Whether you have a short- or long-term illness or medical condition, it’s important to take your medications as directed. But when medications cause side effects, you may want to stop taking them. Don’t stop taking your medication without talking to your doctor or pharmacist first so they can help you taper off the medications safely….

When people mention growing older, it’s common to talk about what they’ll do to enjoy their retirement years. But there’s one topic that may not come to mind: depression. As people age, depression is one of the most common mental health disorders. It affects nearly 32% of older adults, according to a report in the…

Taking care of your health means taking care of your mental health, too. Mental health problems can often go untreated. There’s no shame in having mental health issues. Nearly 23% of U.S. adults have a mental health disorder, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. But not everyone knows they have one. And that…

There are six main vitamins — A, B, C, D, E, and K. Not all vitamins are alike though. Some are water soluble, meaning that they dissolve in water, while others — A, D, E, and K — are fat-soluble. This means that they dissolve in fat, not in water. How the body absorbs and…

An allergy is when your immune system overreacts to an otherwise benign trigger, like pollen or pet dander. If you encounter one of these triggers — called an allergen — you may experience a range of symptoms, from sneezing, coughing, itchy eyes, or a runny nose to rashes, hives, asthma attacks, or severe trouble breathing….

It’s never too early to protect yourself from heart disease — the leading cause of death for men and women in the U.S. That’s because heart disease and the conditions that lead to it, such as diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure, can happen at any age but are on the rise in adults aged…

The term preventive care may sound familiar to you. But you may not know exactly why it matters to your health. Preventive care is an umbrella term for healthcare strategies to prevent and detect chronic (ongoing) diseases early before they can occur or get worse. Your doctor may call it routine or regular care. Preventive…

According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), approximately 1.4 million Americans are diagnosed with diabetes each year. Nearly 6% of those newly diagnosed patients will have type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disorder where the body attacks the cells that make insulin, a special hormone that helps to convert the carbohydrates from food into energy. Individuals…

On average, women in the U.S. can expect to live just over 79 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s six years longer than the average for men. But certain female-specific cancers can shorten a woman’s life. And other female health conditions can decrease a woman’s quality of life. Here are…

Every year, about 8% of people in the U.S. get the flu, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Although the flu can make anyone sick regardless of their age or health, some people are more at risk of serious flu complications. Getting the seasonal flu vaccine is the best way to…