We all know what we should do at the first sign of blood in the stool, bloating in the belly or a lump just about anywhere. Early detection is one of the key factors in improved survival from most cancers, and we know these signs should send us scurrying to a doctor's office.
But a national survey (PDF) by Tower Cancer Research Foundation of 4,402 people shows we don't do what we know we should do. We stall. We hope the symptom will go away. We worry that our health insurance won't cover the care, and that we won't have enough money to pay for what we need.
The survey covered men and women's attitudes in general about cancer, then asked specific questions of people who had been diagnosed with the disease.
Cancer is the No. 1 health fear of most Americans, the survey found. Nearly 80% of respondents said that they worried that someday they would hear the dreaded diagnosis. Fear of heart disease, HIV and Alzheimer's make up the remaining 20% of most feared diseases.
Yet, of the 32% of respondents who suspected they had cancer before they were diagnosed with the disease, 52% waited two months to check it out medically; 15% waited one to five years before seeing a doctor.
When asked why, 38% said they hoped the symptoms would just go away; 32% said they procrastinated; 13% said they were afraid of what a doctor would find; and 13% said they did not have medical insurance.
"Hope, fear, procrastination and lack of medical insurance were all powerful forces preventing people from going to see a doctor," says Dr. Solomon Hamburg, president and chief executive officer of the foundation. "Those surveyed were cancer survivors but many people who delay going to a doctor for long periods of time for a diagnosis are not as fortunate. Early detection raises the bar considerably on our ability to help those in need.”
Of those who waited and worried, 43% said that if they had known earlier of a place to go for guidance and advice, they would have acted sooner. For starters, here's the National Cancer Institute site that can answer most of your preliminary questions, with links to further support. So now, that's one excuse you don't have.
Several years after Botox parties raised eyebrows, a San Diego County bar has begun holding a spa night in which patrons can order up a shot of Botox. One doctor calls it the "next not-quite-so-logical step" in society's embrace of Botoxed faces.
NBCSanDiego.com reported last week that WineStyles Bar in Coronado has invited a doctor to deliver Botox shots one evening per week. According to the website article, the doctor will not drink during the visit and will refuse to treat patrons who have had too much to drink. These stipulations are unlikely to impress medical societies, such as the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, which warned consumers against receiving Botox treatments in nonmedical settings in a 2002 statement.
"Botox injections should be performed in a setting with appropriate medical personnel and necessary equipment to safely observe patients and deal with potential complications, as well as provide for the disposal of medical waste as required by Occupational Safety," the organization's statement says.
New York plastic surgeon Kevin Tehrani told the Los Angeles Times that Botox should be administered in a confidential setting, where a patient's complete health history is recorded; by a qualified health professional and where record-keeping, including photographs, and emergency care is available. Those medical and ethical considerations, he says, should deter most doctors from setting up shop in bars, adding a final objection: "This is not even entertaining the idea of BWI (Botox While Intoxicated)."
Anyone who doesn’t know there’s a obesity crisis going on has no doubt been living their entire life on a catwalk. Adults are fat, kids are fat, there seems no end in sight, and a McDonald’s Crispy Ranch Snack Wrap has 340 calories and 17 grams of fat.
For those who hunger to understand the physiological, political and cultural implications of obesity, the California Science Center is sponsoring a panel discussion titled "The Science and Politics of Obesity: Who’s Policing Your Plate?" as part of the center’s Science Matters speakers program. It’s being held Saturday from 1 to 3 p.m. in the center's Wallis Annenberg Building.
"A lot of issues have been in the paper recently about obesity," says Diane Perlov, senior vice president of exhibits. "This seemed like a very timely issue — New York passed a ruling on transfats, and there are other legislative issues dealing with obesity." Panel members include Dr. James Levine of the Mayo Clinic, who will speak on the toll obesity takes on the body; Dr. Antronette K. Yancey of UCLA’s department of health services, who will address the disparities in communities that don’t have access to fresh fruits and vegetables or safe parks; Manal Aboelata, program director of the Prevention Institute in Oakland, who will tackle corporate and government responsibility; and J. Justin Wilson with the Center for Consumer Freedom in Washington, D.C., who will examine consumer responsibility. KNBC-TV Channel 4's reporter Conan Nolan will moderate.
The panel coincides with "Body Worlds 3", a reprise of a provocative exhibit at the science center featuring plastinated cadavers and body parts, the better to see what’s really inside the human body (it runs through Sept. 7). One particular specimen is a cross section slice of a 300-pound man whose fat encroached upon his vital organs. Seeing that is a wake-up call for many who see the exhibit. Says Perlov, "You think of fat as being just underneath the skin."
