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WEDNESDAY, Sept. 27, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Hot flashes and night sweats top the list of bothersome symptoms for women going through menopause. Now, a new study suggests that hot flashes, especially during sleep, may be more than a nuisance: They may foreshadow Alzheimer's disease.And the more hot flashes a woman experiences during sleep, the greater her risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease, the most common type of dementia.“Women with nighttime hot flashes should see them as a wake-up call to do what they can to take care of their health,” said study author Rebecca Thurston, director of the Women's Biobehavioral Health Laboratory at the University of Pittsburgh. “[This includes] adequate sleep, diet, physical activity, moderating alcohol use, treatment of any [high blood...

MONDAY, Sept. 25, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Many older adults are savvy about telephone scams, but a sizable minority remain vulnerable, a new study suggests.Researchers found that when they simulated a "government impersonation" scam -- contacting seniors and pretending to be federal employees -- over two-thirds knew how to handle the situation: They ignored it.The rest, however, "engaged" with the "scammer." They either called an 800 number sent to them by mail or email, or answered a call from the fictional government agency the researchers devised.In some cases, those seniors still maintained a healthy dose of skepticism and did not give away personal information.Some others, though, were not so guarded: Over 16% either did not question the legitimacy of the phony agency, confirmed...

TUESDAY, Sept. 19, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Patients with Parkinson’s disease already face poorer mental and physical health, but now a new study shows they also suffer from decreased levels of hope and self-esteem due to the stigma associated with their disease. “There are patients who don't even disclose the disease to family members because they're afraid that the children may change their opinion of them or start making plans to put them in a nursing home or take over their finances or freedom to some degree,” said Dr. Alessandro Di Rocco, a professor of neurology at the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell in Hempstead, N.Y.The study found that when most people think of Parkinson’s, they imagine older white men who are drooling, shaking and hunched over. This...

TUESDAY, Sept. 19, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Millions of Americans suffer from arthritis, and many reach for medication to ease their joint pain and inflammation.The options might seem overwhelming, though. Here, the Arthritis Foundation offers some suggestions for meds that can be purchased at a local drug store or filled with a doctor’s prescription, whether your pain is caused by normal wear and tear (osteoarthritis) or inflammatory disease.Over-the-counter medsSome of the best over-the-counter (OTC) medications for controlling arthritis pain are acetaminophen, ibuprofen, naproxen and acetylsalicyclic acid (aspirin), better known by brand names like Tylenol, Advil, Motrin, Aleve or Anacin.Ibuprofen, naproxen and aspirin are nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).While those...