Probably not, as there is little chance that the exposure from the radiation from breast X-ray (mammogram) will cause thyroid cancer. In addition, a thyroid guard could interfere with the accuracy of your mammogram.

A thyroid guard or thyroid shield is a lead collar that wraps around your neck to block the radiation that's generated in making X-ray images.

During an X-ray, the majority of radiation needed to create the images goes exactly where it's aimed. In the case of a mammogram, most radiation exposure occurs in your breast. But the rest of your body is exposed to small amounts of what's called scatter radiation. Scatter radiation during a mammogram is a fraction of the natural radiation (known as background radiation) you'd receive in one day.

One study estimated that during a mammogram, which involves two X-rays per breast, a woman's thyroid is exposed to the equivalent of 30 minutes of natural radiation. Even over many years of annual mammograms, this amount of additional radiation is considered tiny.

Still, don't let a fear of thyroid cancer keep you from having a mammogram. If you choose to use a thyroid guard, many facilities have them available. Call ahead to make sure one is available at your facility.

Discuss the benefits and risks of thyroid guards with your radiologist or breast-imaging specialist. Thyroid guards can sometimes interfere with getting good images of the breast tissue, which could make the mammogram images incomplete. Thyroid guards can also distort the appearance of the mammogram. In these cases, you may be called back to have additional mammogram images.

Thyroid peroxidase (TPO), an enzyme normally found in the thyroid gland, plays an important role in the production of thyroid hormones. A TPO test detects antibodies against TPO in the blood. If you've been diagnosed with thyroid disease, your doctor may recommend a TPO antibody test — in addition to other thyroid tests — to help determine the cause.

The presence of TPO antibodies in your blood suggests that the cause of thyroid disease is an autoimmune disorder, such as Hashimoto's disease or Graves' disease. In autoimmune disorders, your immune system makes antibodies that mistakenly attack normal tissue. Antibodies that attack the thyroid gland cause inflammation and impaired function of the thyroid.

Your doctor may also order a TPO antibody test if you are pregnant and have an autoimmune disease, especially one that involves the thyroid, such as Hashimoto's disease or Graves' disease.

Some people with TPO antibodies may not have thyroid disease. However, the presence of TPO antibodies may increase the risk of future thyroid disorders. If you have normal thyroid function with TPO antibodies, your doctor may recommend periodic checkups to watch for future thyroid problems.

A tilted uterus, also called a tipped uterus, retroverted uterus or retroflexed uterus, is a normal anatomical variation. It shouldn't interfere with your ability to conceive.

In most women, the uterus tips forward at the cervix. About 1 in 4 women, however, has a uterus that tilts backward at the cervix. In the past, doctors thought that a tilted uterus might have contributed to infertility. But experts now know that the position of the uterus doesn't affect the ability of sperm to reach an egg.

Occasionally, a sharply tilted uterus may happen when scar tissues (adhesions) form due to conditions such as endometriosis, infection or prior surgery. Although this may make it more challenging for sperm to reach an egg, conception can still occur. However, in these cases, you may benefit from seeing a fertility specialist.

Ringing in the ears (tinnitus) can be caused by a number of medications, including some antidepressants. Not all antidepressants cause tinnitus. If your antidepressant is the cause of your tinnitus, switching to another medication may solve the problem, but don't quit taking your medication without medical guidance.

Antidepressants are a less common cause of tinnitus than are other types of medications — such as aspirin, anti-inflammatories or some antibiotics — or underlying health conditions.

Causes of tinnitus include prolonged exposure to noise, blood vessel disorders, diabetes, allergies and other medical, neurological or mental health problems. While caffeine has traditionally been thought to be associated with tinnitus, some research has found higher amounts of caffeine to be associated with a lower risk of tinnitus in some people. Tinnitus also can be caused by age-related hearing loss or a buildup of wax in the ear.

You'll need to work with your doctor to determine whether your antidepressant or something else is causing your tinnitus. Your symptoms may go away when the underlying cause is treated.

If the underlying cause isn't clear — or treatment doesn't help — you may benefit from a device similar to a hearing aid that may help mask the ringing. A change in medication, counseling or certain relaxation techniques also may help you cope with tinnitus.

If you have rheumatoid arthritis, the best thing you can do is follow your doctor's advice and take medications exactly as prescribed. You can also take steps at home to manage your pain and stay active:

• Pay attention to your pain. Having some soreness and stiffness is to be expected. But pain that lasts more than an hour after an activity or causes joint swelling indicates the activity was too stressful. Change your activity level or how you do a task to avoid making your pain worse.
• Change position often. When writing, doing crafts or driving, release your grip every 10 to 15 minutes. When watching television or using the computer, get up and move around every 30 minutes.
• Use the right tools. Look for tools and utensils designed for people with arthritis. Products such as anti-vibration gloves and large-diameter pens and kitchen utensils can reduce the pain caused by gripping or pinching movements.
• Conserve energy. Balance periods of rest and activity during the day. Work at a steady, moderate pace with frequent short breaks. Stop and rest before you become too tired or sore.
• Ease the ache. Soaking your hands or feet in warm or cool water may help relieve joint pain and stiffness. For some people, electrical stimulation provides temporary pain relief. Your doctor can provide a referral to a physical therapist or rehabilitation specialist for this treatment.

