Health News Digest 12/17/2008

Today marks the beginning of a new feature here at OlsonND.com, the weekly Health News Digest. I will compile and review the latest research on a variety of health news items. Health News: HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY (HRT): HRT and the risks of breast cancer were reviewed in a recent symposium. It appears that even using HRT for a short time increased the risk of breast cancer. Which begs the question: why use HRT? The risks are not a small increase, but for some women constitute a doubling of their risk for breast cancer. Dr. Scott’s Comments: Hormones are powerful...
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Gifts for the Health Nut in your Life

Gifts for the Health Nut in your Life

Since I have more than a passing interest in health, I tend to get this question often: what do you think are the best books to read. You might not think so at first, but I also get a related question: how do you stay motivated to eat a healthy diet? And this time of year, people are always asking me what are good gifts for the health nut in their lives. I love books, a few of the books below have changed my life; not too many gifts have that ability, so most of this post is about...
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Sugar a Real Addiction? You Bet!

Research is, once again, confirming what we all know about sugar: it is addictive. While it is frustrating that it has taken this long for science to catch on to sugar addiction (remember that Sugar Blues was written in the 1970's), it is great to hear that research is starting to back up what many of us have known for a long time.
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What if I Die?

Anyone who reads this blog on a regular basis knows that I’m a big proponent of eating better. I support eating better because it is the most powerful way to change your health. Yes, it is more powerful than drugs and even supplements. The second most powerful way to improve your health is exercise.
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Illness as a Teacher

There are many ways to look at illness: you can think you are unlucky, or that you "caught" something, or that you are not healthy, but I like to think of illness as a teacher. Because thinking of illness as a teacher give you an immediate plan: figure out what is missing in your life and fix it.
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Can Cancer Disappear?

Here Today, Gone Tomorrow A new study out today brings to question the thought that some cancers may go away on their own without any treatment. The findings are remarkable because in this study, the took a look at one of the more common cancers: breast cancer. Here is what happened: The study, in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine took a look at two groups of women. The first group were women from age 50 to 69 who were invited to participate in breast cancer screening for five years. These women had mammography three times during the years...
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