photo from kusine

The thyroid gland is one of the most important in our bodies. It controls almost every organ and when not working properly can cause hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism. Problems with the thyroid gland can lead to heart disease, infertility,kidney disease, liver disease, osteoporosis and other health problems.

There is a strong link between thyroid disease and autoimmune diseases like diabetes, arthritis, lupus, etc. If you or your family members have been diagnosed with any autoimmune disease be sure to talk to your doctor about getting your thyroid checked. One of the most common forms of thyroid disease and of autoimmune disease is Hashimoto’s Disease.

Here’s a link to an assessment tool for your thyroid health. This will give you more information on your risks for thyroid disease and information on the different types of thyroid disease.

If you feel a lump on your neck, have trouble swallowing or breathing, feel hoarse or feel pain in your throat tell your doctor right away. These are some of the symptoms of thyroid cancer.

Get the information that is available to you and speak to your doctor about having your thyroid testing done.

Some of you know that I’m a native New Yorker. Not the upstate New York, the real NYC, New York. I was born and raised in the Bronx. I know very little about the outdoors. I don’t even like being outside (well unless it’s the beach, or Disney World). I’m used to city things like the subway, sidewalks, cabs that you can hail, parallel parking, etc.

Imagine my surprise when I learned about hunting blinds. I’ve never heard of them, didn’t know what they were or what they’re used for. When I first saw the words I thought they were window blinds.

Now I understand that they are used when hunting to hide in. They’re like huts in a way, in a city girl’s way. Finding ones that are made of quality material is important because when you hunt you’re outside in the elements. Maybe this New Yorker can learn some more about the big bad outdoors.

Blood donors are always needed but January is a very difficult month to keep up with the blood supply needed. So January has been named National Blood Donor Month. With the holidays, the cold weather and sometimes dangerous conditions, and an increase in illnesses like the flu, colds, pneumonia, etc. December through January blood donations are down.

This is not only a local problem but a national one too. If you donate blood regularly try to do so more often this month. If you donate once in a while, make this month your “while”. If you’ve never donated before, contact your local Blood Bank to see if you qualify and then go ahead and start donating!

From the American Association of Blood Banks:

Every day in our country, approximately 39,000 units of blood are required in hospitals and emergency treatment facilities for patients with cancer and other diseases, for organ transplant recipients, and to help save the lives of accident victims. Our goal is to help ensure that blood is available to patients whenever and wherever it is needed because it is the blood on the shelves that helps saves lives.

Please use this search to locate a Blood Bank near you.

Time is really flying by too fast. I can’t believe that it’s 2008. I’m still making mistakes and writing 2007! I went shopping recently and saw the Valentine’s Day display up. My goodness, that’s coming up in a few weeks.

I am not prepared as usual. Hubby and I don’t go overboard on Valentine’s Day gifts but like to do something small for our daughters and for each other. We’re trying to stretch our money as usual so finding a site that offers coupons is helpful.

For our daughters I was thinking of giving them a photo I took of them together. I found a site that has Snapfish deals so I can have the photo printed. I can even have one sent to Lady Ali from Snapfish so there’s no need for me to get the photo from them and then send it again.

There’s not many romantic things that Hubby would like so I think I’ll look for something that he collects instead. His sports collection hasn’t had any new additions in a while. I found some MLB.com discount coupons. This will work perfectly.

photo by gr8phul1

January is National Birth Defects Prevention Month. There are many birth defects that can be prevented now. Education is the key. Women who are planning a pregnancy can take advantage of a preconception visit to their Gynecologist, Obstetrician or Primary Doctor.

Here’s a list of some of the things that women can do preconception to help keep themselves and their baby healthy:

• Have regular checkups while attempting to get pregnant
• If a woman has a chronic medical condition such as Diabetes, Lupus, etc. attempt to control the condition, learn what medications are safe to continue taking while attempting to conceive and while pregnant, and see your doctor right away if there are any complications
• Stop smoking, drinking alcohol and using illicit drugs
• Check if vitamins or herbal supplements are safe to continue to take
• Begin taking mulitivitamins including Folic Acid (please check with your doctor to get the correct dosage)
• Avoid dangerous environmental and occupational exposure
• Maintain a healthy diet

As soon as a woman learns that she is pregnant, seek prenatal care. Don’t wait! If this pregnancy wasn’t planned it is very important to get started on the mulitvitamins with folic acid and get a checkup.

Knowing that woman can help prevent some birth defects is a powerful tool in giving power to women during their pregnancy. Being educated on all aspects of the pregnancy may help women who have not maintained a healthy lifestyle do so now.

Please visit the March of Dimes website for more information on preconception and prenatal care.

Having numerous problems with my eyes and my vision including Myasthenia Gravis and Sjogren’s Syndrome, my Opthamologist has his work cut out for him. He not only has to concern himself with my eyes being dry, putting plugs into my tear ducts, checking my eye pressure (due to medication I’m on that can cause glaucoma), checking for serious eye issues due to the chronic illnesses I have, he also has to make decisions about my need for glasses.

It’s difficult to determine my correct vision because my eyes are so dry. He tries to save me money by having me purchase over the counter reading glasses because he doesn’t want me to have to change lenses if he’s wrong about my vision or if my vision changes when my eyes have more moisture.

I’m going to see my Opthamologist tomorrow. It’s a regular checkup but I’ve been having some serious problems seeing. I’m going to tell him about this great discovery: $ 8 Zenni Optical Rx Eyeglassess. This way if I need to keep changing lenses it won’t be a problem.