Thunderstorm asthma: Bad weather, allergies, and asthma attacks

It’s an old line: everyone complains about the weather but no one is doing anything about it. But if you’re a person with bad allergies or asthma, stormy weather can be more than an annoyance; it can be a serious threat to your health. “Thunderstorm asthma” was first reported in the 1980s in England and […]

Weight stigma: As harmful as obesity itself?

Weight stigma, as defined in a recent BioMed Central article, is the “social rejection and devaluation that accrues to those who do not comply with prevailing social norms of adequate body weight and shape.” Put simply, weight stigma is a form of discrimination based on a person’s body weight. The authors of this article assert […]

Period equity: What it is and why it matters

It’s happened to so many people who menstruate: you’re going about your life until you realize that you just got your period. The ungainly scramble to find a restroom and the fervent prayer that you packed a menstrual product leaves you feeling anxious, vulnerable, and exposed. This is compounded by the fact that our society […]

Younger adults with kidney disease struggle with health disparities

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects an estimated 37 million people in the United States. Often, it begins and progresses silently, causing no obvious symptoms until kidney function is severely impaired. During early stages, up to nine in 10 people aren’t aware that they have it. If kidney disease is caught early and treated properly, serious […]

Numb from the news? Understanding why and what to do may help

In the spring of 2020, the pandemic catapulted many of us into shock and fear — our lives upended, our routines unmoored. Great uncertainty at the onset evolved into hope that, a year later, a semblance of normalcy might return. Yet not only do people continue to face uncertainty, but many of us have also […]