A series of educational articles raising awareness of consumer health care issues with the purpose of improving health literacy.
While the large majority of us can’t wait to get our vaccine, polls reveal that about a third of people intend to decline theirs, including 15% of healthcare workers. Hopefully Eight Myths of COVID Vaccines will clear up some misunderstandings about the Covid vaccines, which are truly the greatest medical advance of the century.
The use of tablets is rapidly increasing, steady replacing laptops. Tablets provide users with the flexibility to use them everywhere. This means we (including school-aged children) are using them in bed, sitting in a chair, in front of the television, and in the car. This has led to an increase in the neck and upper back pain. Read Ergonomic Risks Associated with Tablet Use and learn our 8 guidelines to support success for tablets.
The first 2 COVID-19 vaccines authorized in the U.S. are a new type – called mRNA, which have raised lots of questions about how they work. If you’re still not sure what exactly that means, here’s the gist: mRNA stands for messenger RNA – and the messages these vaccines carry are like instructions for your immune system. Get the vaccine facts by reading What’s in Your Vaccine – mRNA Explained.
Whether for work or pleasure, we are all spending much more time staring at screens than we did last year. Clearly, there are many benefits of “Zoom meetings,” which is why we do them. But there are also potential hazards to be aware of. Learn how to avoid vision and non-vision hazards by reading Six Potential Hazards of Too Much Screen Time.
Six Reasons Not to Fill a Cavity, now that we have your attention, we still want you to fix the cavity. But not by drilling-and-filling it. Rather, by treating it painlessly, quickly and inexpensively with silver diamine fluoride (SDF). Learn more about this FDA approved alternative that is quicker and less expensive than a standard filling
You are no doubt preparing to return to, or already returning to, a workplace that looks very different from the one you remember. To that end, there is some bad news and some good news. Six Things to Know About Adapting to the New Workplace highlights steps you need to take to stay safe. The good news is at the end of the article.
Read Rethinking the Baby Aspirin in the Time of COVID and discover the 4 reasons to reconsider taking a baby aspirin. The thinking in place a few months ago now needs to be reexamined. We review the pros and cons of taking baby aspirin so you can make a more informed healthcare choice.
This is the second half of Six Things Employees Need to Know About Stents (Part 2), the first part, from January's Well Aware article covering the first three, is below.
Americans are the most overscreened, overdiagnosed, overtreated, over-medicated society on earth, partly because we often demand inappropriate healthcare and partly because we don’t question doctors as much as we should. Learn the right questions to ask by reading Five Questions to Ask a Doctor Before Agreeing to a Test or Procedure.
A stent is a little tube inserted into a blood vessel, to unclog it. Roughly 1.8 million are implanted in Americans every year. Could it really be the case that humans are so ill-evolved that without stents our arteries would remain clogged and many more of us would die? Read Six Things Employees Need to Know About Stents (Part 1) to learn what you need to know before getting a stent implanted.
Last month, Zantac was recalled from all shelves. This is due to low levels of a cancer-causing contaminant. Many questions about this contaminant are still unanswered, so it is unclear when if at all Zantac will be back on the market. We have listed your potential heartburn drug options in Zantac has been recalled. What should you take instead?
Musculoskeletal conditions top the list of things that bother people during their working years. And tops on the list of musculoskeletal conditions is back pain. There is no one answer to back pain, and some conventional therapies may do more harm than good. Read Six Things to Know about Back Pain to learn what can be said with confidence.
Learn how you can earn two $25 gift cards by participating in our, Jeopardy-like monthly quiz program, Quizzify. You will also become a wiser health care consumer, save money and improve your health! Every month we will send you a 10-question quiz about healthcare, health and lifestyle. NEW this year, monthly $100 drawings. Learn more and register to play.
The best and safest way to prevent and control your heartburn is through altering your diet and lifestyle. This was outlined in the previous installment of Six Things Employees Should Know about Heartburn, last month. In this installment, we cover remedies, specifically the most popular remedy, the Proton Pump Inhibitor (PPI).
Heartburn -- also known as indigestion or acid reflux — seems to be a part of the human condition. Likely a third of the American adult population experience this condition at least once a month. Many suffers reach for a drug remedy, yet simple lifestyle changes can reduce the need, and nobody should be taking any drug designed as a remedy every day. Learn more by reading Six Things Employees Should Know about Heartburn – Part 1
Trouble sleeping? You are not alone. According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, each night millions of Americans struggle to fall asleep or stay asleep. At some point, many adults experience short-term (acute) insomnia which can last for several days or weeks. Read Six Things You May Not Know about Sleep to learn more about sleep inhibitors.
You probably want to eat a healthy diet most of the time…. but that turns out to be much harder than it would appear because of "hidden" sugar in our foods. Six Things People Don’t Know about Sugar helps you make more informed choices.
Learn more about when you need the following and when you don't.
Colonoscopy -- Protect yourself from unnecessary tests and colon cancer.
Health Checkups -- Learn more about when to schedule and what tests are appropriate.
Allergy Tests -- Read how to manage allergies and hives.
Bone-density Tests -- Keep your bones strong.
Antibiotics -- Discover steps you can take to reduce use of antibiotics.
Medical Scans -- Learn about the hazards of medical scans.
