Category: Wellness
Katie Couric’s Breast Cancer Announcement—with a Few Words from Dr. Favor
Today former news anchor Katie Couric revealed that she has been undergoing treatment for breast cancer. Her announcement on social media read:
“Every two minutes, a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States. On June 21st, I became one of them.” You can read her full post here. Seeing this headline and realizing that Breast Cancer Awareness Month is just a few days off, Dr. Favor wanted to pass along some important facts about breast cancer risk and breast care.
Dr. Favor emphasizes that the latest strategies against breast cancer include identifying women at higher risk and…
Long Acting Reversible Contraception: A Birth Control Method Many Gynecologists Choose for Themselves
Surprising Facts:
Over 40% of women’s health providers choose the Intrauterine Device (IUD) for themselves according to one study. However, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists reports that only about 12% of American women overall are choosing an IUD or other long-acting reversible contraception methods (LARC). These gynecologists and other providers help their patients learn about the advantages they enjoy themselves. Long-acting reversible contraceptive (LARC) methods like the intrauterine device (IUD) and arm implant (Nexplanon) are very reliable types of birth control that provide years of protection against pregnancy with a single device.
Why Do So…
Your Relationship With Alcohol: Just Another Reason For Women To Feel Guilty?
To start, I am not writing about Alcohol Use Disorder specifically. I just want to offer a little sip of caution to those who drink alcohol socially—almost half of Alabama adults. What is social drinking? Well, some people are more social than others. But if you’re rethinking your drinking habits, you really want to know “Where do I fit in?” “Are my alcohol choices affecting my health or quality of life?”
April is Alcohol Awareness Month. Scroll to the end of the post for a refresher on the medical facts of alcohol consumption. But if you clicked on…
From Dr. Favor–March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month
We understand that, through a large part of her life, her gynecologist may be the only physician a woman sees every year. While our focus is your reproductive health, we want you to be well-informed about other health issues you may face now or in the future. Colorectal cancer is one of these risks.
Despite the fact that these cancers are highly preventable and very treatable in earlier stages, they are the third leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. for both men and women. Factors that increase your risk of colon cancer include:
Age
Personal and…
Developing a Healthy Body Image for Pre-Teens and Teenagers
As a gynecologist, I occasionally see a woman who is struggling with a serious emotional problem. Sometimes she realizes that challenges like being stuck in an unhealthy relationship, substance use, self-harm, or eating disorders (anorexia, compulsive eating) have become lifelong battles. Many women cannot explain the issues that interfere with a healthy life. Too often, a woman’s first steps on this path began years before.
Pre-teens and teenagers are under lots of pressure these days. Recognizing emotional changes that are different from normal teenage angst is a hard part of parenting. One aspect of teens’ emotional and…
Are You at Risk for Type 2 Diabetes?
What Is Pre-Diabetes? Take the One-Minute Test…
How to Recognize an Urgent Gynecologic Problem
As ObGyn physicians, most of the care we provide on an urgent basis involves pregnancy and childbirth. For gynecologic problems, we more typically provide medical treatment at an office visit or surgery, if necessary, at a planned time in the future. But this is not always the case. Certain conditions in gynecology represent true emergencies, requiring immediate treatment to prevent long term consequences and even loss of life. We want our patients to be aware of the signs of these more urgent problems.
As you would expect, gynecologic problems generally manifest themselves with pain and/or abnormal bleeding. Most women…