Trusted for unbiased health information since 1976
We aim to help you make informed decisions about both traditional and alternative treatments.
What Can You Do About a Black Nail?
Everyone wants healthy strong nails, but keeping them in good condition can be challenging. Nail fungus, or onychomycosis, results from infection with one or more of several species of fungus such asÂ…
How Can Manuka Honey Help to Heal Wounds?
We first heard about the use of sugar to heal wounds from orthopedic surgeon, Richard A, Knutson, MD. He pointed out that the battlefield surgeons of ancient Egypt used honey and grease to heal wounds…
Busting Myths and Offering Unique Leg Cramp Reme…
Q. My wife told me about leg cramp remedies, including the mustard cure some time ago. I thought it sounded wild, as I don't understand how it would work. Last week, I participated in a run/walk in I…
What Are the Best Remedies for Under-Breast Rash…
Women rarely talk about one delicate problem that many of them experience. It is especially common at this time of year because of warm, humid weather. These conditions favor the growth of fungus unde…
Will Acupuncture Relieve Your Arthritic Knee Pai…
People with chronic arthritis are faced with a terrible choice: do they suffer from pain every day, or do they take pain relievers with scary side effects? Unfortunately, the pain medications used …
Can an Antidepressant Really Help with Hot Flash…
Menopause offers women numerous challenges, but the most significant symptom is probably hot flashes (vasomotor symptoms in doctor-speak). This may also be among the most variable symptoms. Some women…
How Good is Medical Marijuana (Cannabidiol) Agai…
After thousands of years of medicinal use, we now have irrefutable evidence that cannabis works to control epilepsy. The most prestigious medical journal in the world, The New England Journal of Medic…
Show 1033: How to Stay Healthy with Principles o…
Most Americans are not familiar with the principles of Ayurvedic medicine. Despite its thousands of years of tradition, it seems exotic and possibly irrelevant for today. How Ayurvedic Medicine Princi…
What Is the Link Between Drinking and Breast Can…
Women who want to avoid breast cancer should go easy on the alcohol, according to a new report. What's the connection between drinking and breast cancer? A Collaborative Review of Drinking and Breast …
New Analysis Disputes Dogma that All Seniors Nee…
The American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology (ACC) created a risk calculator that tells physicians and patients when someone should take a statin-type cholesterol-loweri…
Does Chocolate Really Help Your Heart?
The Danish Diet, Cancer and Health Study has turned up an interesting observation: people who eat chocolate are less likely to develop atrial fibrillation, a heart rhythm abnormality that affects betw…
Fruit Juice Seems Healthy, But Not for Babies
Lots of parents think of fruit juice as a healthy beverage for babies and children. It certainly is better than carbonated soft drinks, which are usually loaded with high fructose corn syrup and often…
Is Black Poop Something to Worry About?
Pepto-Bismol has been around for more than 100 years. The original formula was developed by a physician to treat severe diarrhea brought on by cholera. He sold his invention directly to other doctors.…
Can You Lower Blood Sugar with Cinnamon?
You've no doubt heard that type 2 diabetes has reached epidemic levels in this country and many others. That means that millions more people have pre-diabetes, blood sugar that is headed in the wron…
How to Use Lavender Oil to Calm Restless Legs
Restless legs don't sound particularly serious, but the overwhelming urge to move the legs every few minutes or so can prevent a good night's sleep. The sensation can be extremely unpleasant. Usually,…
Can You Wreck Your Kidneys With NSAID Pain Relie…
Most people take their kidneys for granted...until something bad happens. When your kidneys fail, though, your life hangs in the balance. Short of dialysis or a kidney transplant, kidney failure rapid…
Is the New Drug Xiidra Good for Dry Eye Relief?
Dry eyes can make life miserable. The eyes feel as though there were sand in them, and they tire easily. People may complain of blurred vision. Until recently, the first-line treatment for dry eyes w…
Can You Safely Take Fish Oil with Blood Thinners…
Many of us make a clear distinction between the drugs we take and the vitamins or supplements we use. It seems logical enough for our brains, but our bodies don't recognize categories like that. An…
If Ambien Is Out, How Can You Get to Sleep?
Insomnia is a serious problem for millions of Americans. Older adults often have difficulty getting to sleep, and many rely on sleeping pills. Unfortunately, benzodiazepines like alprazolam (Xanax) …
Show 1080: What Works for Pain Relief and Why
Pain is one of the most common reasons people seek medical care. But physicians often face a dilemma when they treat joint pain, back pain or muscle spasms with prescription pills. Drugs that relieve…
Do Treatments for Knee Arthritis Do More Harm Th…
Steroid shots and arthroscopic surgery have been mainstays in the treatment of pain and inflammation brought on by knee arthritis. Many people try to delay knee replacement as long as possible, especi…
Why You Should Exercise and Eat Right, Now
We've all been told that we should exercise and eat right. Research to be reported at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting shows that a healthy lifestyle matters. That's true even after a…
How Will Beetroot Juice Help Your Heart?
Beet juice has developed quite a reputation over the past few decades. Researchers have discovered that it lowers blood pressure and improves athletic endurance. Canadian scientists demonstrated that…
Could Tai Chi Help You Overcome Insomnia?
Up to 30 percent of women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer have trouble sleeping. They may be understandably worried about their condition and unable to sleep for that reason. Lying awake ca…
Will Overdosing on Vitamin B6 Cause Irreversible…
Most people think of vitamins as benign nutrients. If a little is good then a "lottle" is better. In other words, the more the merrier. Most of the time people do not get into trouble if they take a l…
How Could a Poison Ivy Remedy Help Your Itchy Bi…
When warm weather arrives, we start spending more time outside in fields or woods. As a result, we may come home with itchy bites. Chigger bites are especially irritating. A brief blast of hot water c…
Can You Cure Killer Headaches With Ice Packs?
There was a time decades ago when people treated really bad headaches with ice packs. Those were the days before Advil & Motrin IB (ibuprofen) and Aleve (naproxen). It was before triptan-type migr…
Will a Gluten-Free Diet Help Your Heartburn Symp…
Judging from the popularity of medicines like esomeprazole (Nexium), lansoprazole (Prevacid) and omeprazole (Prilosec), heartburn symptoms are extremely common. Is there a better way to prevent the re…
Can You Avoid NSAID Danger with Topical Pain Rel…
Chronic pain, whether it is severe or moderate, poses a serious dilemma. People need relief from pain, but most medications that they can use for relief have significant downsides. People often take N…
Will Chlorophyll Capsules Make Underarms Smell S…
In the ongoing search for ways to control body odor, people have invented some creative solutions. One of the most unusual is swallowing supplemental chlorophyll every day. Is this a good idea? Chlor…