Q: Is it true there are foods that are designed to be addictive? Joy D., Annapolis, Md.
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Dr. Oz is being sued by someone who appears to be a moron. According to OMG!, New Jersey resident Frank Dietrl is suing Mehmet Oz’s “insomnia cure” for causing him to have third-degree burns on his feet.
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Q. Is the radiation from those full-body airport scanners harmful? — C. Reilly, via email
A. “Assume the position: Put your hands on your head. Spread your legs. Say cheese!”
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Q. My husband has been diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer (confined to the prostate gland), and his doctors recommend a “watch and wait” approach. I say get it out of there. What’s the smart move? — Carrie Waver, San DiegoA. To answer this question really well, we’d need to know your husband’s age and how healthy he is overall. Still, this should help you two.
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Q. How low is too low for the bottom blood pressure number, and how high is too high for the top one? My dad’s numbers have been shifting somewhat. I’m calling his doc tomorrow for an appointment to see what’s going on, but what’s so high or low that I should take him to the emergency room? — Teresa, via email
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Q. My father died of a heart attack, and now my husband has very high blood pressure (145/90). I’m afraid he’s headed in the same direction. He’s on a hypertension drug (Benicar), but he constantly “forgets” to take it, lets the prescription run out or says he’s “fine.” I swing from being furious to frantic. How can I get him to take his medicine? — Anonymous, via email
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Ask anyone with achy, arthritic joints what they do on cold, short days, and the answer is, “Stay inside and stay warm.” We YOU Docs get that, having shivered through last winter’s record-breaking freeze-outs ourselves.
But please add a third “stay” to that list: Stay inside, stay warm and stay active.
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Q. The Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s holidays are a big deal in my family. There are many get-togethers, decorating, church activities, food and kids. It’s fun, but by New Year’s Day, I’m whipped. This year, my daughter is having a Christmas wedding, too. I’m already flat out of energy, but I want to enjoy every moment. Will energy drinks help? — Marcia, Amherst, Mass.
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You’ve seen it on TV, heard about it from friends and maybe been clobbered by it yourself: the drug shortage. The crisis has left cancer patients waiting for life-saving chemotherapy ... parents scrambling for their kids’ ADHD drugs ... doctors, nurses and hospitals in a tizzy ... and frantic pharmacists saying, “Sorry, but we’re all out.”
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The positive coffee news just keeps percolating. Actually, not just good coffee news — good caffeine news. But if, like young Dr. Mike, you “heart” your morning joe, it may come down to the same thing.
The latest on coffee? As if fending off Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, asthma and siesta urges wasn’t enough, it’s now been found to cut your skin cancer risk.
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URL: http://www.sfexaminer.com/taxonomy/term/10539
