Ailments

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a virus that can destroy the immune system, and over million people in the U.S. are living with it today. While HIV can be treated, there’s a serious concern about the condition — many people don’t know they’re infected. Early Symptoms of HIV Due to subtle symptoms in the earliest […]

This time of year, colds and fevers are common, and under normal circumstances should be no cause for concern. Bugs pass easily between family members — especially if you have school-aged children — and towns and cities become rife with illness as people struggle to come in to work despite their illnesses.

Hair loss at a younger-than-usual age can be caused by a condition called alopecia, which happens when the immune system attacks the hair follicles. Start a search to learn about alopecia, from its causes and symptoms to its diagnosis and treatment. Losing your hair happens naturally to both men and women during the aging process. […]

With May being National Stroke Awareness Month, now is a good time to start learning more about this serious health condition. Strokes are actually the third leading cause of death in America, which means it’s especially important to detect the early signs. To help, let’s take a look at the most common symptoms of a stroke and what to expect during recovery.

For many women with breast cancer, the road to recovery is never over. It’s estimated that 155,000 people in the United States are living with metastatic breast cancer, which means that their breast cancer has spread from their chest to another area in their body. Unfortunately, unlike some other types of breast cancer, the survival rate for metastatic breast cancer is typically around three years. In a culture that’s intensely focused on survival and treatment, it’s important to understand what happens to our bodies in the more advanced stages of breast cancer. That way, even if we aren’t the ones who have been diagnosed, we can more effectively support those that have.

When a cancer moves from its place of origin to a new location in the body, it’s known as metastatic cancer. For a patient or family whose loved one has just received this diagnosis, it can be devastating and hard to understand. At the most basic level, cancer develops when cells grow in an uncontrolled, abnormal way. They don’t function like normal cells. Rather, they interfere with the normal functioning of the body. Cancer develops as a result of a mutation in a person’s DNA. Often, the mutation is a result of the normal process of aging, but it can also be due to unhealthy habits like smoking or exposure to harmful fumes or gases. A cancer typically metastasizes, or grows into a different location, in the later stages of the disease.

Vitamin B-12 deficiency is uncommon in most healthy adults, but as we get older it can be harder for our bodies to absorb, so we become deficient. This deficiency is often spotted in adults who drink heavily, have recently had gastric bypass surgery, or have been using acid-reducing medication for a long period of time. This simple vitamin deficiency can have troubling symptoms and even more serious consequences.

Though self-analysis of one’s own phlegm is an insufficient substitute for a visit to your family physician, there’s no harm in learning. Today, we’re going to break down what the color of your phlegm can tell you about your health, when you’re in the clear, and when it’s time to visit a professional. Sound simple? Great! It’s time to shine a light on the color of your phlegm.

Asthma is a common condition, but it isn’t one that should be ignored or swept under the rug. Its signs and symptoms are similar to other ailments like the common cold, but this is what makes asthma a dangerous medical condition.

As defined by the dictionary, the belief is that the man flu is simply men overreacting to the symptoms of the normal flu. In essence, they’re being cry-babies. The flu provokes little to no reaction from women, but it has men overexaggerating their symptoms and acting like its life or death. But let’s take a step back. Maybe men do experience the symptoms of the flu more severely than women. It’s possible, right? A study published in BMJ has the answer.