Running may seem like a simple activity, one that results in many health benefits, but it can bring with it the risk of related injuries. This is especially true during the warm summer months, when outdoor running is more pleasurable. Fortunately, proper training can help to reduce this risk.

Falls. They are the fear of many older adults. They can range from harmless stumbles to severe accidents, the effects of which can take years to heal. One of the best methods of avoiding falls might be the proactive use of exercise. Usually thought of for sculpting the body and improving cardiovascular conditioning, exercise can also be very effective in the prevention of injuries, including falls.

Concussions result from a blow to the head that causes the brain to be shaken inside the skull. Especially among children and young adults who participate in impact sports, such as football or basketball, concussions can be quite common. However, because concussions are often described as “mild,” we may forget that they are significant brain injuries.

Years ago, total knee surgery frequently required six to eight weeks of walking with a cane, crutches or walker, but if the cemented approach is used, you can put weight on the leg almost immediately. Typically, you will use an assistive device for a few weeks as needed, often beginning with a walker or two crutches and soon transitioning to a single crutch (under the opposite arm/side) or cane (again, in the opposite hand/side).

A 2010 Harvard University study suggested that running barefoot can reduce the risk of running-related injuries. These findings have many people wondering if they should get rid of their classic running shoes. The barefoot runners actually wear a sock-like shoe called "Five Fingers."

In the past, breast cancer survivors were told not to lift anything even moderately heavy--not a bag of groceries, not a suitcase, not their children. They also were warned against using their arms strenuously--no scrubbing floors or raking leaves.

Another name for exercise-induced asthma (EIA)--exercise-induced bronchoconstriction--is more descriptive of what your condition actually involves: The passages that carry air into and out of your lungs become constricted when you exercise, resulting in asthma symptoms, such as wheezing, coughing, shortness of breath and chest tightness.

Older individuals with osteoporosis often develop spinal kyphosis, resulting in the formation of a pronounced hunchback, sometimes called a “dowager's hump” (kyphos means “hump” in Greek). Kyphosis occurs because a spinal vertebra, usually at the level of the rib cage, becomes weak and porous.

It is a glorious Saturday morning; you have put the stress of work behind you. All week long, you have been looking forward to playing golf. But when one of your foursome suggests walking the course, you suddenly become a little nervous. Yet riding in a golf cart robs you of much of the health benefits of golfing.

Almost everyone has heard of total hip replacement and total knee replacement. But fewer people are familiar with total ankle replacement (also called total ankle arthroplasty).