A collection of articles from our blog.
Did you know that babies who breastfeed are less likely to become overweight? Or that moms who breastfeed their babies get back to their pre-pregnancy weight sooner? Those are just two of the many benefits that breastfeeding brings to infants and moms alike. Now during Breastfeeding Awareness Month, it’s the perfect time to learn more about those benefits and what you can do to ensure success in breastfeeding your baby.
July is all about seeing the sights — vacation spots, parades, fireworks, flourishing gardens, ball games and every kind of festival under the sun. But it’s also a month that poses every kind of risk for eye injuries, from errant throws to errant bottle rockets and everything in between. Now during Eye Injury Prevention Month, it’s a good time to learn more about these injuries, how to avoid them, and what to do if one happens to you.
It’s the most common gastrointestinal disorder in the world. Between 25 million and 45 million people in the United States are living with it. It can lead to a poor quality of life, depression and anxiety. And its direct and indirect costs to society exceed $21 billion annually. And yet, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is rarely part of the overall healthcare conversation. That makes June, as Irritable Bowel Syndrome Awareness Month, the right time to learn about this widespread and often life-changing issue.
Most people are aware of the damage that a stroke can do. But what many may not know is just how frequently that damage is done. Each year, more than 795,000 people in America experience a stroke. Nearly 140,000 of those victims die, making stroke the fifth leading cause of death. And those who survive often face lifelong physical, mental and emotional disabilities — stroke causes more disabilities each year than accidents, diabetes and nervous system disorders like multiple sclerosis.
That’s why American Stroke month is the time to learn what you can do to prevent a stroke, and how to recognize the symptoms to minimize lasting, debilitating aftereffects.
Whether it’s home, work, bills or family issues, virtually all of us experience stress in our lives from time to time. While there is no official, clinical definition of stress, likely the best description is, “emotional, physical or mental strain or tension.” That description applies to millions of Americans, every day.
It’s a common occurrence to come across a news story about a breakthrough in the quest to cure cancer. Just last month in fact, researchers in Israel as much as promised they’d have a cure within a year (their controversial claim is unsubstantiated). Claims such as these make worldwide headlines because nearly every family has been impacted by this frightening disease. And while great strides have been made in prevention, detection and treatment, cancer remains the second leading cause of death in the United States, claiming over 598,000 lives each year.
With the abundant publicity surrounding breast cancer, pancreatic cancer and skin cancer, one of the deadliest forms of this disease often flies under the radar: colorectal cancer. In fact, only lung cancer claims more lives each year than this indiscriminate killer. That’s what makes National Colorectal Cancer Month the right time to learn about detection, treatment and what you can do to improve your chances of prevention.
Diabetes is often called a condition. Manageable. No big deal if people just take their medicine and make some lifestyle changes. And while it’s true that people with diabetes can live long and healthy lives, the fact is that this is a serious, dangerous disease:
• Diabetes claims more lives each year than breast cancer and AIDS combined.
• It is a leading cause of blindness, heart disease, amputation, end-stage kidney disease and liver problems.
• Diabetes costs the American health care system over $237 billion annually.
• If trends don’t change, 1 in 3 Americans will have diabetes by 2050.
World Mental Health Day is October 10. It’s a day that can’t come soon enough. Nearly one in five American adults lives with a mental illness that requires treatment. But estimates show that only half of those people receive treatment. That’s because unlike other diseases, mental illness still carries a social stigma that often dissuades people from seeking the treatment that can improve their lives — from their mood, to their emotions, to the ability to relate to other people.
September is National Cholesterol Education Month.
OK, that may not sound as fun and exciting as, say, National Free Taco’s Month, but it’s a good time to learn about what you can do to help ensure that you’re fit, healthy and ready to go for National Bike Month in May.
