Sarasota Edition

By Anne-Marie Chalmers, MD If you stare at a computer screen all day, have reached the plus-55-years-old stage of life and have had a cataract operation, it’s likely you have all the makings of a serious dry eye problem. And you are not alone. Americans spend an astounding $3.8 billion on dry eye symptom relief every year. Unfortunately, the majority of …

By Dr. Steven Reichbach Chronic migraines can be one of the most challenging diseases to treat.  It affects 1% of the population in the United States and can be severely debilitating as well as  negatively impact the quality of life in those who suffer with them.  Medications such as opiods, antidepressants, antileptics, beta blockers, triptans and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications are commonly …

By Virginia “Ginya” Carnahan, APR.CPRC, Director of Marketing & Development, Dattoli Cancer Center & Brachytherapy Research Institute The summer is gone, although it is still hot!  Kids are back in school and school buses are clogging the roads.  School supplies blew your monthly budget.  You didn’t get to take a vacation.  Everybody else did.  No wonder you are blue. In my …

At 240 pounds and on medication for diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure, Lena Cooper’s health and self-esteem were seriously impaired. “I didn’t like myself very well; I was miserable,” said Cooper, 67, who retired to Florida 12 years ago with her husband after a 30-year career at General Motors in Michigan. Finally, in 2015, the Parrish resident had …

You’ve had metabolic (bariatric) surgery, and your diabetes is gone. Now what? For people who have struggled with unhealthy weight for much of their lives, surgery provides a new starting point. It’s not an end to the challenge. Kim Slominsky, a registered dietician and certified diabetes educator with Gulf Coast Medical Group in Venice, offers the following tips for life …

By Virginia ‘Ginya’ Carnahan, APR, CPRC Dattoli Cancer Center & Brachytherapy Research Institute It’s hot; it’s steamy; it’s rainy; it’s boring.  It’s August!  The summer is 2/3rds gone and what have you done? For many folks the month of August is their last chance to get a vacation in before children return to school.  Theme parks are crowded.  Highways are …

Neuropathy is typically associated with diabetes, as it’s common for nerve damage to have occurred in individuals with high glucose storage, but neuropathy can also be attributed to chemotherapy, radiation, injuries, autoimmune diseases, spinal stenosis, cholesterol medication side effects, a build-up of toxins, and vascular disease. In the United States alone, neuropathy affects nearly 20 million people.  The Latin word literally …

Did you know that heart disease is the leading cause of death in women?  It’s commonly overlooked because we statistically tend to think of men as having heart disorders or suffering from irregular heart arrhythmias and heart attacks.  It’s important to know the signs and to focus on heart health for all, especially women since it’s often a silent killer …

By Susan Merrill The first day of school at my house ran the gamut from, “I am so excited to go back to school!” to “My stomach hurts. I don’t want to go to school.” In other words, there were years my kids couldn’t wait to go back, and there were other years when the dread they felt made my heart …

By Alex Anderson, Senior Associate Pastor at Bayside Community Church I believe the reason God uses me is because I don’t know of anyone who needs God’s help and love more than I do. There are times I feel helpless and useless. I cannot depend solely upon my abilities nor upon my strength. So because of my weakness, I reach out …