Tag Archives: health

Poll: Women Care More About Weight Than Health

Reese Witherspoon's magazine covers via NYTimes.com.

Women are bombarded with images of unrealistic, and frankly, distorted views of beauty. The New York Times recently addressed the issue of computer-enhanced glamour covers. The article examines how stars are made to look perfect, if not mannequin-esque (see the covers side by side of Reese Witherspoon), when digital artists retouch magazine photos.

“My feeling is that for years now it has taken a much too big part in how women are being visually defined today,” says photographer Peter Lindbergh.

The consequences of our plastic culture and the pressures to achieve some sort of unachievable beauty are plainly seen in a recent survey of 1,000 adult women. The poll conducted jointly by AP and iVillage revealed that the women are less concerned about their physical health than their physical appearance.

[poll id=”11″]

Take our poll, then continue reading. (more…)

Posted on June 2, 2026 by Jason

Yoga Eases Pain of Breast Cancer

For the almost 200,000 American women who are newly diagnosed with breast cancer every year, yoga may offer respite and rejuvenation during their arduous journey with this most common form of cancer (excluding skin cancer).

A recent study from Duke University Medical Center suggested that when women with breast cancer engaged in yoga postures, meditation and breathing exercises for two months, they experienced less pain and fatigue and were significantly more relaxed.

Although this study was small, just 13 women who have advanced breast cancer, it does provide the first, tentative evidence for yoga’s potential benefits in this vulnerable population of women with limited life expectancy, says lead author of the study, Dr. James W. Carson. (more…)

Posted on May 31, 2026 by heather

America’s Fittest Cities

People choose their hometowns for many reasons such as job requirements, family and friends and weather, but have you considered choosing a city because it is a healthy place to live and can help you meet your fitness goals? The American Fitness index recently released a listing of America’s Fittest Cities; 45 metropolitan areas were accessed on 30 scales including causes of death, diet of residents, mental health, physician availability, and percentage of the population that walk or bike to work. Forbes was surprised that Washington D.C. was ranked as America’s fittest metropolitan area, beating out Denver, Seattle, and San Diego.

America’s Top 10 Fittest Cities:
1. Washington DC
2. Minneapolis (more…)

Posted on May 27, 2026 by Brooke Randolph

The Recession’s Negative Impact on our Health

The recession is rough on everyone’s finances. But it also has an impact on our health. According to two national surveys and health experts people are reacting to tough times by skipping check-ups with the doctor, the gym, and other preventative care.

The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) and the American Heart Association conducted the surveys. Besides skipping doctor visits and the gym, people are buying cheaper packaged meals, which often translates into high-sodium, high-fat food. (more…)

Posted on May 25, 2026 by Jason

Time Spent Eating Helps Determine Weight

I’m not very good with charts. It’s one of the reasons that, when I got to calculus in college, I changed my coursework from Architecture to English. But even I can understand what this chart amounts to:

(more…)

Posted on May 15, 2026 by Jason

Australia Considering Tax-Funded Obesity Surgery

There have been varying publicly-funded interventions with regards to the fight on obesity. But none are as direct as the one being initiated in Australia.

The government down under is considering funding lap-band surgery to curb rising rates of obesity. You can’t get anymore directly interventionist than that. If implemented, the plan would have tax payers footing the bill for surgery. Lap-band surgery is where surgeons attach a band around the entrance to the stomach so patients feel full after eating a moderate amount of food. (more…)

Posted on May 11, 2026 by Jason

The Blood Type Diet

The popularity of Facebook quizzes is a pretty good indication that people enjoy learning about themselves through short descriptions. As a student of psychology, I have studied several personality and psychological tests from the Rorschach to MMPI to Myers Briggs Type Indicator. I have spent a lot of time learning about the MBTI and find it very helpful in understanding communication and relationships. Many people take the MBTI during college at some point. The MMPI is one of the tests most often used when evaluating for the courts. Less scientific tests are often used for Human Resources departments. In Japan, the most popular personality measure is blood type; they use it for everything from employment to dating to marketing. (more…)

Posted on May 5, 2026 by Brooke Randolph

Top 10 Must-Have Pantry Basics

So, you’ve got a busy life. Classes, work, errands, a few kids thrown in the mixture that have this annoying habit of wanting to eat on a regular schedule. What’s a busy mom to do? Well, wait – scratch that. A busy mom might not think twice about hitting the drive-thru a few times a week. That’s not great for your wallet, and it definitely plays havoc on your health. I’m trying to focus more on the healthy side of the balance, though, and fast-food drive-ins don’t play well. So here’s a list of items that I keep on hand all the time to make a quick, healthy meal on the fly.

1 – Canned Beans. HUGE amounts of flavor, fiber and protein, and low in both fat and calories.

2- Whole Grain Pasta. Quick cooking and high in protein, you can make virtually anything – pasta salad, serve it with sauce, mix it with beans.

3- Frozen Vegetables and Fruits. Flash frozen straight from the field, they have a surprisingly high vitamin content and you can add them to tomato sauce to help fill little tummies. Frozen fruits make excellent smoothies, perfect for a fast breakfast. (more…)

Posted on May 5, 2026 by Carmen

4 Ways to Know if it’s Just Heartburn, or a Heart Attack

Maybe you’re not a hypochondriac, but when you get a sudden pain in the chest, you can’t help at least think about it: is that gas, or worse… a heart attack!

Okay, most of you probably aren’t that worried. But wouldn’t you like to know the difference between simple gas pains, and something much worse? In 2005, there were 445,687 deaths in the United States that were as a result of a heart attack or angina. That’s about one of every five deaths! So, maybe it is a good idea to know the difference, huh? (more…)

Posted on May 5, 2026 by Jason

Wine May Protect Against Cancer

Wine, how I love thee. It’s not like I needed more good news to drink it in moderation. But here we are with news that it may help protect you against cancer.

Researchers at the Yale School of Public Health presented their compelling findings at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research. They studied more than 500 women with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. And what they found was astounding.

“We found that wine had a protective effect,” says Xuesong Han, a doctoral candidate in cancer epidemiology. More encouraging was that the protective effects were strongest with the most common of type of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. (more…)

Posted on April 26, 2026 by Jason

5 Ways to Increase Metabolism

What is metabolism and how does it work? Metabolism consists of hormones and enzymes that convert food into fuel and also effects how efficiently the body burns that fuel. The fuel is converted into energy for the body to do anything from thinking to exercising.

According to KidsHealth.org there are two kinds of metabolism that occur at the same time. One is anabolism (constructive metabolism), which consists of building and storing while it supports the growth of new cells, maintenance of body tissues, and the storage of energy for future use. The second is catabolism (destructive metabolism), which is the process of producing the energy required for all activity in the cells. The cells break down large molecules to release energy which provides fuel for anabolism, heats the body, and allows the muscles to contract and the body to move. (more…)

Posted on April 21, 2026 by Matt

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