For a country obsessed with losing weight, spending more than $60 billion a year trying to shed pounds, Americans are failing miserably. Even though we know the health risks that come with being too overweight, almost 78 million adults and 13 million children are obese — that’s one in three adults. (1, 2) It’s obvious…
Lyme disease symptoms can mimic many other diseases, making a swift diagnosis difficult. That's problematic, as rates of Lyme disease are on the rise. That's why news of an upcoming new test to detect the disease is such a positive development. In October 2018, researchers confirmed they developed a test that will actually detect Lyme DNA,…
The terms narcissist and narcissistic personality disorder are thrown around rather loosely today. While a touch of self-centeredness, need for admiration or difficulty being criticized may seem narcissistic, it doesn't necessarily warrant a diagnosis of true narcissistic personality disorder. (And here's an important point to remember: Narcissism is not the same as confidence.) But when…
Pneumonia is the single largest infectious cause of death in children globally, killing more than 2,500 children a day worldwide. It's also to blame for up to 7 percent of all deaths in adults. (1) According to the American Lung Association, believe it or not there are more than 30 different causes of pneumonia. (2) Luckily not every…
Never heard of homocysteine before and wondering what causes someone to have elevated homocysteine levels? Homocysteine is a specific type of amino acid that's created in the body during metabolic processes, as opposed to consumed in food. It's produced in the body as a byproduct of methylation, the process of producing an essential protein called…
A fungus may trigger Crohn's disease, a devastating inflammatory bowel disease that often requires heavy-duty drugs, surgery or a combination of both to keep at bay. The new finding, published in the September 2016 edition journal mBio, opens the door to more probiotic-based treatment options that could more gently treat and possibly even cure the digestive disease Crohn's…
Asthma is a common problem that affects more than 25 million Americans, especially children and teens. Rates of asthma have been increasing steadily over the past several decades as well — today one in 12 people has asthma, or 8 percent of the U.S. population, compared to about one in 14 people less than 10 years…
As I’m sure you’re well aware, an estimated 52.5 million U.S. adults suffer from some sort of arthritis, and one common form is rheumatoid arthritis (RA). (1) How wide does this disease cast its net? Rhematoid arthritis affects a staggering 1.3 million to 1.5 million Americans at any given time. Thus the question arises: Is…
You may have heard of lupus, but do you know the most common lupus symptoms to look out for? You should, because this autoimmune disease affects at least 1.5 million Americans and more than 5 million people worldwide. (1) Even more alarming, more than 16,000 new cases of lupus are reported each year in the…
While indigestion is common for many Americans, particularly given the standard American diet, if you’re having burning sensations in or above your stomach, stomachaches or pains, feeling nauseous or vomiting, or constantly burping, you may be suffering from gastritis symptoms — and that means you may want to begin the gastritis diet treatment plan. What is…