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As a new mother, it can be hard to find your footing. According to the Pew Research Center, 45 percent of moms with kids younger than 6 years say parenting is tiring all or most of the time. How can you make the adjustment easier? You took breastfeeding and prenatal classes, read every book you could get your hands on, and soaked up all the advice you could get from friends and family. However, all of that pales in comparison to the reality of caring for a newborn. How can you handle this new world of m...
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Imagine this — you’re going about your day, working, exercising or spending time with your family, when all of a sudden you feel a sharp, stabbing pain in your abdomen. You’ve been a little nauseous all day, and you haven’t felt hungry, so you chalk it up to eating too much at your last meal. Right? Wrong. These are all signs that you have appendicitis, the inflammation of the appendix — a small tube attached to the large intestine. Appendicitis may occur when there is a blockage in the appendix caused ...
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When you think of a typical heart attack patient, there’s a good chance the person who comes to mind looks something like this: an older man in his 50s or 60s, clutching his chest in sudden pain. That doesn’t always align with reality, however. Which of these people do you think is most at risk for a heart attack? SCENARIO #1: A 65-year-old woman with a family history of heart disease is overweight, but gets a moderate amount of exercise and tries to follow a healthy diet. She is aware that her weight a...
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The metaphor of a broken heart to describe intense emotional pain has been a favorite among poets and jilted lovers since the beginning of time. In 1990, Japanese scientists discovered that the hurt felt after a messy breakup or the loss of a loved one actually does affect the heart, though it doesn’t exactly break it. Sudden emotional turmoil temporarily enlarges a part of your heart and prevents it from pumping efficiently while the rest of your heart maintains normal function. Also known as stress-in...
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Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death for men and women worldwide. In honor of American Heart Month, now is the perfect time to reflect on what can be done to prevent CVD from affecting your family. Every year, the United States spends more than $300 billion on CVD, including health services, medications and lost productivity. According to the World Health Organization, CVD kills an estimated 17.3 million people every year, and it is projected to remain the leading cause of death un...
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Whether you suffer a cut, scratch or other small wound, there are three basic steps for at-home treatment. Stop the bleeding. Use firm pressure to apply a cloth or bandage on the minor wound for 20 to 30 minutes. Clean the injury with cool, running water. Use soap to clean the skin around the wound (not the wound itself ). If you see splinters, gravel or other small objects in the laceration, rinse them gently away or use tweezers to remove. Spread an over-the-counter antibiotic ointment onto the wound....
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Heart disease, the leading cause of death among men and women in the United States, is responsible for approximately 500,000 deaths annually. High cholesterol is one of the primary risk factors for heart disease, heart attack and stroke. The condition can be clearly identified with blood tests, but many people don’t understand what cholesterol is or how it’s broken down into low-density lipoproteins (LDL), high-density lipoproteins (HDL), total cholesterol and triglycerides. Understand the good, the bad...
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While diabetes itself is a heart disease risk factor, people with diabetes often have other conditions that contribute to their risk, including high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Nerve damage and blood vessel damage that often result from diabetes can even cause “silent heart attacks” — heart attacks you may not realize you’re experiencing, because you don’t feel the expected chest pain. Lifestyle factors, such as a lack of physical activity, poorly managed diabetes and smoking, also increase a p...
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Learning more about language and social development during baby’s first year can help new parents better decipher their baby’s cries and other social cues. During your baby’s first year, you’ll notice rapid changes in his social and emotional development. While newborns often communicate through crying, older babies may cry, move their arms and legs, gesture to desired objects, smile, mimic sounds, and even say simple words, such as “mama” or “da da,” to get your attention. From Birth to 3 Months: When ...
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It may start as a dull ache behind your eyes, be a lingering, searing pain across your temples, or come and go in a flash. An estimated 45 million people have headaches on a regular basis. Which type do you have? A migraine is an intense headache lasting anywhere from 30 minutes to several days that causes throbbing or steady pain either on one or both sides of your head. Nausea, light sensitivity, dizziness or stomach pain frequently accompany migraines. Migraines often disrupt your daily life. Your do...
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