HEALTH
BY MARESSA BROWN
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Y ou're enjoying a w in te r getaw ay in Key W est w hen
u h - o h
— la st n ig h t’s b u rrito
g ran d e com es back to h a u n t you. G rab y o u r sm a rt phone and fire up iT ria g e , a fre e
a p p lic a tio n th a t u se s a p h o n e ’s G PS sig n a l to g e n e ra te a lis t o f n e a rb y p h y sic ia n s,
p h a rm a c ie s , u rg e n t-c a re c lin ic s, a n d h o s p ita ls . T he app, w hich w as developed by
tw o E.R. d o c to rs, also com es w ith a com prehensive sym ptom checker an d later th is y ear
w ill include a p re re g istra tio n fea tu re th a t can a le rt a h o sp ital y o u ’re com ing. D ow nload
iT riage at
i t r i a g e h e a l t h
.
c o m / g e t - m o b i l e .
Go
fish for gum h e alth
You’ve already brushed and flossed today, but have you eaten
your salmon? It m ight reduce your risk of periodontitis,
an inflam m atory gum disease th at strikes up to 46 percent
of wom en over 30. The evidence: Researchers at Harvard and
Boston universities followed nearly 9,200 adults for five years
and found that volunteers who consumed moderate amounts of
omega-3 fatty acids—roughly the amount found in one or two
weekly servings of fatty fish—were 23-30 percent less likely to
have periodontitis than people who ate less fish. Study author
Asghar Naqvi, M.D., a clinical nutrition specialist at Harvard
Medical School, says omega-3s may help by quelling inflammation.
An associate clinical professor of
dermatology at The Mount Sinai
School of Medicine in New York,
Dr. Waldorf is also director of Laser
and Cosmetic Dermatology at Mount
Sinai Medical Center and has a
private practice in Nanuet, New York.
L ip
se rv ice
Q :
I ’v e b e e n s u ffe rin g w it h c ra c k e d , fla k y lip s a ll w in te r . I a p p ly lip b a lm
fre q u e n tly , b u t it o n ly h e lp s fo r a lit t le w h ile . W h a t else c a n I try ?
A : W hile you’re sm a rt to slick on lip balm d u rin g th e day, it’s also im p o rta n t to
p am p er y o u r pucker at night. T h a t’s because lips can chap severely w hile you sleep,
especially if a stu ffy nose forces you to b reath e th ro u g h y o u r m o u th . At b edtim e,
I suggest applying plain p etro leu m jelly o r a th ick o in tm en t co n tain in g m in eral oil or
glycerin. T hese in g red ien ts seal in lip s’ n a tu ra l m o istu re even w hen you a re n ’t able to
reapply o ften . (G ood p ro d u ct choices include Bag Balm and A quaphor, b o th available
at d ru g sto res.) For d aytim e w ear, it’s fine to use a lig h ter lip balm o r m o istu rizin g
lipstick. But you m ight w an t to avoid flavored form ulas, w hich can induce you to lick
y o u r lips unknow ingly and ex acerbate chapping. Also, lip balm s th a t co n tain a high
co n cen tratio n o f m enthol o r cam p h o r— o ften to u te d for th e ir "co o lin g ” p ro p e rtie s—
can irrita te severely chapped lips. If chapping p ersists, see a d erm ato lo g ist to rule out
a m ore serio u s skin condition such as y east overgrow th.
Have a question about how to improve your health? E-mail us at
B H G f e a t u r e s @ m e r e d i t h . c o m .
We’ll select one question every issue and ask our health advisory panel to answer it.
BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS | MARCH
2011
| BHG.COM
P H O T O : (IP H O N E ) M ARTY B A L D W IN