Reservations are required; register online, or call (213) 744-2420.
It takes about 30 seconds to hunt down a bag of tasty potato chips or fresh doughnuts in the grocery store. But shoppers can roam for hours trying to fill their carts with food that is healthy and tastes good. That's why Fitness magazine has come up with a second installment of its annual Healthy Food Awards.
The magazine, on newsstands today, asked a panel of nutritionists to create criteria to identify healthy foods, such as calorie and fat content. Then Fitness staffers put various foods to the taste test. Their list features 100 food items that can be found nationwide in most grocery stores. The full list is on the Fitness website. Here are a few of the winners:
Best popcorn: Pop Secret Light Butter Popcorn
Best frozen dinner: Kashi All Natural Chicken Florentine
Best sports drink: POWERade Lemon-Lime Energy Drink
Best cereal: Fiber One Honey Clusters
Best yogurt: Dannon Light & Fit Nonfat Vanilla Yogurt
Best energy bar: Clif Bar Oatmeal Raisin Walnut
Best cookie: Newman's Own Organics Newman-Os Creme Filled Chocolate Cookies
Best veggie burger: Boca Meatless All American Flame Grilled Burgers
Best cheese pizza: Kashi All Natural Original Crust Five Cheese Tomato Pizza
Best sliced bread: Arnold 100% Natural Whole Wheat Bread
Is your job a brain-buster? Here's something to think about: Having an intellectually challenging job may help stave off cognitive decline in old age.
In a study of 1,036 male twins, using data that went back to the early 1940s, researchers at Duke University Medical Center found that the more mentally challenging one's job, the better memory and other cognitive abilities held up after retirement, regardless of one's intelligence or years of education.
Further, the benefits of hard pondering at work were greatest among people who scored lower on IQ tests as children, while physically demanding jobs were associated with a decline in intellectual abilities in later life.
"Although the intellectual and physical demands of an individual's job are not the largest factors influencing cognitive performance as we age," says lead author Guy Potter, assistant professor of psychiatry at Duke, "this study illustrates how a number of smaller influences like these can accumulate over the life span to have a positive or negative effect on brain health in later life." The study appears in the May issue of the journal Neurology. Here's a link to the study's abstract (viewing the full study requires a subscription).
People generally check into hospitals to get well, not to get sicker. But hospital-acquired infections have become a major problem in this country and worldwide. Now a new study is pointing a finger of blame at hospital housekeeping staff and their cleaning techniques.
Researchers in Canada used a lotion that glows under ultraviolet light to show that up to one-third of patient toilets are not properly cleaned. The scientists checked for the dangerous bacterium Clostridium difficile, which causes diarrhea and can lead to blood poisoning and death. Even 40% of the samples taken from the cleanest toilets contained C. difficile spores, suggesting the cleaning agents may not be working so well either. The study was published in BMC Infectious Diseases.
Last month, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality reported that C. difficile cases in hospital patients increased by 200% between 2000 and 2005. Though no one relishes the thought of unclean hospital bathrooms, the repercussions of clinging C. difficile germs are profound. The healthcare agency reports that patients with the infection (which results after previous antibiotic therapy suppresses the normal bacteria of the colon) were hospitalized almost three times longer than uninfected patients and had an in-hospital death rate of 9.5% compared with 2.1% overall.
Check out these stories from elsewhere on the Web:
In Psychology Today, mental health experts ask whether we're living with our authentic selves:
"Contemporary culture seems to mock the very idea that there is anything solid and true about the self. Cosmetic surgery, psychopharmaceuticals, and perpetual makeovers favor a mutable ideal over the genuine article, MySpace profiles and tell-all blogs carry the whiff of wishful identity. Steroids, stimulants, and doping transform athletic and academic performance. Fabricated memoirs become bestsellers. Speed-dating discounts sincerity. Amid a clutter of counterfeits, the core self is struggling to assert itself."
On NPR, two parents ponder the best way to cope with their son's gender identity issues:
"Robert and Danielle soon came to find out about a new, highly controversial, treatment for preteen kids with gender identity issues. The treatment allows kids to postpone puberty and avoid developing the physical attributes of the sex they were born with."
And in the New York Times, people with artificial hips worry about what those sounds might mean:
"Any artificial hip can occasionally make a variety of noises. But until Stryker, a medical products company, began marketing highly durable ceramic hips in the United States in 2003, squeaking was extremely rare. Now, tens of thousands of ceramic hips later -- from Stryker and other makers that entered the field -- many patients say their squeaking hips are interfering with daily life."
