Keep Your Teeth and Gums Healthy

Your diet can play a significant role in the health of your teeth and gums. The American Dental Association suggests these dietary tips to help keep your mouth healthy:

•  Avoid sodas and fruit drinks sweetened with sugar.
•  Limit consumption of candies, cookies, pastries and other desserts with added sugar.
•  Eat nutritious snacks that are lower in sugar.
•  Brush at least twice daily and floss daily.
•  Drink water often.
•  Keep a food journal and review it for high-sugar foods. Compare your diet to the food pyramid recommendations.

Causes of Headaches in Children

Children are considered to be no less prone than adults to dull or throbbing pains of the head.

The Nemours Foundation suggests these common triggers of headaches in children:

•  Getting insufficient sleep, or rapidly changing the patterns of sleep.
•  Missing meals or becoming dehydrated.
•  Taking certain medications.
•  Being under stress.
•  Experiencing hormonal changes.
•  Spending too much time in front of the TV or computer.
•  Receiving a mild head injury or having an infection.
•  Spending a long time riding in the car.
•  Inhaling strong odors.
•  Smoking.
•  Consuming caffeine.

Tips to Reduce In-Flight Ear Pain

Flying can cause discomfort in the ears, and can be especially painful to children with an ear infection.

The Nemours Foundation suggests following ways to help alleviate a child's ear pain during takeoff or landing, when changes in pressure are most likely to trigger ear pain:

•  Offer plenty of water or other decaffeinated drinks.
•  Give your child acetaminophen or ibuprofen about 30 minutes before takeoff or landing.
•  If your child is at least 3 years old, offer a piece of gum or hard candy.
•  Offer a baby a bottle or pacifier, or breast-feed.
•  Encourage your child to yawn often.
•  Keep your child awake during takeoff and landing, and encourage swallowing.

Eating Walnuts Reduces Breast Cancer Risk

Though they are hard to crack, walnuts have a handful of medicinal values from curing headache and preventing baldness to having some influence on fertility. Now, a new research has revealed that eating a modest amount of walnuts as a regular part of the diet might reduce a woman's chance of developing breast cancer.

The researchers at the Marshall University found that a daily dose of walnuts - equal to 2 ounces a day in humans - reduces the growth of breast cancer tumors in mice.

Lead researcher Elaine Hardman, Ph.D., of Marshall's Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, and colleagues studied the mice from the mother, through conception and throughout life. They then compared mice given walnuts to those fed a regular diet.

They found that the group whose diet included walnut at both stages developed breast cancer at less than half the rate of the group with the standard diet.  In addition, the number of tumors and their sizes were significantly smaller.

"These reductions are particularly important when you consider that the mice were genetically programmed to develop cancer at a high rate," Hardman said.

"We were able to reduce the risk for cancer even in the presence of a preexisting genetic mutation," she added.  Using genetic analysis, they researchers found that the walnut-containing diet changed the activity of multiple genes that are relevant to breast cancer in both mice and humans.

Walnuts are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants and phytosterols that may all reduce the risk of the disease.

"The results of this study indicate that increased consumption of walnut could be part of a healthy diet and reduce risk for cancer in future generations," she said. The study was funded by grants from the American Institute for Cancer Research and the California Walnut Commission. The study appears in the journal Nutrition and Cancer .  

Women Who Eat Faster More Likely to be Obese

A new research has found that Middle-aged women who are quick in downing their meals are much more likely to be overweight or obese than women who eat slower.

Otago University researchers analyzed the relationship between self-reported speed of eating and body mass index (BMI) in more than 1,500 New Zealand women aged 40 to 50, an age group known to be at high risk of weight gain.

Study principal investigator Dr Caroline Horwath said that after adjusting for factors such as age, ethnicity, smoking, physical activity and menopause status, the researchers found that the faster women reported eating, the higher their BMI, reported English.news.cn.

The study by the university's department of human nutrition could lead to new and more successful methods of treating obesity, the researchers say.

