Tausi Insider

Photo : Alphonsine Sabine ( Shutterstock ) Having friends and family over for the holidays is stressful enough as it is, but if any of your guests have food allergies, you may be especially worried. If you’re not sure if anyone in your party has allergies, this is a great time to stop reading and send out a friendly message (individually, or via BCC so no one feels put on the spot) and ask. And if you get a yes back? Here’s what to know and do, according to Dr. Jeanne Lomas, a board certified allergist and the Director of Allergy & Immunology at WellNow Urgent Care . Make your ingredients clear As Lomas noted, there are so-called “hidden” allergy triggers that the average cook may not realize are triggers at all, like dairy and eggs, not to mention all the different kinds of nuts. Think about how much dairy or eggs you’re using in what you’re serving, from pies to cookies to mashed potatoes or mac and cheese—it’s a lot, I’m sure. Moreover, “many of these [dishes] are homemade...

Photo : Ground Picture ( Shutterstock ) This year’s flu season is shaping up to be especially bad, with the current weekly number of cases at extraordinarily high levels. Meanwhile, doctors are seeing a surge in respiratory syncytial virus , more commonly known as RSV, which generally causes mild, cold-like symptoms in adults, but can be especially dangerous for very young children and the elderly. This RSV surge has already led to an unusually high number of hospitalizations , mostly in young children. These surges in flu and RSV infections are happening at an earlier time of the year, and at higher levels than is typical. There are a lot of unknowns about why flu and RSV are at unusually high levels. However, one thing is for certain: “Just because we wore masks all this time, it didn’t mean that we hurt our immune system,” said Raywat Deonandan , an epidemiologist at the University of Ottawa. “Your immune system is not like a muscle, where if you don’t use it, you lose it.” If...

Photo : Olesia Bilkei ( Shutterstock ) Kids never seem to want to dress appropriately for any occasion—or at least mine don’t. They want to wear pajamas to school, halloween costumes to bed, and summer clothes when it’s snowing out. So we say what we need to say to get them to put their hats on, right? “You’ll catch your death of cold!” But can you really catch a cold from cold weather? Colds are caused by viruses, so no. But can cold weather make you more susceptible to those viruses? Well, that’s a little more complicated. But probably still no. Colds are caused by viruses Colds are infectious diseases caused by germs—specifically viruses. So, no, chilly weather cannot cause a cold all by itself. There is more than one virus that can cause a cold, though. A “cold” is just a word we use to describe a group of symptoms that occur with common respiratory viruses: sore throat, runny nose, coughing, sneezing. According to the CDC , some of the viruses that cause colds include: rhin...

Photo : Image Point Fr ( Shutterstock ) One of the most important things to know when choosing a method of birth control is how well it works. That’s especially important in a country where childbirth is expensive , maternal mortality is shockingly high , and our options for abortion are limited and shrinking . No contraceptive method is perfect, of course. A birth control method’s effectiveness is measured in two ways. One is the “perfect use” rate, which reflects the chances of having a baby when you do everything right every single time: you never miss a pill or forget to use a condom, for example. Everything works as designed. These calculations often reflect very low failure rates. But then there is the “typical use” statistic, which gives the failure rate that people actually experience in the real world when attempting to use that method. This includes all the variables that perfect use doesn’t capture. Maybe you forget to use it or don’t bother to use it consistently; or m...

Photo : SKatzenberger ( Shutterstock ) You may have heard of people—elderly folks in particular—getting a heart attack from shoveling snow. But what’ s so dangerous about shoveling? And is everybody at risk, or is this pretty rare? Here’s what you should know. Snow shoveling is hard exercise The connection between shoveling and cardiac events is real. The American Heart Association cites several studies that found higher rates of heart attacks and sudden cardiac deaths after snowstorms. Shoveling is hard work, and it can cause your blood pressure and heart rate to rise far higher than levels that are considered safe for sedentary people with heart conditions. Cold temperatures also seem to make chest pain more likely, possibly because your arteries can constrict in the cold. Who should check with a doctor before shoveling? You may have heard the advice to check with a doctor before beginning an exercise program. We have more information on that here : most people don’t need ...

