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Ear wax is normal and healthy and is thought to be one way the ear protects itself from harmful bacteria and dirt. Everyone makes ear wax, although some people make more than others. Sweat glands inside the outer ear canal produce it. The wax “oils” ear canal tissues and protects the eardrum. Ear Cleaning to Remove the Wax The healthy ear cleans itself. Tiny hairs lining the ear canal remove the wax slowly, but too much ear wax can create a blockage that may lead to temporary hearing loss....

Endocrine disorders are diseases and conditions that affect your endocrine system. The endocrine system includes glands and organs that secrete hormones. The hormones travel through the blood to affect other organs in the body. Endocrine Disorders Your key endocrine glands include: Thyroid glandPituitary glandPineal glandPancreasOvariesTestesParathyroidHypothalamusAdrenals Some of the most common endocrine disorders are number of thyroid-related conditions, including: Hypothyroidism Hyperthyroidism Hashimoto’s thyroiditis Graves’ disease Thyroid cancer Goiter Thyroiditis Thyroid nodules Some other common endocrine disorders include:...

The external intercostals are small muscles located in between each rib, starting at the first rib and extending down to the 11th rib. The motions of these muscles assist the lungs by raising the ribs and expanding the chest cavity. This added room in the chest cavity allows for the lungs to fill with air each time a person takes a breath in. The suffix ‘-costal’ indicates the muscles are involved with motion of the ribs, where ‘inter-’ states the location of the muscles is between each rib....

With some back conditions, specific positions can change the symptoms. These positions are known as biases and they include flexion and extension. These biases are also called direction preferences. If your back feels better and/or your symptoms abate when you bend forward, for example, it’s likely that the injury or condition you experience has a flexion bias. A bias occurs due to the movement of tissue in the joint. With certain position changes, the relationship of space, muscles, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, and bones changes slightly within and around a joint, worsening or relieving painful pressure and compression....

The best treatment for hip bursitis, or any form of bursitis, is aimed at controlling the inflammation caused by this condition. As with any treatment program, always talk with your healthcare provider before initiating any specific treatments. Rest This usually means a period of time not participating in sports or activities that aggravate your symptoms. As a general rule of thumb, any activity that causes hip bursitis pain should be avoided—this only contributes to inflammation of the bursa....

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is one of the cardiac conditions associated with sudden death in young athletes. HCM is one of the more common genetic cardiac disorders, affecting 1 in every 500 people.Furthermore, more than half of the sudden deaths that are caused by HCM occur in African Americans. What Is Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy? HCM is a cardiac condition characterized by an abnormal thickening of the heart muscle, a condition called hypertrophy. The hypertrophy can cause several problems....

I’ve been a runner for as long as I can remember, but after completing the NYC marathon last November, I’ve been looking for a way to break up my fitness routine. Key Takeaways The viral 12-3-30 workout involves walking on a treadmill at an incline of 12 and speed of 3 for 30 minutes.Walking on an incline can offer aerobic benefits and add variety to a fitness routine.The steep incline presents a risk for lower extremity injuries....

If your baby has acid reflux, you may wonder if a different formula would prevent it. Spitting up is normal, but reflux is something you want to head off. Medically speaking, switching formulas shouldn’t hurt your baby. Some infants do have diarrhea, constipation, or feeding problems as they adjust to a new formula. But a change may not be necessary. This article will help you decide whether there’s a problem that needs to be addressed, how to choose a new formula, and what other options you have for treating acid reflux in your baby....

According to a new study from Kansas State University, mosquitoes cannot transmit the virus responsible for COVID-19. The study, published in Scientific Reports on July 17, revealed that SARS-CoV-2 cannot reproduce within mosquitoes and cannot be transmitted to humans through a bite. Key Takeaways A new study from Kansas State University shows that mosquitoes are not vectors for COVID-19.You should still protect yourself against mosquitoes, because they are currently carriers of dangerous diseases like West Nile and EEE....

Osteoarthritis of the knee can trip you up, literally and figuratively, and so can deciding on a treatment for it. You’ve got a lot of approaches to consider for dealing with knee osteoarthritis. Some available treatments are considered safe and effective by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), and some are not. It can be helpful to have a sense of which treatments are or aren’t recommended as you and your healthcare provider sort through the possibilities....

Oligoarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (formerly called pauciarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis or pauciarthritis) is a subtype of juvenile idiopathic arthritis that involves fewer than five joints. Oligoarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis is the most prevalent juvenile idiopathic arthritis subtype. It comprises about 50% of all juvenile idiopathic arthritis patients in North America and Europe. Oligoarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis is further subdivided into: Persistent oligoarthritis: There is no additional joint involvement beyond the initial six months of illness and symptoms....

Having cold hands and feet is a common problem with conditions like fibromyalgia (FMS), chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), and Raynaud’s syndrome. What Is Raynaud’s Syndrome? In Raynaud’s syndrome, the blood vessels constrict more than they should, which reduces blood flow. That not only makes your extremities cold, it also makes them difficult to warm up. The most commonly affected body parts are the fingers and toes, but your lips, nose, ear lobes, knees, and nipples may also be involved....

Common signs and symptoms of lung cancer in men include a worsening, long-term cough, as well as chest pain, shortness of breath, and fatigue. These occur as frequently as they do because they are all related to squamous cell carcinoma, the most common type of lung cancer in men. Men and women who develop the same type of cancer will have similar symptoms. But since squamous cell carcinoma affects males more than females, there are differences in the most likely signs and symptoms of lung cancer amongst the sexes....

Mushrooms may be yet another delicious superfood to add to the list of foods that have been scientifically proven to have powerful disease-fighting properties. A number of foods, such as fish, nuts, soy, wine, and bananas can help you enrich your diet for easy stroke prevention. Mushrooms are unique, however, because they have so many identified stroke fighting actions that they can battle stroke from many different directions. Find out more about how mushrooms work to help reduce your stroke risk....

In spite of its fast-growing nature, Burkitt’s lymphoma is often curable with modern intensive therapies. The types of Burkitt’s lymphoma include sporadic and endemic, and prognosis of this type of cancer gotten better in recent years. Read on to learn more about the types, stages, and treatment of Burkitt’s lymphoma. Types There are two broad types of Burkitt’s lymphoma—the sporadic and the endemic varieties. There is a very high incidence of this disease in equatorial Africa, and disease in this region is called endemic Burkitt’s lymphoma....

Alzheimer’s and other dementias often are accompanied by challenging behaviors that we’re not always prepared to handle. Sometimes, dementia seems to bring out the individual’s basic personality all the more. Other times, personalities seem to be completely different as dementia progresses. For example, a loved one may be punctuating every sentence with &%#% — words they’ve never uttered throughout their whole life. A husband who has been faithful to his wife for their entire marriage may now be attempting to touch someone inappropriately or begin to have a “girlfriend” at a facility where he lives....

While experts debate whether preventive measures lower healthcare costs on a national level, there’s plenty of evidence that prevention is beneficial when it comes to your individual health—and your wallet. According to the American Heart Association, five lifestyle-related factors—never smoking, maintaining a healthy weight, getting regular physical activity, eating a healthy diet, and avoiding excessive alcohol consumption—could prolong life expectancy (at age 50) by 14 years for females and more than 12 years for males (versus people who didn’t adopt any of those lifestyle factors)....

Deoxyribonucleic acid—or DNA— is a molecule that serves as the hereditary material containing biological instructions that make every human and other organism unique. During reproduction, adult organisms pass their DNA and its set of instructions along to their offspring. The Structure and Makeup of DNA DNA is made up of nucleotides, which are essentially chemical building blocks. Nucleotides join together in chains to form a strand of DNA, and contain three parts: a phosphate group, a sugar group, and one of four types of chemical bases:...

Nasonex (mometasone furoate monohydrate) is a nasal spray used for the treatment of allergy symptoms such as runny nose, sneezing, congestion, nasal polyps, and itchy nose. Nasonex is in a class of medication called corticosteroids. Who Can Take Nasonex? Most healthy individuals over the age of two can safely use Nasonex. This medication may soon be available over the counter in the U.S., but at present a prescription is still required....

If you have food allergies and you’re planning to travel to a country where you don’t speak the language, you may want to consider packing an allergy translation card to help you communicate with staff members at restaurants, cafes, and hotels. An allergy translation card is a credit card-sized document that you can give to waiters, concierges, physicians, and other people who may be in a position to help you with food service needs while you’re traveling abroad....