Health Expert Sloane Miller shares health management news and commentary at HealthCentral.com. HealthCentral.com is one of the top health destinations on the Web, with more than 35 condition-specific, wellness and general health Web properties. http://www.healthcentral.com/profiles/c/9032/index http://www.healthcentral.com/profiles/c/9032/rss self application/xml en-us 15 120 19 http://www.healthcentral.com/images/hc_logo_sm.gif http://www.healthcentral.com/profiles/c/9032/index http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/58259/expired-inhalers Wed, 04 Feb 2009 11:31:00 -0500 Sloane Miller I went on a field trip to Poughkeepsie New York to the Culinary Institute of America last week. I went to meet a Chef colleague and have lunch with their student food allergy group. Poughkeepsie is about 90 minutes by train from New York City. Halfway through my journey I was rifling around in my purse and I saw my rescue inhaler -- my old CFC inhaler. I took the canister out of its plastic case: Exp: 09/08.     Uh oh.   Here... http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/58259/expired-inhalers http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/52773/5-steps-asthma-track Wed, 31 Dec 2008 15:32:00 -0500 Sloane Miller If you've been lax about your asthma or hoping the wheezing will go away or if you believe that it's normal to use your rescue inhaler 10 times a day, take some time in the spirit of renewal and reflection to get real about your asthma for the New Year.   Here are 5 steps to get your asthma symptoms back on track and to enable you to live your life more fully.   5. Get Honest. How honest with yourself are you about your asthma... http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/52773/5-steps-asthma-track http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/52666/holiday-triggers Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:18:00 -0500 Sloane Miller Holidays are here and with the holidays come some staples: parties, drinking and fruitcake. If you have asthma, there are some holiday pitfalls to keep in mind like parties, drinking and maybe even fruitcake. So before you reach for that puff on a celebratory cigar, that second glass of Glögg, or a slice of panettone let's talk about possible holiday asthma triggers that may have flown under your radar. (The Asthma Allergy Foundation of... http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/52666/holiday-triggers http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/51866/fall-babies-asthma Wed, 10 Dec 2008 16:39:00 -0500 Sloane Miller The last few weeks have seen a flurry of reports on the link between developing asthma and being born in the fall season. The articles seem to be based mainly on a recent study published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, that fall babies are more prone to asthma. Health Central's Dr. Fred Little wrote a piece about it as well.   I all but ignored the reports until this week's New York Times headline:... http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/51866/fall-babies-asthma http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/45998/economic-crisis-make Thu, 23 Oct 2008 14:38:00 -0400 Sloane Miller It's that time of year again; time to get your flu shot. HealthCentral's Dr. Thompson wrote an excellent question and answer about the flu shot and some potential lingering concerns: can I get the flu from the shot; why asthmatics need the flu shot; what about the flu shot for people who have egg allergies, etc.   I'm all about the flu shot. Especially after a dear friend had the flu a few years back. She was truly down for the count.... http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/45998/economic-crisis-make http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/43852/alexander-technique Tue, 07 Oct 2008 09:48:00 -0400 Sloane Miller A few weeks back I had knee surgery. I wrote a post about my concerns having to do with adhesives that may be used during or after surgery as I have skin reactions with certain adhesives.   Being clear with my doctors before the procedure was helpful: they didn't use any adhesives on or around my incisions, which was great. Annoyingly, I did have a reaction -- one big hive -- to the Ace bandage and had to remove it with 24 hours after the... http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/43852/alexander-technique http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/42428/invisible-conditions Fri, 26 Sep 2008 16:23:00 -0400 Sloane Miller As someone with asthma since I was four years old, I can spot a fellow sufferer very often by the sound of their voice: chesty, throaty, wheezy or short of breath. However, that's because I've experienced all of those symptoms at one time or another. To most people, those sounds would indicate nothing unusual, they would be virtually invisible. A chesty voice wouldn't indicate a chronic inflammation of the airways. They wouldn't hear it as I... http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/42428/invisible-conditions http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/34093/inhaler-changeover Wed, 23 Jul 2008 09:15:00 -0400 Sloane Miller We are more than half way to the asthma inhaler transition.   On December 31, 2008, asthmatics' old tried and true CFC-based inhalers will be taken off the market and replaced with HFA-based inhalers. The New York Times wrote a piece about the transition outlining some critical differences between the old and the new inhalers.   From the New York Times: "Studies show that HFA inhalers are as effective as CFC inhalers and have the... http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/34093/inhaler-changeover http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/34092/questions-answers Mon, 21 Jul 2008 08:00:00 -0400 Sloane Miller I've been reading 100 Questions & Answers about Your Child's Asthma by Claudia Plottel, MD and B Robert Feldman, MD. (Full disclosure: Dr Feldman was my pediatric allergist and is a relative).   The book is an excellent primer for parents of newly diagnosed children with asthma. An estimated 6.5 million children in the US are affected by asthma. However, I'd recommend this book for anyone with asthma, either newly diagnosed or those... http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/34092/questions-answers http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/27822/asthma-benefit-mites Wed, 14 May 2008 08:22:00 -0400 Sloane Miller Have you seen the reports circulating that say: "... the most widely recommended treatments to reduce dust mites had no effect on the symptoms of asthma sufferers, researchers in Denmark found."  MSNBC reported on this a few weeks back.   That's alarming, as it seems to go against what we've always heard about dust mites: reduce them, their waste and their carcasses and you will greatly reduce your allergies and... http://www.healthcentral.com/asthma/c/9032/27822/asthma-benefit-mites