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New year, New you!

How Polk County is Tackling Obesity and Residents are Making Healthier Lifestyle Choices Fifty-one year-old Ann Good topped 200 pounds last May. She lacked energy and was short of breath. Concerned about a family history of heart disease and diabetes, she decided to act. Today Good is 50 pounds lighter and breathing easier, in more…
Pop Quiz: Could it be premature menopause?

Is it just the after-effects of the holiday rush getting to you, or are you encountering possible symptoms of premature menopause? It’s definitely not easy to be a woman, especially as you age. Yet, could the unusual hot flashes, mood swings and feminine “discomfort” you are feeling be the precursor for premature menopause? Find out…
Protecting your private information

The catch behind a ‘free’ pharmacy discount card If you have a mailbox, chances are you’ve received a Pharmacy Discount Card in the mail. The offer sounds great: up to 75 percent off your medications, no paperwork, it’s accepted all over, and it never expires. Don’t forget the kicker—it costs absolutely nothing. Hopefully by now…

Ask a Nurse: Alzheimer’s is Type 3 Diabetes!

In 1906, a German neuropathologist Dr. Alois Alzheimer first identified what is now considered Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). He was caring for a middle-aged woman suffering from memory loss and disorientation. Just a short five years later, the woman passed away after enduring the torment of hallucinations and symptoms of dementia. Currently “the presence of neurofibrillary…
Publisher’s Note: Update on Florida Health Choices

In early March, www.myfloridachoices.org became live. It is the website devoted to Florida Health Choices (the state’s health insurance marketplace, separate from the federal plans under the Affordable Care Act). The state’s health insurance marketplace offers a few options for discounted plans under dental, vision, telemedicine, and prescription coverage. It’s important to note that this…
Medical Advice: Awareness is key to stopping upward trend of STDs

Every year in April, we observe STD Awareness Month. This is an opportunity for individuals, doctors, and communities to address ways to prevent some of the nearly 20 million sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) that occur in the United States each year. Half of all new infections occur among people between the ages of 15 to…