27Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Podcast

Podcasts
[display_podcast] Dr Walt on "Central Florida's Morning News with Jim Turner" Newstalk 580 WDBO   Orlando Listen Live every Wednesday morning at 8:45 at www.wdbo.com
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27Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

New Technologies May Ease Pain for Migraine Sufferers

General Health, Health Headlines
Fox News is reporting on studies presented Friday at the American Headache Society’s annual meeting in Boston suggesting that new technologies may lead to promising treatments for sufferers of migraine headaches. One study found that stimulating the back of the head with a handheld magnetic device – at the onset of a migraine – reduced migraine pain significantly. Another study found that stimulating the occipital nerve with an implanted device would relieve patients who don’t respond to conventional treatments. My Take? (more…)
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27Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Half of Obese Kids Have Metabolic Syndrome

Children's Health, Health Headlines, Heart Health, Nutritional Health, Obesity, Parenting
WebMD is reporting findings by University of Miami researchers showing that by age 12 to 14, half of obese children have metabolic syndrome, a group of risk factors that predicts heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Even at ages 8 to 11, as many as 9.5% of obese children already have metabolic syndrome. That means they have at least three of these risk factors: abnormally large waist size, high blood-sugar levels, low levels of HDL "good" cholesterol, high blood fat levels, and high blood pressure . My Take? (more…)
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27Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Professor Says Women Use Birth Control Pill Wrong, Resulting in Abortions

Bioethics, Health Headlines, Marriage and Family Health, Woman's Health
LifeNews.com is reporting the comments of a Princeton University professor who says women are not using birth control pills correctly and the misuse is resulting in pregnancies and abortions that wouldn't otherwise occur. Professor James Trussell says about 8 percent of women who use the birth control pill become pregnant annually and get abortions because they don't take the pills faithfully. My Take? (more…)
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27Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Men who are Active at Church are Better Husbands, Dads

General Health, Health Headlines
Christian communities continue to report happier marriages, fewer divorces, and better fathers, according to a report from the Institute for American Values, quoted at CitizenLink.org. The report shows 65 percent of men who attend church regularly and are involved in ministry activities enjoy happier and more stable marriages than their secular peers. In addition, religious fathers are more likely to devote time and attention to their children. My Take? (more…)
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27Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

‘Silent Strokes’ Strike One in 10 Healthy People

General Health, Health Headlines, Heart Health
HealthDay News is reporting that if you're an older American with no major health problems, chances are about one in 10 that you've had a stroke and didn't know it. It was probably not severe enough to cause recognizable symptoms, such as vision problems, facial weakness or trouble walking, but it was still a blockage of a brain artery, and it reduced your thinking powers just a bit. My Take? (more…)
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27Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

‘One egg’ IVF strategy launched

Bioethics, Children's Health, Health Headlines, Marriage and Family Health, Woman's Health
According to the BBC, fertility experts in Great Britain have called for a dramatic cut in the number of twins born after IVF treatment. IVF clinics in the UK will be expected to reduce the number of multiple births from a national average of one in four to 10% over the next three years. It will mean increasing the proportion of women who have a single embryo transferred back into their womb. My Take? (more…)
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27Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Adult Stem Cells Treat Lung Disease

Bioethics, Health Headlines
CitizenLink.org is reporting that two Canadians have been injected with a genetically modified version of their own adult stem cells in an attempt to cure pulmonary hypertension, a rare, debilitating lung disease. The procedure, which has successfully cured rats with pulmonary hypertension, has halted the progress of the disease in the patients. The first patient, who has had the disease for 13 years, is reporting no ill effects from the treatment and has seen her condition improve. My Take? (more…)
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27Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Health Care Providers Told Their Faith is Irrelevant

Bioethics, Health Headlines, Marriage and Family Health
According to a report on CitizenLinke.org, the Supreme Court in California recently heard a case that pitted homosexual rights against religious freedom. At the center of the case was a lesbian who sued two doctors who declined to provide in vitro fertilization (IVF). The doctors were concerned about conducting IVF for someone who would be a single parent. Even though they referred the lesbian to another fertility doctor and offered to pay for any extra cost, the court is likely to rule against the freedom of the doctors to follow their consciences. My Take? (more…)
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25Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Podcast

Podcasts
[display_podcast] John Blok Host of "Prime Time Florida" Weekdays 4-5 p.m. Moody Radio Florida Where You Turn. For Life. Listen live online at: www.MoodyRadioFlorida.fm
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25Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Lack of vitamin D raises death risk

Children's Health, General Health, Health Headlines, Heart Health, Men's Health, Nutritional Health, Woman's Health
The AP is reporting new research linking low vitamin D levels with deaths from heart disease and other causes. In fact, patients with the lowest blood levels of vitamin D were about two times more likely to die from any cause during the next eight years than those with the highest levels, the study found. The link with heart-related deaths was particularly strong in those with low vitamin D levels. My Take? (more…)
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25Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

CDC Reports a Steep Rise in Diabetes Patients in U.S.

