Category Archives: Health Facts

Drinking Diet or Regular Soda Could Boost Depression Risk

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Greg Asseff

You might opt for diet soda instead of regular pop to save a few calories, but a new study by the National Institutes of Health indicates that you could be doing your mental health more harm than good in either case. The results suggest that there may be a link between diet soda and depression (and other diet beverages). The study, almost 20 years in the making, included nearly 264,000 adults from various parts of the United States. The study could be very relevant to many Americans, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that around 1 in 10 adults in the U.S. report suffering from depression. People between the age of 45 and 64 seem to be the most likely to have the condition. Other groups that have high depression rates include women, people whose highest education level is lower than high school, and those that have been divorced.

Posted in Diet, Food, Health, Health Facts, Mental Health, News, Nutrition, Studies, Weight Loss | 1 Comment

How Many People Quit Smoking at New Years? Resolution Rates Rise

Posted on January 8, 2013 by Greg Asseff

If you decided to quit smoking for your New Year’s resolution this year, you’re in good company. In comparison to 2012, twice as many people chose to base their New Year’s resolution around quitting smoking in 2013. The news comes courtesy of Legacy, a research organization that advocates smoking cessation. Legacy sent email questionnaires to over 1,500 smokers in the U.S., all of whom were over the age of 18 and had smoked more than 100 cigarettes previously to find out how many people quit smoking on New Years. The survey found that 34% of those polled who made a New Year’s resolution had opted to quit smoking. Just 18% of the same types of individuals said the same thing in 2012. The results might indicate that more and more individuals are continuing to take the health risks of smoking very seriously.

Posted in Health, Health Facts, Medical, News, Studies | 1 Comment

Glucose and Fructose – Which is Better At Satisfying Hunger?

Posted on January 3, 2013 by Greg Asseff

If losing weight is a component (or the entire focus) of your New Year’s resolution, you can greatly improve your chances of success by eating foods that keep you feeling fuller, longer. A new study into glucose and fructose conducted by Yale University School of Medicine suggests that you would be wise to choose glucose sugar over fructose sugar if this is your goal. That’s because glucose does a much better job of sending signals indicating appetite satiation to your brain, subsequently causing you to feel full, according to the researchers behind the study. In comparison, eating fructose sugar does very little to contribute to a sense of fullness. While one of the best strategies for losing weight involves a significant cutback in sugar consumption, the study seems to indicate that glucose is preferable if sweets are going to be ingested.

Posted in Diet, Food, Health, Health Facts, Medical, Mental Health, News, Nutrition, Studies, Weight Loss | 3 Comments

CPSC Issues Nap Nanny Recall

Posted on December 31, 2012 by Greg Asseff

If you’re a new parent who’s been on a baby shopping spree this holiday season, listen up: The CPSC, or U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, has issued a recall of over 150,000 products manufactured by Baby Matters, LLC. According to the recall, the affected items include Nap Nanny Generation One (5,000 units), Nap Nanny Generation Two (50,000 units) and Nap Nanny Chill (100,000 units). If you own one of these units, it’s important to abide by the Nap Nanny recall and return it to the retailer immediately as you could be putting your infant at risk. Unfortunately, Baby Matters, LLC is either unwilling or unable to participate in the voluntary Nap Nanny recall issued by the CPSC. As such, the CPSC has asked for assistance from Toys R Us, Diapers.com, Buy Buy Baby and Amazon.com, four of the biggest distributors of Nap Nanny products.

Posted in Health, Health Facts, Medical, News, Parenting, Studies | 7,255 Comments

Best New Year’s Resolutions and How to Realize Them

Posted on December 27, 2012 by Greg Asseff

New Year’s resolutions have almost become a joke in modern society – everybody makes one, but very few actually keep them and follow through with their plan. For many people, a New Year’s resolution involves improving health, kicking old habits like smoking, losing weight, improving physical appearance or something similar. All good goals, no doubt, but why do they always seem to fail? In some cases, the problem is that the goal was poorly defined, had no deadline, was unrealistic, or just didn’t appropriately match the actual needs of the individual. However, even with proper goal-setting techniques, the best New Year’s resolutions fail due to a lack of the knowledge and resources necessary for completing the goal. Here are five tips that should help you make your resolution a reality.