Pills and the planet: Environmentally-friendly steps for your medicine cabinet Posted April 22, 2021, 10:30 am
Contributor
Most people might not guess that pills (or creams, patches, and inhalers, for that matter) have a big impact on the environment but they do.
Climate change is leading to noticeable effects on the environment, as well as to consequences for our health, such as rising rates of asthma and new patterns of infectious diseases. The key driver of climate change is greenhouse gas emissions. Our health care system plays a large role, contributing close to 10% of our nation’s greenhouse gases. The US is also responsible for more than 25% of the world’s total health care emissions.
Diet, disease, and the microbiome Posted April 21, 2021, 10:30 am
Contributor
There is growing interest in the human body’s microbiome and its connection to chronic disease. A new study examines that connection, along with how the foods we eat influence the composition of our microbiome.
Microbiome protects host and plays role in disease risk
The microbiome consists of the genes of tiny organisms (bacteria, viruses, and other microbes) found in the gastrointestinal tract, primarily in the small and large intestine. The normal gut flora another term for the microbiome protects its human host. For the microbiome to flourish, the right balance must exist, with the healthy species dominating the less healthy.
If you’ve been stuck mostly at home with one or more family members over the past year, chances are you’ve gotten on one another’s nerves occasionally. When you’re under a lot of stress, it’s not uncommon say something unkind, or even to lash out in anger to someone you care about. And we all make thoughtless mistakes from time to time, like forgetting a promise or breaking something.
Not sure if you should apologize?
Even if you don’t think what you said or did was so bad, or believe that the other person is actually in the wrong, it’s still important to apologize when you’ve hurt or angered someone. “To preserve or re-establish connections with other people, you have to let go of concerns about right and wrong and try instead to understand the other person’s experience,” says Dr. Ronald Siegel, assistant professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School. That ability is one of the cornerstones of emotional intelligence, which underlies healthy, productive re
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a rare neuromuscular disease that impairs the transmission of nerve signals to muscles, causing temporary weakness of affected muscles. While treatment is complex, recently updated guidelines have added to the understanding of MG and are improving approaches to treatment.
WKBT
April 9, 2021 5:45 PM Robert H. Shmerling, M.D., Harvard Health Blog
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As our understanding of acne continues to evolve, we may eventually have clearer guidelines about the best diets to prevent or treat it.
When I was a teenager, the advice I got about acne was clear and consistent:
Avoid oily foods and chocolate because they trigger breakouts and make existing acne worse.
Wash your face often.
Try a topical, over-the-counter remedy such as those containing benzoyl peroxide (Clearasil) or salicylic acid (Stridex).
By the time I got to medical school, the message had changed. I learned that the diet-acne connection was considered a myth, and that what we eat has little to do with making acne better or worse.