Photo : Stickler ( Shutterstock ) Anyone who lives with allergies knows how deeply unpleasant they can be, knocking you out with a range of symptoms affecting you from head-to-toe. Dogs feel our pain, too, and can be allergic to a number of the same things we are. But if humans can be allergic to dogs (or, more accurately, their dander), can they be allergic to us? Here’s what to know. Can dogs be allergic to people? Like humans, dogs can be allergic to certain foods, skin irritants, and medications, as well as environmental allergens, like pollen, dust miles, mold, and animal dander, according to the American Kennel Club (AKC). And yes , this includes human dander . Is this new? Even if you’ve had dogs your entire life, this may be the first you’re hearing about the possibility that they can be allergic to people . And Dr. Valerie Fadok , an AKC veterinarian specializing in dermatology, says there are good reasons for that. G/O Media may get a commission First, she says, testin...

Photo : RomarioIen ( Shutterstock ) You never can quite trust that a fresh raspberry isn’t hiding an essence of mold before you bite into it, but a recent recall should give you pause about the frozen variety as well.   Exportadora Copramar Ltda., a processing and shipping company from Chile, is voluntarily recalling more than a thousand cases of James Farm frozen raspberries   due to the potential the fruits are contaminated with Hepatitis A—that’s according to a report from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). FDA tests detected the presence of the contagious liver disease-causing virus in the fruits. A bout of Hepatitis A can last anywhere from a few weeks to months, and generally produced symptoms within 15 to 50 days of exposure. S ymptoms include fatigue, abdominal pain, jaundice, abnormal liver tests, dark urine and pale stool. In rare cases, those with a pre-existing severe illness or who are immunocompromised and contract Hepatitis A progress to liver f...

Illustration : Sam Woolley Breaking wind. Cutting the cheese. Thunder from down under. I could go on, but whatever you call it , farting is a part of life. Farting is usually caused either by swallowing air , which has to get come out somehow, or by bacteria in your guts releasing gas during the digestive process. Everything animal (human or otherwise) farts, but how you fart can actually tell you something about your health. “Passing gas is normal,” said Eamonn Quigley , a gastroenterologist at Houston Methodist Hospital . “Everyone passes flatulence on a daily basis. We pass more after meals, and we even pass through the night.” But what do your farts mean, and what might they be trying to tell you? For starters, “when a patient complains of excessive gas, one of the first things we look at is the patient’s diet,” Quigley said . Bloating doesn’t mean more gas   One important thing to understand about farting is that “there is a big distinction between flatulence and bloating,” a...

Photo : Ground Picture ( Shutterstock ) You know when you are checking out at a department or drug store during the holiday season and you see those big, pre-made gift baskets filled with lotion and fuzzy socks? Those are fine. I usually get, like, two or three of those as gifts every year, and I have no real issue with fuzzy socks. But if you’re trying to buy a relaxing gift for someone who is always on the very edge of a breakdown (cough), you can do better. Here are a dozen gifts designed to help them relax, all of them more unique and less tacky than yet another pair of seasonal socks. https://www.tausiinsider.com/12-of-the-best-gifts-for-someone-who-just-needs-to-relax/?feed_id=328992&_unique_id=642aa31e8fc17

Photo : Roman Zaiets ( Shutterstock ) LASIK eye surgery is known for being a quick, convenient medical procedure—and sometimes it is. The surgery only takes a few minutes, and can correct your vision immediately so that you no longer need glasses or contacts. But not everybody gets that best-case outcome, and the FDA wants potential patients to know about the risks and side effects. What are the potential complications of LASIK surgery? LASIK surgery is done to reshape the cornea of the eye, the clear dome over your pupil. The surgery involves cutting a flap in the cornea, removing tissue with a laser, and replacing the flap. In the process, nerves are damaged and need to heal. Most patients can see clearly within a day or two of the surgery, but healing takes longer. The most common issue in the early days is dry eyes; 85% of patients still have dry eyes a week later. Dry eyes can cause blurry vision and pain, but eyedrops help. If the nerves that were cut don’t heal properly, sy...