Month: November 2021

In Santa Cruz County, kids 5 to 11 years of age could be able to get their first Pfizer dose by next Monday.The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the California Department of Public Health must give their approval, but the County Office of Education and others are already making plans to put shots in arms by next week.The County Office of Education plans to send five mobile vans out to various school sites and establish three drive-thru COVID-19 vaccination sites."The vaccination shot for the age group of 5 through 11, I'm really excited," said Celia Shin, a Bay View Elementary School parent.Some parents are ready to get their kids vaccinated as Santa Cruz County educators prepare for the anticipated approval of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine for children.Almost 20,000 k...

Photo: Ethan Miller (Getty Images) A new review of existing evidence conducted by researchers in Australia points to a modest but real benefit from using zinc to combat the common cold. The study found that zinc supplementation can likely prevent and shorten the duration of typical respiratory infections. At the same time, there’s much less known about the best way to take zinc for a cold, and the jury is still out on whether zinc can help covid-19. The history of zinc being touted as a common cold treatment dates back to at least the 1980s. Zinc is an essential mineral and trace element, important for a variety of biological functions, and it’s known that zinc deficiency can increase our susceptibility to infection. But the primary theory behind zinc as a cold remedy is that it can ...

Soliz, a graphic artist who had not received a Covid-19 vaccine, spent 28 days on a ventilator and heart monitor at the hospital in late August and much of September. "I am certain that there is truth to this virus, and not being vaccinated leaves you vulnerable to the extent of possibly really taking a person's life," Soliz said. "I personally know that, because I was not vaccinated. I did not act, I wasn't certain, and I nearly lost my life." Soliz told CNN that he struggled to breathe and felt as though he could have died at any moment. But he wanted to say sorry to those who cared for him, thanking everyone he saw at the facility who played a role in saving his life. "I was literally on my deathbed and hanging from a string, and [doctors and nurses] tended to me as perfect strangers," ...

Michelle Parker remembers little of what happened the day her horse, Flash, headbutted her four years ago — but she is still living with the after-effects. Michelle, 55, doesn't think she was even knocked out after the incident, but went to see her GP, who diagnosed concussion and told her to go home and rest — assuring her that she should feel better in a day or so. Yet four years on, Michelle, a council administration worker from Eastbourne, East Sussex, lives with daily migraines, fatigue, 'brain fog', forgetfulness and struggles to find words, as a result of that head injury — a condition known as post-concussion syndrome. Yet she has found, even though it is a recognised medical condition, it can be difficult to get some doctors to take it seriously. Concussion is defined as a 'minor...