Benefits of chewing Sugarless Gum

Bacteria that contribute to dental plaque desire for sugar. These bacteria produce plaque acids that aid in tooth decay by breaking down tooth enamel.

Chewing sugarless gum, however, can help promote a healthier mouth, the American Dental Association says. The ADA mentions these possible benefits of chewing sugarless gum:

•   Chewing helps increase the production of saliva, which can help wash away acids that can damage teeth.
•   Increased saliva includes more calcium and phosphate, which can help strengthen tooth enamel.
•   Sugarless gum contains sweeteners -- such as aspartame, sorbitol or mannitol -- that don't contribute to cavities.

Tips for Safer Use of Cosmetics

Cosmetic products often include fragrances and preservatives, which might lead to skin problems and other side effects among some users.

The Womenshealth.gov website offers these suggestions for safer use of cosmetics:

•  Never apply cosmetics when driving.
•  Never share cosmetics with another person.
•  Store cosmetics out of direct sunlight, away from heat and with caps tightly closed.
•  Skip makeup when you have an eye infection, and throw away old cosmetics if you've developed an infection.
•  Don't add liquid to any cosmetic, unless so-directed on the label.
•  Throw out cosmetics if the color changes or they develop an odor.
•  Don't use aerosol sprays around fire, and take care not to breathe deeply around aerosol sprays or powders.
•  Avoid additives that aren't approved for use in a particular cosmetic.

Beetroot Juice boosts Performance in Athletes

According to a recent study conducted in the University of Exeter in UK, it has been revealed that beetroot juice is an energy powerhouse and it can make wonders happen. It is an energy booster that can help the performance of the athletes. With the help of this wonder juice there has been a recorded improvement seen in the performances of athletes.

In the era where athletes take all the pains to work hard and practice, and drink protein shakes to make themselves fit and energetic, beetroot juice comes as a one stop solution for the health and agility of mind, health and the body.

The reason behind this is supposed to be the nitrates that are present in the super veggie these nitrates, when reacted with the body, form nitric oxides, which helps the athlete, perform better at their events. In races where the difference even of a few seconds might mean a win or a loss, beetroot juice can make the difference.

Researcher Professor Andrew Jones said: ‘This is the first time we’ve studied the effects of beetroot juice, and the high nitrite levels found in it, on simulated competition”.

He further added, “These findings show an improvement in performance that, at competition level, could make a real difference – particularly in an event like the Tour de France where winning margins can be tight”.

Symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is characterized by symptoms of pain or discomfort in the abdomen that persist for at least three months.

The Womenshealth.gov website says the condition affects up to 20% of adults in the United States. Symptoms may include:

•  Stomach pain or cramps.
•  Constipation or diarrhea, or alternating between the two.
•  A sensation of not being finished with a bowel movement.
•  Mucus in the stools.
•  Gas, bloating or swelling in the abdominal region.
•  Discomfort, unusual fullness or nausea after eating a normal-sized meal.

Factors that might Lead to Skin Cancer

People who have had severe blistering sunburns or frequent exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays are at higher risk of developing skin cancer, the U.S. National Cancer Institute reminds us.

Here the agency's list of additional factors that increases your risk of getting the disease:

•  Using tanning beds on a regular basis.
•  Having had skin cancer before.
•  Having a close family member with a history of skin cancer.
•  Having fair skin that burns easily.
•  Taking medication that increases sensitivity to sunlight.
•  Having a medical condition that compromises the immune system, or taking a medication that suppresses the immune system.

Olive Oil might Prevent Strokes: Study

According to a new French study, olive oil could help prevent strokes in elderly people.

Researchers at the University of Bordeaux studied medical records from nearly 8,000 people aged 65 and older.

Olive oil consumption was labeled in participants as “no use,” “moderate use” and “intensive use.” Over the five-year study period, 148 people had strokes.

Results from the study show that people who used olive in both cooking and as a dressing or with bread had a 41% lower risk of stroke compared to those people who never used olive oil in their diet. As a result, researchers said people over age 65 may need a new set of dietary guidelines.

