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Making choices that lower your risk

How African-Americans Can Avoid High Blood Pressure Hypertension (or high blood pressure) is a heavy weight that the African-American community has been destined to cope with. While no one is immune from high blood pressure, it is a proven fact that the African-American population has a 40 percent higher rate over any other ethnic group…
Talking to your teen can make a difference

New Data Reveals Teen Pregnancy Rates Have Fallen in Polk County For the past decade, the teen pregnancy rate in Polk County has been among the top in Florida, but the latest figures show the rate has dropped. “Community partnerships and civil dialogue has worked to lower teen pregnancy,” says Dr. Daniel Haight, director of…
Kicking the smoking habit for good

A resolution easier said than done, but not impossible With the holidays behind us, we stand at the threshold of another New Year. In an effort to improve our lives over the next 12 months, we’ll make resolutions that if achieved would make a difference for the better. If yours is to get healthy, fantastic!…

Don’t forget to exercise your right to vote

Thomas Paine, one of the fathers of the American Revolution, wrote in the year 1795, “The right of voting for representatives is the primary right by which other rights are protected. To take away this right is to reduce a person to slavery, for slavery consists in being subject to the will of another…” While…
The 50+ job landscape: The Good, the Bad, and the Promising

With the ever-increasing life expectancy and an improving job market, our nation’s experienced workers are finding new opportunities to reinvent their careers later in life. However, some challenges do remain, as Richard Eisenberg points out in his recent Forbes article, “What You Should Know about the 50+ Job Market.”
A healthier future for you and your children

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and, while this disease is serious and at times life threatening, it should not be looked at with fear. We at the Polk County Medical Association (PCMA) are here to help educate and equip the members of our community to live healthier lives, and subsequently, hopefully prevent serious illnesses…