holiday cheer. Take a whiff of citrus Researchers studying depression have found that certain citrus fragrances boost feelings of well-being and alleviate stress by upping levels of norepinephrine, a hormone that affects mood. For an
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What do your blood pressure numbers mean? The only way to know (diagnose) if you have high blood pressure (HBP or hypertension) is to have your blood pressure tested. Understanding your blood pressure numbers is key to controlling high blood pressure. Healthy and unhealthy blood pressure ranges Learn what’s considered normal, as recommended by the American
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Everyone age 6 months and older needs to get a flu shot (vaccine) every year. The seasonal flu vaccine is the best way to protect yourself and others from the flu. For many people, the seasonal flu is a mild illness. But sometimes, the flu can be dangerous or even deadly. The flu: Is linked to
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Screens are everywhere. As a result, controlling a child’s screen time has become much harder for parents. To complicate matters, some screen time can be educational for children as well as support their social development. So how do you manage your child’s screen time? Here’s a primer on guiding your child’s use of screens and
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Thanksgiving is about enjoying time with our family and celebrating with traditional foods we know and love. However, the holiday can impact the time we usually reserve for our healthy routines and involve meals that are not exactly made to be heart-healthy! To keep your diet and health in check over the Thanksgiving holiday, try
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Not only is fall’s signature squash versatile enough to fit into all the above and more, it also packs some powerful healthy perks — like keeping heart health, vision and waistlines in check, as long as you take it easy on the pie, that is. 1 Pumpkins Keep Eyesight Sharp A cup of cooked, mashed
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Moving our clocks in either direction changes the principal time cue — light — for setting and resetting our 24-hour natural cycle, or circadian rhythm. In doing so, our internal clock becomes out of sync or mismatched with our current day-night cycle. How well we adapt to this depends on several things. In general, “losing”
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Common symptoms of depression include guilt, irritability, and having a feeling of sadness that won’t go away. Being in a “blue mood” sometimes is a normal part of life. If you lose a loved one or are laid off from your job, it is natural to be sad. When you have depression symptoms because of a stress that has
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Other than skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer among American women. Getting mammograms regularly can lower the risk of dying from breast cancer. The United States Preventive Services Task Force recommends that if you are 50 to 74 years old, be sure to have a screening mammogram every two years. If you are 40 to 49 years old, talk to
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How do you get your heart rate on target? When you work out, are you doing too much or not enough? There’s a simple way to know: Your target heart rate helps you hit the bull’s eye. “We don’t want people to over-exercise, and the other extreme is not getting enough exercise,” says Gerald Fletcher, M.D.,
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Everyone age 6 months and older needs to get a flu shot (vaccine) every year. The seasonal flu vaccine is the best way to protect yourself and others from the flu. For many people, the seasonal flu is a mild illness. But sometimes, the flu can be dangerous or even deadly. The flu: Is linked to
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Diabetes (“dy-ah-BEE-teez”) is a leading cause of disability and death in the United States. Diabetes increases the risk of serious health problems like: Blindness Nerve damage Kidney disease Heart disease Stroke The good news is that you can do a lot to prevent or delay getting type 2 diabetes, including: Watching your weight Eating healthy
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