“Stress includes a big, fat layer of interpretation,” says Alka Gupta, MD, codirector of the Integrative Health and Wellbeing program at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York City. “It’s really less about the so-called stressful event itself and more about your response, which arises from how you’re wired, what you’ve experienced in the past, and the strategies you’ve cultivated to cope with stressful situations,” she explains. On the broadest level, stress arises when events leave us feeling overwhelmed and out of control....

Giving your diet a makeover isn’t just something to do for better overall health. In fact, following a heart-healthy diet as part of your heart disease treatment plan after angioplasty can lessen the chance that you’ll have a future cardiac problem, like a heart attack, by as much as 73 percent. Eating specific heart-healthy foods can help by reducing your cholesterol, lowering your blood pressure, and getting or keeping your body weight within a healthy range....

Below, we’ve asked a leading dermatologist, a wound care specialist, and a breast surgeon to share their skin-care tips. Read on to learn more about this important part of thriving after surgery. Let Your Body Heal To protect your skin post-surgery, make it a goal to avoid any lifting, pushing, and pulling for several weeks, says Donna Hart, MD, a dermatologist in Austin, Texas, who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer herself....

First things first: Anyone with chest pressure, an abnormal heartbeat, or shortness of breath MUST see his or her doctor immediately to rule out serious heart conditions that can cause these symptoms, including arrhythmias, valve disease, coronary artery disease, and pericarditis. If this workup is negative, your doctor should then examine your lungs. If both heart and lung tests are negative, there is a chance that a gastrointestinal disorder is causing your symptoms....

In the high-stress, busy world we live in, the easiest answer to “What’s for dinner?” can often be quite an unhealthy one. Making positive diet changes can be intimidating, especially if your cooking skills are limited. One potential answer to successfully making these dietary changes are meal kits, which send customers pre-portioned ingredients, along with detailed cooking instructions, every week. Meal kit options have proliferated in recent years, offering meals designed for a number of dietary restrictions, including vegetarian, vegan, low-carb, keto, and paleo....

— Michelle, Texas What you describe is suggestive of Raynaud’s phenomenon, a condition in which the arteries of the hands and feet react abnormally to cold exposure by narrowing and causing color changes, pain, and tingling. Women are more frequently affected than men. What is unusual about your description is that your daughter’s condition seems to have started in the toes. Raynaud’s usually starts in the fingers and hands and may affect the toes later....

This private practice in my town is run by a husband-and-wife team who have three young children. They like to take the occasional holiday together (which no one would begrudge a family), so to keep the doors open for patients, they use the services of a locum tenens — Latin for “placeholder,” which in the medical profession is often shortened to “locum,” and meaning “replacement doc.” I think of the locum like a chef de tournant, or relief chef, in my former career....

Here are some of the more common complications of a concussion. The severity of headaches can vary from tension headaches to full-blown migraines. If symptoms of a concussion persist past the time your healthcare provider said they should go away, speak to your doctor. Post-Traumatic Vertigo Post-traumatic vertigo is the dizziness that follows a head or neck injury such as a concussion. There are several types of post-traumatic vertigo. The first is called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV)....

Problem is: Is this really you? With filters on social media like Instagram and Snapchat, flattering lighting, perfect poses, and editing apps that can make you look like a thinner version of yourself (with perfect skin, to boot), we’ve entered into the era of selfie perfection. But, some experts say, all this social media flawlessness is seeping from our phones and invading our real lives. More people are thinking: I want to look like that — and going to great lengths to get there....

“In psoriasis, there are microscopic little collections of pus cells, but in generalized pustular psoriasis (GPP), which is a very abrupt and severe flare, people get the psoriasis all over their body and those little microscopic pus cells get so large they are visible with the naked eye,” says Steven Feldman, MD, PhD, a dermatologist who specializes in psoriasis at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. In contrast to GPP, a related condition called localized pustular psoriasis causes rashes and pustules confined to one area of the body....

