Did Your Pediatrician Just Write Your Child a Prescription for Obesity?

There is a worldwide obesity epidemic, and recent data shows a significant number of children as young as five years of age and under are obese. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the number of overweight or obese infants and young children (aged 0 to 5 years) increased from 32 million globally in 1990 to 41 million in 2016.

Antibiotics & Your Gut: Make Sure the Good Guys Don’t Finish Last

Depending on your age, health status, diet, medications and overall lifestyle, your gut microbiomes are essentially ever-changing landscapes of living organisms (trillions of them!). As with any community, both good and bad bacteria reside in your gut. And whether your gut has more of the ‘good’ or ‘bad,’ may depend on your health and lifestyle.

Is it Time to Question Your Doctor’s Advice About Completing Your Antibiotics?

Over my lifetime, I may have been prescribed antibiotics after dental surgery or to treat a bronchial infection. And I have always been instructed to take the full course of antibiotics prescribed, in order to reduce the likelihood of further infection and prevent the growth of antibiotic resistant bacteria.

What’s President Trump On? Let’s take a peek inside his medicine cabinet, and explore the potential side effects of the medications he takes.

Donald Trump’s longtime New York physician, Dr. Harold N. Bornstein, is no stranger to the public spotlight. In 2015, he penned a letter declaring the then-candidate would be the “healthiest individual ever elected” president. Now, with Trump in office, Dr. Bornstein is sharing details about the president’s use of medications.

Why your doctor said no to the antibiotic

You’ve got a cold and some body aches. You believe you may need an antibiotic, but your doctor doesn’t want to write the prescription. When doctors say not to take an antibiotic, they aren’t necessarily “denying” their patients. Rather, it’s a sign that they did a good physical exam and medical history, and determined that a virus is the cause of illness. Generally, the term “antibiotic “refers to medicine that is designed to kill bacteria.

Be proactive: Know which nutrients are depleted by your prescription drug

Nutrients – you can’t function without them! Critical nutrients – such as vitamins, minerals, proteins, fats, carbs and water – are essential for metabolism, energy and repair. They are the fuel that keeps your body functioning. As these nutrients are used up by the body’s metabolic activities, they need to be replaced – or you may end up with problems. But did you know that common medications may deplete the body of vital nutrients? It is very important that you be proactive and make sure you understand which nutrients are being depleted by the medications you take.

Be proactive about overuse and misuse of antibiotics in nursing homes

Approximately 4.1 million Americans are admitted to or reside in nursing homes and long-term care facilities each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Although there are many health challenges these residents face, one of them is risk for infections, due to their age and disability. Unfortunately, the overuse and sometimes inappropriate use of antibiotics to treat suspected infections has led to antibiotic resistance, making the drugs less effective and complicating treatment.

WAIT! Read this before you stop your meds

We've all cheated a bit on a long antibiotic course — stopped taking the medication a few days early. But there are instances when stopping your medication suddenly can do a lot of harm. Think about these scenarios.

Antibiotics: The more you use them, the more you abuse them

Antibiotics are generally understood by the average person as the drugs used to cure infections. And most people fully expect their doctors to prescribe antibiotics for a bad cough, cold, sore throat, flu or ear infection. But in a study conducted by Utah University researchers, it was found that “in more than 25 percent of cases, such prescriptions are useless because the infection stems from a virus, which cannot be treated with antibiotics.” Treating a viral infection with antibiotics means that you’re taking medicine that may have no chance of helping you, and a very real chance of hurting you. So why would doctors prescribe an antibiotic that does not help?