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How to recognize childhood obesity

Addressing Weight Problems Early to Offset Future Problems It’s not easy to admit your child is overweight. You want to believe pudge is baby fat the child will outgrow. Or maybe you’ve come to believe extra pounds make him or her strong and healthy. But ignoring the problem won’t make it go away. And, in…
Survival at its pinkest

Breast cancer awareness and education: a constant message Cauney Boydston Bamberg is passionate about increasing breast cancer awareness and raising funds to help women get mammograms. She is the executive director of The Watson Clinic Foundation, Inc., and she brought the first Suncoast Polk Race for the Cure to Polk County last year. Bamberg was…
Turning your home into a gym

How to get active without spending big dollars Filled with good intentions about losing weight or improving your health, you may rush to the store and pick up a $1,200 rowing machine or $2,000 treadmill. But if you don’t want it being used as a clothes rack in your closet, take your time. Learn about how to…

Medical Advice: Your flu prevention to-do list

AS YOU GATHER your “to-do” lists and prepare for the holiday season ahead, the Florida Department of Health in Polk County recommends you add one more important step — get a flu shot! The flu shot is the best way to protect our families and communities against the spread of influenza. When you make it…
Family Health: Flu shots for seniors

HE FLU is nothing to sneeze at. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 200,000 people will be hospitalized this year with the influenza virus, and it has been estimated that 50 to 70 percent of those hospitalized are people age 65 and older.
Word of Mouth: Your dentist is key to early cancer detection

IT SEEMS LIKE you hear about many different kinds of cancers these days, but one that isn’t being talked about enough is oral cancer. Cancer in the mouth and throat are diagnosed in nearly 50,000 Americans a year, and statistics show that only 57 percent of those diagnosed still will be living in five years.