Most people infected with herpes don’t even know it. They don’t know because the infection often has no symptoms, very mild symptoms, or symptoms that mimic other health or skin problems. But the infection can cause small, painful sores to form on the genitals, thighs, or buttocks. If sores do arise, they typically go away within two to three weeks, but the virus stays in the body for life. “Lots and lots of people live normal, healthy lives with herpes, with some small degree of attention to protecting their partners during outbreaks,” says I....

What Is Olive Oil and What Is Its History? Historically, olive oil has been used in religious ceremonies and medicine, and it has become an important ingredient in food for many cultures. How Olive Oil Is Made Avocado Oil Because avocados are mostly made up of MUFAs, avocado oil is the most similar to olive oil nutritionally. It contains 1.6 g of saturated fat, 9.9 g of MUFAs, and 1.9 g of PUFA....

While the motor cortex is the part of the brain that controls movement, the basal ganglia provide input so that voluntary movements are done at the right speed. Thus, damage to or degeneration of the basal ganglia results in abnormal movement and movement disorders such as parkinsonism. Dopamine deficiency is why all parkinsonisms can exhibit symptoms of tremors (shaking), bradykinesia (slow movement), rigidity (stiffness), and postural instability (poor balance) — no matter what the diagnosis is....

RA is an autoimmune condition, in which your immune system mistakes the linings of your joints as “foreign” and attacks and damages them, resulting in inflammation and pain. If you’re experiencing RA symptoms, it’s crucial to get diagnosed as soon as possible so that you can receive prompt treatment. Learn More About Rheumatoid Arthritis Signs and Symptoms Researchers don’t know exactly what causes the immune system to invade the synovium, but it’s believed that genes and environmental factors play a role in the development of RA....

The goal, according to experts, is to not feel overwhelmed by that stress. (That’s because overwhelming chronic stress can have debilitating effects on the body.) To not be so overwhelmed by stress, mental health expert Heidi Hanna, PhD, a member of the Everyday Health Wellness Advisory Board, helped Everyday Health come up with this test to help you identify the patterns you tend to follow when life’s challenges show up — and help you learn the stress management tools that best suit you....

But for some, cold weather can be just as problematic. No one knows this better than Barbara Appelbaum, a 59-year-old semiretired motivational speaker and wellness coach who spent much of her life enduring the unforgiving winters of Chicago. She now relocates to the California desert during the most frigid months of the year. Appelbaum felt certain symptoms of her MS appear or worsen on “bitterly cold” days. “I would get increased fatigue and also experience occasional shooting pains, primarily in my feet,” she says....

Heart failure (sometimes called congestive heart failure) can’t be cured. However, treatment, along with early diagnosis, can improve quality and length of life for people who have the condition, per the CDC. Treatment can also help improve symptoms of heart failure, which include shortness of breath, weight gain or swelling in the feet, legs, ankles, or abdomen, and fatigue, notes the American Heart Association (AHA). RELATED: How to Live Longer With Congestive Heart Failure “Heart failure [treatment] is generally divided between people who have an ejection fraction less or more than 40 percent,” said J....

That’s the premise of Whole30, a 30-day program created in 2009 by Melissa Hartwig Urban and Dallas Hartwig that challenges you to eat only whole, unprocessed foods. (1) Those foods include meat, seafood, eggs, fruit, veggies, and natural fats and seasonings. On Whole30, there’s no counting calories or macronutrients, nor do you have to measure food portions. But there is an elimination of big food groups, including grains, legumes, dairy, added sugar, alcohol, and desserts....

Some sexual problems related to MS are direct effects of the disease, such as reduced vaginal lubrication or erectile dysfunction due to neurological impairment. But MS can also indirectly lead to many sexual problems, such as reduced sexual desire due to fatigue, logistical issues related to limited mobility, or changes in whether you view yourself as sexually desirable. Certain sexual problems can and should be addressed in partnership with your neurologist or primary care doctor....

Out of nowhere, she got hit with what seemed to be a bad flu. She had a low-grade fever, extreme fatigue, and a flushed face that looked like sunburn. And she couldn’t kick it. The year was 2002, and the mystery symptoms turned out not to be a virus. Diagnosis: ‘It Took a Long Time to Realize This Was My Life’ One week of illness turned into two, and Hester began to feel worse....