Category: TRAINING

  • 3 ways to create community and counter loneliness

    3 ways to create community and counter loneliness

    Loneliness is complicated. You can feel lonely when you lack friends and miss companionship, or when you’re surrounded by people — even friends and family. Either way, loneliness can have devastating health effects. It boosts risk for coronary artery disease, stroke, depression, high blood pressure, declining thinking skills, inability to perform daily living tasks, and…

  • Shining light on night blindness

    Shining light on night blindness

    Animals renowned for their outstanding night vision include owls, cats, tarsiers (a tiny primate in Southeast Asia) — and even the dung beetle. But humans? Not so much. Over time, many people suffer from night blindness, also known as nyctalopia. This condition makes seeing in dim or dark settings difficult because your eyes cannot adjust…

  • Can watching sports be bad for your health?

    Can watching sports be bad for your health?

    As the new year rolls on, sports fans rejoice! You’ve had the excitement of the college football bowl games and the national championship game, the NFL playoff games are winnowing teams down to the Super Bowl contestants, and basketball and hockey seasons are in full swing. Spring training for the upcoming Major League Baseball season…

  • What is a tongue-tie? What parents need to know

    What is a tongue-tie? What parents need to know

    The tongue is secured to the front of the mouth partly by a band of tissue called the lingual frenulum. If the frenulum is short, it can restrict the movement of the tongue. This is commonly called a tongue-tie. Children with a tongue-tie can’t stick their tongue out past their lower lip, or touch their…

  • Why do your prescription drugs cost so much?

    Why do your prescription drugs cost so much?

    I was in line at a pharmacy recently as the customer ahead of me was picking up her prescription. The pharmacist matter-of-factly said: “that’ll be $850.” All she could say was “really?” She left without her prescription, telling the pharmacist she’d have to call her doctor about a less costly alternative. Many of us routinely…

  • Seeking fitspiration on social media?

    Seeking fitspiration on social media?

    Now that it’s 2024, perhaps you’ve thought about taking up a new exercise program, eating better, or some other ways to improve your health. That’s great! Or, as my grandfather would say, “there’s nothing wrong with that” — his highest possible praise. In fact, few medical treatments rival the massive health benefits of regular exercise.…

  • Beyond the usual suspects for healthy resolutions

    Beyond the usual suspects for healthy resolutions

    Early in the new year, promises to reboot your health typically focus on diet, exercise, and weight loss. And by now you may have begun making changes — or at least plans — to reach those goals. But consider going beyond the big three. Below are 10 often-overlooked, simple ideas to step up personal health…

  • New guidelines aim to screen millions more for lung cancer

    New guidelines aim to screen millions more for lung cancer

    Lung cancer kills more Americans than any other malignancy. The latest American Cancer Society (ACS) updated guidelines aim to reduce deaths by considerably expanding the pool of people who seek annual, low-dose CT lung screening scans. Advocates hope the new advice will prompt more people at risk for lung cancer to schedule yearly screening, says…

  • Dialectical behavior therapy: What is it and who can it help?

    Dialectical behavior therapy: What is it and who can it help?

    Feeling sad, anxious, or angry at times is a normal part of the human experience. But do you — or someone you’re close to — seem to experience these and similar emotions more quickly, more frequently, and more intensely than most people? This problem, known as emotional dysregulation, is a hallmark of many mental health…

  • Plyometrics: Three explosive exercises even beginners can try

    Plyometrics: Three explosive exercises even beginners can try

    As a kid, I spent many Saturdays romping around my Florida neighborhood imitating Colonel Steve Austin, better known as The Six Million Dollar Man to avid TV watchers in the 1970s. The popular show featured a bionic man — half human and half machine — who could jump from three-story buildings, leap over six-foot-high walls,…