Best foods to eat for better night sleep
Having trouble sleeping? These snooze-inducing snacks can help you escape a slumber slump: Popcorn Eating a heavy meal within two hours of bedtime can keep you awake, but light-and-airy popcorn makes a great late-night snack. Popcorn contains carbohydrates that help send the amino acid tryptophan to your brain, where it is used to make serotonin — a sleep-inducing... READ MORE
Mexican zucchini soup is great for summer
Years ago, my idea of home cooking was purchasing mainly processed foods and serving them along with salads and fruits, thinking I was cooking healthy for my family. Now I know that wasn’t the case. With some detective work, I discovered that I had many food allergies and sensitivities, which led me to master allergy-friendly cooking. I’m happy to say that a year after taking my... READ MORE
Food banks face spike in demand
Longtime volunteers for the Capital Area Food Bank were accustomed to working long hours packing boxes with fresh fruit and vegetables in a Northeast D.C. warehouse. What kept them coming back was the camaraderie and satisfaction of helping others. But in March, when the pandemic hit, some volunteers suddenly found themselves in need of food themselves. “I’m so sorry to have to... READ MORE
Groups are open to discussing mortality
Panic attacks, trouble breathing, relapses that have sent her to bed for 14 hours at a time: At 35, Marissa Oliver has been forced to deal with the specter of death on COVID-19’s terms. Yet conversations about her illness, fear and anxiety haven’t been easy. That’s why she headed onto Zoom to attend a “Death Café” — a gathering of strangers willing to explore mortality and... READ MORE
Seeking those testing positive for COVID-19
So far in Maryland, more than 70,000 people have tested positive for COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. If you have tested positive and are 40 or over — whether you are currently ill or have recovered but still test positive — researchers need your help for a study. This summer, researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine are studying whether a... READ MORE
Strawberry-rhubarb crisp for any season
Around this time every year, as fresh rhubarb’s season is coming to an end, we start to anticipate going months without half of our favorite fruit-dessert filling. But with this crisp — which works with both fresh and frozen rhubarb — we can get that bright, tart, floral combination any time of the year. Even better, the recipe is literally easier than pie. Making a crisp... READ MORE
Better, gentler cancer drugs are helping
Doctors are reporting success with newer drugs that control certain types of cancer better, reduce the risk it will come back, and make treatment simpler and easier to bear. Gentler drugs would be a relief to patients like Jenn Carroll, a 57-year-old human resources director from New Hartford, Connecticut, who had traditional IV chemotherapy after lung cancer surgery in 2018. “It... READ MORE
Ways to lower stress, boost whole grains
Q: The coronavirus outbreak has raised my stress level. I am worried that anxiety is making me more susceptible to infection. What can I do now to feel calmer? A: The stress response is also known as “the fight or flight” reaction. It’s what the body does as it prepares to confront or avoid danger. When appropriately invoked, the stress response helps us rise to many... READ MORE
Can you cocoon with friends or family?
Q. Is it safe to form a COVID-19 “support bubble” with friends? A. Yes, if done correctly. Support bubbles, also known as quarantine pods, may help fend off loneliness and anxiety after months of social distancing. The idea, which originated in New Zealand, calls for two people or households to agree to socialize in person only with each other in order to limit the risk of... READ MORE
Ending rebound headaches from meds
Rebound headaches, also known as medication overuse headaches, are caused by the frequent or excessive use of pain-relieving and/or anti-migraine drugs to treat headache attacks that are already in progress. (Note that these are not the same as oral prophylactic or preventive headache medicines, which should be taken daily.) In other words, the same medications that initially... READ MORE