Study shows shingles increases the risk of stroke by over 30 percent

A recent study shows adults with shingles are over 30% more likely to experience a stroke during the first year following the infection. The risk was even greater if the shingles outbreak occurred around the eyes.

The study involved 7,760 patients 18 years and older who had been treated for shingles. The control group was made up of 23,280 adults of with similar circumstances, except they did not have shingles. By the end of the one year, 133 of the shingles patients (1.7%) had inexperienced a stroke. During that same period, 306 of the control subjects (1.3%) also had strokes. After analyzing all data, the researches discovered:

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Study shows shingles increases the risk of stroke by over 30 percent

Fighting osteoporosis with healthy dietary choices

Despite what many people believe, osteoporosis is not just a disease suffered by older women. It can cause a fracture at any age and in either gender. It is estimated that 50% of all women, as well as 25% of men over 50, will experience a broken bone due to osteoporosis. The National Osteoporosis Foundation estimates there are 10 million Americans with osteoporosis (2 million of whom are men) and another 34 million who have low bone mass, putting them at risk for developing the disease.

While several factors are involved in developing osteoporosis, the disease is largely preventable by taking steps to build strong bones. Making healthy daily choices in the foods you eat plays a major part in keeping your bones strong.

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Fighting osteoporosis with healthy dietary choices

The attached slideshow will show you several other ways to use food to help you fight osteoporosis.

Lupus patients benefit from cardiovascular disease prevention counseling

The Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, New York, conducted a study on the benefits of lupus patients receiving cardiovascular disease prevention counseling. Their findings were outlined at the American College of Rheumatology Scientific Meeting of 2009 on October 21.

According to the press release, “most lupus patients are not aware that their condition puts them at a higher risk for cardiovascular disease and a counseling program is a valuable way to promote education and lifestyle change.”

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Lupus patients benefit from cardiovascular disease prevention counseling

How to reduce the frequency and severity of hot flashes during menopause

The National Prescribing Service (NPS) is using World Menopause Day (October 18, 2009) to encourage women to learn about the symptoms of menopause and the options that are available to manage them. Of all the symptoms associated with going through menopause, many women will tell you hot flashes — that sudden heat and flush that can range from feeling like a mid-August breeze to a four-alarm fire and leave you dripping with sweat — is the worst.

Hormone replacement therapy can increase the risk of breast cancer and heart disease, making many women look elsewhere for ways to reduce the frequency and severity of their hot flashes. The attached slideshow offers ten natural ways to help you control your hot flashes.

How to reduce the frequency and severity of hot flashes during menopause

Cleaning for a Reason provides free housecleaning for cancer patients

The Cleaning for a Reason Foundation understands a woman undergoing cancer treatments has much more to focus on than cleaning her home. That is why the foundation provides free professional cleaning and maid services for women fighting cancer.

Deborah Sardone, of Lewisville, Texas, founded Cleaning for a Reason in May 2006. Since that time, the organization has gained 553 professional cleaning business partners in 55 states and provinces across the United States and Canada.

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Cleaning for a Reason provides free housecleaning for cancer patients

Giving Tylenol Reduces Effectiveness of Vaccines in Babies

Giving Tylenol to babies to prevent a fever after a vaccination can reduce the effectiveness of the vaccine, according to a new study published in the October 17, 2009, issue of the British medical journal The Lancet.

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Giving Tylenol can reduce effectiveness of vaccines in babies

Green tea blocks the anticancer properties of the chemotherapy medicine Velcade

Doctors and herbalists promote green tea as a way to support cancer treatments. The antioxidants in green tea, called catechins, have the ability to slow the growth of cancer cells, reduce the size of tumors, and soften the sharp side effects of chemotherapy. It therefore came as a surprise to medical researchers when they discovered green tea does more harm than good in patients using the anticancer drug Velcade.

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Green tea blocks the anticancer properties of the chemotherapy medicine Velcade

How to Keep Your Family Healthy when One Member Has the Flu (Seasonal or H1N1)

My mother was a registered nurse who worked hard to keep her family healthy when one member was sick with the flu. These are her techniques, which match the recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

I knew Mom was good, but I never knew how good! While writing my two previous articles on preventing your child from getting swine flu, I started to research a third article on how to protect your family from getting flu (H1N1 or seasonal flu) when one person in the household is already sick with it. I was amazed to see every suggested step was something my mother used to do when taking care of my siblings or me when we were sick.

With seasonal flu and swine flu starting to spread across the United States and the rest of the world, I would like to share with you a few of my mother’s CDC approved techniques for caring for a sick child and preventing the rest of your family from getting the flu.

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How to Keep Your Family Healthy when One Member Has the Flu (Seasonal or H1N1)

Additional articles on preventing H1N1 (swine flu):

• How to Prevent Your Child from Getting Swine Flu
• Ways Parents and Teachers Can Help Prevent the Spread of H1N1 Flu in Schools

Breast Cancer in Men: Signs and Risk Factors of Male Breast Cancer

Many men are supportive of their wives and female relatives as they fight breast cancer, yet they never consider the possibility that they, too, may be at risk for the disease. The American Cancer Society estimates there are approximately 1,990 new cases of male breast cancer each year (about 1% of all breast cancer cases) and about 480 of those men will succumb to the disease.

Just as in women, early detection of breast cancer in men improves the chance of survival. Due to the smaller size of male breasts, breast cancer can spread out of the breast and into other areas of the body faster in men than in their female counterparts. For early detection to be possible, men need to be aware of the symptoms of male breast cancer, as well as the risk factors that increase their chance of developing the disease.

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Breast Cancer in Men: Signs and Risk Factors of Male Breast Cancer

The Most Common Medications for Breast Cancer Treatment

Breast cancer deaths have been declining since 1990, partially due to improved treatment options. Those options include three of the most common drugs for breast cancer treatment: Tamoxifen, Arimidex and Herceptin.

Breast cancer deaths have been declining since 1990. A partial reason for the rising survival rate is improved treatment options, which includes the use of medications. This article covers three of the most commonly used drugs for breast cancer treatment. Only your doctor can decide if these medications are right for you, or if a different medication will give you a better chance at joining the growing number of breast cancer survivors.

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Most Common Drugs for Breast Cancer Treatment

• For additional information on breast cancer treatment, see the following article:

Individualized HER2 Breast Cancer Treatments
A medical research team in Scotland has discovered a way to predict a breast cancer patient’s response to the cancer drug Herceptin, potentially leading to personalized breast cancer treatments.