The dirty secret of antibacterial soaps

For years, scientific studies have been sounding the alarm that antibacterial soaps may do more harm than good. Now, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is putting its foot down, issuing a ban against 19 ingredients, including the most common ones -- triclosan and triclocarban. Makers of these soaps have one year to remove the banned ingredients; luckily, some have already begun phasing them out. The reason? These ingredients may be putting your health at risk, and quite frankly, they’re no better than regular ol’ soap and water!

PTSD linked with mental decline and dementia among September 11 first responders

On Sept. 11, 2001, selfless rescuers and first responders rushed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center. It was a day of terror in New York City, rattling the nation as many of us watched the scene unfold on TV. As rescue efforts continued amidst the rubble, stories of hope emerged, thanks to the efforts of first responders. Now, over a decade later, the aftermath still lingers in their minds -- and it’s affecting their health, according to a recent study.

Simplify the hard task of picking the right cancer treatment: Let your genes decide

After a diagnosis of cancer comes the discussion of treatment options. The patient contemplates trying chemotherapy or radiation therapy, but wonders whether these treatment options will work. After all, they do come with a lot of collateral damage. For some people, the treatment causes more trouble than if the growth was just left untreated. Meanwhile, others respond quite well to the treatment. So, how is a patient to know which category he or she will fall into?

What you should know before reaching for the calcium supplements

Calcium supplements are pretty popular, but they may not be helping your health like you think they are. Many people take them for their bones, but research shows “the more the merrier” just isn’t the case with calcium. Taking in excess calcium (more than you need) in the form of supplements or food won’t make your bones less likely to break. Plus, calcium supplements may cause bloating, constipation, interference with medications, and particularly in men, greater heart attack risk (due to vascular calcification).

5 reasons you need the health benefits of omega 3s

We hear a lot about healthy fats and how good they are for our bodies. In fact, they’re a mainstay of the praised Mediterranean diet, with staples like olive oil, whole grains and avocado. One of the reasons the Mediterranean diet is often recommended is due to the healthy omega-3 and omega-6 ratio, with more omega-3s in the diet than omega-6s. The typical Western diet gets plenty of omega-6s, but not enough omega-3s, and this can cause inflammation and disease.

Omega-3s: What’s the difference between DHA and EPA?

Omega-3 fatty acids are known for their brain and heart health benefits, but then you see terms like DHA and EPA thrown around in the same sentence. These types of omega-3s each serve unique functions. So what is the difference between DHA and EPA?

Your quick guide to eating clean (don’t get groceries without this)

“Eating clean” is something you hear a lot. But what does it mean for food to be “clean”? And what’s “dirty” about food that isn’t so-called “clean”? Clean eating is all about eating more whole, nutritious, fresh foods -- as nature intended. Clean foods are unprocessed, or minimally processed, and are in their most natural, organic form, free of pesticides, GMOs, added sugar, unhealthy fats, preservatives, color additives, binders, stabilizers and emulsifiers. So if you've ever tried to eat clean or want to, here's a quick cheat sheet.

Why older patients could be worse off after going to the hospital

Imagine arriving to the hospital with injuries from a fall, hoping to be treated and released so you can get back to your home and your life. But bad turns to worse. You’re almost entirely immobile the whole time, stuck on bedrest, tethered to your IV and oxygen. You’re not eating or sleeping well, and it doesn’t help that you’re in a noisy ward, having your vitals monitored at all hours of the night.

Exercise found to be a natural treatment for menopause hot flashes in women

Women going through menopause often bemoan the infamous hot flashes, also sometimes referred to as hot flushes, that accompany this time of transition. Hot flashes are described as a sudden feeling of heat spreading through the body, most often concentrated on the face, neck and chest. Blood rushes to the skin, sometimes causing a flushed appearance thanks to dilating blood vessels. This is accompanied by sweating and reduced brain blood flow, too.

What are the “benefits” of acupuncture and does it really work?

Based in traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture involves having thin needles placed in your skin. Practitioners say they choose specific areas of the body to modify the flow of energy in order to relieve physical or emotional ailments. They say that when an acupuncture needle is inserted into the body, the body releases endorphins that decrease sensations of pain and trigger the immune system to kick in.

The skinny fat phenomenon: Why being thin doesn’t mean you’re healthy

Being “fat” doesn’t always mean what you think it means. If you’re imagining a large figure, visible rolls of fat and big numbers on a scale, you may not be aware of the “skinny fat” phenomenon. Take this woman, for example, featured in The New York Times, weighing in at just 119 lbs., but with fat around her organs, she developed problems associated with obesity like Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and a fatty liver. Not what you’d expect for someone who looks skinny and is just 119 lbs.! Looking “thin” can be misleading when you are skinny fat.

How to actually lose weight and keep it off

On the show “The Biggest Loser,” participants arrive seriously obese, then drop pounds dramatically with a combination of intense exercise and carefully planned eating. But after the show, many contestants gain it all back. So how can non-reality show people keep the weight off, then?

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