Hot MedFax

Here's another reason not to get angry.  A new study has found that there's a n early fivefold increase in risk for heart attack in the two hours following outbursts of anger. newswise.com quotes  lead author Elizabeth Mostofsky, MPH, ScD, a post-doctoral fellow in the cardiovascular epidemiological unit at BIDMC and an instructor at the Harvard School of Public Health ,  “There has been a lot of research on anger; we already know it can be unhealthy, but we wanted to quantify the risk, not just for heart attack, but for other potentially lethal cardiovascular events as well.  She notes that the study might help patients think more about how they manage anger in their everyday lives and encourage physicians to discuss medications and psychosocial supports with their patients for whom anger is an issue, especially patients with known cardiovascular risk factors. The study results showed that the risk of heart attack, with symptoms like chest pain, shortness of ...

Coffee's topped the hit list again.  Now it's as a memory prod.  According to newswise.com, " Regardless of the routine, the consumption of caffeine is the energy boost of choice for millions to wake up or stay up. Now, however, researchers at the Johns Hopkins University have found another use for the stimulant: memory enhancer." Scientists have found that caffeine has a positive effect on long-term memory in humans. The study showed that  caffeine enhances certain memories at least up to 24 hours after it is consumed. I don't know about you but for years, seemed like coffee was the devil's brew. It was bad for pregnant women and those wanting to be; it caused sleeplessness; it raised blood pressure and cholesterol, and could speed up your heart. It can make you jittery and cause dehydration. Yes, it can do all these things.   But in recent years it's now become the elixir of -- well everything.   "Even though fruits and vegetables are both...

It's a no-brainer.  Dogs make us feel better.  Full disclosure: I've never had a dog.  My mother and sister were both allergic so we never had one growing up, though we did take in a stray during a snowstorm and I regret to say I don't remember what happened to him (hopefully, returned to his owners). But The New York Times reported today that having a dog may lower your heart risk.  I have to admit, since becoming a mom, the nurturing side has come out in me and I now love dogs (am even thinking of getting one for my pre-adolescent son, even though I know who will wind up taking care of him or her). I feel calmer when I'm petting them and I love looking into their eyes, and seeing the soul in there. I watched a Judge Judy segment yesterday where an estranged couple were fighting over custody of their dog, a Husky with piercing blue eyes. The dog kept whimpering and running back and forth between the man and the woman, crying and leaping first on the wo...