Health Realizations Articles

Hormones play a major role in how well your body functions and how you feel from day to day. “If” your hormones are in balance, you likely have all four of the following: sleep well? have lots of energy? a strong sex drive? well-functionaing immune and digestive systems? “The healthy body is equipped to produce all the hormones a woman needs throughout her life,” said Dr. Christiane Northrup, author of The Wisdom of Menopause. But those hormones can easily become pushed off kilter — even with too much stress or an unhealthy diet — leaving room for a wide array of hormonal disorders to surface. As many as one in.

Increasing breastfeeding rates in the United States is a national health goal that’s part of the Healthy People initiative. The goal is to have 75 percent of mothers breastfeed their babies initially, 50 percent after six months and 25 percent after one year. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding for at least 12 months, while the World Health Organization recommends breastfeeding up to 2 years of age or longer. For comparison’s sake, not even nearly a decade ago in 2005 while over 74 percent of infants born were breastfed initially, just 43 percent were still breastfeeding at 6 months and 21 percent at 1 year. Further, only 32 percent.

While it was once thought that fetuses in the womb were largely protected from environmental chemicals, it’s now known that a woman’s exposure while pregnant has the potential to harm the developing baby. Studies show that babies are exposed to hundreds of potentially toxic chemicals while in the womb. In fact, a study sponsored by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) tested the umbilical cord blood of 10 newborns and found that the samples contained an average of 200 chemicals … chemicals linked to cancer, brain damage, birth defects and more. “This is conclusive evidence that babies are being exposed to hundreds of industrial chemicals throughout pregnancy,” said Sonya Lunder, an.

The majority of U.S. kids, about 70 percent in all, have low levels of vitamin D, according to data collected on more than 6,000 children ages 1-21. About 70 percent of U.S. kids have low levels of vitamin D, which may increase their risk of bone disease, heart disease, cancer and other illnesses. While too little vitamin D has long been linked to the bone disease rickets, researchers are finding that the vitamin impacts much more than just your bones, and low levels may increase the risk of heart disease, cancer and other illnesses later in life. The study, which was published in the journal Pediatrics, found that 9 percent,.

The American Cancer Society has estimated that 745,180 men and 692,000 women will have cancer this year in the United States. Of those cases, the most common are cancers of the skin, prostate cancer in men, breast and uterine-related cancers in women, lung, and colon and rectum — in both men and women. Simple cancer screenings, like having a doctor check your skin for signs of skin cancer (and doing the check yourself as well), can help you detect problems early on. Early detection of the disease followed by timely treatment increases the survival rates for people who suffer from cancer. There are a number of cancer screening tests that.

While most of our articles are highly researched and sourced there is the occasional photo that is sent to us that we just must pass along and share. This year we were sent one that we felt was something special. The intensity of the dog’s face shows more sincerity than most people! As you share a warm holiday season with your family, we hope you, too, experience many moments of sincerity and joy! Wishing You a Happy and Blessed New Year!   It’s just too good not to pass on. Use the Email to a Friend feature (available on every article) to email this “smile-a-gram” to your friends and family.

You and most others are probably familiar with the deadly MRSA superbug that’s been spreading across U.S. communities like wildfire. What you likely didn’t know — until right now — is a potentially greater risk, a faster spreading deadly superbug referred to as “C. diff” or “c-diff” has emerged that killed more than twice the number of people than H1N1 Swine Flu! If you have not heard about “C. diff” there might just be a reason, as many healthcare providers are not informed of the seriousness of this threat. Further, most antibiotics actually strengthen these superbugs. Scary would be an understatement for most who rely on antibiotics as an omnibus.

Hormones play a major role in how well your body functions and how you feel from day to day. If your hormones are in balance, you likely sleep well and have lots of energy, a strong sex drive, and well-functioning immune and digestive systems. “The healthy body is equipped to produce all the hormones a woman needs throughout her life,” said Dr. Christiane Northrup, author of The Wisdom of Menopause. But those hormones can easily become pushed off kilter — even with too much stress or an unhealthy diet — leaving room for a wide array of hormonal disorders to surface. As many as one in 10 women may suffer.

Even though the holidays are supposed to be a joyous time of year as you celebrate with family and friends, they have the tendency to elicit feelings of depression, loneliness and despair, leading to bouts of depression and a sense of feeling utterly overwhelmed by expectations. The holidays aren’t always merry and bright … keep reading to find out how to stay joyful this year even if you’re feeling stressed to the max. And it seems everywhere you turn you hear on the news or read in the newspaper stories about the poor state of the economy — only compounding feelings of desperation. By changing your outlook on the holidays.

Cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins are among the most commonly prescribed drugs in the United States. Generally, if your total cholesterol level is 240 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or higher, or your LDL (bad) cholesterol is 130 mg/dL or higher, you may be considered a candidate for statin drugs. Statin drugs brought in nearly $28 billion in sales in 2006 … but at what cost to your health? Statins work by interfering with an enzyme that your body needs to make cholesterol. Along with lowering cholesterol, the drugs — which include Lipitor, Zocor, Mevacor, Pravachol, Crestor and others — may also help your body reabsorb cholesterol that has accumulated on.