The past few weeks have been challenging for our country and for our citizens. Last week's protest in Washington began as peaceful but devolved into violence within the walls of our nation's Capitol. This occurred while the legislatures were meeting to accept the Electoral College results ...
Dear Annie: I have a beautiful daughter in her mid-20s. She is attractive, bright, friendly and hardworking. She has so much going for her. She does have a peculiar bad habit: She picks her nose in public. It’s not just a quick pick when no one is looking. This is a thorough deep cleaning ...
BY KEITH ROACH, M.D. DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a 70-year-old active female in good health, with the exception of a heart murmur and mitral valve prolapse with two leaks. My cardiologist has advised me that I will most likely need to have the valve replaced. I have been seeing him every six months ...
The Mega Millions jackpot drawing for Jan. 15 has soared to US$750 million and counting. This makes it the second largest pot in Mega Millions history — surpassed only by the $1.537 billion winning ticket in October 2018 — and the fifth largest lotto jackpot ever in the U.S. In the ...
Patriots enlist and defend their country. They work hard, do their best, raise good families. They help their neighbors. They perform civic duties. They grit their teeth and pay their taxes. Then they show up and vote. They compete, they win or lose, but they do both with grace. These are ...
Dear Annie: I am a 36-year-old man living with my father. I also have autism, and because of this, I have had difficulty in dating women. For a few years, I was on the dating website called I Love Your Accent (I had been on 10 other sites prior to that), which matches American and British ...
DEAR DR. ROACH: We have friends who got the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine believing it will help with exposure to COVID-19. What are your thoughts on their thinking? — P.H. ANSWER: The World Health Organization has reported an increase in measles deaths since 2016, and that trend has ...
The raging coronavirus pandemic, along with political turbulence and uncertainty, have overwhelmed many of us. From almost the start of 2020, people have been faced with bleak prospects as illness, death, isolation and job losses became unwelcome parts of our reality. On Jan. 6, many of us ...
It has been clear for a while that, at least in the U.S., the only way out of the coronavirus pandemic will be through vaccination. The rapid deployment of coronavirus vaccines is underway, but how many people need to be vaccinated in order to control this pandemic? I am a computational ...
Dear Annie: There are three sisters in my family. Two of us are childless. Our other sister now has seven grandchildren. Every Christmas and birthday, my other childless sister and I send a check to each grandniece and grandnephew. We never expect any gifts in return, but it would be nice to ...
DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a 72-year-old female with MGUS. I was just diagnosed with an ulcer, Barrett’s esophagus, GERD and a hiatal hernia of 8 cm. My surgeon has put me on high-dose Prilosec and Carafate before bed. My oncologist has given the OK for surgery for the hernia, but friends have ...
Donald Trump was the president of Twitter. What radio was to Franklin Delano Roosevelt and TV was to Ronald Reagan, communicating 280 characters at a time on a social media platform that is a watchword for hyperactive inanity was to President Trump. It is symbolically appropriate that the ...
Acts of violence against a marriage partner have never saved a marriage. Violent acts toward family members have never made a family happier. Typically, they create emotional and sometimes physical wounds that are never forgotten. Too many families have suffered because someone in the family ...
Dear Annie: I am an attractive and well-educated divorced woman. Recently, a man whom I dated several years ago contacted me. We are both 70. Our reunion was great. We have been getting along very well and communicating daily ever since. We live across the country from each other. He invited me ...
BY KEITH ROACH, M.D. DEAR DR. ROACH: I’m 64 and thin, on no medications and had my bloodwork done. Cholesterol showed 226 total, HDL 77, triglycerides 79, LDL 131, glucose 94. My blood pressure is usually about 90/60, and I have never smoked. My doctor wants me to go on a statin, which I ...
When die-hard Trump supporters are able to storm the U.S. Capitol and forcefully occupy offices in the House and the Senate, questions over security are going to be asked. I am an academic criminologist who in an earlier life served as a senior policy adviser at the Department of Homeland ...
Dear Annie: My youngest daughter, “Marta,” is beautiful and caring but intellectually challenged. I have always encouraged all my kids to do what makes them happy, and she is no different. A couple of years ago, she met a wonderful man through mutual friends, “Brian.” After dating for ...
BY KEITH ROACH, M.D. DEAR DR. ROACH: I would like to know how to treat arthritis. I have been using Voltaren per my doctor’s orders, but it does not seem to be helping much. I have also been taking ibuprofen, but I am afraid of stomach bleeding. The arthritis is in my wrists and thumb. I ...
Business owners and their employees have worked hard to protect their customers and their communities during the COVID-19 pandemic, and I want to thank all of those who have prioritized health and safety despite the hardship of the past several months. COVID-19 spreads most easily and ...
Dear Annie: About six months ago, my boyfriend, “Jordan,” relocated to another state for work. We’ve talked about my eventually moving there, too, so we could be together, but we’ve held off making firm plans. He says he needs more time to settle in to life there. He also says he wants ...