An increasing number of people around the country are choosing to keep live poultry, such as chickens or ducks, as part of a greener, healthier lifestyle. While you enjoy the benefits of backyard chickens and other poultry, but it is important to consider the risk of illness, especially for children, which can result from handling live poultry or anything in the area where they live and roam.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Meningococcal Disease and Your Child
Did you know that there are approximately 1,000 cases of meningococcal disease in the United States each year? Meningococcal disease can be very serious — even life-threatening — in 48 hours or less. Meningococcal disease can refer to any illness that is caused by Neisseria meningitidis, also known as meningococcus bacteria. The two most severe and common illnesses caused by Neisseria meningitidis include meningitis (infection of the fluid and lining around the brain) and septicemia (bloodstream infection).
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Noise Pollution and Your Health
Noise is all around us, all of the time. You probably don’t even notice it. (In fact, you are probably more likely to notice when it gets very quiet and you can actually hear the birds singing!) Traffic roars past us, lawn mowers growl, and kids shout. Even though these are noises that we hear every day, if they are too loud or last too long they can hurt your ears and your hearing. (Luckily, there are things you can do to protect your hearing!)
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Screen Your Teen for Depression
If your teen is between ages 12 and 18, talk to a doctor about screening (testing) for depression. More than 1 in 10 teens have some signs of depression.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Turning Chaos Into Organization
Most kids generate a little chaos and disorganization. Yours might flit from one thing to the next — forgetting books at school, leaving towels on the floor, and failing to finish projects once started.
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Protect Your Family (Sports Injuries)
We all want to keep our children safe and secure and help them live to their full potential. Knowing how to prevent injuries from sports and recreation activities, one of the leading causes of child injury, is a step toward this goal. Taking part in sports and recreation activities is an important part of a healthy, physically active lifestyle for kids. But injuries can, and do, occur. More than half of the 7 million sports and recreation-related injuries that occur each year are sustained by youth between ages 5 and 24. Thankfully, there are steps that parents can take to help make sure kids stay safe on the field, the court, or wherever they play or participate in sports and recreation activities.
Protect Your Family (Road Traffic Injuries)
We all want to keep our children safe and secure and help them live to their full potential. Knowing how to prevent leading causes of child injury, like road traffic injuries, is a step toward this goal.
Protect Your Family (Poisonings)
We all want to keep our children safe and secure and help them live to their full potential. Knowing how to prevent leading causes of child injury, like poisoning, is a step toward this goal.
Protect Your Family (Falls)
We all want to keep our children safe and secure and help them live to their full potential. Knowing how to prevent leading causes of child injury, like falls, is a step toward this goal.
Protect Your Family (Drownings
We all want to keep our children safe and secure and help them live to their full potential. Knowing how to prevent leading causes of child injury, like drowning, is a step toward this goal.
Protect Your Family (Burns)
We all want to keep our children safe and secure and help them live to their full potential. Knowing how to prevent leading causes of child injury, like burns, is a step toward this goal.
Aspirin
Prescription aspirin is used to relieve the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis (arthritis caused by swelling of the lining of the joints), osteoarthritis (arthritis caused by breakdown of the lining of the joints), systemic lupus erythematosus (condition in which the immune system attacks the joints and organs and causes pain and swelling) and certain other rheumatologic conditions (conditions in which the immune system attacks parts of the body). Nonprescription aspirin is used to reduce fever and to relieve mild to moderate pain from headaches, menstrual periods, arthritis, colds, toothaches, and muscle aches. Nonprescription aspirin is also used to prevent heart attacks in people who have had a heart attack in the past or who have angina (chest pain that occurs when the heart does not get enough oxygen). Nonprescription aspirin is also used to reduce the risk of death in people who are experiencing or who have recently experienced a heart attack. Nonprescription aspirin is also used to prevent ischemic strokes (strokes that occur when a blood clot blocks the flow of blood to the brain) or mini-strokes (strokes that occur when the flow of blood to the brain is blocked for a short time) in people who have had this type of stroke or mini-stroke in the past. Aspirin will not prevent hemorrhagic strokes (strokes caused by bleeding in the brain). Aspirin is in a group of medications called salicylates. It works by stopping the production of certain natural substances that cause fever, pain, swelling, and blood clots
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Be Healthy and Safe in the Garden
Whether you are a beginner or expert, health and safety are important as you head out to your garden, vegetable plot, or lawn. Gardening can be a great way to get physical activity, beautify the community, and go green. However, it is important to protect yourself and take precautions as you work and play in the sun and around insects, chemicals, and lawn and garden equipment.
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Adoption: Where Do I Start?
Many resources exist to help prospective adoptive parents educate themselves about adoption.
