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If you think you may have bipolar disorder, talk to your doctor or a trusted friend or family member. Another person may be able to assist you in taking the first steps toward treating the condition. Most people with bipolar disorder can lead fulfilling, productive lives if they continue with their treatment and regularly see their doctor. Hospitalization may be required in some cases of bipolar disorder, but in most cases, the condition can be successfully treated in an outpatient setting, ideally by seeing a psychiatrist....

When he got back from his four-day weekend of maskless partying, he checked the reunion Facebook page and was surprised to read a post from one alum who revealed that he had tested positive for COVID-19. Because Nieland had received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, he wasn’t all that worried that he might have become infected at the reunion, but to be on the safe side he got tested. “I couldn’t believe it,” he says....

Types of Tests You May Get Related to Breast Cancer Screening and Diagnosis There are three types of tests related to breast cancer: screening tests, diagnostic tests, and monitoring tests. Monitoring tests happen later, after a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer and has begun treatment. They help doctors know how the treatment is working, what changes to the plan may be necessary, and whether the cancer returns after it is no longer detectable in your body....

Caffeine is a natural product that is extracted from the raw fruit of coffee plants (over sixty species), kola nuts, cocoa, yerba maté, guarana berries, coffee beans and teas. Caffeine is rapidly absorbed in about 30-60 minutes in our bodies after ingestion. Caffeine and Your Heart The question behind the comment I often encounter in clinic is “does caffeine effect my heart?” The simple answer is that it does. Caffeine in high doses raises your blood level of epinephrine....

While some people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) might feel that their condition keeps them from being a good candidate to adopt a pet, that’s not necessarily the case. There are many benefits to having a pet, and if you have RA, it may just come down to finding the right kind of pet for you. The Benefits of Pet Ownership One main reason to get a pet is that it helps you stay more active, which is a good thing with RA....

Prebiotics are substances found in food or supplements that support the growth of probiotics in your digestive system, according to the academic book Dietary Interventions in Gastrointestinal Diseases. While they may not get as much attention as the organisms they support, prebiotics play a crucial role in developing and maintaining a diverse and balanced population of gut bacteria, which may be especially important for people with ulcerative colitis. According to a review published in the Journal of Biomedical Science, prebiotics are mostly varieties of dietary fiber, which the body’s own digestive juices and enzymes can’t effectively break down — leaving bacteria in the colon to do the job instead....

But have you ever considered how coffee is made or the health benefits of coffee? Here’s what you need to know about the favorite morning beverage. What Is Coffee? Coffee is a cold or hot drink brewed from ground coffee beans. But although the coffee bean resembles a bean, it’s not actually a bean but rather the pit or seed inside a coffee cherry. This is the fruit produced by a coffee plant....

And JAK inhibitors provide the most targeted approach to treating psoriatic arthritis yet. The types of psoriatic arthritis treatment options include: Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to help alleviate joint pain and swellingDMARDs — such as methotrexate, a common first-line treatment — to slow disease progressionBiologics, such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors or interleukin (IL)-17 inhibitors, to target and block specific inflammatory response pathways in the bodyJAK inhibitors, which are the most targeted disease-modifying therapyImmunosuppressants to lessen an overactive immune responseSteroids to reduce inflammation and ease symptoms, especially during a flareEnzyme inhibitors to slow down the inflammatory response...

Who Are Superspreaders, and Why Are They So Dangerous? The fear of superspreaders is one reason experts are so worried about the exploding levels of virus in the United States. Some people continue to congregate in large groups, especially indoors, despite the recommendations not to do so, such as at massive house parties or religious services. Scientists call people who infect a large number of others superspreaders. And the dangerous thing is that anyone can become one....

“This study provides evidence that for older adults who are obese, combining aerobic exercise with a moderate decrease in daily calorie intake may help to reduce aortic stiffness,” says Tina E. Brinkley, PhD, lead author of the study and associate professor of gerontology and geriatric medicine at the Sticht Center for Healthy Aging and Alzheimer’s Prevention at Wake Forest School of Medicine in Winston Salem, North Carolina. Aortic stiffness is associated with increased risk for atherosclerotic heart disease, heart attack, heart failure, and stroke, according to the American Heart Association....

