Martin's Must-Reads

Martin's Must-Reads

By Betty Martin, Mark MartinArtsBooks
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Martin's Must-Reads episodes

  • To Your Health: Service Animals
    Lon Hodge, a Vietnam veteran with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder once said: “People tell me, you don’t look like you need a service dog. And I say, that’s because I have a service dog.” While dogs can be someone’s companion, they can also help save someone’s life. Service animals are defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act as dogs that have been trained to perform a task for their owner. The most commonly known service animals are guide dogs who are trained to lead blind and visually
    2 min
  • To Your Health: Dehydration
    Runners sometimes joke about the strangest places they have gotten a drink when putting in long, hot miles ---from a stranger’s garden hose, a spigot on a golf course---but dehydration is no laughing matter. It’s also not something to cry about...because people who are dehydrated can’t produce tears. According to The Mayo Clinic, dehydration occurs when you use or lose more fluid than you take in, and your body doesn't have enough water and other fluids to carry out its normal functions. In the
    2 min
  • To Your Health: Facebook and Fake Health News - Part 2
    Do Johns Hopkins Cancer Center and the Mayo Clinic sound like reliable sources to you? They do to the folks who write fake health news too. Both Johns Hopkins and the Mayo Clinic keep their media departments hopping, issuing press releases to disprove the stories they have been mentioned in. Last week on “To Your Health” I explained how prevalent fake health news has become and how dangerous it can be. This week, we will look at how to avoid it. The authors of fake health news often try to lend
    2 min
  • To Your Health: Facebook and Fake Health News - Part 1
    The cough method of CPR, the danger of the HPV vaccine, cancer-causing Nutella and the Zika virus conspiracy are just a few of the most popular health related posts on Facebook. They are also dangerous because they are highly inaccurate. According to Pew Research, 62% of U.S. adults get their news on social media. This led to “fake news” problems often cited during the last election cycle, but studies have recently confirmed that fake health news shared on Facebook is more frequently read than
    2 min
  • To Your Health: Kidney Stones
    If you have ever had one, you know that kidney stones are just the worst. Your back aches, peeing hurts, and you might feel nauseous. Actually, about 1 in 10 people will get a kidney stone in their lifetime, according to the National Kidney Foundation. What is a kidney stone and how can we avoid becoming one of the people who get them? Contrary to their namesake, kidney stones are actually more like crystals. They form when there isn’t enough water in the body to balance the chemicals being
    2 min
  • To Your Health: Heat Stroke
    Did you know that the term “dog days of summer” actually has nothing to do with canines? Jon Katz, author of Dog Days says it actually goes back to the Romans belief that Sirius, the brightest star in the “big dog” constellation rose with the sun to create great days of heat. However, dogs may know how to better deal with hot days than humans do...they find shade and lay down, while we just go about our busy lives. Do you know how to tell when you are too darn hot? Johns Hopkins School of
    2 min
  • To Your Health: Ticks Are Responsible for More Than Just Lyme Disease
    When people think of ticks, the next thing they usually think of is Lyme Disease. But did you know ticks are responsible for over fifteen different human diseases in the United States? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ticks spread the pathogens that cause disease through the feeding process, when small amounts of their saliva enter their host. To avoid becoming a meal for a disease ridden tick, avoid overgrown shady areas when outdoors. The common suggestion of
    2 min
  • To Your Health: Summer Food Safety
    Erma Bombeck once said, “ You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism.” Did the potato salad get iffy at your celebration yesterday? Are you paying the price in the bathroom today? Hot weather and outdoor dining can be a recipe for food poisoning , which is defined by the National Library of Medicine and
    2 min
  • Firework Safety
    John Adams wrote his wife, Abigail that July 4th “ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more." Independence Day is almost here and many of us will be celebrating it in a style that would make John Adams proud. However, this is also the time of year that the National Council on Fireworks Safety reminds the public of the safe and responsible use of
    2 min
  • Skin Cancer
    Slip, Slop, Slap! This slogan, coined in 1981, became one of the most popular public service announcements in Victoria, Australia. The alliterative command was given by a seagull on the beach in an attempt to get swimmers to SLIP on protective clothing, SLOP on sunscreen and SLAP on a wide-brimmed hat. In the decade that followed, there was a 50% reduction in sunburn among Victoria residents. Americans could take a lesson from that Aussie seagull. The Skin Care Foundation states that one in five
    2 min

About Martin's Must-Reads

From the publisher's feed

There are one million new books published each year. With so many books and so little time, where do you begin to find your next must-read? There’s the New York Times Bestseller list, the Goodreads…