The Checkup: October 31, 2010 - November 6, 2010

Is that right? Vitamin E boosts cardio health?

The new study teases out results from previous research regarding Vitamin E supplements' effect on cardiovascular health. Until that teasing-out, it had seemed that extra Vitamin E (beyond that that we typically get through our diets) didn't much affect our risk of cardiovascular disease one way or another. But on closer inspection, it turns out that taking Vitamin E, while reducing risk of ischemic stroke by about 10 percent, actually increases risk of the more-dangerous hemorrhagic stroke by 22 percent.

By Jennifer LaRue Huget  | November 5, 2010; 7:00 AM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (14)
Categories:  Cardiovascular Health, Dietary supplements, Nutrition and Fitness, Prevention, Vitamins  
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Second thoughts about nude baby photos

I hate that loving, well-meaning parents have to think twice before taking bear-rug photos of their kids. But I suppose it's more important to protect children against pedophiles and other dangers than to have immortal images of their bare butts.

By Jennifer LaRue Huget  | November 4, 2010; 7:00 AM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (19)
Categories:  Parenting, Social Media  
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Is the FDA doing its job?

A new report is renewing questions about the Food and Drug Administration's oversight of medical devices. In a paper published in the British medical journal known as BMJ, investigative journalist Jeanne Lenzer and Shannon Brownlee of the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice raise questions about the FDA's...

By Rob Stein  | November 3, 2010; 7:00 AM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (44)
Categories:  FDA, Obesity  
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Is 1,500 mg of sodium a realistic goal?

Even if you don't add salt at the stove or the table, it's hard to keep your sodium intake that low. Packaged and processed foods and restaurant meals are by far our biggest sources of sodium; even skim milk delivers a dose. You'd have to cook practically everything you eat from scratch to stay within 1,500 mg a day.

By Jennifer LaRue Huget  | November 2, 2010; 7:00 AM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (4)
Categories:  Dietary Guidelines, Nutrition and Fitness, Sodium  
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Your college kid, plus 15

Did your child gain weight when he or she went off to college? How did you react when he or she came home for the holidays? Did you offer advice, or did you opt to keep your mouth shut?

By Jennifer LaRue Huget  | November 1, 2010; 7:00 AM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (1)
Categories:  Childhood obesity, Nutrition and Fitness, Obesity, Parenting, Teens  
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