(HealthDay News) — Knee pain is common, especially in highly active people, says the Cedars-Sinai hospital system. Women, people with a high body mass index and the elderly are at a greater risk of knee pain. Cedars-Sinai mentions these common causes: Overuse of the knee. Inflammation in tissues around the knee. Misalignment of the kneecap. Damage to ligaments, nerves or bone in the area. Injury. To diagnose the reasons for your knee pain, your doctor will perform an exam to test the knee’s range of motion, strength and areas of soreness. Sometimes, an X-ray or MRI may be needed to determine the cause of pain.
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Can You Find Love in Long-Term Care? Just Ask Gloria and Al
Romance was absolutely the last thing Gloria Duncan and Al Cappiello had on their minds when they became nursing home residents. “When I got here, I felt almost like my life was over. I was a very active, social person. I was almost devastated,” Gloria said. But then she met Al, who asked Gloria to be his date at the “Seniors’ Senior Prom.” Al said he had noticed Gloria in an exercise class, but was a bit too nervous to ask her out then. He said his nerves don’t usually get the best of him. “It only happens when someone is very nice and very pretty,” he said. Al finally worked up the nerve to ask Gloria to the prom. “She gave me a little hard way to go, but then said yes, and we had a pretty good time,” he said. “This was the last thing I expected. I didn’t expect to meet anyone. I came here figuring, ‘It’s the last stop.’ But I feel so lucky now. Gloria is beautiful inside and out,” Al said. Gloria added, “We found out we had a lot in common. Now we see each other every day. It gives us something to look forward to.” Fortunately for the couple, they were staying in a nursing home that pioneered a sexual expression policy for seniors. The Hebrew Home… read on >
Marijuana Could Offer Relief From Migraine Pain
Headache and migraine patients, take note: medical marijuana may help ease your pain. The findings follow an analysis of data collected by a Canadian phone app that gathered feedback offered by 1,300 headache sufferers and nearly 700 migraine sufferers who used marijuana to treat their head pain. “We found that self-reported headache and migraine severity were reduced by nearly 50% from before to after cannabis use,” said study author Carrie Cuttler. She is an assistant professor in the department of psychology at Washington State University in Pullman, Wash. But a lot of unanswered questions remain. For one, it’s not clear if pot was any better at cutting down headache pain than conventional medicine. “We didn’t directly compare cannabis to conventional treatments,” said Cuttler, “so we don’t know if it is more or less effective.” Also, the jury remains out as to what particular compound might be causing the reductions. The team found that when it came to head pain control, it didn’t matter how much tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or cannabidiol (CBD) was in a particular batch of pot. THC and CBD are the most commonly studied ingredients in marijuana, Cuttler’s team noted. “[So] it could be one of the other 100-plus phytocannabinoids in the cannabis plant,” she said, adding that “there is simply not enough research on these other constituents to know right now.” At the… read on >
Cards, Board Games Could Be a Win for Aging Brains
Playing cards and board games like chess, bingo and Scrabble might be the mental workout you need to keep your wits as you age, Scottish researchers suggest. People in their 70s who regularly play board games score higher on tests of memory and thinking skills than those who don’t. And 70-somethings who step up their game-playing are more likely to maintain thinking skills as they age, researchers say. “Playing board, card and word games may protect people from cognitive decline, but this study wasn’t an intervention, so we can’t say that for sure,” said lead researcher Drew Altschul, a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Edinburgh. “But it, at very least, is fun, inexpensive, and it certainly won’t hurt you.” He doesn’t think it’s the social aspect of these activities that provides this brain-protective effect, but rather the challenge of the games themselves. Unlike reading, writing, taking classes, visiting museums, libraries or friends and relatives, games appear to more actively engage abilities like memory, thinking speed and reasoning, Altschul said. “So, this fits with what we call the ‘use it or lose it’ theory, that exercising your mental abilities more keeps them in better shape,” he said. For the study, Altschul and his colleagues tested the memory, problem-solving, thinking speed and general thinking ability in nearly 1,100 70-year-olds. The tests were repeated every three… read on >
How to Prevent Holiday Headaches
The holiday season can give you real headaches, but you can take action to prevent them, an expert says. To reduce stress, make plans well in advance and know your limits, advised Dr. Bing Liao, a neurologist at Houston Methodist. “The nature of the holiday season already increases stress levels, so finding small ways to reduce schedule stress can help ward off a headache,” Liao said in a hospital news release. “This can mean planning well in advance to avoid the hassle of making last minute travel plans, or deciding not to attend a party at the end of a long day.” Be sure you have an adequate supply or a refill of your prescription medications before the holidays, she advised. Missing doses or cutting back could trigger a headache or even serious side effects. “Don’t binge anything during the holidays — food, alcohol, or television,” Liao said. “We all know how a hangover can affect the brain, but most don’t realize that overeating can also trigger a headache. And having the next day off from work doesn’t mean you should stay up late watching holiday movies. The brain needs the same amount of sleep during the holidays as it does the rest of the year, so stick with your usual bedtime.” Running holiday errands can lead to skipped meals and dehydration, which can trigger… read on >
How to Prevent Holiday Headaches
