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Diabetes can affect sexual function by impairing desire, arousal, and pleasure. Poor glycemic control can cause hormonal imbalances, nerve and blood vessel damage, and inflammation, directly impacting sexual health. People with diabetes often take certain medications for other conditions that may affect sexual function. This article details how diabetes may impact your sex life. What Is the Connection Between Diabetes and Sex? Sexual problems such as erectile dysfunction (ED) and vaginal dryness often coexist with diabetes....

If you are undergoing cancer treatment or are simply interested in preventing the disease, you might be wondering whether eating organic food protects against cancer. The short answer is that yes, eating organic food could improve your chances of remaining cancer free—but it can’t guarantee it. There are many variables at play that determine whether someone develops the disease. Organic vs. Non-Organic Foods Conventionally grown and processed foods including, fruits, vegetables, grains, livestock, and packaged items (e....

What Is Elidel? Elidel (pimecrolimus) is a prescription drug applied to the skin as a cream to treat eczema (atopic dermatitis) in people who haven’t responded well to other therapies. Elidel is a type of drug known as a calcineurin inhibitor, which works by decreasing the inflammation that causes the red, irritated, and itchy skin of eczema. Specifically, these drugs help reduce inflammation caused by a specific type of immune cells called T cells, thereby decreasing eczema symptoms....

First aid is the immediate care a sick or injured person gets. In some cases, it may be the only care a person needs. In others, first aid is a way to prevent a person’s condition from worsening and keep them alive until paramedics arrive or they are taken to the hospital. The best way to prepare for these events is to get official first aid training. In the meantime, there are some basic life-saving steps that you can learn....

Hepatitis B (sometimes referred to as hep B) is a liver infection caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV). It typically causes symptoms like stomach pain, dark urine, fatigue, fever, jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes), diarrhea, vomiting, and clay-colored stools. In rare cases, hepatitis B can lead to life-threatening complications like liver failure, liver cancer, or cirrhosis (liver scarring). The hepatitis B vaccine is a shot, typically injected into the arm, that protects against hepatitis B in babies, children, and adults....

Mesothelioma represents a serious cancer associated with prior asbestos exposure. If you have symptoms such as trouble catching your breath, coughing, or a wheeze that will not go away, you may be dealing with a very common complication of lung disease—pleural effusion, or fluid around the lung. When you come to your healthcare provider with these symptoms, they will want to perform some tests to better understand what is causing them....

Research shows that a plant-based diet can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes. Prediabetes is a precursor to type 2 diabetes. According to the Center for Disease Control, approximately 88 million American adults—more than 1 in 3—have prediabetes, and more than 84% don’t know they have it. What comes to mind when someone tells you that you should eat more plants? Do you envision boring, drab green, boiled broccoli or munching on sticks and twigs?...

The diagnosis of urinary tract infections (UTIs) typically involves analysis of a urine sample, and in some cases, imaging tests may be used. Every year, UTIs account for as many as 8.1 million visits to healthcare providers. These infections can cause a great deal of pain and discomfort, and seeking a diagnosis is the first step in finding relief and preventing potentially serious complications, such as permanent kidney damage. At-Home Testing A number of over-the-counter products may help you test for a UTI on your own....

We don’t know the exact causes of kidney cancer, but there are several risk factors that increase the chance of developing the disease. Kidney cancer is more common in males, smokers, and people who are obese, have been exposed to certain chemicals at work, or have medical conditions such as high blood pressure. Your risk of kidney cancer is also higher if you have a family history of the disease or if you’ve inherited certain genetic syndromes....

During a loop electrosurgical excision procedure (LEEP), cervical tissue is removed using a thin wire loop heated by electricity. You might need a LEEP to evaluate and treat precancerous cells on your cervix that are found during a screening Pap smear or colposcopy. A LEEP procedure is safe, fast, and can be performed in your healthcare provider’s office. Follow-up and continued monitoring is key to ensuring that the abnormal cells do not return and progress to cervical cancer....

