I have a friend on Facebook who lives with aphasia. What is interesting about this disorder affecting language, is that unlike a speech disorder—where a person may be able to write fine—and a learning disability like dyslexia or dysgraphia—where a person can speak well but have difficulty communicating in writing, aphasia affects both verbal and written communication, as well as understanding of what is being communicated to them [1] However, aphasia is different for every person, and they may have difficulties in one or many of these areas, and the difficulties can be mild to severe. [1]

Unlike many speech or communication disorders that may be diagnosed in early childhood, often from neurodevelopmental disorders or caused by other disabilities (cerebral palsy, for i

While it may be a routine task like eating or sleeping, brushing your teeth can be an equally important task for your health—yes, beyond ensuring you have shiny teeth, didn’t leave any green veggies behind in your smile, and that your breath is a bit fresher. Did you know, according to the Dental Health Foundation of Ireland, that bacteria from the mouth can travel and cause infection of other parts of the body if the immune system is compromised? How about that cancer and heart disease share common risk factors to oral health diseases? Or  that medicines you take for other conditions may impact your oral health, such as by reducing saliva or changing the balance of oral microorganisms (bacteria)? [1] Beyond a pearly smile, there are many reasons it’s important to keep you