The holiday season can give you real headaches, but you can take action to prevent them, an expert says. To reduce stress, make plans well in advance and know your limits, advised Dr. Bing Liao, a neurologist at Houston Methodist. “The nature of the holiday season already increases stress levels, so finding small ways to reduce schedule stress can help ward off a headache,” Liao said in a hospital news release. “This can mean planning well in advance to avoid the hassle of making last minute travel plans, or deciding not to attend a party at the end of a long day.” Be sure you have an adequate supply or a refill of your prescription medications before the holidays, she advised. Missing doses or cutting back could trigger a headache or even serious side effects. “Don’t binge anything during the holidays — food, alcohol, or television,” Liao said. “We all know how a hangover can affect the brain, but most don’t realize that overeating can also trigger a headache. And having the next day off from work doesn’t mean you should stay up late watching holiday movies. The brain needs the same amount of sleep during the holidays as it does the rest of the year, so stick with your usual bedtime.” Running holiday errands can lead to skipped meals and dehydration, which can trigger… read on >
Deportation Fears Linked to Migrant Women’s High Blood Pressure: Study
Fear of deportation doubles the risk of high blood pressure in Mexican-born women in farmworker families who live in California’s Salinas Valley, a new study claims. It included 572 women, average age 39, who in 2012-2014 were asked to rate their level of worry about deportation for themselves or others as low (28%); moderate (24%); or high (48%). Researchers linked worry to larger increases in systolic pressure. (Systolic pressure, the top number in a blood pressure reading, measures the force of blood against the arteries when heart beats.) But rates of high blood pressure were not significantly different among women with different levels of worry. In follow-ups conducted in 2014-2016 and 2016-2018, women who were more worried about deportation had a larger initial increase in systolic blood pressure and average arterial pressure, the study found. Among the 408 women without high blood pressure at the outset, those with moderate or high levels of worry were twice as likely as others to be diagnosed with high blood pressure. The study was published Nov. 27 in the Journal of the American Heart Association. “Our findings suggest that concerns around immigration policies and enforcement may have potentially negative impacts on the long-term cardiovascular health of immigrants and their families and community,” lead author Jacqueline Torres said in a journal news release. She’s an assistant professor of epidemiology and… read on >
Health Tip: Five Exercise and Nutrition Myths
(HealthDay News) — Figuring out which nutrition and exercise information is trustworthy may be difficult, says the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. The agency debunks these common misconceptions: Bread, pasta and rice are not necessarily fattening. Try to eat whole grains to feel fuller. You do not have to avoid all fats if you’re trying to lose weight. Go for foods with healthy fats, such as avocados and nuts. Dairy products may not be unhealthy. Adults should have three servings a day of low-fat dairy products. Physical activity does not have to be for long periods. You can perform short spurts of activity during the week. Lifting weights will not always make you look “too bulky.” Only intense strength training will build large muscles.
Even in Small Doses, Air Pollution Harms Older Americans
Even a little exposure to the fine particles of air pollution can translate into higher hospitalization rates for a number of common conditions among older Americans, a new study suggests. “The study shows that the health dangers and economic impacts of air pollution are significantly larger than previously understood,” said study author Yaguang Wei, a doctoral candidate at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, in Boston. For the study, researchers analyzed data on more than 95 million inpatient hospital claims for Medicare beneficiaries, aged 65 and older, from 2000 to 2012. They also assessed levels of fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) in the patients’ ZIP codes. Sources of PM2.5 include motor vehicles, coal-fired power plants and wildfires. Short-term exposure to PM2.5 was linked with hospitalizations for common conditions such as septicemia (serious bloodstream infection), fluid and electrolyte disorders, kidney failure, urinary tract infections, and skin and tissue infections. The researchers also confirmed previously identified associations between short-term PM2.5 exposure and hospitalization for a number of other conditions, including heart and lung diseases, Parkinson’s disease and diabetes. Each 1 µg/m3 increase in short-term exposure to PM2.5 was associated with an annual increase of nearly 5,700 hospitalizations, over 32,000 days in the hospital, and 634 deaths. That resulted in $100 million in inpatient and post-acute care costs, and $6.5 billion in “value of statistical life,”… read on >
Don’t Let Allergies Spoil Your Holidays
Asthma or allergies can put a damper on holiday gatherings. But there are ways you can stay healthy, the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology says. “Everyone wants this time of year to be picture-perfect. But when there are runny noses, itchy eyes and sneezing involved, the picture is less than ideal. There are steps you can take to make your celebrations more fun and joy-filled for the whole family,” said Dr. Janna Tuck, a college spokesperson. Among Tuck’s suggestions: Sample holiday treats with caution because they may contain an ingredient that causes an allergic reaction. If you’re going to parties, let the hosts know what foods you need to avoid, and bring some dishes you know are safe, she said in a college news release. Always carry two epinephrine auto-injectors in case you do eat something with an ingredient that triggers an allergic reaction. Consider hosting a gathering yourself so that you can control the food ingredients. Watch out for smoke from fireplaces and candles, which can trigger an asthma attack. Aerosols, such as air fresheners and artificial snow, as well as potpourri and other scents can irritate already inflamed airways and are best avoided. If you’re traveling for the holidays, be sure to pack all asthma or allergy medications for yourself and your family, including at least two epinephrine auto injectors for… read on >