Can GERD Cause an Elevated Resting Heart Rate?
You have GERD and you’ve been experiencing an elevated heart rate without exertion.
Could there be a connection?
The elevated heart rate may occur while you’re at your computer, watching TV, texting or while lying in bed at night or in the morning.
It would be nice to know that the GERD is causing the elevated heart rate rather than a problem with your heart such as a rhythm disorder. (more…)
Can Garlic Make IBS Worse?
It’s bad news for garlic fans who’ve been diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome. (more…)
Can Gallbladder Problems Cause Leg Pain?
Some people with gallbladder disease wonder if their new-onset leg pain may be connected to the gallbladder issue.
Other issues that involve the abdominal area, such as irritable bowel syndrome and ovarian cancer, can cause leg pain. But can ailments with the gallbladder? (more…)
Can Acid Reflux Cause a Tickling Feeling in the Chest?
Do you sometimes feel a tickling feeling in your chest and hope that this is from acid reflux rather than a heart problem?
Does this odd sensation make you imagine a feather is waving around under your breastbone somewhere? (more…)
How Long Do Normal Moles Take to Develop?
To anyone with “molechondria,” the question of how long it takes for a normal mole to develop is often on their mind.
One-third of melanoma cases arise from pre-existing moles. Of course, any new mole can trigger anxiety, especially in people over 40. (more…)
New Raised Mole Among Flat Moles: Red Flag for Melanoma ?
A red flag for melanoma is if you have a new mole that doesn’t look like your other moles, and if it’s a raised mole and all of your other moles are flat, this isn’t as worrisome as you may think.
“Melanoma can be raised or flat, so just the fact that a mole is raised doesn’t necessarily mean it is dangerous,” begins Caroline A. Chang, MD, a board certified dermatologist and founder of the Rhode Island Dermatology Institute.
But that can still be scary: one raised mole and all the others are flat.
Depending on its location, a raised mole will be subject to frequent irritation from clothes, and this can sometimes make it bleed.
But the frequent rubbing upon it by clothing and the resultant irritation (which can make a brown mole appear somewhat reddish) have nothing to do with melanoma.
New Mole on the Block
“The newness of a mole is more significant than the specific quality,” says Dr. Chang.
“A new mole that is changing over the course of three to six months is concerning.”
This means see a dermatologist, even if you’re young.
However, a new mole in people over 50 needs to be examined, even if it isn’t changing.
Dr. Chang practices general and cosmetic dermatology, and has particular expertise in melanoma and the use of dermoscopy for mole monitoring.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Shutterstock/Africa Studio
Cause of Dark Mole Appearing Overnight During Pregnancy
If you’re pregnant and notice a dark mole seemingly appear overnight, this could be a melanoma, but it could also be one of several types of benign tumors.
“Pregnancy is a state of immune suppression; therefore, pregnant women are slightly more susceptible to developing melanoma,” says Caroline A. Chang, MD, a board certified dermatologist and founder of the Rhode Island Dermatology Institute.
Vigilant Skin Exams Are Crucial During Pregnancy
During pregnancy you should examine your skin from head to toe once a month, and have someone inspect difficult-to-view areas.
“If a dark mole appears overnight during pregnancy then it warrants a visit to the dermatologist,” says Dr. Chang.
“Other causes of spots that mimic melanoma appearing on the skin overnight would be seborrheic keratoses, blood blister, angioma.”
“Make sure to see a dermatologist to properly diagnose and treat the new spot,” advises Dr. Chang.
Also keep in mind that the dark “mole” may have been there all along and you just had never noticed it before.
If a dark spot that resembles a mole appears overnight, it can also be what dermatologists call a hemorrhage. pregnant
This is a glorified term for a tiny scab. You may have no memory of the little trauma that caused the focal bleeding. dark mole
These tiny brown spots (dried blood) can appear anywhere, and they stick good to the skin until they’re ready to fall off (when the skin beneath is healed).
If one of these dark spots is located on your back, it will be impossible to view it close enough to tell that it’s a scab.
Rubbing it with a fingertip will not necessarily cause it to fall off if it’s not ready to fall off naturally.
So don’t let its stubbornness make you think it might be a melanoma.
DO NOT PICK AT ANY NEW DARK SPOT ON YOUR SKIN.
