Author: St. Elizabeth Healthcare

For an easy carbohydrate-filled comfort dish, many families boil pasta and serve it either by itself or as a side to the main course. But how many extra grams of sodium does the pasta sauce add to your meal? Karah Stanley, a registered dietitian at St. Elizabeth Physicians Weight Management Center, explains what to watch out for on pasta sauce labels and how you can still enjoy it – without adding too much unwanted sodium. If you missed her video about which type of pasta is healthiest, check it out here.

Running on a treadmill gets a bad rap. But at some point, it’s a necessary evil of winter, especially when the snow, ice and dangerously cold temperatures pick up (we’re hoping that’s still months away). To combat  the repetitive nature, physical therapist Stacey McConnell from St. Elizabeth Sports Medicine suggests varying the incline, speed and type of exercise you do during each treadmill workout. If you’re trying to improve your running form, treadmills are also a great tool for over-striders. They allow you to focus less on the cracks in the sidewalk and more on your head, arms and legs. As…

Our office came to a screeching halt this morning and chaos ensued, all over one photo. In case you missed it, families, friends and coworkers are being torn apart over the blue/black, white/gold dress debacle. So, do you see the dress as white or blue? While we all enjoy a good debate, our friends at Wired tried to explain why we’re all seeing things a little differently. It boils down to the way our eyes interpret light and pigments. Our brain tries to “throw away” information it doesn’t need and interpret information it does need. Usually everything works just fine,…

In case you missed it, a new study was released this week about a discovery that may lead to a way to prevent peanut allergies. Allergy specialists and pediatricians are saying that while more research is required, the research is transformational because it has never been done. For anyone who lives with peanut allergy or has a family member with peanut allergy, they know how difficult it can be to simply “avoid” nuts. In 2000, the American Academy of Pediatrics advised children to avoid peanuts altogether. Instead of monitoring and avoiding peanuts, the researchers introduce a new method for preventing…

Grandparents have it made. They get all the best parts of watching their grandchildren grow and learn without all of the temper tantrums or dirty diapers. The time Grandma spends with her grandkids not only creates a special bond between them and lasting memories, but as we read on  CBS News, it also benefits Grandma’s brain, keeping her mentally sharp and lowering her risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and other cognitive disorders. The only caveat  is that if Grandma spends too much time with her grandkids ““ five or more days a week ““ it can overwhelm her and have…

Strengthening your leg muscles is crucial to any pre-race training. Running up and downhill is extremely taxing, and strength training beforehand is the best way to reduce your injury risk. While not all courses have a lot of hills, this kind of cross-training will also help you fly across the flat portions of any course. Physical therapist Stacey McConnell from St. Elizabeth Sports Medicine will guide you through simple ways to strength train before your big race.

Kids have a mind of their own when it comes to eating. It feels like you try and keep trying to get them to eat fruits and vegetables, but they tend to just want crackers and sweets – the usual suspects. You’ll find  lots of articles online with  tips to get kids to eat healthy. Our best recommendation is to make it fun by letting them take part in meal and snack preparation. It doesn’t have to be time consuming, just take something your kids  like and make it fun. If your little one  prefers  peanut butter, make her snack…

It may be frigid outside, but this weekend is the perfect time to start your spring cleaning. Throwing out unneeded items now  can almost help you forget about the never-ending winter and get a jump start on some warmer days. Besides, getting rid of  the things you don’t need or use anymore is good for the soul. Little did we know, it’s good for your health, too. Time Magazine  lists 20 things you should  throw away to improve your health. Often we hold onto these “treasures” because we worry replacing them will be inefficient or expensive. But if you’re holding…

Tis’ the season for the flu, colds and runny noses. Some days it may seem like you run through an entire box of tissues. If you’re like a lot of people, you blow your nose and look in your tissue to see what color of the rainbow lies inside. Even if you find this repulsive,  it is actually a good indicator of your current health. We found a cool infographic from University of Utah Health Care that explains  each color of mucus so the next time you see green, yellow or red, you’ll know what it means and when to…

With temperatures dropping below zero and snow piling up around us, Greater Cincinnatians are having a rough week. Now to add insult to injury, the temperatures are going back up which means wet and slippery roads and sidewalks. If you have to go out this weekend and you plan on getting out of your car, here are some tips we found  for to walk safely. We’ve all fallen on the ice and hurt ourselves (even if it’s just our bruised ego). Share your stories with us and let us know how you’re staying safe in this weather. …