Which is better?

Take our quiz to test your knowledge and learn to make smart food choices

The key to maintaining a healthy body weight is eating lots of fruits, vegetables and whole grains, while limiting sugar and fat. But we're confronted with so many food choices every day. How are we to guess which ones are the most nutrient-rich or lightest in calories?
While most of the items could fit into a healthy diet, nutrition expert Elisa Zied, R.D., compares some everyday foods and snacks and suggests which ones can best help you stick to a well-balanced -- and leaner -- diet. Interested in testing your skills: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21570923/

Parents face jail for not vaccinating their kids

In an article on Msnbc.com today November 18 2007,
UPPER MARLBORO, Md. - Scores of grumbling parents facing a threat of jail lined up at a courthouse Saturday to either prove that their school-age kids already had their required vaccinations or see that the youngsters submitted to the needle.
The get-tough policy in the Washington suburbs of Prince George’s County was one of the strongest efforts made by any U.S. school system to ensure its youngsters receive their required immunizations.
Two months into the school year, school officials realized that more than 2,000 students in the county still didn’t have the vaccinations they were supposed to have before attending class.

More details at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21839294/

Mangosteen can help you stay healthy!

Mangosteens are Packed with Beneficial Xanthones, a New Class of Powerful Phytonutrients
Xanthones are found in the most quantities in the mangosteen hull (or pericarp) and can help you to STAY healthy by boosting your immune system. According to professional journals such as Free Radical Research, Journal of Pharmacology, and the Indian Journal of Experimental Biology, these Xanthones...are some of the most powerful antioxidants to be found in nature. While it’s true that most young people are healthy -- and thankfully so -- no matter how old you are, you're being exposed to free radicals by the millions each day.
"It has been estimated that each human cell undergoes ten thousand hits from free radicals each day... causing damage to cell proteins, DNA, fat lipids, and membranes through oxidation. This results in the generation of dysfunctional molecules responsible for conditions as diverse as cancers, lung disease, demential, cardio vascular disease and eye diseases." For more details: http://researchmangosteen.com/

DHEA improves women's in-vitro fertilization chances!

An article published in the October 27, 2007 issue of New Scientist magazine revealed the benefits of the use of the hormone dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) by women attempting to conceive using their own eggs via in-vitro fertilization (IVF). In vitro fertilization involves the extraction of eggs from a woman's ovaries to be fertilized outside of the body. Women who produce few ripe eggs have a reduced chance of IVF success.
Norbert Gleicher, MD, of New York's Center for Human Reproduction observed an increased in the pregnancy rate in his clinic from 11 to 23 percent among patients over 40 years of age who have supplemented with DHEA. Dr Gleicher began suggesting three 25 milligram doses of DHEA per day after observing the spectacular results achieved by one of his patients who supplemented with the hormone. Acting on the results of a small trial published in the October, 2000 issue of the journal Human Reproduction, the patient tried supplementing with DHEA in an effort to boost the number of eggs produced by her ovaries. The 42 year old woman increased the amount of extractable eggs from one per IVF cycle to 19 over the course of seven cycles. "We were kind of stunned,” said Dr Gleicher. more info at: http://www.lef.org/whatshot/index.html#diwi

Autumn: Time for Sour Flavors

By Dr. Maoshing Ni, L.Ac., D.O.M., Ph.D.
Autumn marks the turning point between the heat of summer and the cold of winter. The cooling weather ushers in the harvest and heralds the dying cycle in nature. The seasonal change also causes the respiratory system to constrict, leading to cough, asthma, bronchitis, and even pneumonia. Chinese medicine has always associated autumn with the lungs and large intestine. The Yellow Emperor advises early to bed and early to rise, practice breathing exercises, avoid pungent flavors but increase sour ones in the diet, drink fluids and eat soups, and remain calm and relaxed to avoid the diseases typical of autumn. for more details: http://www.acupuncture.com/newsletters/m_oct07/autumn_nutrition.htm

High fiber and magnesium may cut diabetes risk.

High fiber and magnesium may cut diabetes risk
Last Updated: 2007-05-14 16:00:21 -0400 (Reuters Health)
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - High levels of cereal fiber and magnesium are associated with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus, according to a report in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
The findings stem from an analysis performed by Dr. Matthias B. Schulze and colleagues from the German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke, Nuthetal. The study involved over 25,000 adults, between 35 and 65 years of age, who were followed from 1994 to 2005 for diabetes. A food-frequency questionnaire was used to assess the participants for the amounts of dietary fiber and magnesium.
During follow-up, 844 subjects developed type 2 diabetes, the report indicates. Compared with the subjects with the lowest cereal fiber intake, those with the highest intake had a 28-percent reduction in diabetes risk. read: http://www.meta-ehealth.com/site/office/latest_news/article.jsp?path=latest_news&id=11&category=nulld:

Fatty acid tied to depression and inflammation.

Fatty acid tied to depression and inflammation
Last Updated: 2007-04-17 11:50:28 -0400 (Reuters Health)
By Anne Harding
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The imbalance of fatty acids in the typical American diet could be associated with the sharp increase in heart disease and depression seen over the past century, a new study suggests.
Specifically, the more omega-6 fatty acids people had in their blood compared with omega-3 fatty acid levels, the more likely they were to suffer from symptoms of depression and have higher blood levels of inflammation-promoting compounds, report Dr. Janice K. Kiecolt-Glaser and her colleagues from Ohio State University College of Medicine in Columbus.
These compounds, which include tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin-6, are "all-purpose 'nasties' for aging," and have been tied to heart disease, type 2 diabetes, arthritis and other ailments, Kiecolt-Glaser told Reuters Health.
Omega-3 fatty acids are found in foods such as fish, flax seed oil and walnuts, while omega-6 fatty acids are found in refined vegetable oils used to make everything from margarine to baked goods and snack foods. The amount of omega-6 fatty acids in the Western diet increased sharply once refined vegetable oils became part of the average diet in the early 20th century.

Read: http://www.meta-ehealth.com/site/office/latest_news/article.jsp?path=latest_news&id=5&category=null