Harvard Women's Health Watch articles from October 2006

Harvard Women's Health Watch archives from October 2006

On becoming a breast cancer survivor.
October 1, 2006... Getting through treatment is only the beginning. The impact of breast cancer is as individual as the women who survive it. It can be an arduous though temporary challenge or an experience so transformative that it divides existence into two...

Progressive supranuclear palsy.
October 1, 2006... "Why do we have an aunt who is so scared of falling backwards?" -- writer Julio Cortázar In his short story "Uncle in Trouble," the Argentinean writer Julio Cortázar describes how a family accommodates an aunt who sits and...

In Brief; Rising BMI increases reflux, even in normal-weight women.(body mass index)
October 1, 2006... Women who put on a few pounds, even if their body mass index (BMI) remains normal, may be at increased risk for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), according to a study conducted at the Harvard Medical School and Boston University School of...

Gynecology news; New study suggests alternative to stirrups for pelvic exams.
October 1, 2006... No matter how many pelvic examinations a woman has had, she's not ever likely to feel at ease about being asked to perch her unclothed hips at the edge of the exam table and place her feet up in metal stirrups. This indelicate position -- known...

In Brief; Black women may be more vulnerable to insulin resistance.
October 1, 2006... African American women of normal weight are at greater risk for insulin resistance than their white or Hispanic counterparts, according to data presented by Wake Forest University School of Medicine researchers at an Endocrine Society meeting...

By the way, doctor; Is the smell of cigarettes the same as secondhand smoke?
October 1, 2006... Q. A family friend just started smoking again. He doesn't smoke while my young daughter and I are there, but his house is saturated with the smell. Is this secondhand smoke? Should I be concerned? A. Secondhand smoke is defined as the...

By the way, doctor; Are self-tanning sprays and lotions safe?
October 1, 2006... Q. I'd like to keep the tanned look I got during summer vacation. Are self-tanning lotions and sprays a good idea? Are they safe to use? A. When you sunbathe, the sun's ultraviolet (UV) rays cause the skin to increase its production of a...