The ULTIMATE College Student Health Handbook

I’m excited to announce that the 3rd edition of my passion project, The ULTIMATE College Student Health Handbook: Your Guide for Everything from Hangovers to Homesickness, is now available. If you’re new here, welcome! My name is Jill Grimes, MD, better known as “Dr. Jill” or “the College Doc”. I’m a board-certified family physician who enjoyed private practice for roughly 20 years, then switched my focus to teen and young adult health. I treated college students in an on-campus university urgent care setting for about 7 years, until the pandemic hit, and I pivoted to public health initiatives. As … Read more

Weed: A College Doc’s Biased Opinion

Parents, April 20th is the perfect day to talk to your teens about weed. “420 Day” has become an international cannabis holiday, celebrated with parties that include publicly smoking or consuming edibles where usage is legal, and demonstrating to advocate for further legalization where it is not.

Why “420”? Specifics are debated, but most agree the name originated in the early 1970’s, from a small group of high school students in San Rafael, CA, who used to meet at 4:20 pm after school to smoke weed together. Today, their code word “420” is synonymous with cannabis, which is why your … Read more

Your Sunglasses are NOT Enough!

Do you have the sunglasses you NEED to view the solar eclipse? Do NOT wait till the last minute to get the real thing: ISO 12312-2

Listen to the Dr. Glaucomflecken podcast for all the solar eclipse scoop!

@tiktok.collegedoc Do you have the sun glasses you NEED to view the solar eclipse? Do NOT wait till the last minute to get the real thing: ISO 12312-2 Listen to @Dr. Glaucomflecken podcast for all the solar eclipse scoop! #solareclipse #eclipsesolar #eclipseglasses #collegehealthtips ♬ original sound – Jill Grimes, MD

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Avoid These 5 Common Mistakes that Can RUIN Your College Spring Break!

After 20+ years of helping teens and college students pick up the pieces of their Spring Break disappointments, these are the most common mistakes I’ve seen that can easily be avoided:

  1. Getting caught with a FAKE ID: Plenty of club bouncers might look the other way or simply confiscate “fakes”, but every state has unique penalties, and local enforcement can vary significantly- especially during Spring Break. Did you know that “knowingly possessing, using, selling, manufacturing or even delivering” a fake ID in Florida is a 3rd DEGREE FELONY? AND, Florida is getting very serious about cracking down on spring break
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Top 10 Things Every College Freshman Must Know About Alcohol (Whether They Drink or Not!)

College HangoverWorried about how your kid will deal with ALCOHOL in college? You’re not alone! If you’re focused on your student not drinking and driving, though, let me reassure you that this generation does a far better job than their parents! Please send them off with an UBER or LYFT gift card to support responsible choices, but meanwhile, let me share the top ten things every freshman needs to know about college drinking:

  1. College drinking today often starts with doing vodka shots, rather than sipping on beers. Pro tip: If you choose to drink, skip the shots and grab a
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14 Surprising Must-Know Health Tips for College-Bound Teens

*This post was originally published as a guest blog on one of my favorite teen parenting sites, RaisingTeensToday  Be sure to check out this awesome resource!

When kids venture off to college, they often have a steep learning curve, especially when they start to take charge of their own health. While mom and dad are only a text away, having an ounce of preventative knowledge may be worth way more than a pound of cure! As both a college physician and as a mom of young adults, I’d like to offer fourteen practical and possibly surprising health tips to share … Read more

Does Your Kid Want a Tattoo?

What would you say if your kid asked to get a tattoo? (“Kid” meaning 18 or older, the legal age for ink in the US.) Most people have an immediate gut response- either a HARD NO (“we don’t do that”) or a WHY NOT (because it’s an artistic expression or rite of passage.) As a family doctor, I see the spectrum of tattoo outcomes: a lot of pride and joy, but also regret*, infections, and ink allergies. What do I advise?

Ultimately, the medical risks of tattoos are acceptably low for most people (see details below), and in fact, … Read more