Medical Tests & Procedures
‘Tis the Season…
Holidays often offer opportunities for over-indulgence in eating, drinking, and other celebratory practices. Since there seems to be a dearth of current discussion on the negative effects of alcohol, let’s take a look so we can make more informed decisions. Some of the known harmful effects of alcohol include: Toxic liver – the liver is […]
Medical Tests & Procedures
Do you automatically comply with every medical test and procedure your health care provider advises? According to a report by the Institute of Medicine, approximately 30 percent of all medical procedures and tests may in fact be unnecessary. The health care system is actually focused on disease rather than health. Unnecessary testing feeds this focus […]
RN’s Speak on Aging and Being Mortal:
Challenging Perspectives on Aging and Dying Two area nurses discovered a mutual passion for empowering Cape Cod’s aging population with tools to embrace a fuller, healthier, more enjoyable life. Together they developed What’s so Funny about Aging and Being Mortal – Challenging Perspectives on Aging & Mortality, a two-hour workshop designed to improve […]
Last Minute Gifts Revisited
Last year at this time I posted this but think its message bears repeating, reminding myself and others of what’s really important at this time of year. I’m recalling an exercise that was shared with a group of health care workers in a local nursing center last year. We were asked to write down 10 […]
Positive Ageing Skills can make Ageing Fun!
Contrary to what most folks think, most people actually become happier as we age into our senior years. Becoming free of of the many stressors involved in raising a family and promoting a career allows many seniors to pursue personal interests and to meaningfully reflect on their lives. They have time to volunteer for example, […]
Challenging perspectives on aging and mortality….
If we’re lucky, we’re all aging and will continue to do so into a healthy old age. So why do so many of us have such negative feelings and perspectives on aging if it’s a universal condition? Perhaps it’s natural to shun the inevitability of our mortality so we choose ageist commentary while engaging in practices […]
“Do these genes make me look….?”
Dis-ease is a result of the interplay between our genes and our lifestyles, or, perhaps more accurately, our “stress – styles.” We are both susceptible and resistant to a wide variety of diseases, dependent upon our genetic makeup. Researchers who study epigenetics have found, however, that most diseases occur only when susceptible people make lifestyle […]
Uncovering Hidden Health Hazards
Holistic health is concerned with disease prevention and finding the cause(s) of disease rather than treating the symptoms of disease with medication and surgery as conventional health care normally practices. (This is referred to as “sick care” by many since the focus is on the disease rather than the overall health of the client.) Most […]
Heart Awareness Month
Many of us still believe the outdated notion (based on outdated research) that avoiding saturated fat and cholesterol in our diet will prevent heart disease. The 2015 U.S. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee recommended we stop limiting dietary fat and cholesterol since they do not promote heart disease. What is now known is that trans-fats, present […]
New Dietary Guidelines: Help or Hindrance?
Have you tried navigating through the voluminous report the US Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) has recently published to help us make healthier food choices? While there is much good information in the report, what most of us want is simplicity – guidelines that are clear, complete and accurate, without the influence of special […]