A blog about Health & Wellness, News, and Kern County.
Real Name: Emily Hagedorn Member Since: April 08, 2006 Last Signed In: July 02, 2008 Profile Views: 9374 Blog Views: 43664 Is there anything good about mosquitoes? West Nile problems all over the country First California resident diagnosed with West Nile in 2008 'Access to vital health care is at stake for all Californians' A yard of shoes Do you have 'spring fever'? (Wink, wink, nudge, nudge) Skin cancer: To screen or not to screen Gay marriage, or lack thereof, affects mental health Coffee drinkers rejoice! You may live longer due to the brew Bako's first West Nile-infected mosquitoes found August 06 September 06 October 06 November 06 December 06 January 07 February 07 March 07 April 07 May 07 June 07 July 07 August 07 September 07 October 07 November 07 December 07 January 08 February 08 March 08 April 08 May 08 June 08 July 08 Here's some sites I find useful and interesting: Some fun blogs I like, some health and some random: Got a blog or link to add to this list? Please let me know at ehagedorn@bakersfield.com. 
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I always knew people who liked candy corn were strange. Who likes candy shaped like vegetables? It defeats the purpose.
I can also think of a couple Twizzlers and Butterfingers. Weirdos.
What is your Halloween candy personality? The Washington Post put together a neat guide to gaging who you are by what you eat from the analyses of Steve Almond, the author of "Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America."
What will you be passing out to...
A box of Halloween cookies have been tempting me all week. Right now they are sitting on the end of my kitchen table, beckoning me to take "just one." I bought them to give out at work, and that's where they will go...not all into my stomach...I'm promising myself.
Halloween can be tricky when it comes to eating healthy. For health-conscious individuals, the authors of The Sierras Weight-Loss Solution for Teens and Kids offer some pointers.
The tips are based on lessons...
Unless you're going for that crusty, pink-eye look on Nov. 1, don't top off your Halloween costume with novelty contact lenses.
According to the Food and Drug Administration, decorative contact lenses carry the same risks as corrective contact lenses, including:
conjunctivitis (pink eye)
corneal (the eye's outermost layer) ulcers
corneal abrasion
vision impairment or blindness.
Sharing contact lenses can also lead to infections, abrasions,...
MRSA — or methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus, an antibiotic-resistant bacteria — has been widely talked about over the last weeks after several people were infected in Indiana and the "superbug" killed a Virginia teenager.
Shortly after starting here last year, I wrote about a boy who died from a MRSA infection. (Read "Staph infection kills boy" from the May 12, 2006 Californian.)
A column from the Bedford Bulletin, the newspaper in the Virginia...
For the past several days my gaze has been pulled to the large TV near my desk in the newsroom. "California burning" and "California inferno" — as CNN is calling it — is the gist of what I've been watching.
Looking out the window at the beautiful Bakersfield blue sky, it's hard to believe that the rolling flames now ravaging Southern California are mere hours from where I now sit.
But it is close, and anyone traveling within any proximity to the...
Just last week Cub Scout patches were recalled due to high levels of lead. This follows several recent recalls of children's toys and jewelry.
How apropos then that this week is National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week.
Lead is much more harmful to children than adults because it can affect children's developing nerves and brains, according to MedlinePlus.gov. Unborn children are the most vulnerable. Possible complications from lead exposure include:
Reduced IQ
Slowed...
Do you have an inspirational story to tell about your personal weight-loss journey? If so, the Californian wants to hear about it.
We're gearing up to do a large package of stories on obesity — childhood obesity in particular. And we want to get our readers involved in the final product.
So if you've gone through a transformation and want others to know what it was like, go to Bakersfield.com/yourwords and share your tale. We're also looking for before-and-after photos.
To...
How do you feel about your HMO and physicians group?
BFMC, GEMCare, Kaiser, Blue Cross, Health Net — all have been evaluated and rated for patient satisfaction and how well they met national standards of care.
The state Office of the Patient Advocate released the scores yesterday in its annual Health Care Quality Report Card. (Read "Report scores doctors' groups" in today's Californian.)
Here are some of the HMO highlights:
Kaiser Permanente Northern...
Drug companies voluntarily withdrew over-the-counter cough-and-cold medicines for infants and toddlers younger than 2 last week.
While the medicines aren't dangerous in the right doses, the companies are afraid parents will accidentally OD their kids, an industry spokesperson said.
(Read "Kids' cold medicine removed" in last Friday's Californian.)
Several people questioned the staff at the Wal-Mart pharmacy on Rosedale Highway Thursday about the missing medications, said...
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