The People's Pharmacy

Years ago, doctors thought that celiac disease was incredibly rare among Americans. In this auto-immune condition, exposure to gluten found in barley, rye and wheat causes the body to attack the lining of the digestive tract. The damage that is done interferes with the ability of the intestines to absorb nutrients properly and that can […]

For millennia, when people stopped breathing, they stopped living. The classic test for determining whether people were asleep or dead was whether they could fog a mirror. Resuscitating the Drowned: In the eighteenth century, the citizens of Amsterdam became alarmed at the number of residents perishing by drowning in the canals. They started a Society for […]

The Zone diet popularized by Dr. Barry Sears was one of the earliest to emphasize the importance of balancing protein, fat and carbohydrate consumption at every meal. Dr. Sears pioneered the idea that the food we eat is more powerful than any drug in controlling the activity of multiple hormones in our bodies. Many studies […]

Prescription medications cost more in the US than anywhere else in the world. What’s behind the high cost of these drugs? How are insurance companies and other payers coping with costs? Is there any way to save money on a prescription? How Can You Save Money on Your Prescriptions? With the price of medicines rising […]

Montmorency cherries are rich in polyphenols. Scientists in England have been studying their ability to help athletes recover more quickly from strenuous exercise. The latest research was conducted with soccer players and published in Nutrients (online July 22, 2016). Do you ever get muscle cramps, either during athletic activity or in the middle of the […]

What do you know about the popular cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins? Are they miracle medicines that save lives, or do they represent a menace to health because of possible side effects? Get the truth on statins and heart disease. Two Views on Statins: We speak with two experts on statins and heart disease to get […]

Do you think of yoga as exercise? Many people don’t. Yoga doesn’t seem like exercise that can combat osteoporosis. Yet physiatrist Loren Fishman, MD, has shown that certain yoga poses can improve bone mineral density and reduce fractures. People do need to practice these poses conscientiously. When they do, they experience virtually no side effects-except they stand […]

An ancient Chinese medical modality is gradually gaining converts in the US. In acupuncture, a skilled practitioner inserts thin needles into specific points on the body. The problems that may be treated this way range from allergies and sinusitis to heartburn, PMS, menstrual problems and hot flashes. In addition, this approach is frequently helpful for painful conditions such as headaches, tender […]

If you are hiking in the hinterlands this summer, what first aid should you take along? We talk with Dr. Jim Hubbard, author of The Survival Doctor’s Complete Handbook, about what to do when you can’t get to the doctor. Home Remedies for Summertime Maladies: Dr. Hubbard also shares some of his favorite home remedies. […]

Stress is bad for our health, isn’t it? It has been linked to everything from psoriasis to asthma to heart disease. It may even make us more susceptible to cancer. Is the Emphasis on Stress Reduction Misplaced? It is no wonder, then, that wellness advocates emphasize stress reduction, whether it is yoga, meditation, a walk […]

As we grow older, the risk of two different cancers looms ever larger: breast cancer for women and prostate cancer for men. Whether you are a woman or a man, how can you reduce your risk from breast or prostate cancer? Unscrambling the Controversies: There have been controversies over the best methods for detecting and […]

Americans have been admonished to reduce the amount of sodium in our food. In fact, the American Heart Association has said that all of us should be cutting the salt we eat and aiming for 1500 mg of sodium daily, if not less. That is an amount that is achieved by only a few hardy […]

More children than ever suffer with allergies, asthma, ADHD or eczema. Sometimes these allergies can affect their ability to focus in school or get along with friends. It might be hard to see what is causing these problems. Could it be something they are eating? Do they need the dirt cure? A pediatric neurologist who […]

An increasing proportion of Americans are at risk for type 2 diabetes. In 2012, 86 million adults had prediabetes, which is elevated blood sugar that doesn’t quite reach the cut-off for a diabetes diagnosis. Frequently, people with prediabetes go on to develop type 2 diabetes, but they don’t have to. You can reverse prediabetes by […]

People who have had difficulty getting an accurate diagnosis of their ailments may feel that their doctors are not taking them seriously. Perhaps if they had MD degrees themselves, they imagine, the diagnostic process would be more productive. A Medical Mystery This is not always the case, however. Our guest, Neil Spector, MD, is a […]