Chronic Ear Infections? Test For Allergies
If your child seems to have one ear infection after another, the problem may be related to allergies says ear, nose and throat specialist Dr. David Hurst.
How we turned our babies around during childbirth
Things were moving right along in the delivery room when the doctor suddenly declared, "Oh, oh, the baby is posterior. Here's how I turned my baby around.
Modern techniques for treating varicose veins
After years of suffering from varicose veins, Jane Smith finally found relief. Learn more about minimally invasive techniques used to treat vein problems.
New Year’s Resolution: Work the Brain
I generally don't believe in making resolutions. I can't be trusted with them, never could. The day after I come up with one, I start to feel rebellious.
Hospice enhanced my father’s life in his final days and nurtured our family
December 10, 2015, marks the 6th anniversary of my father's death. I will not recount his many accomplishments on this earth. Instead, I will share some final moments of his life.
Legionnaires’ Disease in Maine
In 2011, the number of cases of Legionnaire's Disease in Maine went up. Learn more about the disease and how it spreads.
A Phone App for CPR
Did you know there is a phone app that can help you do CPR? Now, if I suddenly collapsed and my heart stopped beating, I’d want whoever was nearby to immediately leap into action, not whip out a cell phone to figure out what to do. But the app, which I just downloaded on my [...]
Preventing the Flu
The best practices for preventing the flu? It's not just getting an annual flu shot.
Understanding concussion: A traumatic brain injury
Four years ago Rorie Lee slipped on the ice and hit the back of her head. “I went right back to work,” she says. “Everyone said you’ll be fine, you just had a concussion."
Jazzy Johnnys™ Fashion Show
Who doesn’t hate wearing a hospital johnny? Unflattering thin material, flimsy ties, and flapping rears! Patricia Royall certainly didn’t like them when she was undergoing breast cancer treatment. Challenged to design something better, Patricia created Jazzy Johnnys™ — an entire line of stylish, practical, and environmentally friendly patient wear and accessories, available even for dogs. [...]
Driving Skills for Life
Between 2009 and 2010, seven Bonny Eagle High School students were involved in serious car accidents. One student was killed. When school officials heard the Ford Driving Skills for Life program was coming to Maine, they vowed to bring it to Bonny Eagle. The DSFL program has been wending its way through 30 cities across the [...]
Deadly Insect Stings
Ricker Hamilton was out mowing his lawn and got stung in the leg by a wasp. Most of us would be supremely annoyed and might have to endure some pain, itching, and swelling for a few hours. For Ricker an insect sting is a life-threatening situation. It was his third encounter in 20 years and in [...]
A Kaleidoscope in Her Head
“Someone stole my cane,” exclaims my mother over the phone. “Why would anyone steal from me, an old lady?” “Where were you?” I ask. “In the store. I can’t remember which one,” she responds. “I put it in the shopping cart and when I left, it was gone. Someone took it out of the cart.” [...]
Depression in the Workplace
How would you explain to your boss that you suffer from depression? Why would you even bother? It can be such a risk sharing with anybody, let alone your employer, that you have a mental illness. Even in this day and age the stigma against it is alive and well. Dr. Neil Korsen, Medical Director [...]
The Secret Life of Swimmers
It's not really a secret — swimming is a great way to get and stay in shape. Especially if you've been taking it easy lately.
Sharing My Pesto Recipe
Last night it rained hard. It didn't stop me from venturing out to the garden to pick some basil. It was a robust rain, but warm and gentle, and it felt good. I fell into a meditative rhythm as I moved in the dark from one plant to the next. All of a sudden, I [...]
Breast Milk Surplus? Consider Donating
Jennifer with husband Eric and son Kieran. What an amazing henna tattoo! Jennifer McDonnell had milk to spare when she was nursing her son Kieran. Rather than [...]
Bell’s Palsy and Lyme Disease
When my nephew developed Bell's Palsy, the doctor ordered tests for Lyme Disease. The tests were positive. There's a connection between Bell's Palsy and Lyme Disease.
Learning How to Walk for Life
Ever hear of Feldenkrais? The Feldenkrais Method uses gentle movements and directed attention to help people increase their range of motion, and improve flexibility and coordination. Worth learning about.
Which is better for picking up cervical cancer? Pap or HPV Test or both?
Many women are confused about what screening tests they should have and how often. Many also don't have the latest information on the primary cause of cervical cancer.
Food Pyramid Gone. Fill MyPlate With Veggies
MyPlate By now, you’ve probably seen the new MyPlate logo that is replacing the food pyramid. It’s colorful and easy to understand. My favorite part about all this isn’t the new logo as much as the history of all the logos that came before. Using a plate instead of a pyramid to [...]
Cellphones a Risk? Still Maybe, Maybe Not.
Text Instead The World Health Organization (WHO) reported this week that the radiofrequency electromagnetic fields emitted by cellphones may possibly cause cancer. WHO’s International Agency on Cancer Research reviewed nearly 1,000 studies, including some recently completed and not yet published. The review led WHO to give the radiation emitted by cellphones [...]
What you need to know about Lyme Disease
Not all ticks are deer ticks and not all deer ticks transmit Lyme Disease. But you never know, so you have to be careful. Read this important information.
Black Fly Madness
The tenacious black fly is usually nothing more than a big nuisance. Although rare, it can also be deadly. How to protect yourself.
My Happiness Lies on the 5-HTT Gene?
Some people may be genetically programmed to be happy. But that's not the whole story behind happiness.
Get Up From That Chair!
All I do is sit, sit, sit at the computer. My new routine includes time out of the chair. See how I'm making it happen.
Keys to Remembering Where You Put Your Keys
New guidelines for diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease were released this week, for the first time in nearly 30 years. The original guidelines,which were developed in 1984, defined Alzheimer’s as having just one stage — dementia — and based diagnosis only on clinical signs that a person was having trouble with thinking, learning, and memory. It was assumed that people [...]
Still Hungry After the Banquet
Imagine being invited to a banquet only instead of being escorted to a table draped in damask set with fine china, sterling silver and linen napkins, and adorned with an elegant centerpiece, your host points to the floor and says, “Please have a seat.” Appalling. For what is a banquet if not a sumptuous feast [...]
Elizabeth Taylor dies. What is congestive heart failure?
Learn what causes congestive heart failure and how to identify common symptoms.
Melancholy Be Gone. Spring Arrives March 20, 7:21 P.M. EDT.
"In the midst of winter, I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer." ~Albert Camus. I long for summer. Do you?
Is it Alzheimer’s?
Learn the difference between signs of Alzheimer's disease and typical age-related changes.