Dr. Chang practices general and cosmetic dermatology, and has particular expertise in melanoma and the use of dermoscopy for mole monitoring.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Freepik.com
Can Angiomas Ever Lead to Melanoma?
“Melanoma may look similar to an angioma, especially an amelanotic melanoma which are usually quickly growing pink or red bumps,” says Caroline A. Chang, MD, a board certified dermatologist and founder of the Rhode Island Dermatology Institute.
Many people get angiomas, which usually begin appearing after age 40.
They can appear just about anywhere, and some people have them all over their backs, torso and arms.
These red spots on the skin can be tinier than the tip of a pin or half the size of a pencil eraser and anywhere in between. red dots on skin
Are you scared that one of your angiomas might become a melanoma?
For some individuals, this fear may be driven by the very term “angioma,” because “oma” is the suffix for cancer types.
However, “oma” does not mean cancer; it means mass. And a mass can be benign — as well as malignant. red dots on skin
“Angiomas are collections of blood vessels that grow under the skin,” says Dr. Chang.
“There are no melanoma or mole cells usually associated with an angioma.
“Therefore, in the plainest of terms, angiomas cannot ‘turn into’ melanoma.
“So if you develop a quickly growing bump, no matter what shape or color, make sure to have it checked out by a dermatologist.”
Though a melanoma may, by chance, begin developing very close to or within these concentrations of blood vessels, this still does not mean a cause and effect relationship; rather, think of it as a coincidence of real estate.
Dr. Chang practices general and cosmetic dermatology, and has particular expertise in melanoma and the use of dermoscopy for mole monitoring.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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Top image: Shutterstock/dba87
Why People Only 30 Lbs. Overweight Should Lose Weight Now
If you’re overweight even by 30 pounds and think you’re healthy due to normal blood work, you still should lose weight because down the road, your excess fat may catch up to you and cause health problems. (more…)
Slow Walkers with Heart Disease Hospitalized More Often
If you have heart disease you’d better pick up the pace with your walking if you want to avoid hospitalizations.
Slow walkers with heart disease are doomed to more frequent hospitalizations, says a study in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology (April 2018).
The Study
• 1,078 patients with high blood pressure.
• 85% had coronary heart disease.
• 15% had valve disease of the heart.
• Participants were asked to walk one kilometer (about a mile) on a treadmill at a speed that they perceived as medium intensity.
• Slow walking was 2.6 km/hour; medium was 3.9 km/hour; fast was 5.1 km/hour.
• 359 participants were slow walkers; 362 were intermediate; 357 were fast.
Patients were Followed for Three Years
And there were hospitalizations during those three years; the researchers recorded ALL of them, regardless of cause, and also length of hospital stay.
- The paper says that a slower walking speed is a marker of limited mobility.
- Limited mobility, in turn, is a forerunner of disease and disability.
The Findings
• Slow walkers: 182 had at least one hospitalization.
• Medium walkers: 160
• Fast: 110
Average Length of Hospital Stay
• 23 for slow walkers
• 14 for intermediate
• 9 for fast
Slow walkers had a 63 percent higher likelihood of hospitalization in three years.
Old or young, you should make a habit of walking briskly in day-to-day life.
Quite simply, the faster the person’s walking speed, the lower the risk for hospitalization — and — the shorter the hospital stay, says the research.
How to Become a Faster Walker
- Not just during walking sessions for exercise
- In everyday life — on the job, at the mall, even in the house
When I was a personal trainer I encouraged clients to walk with a perk in day-to-day life, as a permanent habit. So many people shuffle when they walk. This discourages the body from being efficient at ambulation.
WALK FAST!
Don’t let slow pokes ahead of you slow you down if there’s no room to walk past that person.
It’s perfectly okay to say “Pardon me” as you’re coming up behind them. Yes, there’ll always be a small percentage who mind this, but hey, it’s YOUR heart health, not theirs, that’s at stake here. But be polite; no need to be gruff.
Pick up your pace any chance you get, including the steps you take from your car at the gas tank to the doors of the gas station.
And of course, if you’ve been using a treadmill or doing walking for exercise outdoors, go faster.
But do not hold onto the treadmill, as this defeats the purpose of the exercise.
If you don’t have heart disease, same thing: Avoid slow walking. It’s just plain bad for the body.
Lorra Garrick is a former personal trainer certified through the American Council on Exercise. At Bally Total Fitness she trained women and men of all ages for fat loss, muscle building, fitness and improved health.
