As a kid, I spent many Saturdays romping around my Florida neighborhood imitating Colonel Steve Austin, better known as The Six Million Dollar Man to avid TV watchers in the 1970s. The popular show featured a bionic man — half human and half machine — who could jump from three-story buildings, leap over six-foot-high walls,…
If you’ve been stuck mostly at home with one or more family members over the past year, chances are you’ve gotten on one another’s nerves occasionally. When you’re under a lot of stress, it’s not uncommon say something unkind, or even to lash out in anger to someone you care about. And we all make…
The tongue is secured to the front of the mouth partly by a band of tissue called the lingual frenulum. If the frenulum is short, it can restrict the movement of the tongue. This is commonly called a tongue-tie. Children with a tongue-tie can’t stick their tongue out past their lower lip, or touch their…
As the new year rolls on, sports fans rejoice! You’ve had the excitement of the college football bowl games and the national championship game, the NFL playoff games are winnowing teams down to the Super Bowl contestants, and basketball and hockey seasons are in full swing. Spring training for the upcoming Major League Baseball season…
Experiencing discrimination in the workplace — where many adults spend one-third of their time, on average — may be harmful to your heart health. A 2023 study in the Journal of the American Heart Association found that people who reported high levels of discrimination on the job were more likely to develop high blood pressure…
If you suffer from the throbbing, intense pain set off by migraine headaches, you may well wonder which medicines are most likely to offer relief. A recent study suggests a class of drugs called triptans are the most helpful option, with one particular drug rising to the top. The study drew on real-world data gleaned…
Animals renowned for their outstanding night vision include owls, cats, tarsiers (a tiny primate in Southeast Asia) — and even the dung beetle. But humans? Not so much. Over time, many people suffer from night blindness, also known as nyctalopia. This condition makes seeing in dim or dark settings difficult because your eyes cannot adjust…
I was in line at a pharmacy recently as the customer ahead of me was picking up her prescription. The pharmacist matter-of-factly said: “that’ll be $850.” All she could say was “really?” She left without her prescription, telling the pharmacist she’d have to call her doctor about a less costly alternative. Many of us routinely…
