Sarasota Edition

By Alex Anderson, Senior Associate Pastor at Bayside Community Church  – A few days ago, I took several days to rest and pray alone at a friend’s beach house on Anna Maria Island. It was beautiful and serene. It was just what I needed. On one of the days there, I went over to Hurricane Henri’s to have lunch. I …

By Ms. Diana Dyer, MSN, CNM, ARNP – The holiday season is a beautiful time of giving, sharing, and spending time with friends and family. We celebrate with so many functions, places, and ultimately, with many opportunities to share food and drink. Most of us simply surrender and say that we will deal with our “diet”, our “weight problem” after …

By Terry Hoskins, Director of Oasis Counsel – So what is Christmas about anyway daddy? My 2 &1/2 year old son, Luke, is now almost old enough to ask such questions. He is beginning to understand that Christmas has something to do with getting gifts. He gets excited when we talk about Christmas and he connects Christmas to the idea …

You’re going about your normal day, when suddenly you feel your heart skip a beat. You may even feel a little dizzy. What is going on? Is it life threatening? How do you know if it is or not? What is causing this? For Nadine Thomas, it was just another day at work when these same thoughts crossed her mind. …

By Gary M. Bunch, MD, F.A.C.S. – Chances are, right now you would like to (or need to) lose some weight, build some muscle and get in better shape, or maybe you just want to live a better, healthier lifestyle. Dr. Bunch of Bradenton Surgical Group will challenge the way you think about slimming down and shaping up, by introducing …

By Robert J. Ycaza, MD – Once considered a pure psychological derangement resulting only from a patient’s imagination; the validity of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) as a disease entity has increasingly gained acceptance among clinicians. The fundamental problem seems to be how/why the pain is being processed in the brain rather than tissue damage or inflammation at the sites where the …

By Sean A. Castellucci, D.O. – After being diagnosed with prostate cancer a wide variety of treatment options may be available depending on your specific stage and degree of cancer. These options can be confusing for even the most educated of patients. Advice comes from a lot of different sources including your doctor, friends and family, reports in the news, …

By Dwight Fitch, MD  – While many questions in life are debatable, some things, like the link between nutrition and cancer or the pure awesomeness of The Incredible Hulk (who is reportedly a HUGE broccoli fan) can’t be argued. To understand the link, one must first understand what cancer is. It is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the …

By Tai-Hyung Kwon, Ph.D. – A recent study at the Einstein College of Medicine, Yeshiva University in Bronx showed that dancing reduced the risk of dementia, a brain disorder that includes Alzheimer’s disease affecting 6 to 7 million Americans over the age of 60. The result of the research led by Dr. Joseph Verghese, assistant professor of neurology, was reported …

By Alyssa Parker – What does limb swelling have to do with your lymphatic system? The lymphatic system serves as one of the body’s main highways throughout its network of vessels and ducts, for body fluid entering into the blood stream. Before this body fluid also referred to as lymph fluid can enter the blood stream the lymphatic system works as …