Hearing that your heart is “weak” can be frightening. Many people immediately wonder whether the heart can recover, whether its pumping ability can improve, and what they can do to make it stronger. The good news is that a weakened heart can improve in many cases. The amount of recovery depends on why the heart … Read more
Your feet can sometimes provide early clues that your blood sugar has been running too high, especially when elevated glucose begins affecting the nerves and blood vessels. Burning, tingling, numbness, unusually dry skin, slow-healing cuts, or recurring foot infections should not be ignored. High blood sugar itself does not always cause an obvious change in … Read more
Your feet can sometimes reveal changes happening elsewhere in your body. One example is kidney disease, which may cause fluid to build up in the lower legs, ankles, and feet when the kidneys are no longer able to remove excess fluid and sodium effectively. However, swollen feet do not automatically mean you have a kidney … Read more
Your nails can sometimes provide clues about what is happening inside your body. While nail changes are not enough to diagnose a nutritional deficiency, certain changes—especially thin, brittle, or spoon-shaped nails—can occur with iron deficiency or iron-deficiency anemia. Iron is essential for making hemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout the … Read more
Your skin can sometimes reveal changes happening deeper inside the body. Because the liver plays an important role in processing bilirubin, regulating bile, making proteins involved in blood clotting, and handling many substances in the bloodstream, certain liver conditions can cause noticeable changes in the skin. Some of these changes may be easy to overlook. … Read more
Your feet can sometimes reveal important clues about diabetes, especially when blood sugar has been high for a long time. Symptoms such as persistent tingling, numbness, burning, unexplained foot pain, slow-healing sores, changes in skin color or temperature, and recurring infections can be associated with diabetes-related nerve or blood-vessel problems. However, having one of these … Read more
Vitamin B12 is a small but essential nutrient that plays a major role in red blood cell formation, DNA production, and the normal functioning of the nervous system. When your body does not get or absorb enough vitamin B12, the deficiency can gradually affect many parts of the body. One reason vitamin B12 deficiency can … Read more
Your nails may seem like a small cosmetic detail, but changes in their color, shape, texture, thickness, or growth can sometimes provide clues about what is happening in your body. Many nail changes are harmless and can result from injuries, frequent exposure to water, nail polish, manicures, or normal aging. However, some changes deserve medical … Read more
Lotus root, also known as Lotus stems, or Kamal kakdi, is a crunchy, mildly sweet vegetable that has been used in Asian cooking for centuries. Despite its name, it is not actually a conventional root—it is the edible underground rhizome of the lotus plant (Nelumbo nucifera). When sliced, lotus root has a distinctive pattern of … Read more
Bamboo shoots (also known as bamboo sprouts, bamboo flesh, or bamboo embryo) are a crisp, tender vegetable harvested from young bamboo plants. They are popular in many Asian cuisines and are increasingly being used in salads, stir-fries, soups, curries, pickles, and other dishes. What makes bamboo shoots interesting is their combination of low calories, dietary … Read more