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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!…
When less is more in exercise

How to boost the health benefits of your workouts It’s easy to fall into the routine of walking or jogging at the same pace every time. But to get the most of our exercise regimen, we need to challenge ourselves. “The number one thing to do is to increase the intensity that you work out…

Understanding Metastatic Bone Disease

Cancer is always a frightening diagnosis, and knowing that the disease can spread from one part of the body to others can be unsettling. Metastasis occurs when cancer cells from the original (primary) tumor break away and move to other parts of the body. When the cancer spreads from the primary tumor into bone tissue,…
Operative Management of Peripheral Arterial Disease

We’ve talked about what Peripheral Arterial Disease is in previous columns. Now, let’s look at some possible operative treatment options for PAD. When medical management alone has failed to improve symptoms, the possible treatment options include the following: Endovascular treatment with balloon angioplasty: In this procedure, a catheter is threaded through a blood vessel to…
Breast Cancer Surpasses Lung Cancer as Most Common

According to new information released by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), breast cancer has now overtaken lung cancer as the world’s most commonly diagnosed cancer, accounting for 12% of all new annual cancer cases worldwide. It’s also now the most commonly diagnosed cancer among American women. In 2021, it’s estimated that over…