covid vaccine

MMR Vaccine May Protect Against COVID-19

With all the excitement and hope surrounding the rollout of the coronavirus vaccines, our concierge doctors want to highlight other vaccines that could also prove to be lifesavers. Particularly in the case of childhood vaccinations, we have seen a significant reduction in the numbers of children receiving routine immunizations.

And we are not alone. In one of the more troubling results of the pandemic, experts across the country saw a marked decline in children being vaccinated. According to a report released this month by the Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, nearly nine million children have received fewer vaccinations than normal. There is a 26 percent decline from last year. This is partly due to the restrictions put in place to combat COVID-19. But, it’s also due to a growing resistance by some parents toward vaccines in general.

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chocolate good for you

Check Out Chocolate for Your Health

Let’s face it—this has been a lousy year. We’ve either lost or postponed so many of our normal pleasures, it’s no wonder that we’re feeling deprived. But our concierge doctors have a prescription that can help cheer you up: chocolate.

And ‘tis the season for it, after all. Not to mention that, as we’ll explain below, it can be healthier than eggnog, frosted cookies and cakes, and all the other sugarplums we’re inclined to consume this time of year.

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wearing a mask

CDC: Masks Protect Wearer, Too

As Florida closes in on the unenviable milestone of nearly a million confirmed cases of COVID-19, our concierge doctors wanted to share a bit of good news. We’ve mentioned before how critical it is to wear face masks in public to help keep others from becoming infected. People can be contagious for up to two weeks before they begin to show symptoms, which accounts for the rapid spread of the disease.

Now a new scientific briefing from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirms what researchers had long suspected: Masks protect the wearer as much as those around them. The revised guidance, released late last month, cites several studies. These show masks reduce the risk of contracting the virus by up to 79 percent.

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smoking and covid-19

Smoking and COVID-19: What You Need to Know

The annual Great American Smokeout is set for this week, November 19. So our concierge doctors thought this would be a good time to look into what we know about the combined effects of smoking and COVID-19.

This is especially important because there has been some confusing information on the effects of cigarette smoking on the disease, with some early reports even suggesting that cigarette smokers who contract COVID-19 actually fare better than non-smokers. Subsequent studies have found the opposite: that smoking increases the risk that the virus causes more damage in smokers.

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safely celebrate holidays

How to Celebrate the Holidays Safely

As we head into the holidays, our concierge doctors are concerned that pandemic fatigue might tempt people to throw caution to the winds and just celebrate, starting with Thanksgiving.

The fact is, we’re all fed up with the “new normal.” People want more than anything to return to the way our lives were before this scourge attacked the world early this year. Pandemic fatigue is not only real, it’s totally understandable.

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flu shot twindemic

Flu Shots Can Help Avert a ‘Twindemic’

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends all adults and children older than six months receive a flu shot by the end of this month. The CDC says it takes at least two weeks for the vaccine to become effective. Then it won’t reach its peak effectiveness until another week after that. And children who are being vaccinated for the first time need two vaccines spaced a month apart to become fully protected.

Therefore, our concierge doctors suggest you get your flu shot for the 2020-21 influenza season as soon as possible. While there have been scattered reports of shortages around the country, The Washington Post recently reported a record number of flu vaccine doses—between 194 million and 198 million—have been ordered. Because the vaccine is shipped in stages, more is on the way.

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overcome chronic conditions

Healthy Habits Can Conquer Chronic Medical Conditions

We’ve heard a great deal lately about how those with chronic conditions—diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity—are more likely to become sicker when exposed to the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19. Even leaving aside the coronavirus, many individuals have thought that having multiple chronic medical conditions such as those or others (cancer, asthma, coronary artery disease, and so forth) doomed them to a premature death.

But our concierge doctors have recently come across some good news for those people. It turns out that healthy lifestyle habits can overcome multiple types of chronic conditions and help extend your life.

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coronavirus symptoms

One More Reason to Avoid COVID-19 Infection

“I feel like an old person; I’m only 46,” a bank examiner from Brooklyn, told the New York Post recently. “I don’t wish this on my worst enemy.” She contracted the virus March 23, and still experiences body aches, hot flashes, arthritis and her hair has been falling out in clumps.

As some people toss around phrases like “herd immunity” (the notion that the virus should spread through the population to eventually produce a general immunity) and blithely attend “covid parties” hoping to achieve the same effect, our concierge doctors thought we’d explore one of the lesser-known risks involved in that type of thinking.

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Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Is a Real Disease

The condition known as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) has been getting more attention recently due to its possible association with the novel coronavirus. This is because a number of COVID-19 survivors have been experiencing long-lasting effects that appear similar to those of CFS.

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