Author: St. Elizabeth Healthcare

A warning to cell phone devotees: The ubiquitous “butt-dial” is not the only complication of slipping your iPhone into your back pocket. Though evidence to date has been only largely anecdotal, more neurologists are reporting patients with sciatica, a nerve inflammation that presents with radiating pain in your lower back that ranges down your hips and legs. And more doctors are tracing the affliction to cell phones or thick wallets placed in back pockets, where patients sit on them creating an awkward sitting position. The same doctors are also finding more sciatica cases in younger patients, implicating cell phones as…

Ah, breakfast, the most neglected meal of “three square meals a day.” It’s hard to have a filling, nutritious meal in the morning, though, especially if you hit snooze a few too many times or  you have three lunches to pack and kids to dress before you can get out the door. Buzzfeed is here to save the breakfast day with a list of 24 recipes for people on-the-go, which, let’s face it, is basically everyone. Here are the 10 we can’t wait to try: Easy yogurt overnight oats Apple sandwiches with almond butter and granola Skinny chocolate peanut butter…

November is National Family Caregivers Month, so we’re kicking it off with a fun, interactive quiz to test your knowledge on family caregivers. Did you know that there are nearly  90 million family caregivers in the United States, and  that number is growing? Take our quiz below and don’t forget to keep coming back all month long for more stories and tips for families caring for an aging loved one. [mlw_quizmaster quiz=15]

If you haven’t had your yearly flu shot yet, you should get it, local health officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are advising. All residents age 6 and older should be inoculated, the organizations say. It’s especially important for people in high-risk groups to get the vaccine, according to the CDC. Those risk groups include young children, pregnant women, people with chronic health conditions like asthma, diabetes or heart- or lung diseases, and anyone 65 or older. Already this season, flu cases have been reported in Kenton County and the Louisville area. Getting a shot not only…

There are a lot of misconceptions floating around when it comes to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which is why October 2015 was dedicated ADHD Awareness Month  to educate the public. ADHD, a “wildly misunderstood neurological condition that affects 15 million Americans,” is characterized by fidgeting and short attention spans, but impacts people young and old, male and female, to a much greater degree than these outward symptoms. As October comes to an end, we want to share a portion of a blog post about caring for someone with ADHD from A Plus.   The complete list contains 15 things to keep…

Do you suffer from depression? You may have a higher risk of developing Parkinson’s disease later in life. Researchers studied approximately 140,000 Swedish adults ages 50 and older who had been diagnosed with depression. Each was then matched with three adults of the same gender and year of birth who had not been diagnosed with depression as “control” subjects, bringing the total number of participants to more than 400,000 adults. Looking for the link to Parkinson’s The participants were then followed for up to 26 years. During this time, 1,485 people with depression developed Parkinson’s disease, or 1.1 percent, while…

Do you know the signs of a stroke? Maybe you do, maybe you don’t, but after listening to this catchy tune created by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association in honor of World Stroke Day, you won’t be able to ever forget them. Before creating the video, the American Stroke Association asked the question, “What if learning and sharing a song could save a life?” Share this song, or other versions (besides pop, there are R&B, Latin, Gospel and hip hop versions available) with others to help them remember to act F.A.S.T. at the first sign of a…

When you’re on-the-go, stopping by a salad bar at a grocery store or buffet can be a great, healthy option – especially when the other options are fast food restaurants or skipping lunch altogether. Karah Stanley, a registered dietitian at the St. Elizabeth Physicians Weight Management Center, offers 4 tips for a healthier salad at the salad bar in the video below:

With an emphasis on vegetables and beans, Minestrone can be a healthy soup for cool fall days. To keep it on the healthy side, the version below from the Mayo Clinic uses unsalted chicken broth and fresh tomatoes rather than canned tomatoes to limit the sodium content, as well as whole-grain pasta. Number of servings:  4 (serving size – about 2 cups) Ingredients 1 tablespoon olive oil 1/2 cup chopped onion 1/3 cup chopped celery 1 carrot, diced 1 garlic clove, minced 4 cups fat-free, unsalted chicken broth 2 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped 1/2 cup chopped spinach 1 can…

Keeping kids’ sleep schedules on track in the midst of Daylight Saving Time can be a real challenge. We’re pretty sure all the extra Halloween candy lying around the house this time of year doesn’t help, either. We recently talked about kids’ sleep schedules being directly related to their behavior, so it’s worth making sure they are getting the sleep they need.  Below are some tips to help your kids go to bed on time with the time change: What are your tips for getting kids to bed after Daylight Saving Time? Share them with us!