Health Tips and News Updates

3 Things You Have To Give Up To Lose Weight Forever To be healthier and happier, Tory Johnson, author of The Shift, discovered that she had to let go of three particular things.  1. The Cheat Day   For years, I was lulled into the moderation trap, a bedrock of nutrition advice that works flawlessly for some women but is a disaster for others. Supposedly, as long as I limited myself to a few bites here or there, I could eat onion rings, rice and chocolate cake -- anything, really -- and not gain weight. Trouble is, I never ate just a few bites. A couple chips led to the whole bag, and, before long, I was out of control again. Ditto for the oft-advised "cheat day." For me, rewarding healthy eating with unhealthy foods was akin to an alcoholic celebrating a month of sobriety with a beer. It didn't work. When it comes to eating, I was not blessed with the moderation gene. Once I stopped struggling with moderation, my life got a whole lot easier.  2. The 7-...

Feds issue rules for burying Ebola patients in the U.S.  Traditional funeral rites have fueled spread of virus in West Africa. Sierra Leone burial team members wearing protective clothing with the coffin of an Ebola victim. (Carl De Souza/AFP) DALLAS – What if Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan doesn’t pull through? It’s something Dallas County leaders don’t want to think about, but it’s a possibility that will present health officials here with a situation they have not experienced: how to handle a body that according to the World Health Organization, could remain highly contagious for several days. “It’s been discussed, but there’s been no conclusion,” said Zachary Thompson, director of Dallas County Health and Human Services. “That’s a contingency discussion.” In early August, medical missionary Kent Brantly became the first U.S. patient to be treated for Ebola after he contracted the disease in West Africa and was transported to Emory University Hospital in Atlant...

Can you make a difference in your health in just 25 days?     Of course you can!  Charla Burkett, fitness instructor at NLR Athletic Club, said you have to be realistic and trust the process. "You didn't get out of shape overnight, so you are not going to get in shape overnight either," she explained. As it turns out, 25 days is a great timeframe for setting some achievable goals, seeing what works for you (and what doesn't, and finding the best way to incorporate fitness into your life. This is the time to develop your plan and start making exercise a healthy habit you can stick with in the long-term What are some tips to making the most out of 25 days?  Review Your Current Fitness Level  Just getting started? Your goal should be to simply get up and get moving -- start with a 5-10 min walk in the neighborhood and work up from there. Don't compare yourself to anyone else. This is about developing your personal fitness plan. You can't crea...

Key facts Ebola virus disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola haemorrhagic fever, is a severe, often fatal illness in humans. EVD outbreaks have a case fatality rate of up to 90%. EVD outbreaks occur primarily in remote villages in Central and West Africa, near tropical rainforests. The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission. Fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family are considered to be the natural host of the Ebola virus. Severely ill patients require intensive supportive care. No licensed specific treatment or vaccine is available for use in people or animals. Fruit Bat  Ebola first appeared in 1976 in 2 simultaneous outbreaks, in Nzara, Sudan, and in Yambuku, Democratic Republic of Congo. The latter was in a village situated near the Ebola River, from which the disease takes its name. Genus Ebolavirus is 1 of 3 members of the Filoviridae family (filovirus), along with...

Health Dept. launches investigation, Dozen ill from Dunkin Donuts DUNKIN DOUNTS   UNION COUNTY — Health officials say a local Dunkin’ Donuts is at the center of at least a dozen illnesses. Officials with Union County’s health department told Eyewitness News the business on West Roosevelt Boulevard is allowed to stay open because it has been cooperating and because health officials are visiting the restaurant daily. No customers have reported getting sick from the restaurant, according to health officials. “We first found out about it on the 18th; we got an anonymous phone call that many of the employees at the Dunkin’ Donuts were ill,” Phillip Tarte, division director for public health, said. Officials followed up on that tip and found that six employees were sick and six of their family members had a stomach bug as well. “It can be serious especially for those who are immunocompromised already,” Tarte said. Health officials are making sure there are no customer...