United We Stand: The Impact of Disabilities on Marriage
There has been much made in the media about the stress on marriage and the high rates of divorce affecting couples who have a child with a developmental disability. Yet at the same time, counter studies have been published that refute many of these claims – reporting that this data has been exaggerated and that these families do not have a significantly higher divorce rate.
Understanding Medicare Plans
With Medicare open enrollment season upon us right now (October 15th-December 7th) many seniors age 65+ are reviewing the many Medicare programs available to them. They have been inundated with marketing materials from the many health insurance companies out there to persuade them to sign up or to change their plans for the next year, effective starting January 1st 2013.
Caregiver Conflict: Did We Always Fight Like This?
Now that Pesach and Shavuos have come and gone, we can reflect and review some of the changes we saw in our elderly parents over the past Yom Tov. Siblings who came from a distance might have observed changes that daily, primary caregivers often don’t notice. At the same time, if you are the primary caregiver, Yom Tov may have stirred up some personal questions and feelings.
New Yoga Course Has Jewish Women Striking Kosher Pose
Women who seek the opportunity to do Asanas in an environment which is more Hoshannah than Ganesha – and teach other women to do the same - can now sign up for a special course designed especially for Jewish Yoga aficionadas who want to teach the healing art to others.
Getting Help From Mental Health Guidance Counselors
What began 10 years ago as a small group of volunteers providing mental health referrals within the Jewish community has evolved into a full-fledged mental health referral, education and support organization that takes on 6,000 new patients annually in four major cities across the globe.
Israeli Doctor: Over-the-Counter Drugs Could Raise Blood Pressure
Chemical components in anti-inflammatory pain relievers, antibiotics, contraceptives and anti-depressants may increase the risk of heart attack or stroke, according to Dr. Ehud Grossman...
Outing a Silent Killer: Screening and Beating Lung Cancer
Did you know that lung cancer kills more people each year than colon, prostate, and breast cancer combined? In 2012, this number represented over 160,000 men and women who died from lung cancer, over 25% of all cancer deaths in the United States. Yet this is a treatable disease.
Israeli Company Wins FDA Approval For Bone Cancer Treatment
Israeli med-tech company InSightec Image Guided Treatment has announced that it has been approved for US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) premarketing of its ExAblate targeted focused ultrasound treatment for the removal of bone tumors.
Diabetes – The Silent Killer
The worldwide diabetes epidemic and its related precursor, obesity, are the fastest growing public health menaces of the 21st century.
Maimonides Expert Offers Winter Weather Safety Tips
Dr. John Marshall, Chair of Emergency Medicine at Maimonides, offers tips to ensure that you and your loved ones stay safe while enjoying the winter months.
The Staggering Costs of a Special Needs Child
The spectrum of special-needs children ranges from mental to physical to psychological and sometimes all three. A 2008 study by the United States Department of Health and Human Services estimates that 14 percent of children in this country fit into this category, and about 20 percent of families have at least one special-needs child. The definition of a special-needs child can range from one who is diagnosed with a mild learning disability to one who has a life-threatening condition, such as cystic fibrosis. This article will focus on the more severe categories.
It’s All Child’s Play
If you have ever observed a child for more than five minutes, you will inevitably see him/her playing. Play is the central aspect of childhood – across gender, culture, and age. This article will attempt to give insight into why children play and what function it serves, both in general and in therapeutic settings.
The Long Road of Stroke Recovery
What does an elected official in his fifties have in common with a young Chassidic father, a young mother who works as a freelance copy editor, and a 21-month old infant? All four individuals, from very different backgrounds and walks of life, suffered a stroke which robbed them of some of their previous abilities, and prompted an individualized recovery process which is likely to last for the rest of their lives.
Visiting Disney World with a Special Needs Child
Traveling to Disney World with your kids? If you are a typical Jewish family, there are concerns about the availability of kosher food, events that take place on Shabbos that you may have to schedule around, and the availability of a minyan. Traveling with a special needs child creates an added level of complexity.
