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CountryNurse \| Home	February 4, 2012

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Leaves of Three, Leave Them Be!
Watch out. Unfortunately poison ivy now has more potential than ever to make you miserable!

Ask a Pharmacist
Sorting through the numerous pharmacy shelves for just the right over-the-counter product to suit your needs can be confusing. However, consumers can get help with their in-the-aisle decisions by simply asking their pharmacist for help.

Is Sugar the Scapegoat?
Is Sugar the Scapegoat? In 2002, The National Academy of Sciences completed a three- year analysis of the science on diet and health including Body Mass Index (BMI). The conclusion: "There is no clear and consistent association between increased intakes of added sugars and BMI.

Stem Cells Used To Repair Skull
German surgeons have used stem cells from fat to help repair skull damage in a 7-year-old girl.

State-Of-The-Art Disaster Hospital
. . . Demonstrates Preparedness For Terrorist Attack, Bio/Flu Crisis Or Natural Disaster Communities throughout America are unprepared for a sudden surge in demand for hospital care; durable Disaster Medical Facility is military proven.

FDA Panel Weighs 'Female Viagra'
The Food and Drug Administration is considering whether to approve the first prescription treatment for women with decreased sex drives.

Living With Breast Cancer
A woman's chance of remaining cancer-free following successful treatment for five years with tamoxifen for early breast cancer just got better, thanks to the approval of a new therapy for postmenopausal women.

New Test for Breast Cancer
Painless, Non-Invasive Breast Fluid Test Discovers Breast Cancer at Early, Most Treatable Stage Doctors will soon have a powerful tool - a non-invasive, painless nipple fluid test - in their fight to make breast cancer a more treatable, non-fatal disease.

FDA Issues Suicide Warning on Antidepressants
The Food and Drug Administration on Monday issued warnings for popular antidepressants, saying the drugs could invoke suicidal tendencies among patients taking them.

Wonder Drug
Yet another potent benefit has been discovered for aspirin, one of the world's most widely-used drugs.

Help for Senior Regarding Prescription Drugs
Seventeen Million Elderly Americans are searching for a better way to pay for their medications.

Coughing May Be Helpful During Heart Attack
A Polish cardiologist has told an international gathering of heart experts that a well-timed cough can save a heart attack victim's life.

Tadeusz Petelenz says the pumping action caused by vigorous coughing can push blood to the brain for valuable minutes while an ambulance arrives.

Is Your Doctor's Office Online?
Getting non-Urgent medical care without leaving home may have gotten much easier. Find out if your Doctor is available online.

West Nile Can Cause Spinal Damage
Health officials say the West Nile virus can attack and damage the spinal cord, causing paralysis, fatigue and other symptoms that persist for months after infection, USA Today reported Wednesday.

Lifestyle Changes And Meds Help Reduce Risk ..
....of Another Stroke or Heart Attack Each year, 700,000 Americans will have a stroke and 168,000 will die from it. Stroke can strike at any age, and risk doubles with each decade over age 55. What can you do?

Promising Drug May Prevent Prostate Cancer
Scientists say a drug used to fight baldness and shrink enlarged prostates could also be used to combat prostate cancer, the number 2 cancer killer of men.

Cataract Surgery Now Safer
More than 2.5 million people undergo cataract-removal surgery in the U.S. each year, and now researchers have recently devised a new technique that could make the most commonly performed surgery in the U.S. a little safer.

Put Back Pain to Rest
Is back pain getting the best of you? Two new studies show that low level heat may hold the key to fighting acute low back pain.

New AIDS Drug Wins FDA Approval
The FDA has approved a new class of drugs in the battle against AIDS. Called 'fusion inhibitors,' these drugs prevent the aids virus from entering into immune cells.

Diabetes Risk for Unfit Teens
Teenagers who are out of shape and overweight are at greater risk of developing diabetes at a young age, according to a new medical study.

Going National with Diabetes
With 17 million Americans suffering from this once rare disease, Chris Saudek sounded a wake-up call during his year as president of the American Diabetes Association. Read the latest Hopkins Medical report and informative wake up call written by Anne Bennett Swingle.

Puzzled over Car Seat Instructions?
Parents are often criticized for improperly installing car seats, but a new study suggests that the instruction manuals that come with such seats are often too complex to understand.

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Shingles Shots Expensive But Effective
Shingles is often thought of as "old people's disease" but this is not true. It can strike young and old alike with dire effects. Sometimes young people "blow off" the idea they could get this, and have no idea the virus is really "chicken pox reversed", as one nurse practitioner called it. "This virus lies dormant in the system once you have had it for your life, and stress or contagious contact can trigger it recurring". What is less well known is how tough it can be ignored, even blinding it's victim if occurring on face or near eyes. Truly this is a dangerous virus. Good news is there is a new vaccine for it, and while expensive (often $300 per shot) it is covered by most insurance and Medicare-Medicaid plans. As your physician or nearby health clinic if they provide it, and watch for announcements of available shots in your area. You'll be protected at near 100% level. And keep in mind you can take it within a few weeks of a bout, in most cases. Otherwise it can recur again without warning over and over.

IS SWINE FLU GONE?

That answer is a big NO. Shots should be taken by all ages, and it has no season, though early Spring and colder weather can add to the spread due to confusion of early symptoms. Keeping your immune system tuned up is a great added way to slow or stop the disease effects.

Here are the key questions you need to ask before getting your vaccination against latest strains:

1. Should you take both shots, regular flu and H1N1, at one time?

Best answer--no in general, but adults have tolerated them both, especially if one the H1 dose is nasal and regular flu a shot.

2. Is this safe for children?

Best anser--yes is should be no different than past flu shots, processing is same. However, there is always a small risk with any vaccine that a reaction will occur, though rarely fatal.

3. Who do I follow for advice?

Best answer--your own choice of expert medical professionals is always your best result, since you make that decision. However, the CDC and local health authorities endeavour to give best overall advice daily. Check websites and news and other current reporting media for these updates.

4. What is the best conservative approach to flu shots?

Best answer--surely age, health conditions, and any underlying symptoms that might make you a special risk category should be the first thinking you do. Tell your health care provider everything, don't make them guess. People can keep things like diabetes, asthma, other chronic but not apparent diseases, hidden from any new intervention provider who is working the flu shot venues. Keep in mind that those people are there to provide immunization, not do a physical and be your "doctor". Most bad reactions are predictable, and you need to come clean on waht is going on with you ro children, or elderly in your care, for example. Use your head, common sense is always first line for any conservative person.