Topping this week's Health offerings is a story on the almost-overnight plethora of probiotic-laced food, another on new treatments for enlarged prostates, and a feature on the wealth of exercise possibilities at the beach. An odd mix perhaps -- but that's the point. It seems unlikely that all readers would be interested in every story, so we try to offer a variety, increasing the chances that at least one story will have an effect.
Probiotics: Unless shoppers ignore all food advertisements, never venture into grocery stores or simply refuse to eat, they've likely been the target of healthful-bacteria-will-change-your-life marketing. These pitches are everywhere -- and not just in my overstuffed inbox. Consumers, we figured, deserved to know whether this rapidly growing category of products lives up to the increasingly adamant hype. Read story
Prostates: As a general interest publication, we don't often focus on specific conditions. They're all-important to the folks who have them and the organizations promoting awareness of them, but the numbers just don't add up for a general interest publication. Most readers simply do not share a common health problem. But half (or almost half) the population has a prostate and, sooner or later, it's likely to become enlarged. Of course -- as a news outlet, not just a general interest one -- we also have to focus on what's changed. With treatment of enlarged prostate, it turns out, much has changed. New drug treatments, less invasive surgical procedures ... today's treatment options are far different and better than yesterday's. And likely to improve further. Read story
Beach exercise: It seems most people want (or believe that they should) get more activity in their lives. But they seem to think that doing so requires an exercise routine that would bore organisms living outside hamster cages. Not so. To prove it (and help get Southern Californians moving because, let's face it, they need to), we went to one of the area's most enviable offerings -- the beach. (The relatively high risk of being flattened by inebriated stars or their pursuing paparazzi doesn't count as enviable. Though I suppose there could be a dodge-'em-if-you-can workout opportunity there. Think of the cardio benefits! The core training! The improvements in reflexes!) In doing so, we give readers a taste of some of the options open to everyone -- and highlight the non-life-endangering fun that can be had at the same time. Read story
What these stories have in common is that they each have the potential to improve readers' health. So whether you want to eat healthfully, avoid having to visit the bathroom every hour; or would rather dodge rush-hour traffic on Pico than hit a treadmill, we hope you find one, or more, useful.
Amid the vast landscape of weight loss books (and by vast, we mean headache-inducingly massive), a few stand out. One is Janice Taylor's "All Is Forgiven, Move On," a follow-up to her 2006 book, "Our Lady of Weight Loss." The second, like the first, is a funny, informative, enlightening and uplifting look at losing weight -- and it even includes crafts!
In "All Is Forgiven" (Viking Studio, 2008), Taylor doles out even more sage advice for dropping pounds and keeping them off (or as she puts it, "permanent fat removal"). What we appreciate most is the matter-of-fact, girlfriend-ish way she talks to her readers. While she admonishes them to eat more vegetables, exercise and for God's sake get rid of the junk food, Taylor never does it in a finger wagging way. Nor is she horribly dry and tedious, even when quoting research studies. Like "Our Lady," she also includes easy, tasty, healthy recipes. All of that helps take the stress out of dieting and exercising, which, as we know, can be angst-producing and lead to the dreaded downward spiral of self-loathing.
"If people have lost weight," says Taylor by phone from her New York home, "there's fear and anxiety if they've fallen off the wagon that this monster has returned, and that sets off the downward spiral."
That's why she decided to focus on forgiveness and moving on in the new book, hence the title. "At the heart it's about loving yourself," she adds. "I can't think of anything more important than loving yourself, in a non-narcissistic way. Then you can be there for other people."
Taylor has kept off more than 50 pounds for several years, and works as a weight loss coach, motivational speaker and hypnotherapist, in addition to blogging for Beliefnet.
She shares her philosophy about the realities of losing weight: "It's as hard as you want to make it. People have this agreed-upon reality that it's this horrible thing. So you start out depressed, deprived and defeated, and that's good. It gives you enough energy to get going. But if you think it's going to be hard and you're never going to make it, what makes this time different from all the others?"
That made us dive back into the book for one more bit of inspiration.
"We have a tendency to negate our wins by focusing on the minor slips of the day," Taylor writes. "If you said, 'No, thank you,' four times, rejoice. What else did you do today that was stupendous?"
That was my reaction recently when I saw the sell-by date on some juice I had grabbed from a mini-refrigerator perched on a cabinet near my desk. The expiration date was March 2005. Weâre not meticulous housekeepers.
The juice tasted OK, but it looked a little brown, especially toward the bottom, where it was really brown, which is what prompted me to look at the label. As I contemplated the grisly possibilities of what might await me, I wondered what the sell-by date on food really means. At what point is something too old to eat? And more to the point, can a person die from drinking really, really old orange juice?
