Do as I say ...

... clearly, not as I do ..
Silly me. I was hit hard with a cold this week. Did I stay home in a timely fashion? No.
Like so many of us I pressed through the sneezing, sniffling and coughing. FOR WHAT?
Yes, we were shorthanded - I felt it was my duty. But you know, I really should have bowed out on Wednesday afternoon. By Thursday it was clear I should keep my germs to myself. And that's the point. If you're blowing through tissues at record clip - time to stay home, nurse that cold and prevent others from catching what you've got. Moreover, you'll get better, faster.
We all need to be reminded of that - even health reporters.

That all said .. there are a couple of health tidbits I want to share:

SLEEP APNEA : those diagnosed with this disorder run a higher risk of elevated blood pressure and heart disease.
Surgical treatment called uvulopalatopharyngoplasty can effectively treat the apnea in a third of patients. For the rest, the procedure can reduce the pressure needed in those C-Pap machines, often prescribed to keep the air flowing to patients during sleep. The findings were reported at the annual meeting of the American College of Chest Physicians - it still has to be reviewed in medical journals. But it's interesting and worth discussing with your doctor if you suffer abstructive sleep apnea.

CONTINUING CANCER RISK/CERVICAL DYSPLASIA;
A report out of Sweden finds women remain at risk for cervical or vaginal cancer for some 25 years or more after treatment for precancerous lesions. The take home is: women treated for high-grade dysplasia need to be screened beyond age 60.
Some 2.5 million women were studied. The full report is reported online in BMJ.