“Olive oil is a big part of the Mediterranean Diet, which is a healthy diet that includes olive oil as their primary fat source, so as a result it’s not surprising to see that this is beneficial,” Carolyn Snyder, a registered dietician at the Cleveland Clinic, said in a news release. And the good news is that olive oil is easy to add to any diet.

“It’s a very simple salad dressing, mixing that with a little balsamic vinaigrette,” Snyder said. “You can use it to dip whole grain breads in with a little bit of seasoning like basil.”

Early exposure to pets might lower risk of future allergy

Having a pet at home during the first year of a child may halve the risk of developing allergic to them later in life, a new study suggests.

The study was published in the journal Clinical & Experimental Allergy.

Researchers from Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit assessed 566 boys and girls who were followed from birth until age 18. They found that boys who had dogs and teens who had cats during their first year of life had 50 percent less risk of developing pet allergies later.

Lead researcher Ganesha Wegienka said: "This research provides further evidence that experiences in the first year of life are associated with health status later in life, and that early life pet exposure does not put most children at risk of being sensitized to these animals later in life."

The researchers said that exposure to animals at other times in childhood didn't appear to be as significant as the first year.

However, Wegienka cautioned that this study doesn't prove a cause-and-effect relationship between having a pet and avoiding allergies, just an association between those two factors.

"We don't want to say that everyone should go out and get a dog or cat to prevent allergies," she said.

"More research is needed, though we think this is a worthwhile avenue to pursue."

Anxiety Disorders can lead to Physical Problems

Anxiety disorders may be mental health conditions, but they can lead to a number of physical problems.

The University of Maryland Medical Center lists these physical complications that can arise from anxiety disorders:

•   Heart disease.
•   Risk factors for heart disease, including thickened blood vessels, high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels.
•   Irritable bowel syndrome and other gastrointestinal problems.
•   Headaches.
•   Respiratory conditions, including asthma.
•   Obesity.
•   Allergies, including food allergies, hay fever, eczema and other allergic conditions.

Drinking too much Coffee may lead to Hallucinations

Coffee may benefit health in a few ways, but watch out. Drinking too many cups could bring on hallucinations.

Five coffees a day or more was found to be adequate to increase the participant's tendency to hallucinate, says Simon Crowe, professor of psychology at the La Trobe University. Hallucinations are false perceptions that an individual has that do not exist. For example, a person may hear, see or smell things that are not there.

According to a La Trobe statement, Crowe and colleagues at the University's School of Psychological Sciences measured the effect of stress and caffeine with 92 non-clinical participants. Participants were assigned to either a high or a low stress condition and a high or a low caffeine condition on the basis of self-report. They were then asked to listen to white noise and to report each time they heard Bing Crosby's rendition of 'White Christmas' during the white noise.

White noise is a type that is produced by combining sounds of all different frequencies together, just as white light is produced by a combination of seven colors. The song was never played. The results indicated that the interaction of stress and caffeine had a significant effect on the reported frequency of hearing "White Christmas."

The participants with high levels of stress or who consumed high levels of caffeine were more likely to hear the song. "The combination of caffeine and stress affect the likelihood of an individual experiencing a psychosis-like symptom," says Crowe.

Mobile Phones may lead to Cancer: WHO

Mobile phones may lead to brain cancer in humans, a World Health Organization agency said, citing a review of studies.

Exposure to radio-frequency electromagnetic fields from handsets is greater than that from phone towers and base stations, Robert Baan, the senior scientist in charge of the International Agency for Research on Cancer report on the subject, said on a conference call with reporters. The fields are "possibly" carcinogenic, the same category as diesel fuel, chloroform and working as a firefighter, according to the IARC, based in Lyon, France, which classifies cancer risks.

This is the first time an agency working group has surveyed research on radio-frequency electromagnetic fields to make a definitive classification, the IARC said yesterday. The agency didn't issue guidelines for cell-phone use and said more study is needed after finding some evidence for an increased risk of glioma, or brain cancer.

