It’s Friday at your workplace and the boss is out for the day. Someone suggests doing Mexican food for lunch and soon all the employees are making a mad dash for the door. You feast on all that tasty fare and head back to work, however, the rest of the day you swig water until you are sure you can hear that water sloshing around inside of you. Blame it on the spicy salsa and a few too many warm tortilla chips. But, not only that, you want to loosen your pants because you feel like a balloon about to burst – must’ve been the refried beans! Mexican food sure is tasty, but everyone jokes about beans and their aftereffects.
During your high school and college years, pizza was your go-to food 24/7; you ate that hot and piping pizza pie when it was delivered, and ice cold the next morning. Your stomach never rebelled one iota. So …
Suddenly, that ooey-gooey crust or that tangy tomato sauce leaves you feeling like your innards are on fire. After vowing to stop patronizing that pizza joint going forward, you might think “do they make pizza differently these days … or is it me?” Well, if you really have to ask that question, perhaps it is time to make an appointment with a gastroenterologist to have your GI tract checked out to ensure everything is okay. Gastroenterologists deal with all types of stomach ailments and should be able to quickly determine if your pain is caused by simple indigestion or is a symptom of a serious stomach condition.
But first, let’s delve a little into the topic of indigestion.
When you are not feeling up to par, there are a few solutions available to remedy the situation: 1) you wait it out and hope it goes away; 2) you Google to find the answer (and sometimes you feel worse after reading what those symptoms might really be; or 3) you take yourself to the doctor.
Babies and pets are the only ones who must suffer in silence because they are unable to tell you they don’t feel well. An astute parent, or pet parent, notices a not-so-perky or listless demeanor or crying/whining and that is all you have to go on.
Toddlers or children are more vocal. They’ll come up to you and say “I’ve got a tummy ache” and will point a chubby finger around the area of their bellybutton. Well, that doesn’t help much, so, it is up to you to play detective and decide if the malady warrants a trip to the pediatrician, or even the E.R., or just a few days spent in bed. Pain that is generally located around the center of the abdomen, or the bellybutton is considered “simple” abdominal pain.
Constipation is a problem for many people, it is something that can have a direct impact on our overall health and can also cause long term damage to our bodies. Constipation can be a sign of an unhealthy diet or stress or that you aren’t getting enough water or it can be a sign of another medical condition. If you are constipated often you should go to a gastroenterologist in Flushing and get a check up.
The recent death of character actor, Abe Vigoda, caused the media to haul out sound bites and videos of some of his most memorable scenes. Of course, there was dialogue of Vigoda playing Tessio in “The Godfather”, as well as his character Fish in the “Barney Miller” series. But oddly enough, many of the sound bites and still shots of Fish in “Barney Miller” had that character’s hand dipping into a box of prunes while extolling their virtues. He said “I’ve been eating prunes for 40 years. When I was 13, I gave a girl a necklace of prune pits. Her mother thought I was into voodoo.”
You read that right… your skin is not only an organ, it’s the biggest organ in your body. Face it… your skin is everywhere! Regardless of your shape or size, your skin is huge. In fact, at this very moment, you’ve got about 19 million skin cells… per square inch … which equals about 20 feet of skin! And all those varied areas of skin all over your body can make it tough to care for, especially considering the fact that the skin in different areas of your body gets different types of exposures. That means that each area’s skin requires different types of care. Think about it. The skin on your face is vastly different from, say, the skin on your feet, isn’t it? Just one reason is because the skin on your face is constantly exposed to the world, whereas the skin on your feet isn’t. Another reason is because the skin on your feet gets a whole different kind of beating compared to that of your face. So what do you do to care for the various areas of skin located all over your body? Here are some tips from dermatologists about how to care for the many different types of skin your body contains.
Everyone loves the magic and allure of a winter wonderland, with its Christmas sparkle and rich, crystal beauty. But nobody loves what winter’s harsh winds and dry air can do to their skin. First, there are those harmful UV rays. Did you know they can age you faster than just about everything else? This is a fact, which is why you not only need sunscreen on those days you head out for a sunny day at the beach; you also need it through the winter to minimize the sun’s effects, especially for skin cancer prevention. Then there’s the cold. Those frosty winds whipping around your face and other skin surfaces can dry out your skin, leaving it rough and scaly. And, finally, because of all those frigid temps, you’re likely turning up the heat inside your home, which is like adding insult to injury on your poor skin cells. And there you have it… the perfect combination for turning soft, supple skin into a veritable alligator bag. Following are some tips from dermatologists in New Jersey on how to prevent sun damage to skin in winter.
Naturally, cleaning your ears is important, not just for proper hearing, but also for preventing infection. Because the ear canal is susceptible to all manner of dirt, bacteria, and viruses that can wreak havoc with your health, it’s vital to keep the areas inside the ear clean and free of debris. But it’s not enough just to clean your ears. It’s also important to keep them free from moisture. If you’re a swimmer, you likely know about a medical condition known as swim ear or swimmer’s ear, which is an infection caused by excessive moisture within the outer ear canal. Unfortunately, though, swimmers aren’t the only ones who can get swim ear. In fact, anyone can contract it, and of swim ear causes there are many, including showering, ear buds, and even the use of Q-Tips. Swim ear drops are effective at helping to clear up swimmer’s ear infections, but isn’t it better not to get an infection in the first place? That’s why it’s important to know the right way to clean your ears and the wrong way. Though Q-tips and other cotton swab products are effective and useful for other endeavors, healthcare professionals strongly recommend against their use for the cleaning of the ear canal.
Skin is a funny thing. We see it all day every day, but most of us probably don’t give our skin much thought most of the time (over and above those little signs of aging, that is). You see it every time you look in the mirror. You see it right in front of you all day long. In fact, your skin is probably one of the first things you see when you wake up in the morning.
But just how much do you really know about your skin? For instance, did you know that, like your heart, your liver, and your lungs, your skin is actually an organ? It’s true, but to be more precise, your skin just happens to be the largest organ in your body. And, besides being the human body’s largest organ, the skin has loads of other cool things going on, as it’s definitely one of the most fascinating organs in the body. Here are more fun facts about skin from top dermatologists in New Jersey that might just make you, well, jump out of your skin!
Do you dread winter? Do the short days and below-freezing temperatures make you want to hole up in your house, cuddling under blankets and watching your favorite program’s all-day marathon? If this sounds like you, you’ve got to know you’re not alone. Millions of folks see winter’s chill as vindication for their inactivity. So what happens when that thaw comes and you realize you’ve not only spent four months lounging around the house… you’ve also allowed winter’s heightened snacking to gravitate right to your hips? Luckily, there are answers to this yearly question. The good news about cold weather is that it comes with its own special set of workouts that not only help keep you from gaining winter’s typical 10 pounds; they can also help chase away those winter doldrums and lift your spirits ‘til summer. Here are some great ideas for winter workouts, from those that are meant to be performed in the cold such as skiing and ice skating, to those you wouldn’t normally consider this time of year, such as walking and swimming (with extra tips on swimmer’s ear prevention).
Whether he creeps in gradually via fluctuating climate patterns, or he gushes forth in a sudden snowy frenzy, Old Man Winter can sure wreak havoc on your health. Staying ‘in the pink’ during those frosty winter months can be extra tough, especially if you spend a significant amount of your time around children or in close quarters with coworkers. That’s why it’s almost more important to stay on top of your daily health habits in winter, since infectious illnesses such as colds and flues can get passed around more readily during harsher weather. Here are some daily health tips from healthcare professionals that will help you fight off all that winter has in store for you this year.