Although auras are thought to be the hallmark sign of an impending migraine, the majority of people who get migraines don’t actually experience them, says Mia Minen, MD, MPH, a neurologist and the director of headache services at NYU Langone Health in New York City. But it’s not just aura that can precede the onset of headache in someone who has migraine. About 10 to 20 percent of people may also experience a prodrome — a premonitory symptom — up to 48 hours before their headache kicks in, according to a study in Therapeutic Advances in Chronic Disease....

Little did I know, right? Just Annoying? Or a Sign of a Bigger Problem? I have come to notice more of these telltale signs that something is going on inside my central nervous system, and I now know they may (or may not, in the case of so-called silent attacks) show themselves as greater symptoms and loss of ability in days or weeks to come. Sometimes these little twitches are just annoying or sometimes interesting....

The surge erased much of the progress made in the last decade in the fight to contain these superbugs, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), issued on July 12. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) was one of the country’s greatest public health concerns prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and it remains so, said CDC director Rochelle Walensky, MD, MPH, in a statement accompanying the report....

Blame nicotine, the addictive substance in cigarettes. Not only does nicotine cause powerful pleasurable sensations when it’s absorbed into the bloodstream, but it also triggers deep cravings after its effects wear off. The good news is that it’s possible to overcome nicotine cravings — with a little understanding, focus, and willpower, that is. Here’s how to kick the habit for good. Why Stopping Smoking Makes You Feel So Bad Nicotine is powerful stuff — and cigarettes deliver a quick supply of this drug to the brain, triggering a burst in the production of certain brain chemicals responsible for helping us feel pleasure, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)....

Since IBD affects the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, your diet plays an important role in keeping symptoms at bay. A healthy diet also supplies you with beneficial nutrients that can help ward off complications such as malnutrition and weight loss, according to the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation. “Eating a diet high in fruits, veggies, beans, lentils, whole grains, fish, nuts and seeds, and avocados while limiting processed foods, red meat, and added sugars may be beneficial,” says Stacy Cavagnaro, a registered dietitian with a focus on IBD at Cleveland Clinic....

Individuals who are overweight, defined as having a body mass index (BMI) between 25 and 29.9, or are obese (a BMI of 30 or higher), also have a much greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease at a younger age. The research showed that individuals who are obese had a shorter lifespan. The link between heart disease and obesity is multifaceted. For one thing, obesity increases your risk of developing many other risk factors for heart disease....

At the Tokyo Olympics, the new trend is blood flow restriction (BFR) training. The American swimmer Michael Andrew and the American marathon runner Galen Rupp have both been spotted with tourniquet-like bands on their limbs used for BFR, The New York Times reported July 21. RELATED: The Olympic Games Begin! But Under the Cloud of COVID-19 BFR training is a technique in which pressurized bands (which look similar to blood pressure cuffs) are worn around the arms or legs to slow blood flow to specific muscles during training....

For the past 18 months, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been collecting data on the levels of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in more than 400 sites around the country as a way to track the spread of COVID-19 in different communities. On February 4, the agency announced that it’s now sharing that information in a dashboard as part of the COVID Data Tracker. “Wastewater surveillance can help provide situational awareness for what’s going on in a community, as well as an early-warning system that a new increase may be coming to an area,” says Amesh A....

All four babies became seriously ill and had to be hospitalized, and health authorities believe Cronobacter may have contributed to the death of one child. At this point, illnesses have been reported in Minnesota, Ohio, and Texas. After launching an investigation, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has so far found several positive Cronobacter sakazakii results from environmental samples taken at a manufacturing plant. Abbott’s internal records also indicate environmental contamination with Cronobacter sakazakii and the firm’s destruction of product due to the presence of Cronobacter....

Probiotics are live microorganisms that are considered good bacteria. They can be found in foods like yogurt, sauerkraut, and kimchi, as well as in some beverages and dietary supplements. The American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) estimates that 3.9 million American adults use some form of probiotics or prebiotics (plant fibers that promote the growth of healthy gut bacteria). It’s estimated that Americans collectively doled out over $63 billion on probiotic products in 2021, according to Precedence Research....