Baked Fish reduces Heart Failure Risk in Women

A recent study has revealed that postmenopausal women who ate more baked or broiled fish were at a lower risk of developing a heart failure compared to those who ate more fried fish.

Researchers have found that women who ate baked/broiled fish (five or more servings/week) had a 30% lower risk of heart failure compared to women who seldom ate it (less than one serving/month).

The study further suggests that the type of fish and cooking method may affect heart failure risk. Dark fish (salmon, mackerel and bluefish) significantly reduce heart failure risk than either tuna or white fish (sole, snapper and cod).

On the other hand, eating fried fish hikes the risk of a heart failure. Even one serving a week was associated with a 48% higher heart failure risk.

"Not all fish are equal, and how you prepare it really matters," said Donald Lloyd-Jones, senior author of the study. "When you fry fish, you not only lose a lot of the benefits, you likely add some things related to the cooking process that is harmful," he added.

A team led by Lloyd-Jones examined self-reported dietary data from 84,493 postmenopausal women in the Women's Health Initiative Observational Study.

They divided the participants based on the frequency and type of fish consumption. The baked/broiled fish group consisted of canned tuna, tuna salad, tuna casserole, white fish (broiled or baked), dark fish (broiled or baked) and shellfish (not fried). Whereas, the fried fish group consisted of fried fish, fish sandwich and fried shellfish.

The result showed that participants who ate more baked/broiled fish tended to be healthier and younger than their counterparts who ate fried fish.

They were more physically active and fit - more educated and less likely to smoke, have diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease (irregular heartbeat and coronary artery disease).

The study appears in the journal Circulation: Heart Failure.

Traveling despite Asthma and Allergies

Traveling can expose you to new triggers for allergies and asthma, but planning ahead can help you breathe a bit easier while you're away.

The American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology offers these travel suggestions:

•  Pack your asthma and allergy meds in carry-on bags, and keep them in their original containers.
•  Continue to take your medications on schedule as directed by your doctor.
•  Prepare for potential problems, such as food allergies.
•  Keep contact information for your allergist and an emergency contact handy.
•  If possible, find an allergist at your travel destination.

Health Tip : Assess your Eating Habits

If you've tried various diets and can't seem to lose weight, maybe it's time to re-evaluate your eating habits.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers these suggestions:

•  Keep a diary of all foods you eat, when you ate them, how you were feeling, and what you were doing when you ate. Review the diary after a few days and look for patterns in your habits.
•  Take note of factors such as how quickly you ate, how much you ate, any meals you skipped, when you ate dessert, and when you ate despite not being hungry.
•  Think about why you have those eating habits, and choose those that you'd like to change.
•  Use your diary to figure out what causes you to eat when you aren't hungry (factors such as stress, while watching TV or being bored). Figure out of how to avoid eating in response to those triggers.
•  Be consistent with your new eating habits, and realize that it may take time for them to stick.

Red Wine and Chocolate Sharpen your Mind

Red wine and chocolate make for a deadly combination to keep your mind sharp and alert, a study suggests.

Polyphenols, plant chemicals rich in dark chocolate and wines, dilate blood vessels, speeding the supply of blood to the brain.

"This provides it with a rush of oxygen and sugars, making complex calculations easier and quicker. Besides polyphenols are more effective in combination than alone," the Daily Mail reports.

The theory follows two Northumbria University studies into the effects of polyphenols on the mind. In the first, healthy adults were set a series of tests after taking a capsule packed with Resveratrol, the 'wonder ingredient' in red wine. Scans showed a noticeable increase in blood flow to their brains after taking the supplement.

"Greater improvements may be seen in the elderly," said doctoral researcher Emma Wightman from Northumbria, because blood flow to the brain naturally decreases with age.

Unfortunately for wine lovers, the quantities of Resveratrol used in the study would equate to drinking crates of the stuff. But it is easy to get the same amounts from supplements sold in health food stores.

"And with resveratrol credited with abilities from extending life to burning off junk food," Wightman says. "There is nothing to stop people from stocking up."

