Women Health Advice

Lots of teen girls have acne. But knowing you have company still doesn't make you feel much better about your own skin, does it? You don't have to wait until you "grow out of" acne. With some time and the right treatment, you'll be surprised at how much you can improve your skin. 1   You didn't do anything to cause your acne   Acne isn't your fault. It's caused by   many things , all of which are out of your control. So it's not the chocolate bar you ate last night, or the pizza and soda you had over the weekend. It's not because you're not cleaning your face properly. And it's not your makeup (probably). When it comes down to it, it's the hormonal changes that happen during puberty. And some people are just going to get acne; it's in your genes. So don't feel guilty—you didn't do anything to cause your acne. 2   Those products you see on TV don't really work overnight You know what I'm talki...

It is common to not get enough sleep. Whether you stay up too late or have to get up too early, you may find yourself getting less sleep than you need. What are the consequences of this sleep deprivation? There are clear symptoms and even physical effects of sleep deprivation, but you may be surprised to learn about some of the other potential side effects from injuries to errors to pain. Sleep deprivation is defined as getting less sleep than your body needs and the threshold may be different for different people. If you need 10 hours of sleep to feel rested, you may become sleep deprived by only sleeping 8 hours per night. It is also clear that when our sleep becomes fragmented this can also undermine its quality. This may occur in many sleep disorders, including   restless legs syndrome   and   sleep apnea . Sometimes we fragment our own sleep by   dividing our sleep periods   into shorter stretches. No matter the cause, the c...

It is common to not get enough sleep at night. No matter the reason, this loss of sleep can have important consequences on health. How does sleep deprivation cause hormone changes in the body? Learn about some of the potential impacts of inadequate sleep on your endocrine system. A Word on Hormones First, it is important to understand a little about the vital role of hormones within the body. These chemical messengers serve a key function in nearly every major process of our body, holding influence over everything from growth to metabolism to reproduction. These various hormones and the glands that secrete them are collectively called the endocrine system. Many hormones are ultimately controlled by structures within the brain, including the master control called the pituitary gland. When disrupted, there can be important changes that occur in the body. Inadequate Sleep and Hormone Changes Hormones can be highly influenced by the natural pattern of light and darkness a...

You can get a cold year-round, but most people consider the winter months to be a common cold season. We are more likely to get colds when the weather is cold and we spend more time indoors sharing germs with other people. The viruses that cause colds also spread more easily in colder, drier air. Generally, this means cold season starts sometime around September and ends sometime around April in the United States. However, this doesn't mean the cold weather  itself  makes us sick. Prolonged exposure to cold temperatures can cause very serious illnesses like hypothermia, but there is no strong evidence to show that the cold itself can give you a cold. Only exposure to a virus that causes the common cold can do that. There are several reasons why colds are more common during the cold season. People spend more time indoors and closer to each other during the winter. Children are in school and sharing germs with much more children than they do during the sum...

Everyone wants a quick fix when they are sick. Not many people enjoy getting a cold, the flu or any other illness. As soon as we feel the symptoms coming on, we try to think up way to try to stop it. People will try everything from taking extra Vitamin C to over the counter cold and flu medications and many, many remedies in between. One such "remedy" being passed around social media is to place a  cut  onion in the room of the person who is sick. The claim is that onions have the ability to absorb bacteria and viruses and will actual pull the germs out of the sick person.  For some reason, many otherwise rational people seem to believe this could be true. I'm not sure how we got to the point where ideas like this that are passed around on the internet are trusted more than health care professionals who have years of education and experience but that seems to be where we are.  So, if you are reading this to see if cutting an oni...

” A pet is a medication without side effects that has so many benefits. I can’t always explain it myself, but for years now I’ve seen how instances of having a pet is like an effective drug. It really does help people.” - Dr. Edward Creagan, Oncologist at Mayo Clinic Rochester, Minnesota Pet therapy, something also referred to as "animal-assisted therapy," has been gaining popularity in the last several years. From animal visits for children in hospitals to those with dementia, and now people with cancer, studies suggest there are some important benefits obtained from these furry visitors. And as the quote above says so well: it’s often like an effective drug but without side effects. What are some of the ways that pet therapy has helped those struggling with physical and mental illnesses, and what are we starting to learn about its role in cancer treatment? History Animals have been man’s companions since recorded time, but the use of this companionship to foster he...

While we all know that pets can trigger a smile or a sense of calmness within most people, it may surprise you that a pet can actually reduce pain. Animal-assisted therapy, also known as pet therapy, entails using trained animals to provide some sort of therapeutic benefit (whether that be comfort, relaxation, or easing pain) to people of all ages with a wide range of health problems. The Basics of Animal-Assisted Therapy While dogs and cats are probably the most commonly utilized animals in therapy visits, other animals like birds, guinea pigs, fish, horses, and dolphins can also be used. The key is finding an animal that a person can connect with based on their needs. It's also important to understand that the human-animal bond during an animal therapy visit session is meant to be a healing connection, one that encompasses the patient, the animal, and the animal owner or handler. In order for the therapy visit to be effective, the animal should be trained, and there ne...