Children's Health, General Health, Health Headlines, Heart Health, Medical Economics, Men's Health, Nutritional Health, Obesity, Parenting, Woman's Health
WebMD is reporting on the CDC's latest diabetes statistics – and, the results are gruesome. Nearly 24 million people in the U.S. have diabetes -- including almost 6 million who don't know they're diabetic -- and at least 57 million have prediabetes. Diabetes is the No. 7 cause of death among U.S. adults. Researchers reported last year that type 2 diabetes hastens heart disease and shortens lives by about eight years. My Take? (more…)
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25Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

New Children’s Vaccine Means Fewer Shots

Children's Health, Health Headlines, Medical Economics, Parenting
WebMD is reporting the FDA approval of a new five-in-one vaccine. This is great news as it will mean fewer shots are needed to protect babies and toddlers from potentially dangerous or fatal infections. The vaccine is named Pentacel and it’s the first combination vaccine to protect children against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), polio, and Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) infections. Hib infections include meningitis and pneumonia. My Take? (more…)
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25Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Medical Pot Ineffective as Acute Pain Treatment

Alternative Medicine, Health Headlines
HealthDay News is reporting that oral cannabis (a form of medical marijuana) was ineffective in treating certain types of acute pain and actually increased sensitivity to some other kinds of discomfort. My Take? This small study, from researchers at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria, is among many others that you’ve seen me report that are slowly driving a nail in the concept of safe or effective medical marijuana. You can read more about this in my series on marijuana here on this blog. Or, pick up a copy of my book, Alternative Medicine: The Christian Handbook.
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25Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Safety checklist for operations launched

Bioethics, General Health, Health Headlines, Medical Economics
The BBC is reporting that a safety checklist designed to cut the risk of surgical complications is to be circulated to doctors world-wide.  The list has been drawn up by the World Health Organization (WHO), which says half of complications resulting from major surgery may be preventable. Preliminary results from patients at eight pilot sites - including London, Seattle and Toronto - indicate that the checklist has nearly doubled the likelihood that patients will receive proven standards of surgical care, leading to a significant cut in complications and deaths. My Take? (more…)
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24Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Podcast

Podcasts
[display_podcast] Joy 102.5 WOLC Serving Maryland, Delaware, & Virginia with Christ-honoring music & programming Listen live @ www.wolc.org
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23Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Social Ties May Help Cut Dementia Risk

General Health, Health Headlines, Mental Health
WebMD Health News is reporting a study funded by the National Institute on Aging showing that elderly women who maintain close friendships and strong family ties are less likely to develop dementia than women who are less sociable. My Take? This study just adds to the scores that confirm that strong social networks can protect against dementia and many other diseases and disorders. (more…)
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23Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

New Testing of Unborn Child for Down’s Could Pose Ethical Dilemmas

Bioethics, Children's Health, Health Headlines, Parenting
A test that can detect Down’s syndrome from the blood of pregnant women, which would be the first reliable noninvasive prenatal test for the chromosomal disorder, has raised the prospect of routine screening for the condition for every expectant mother who wants it. The experimental procedure, developed in Hong Kong, has been shown to diagnose 90 percent of Down’s syndrome cases in a small trial, while also correctly identifying 97 percent of fetuses that do not have the condition. (more…)
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23Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Mosquitoes: With repellants, you’re covered

Children's Health, Health Headlines, Parenting
USA Today has a great report out on the effective ways to ward off mosquitoes and the sometimes serious illnesses their bites can cause. And, the best preventative does NOT include rubbing your skin with Bounce dryer sheets, eating garlic, or downing vitamin B. My Take? This is a great article for all parents and grandparents to read. The bottom line, the best preventive treatment is one of several commercial repellents — “an unloved group of products that can be stinky and sticky and, if used incorrectly, potentially toxic.” (more…)
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23Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Online services let patients seek a second opinion from home

General Health, Health Headlines, Medical Economics
USA Today reports that online second-opinion services offer patients consultations from specialists based on the medical records that they fax, mail or send via the Internet.  The average cost, payable upfront via credit card, is $500 to $1,500, depending on the number of radiology or pathology interpretations required. Patients then receive online access to a second opinion in about two weeks. The three main leaders in remote second-opinion services — the Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins Medicine and POSC — each say they are serving about 1,000 patients a year. (more…)
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23Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

John McCain’s wife loves medical mission work

Health Headlines, Medical Missions
ABC News is reporting that while Americans will be attending church this Sunday, Cindy McCain the woman who could one day be first lady will be walking around a garbage dump, far removed from her comfortable life in Phoenix. This is the other side of Cindy McCain – not the model-perfect spouse of the candidate who wears pearls and designer clothes. On this side of the world, she wears old hiking boots, puts her hair up in a ponytail and wants to "get to work." (more…)
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23Jun 2008 by Walt Larimore

Adult Stem Cells Show Promise for Healing Broken Bones

Bioethics, Health Headlines
CitizenLink is reporting that researchers at the University of North Carolina have used adult stem cells to improve the healing of broken bones in mice. Dawn Vargo, bioethics analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said: "Although this particular treatment is still being tested in mice, it might soon be added to the long list of adult stem-cell treatments successfully used in people suffering from debilitating.” (more…)
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