Lifestyle & Wellness

West End Healthline 3 min read ,

Back-to-School Season: The Importance of Flu Shots 

As summer is winding down and back-to-school season begins, now is a great time to think about health preparations for the new school year. There are many things to consider ensuring a smooth transition back to school, and one of the most important – and often overlooked – ways to promote a healthy school year is getting a flu shot. This vaccination plays a crucial role in safeguarding the health of students, families and communities. A flu shot is your best defense to prevent getting the virus and its potentially serious complications. 

Here’s a few reasons why getting your flu shot should be a priority this fall, and how it fits into your back-to-school preparations.

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Julie Borgerding July 3 min read

What’s To Be Done About Plastic?

As I recall bags flailing in trees like caught kites, and dealing with plastics on the street in front of my house and where I go for walks, I just want it all to go away. It’s not likely to happen soon. 

Plastics are double- edged in the current world – we can’t live easily without plastic, but our planet is inundated with plastic pollution, on land, air and sea. Plastic bags fly freely, plastic barges float in oceans, and flattened bottles and plastic pieces scuttle in the wind all around our streets, yards and fields. And microplastic floats around in our bodies.

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West End Healthline 3 min read

What is the buzz this summer? Mosquitoes!

With the wet conditions this summer the mosquitoes have now come out in full force! While the little pests can transmit troublesome viral illnesses, the most common result here in Minnesota is an annoying bug bite that is itchy and irritating. Treatment for these itchy bug bites can include ice and over the counter anti-itch creams such as hydrocortisone. What is better than treatment, however, is taking steps to avoid getting bitten by these insects!

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West End Healthline 3 min read

Enjoy the Sunshine… Safely

Summer is here and the days are long. Now is the time to enjoy the outdoors and go for walks, play sports, meet up with friends or whatever other activities you enjoy. It is always tempting to just throw on shorts and a T-shirt and go outside. Before you go outside, however, there are several items to consider to protect your skin and eyes while enjoying this beautiful weather. This is important to not only preventing painful sunburn, but also more serious future health problems. Here are some tricks to keeping your skin healthy:

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