"There is research showing quite a lot of health benefits and there is nothing to suggest there are any adverse effects. You are not going to come to any harm," she said.

In order to benefit from the health qualities of chocolate, choose only the dark chocolate. Other types do more damage to the body than good. And when it comes to wine, we know it's fancy, we know it tastes good, but drink moderately and not every day.

Common Causes of Itching

If itchy skin is irritating you, figuring out what's making you scratch can help you find a solution.

The U.S. National Library of Medicine says common causes of itching include:

•  Having an allergic reaction.
•  Having dry skin, a skin rash or a skin condition such as eczema.
•  Having an insect bite or sting.
•  Being exposed to irritating chemicals.
•  Having pinworms, scabies or head lice.
•  Being pregnant.
•  Having a reaction to a medication.

Risk Factors for Plantar Fasciitis

Plantar fasciitis occurs when the thick tissue that connects the heel to the toes becomes irritated, inflamed and painful.

The ADAM Encyclopedia mentions these potential risk factors for plantar fasciitis:

•  Having either high arches or flat feet.
•  Being obese.
•  Exposing the feet to repetitive stress, from activities such as running long distances, running on an uneven surfaces or running downhill.
•  Gaining weight rapidly.
•  Having tightness in the Achilles tendon.
•  Wearing shoes that don't offer good arch support or have soft soles.

Health Conditions may cause Paleness

Though fair skin may simply be an indication that you protect your skin from the sun, paleness may be a sign of a health problem that needs to be addressed.

The ADAM Encyclopedia lists these health conditions and problems that may cause pale skin:

• Anemia or insufficient red blood cells.
• Insufficient blood flow to the skin from being cold, having low blood sugar or fainting.
• Shock.
• Frostbite.
• Chronic disease such as cancer or infection.

Coffee doesn't Raise Blood Pressure: Study

Regardless of previous concerns, drinking lots of coffee doesn't seem to increase the risk of high blood pressure, says a U.S. study.

High blood pressure, or hypertension, has been linked to heart disease, stroke and a shorter life expectancy, and some scientists have proposed that coffee might fuel the problem.

But according to a report in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition that combined data from six previous studies, covering 170,000 people, this did not appear to be the case.

"The results suggest that habitual coffee consumption of more than 3 cups per day was not associated with an increased risk of hypertension compared with less than one cup per day," wrote Liwei Chen, from the Louisiana State University School of Public Health in New Orleans, who worked on the study.

But Chen added that more data would be needed in order to draw a firm conclusion, noting that the report "is not saying there's no risk" to drinking lots of java.

What's more, people who drank between one and three cups per day had a slightly higher risk of high blood pressure than those who drank less, a result the researchers couldn't explain.

The studies surveyed the participants to find out how many cups of coffee they drank each day, from less than one to more than five, and then followed them for up to 33 years.

Just more than one in five eventually developed high blood pressure, with the chance of being diagnosed with the condition no different for people who said they chugged more than five cups of coffee a day and those who drank very little.

"I don't think of coffee as a risk factor for high blood pressure," said Lawrence Krakoff, who studies high blood pressure at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York and wasn't involved in the new study.

But "if people are drinking 12 cups a day and aren't sleeping, I assume that's an important issue."

The relationship between coffee drinking and blood pressure is complicated by the possibility that it doesn't work the same way for everyone, Chen said.

"People with a different genetic background may react to coffee differently," she said.

"For some people maybe it's safe to drink a lot of coffee, but not for other people."

Factors that may trigger Muscle Cramps

It's common to have muscles that tighten and cramp, especially if you're an avid exerciser. One of the primary triggers for muscle cramps is overuse, the ADAM Encyclopedia says.

ADAM mentions these additional causes of muscle cramps:

•  A muscle injury.
•  Dehydration or nutritional deficiency, including a lack of calcium or potassium.
•  Alcoholism.
•  Taking certain medications.
•  Kidney failure, or an underactive thyroid.
•  Metabolic problems.
•  Pregnancy.