Health Ministry: Breast is Best in Israel
Israel’s Health Ministry will begin a more concentrated effort to encourage women to breastfeed their babies, instituting new policies in hospitals starting September 1.
Shaare Zedek Celebrates 200th PGD-IVF Birth
"Be fruitful and multiply" (Genesis 1:28) says God in his first command to humanity. Thanks to the vision and donations of Rabbi David and Anita Fuld, Shaarei Tzedek is the world leader in helping families who would otherwise never even dream of having healthy children.
Butter Lovers, Rejoice – Hebrew U Study Shows High-Fat Could Lower Weight
Lovers of butter, rejoice – eating a high fat diet on a schedule may keep you svelter than eating a low-fat diet at random intervals, according to a researcher at Hebrew University.
Israeli Teen’s Organs Save the Lives of Six People
Nine organs donated by the family of a 16 year old Israeli athlete have saved the lives of 6 people, providing some comfort to a family heartbroken by the loss of their son.
NY Governor, Boston Mayor Declare Public Health Emergencies Due to Flu
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo declared a public health emergency on Saturday, in the wake of the worst flu outbreak in many years.
$1 Million Israeli BRAIN Prize To Be Awarded in 2013
A $1 million dollar prize has been announced which will go to the individual or team with the highest potential for helping people around the world by the non-profit organization Israel Brain Technologies.
Israel May Up Fertility Treatment Subsidies to Three Kids, Cut Aid to Older First-Time...
Israel’s Health Ministry is mulling a plan to vastly increase government assistance to couples with fertility difficulties to grow larger families, while decreasing the amount of subsidies to women over the age of 43 who have never succeeded in getting pregnant.
Diagnosing Mental Illness: How DSM-5 Will Change the Rules
Mental health specialists tend to speak about their patients according to a classification referred to as the DSM, which stands for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. This classification system was first published in 1952 by the American Psychiatric Association as a method to classify mental disorders and develop a statistical baseline through which disorders can be understood, studied and treated. It is not the only classification system available.
Debunking Myths in Women’s Health Update
Earlier this year, the American Cancer Society came out with new guidelines concerning Pap smears, which screen for cervical cancer. Conventional wisdom had long held that women should receive annual Pap smears, but in March, doctors announced the new guidelines suggesting that women receive a Pap smear once every three years.
Bipolar – Not A Life Sentence
Chaim* was admired in yeshiva for his incredible diligence. His days were consumed with learning and he could be found in the Beis Midrash almost 24/7. For him, sleep was a waste of time. Great things were forecast for his future until neighbors found him lying in the middle of the street in Geula, hallucinating that he was Moshiach. Medications stopped his racing mind but made him feel like a zombie. He became depressed and shell of his former self. His parents thought they were acting responsibly when they had him hospitalized and then put in a hostel.
Twins Are Multiplying
Having twins used to be a novelty. Now, if you think that you are seeing double everywhere you go, it is not your imagination. The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), under the auspices of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), published a study last month noting the sharp increase in twin births over the past three decades.
Lubavitcher Chassid Sues New York Over Conversion Therapy Ban
He further notes that some of his patients have succeeded in reducing or eliminating their unwanted attractions, while some have not or have chosen not to continue the process.
Risks of Anesthesia in Young Children
While surgery can be scary and stressful for children and their parents alike, anesthesia can be a useful tool for reducing pain and calming fear and stress, yielding very temporary symptoms following surgery.
Physical Exercise and Flu Prevention
Winter is here and with it comes a whole host of viruses that are somehow less prevalent in the warmer seasons. Poor winter, it’s saddled with the nickname of “cold and flu season.”
Treating Crohn’s With Diet
We have all been raised in a culture which we are taught to believe in the “miracles of modern medicine.”
Lawyers Deny Rumor that Controversial Pathologist Yehuda Hiss Was Fired
Attorneys for Pathologist Yehuda Hiss, considered the man who knows "where all the bodies are buried" (including the questionable circumstances of the assassination of a prime minister some seventeen years ago) are saying the rumors about his being fired by Deputy Health Minister Yakov Litzman s on Monday are premature.
