(HealthDay News) — Coughing serves an important purpose — to help you expel mucus, microbes and other foreign particles from your respiratory tract. This helps protect the lungs from infection and inflammation, Harvard Medical School says. A cough becomes chronic if it lingers for at least three to eight weeks,Continue Reading
TUESDAY, Oct. 23, 2018 (HealthDay News) — With flu season imminent, U.S. health officials urge everyone 6 months and older to get a flu shot. Already, one unvaccinated child in Florida has died from flu, the officials warned. Not many cases have been reported so far, so it’s too soonContinue Reading
THURSDAY, Oct. 11, 2018 (HealthDay News) — School is in full swing, and with it comes a plethora of colds passed back and forth among kids. But parents who want to alleviate a sick child’s misery would do best to avoid over-the-counter cough and cold remedies. Decongestants should not beContinue Reading
WEDNESDAY, Oct. 10, 2018 (HealthDay News) — Your Mom told you not to do it, and new research confirms that nose-picking isn’t healthy for you or those around you. In a study involving 40 adults, British researchers found that the bacteria behind potentially lethal pneumonia could be spread by pickingContinue Reading
(HealthDay News) — Croup tends to occur between 3 months and 5 years of age, the American Academy of Pediatrics says. Most common in autumn and winter, it causes swelling of the voice box and windpipe. This leads to a bark-like cough. Most instances of croup resolve on their own,Continue Reading
SATURDAY, April 21, 2018 (HealthDay News) — If you have asthma, it may help to reduce your exposure to allergens. Previous research has shown that roughly two-thirds of all people with asthma also have an allergy, allergy experts say. “What many people don’t realize is that the same things thatContinue Reading
THURSDAY, March 22, 2018 (HealthDay News) — Suffering a nasty bout of the flu or pneumonia is bad enough, but now research suggests it might also spell trouble for your heart. In a study of nearly 2,000 people in Scotland, those who had battled the flu or pneumonia were sixContinue Reading
FRIDAY, March 2, 2018 (HealthDay News) — The brutal flu season continues to ease its grip on the United States, with the latest government data showing that doctor visits are still dropping and less severe strains of the flu are starting to account for more infections. But hospitalizations for fluContinue Reading
(HealthDay News) — Vaccination is the best way to prevent whooping cough, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. Whooping cough (pertussis) is a very contagious disease that causes about half its victims aged 1 or younger to end up in the hospital, the agency says. The CDC offersContinue Reading
FRIDAY, Feb. 16, 2018 (HealthDay News) — While this flu season is still one of the worst seen in years, the first signs that infection rates are starting to level off were reported by U.S. health officials on Friday. As of Feb. 10, a total of 43 states continued toContinue Reading
(HealthDay News) — A persistent cough may transmit an illness and keep you up at night, but there are things you can do to help tame your discomfort, the U.S. National Library of Medicine says. A cough may be triggered by conditions including asthma, allergy, the common cold, a lungContinue Reading
FRIDAY, Feb. 2, 2018 (HealthDay News) — The United States is in the grip of a tough flu season, no doubt. It might seem as if every other person you know has fallen prey to influenza. Actually, though, health experts say this flu season is pretty much on par withContinue Reading
TUESDAY, Jan. 23, 2018 (HealthDay News) — Smokers often think their habit won’t have health consequences until far into the future, a small survey suggests. Researchers found that compared with nonsmokers, those who smoke generally believe that any health problems — from yellow teeth to lung cancer — would strikeContinue Reading
TUESDAY, Jan. 16, 2018 (HealthDay News) — Holding your nose and closing your mouth when you feel a sneeze coming on just might lead to serious trouble. The journal BMJ Case Reports includes the story of a 34-year-old man who ruptured his throat after he pinched his nose and clampedContinue Reading