Not necessarily. Though allergy drugs can stop the misery of seasonal bouts with pollen, hay fever, and grasses, some can aggravate a heart condition, or be downright dangerous when mixed with blood pressure drugs and certain heart medicines. “If a patient has allergies or a cold and is considering OTC medications, it is always recommended to talk with the pharmacist on site, or to ask your physician for recommendations in the context of the other medications that are prescribed,” says L....

We sat down with Mininni to discuss her current work and to learn more about her perspective on wellness. What are you working on now? My mission at UCLA is to inspire a campus-wide culture of well-being. In my current role, I design curricula and teach strategies to foster personal and professional resilience among staff. This includes strengthening emotional intelligence and enhancing a stress-hardy mind-set. In addition, I consult with departments to assess and promote healthy functioning within their organizations....

If you or a loved one suffers from nightmares, or if you’re just curious about things that go bump in the night, here is some basic information about nightmares. You’ll find out where they come from, what they mean and how to stop them. What is a nightmare? Nightmares, or bad dreams, are a type of dream that causes you to feel anxiety, fear or terror. Typically, a person will wake up during or just after having a nightmare and he or she will be able to remember all or part of the bad dream clearly....

So it makes sense to educate yourself about diabetes, whether it’s type 2 diabetes, the most common form, which is most likely to strike in middle age and happens when your body becomes more resistant to insulin, per the CDC; type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease that typically begins in youth and young adults, destroying the cells the body uses to make insulin, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK); or another type, such as gestational diabetes or even prediabetes....

Gallstones are also a common gallbladder problem, and infection can occur if the gallbladder remains blocked by a gallstone or continues to be inflamed. Gallbladder disease is the term used to describe many of these maladies that can plague the gallbladder. But in many forms of gallbladder disease, a person may have no symptoms — up to 90 percent of people with gallstones, for example, don’t have any symptoms at all....

While diarrhea, at times, is a sign of an underlying health condition and can be unavoidable, there are steps you can take to reduce your risk and avoid some of the causes. Wash Your Hands Frequently One of the most important things you can do to prevent diarrhea is to wash your hands properly and frequently. It’s the most effective way to prevent the spread of germs from person to person and throughout an entire community....

The glycemic index ranks carbohydrates from zero (foods with no glucose at all) to 100 (sweets and drinks that contain nothing but glucose). Simple carbohydrates that have more glucose are digested rapidly, causing dramatic spikes and crashes in blood sugar levels. Complex carbohydrates with less glucose are digested more slowly and help maintain steadier blood sugar levels throughout the day. All the people in the new clinical trial had coronary artery disease, which happens when plaque accumulation causes the heart’s major blood vessels to narrow and stiffen, limiting blood flow....

Everyday Health researched the digital landscape to bring you our picks for the most promising and helpful technologies that can help with the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease. Rather than follow traditional rehab exercises, which tend to be boring or monotonous, the video game setting makes rehab more interesting. “We know that adherence is key to recovery — so we wanted to create something that makes it fun to stick to a rehabilitation task,” says lead researcher Stephanie Rossit, PhD, from UEA School of Psychology, in a press release....

Lots of children love to rock back and forth. Most often this is just normal behavior; however, occasionally it can be associated with specific problems, such as autism. To distinguish between normal rocking and abnormal behavior, you can look at the rocking specifically and your child’s behavior in general. Is your daughter’s rocking playful, or is it machine-like, with your child almost going into a trance-like state? Playful rocking is expected behavior in 1-year-old children....

The CDC reports that the number of cases of diseases spread by insects skyrocketed from 27,388 to more than 96,000 by 2016. Tick-borne diseases accounted for more than three-quarters of the total. “The relatively very large percentage of tick-borne cases, especially Lyme disease, was a little surprising,” says Ronald Rosenberg, a doctor of science in epidemiology who was research lead for the paper. “I knew how many cases we had, but seeing it all put together in the report made me realize that the tick that transmits Lyme disease, Ixodes scapularis, is really the most important vector in diseases in the United States today....