Of course, it's also important to get enough sleep, eat a healthy diet and be as physically active as you can. If you are overweight, even a modest amount of weight loss can ease pressure on your joints. If you smoke, ask your doctor to help you quit. For more ideas about how to manage your joint pain, talk with your doctor.

The cost of blood glucose test strips and other diabetes care can be high in the U.S. This high cost can negatively impact people with diabetes and affect their diabetes management. It may lower the use of glucose test strips among people with diabetes.

In the U.S., you can try these tips to reduce the cost of test strips:

• Check with your insurance provider or Medicare. Your insurance provider or Medicare will help cover the cost of test strips if you have a prescription. Check with them. They may have a contract with a different blood glucose meter company, and you may be paying more than you have to for your test strips.
• Check with your blood glucose meter company. Many companies have programs or discount cards to help with the cost of testing supplies. The phone number should be on the back of your meter.
• Ask your store. Some stores have generic meters and testing supplies at a lower cost than brand-name meters.
• Patient assistance and outreach programs. Ask your doctor about resources that may be available to you.

Yes. It's important to manage stress, even when you're busy.

When you're swept away in a number of demands, your stress hormone climbs sky-high. This hormone is called cortisol, and it's produced by pyramid-shaped structures on top of the kidneys (adrenal glands).

Cortisol can suppress your immune system, so you're more likely to become ill. And it can increase your blood pressure and blood sugar levels. Cortisol can also affect some of the areas in the brain involved with memory and learning processes.

To avoid these negative effects of stress, look for ways to keep stress — and cortisol — at manageable levels. Here are two practices that you may consider trying to manage your stress:

• Ritualize. This means having a consistent pattern, within reason, to your day. For example, in the evening, you can plan ahead for the next day. Try making your lunch and setting your clothes out the night before. That way, you're not running around in the morning trying to find what you need. Aim to make these daily habits, which can take you less effort and can give you less to think about the next morning.

• Minimize decisions. To decide on anything creates stress and erodes energy. It is easy to become overwhelmed with all the decisions in everyday life. For example, in the past, you could go to the drugstore and purchase a toothbrush. Now, for this simple purchase, you need to decide from many options and choices.

  Try to limit how many decisions you need to make. You can do this by limiting how many choices you have, which can help you reduce the number of decisions you need to make. And try not to sweat the small stuff. Save your energy for the big decisions.

If you have predictable routines and work to minimize distractions, you can make your days a little less stressful and maybe a tad more productive, too.

Tobacco sticks are a type of heated tobacco product. Tobacco is heated — not burned — to create an aerosol that can be inhaled. Tobacco sticks are sometimes called heat-not-burn cigarettes.

Heated tobacco products are available in many countries. The Food and Drug Administration allows the sale of some in the U.S. but cautions that this doesn't mean these products are safe or "FDA approved."

Tobacco companies claim that these products are less harmful than conventional cigarettes. They point to experiments showing that heating tobacco produces lower levels of harmful compounds than burning does.

More research is needed to confirm these findings and determine if switching from conventional cigarettes to tobacco sticks translates to a significant reduction in health risks.

However, there's no question about the dangers of tobacco. Decades of research has proved that tobacco is toxic and contains cancer-causing chemicals. For your health, the best choice is stay away from tobacco in any form.

If you smoke, consider quitting. Ask your doctor about approved medicines and counseling (in person, online or by phone) to support your quit attempt. Heated tobacco products have not been shown to help people quit smoking.

If you're able to understand only a few or none of your 2-year-old's words, talk to your child's doctor about scheduling an evaluation. Speech delay can be an early sign of other developmental issues.

Although every child grows and develops at his or her own pace, toddler speech development tends to follow a fairly predictable path. For example, by age 2, most children can:

• Use simple phrases, such as "more milk"
• Ask one- to two-word questions, such as "Go bye-bye?"
• Follow simple commands and understand simple questions
• Speak about 50 or more words
• Be understood at least half the time by parents or other primary caregivers

Between the ages of 2 and 3, most children:

• Speak in two- and three-word phrases or sentences
• Use at least 200 words and as many as 1,000 words
• State their first name
• Refer to themselves with pronouns (I, me, my or mine)
• Can be understood most of the time by family or close friends

Your child's doctor will likely consider possible underlying reasons for a speech delay, from hearing problems to developmental disorders. If necessary, he or she might refer your child to a speech-language pathologist, audiologist or a developmental pediatrician.

Treatment options for toddler speech development depend on what's causing the speech delay and its severity. When treated early, however, speech and language delays and disorders generally improve over time.

While vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is an essential nutrient, it's possible to have too much of it.

Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin that supports normal growth and development and helps your body absorb iron. Because your body doesn't produce or store vitamin C, it's important to include vitamin C in your diet. For most people, an orange or a cup of strawberries, chopped red pepper, or broccoli provides enough vitamin C for the day.

For adults, the recommended daily amount for vitamin C is 65 to 90 milligrams (mg) a day, and the upper limit is 2,000 mg a day. Although too much dietary vitamin C is unlikely to be harmful, megadoses of vitamin C supplements might cause:

• Diarrhea
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Heartburn
• Abdominal cramps
• Headache
• Insomnia

Remember, for most people, a healthy diet provides an adequate amount of vitamin C.