Elder Care Cafe

If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!Many people are still unclear as to whether it is okay to flush unused prescription drugs down the toilet. What most people do understand is that it is not safe to keep unused or no-longer-needed prescriptions around the house where [...]

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According to a new study, eating up to three ounces of nuts on a daily basis can lower your blood cholesterol level and reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.  However, the findings showed that, because of the high calorie content of nuts, eating more than three ounces per day could cause weight gain.

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Unfortunately, I have struggled with osteoporosis for many years. After a couple of decades of bowling, more than one painful fall to my knees, and just plain lack of attention and care to my body, my knees are hurting. Doing lunges and squats while weight-lifting did not help either. Whenever I run across an article about [...]

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Whenever I am prescribed a drug for the first time, I always review the information that is enclosed. Then I promptly forget what I read. After all, the prescribing doctor gave the medication to me for a reason, and I know I need to follow the dosage for as long as the medication is needed. [...]

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Rebound headaches occur because of frequent use of headache medication. Also called medication-overuse headaches, the headaches recur as pain relievers begin to wear off. Pain relievers are helpful for occasional headaches, but should not be taken more than a couple of days a week. Excessive use of over-the-counter or prescription drugs can trigger the painful [...]

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There are a number of ways to safely combat seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and relieve the symptoms of depression and darkness that descend every fall for many of you who live in the Northern Hemisphere. SAD symptoms include a sadness that rests upon someone during the months from November through February, irritability, cravings for carbohydrates, [...]

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This is the time of year that anyone who struggles with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) may start to see the light, so to speak. It’s March, and the winter blahs will soon pass away until the next round of darkness strikes. In the Northern climates, around November, SAD sufferers begin to feel a weight come [...]

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Our recent emergency reminded me how important medication safety is to a person’s health and well being. When Dad fell down a stairwell several months ago, he was out of town at the time. EMTs took him to their local hospital, and over his three-day stay in ICU his usual medications were changed. Then he [...]

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An advance directive is a document that allows a person to make his or her wishes for treatment known in advance. Many people choose to have a written document on file stating what medical intervention, if any, they would like in case of emergency or if they become incapacitated.

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A recent study found that people taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs such as Lipitor and Zocor may have unexpected protection from the flu. People who were already taking statins when they caught the flu and had to be hospitalized had a much higher survival rate than those who were not taking statins. Those involved in the study [...]

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Recently we were reminded of a syringe recall notice sent out regarding the Accusure insulin syringes. Apparently, an Alabama company recalled millions of insulin syringes it had distributed around the country since early 2002 because of the complaints they were receiving. Four complaints were received related to how the needle was detaching from the syringe. Thankfully, [...]

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Whether you are a caregiver to a loved one in your home twenty-four hours a day or you take care of someone daily or nightly in his or her home, at some point in time you will need to address the stress that comes along with being a caregiver.

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Although sleep apnea is a serious medical condition, if you have mild sleep apnea you can often use home treatment to reduce the symptoms. Mild sleep apnea is described as five or fewer apnea episodes a night.

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Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer in American men, just behind skin cancer. The latest American Cancer Society estimates reveal about 192,280 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed and 27,360 men will die of prostate cancer in 2009.

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Written by Sharon Elrod Staying involved in treatment decisions and understanding prostate cancer language is important for victims and their families. When my husband was diagnosed with prostate cancer a year ago, I immediately went to the Internet to read all I could about it. I found a wealth of valuable information, and had to [...]

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