Low Dose Aspirin as Preterm Birth Prevention; Low Levels Alcohol Consumption & Brain Health; Grilled Meat & Elevated Blood Pressure
*Low Dose Aspirin May Lower Rate of Preterm Birth (PTB)* A recent study, released on June 15, 2018, by researchers from the Department of Maternal Fetal Medicine of Columbia University Medical Center in New York, NY, showed how baby aspirin use significantly lowers the rate of preterm birth in patients less than 34 weeks pregnant….
Basic Strategies for Stress Management
Everyone deals with stress in his or her own way. Some of us seem to have as busy and as stressful a life as others, yet we seem to have little or no anxiety or depression, whereas others in similar situations suffer significantly. Some of us, when feeling stressed, develop “bad” habits, like drinking alcohol…
Safeguard Yourself from Ticks and Mosquitoes
With warmer weather and longer days, we spend more time outside. This brings plenty of opportunities to improve our health with exercise and events in the great outdoors. The great outdoors also exposes us to more insects such as ticks and mosquitoes that can threaten our health. We need to be preparing for protection. This…
Acrylamide in Coffee? I Am Not Giving Up My Daily Two Cups of Coffee
Every Sunday morning, a group of Lady Docs friends and I take our run or walk on the C&O canal by the Potomac River, a five mile run or four mile speed walk. We then regroup at the starting point and drive to Black Lion Cafe, a charming Ethiopian coffee house in Rockville, to…
Dr. Rachel Schreiber welcomes spring by talking to Kojo Nnamdi on NPR
Our own Dr. Rachel Schreiber, former President of the Greater Washington Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Society, was interviewed at length on the Kojo Nnamdi show on NPR. I was so proud of her – so calm, so knowledgeable! She answered Kojo’s questions and those from many callers. They covered everything from the most common allergens,…
March is Colon Cancer Awareness Month. Have You Had Your Screening?
This year, as we are in the middle of colon cancer awareness month, I have been thinking about two people who would have benefited from screening. One is my 54 year old neighbor who recently died of metastatic colon cancer. I don’t know his medical details, but he did tell me that he didn’t go…
Secondhand Smoke – The Times They Are a’Changing
It seems almost comical now, looking back to measures that were taken to reduce SHS exposure – non-smoking sections in airplanes. You can smoke in row 11 when the non-smoking section was rows 1-10. You could smoke on one side of a restaurant without concern for the SHS exposure to your waitstaff and to the…
Health News: Limitation of Over the Counter Antidiarrheal Medication; Depression Prevalence in American Adults; Brain Concussion Blood Test Approved by FDA
*Limitation of OTC Antidiarrheal Medication Doses by FDA* The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced that it will work with manufacturers to limit the number of doses in packages of over the counter antidiarrheal medication Loperamide ( Imodium). Loperamide (Imodium A-D) can lead to serious heart problems and even death when consumed in a…
Medical Marijuana – It’s Complicated
Recent approval of marijuana for medical use has brought up more questions than it has answered. The main conundrum is how this substance can be legal in various states – in 29 for medical use and in 7 for recreational use – but still be illegal in the eyes of the federal government. How does…
A Few Thoughts About Supplements
Thanks to Dr. Nathan for bringing our attention to an article in the New York Times on 1/5/2018 titled, “How to Counter the Circus of Pseudoscience,” by Lisa Pryor, a medical doctor and author of “A Small Book About Drugs.” It might lend some insight into the struggles we physicians have with saying yes or no…