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TO YOUR GOOD HEALTH: Cardiac patient’s thirst runs rampant

DEAR DR. ROACH: I’m 74 years old, and I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure with a recent ejection fraction of 25%. My cardiologist has me taking empagliflozin (Jardiance) and furosemide (Lasix) daily. With moderate cardio exercise therapy every other day and two diuretics daily, my thirst runs rampant during the evenings, and I find myself drinking fluids to compensate. Am I nullifying the intended purpose of the diuretics? — D.P. ANSWER: The main purpose of diuretics is to remove excess salt and water from the body. However, we all need some salt and water, so the ...

Bats: Our furry, flying mammals

Attending The Ohio State University’s lecture on “Ohio’s Bats-the Master Class,” with Todd and Ann Cartner, I realized how much I did not know about them. One important reason we should embrace bats in our community is pest control. Evening and night consumption of insects by bats is ...

Webworms feed on over 600 species of trees, shrubs

This time of year we begin seeing them — the webs of worms in trees, encompassing a group of leaves and causing damage (or at least concern) regarding tree health. While many patches of these webworms cause alarm, they don’t damage trees enough this time of year to cause significant concern. Fall webworms begin as a snow white moth (some with black or brown spots) that mates, then lays masses of yellow eggs on the underside of leaves. The hairs from the female protect them, as these hairy caterpillars grow into dark, hairy 2-inch caterpillars. Some have black and some have orange ...

Valley Grows Calendar

Here are upcoming gardening events through the Ohio State University Extension Office. For more information and a complete list, contact: • OSU Mahoning County Extension Office, 490 S. Broad St., Canfield. 330-533-5538. Office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. • OSU Trumbull County Extension Office, 520 W. Main St. Suite 1, Cortland. 330-638-6783. Office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Plant and Pest Clinic You can submit your questions by calling the Mahoning County office at 330-533-5538 or emailing us at mahoningclinic@osu.edu. ...

DEAR ANNIE: On this Labor Day, leave worries for tomorrow

Dear Readers: Wishing you all a very happy Labor Day. The expectation of this holiday is to take the day off, put our feet up and enjoy the last stretch of summer. How many of you are actually able to take the time to reset and rest today? We say we are going to relax, and then we answer a few emails. We clean the kitchen. We run to the grocery store. We start thinking about everything that needs to happen in September. Before we know it, our day off has turned into another day of checking things off a list. Maybe this Labor Day, we can try something different. Ralph Waldo Emerson ...