The Magic of Vitamin C
Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble nutrient found in some foods. In the body, it acts as an antioxidant, helping to protect cells from the damage caused by free radicals. Free radicals are compounds formed when our bodies convert the food we eat into energy. People are also exposed to free radicals in the environment from cigarette smoke, air pollution, and ultraviolet light from the sun. READ MORE
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Varicose Veins: Treatment and Prevention
Varicose veins are treated with lifestyle changes and medical procedures. The goals of treatment are to relieve symptoms, prevent complications, and improve appearance. READ MORE
Varicose Veins
Varicose (VAR-i-kos) veins are swollen, twisted veins that you can see just under the surface of the skin. These veins usually occur in the legs, but they also can form in other parts of the body. READ MORE
Ulcerative Colitis
Ulcerative colitis is a chronic, or long-lasting, disease that causes inflammation and sores, called ulcers, in the inner lining of the large intestine, which includes the colon and the rectum—the end part of the colon.
One Baby, Two Babies, Three Babies...
Every book on parenting will tell you that life forever changes after the birth of a child. So parents of twins or higher-order multiples (triplets or more) can feel as if they’ve left the hospital and arrived home on a different planet.
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Staphylococcus Aureus (Staph Infection)
Staph infections are caused by the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus, which many healthy people carry on their skin and in their noses without getting sick.But when skin is punctured or broken, staph bacteria can enter the wound and cause infections, which can lead to other health problems.You can help prevent staph infections in your family by encouraging regular hand washing and daily bathing, and by keeping areas that have been cut clean or covered.
Questions and Answers about Rosacea
Rosacea is a chronic (long-term) disease that affects the skin and sometimes the eyes. The disorder is characterized by redness, pimples, and, in advanced stages, thickened skin. Rosacea usually affects the face. Skin on other parts of the upper body is only rarely involved.
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
What You Need to Know About Shingles
When the itchy red spots of childhood chickenpox* disappear and life returns to normal, the battle with the virus that causes chickenpox seems won. But for too many of us this triumph of immune system over virus is temporary. The virus has not been destroyed but remains dormant in our nerve cells, ready to strike again later in life. This second eruption of the chickenpox virus is the disease called shingles or herpes-zoster .
Plague
Plague is an infectious disease caused by bacteria called Yersinia pestis. These bacteria are found mainly in rodents, particularly rats, and in the fleas that feed on them. Other animals and humans usually contract the bacteria from rodent or flea bites.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
How is Borderline Personality Disorder Treated?
Borderline personality disorder can be treated with psychotherapy, or “talk” therapy. In some cases, a mental health professional may also recommend medications to treat specific symptoms. When a person is under more than one professional’s care, it is essential for the professionals to coordinate with one another on the treatment plan.
Borderline Personality Disorder
Borderline personality disorder is a serious mental illness marked by unstable moods, behavior, and relationships. In 1980, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders, Third Edition (DSM-III) listed borderline personality disorder as a diagnosable illness for the first time. Most psychiatrists and other mental health professionals use the DSM to diagnose mental illnesses.
What Is Oxygen Therapy?
Oxygen therapy is a treatment that provides you with extra oxygen, a gas that your body needs to work well. Normally, your lungs absorb oxygen from the air. However, some diseases and conditions can prevent you from getting enough oxygen.
Nuclear Medicine
Nuclear medicine is a branch of medical imaging that uses small amounts of radioactive material to diagnose and determine the severity of or treat a variety of diseases, including many types of cancers, heart disease, gastrointestinal, endocrine, neurological disorders and other abnormalities within the body. Because nuclear medicine procedures are able to pinpoint molecular activity within the body, they offer the potential to identify disease in its earliest stages as well as a patient’s immediate response to therapeutic interventions.
Ah, Spring - and Bug Bites and Stings
Warm weather makes it easier to spend more time outdoors, but it also brings out the bugs. Ticks are usually harmless. But a tick bite can lead to Lyme disease, which is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi. The bacteria are transmitted to people by the black-legged deer tick, which is about the size of a pinhead and usually lives on deer. Infected ticks can also cause other diseases, such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Indoor Air Pollution
Indoor pollution sources that release gases or particles into the air are the primary cause of indoor air quality problems in homes. Inadequate ventilation can increase indoor pollutant levels by not bringing in enough outdoor air to dilute emissions from indoor sources and by not carrying indoor air pollutants out of the home. High temperature and humidity levels can also increase concentrations of some pollutants. READ MORE
Your Baby's Hearing
Most children hear and listen to sounds from birth. They learn to talk by imitating the sounds around them and the voices of their parents and caregivers. But that’s not true for all children. In fact, about two or three out of every 1,000 children in the United States are born deaf or hard-of-hearing. More lose their hearing later during childhood. Many of these children may need to learn speech and language differently, so it’s important to detect deafness or hearing loss as early as possible. For this reason, universal newborn hearing screening programs currently operate in all U.S. states and most of the territories. With help from the federal government, every state has established an Early Hearing Detection and Intervention program as part of its public health system. As a result, more than 95 percent of babies have their hearing screened soon after they are born.
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