If you have an addictive habit, you know how hard it can be to quit or take steps to reduce the habit in your daily life. Smoking is one of those addictions that can become a lifelong habit easily, and it can be really hard to give up. We understand that, but we also understand how harmful it is for your body, and we will always advocate for quitting the habit for good. Smoking negatively impacts your health in almost every way. Read on as our AFC Urgent Care Ooltewah team explains more about the negative effects of smoking and how to take the first steps towards quitting. What Does Smoking Do ..read more

Feeling sick can involve a lot of different symptoms that can be frustrating and often confusing, especially if you don’t know what is causing it. Thankfully, there are many different diagnostic tools available today that can help pinpoint specific illnesses in a matter of minutes. One of those reliable diagnostic tools is a full-service lab! We can run a wide variety of test right here in our center that can diagnose you faster and more reliably. Read on as our AFC Urgent Care Ooltewah team explains more about our lab and what different illnesses we can test for under our roof. What Tests Doe ..read more

Getting bitten or stung by bugs is never a fun experience, and we certainly are seeing many more bugs and creepy-crawlies out and about lately because of this time of year. While most bugs are minor nuisances and aren’t dangerous, some of them can cause uncomfortable symptoms or even serious allergic reactions. Read on as our AFC Urgent Care Ooltewah team explains more about the bugs we typically come into contact with in the summer and what to do about them. Are Tick Bites Dangerous Right Now? One of the drawbacks about living in the South is that there are usually bugs around for the majorit ..read more

Taking care of yourself includes taking care of your entire body. You know yourself best, so if you start to recognize symptoms that you aren’t familiar with, it may indicate the need to get tested for a variety of conditions. STDs are incredibly common in the United States and actually affect up to one in five people in any given year. Those are high odds, so you might find yourself in a position where you are wondering if you need to be tested this year. Stop in to AFC Urgent Care Ooltewah for testing if needed, and read on to learn why testing and treating STDs is important. Why Do I Need t ..read more

Getting older comes with many different perks and wonderful life experiences, but the possibility of losing your memory is certainly not one of them. It can be scary to think about forgetting your loved ones and your precious memories of a life well-lived. Unfortunately, dementia is a really common condition that affects more than 55 million people worldwide. While you can’t control your genetics, there are things that you can do to help reduce your risk of the disease. Our AFC Urgent Care Ooltewah team explains more about dementia and how it affects your memory, so read on to learn more. How ..read more

Avoiding injury is something that we all strive to do. Not only can injuries be painful, but they can disrupt your daily life while you are healing. While certain injuries like minor cuts or strains will heal on their own, more serious injuries like broken bones need to be treated in order to heal properly. If you suspect a broken bone after a particularly big fall or impact, come see us. Our center is fully equipped with an X-ray machine, and we can figure out exactly what happened. Our AFC Urgent Care Ooltewah team explains the importance of X-rays and what one can do for your injury, so rea ..read more

It’s not fair that food poisoning, and salmonella specifically, often appears after a fun dinner out with friends or after a home-cooked meal with your family! One minute you are enjoying a tasty meal and good company, and the next, you are doubled over in pain and looking for the nearest bathroom. Salmonella infections are a type of food poisoning that is found in contaminated food or water. Once ingested, it can make you feel pretty miserable for a few days while your body battles the bacteria. Read on as our AFC Urgent Care Ooltewah team explains more about salmonella infections and what to ..read more

Summer is right around the corner, and you know what that means! School will be out, kids will be running around and the warm summer sun will be shining down on us once more. While that thought may be exciting to many people, it is important to take precautions to prevent sunburns on yourself and your children. Even though the sun does feel nice on our skin, avoiding overexposure is critical for your long-term skin health. Our AFC Urgent Care Ooltewah team explains the importance of sun safety below, so read on to learn more. Why Does the Sun Burn Skin? When the sun shines down on your skin, i ..read more

If you have kids in your home, you know just how fast they grow! One minute they’re tiny newborns, and the next, you are chasing them around your house as they learn to walk. We all want to do right by our kids, and by providing them with a healthy diet, you are doing just that. A variety of nutrients is important for your children’s overall growth, but calcium is especially important for building strong bones. Our AFC Urgent Care Ooltewah team explains the benefit of building strong bones in childhood below, so check it out. What Should My Child Eat to Support Bone Growth? Calcium is a critic ..read more

Spring is here already—can you believe it? We are ready to embrace the warmer temperatures and beautiful sunny days, but those of us who experience seasonal allergies are not excited for the pollen! Seasonal allergies tend to reappear in the spring time as pollen from trees, flowers and weeds is more prevalent in the air. Thankfully, seasonal allergies aren’t life-threatening, but they can still be annoying. Our AFC Urgent Care Ooltewah team wants to help manage your seasonal allergies this year, and we explain how to do it below. Why Do Allergies Happen? When you are exposed to something that ..read more