Leptomeningeal metastases are a relatively uncommon but serious complication of cancers such as breast cancer, lung cancer, and melanoma. Most often seen in advanced cancers, leptomeningeal disease is increasing in incidence as people are living longer with advanced cancer. Leptomeningeal disease may also be referred to as carcinomatous meningitis or neoplastic meningitis. Most often with this complication, people have multiple neurological symptoms including visual changes, speech problems, weakness or numbness of one side of the body, loss of balance, confusion, or seizures....

A lipase test is a blood test that measures the protein lipase. Lipase is an enzyme made by the pancreas that aids in the digestion and absorption of fat. It is natural for a low amount of lipase to circulate in the blood, but higher levels may be a sign of pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas) or some other type of pancreatic disease. This article will discuss the lipase test, including its purpose, how it is performed, and the interpretation of results....

Smoking—cigarettes, cigars, pipes, marijuana, and even electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes—can have a harmful effect on your entire body, but especially on your respiratory system. This includes your airways, lungs, certain blood vessels, and the muscles that power your lungs. Cigarette smoking, for example, is responsible for nearly 90% of all lung cancer deaths and 80% of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes things like emphysema and chronic bronchitis. These can be life-threatening conditions that make it difficult to breathe....

What Is Luzu? Luzu (luliconazole) is a topical prescription medication used to treat various fungal infections on the skin, such as jock itch, ringworm, and athlete’s foot in adults and children 2 and older. Luzu is available via prescription as a topical cream (medication you apply to your skin) and belongs to a class of medications called azole antifungals. For context, azole antifungals are medications used to inhibit the growth of a wide range of fungi, including fungal nail infections and vaginal candidiasis (yeast infections)....

What Is Mirapex ER? Mirapex ER (pramipexole) is a prescription drug commonly used to treat the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s disease is a nervous system disorder affecting movement. Your body makes a chemical called dopamine, which the nervous system uses to communicate between cells. When there is little or no dopamine, the nerves cannot send or receive signals correctly. Pramipexole is a dopamine agonist. It helps the nerve cells to communicate with each other....

If you experience soreness and discomfort in your knees, you’re not alone. Annually, about 18 million people visit a healthcare provider to treat their knee pain. It can hamper daily activities like exercise, climbing stairs, and household chores. For many, this pain stems from osteoarthritis, a chronic, degenerative condition that causes joint inflammation due to the gradual breakdown of knee cartilage. It’s the most common form of arthritis, and is said to impact about 30% of the population....

Many of the medications used to kill cancer also fog our minds and numb the nerves that send information to our brain. It’s not always easy to tell friend from foe. Is a particular symptom due to cancer, or the drugs fighting that cancer? Or is it due to something else entirely? There are a number of different ways that chemotherapeutic agents can damage the nervous system. What follows is far from exhaustive, but gives an overview of some of the ways chemotherapy can damage the nervous system....

Oral cancer is a type of head and neck cancer that develops when abnormal cells within the lining of the cheeks, gums, roof of the mouth, tongue, or lips grow uncontrollably. Often times, oropharyngeal cancer—that affects the soft palate, side and back walls of the throat, back third of the tongue, and the tonsils—is lumped under this term, too. Tobacco and alcohol use are the major risk factors for the disease, but there are others, including infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV)....

Prickly heat is a skin rash that occurs when sweat is trapped in the skin. Normally, sweat travels to the skin’s surface through a series of small ducts. But these ducts can become clogged and trap sweat inside the skin. This process leads to redness, itching, stinging, or prickling sensations in the affected skin area, and small blisters. Prickly heat is also called heat rash and miliaria. Hot weather and high humidity are common triggers of prickly heat rash....

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a type of inflammatory arthritis that develops in people who have psoriasis. PsA may affect many joints, including the knees. Psoriasis is a chronic, autoimmune skin disorder that causes skin cells to build up and form plaques—dry, itchy patches of skin. Both PsA and psoriasis—together called psoriatic disease—are chronic, long-term diseases, which means you will have them for the rest of your life. There are no studies on the frequency of PsA in the knees....