Now that pandemic lockdowns are ending, all of us face important decisions about where we will go and what we will do.
Should you finally get your hair cut? Should you go to the gym?
Four public health experts assessed the risk various activities pose to spreading the coronavirus. They are Dr. Matthew Sims, Beaumont Health director of infectious disease research; Dr.… Read More
Depression can be among the most difficult illnesses to treat.
The first-line medications are drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) like Prozac, Zoloft, and Lexapro. They are supposed to lift mood by increasing levels of serotonin, the “feel-good” compound, in the brain.
But SSRIs can take months to work, if they work at all. Or patients may have to spend years switching from one drug to another, trying to find the one that is effective for them.… Read More
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For the first few months of the pandemic, the science was unclear about whether face masks protected wearers from coronavirus.
The World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention initially said that most people didn’t need masks. The exceptions were people in high-risk groups (seniors and those with heart disease, high blood pressure, or diabetes), caregivers to infected people, and people who were confirmed to have COVID-19 or showed symptoms.… Read More
For decades, mainstream doctors warned us to stay away from fatty dairy products. Butter, whole milk, and cheese would clog our arteries, they said.
So those of us worried about heart disease opted for skim milk, if we drank milk at all. And we chose other low-fat dairy products whenever possible.
In recent years, researchers have started to question this conventional “wisdom.”… Read More
At first, doctors told us that COVID-19 was a disease of the lungs. It caused inflammation of the airways and pneumonia. This made breathing difficult or impossible.
But as the pandemic progressed, something strange started to happen.
Mysterious symptoms were being reported that seemed to have nothing to do with the lungs.
Some patients were dying from COVID-19-related strokes. Others had what doctors called “COVID toes.”… Read More