It’s not surprising, then, that some people with PsA also develop an autoimmune thyroid disorder. Problems With the Thyroid The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland at the base of the throat. For such a small part of the body, it can wreak a lot of havoc. This is because the thyroid has many crucial functions, including regulating heartbeats and controlling how speedy or sluggish your metabolism is. Even among the general population, thyroid disease is not rare....

For example, you probably want to know what causes the heart condition and what symptoms and potential complications to expect. You’re also likely interested in available treatment options and overall prognosis. Unfortunately, ATTR-CM is a complex condition that is often diagnosed late, if at all, because some physicians don’t even fully recognize the signs, according to American Heart Association (AHA). That’s why it’s best to consult with a cardiologist with expertise in the condition, says Frederick L....

When people with AD suffer from sleep disturbances, their quality of life suffers as well, according to research published in March 2021 in the journal Dermatitis. Plus, sleep deprivation not only makes you feel lousy in the moment but can also put you at risk for a wide range of health problems later. Some experts theorize that poor sleep could make atopic dermatitis worse by exacerbating inflammation, creating a vicious cycle....

The resident of Waldo County, in southern Maine, died after being treated in the hospital for neurological symptoms caused by a Powassan virus infection, the Maine Center for Disease Control (Maine CDC) said in a statement. Three types of ticks — groundhog or woodchuck ticks (Ixodes cookei), blackleggged or deer ticks (Ixodes scapularis), and squirrel ticks (Ixodes marxi) — can spread Powassan virus, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)....

And the fitness app and tracker users were still moving significantly more 13 weeks later. The wearable trackers and downloadable apps worked best when they provided feedback on progress, enabled users to set personal goals or reminded users to get active via text messages, according to the study, published December 2020 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. “Continuously monitoring your progress and receiving feedback from an app or tracker can lead to significant changes in overall physical activity,” says lead researcher Liliana Laranjo, MD, PhD, a research fellow on the faculty of medicine and health at the University of Sydney’s Westmead Applied Research Centre in Australia....

Age 40 Conditions Rheumatoid arthritis, gastroparesis, SIBO (small intestine bacterial overgrowth), anxiety How long I’ve been living with these conditions 19 years As someone who’s lived with rheumatoid arthritis and gastroparesis for 19 years, I’m no stranger to the challenges that inflammatory arthritis can pose in the kitchen. Since my fingers (specifically the knuckles and thumbs) are the most consistent area of pain and inflammation, I often find the physical demands of cooking to be cumbersome....

Genes Certain inherited genetic conditions and immune disorders can put a person at a greater risk for developing leukemia. These may include: Down Syndrome People with Down syndrome have an extra copy of chromosome 21. Kids with Down are as much as 30 times more likely to develop acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) than the general population. They have a particularly high risk — 150 times that of the general population — of getting acute myeloid leukemia (AML)....

The risk of early death from excessive drinking is also higher for underweight people than for individuals with obesity who consume high amounts of alcohol, according to the research, which was published in the January edition of the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence. “We expected to see a link between obesity and mortality related to alcoholism, and we were surprised to see that the link was especially pronounced for people with underweight who drink excessively,” said Muntasir Masum, PhD, a postdoctoral scholar at the Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center at Penn State in University Park, Pennsylvania, in a press release....

The condition, which was first introduced by psychologist Alfred Adler in 1907, is characterized by distinct psychological symptoms that interfere with normal activities. Although not considered a “condition” in modern psychiatry, this mindset is still recognized as a potential source of distress These feelings of not measuring up to others can be real or imagined. Left unchallenged, they can develop into deeper feelings of inadequacy and cause various other symptoms, according to a study published in September 2014 in the North American Journal of Medical Sciences....

The research, published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (PDF) and discussed in an article from the American Psychological Association (APA) on July 11, found that people consistently underestimated how much others in their social circle might appreciate an unexpected phone call, text, or email just to say hello — and the more surprised the person was to hear from the friend, the more they valued it. “People are fundamentally social beings and enjoy connecting with others,” lead author Peggy Liu, PhD, of the University of Pittsburgh, said in the APA article about the research paper....