Work parties, family gatherings, cookie exchanges … this time of year finds us with full calendars and lots of reasons to celebrate. For many people, that means drinking alcohol. But for those who abstain because of health, pregnancy or personal preference, it’s still possible to enjoy fun, special beverages. Mocktails are like cocktails but without…
About 20 percent of adults have varicose veins, and most everyone has a spider vein or two. While you may not like the way they look, these bluish, lumpy intrusions are usually harmless. However, for some people, they can be painful and dangerous. We talked to UNC Medical Center vascular specialist William Marston, MD, and…
Breast milk provides optimal nutrition for infants, giving them the vitamins, protein and fat they need to grow. Some studies suggest that breastfeeding may even reduce the risk of certain allergic diseases, asthma and obesity in babies, as well as type 2 diabetes in moms. But for minority moms and babies, breastfeeding can pose unique…
There isn’t an area of life that cancer doesn’t touch, and fertility is no exception. This reality can add a difficult and even heartbreaking dimension to an already stressful experience, but if you’re a woman with cancer, you have options. We spoke with Jennifer Mersereau, MD, director of the Fertility Preservation Program at UNC, about…
Being a new mom can be stressful. On top of caring for your newborn, you need to heal physically and emotionally from pregnancy and labor. Sometimes you need medication to feel better. But for women who breastfeed, how do you know which medications are safe for your baby? We talked to UNC maternal-fetal medicine expert…
UNC urologist and professor Matt Coward, MD, sees patients to restore fertility after vasectomy, either because of a change of heart, or more commonly because of an unexpected life event that has caused a man to want more children. Vasectomy reversal is the most common approach. “Men who get vasectomies generally want a permanent solution,”…
Each year, about 500,000 men in the U.S. choose to get vasectomies. That’s largely because a vasectomy is the easiest and most effective way to permanently prevent unwanted pregnancies, according to UNC urologist Matt Coward, MD, director of male reproductive medicine and surgery at UNC Fertility. But how do they work? Do they hurt? Are…
Trying to squeeze a workout into a busy schedule can feel impossible. It’s just one more thing on an already hectic to-do list. It’s easy to come up with a perfectly reasonable explanation for why you just can’t fit in fitness. For women, there are often extra hurdles, whether it’s a new baby, lack of…
Between work, relationships, family responsibilities and trying to have a social life, many women lead busy lives that don’t leave much room for slowing down—least of all having to deal with urinary tract infections. But UTIs can stop you in your tracks, not only because of more frequent urination but because they can hurt. They…
It’s perfectly normal for teenagers to sometimes be upset, disillusioned or just plain angry. The teen years are difficult for many—that’s not a newsflash. But at what point should teenage behavior cause concerns that there’s a mental health problem, perhaps even a serious one like psychosis? Psychosis is a brain disorder characterized by hallucinations, delusions…
Adolescents, Children's Health, Families, Kids and Mental Health, Psychiatry
If you’ve ever felt a fiery sensation behind your breastbone or tasted something like battery acid in the back of your throat, then you might have had acid reflux, also commonly known as heartburn. You’re certainly not alone. In the United States, about 1 in 5 people have gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD, which is…
If you’ve ever wondered what kind of birth control your female gynecologist uses, wonder no more: It’s likely to be an IUD. That’s according to Jessica Morse, MD, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology and family planning physician with UNC Family Planning. “Among family planning physicians, the hormonal IUD is certainly the top choice,”…
