April 8-14, 2012 - Original Health Articles

Cooking your meals and even heating your kitchen could be a recipe for disaster. 1. Your Gas Appliances If you have a gas stove or space heater in your kitchen, these appliances can let off an odorless gas called Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) that can spark asthma symptoms.

On average, men in the United States die approximately five years earlier than women. Statistics compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2010 give women an average life expectancy of 80.4 years compared with 75.4 years for men.

One large federal study investigated the role of vitamin E on prostate cancer. Published in the journal of American Medical Association, it found that men who take vitamin E may be increasing their risk for prostate cancer by up to 17 percent. Lead researcher, Eric A.

When indoor allergies are a concern, your design choices can have a big impact on your health status. Upholstered furniture, throw pillows, drapes, and carpeting may all be pretty to look at, but they can also be magnets for dust mites, mold, and animal dander.

Go into any home-products store or browse online and you're likely to be overwhelmed by the sheer variety of scales for sale. So what's really important when making this purchase? The first choice you'll need to make is between the two main types of bathroom scales: Digital and analog.

DIY manicures can save you money and are safer than salon treatments because you get to control the cleanliness of the tools. 1. Remove any polish on your nails with a cotton ball dipped in an acetone-free nail polish remover. Be thorough, but don't over-saturate the nail and cuticle since the chemicals can cause dryness and nail damage.

The sound of blood flowing through your heart (lub-dub, lub-dub) is normally soft and quiet. Occasionally, an extra sound-a "murmur"-may accompany your heartbeat. Usually, this noise is harmless: an "innocent murmur." If it's accompanied by other signs, though, it may be an "abnormal murmur.

From traction tables to decompression belts, spinal decompression is advertised as a sure-fire technique to relieve chronic back pain. But does spinal decompression work? Spinal decompression involves stretching tight spinal muscles and moving spinal discs in order to relieve back pain.

There is a strong association between depression and headaches, particularly migraine headaches. In fact, depression tops the list of co-existing conditions linked to migraines. The exact mechanism for this overlap is still unclear, although many experts believe the disorders share some biology.

Condoms—the only available form of birth control for men except a vasectomy—are effective at preventing pregnancy 97 percent of the time. Or at least this should be the effectiveness. The reality is that they really only work between 80 and 90 percent of the time, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Could the pain in your feet be relieved if you ran in minimalist shoes, also known as barefoot running shoes, instead of traditional running shoes? It might—if you tread softly. The recent wave of marketing behind these new lightweight shoes started with the book, Born to Run (Knopf 2009) by Christopher McDougal.

If you're making every effort to slim down, don't assume you have to forego your favorite foods and confine yourself to a diet of raw vegetables. You can eat what you love—just not too much of it. "Portion control is key to losing and maintaining weight," says Keri Gans, MS, RD, CDN, the author of "The Small Change Diet.

There are three types of exercises you can do to make living with arthritis a whole lot easier. And there's a reason why each is essential. There was a time when the most common exercise prescription for arthritis was "rest is best." Not anymore. Health experts now know that physical activity is not only good for people with arthritis; it has become a standard form of treatment that can help relieve pain, improve balance and endurance, and restore joint function.

In January 2000, two researchers published a famous and often cited article in the journal Cell, titled "Hallmarks of Cancer." They compared the development of a tumor to Darwin's theory of evolution: a succession of genetic changes leads to a progressive conversion of normal cells into cancer cells.

Autism is one of several neurological, developmental disorders. Children generally show signs of autism by the time they are three, and estimates of the prevalence of autism range from 1 in 91 children to 1 in 150. Children with autism suffer from delayed or disordered language development and have trouble communicating, forming relationships, and controlling their behavior.

Even on their own, diabetes and high cholesterol are serious health issues. But together, they can spell trouble. "Diabetes already puts you at risk for cardiovascular disease," says Haidar Yassin, MD, of SUNY Downstate Medical Center of Brooklyn, New York.

Psychotherapy, or "talk therapy," is a widely used and often highly effective treatment for depression, particularly for people with mild to moderate depression. If you're suffering from severe depression, your physician may recommend psychotherapy along with antidepressant medications.