Health Solutions Live

For many of us, getting up before we naturally would can be painful — because it’s too early, too sudden, or too dark. Is there a path to kinder, gentler awakenings? Yes, say sleep experts, but making it happen is equal parts art and science. What are sleep cycles? Humans have anywhere from four to six “sleep cycles” each night. Every cycle is composed of five stages, from very light sleep (stage 1) to very deep sleep … Read entire article »

Nighttime back pain is a specific kind of lower back pain that may point to a serious problem with your spine. If you’ve never previously experienced pain in your lower back area, it’s possible that you will. Between 60% and 80% of the American population goes through some form of lower back pain during their life. This is the second most common reason why people pay a visit to their doctor. But as weakening as back … Read entire article »

All of us should minimize our salt consumption, right? While most of us have heard that its best to go easy on the salt, a recent study has muddled the issue somewhat. In this study, released in the American Journal of Medicine in March of 2006, people who claimed to eat limited amounts of salt were 37% more likely to perish from cardiovascular disease than people who ate more salt. The researchers came to the conclusion that … Read entire article »

According to an article in the June issue of the International Journal of Clinical Practice, erectile dysfunction is an early red flag for heart disease, and could provide an opportunity to prevent future heart attacks and strokes. Men who suffer from erectile dysfunction normally develop heart-related symptoms within 2 to 3 years. They are also at risk of going through a cardiac event like a heart attack or stroke within 3 to 5 years, the … Read entire article »

The amount of natural sunlight that comes into the driver’s side of automobiles in the U.S. might increase the risk of developing skin cancers on the left part of the body and face, a new study tells us. Researchers looked at the records of over one thousand patients referred to a skin cancer unit at Saint Louis University School of Medicine. They found more cases of left-side skin cancers than right-side skin cancers for both genders, … Read entire article »

During spring, people rush to be outdoors. They jog, they barbeque, they stop to smell the roses. And … they sneeze. Oftentimes a lot. People who suffer from spring allergies know the drill quite well: itchy, watery eyes, blocked ears, and a plugged up nose that can put a damper on even the best of spring days. “A lot of times you don’t sleep well at night,” says Giselle Mosnaim, MD, professor of allergy and immunology at … Read entire article »

Imagine lying in bed, unable to sleep due to the throbbing pain in your back. It’s been there for weeks, you can barely move from your bed, but you are not getting any decent sleep because of the intensity of the pain. Losing sleep over pain is a fairly common occurrence, says David Neumeyer, MD, associate director of the Sleep Disorder Center at the Lahey Clinic Medical Center in Burlington, Mass. “Pain and sleep are integrally connected,” he explains. According to him, chronic pain is quite common in the overall population and even more common in people who suffer from lack of sleep, which tends to become a vicious cycle. Pain directly affects the capacity to sleep, and lack of good sleep makes the pain appear worse than it is. Just how … Read entire article »