DR. HooK


Achoo, baby! Treating problem pollen Published on Mar 31st, 2005 0 comments Spring is here! The daffodils, irises, hyacinths, and all their friends are finally starting to bloom. (Insert pastoral song– Bugs Bunny background music will do.) I start to feel like a...
Say what? Patients and doc should talk same talk Published on Mar 24th, 2005 0 comments When I was an internal medicine resident at Cedars-Sinai/UCLA– the "Hospital of the Stars"– I never met celebrities like Mikhail Gorbachev or Mikhail Baryshnikov, but I sure met a lot of...
Bottoms up!: 'Screaming' procedure saves lives Published on Mar 17th, 2005 0 comments 252"> The HooK: DR. HOOK- Bottoms up!: 'Screaming' procedure saves lives // >> classifieds >> personals >> advertise >> contacts...
Empty? Full? World offers more options Published on Mar 10th, 2005 0 comments We've all heard the question, "Is the glass half empty or half full?" Supposedly, the optimist opts for half full, while pessimists notices only what's missing. But in our complex world of so many...
Glove love: Take care to slide home safe Published on Mar 3rd, 2005 0 comments I'm not really that educated in sports such as baseball. At the gym I once saw a man wearing funky shoes that made him walk on his tiptoes. I asked him why he was wearing those shoes, and he said, "...
Endless abuse: No cure for a personality disorder Published on Feb 24th, 2005 0 comments Imagine sitting in a tropical paradise. Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston– oops, scratch that. Okay, Catherine Zeta Jones-look-alikes serve you drinks and fresh papaya. Then the Creature From The...
Bad news, grandpa: Turn in your license! Published on Feb 17th, 2005 0 comments I am afraid to write this column. Very afraid. Normally in my office, I feel like a rock star! I like my patients and my patients like me. However, there are times when I go from being Bono of U2 to...
Dryers: To clean or itch, that's the question Published on Feb 10th, 2005 0 comments "How dry I am..." Is that song about alcohol, hair, or skin? When I was a medical resident, a fun dermatologist (who cussed like a sailor) gave us a lecture. He said that in the winter time, dry skin...
Phone-a-pill: Get your prescriptions in person Published on Feb 3rd, 2005 0 comments Blondie sang the great song, "Call Me. " Even Richard Gere in American Gigolo played that song long before Pretty Woman. Today, with cell phones, *69, and caller-ID, it's so easy to call your friends...
Clogging: Curb cholesterol to live longer Published on Jan 27th, 2005 0 comments In Asia, red meat is as rare as pink diamonds in America (though I'm sure J Lo might have a trove). When my cousins immigrated from South Korea in 1975, I remember how much red meat they ate....
Hot stuff: Menopause could shake up fashions Published on Jan 20th, 2005 0 comments Donna Sommers ruled the '80s. "Last Dance," "Bad Girls," and "Hot Stuff" blared from nearly every radio, the latter being an anthem for many women who go through menopause. "Hot, hot, hot,...
Take it easy: No Type-A's behind the wheel Published on Jan 13th, 2005 0 comments 252"> The HooK: DR. HOOK- Take it easy: No Type-A's behind the wheel // >> classifieds >> personals >> advertise >> contacts ...
Cut off: How much booze is too much? Published on Jan 6th, 2005 0 comments During the holidays, people were chug-a-lugging along, drinking eggnog with rum, eating fruit cake with more rum, sipping wine, and downing martinis. Most people know their limits. Amateurs,...
Vitamin V: Rising to the varsity squad Published on Dec 23rd, 2004 0 comments Vitamin V is Viagra. Viagra has changed the world. I think it has changed the world more than Krispy Kreme Donuts, Bodo's Bagels, green apple martinis, and Tempur Pedic mattresses. Senator Bob Dole...
Thoughtless: The plague of second-hand smoke Published on Dec 16th, 2004 0 comments Grandma Walton said something like, "If God intended people to smoke, He would have put chimney tops on our heads." I don't remember much about The Waltons, but I do remember that phrase, because...
Pill power: Keflex not quick cold fix Published on Dec 9th, 2004 0 comments I grew up with two physicians as parents. In our cupboards, instead of Toll House cookie mix, we had medications: antihistamines, blood pressure pills, cholesterol busters, and antibiotics–...
Regular gal: How often should you 'go'? Published on Dec 2nd, 2004 0 comments Remember Carly Simon's song, "Anticipation"? I never heard of the song until Heinz Ketchup used it in a commercial. (In the commercial, the anticipation of eating the food slathered in ketchup was...
Eyes heavy? If not, get TV out of bedroom Published on Nov 25th, 2004 0 comments When I was in college, a hypnotist came to entertain us. I was chosen to go up, and I did– unwillingly. The hypnotist had a Barry White type of voice, and he wooed me a little with his, "You...
Gobble, hobble: Health perils of the holidays Published on Nov 18th, 2004 0 comments Monty Python's movie The Meaning of Life has a disgusting– but funny– scene at a restaurant where a morbidly obese man takes gluttony to a new level. At the end of his meal, the waiter...
Take it off: Let Olivia be your guide Published on Nov 11th, 2004 0 comments Remember the song, "Let's Get Physical?" Olivia Newton John wore a cute little pink sweat-suit when she sang that smash hit from the '80s. It still fits her. Her Grease co-star, John Travolta, is not...
Flu shots: Roll sleeves up... if you're elderly Published on Nov 4th, 2004 0 comments Some people beg for the flu shot each October. Others are petrified of getting one. "Last time I got a flu shot, I was sick as a dog. I almost died!" they say. (I always wondered why we say "sick as...