Yale University Press Health & Wellness

When it comes time to provide care for those who once cared for us, where can we turn? This book offers practical guidance for a broad range of caregiving situations when family caregivers assume their new role. My Parent's Keeper ... · Uses the latest research and draws on case histories and interviews. · Is a resource as well as a source of inspiration, with a blend of powerful stories and practical advice. · Helps caregivers cope with numerous challenges, including parents who need but refuse help; siblings who don't get along; the complexity of healthcare systems; financial issues; juggling work and caregiving; the use of technology; the power of connecting with a loved one who has dementia; and realizing the benefits amid the burdens of caregiving.

"An interactive and empowering book" to help African American men and women create a new vision of better health and navigate the health care system (BET.com). According to the federal Office of Minority Health, African Americans "are affected by serious diseases and health conditions at far greater rates than other Americans." In fact, African Americans suffer an estimated 85,000 excess deaths every year from diseases we know how to prevent: heart disease, stroke, cancer, high blood pressure, and diabetes. In this important and accessible book, Dr. Michelle Gourdine provides African Americans with the knowledge and guidance they need to take charge of their wellbeing. Reclaiming Our Health begins with an overview of the primary health concerns facing African Americans and explains who is at greatest risk of illness. Expanding on her career and life experiences as an African American physician, Dr. Gourdine presents key insights into the ways African American culture shapes health choices-how beliefs, traditions, and values can influence eating choices, exercise habits, and even the decision to seek medical attention. She translates extensive research into practical information and presents readers with concrete steps for achieving a healthier lifestyle, as well as strategies for navigating the health-care system. This interactive guide with illustrations is a vital resource for every African American on how to live a healthier and more empowered life, and an indispensable handbook for health-care providers, policy makers, and others working to close the health gap among people of color. Says Gourdine, "I wrote this book to empower our community to solve our own health problems and save our own lives."

For anyone who is approaching a 65th birthday with trepidation, Dr. Eric Pfeiffer, who for thirty years has cared for-and learned from-elderly people, addresses with compassion and deep understanding the multitude of issues that arise. He writes authoritatively but in a conversational tone. His advice is easy to read, easy to follow, and full of wisdom. In short, practical chapters, Dr. Pfeiffer advises on choosing an ideal place to live, finding a range of satisfying activities, and maintaining an active social life. He also explains how best to maintain one's health, mental health, wealth, and independence. Other chapters explore the importance of a spiritual life and the value of maintaining an active sexual life. In addition, the author speaks to the value of charitable giving and describes how it is possible to prepare for a good good-bye to life. Filled with illustrative anecdotes and enhanced with a lovely selection of poems, this reassuring book demonstrates how it is possible to direct and control the aging experience. For every person approaching retirement years, and for their friends and families, the book is an excellent resource and a practical guide.

More than 70 million Americans have some form of heart disease. For each of them, obtaining accurate information about the disease and the many options for dealing with it can be both empowering and life saving. In this book, cardiologist Dr. Barry L. Zaret and Genell Subak-Sharpe offer up-to-date facts about the best treatments available and an innovative approach that shows how treatment programs can be tailored to meet the needs of each unique patient. There are no short-term fixes and no one-size-fitsall programs, explain Zaret and Subak-Sharpe. Although certain characteristics are common to each form of heart disease and its treatments,these constants must be tempered against individual variables. The authors outline the constants for the full range of cardiovascular conditions, from angina and heart attacks to high blood pressure and cardiac arrhythmias. They then guide readers through the process of assessing personal variables to develop an individual treatment and life-style program. Written in a warmly reassuring style, this indispensable guide to heart care offers realistic hope and specific directions for designing a lifelong heart care program. Filled with practical advice, instructional case histories, a philosophy for controlling your health, self-tests to assess risk, and questions to ask your doctor, it looks toward an even better future for those with heart disease.

A top expert reveals his insights into Meibomian gland dysfunction, a ubiquitous, misunderstood disease that leads to Dry Eye syndrome In Reversing Dry Eye Syndrome (Yale University Press 2007), ophthalmologist Steven Maskin introduced readers to Dry Eye syndrome, explaining what the syndrome is, why it occurs, and how it can best be managed and treated. In Your Dry Eye Mystery Solved, he reveals his recent discoveries and treatments for Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), an underlying disease that leads to Dry Eye syndrome and involves blockage of the oil-producing tear glands within the eyelids. Not only are these glands key to clear vision and comfortable eyes, but when disrupted they can cause severe pain and a host of related symptoms.