You’ve loaded up on goodies while at a family gathering, and you suddenly feel chest pains. Is it heartburn or something worse? Being able to tell the difference between indigestion and cardiovascular trouble might save your life, said Dr. Maya Balakrishnan, an associate professor of gastroenterology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. Unfortunately, the chances of… read on > read on >
As the holidays approach, most folks are familiar with a common side effect of the overindulgence that can come with all those meals with family and friends: Bloating. Luckily, Baylor College of Medicine gastroenterologist Dr. David Szafron has some tips on what triggers bloating, what kinds of foods are big triggers for it and when… read on > read on >
Four out of five men and women in the United States will be overweight or obese by 2050 if current trends hold, a new study warns. About 213 million Americans aged 25 and older will be carrying around excess weight within 25 years, along with more than 45 million children and young adults between the… read on > read on >
In a move guaranteed to alarm many, President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vocal opponent of vaccines and other tenets of mainstream health care, to head the massive U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The department encompasses numerous key agencies, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,… read on > read on >
The number of Americans sickened in an E. coli outbreak tied to slivered onions used on McDonald’s Quarter Pounders has now risen to 104, U.S. health officials reported Wednesday. In an update posted on its website, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said that 34 people have now been hospitalized, four have developed serious kidney… read on > read on >
Periodontal (gum) disease and diabetes are locked in a grim partnership aimed at undermining your health, experts warn. “Recent research has shown that diabetes is not only a major risk factor for periodontitis but that the relationship between the two conditions is bidirectional, meaning they both influence and exacerbate one another,” said Dr. Anton Sculean, chair… read on > read on >
Bottoms up: The type of alcohol you prefer may say something about your lifestyle, new research reveals. Beer drinkers are more likely to have an unhealthy lifestyle than folks who prefer wine or liquor, scientists report. Beer drinkers have lower-quality diets, are less active and are more likely to smoke than those who drink wine,… read on > read on >
Obesity, alcohol use and other factors are driving up rates of fatty liver disease among American adults, new research warns. By 2018, federal data showed that 42% of adults had some form of fatty liver disease — higher than prior estimates, according to a team led by Dr. Juan Pablo Arab, a liver specialist with… read on > read on >
High blood pressure is a rare health issue among teens, but U.S. case numbers are creeping upwards. Now, research published recently in the Journal of the American Heart Association, shows that healthy sleep can help keep hypertension at bay in the young. That’s probably because “disrupted sleep can lead to changes in the body’s stress… read on > read on >
Vitamin D supplements might lower blood pressure in seniors who are obese, reducing their heart health risk, a new study says. But taking more than the recommended daily dose will not provide additional health benefits, researchers report in the Journal of the Endocrine Society. “Our study found vitamin D supplementation may decrease blood pressure in… read on > read on >
