Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a group of diseases that cause airflow blockage and breathing-related issues. Frequent coughing or wheezing is common, excess phlegm and mucus production, shortness of breath and trouble taking deep breaths. Almost 15 million Americans have been diagnosed with COPD, and even more Americans may be struggling with COPD and…
It’s generally known that people with diabetes often struggle with many other associated health problems in addition to diabetes. After all, problems with blood sugar can affect almost every area of your body, so diabetic patients must pay close attention to changes in their body and report to their physician immediately. You may think that…
This year, about 40,000 women are expected to die from breast cancer. For women, breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States, even though breast cancer death rates have been slowly decreasing since the late 1980s. It is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women. Three million American women have…
Forgetfulness is a natural part of life, and a common symptom of aging. Memory can be affected by a variety of factors, including chronic stress, certain health conditions or even a lack of planning. However, sometimes adults are affected with something more– dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s disease is a type of dementia and is…
Over the course of an average lifespan, your heart will beat over 300 billion times. While the heart can be damaged in numerous ways throughout our lifetimes, it remains one of the muscles in our bodies that never stops functioning, pumping oxygen-rich blood into our entire bodies to fuel its many functions. So when something…
You probably know that fried food, chocolate cake and loaded bacon cheeseburgers are not the best foods to consume as part of a healthy diet, but what exactly makes them so unhealthy? Junk foods and foods with a lot of animal products contain unhealthy fats, and may lack many nutrients that are important for overall…
Hips, shoulders and knees. Between the major bones in your body lies a joint, a moveable connection that is made up of bones, cartilage, and a cavity. They bear your body’s weight and are covered with a layer of cartilage to protect the bones from rubbing against each other when moving. Cartilage ensures that your…
While remaining moderately popular and the most cost-efficient and nutritious way to feed a growing infant, breastfeeding still struggles with popularity across some groups. Due to a lack of social support and opportunity, some mothers do not have the desire or ability to breastfeed their infant sons and daughters—but the research shows that both mother…
Hormone changes immediately following pregnancy and labor are very common. The brain of a pregnant individual is almost soaked in a cocktail of hormones for nine months, and in a matter of days following birth, hormones that have been surrounding the brain disappear. Sometimes this causes a drastic shift in the mental state of an…
The main difference between an ICU and a regular hospital floor (also sometimes known as Medical/Surgical) is the level of care provided. Nurses and other care practitioners in the medical/surgical field are widely trained across a variety of diseases and illnesses—after all, they deal with all sorts of conditions that require hospitalizations, including recovery from…
