Breaking News

Lifestyles

TO YOUR GOOD HEALTH: Meds to help you sleep can be risky for some

DEAR DR. ROACH: I have occasional difficulty when going to sleep and/or getting back to sleep. I have tried Ambien, trazodone, clonazepam and Lunesta. All have their pros and cons. My question regards sleep quality. I know there are several stages of sleep that we should go through and that the brain cleans out junk during sleep. Do these sleep aids still allow a person to go through the needed sleep stages and also allow the brain to clean itself? Are any of these meds better or worse than the others for occasional use? — S.H. ANSWER: How much time we spend in the different ...

TO YOUR GOOD HEALTH: Access to records shouldn’t be difficult

DEAR DR. ROACH: I’ve decided that it’s time for me to find a new primary care doctor. My biggest concern is access to my medical records. I currently have access to a patient portal to request doctor appointments or prescription renewals and review test results. Since the healthcare providers in my area use different portals, I need to know if I’ll have access to my past records. More importantly, will my new physician have access to my CAT scans, doctor’s notes, and other information that I’m not privy to through the patient portal? In the past, I know I could request that ...

Bridge by Steve Becker

Deception plays a prominent role in bridge, just as it does in most other competitive endeavors. But while a declarer can practice deception with virtual impunity, the defenders run the risk of misleading their partners. Nevertheless, there are occasions when a defender can judge that the only one who can fall victim to his ruse is the declarer. Here is a typical case. West led the king of hearts, and East, sizing up the defense’s prospects, saw that West could take two heart tricks, and that he himself had a sure trump trick. It was also clear that South had to have all three ...

Arranging cut flowers for everyone to enjoy

Ohio summers can be full of beauty. The blue skies, green trees and grass, and a multitude of flowers and shrubs can give all of us elevated creative thoughts and transform our mood into joyfulness. Flowers provide fabulous color varieties to add to the party. So why not bring some of ...

Learn about the pawpaw tree

Every Monday through Aug. 11, Ohio State University Extension will sponsor the Veggies and More Tour, visiting local community gardens throughout the area. Open to all, these tours provide helpful gardening information, answer questions and create opportunities to connect with fellow gardeners ...