Turns out, the shelf life of Tree Top products is determined by the level of vitamin C in the product that persists over time, says Kevin Rackham, director of quality assurance/food safety at Tree Top. Over time, the level of vitamin C in the product will change, and the nutritional labeling on the product will no longer be accurate.
"We've determined this to be 12 months," he reports in an email forwarded by Laura Prisc, Tree Top's corporate communications manager. "So the shelf life on our juices and sauces is 12 months. However, there is no safety concern with eating apple sauce or drinking any of our juices after that 'best by' or 'sell by' date, but the level of vitamin C in the product will be lower."
Also, he says, the color may change over time, due to temperature and light exposure, but, again, the product is safe. The exception to this is if the packaging has been breached or there is visible "bloating" of the container. In those cases, it's best to steer clear of the product.
This got me thinking about other food items, and how long they last, which brought me to the U.S. Department of Agriculture web site, where there's all sorts of helpful information about food storage.
For example, did you know that you can keep canned ham in your pantry for two years, or that canned meat and poultry will last two to five years?
Click here for more information about how long you can keep food.
Tami Dennis, who takes the word "skeptic" to previously uncharted territory, is editor of The Times' Health section. She's adamant that pitches promoting awareness days, weeks or months are, by their nature, non-stories. And, because she's an adult, she refuses to use words like "veggies," "tummy" and "yummy."
Rosie Mestel, Health section deputy editor, studied genetics before abandoning flies, fungi and DNA for health/medical writing. Her hero is the biologist Ernst Haeckel, whose jellyfish paintings inspired snazzy chandeliers. Her favorite toast-spread is Marmite, a British delicacy made of yeast extract. Her least-favorite word is "millenniums."
Susan Brink has made health and medicine her beat for 26 of her 28 years in the business. She’s covered a wide range of disease and health policy stories, and is always on the lookout for fresh angles. Few things make her happier than busting through preconceived notions to give readers an accurate view of people behaving as…well, real people.
Janet Cromley never met a wacky health or fitness topic she didn’t like. In her more than 15 years at The Times, she has written about everything from prison nurses to the sex life of grunion, neither of which made for good family reading. She holds a masters degree in counseling psychology, something that comes in very handy when handling reluctant sources and explaining to pitchmen why a bunion isn’t a story.
Melissa Healy is a staff writer for the Health section reporting from Washington D.C. Healy's a veteran of The Times' National staff, having covered the Pentagon, Congress, poverty and social welfare, the environment, and the White House before shifting to Health in 2003. She writes frequently about mental health and human behavior, about federal health policy, prescription medication and ethics in medicine. More wonk than wellness freak, Healy chooses to believe in the health benefits of coffee and wine, and considers water a better work-out medium than beverage.
After a brief stint as a sports writer, Shari Roan turned to health journalism and has covered the topic for The Times for 18 years. She is the author of three books and the mother of two daughters, both teenagers who refer to her as a "health freak." She likes to jog, watch baseball and is very happy that dark chocolate contains some health benefit.
Jeannine Stein writes about fitness, sports medicine and obesity for the Health section. She’s a gym rat from way back and never met an elliptical trainer she didn’t like. Well, maybe one or two. She tempers exercise with a steady diet of reality television because she believes it’s all about balance.
We all know what we should do at the first sign of blood in the stool, bloating in the belly or a lump just about anywhere. Early detection is one of the key factors in improved survival from most cancers, and we know these signs should send us scurrying to a doctor's office.
It takes about 30 seconds to hunt down a bag of tasty potato chips or fresh doughnuts in the grocery store. But shoppers can roam for hours trying to fill their carts with food that is healthy and tastes good. That's why Fitness magazine has come up with a second installment of its annual Healthy Food Awards.
And in the 
Topping this week's Health offerings is a story on the almost-overnight plethora of probiotic-laced food, another on new treatments for enlarged prostates, and a feature on the wealth of exercise possibilities at the beach. An odd mix perhaps -- but that's the point. It seems unlikely that all readers would be interested in every story, so we try to offer a variety, increasing the chances that at least one story will have an effect.
Amid the vast landscape of weight loss books (and by vast, we mean headache-inducingly massive), a few stand out. One is 
She shares her philosophy about the realities of losing weight: "It's as hard as you want to make it. People have this agreed-upon reality that it's this horrible thing. So you start out depressed, deprived and defeated, and that's good. It gives you enough energy to get going. But if you think it's going to be hard and you're never going to make it, what makes this time different from all the others?"
