The People's Perspective on Medicine, since 1976
Helping you to make informed decisions about both traditional and alternative treatments.
Statins and Muscle Pain: What Else Can He Do To …
Jane Brody, the grande dame of medical journalism, asked: “Are you among the 73 million Americans with cholesterol levels that current guidelines suggest should be lowered by taking a statin for the…
Can You Avoid Post-Operative Cognitive Dysfuncti…
When you are told you need surgery, there is a lot to think about. What kind of surgery, and what is the recovery like? Will you need to spend time in the hospital? You need to know the risks and bene…
Is Vanilla a Helpful Remedy for Cold Sores?
Do you sometimes suffer from cold sores? If you do, you may have developed your own favorite collection of remedies. Some people like to use medications at the first sensation of tingling, while other…
Why Is Your Prescription Drug Label A Disaster?
Do you remember the book, Catch-22, by Joseph Heller? Airmen in World War II were faced with a no-win situation. To be exempted from a suicidal bombing mission you had to plead insanity. But if you as…
Will Rosemary and Turmeric Help Your Arthritis P…
People with arthritis pain face a difficult dilemma. Arthritis is a chronic condition, but the usual NSAID pain relievers such as ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB) and naproxen (Aleve) should be used only …
Why Can You Buy Quinine in Canada But Not the US…
If you suffer from nighttime leg cramps, you may have spent some time looking for treatments to prevent them. If you are old enough, you may remember a time when you could buy quinine tablets to treat…
How Often Do You Get Up to Pee at Night?
Do you have to get up to pee several times a night? Many people report that this is a problem, especially as they grow older. Having to urinate several times during the night is a major factor interfe…
Show 1153: How to Listen to TV Drug Commercials
If you watch television, you can’t avoid TV drug commercials for maladies from type 2 diabetes to auto-immune diseases like psoriasis or rheumatoid arthritis to refractory cancers. Do you see these …
Will Drinking Diet Soda Raise Your Risk of Strok…
Sugar-sweetened beverages have developed a very bad reputation over the past decade or so. They contribute empty calories without corresponding nutritional value. Sugary drinks have been linked to kid…
FDA Cracking Down on Dietary Supplements for Dem…
The Food and Drug Administration has just taken action against many companies that advertise their dietary supplements for dementia. The commercials often imply that these products could be used to tr…
Will FDA Approve Esketamine Nasal Spray for Depr…
An FDA advisory panel voted this week that a new form of an old compound is sufficiently safe and effective to be considered for approval. The old compound is ketamine, which has been used as an intra…
Will Rx Drug Commercials with Price Information …
Perhaps you have seen Rx drug commercials on television. There are ads for medications to treat psoriasis, diabetes, ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis, breast cancer and lung cancer, to name ju…
What Is the Link Between Infection and Celiac Di…
Celiac disease is an intolerance to the protein gluten found in wheat, barley and rye. It triggers the immune system to attack and damage the lining of the digestive tract. Doctors have long known tha…
Why Don’t Doctors Recognize Lisinopril Cough?
We have been writing about drug-induced coughing for more than 30 years. In the beginning we tried to be diplomatic. Here is one of the first questions we ever received on this topic (March 28, 1988).…
How to Make Onion Syrup for a Cough
In the midst of cold and flu season, many people are troubled with lingering coughs. Are you barking like a seal? Is your cough keeping you awake at night? Luckily, there are a number of remedies that…
Is It Possible to Lower Cholesterol with Margari…
For decades, doctors told their patients to eat margarine instead of butter. The idea was that people who ate cholesterol-rich butter would raise their level of blood cholesterol. Then public health e…
How Risky Is It When Insurance Companies Overrul…
Doctors don’t always know best, but they certainly know their patients far better than an insurance company representative. Physicians used to be able to prescribe medications without being second-g…
Overcoming Rebound Nasal Congestion from Deconge…
People with allergies are often caught in a terrible double bind. Their stuffy noses lead them to decongestant nasal sprays. After a few days of continuous use they become dependent upon the spray. If…
What Is the Right Dose of Baking Soda?
We love simple remedies using ingredients you already have on hand in your pantry, so long as they work and they are safe. One time-honored approach to ease indigestion is taking a baking soda solutio…
How to Help Neuropathy with Hiking Boots
Neuropathy is pain that originates from the nerves. For some reason, due to diabetes, damage or some other difficulty, the nerves send pain signals even when the area is not in imminent danger (the us…
Can You Stop Bleeding with Black Pepper?
We have been collecting home remedies for more than 40 years. One of the most unusual came to us from Nell Heard, who told us about a camping trip to Yellowstone National Park. She went with her siste…
Show 1152: Can You Conquer Your Cravings with Mi…
Have you ever thought about how a bad habit gets started? You can blame the neural wiring and chemistry we share with all animals. When we do something that feels good in the moment, we remember it an…
Statins for Older People | A New Study is Wildly…
The headlines this week have been emphatic: “Study: Proof Statins Help Older People.” Then there was this one: “Cholesterol Lowering Drugs Giving Older Adults Better Heart Health.” We were int…
What Is the Other Drug Epidemic?
Much has been written about the epidemic of opioid drug misuse, overdose and death. With more than 130 people dying every day in this country as a result of opioid overdose, we all have a right to be …
Are Rebates to Blame for Drug Price Increases?
Many drug companies have raised prices over the last few months, but they say it’s not to improve their bottom line. Indeed, a number of pharmaceutical manufacturers maintain that they are raising p…
Special Creams Fail to Fight Pain
Americans spend hundreds of millions of dollars on specially formulated topical pain creams. Medicare Part D paid more than half a billion dollars for such prescription products in 2015. Doctors may p…
The Itch That Won’t Quit | Itching After Stopp…
Chances are good that you have seen a Xyzal commercial on TV. You see an animated owl with a distinctive accent. He wears a monocle…presumably to give this wise owl some extra authority. He lets you…
Can Acupressure Wrist Bands Help You Get to Slee…
Far too many Americans sleep less than the recommended seven hours a night, according to the CDC. Are you among them? Sleep difficulties can come from having trouble falling asleep or from waking in t…
Do Antibiotics Interact with Oral Contraceptives…
Should women using oral contraceptives to prevent pregnancy be warned to take extra precautions if they need to take an antibiotic? There is surprisingly little agreement on this in the medical commun…
What Medicines Cause Depression? Are You Vulnera…
When most people think about drugs and depression, they likely imagine antidepressants. That is, medicines to help overcome the blues. They rarely consider the possibility that the medications they we…