ATLANTA - You can add Canadians to the list of foreigners who are healthier than Americans. Americans are 42 percent more likely than Canadians to have diabetes, 32 percent more likely to have high blood pressure, and 12 percent more likely to have arthritis, Harvard Medical School researchers found. That is according to a survey in which American and Canadian adults were asked over the telephone about their health. The study comes less than a month after other researchers reported that middle-aged, white Americans are much sicker than their counterparts in England.

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WASHINGTON May 29, 2006 (AP)— Another reason to worry about global warming: more and itchier poison ivy. The noxious vine grows faster and bigger as carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere rise... Compared to poison ivy grown in usual atmospheric conditions, those exposed to the extra-high carbon dioxide grew about three times larger and produced more allergenic form of urushiol, scientists from Duke and Harvard University reported.

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Overactive bladder, diabetic nerve pain, excessive sweating, migraine headaches, voice tremors — these are just a few of the conditions that the drug Botox can treat. This week came the news that yet another condition might be alleviated by Botox — benign prostatic hypertrophy, or prostate enlargement.

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LOS ANGELES, California (Reuters) -- Marijuana smoking does not increase a person's risk of developing lung cancer, according to the findings of a new study at the University of California Los Angeles that surprised even the researchers. They had expected to find that a history of heavy marijuana use, like cigarette smoking, would increase the risk of cancer. Instead, the study, which compared the lifestyles of 611 Los Angeles County lung cancer patients and 601 patients with head and neck cancers with those of 1,040 people without cancer, found no elevated cancer risk for even the heaviest pot smokers. It did find a 20-fold increased risk of lung cancer in people who smoked two or more packs of cigarettes a day.

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Egg freezing — the scientific term is oocyte cryopreservation — isn't an entirely new concept, having several years ago become a way for women to try to preserve their fertility after chemotherapy. Back then, however, the procedure's success rates were low... That changed in 2005 when scientists in Italy... found a new method of freezing and thawing the eggs that kept them more intact... In addition to being experimental, the procedure is expensive. Christy Jones... cites the cost at about $13,000 per cycle, but she insists the peace of mind is worth it. "When you also compare it to the other costs of having a child down the road, whether that be going to fertility treatments or the cost of adopting, which can run to $20- or $30,000 … I think it's definitely an investment that's worthwhile," said Jones.

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There are new tools to help stay safe in the sun, including so-called "sunscreen pills." "Basically, these pills are made up of a little beta carotene and vitamin antioxidants, and antioxidants are known to help protect the skin against the DNA damage the sun can create," said Paula Bourelly, a Maryland dermatologist. "There's nothing wrong with these pills, per se. There haven't been enough studies on their effectiveness as yet, and they don't replace sunscreen"... Beside pills, Bourelly noted that antioxidants like green tea were also showing up in sunscreens, because they enhanced the skin's ability to protect against the sun's damaging rays.

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In recent years, many doctors have urged patients to eat oily fish — such as mackerel, herring, albacore tuna and salmon — or take fish oil supplements. Both contain omega-3 fatty acids, which have been linked to better recovery from heart disease and a lower risk in older people of atrial fibrillation, in which the heart's electrical system malfunctions, and the muscle fails to beat in an orderly fashion. But it's not entirely clear that omega-3 fats are good for the general population without heart disease. And some research has suggested they may actually boost the risk of atrial fibrillation in certain people, such as those younger than 60... What could explain the seemingly contradictory finding? It's possible that omega-3 fatty acids may actually promote the development of atrial fibrillation in younger people but prevent it in older people who have other medical conditions, said study author Dr. Anthony Aizer, an electrophysiologist at New York University Medical Center.

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Several studies suggest that consumers believe that taking a multivitamin promotes health and can prevent some common diseases, but the evidence for both is "quite thin," said the panel's chairman, J. Michael McGinnis, senior scholar at the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine. Some of the evidence had conflicting results. For example, studies found a clear protective benefit against lung cancer for those who eat a diet rich in fruit and vegetables. But when Scandinavian scientists gave study volunteers beta carotene, commonly found in orange-colored fruit and vegetables, the risk of lung cancer in smokers increased.

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For some people, the Internet may promote addictive behaviors and pseudo-intimate interpersonal relationships... "Such cyberspace contacts may result in cyber disorders such as virtual relationships that evolve into online marital infidelity (cybersex) or online sexually compulsive behaviors"... "Obsession with and craving time on the computer results in neglect of real-life personal relationships to the point of divorce"... Signs and symptoms of Internet addiction include a general disregard for health and appearance; sleep deprivation due to spending so much time online; and decreased physical activity and social interaction with others. Dry eyes, carpal tunnel syndrome, and repetitive motion injuries of the hands and fingers are common. Internet addicts may also get the "cyber shakes" when off line, exhibiting agitation and typing motions of the fingers when not at the computer.

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A 70-year-old Japanese climber reportedly scaled Mount Everest making him the oldest person in the world to achieve the feat... a five-member team including Takao Arayama, who is aged 70 years, 7 months and 13 days, reached the summit of the 8,848-meter (29,028-foot) mountain... Arayama... started climbing mountains in his 40s and has also scaled 6,194-meter Mount McKinley -- the highest peak in North America.

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New federal guidelines ask all females capable of conceiving a baby to treat themselves -- and to be treated by the health care system -- as pre-pregnant, regardless of whether they plan to get pregnant anytime soon. Among other things, this means all women between first menstrual period and menopause should take folic acid supplements, refrain from smoking, maintain a healthy weight and keep chronic conditions such as asthma and diabetes under control.

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Self-confessed tan-aholic Tara Burton admits she can't live without the beauty of the bronzed look — visiting the tanning booth up to three times a week... But doctors fear she could be physically addicted. The 33-year-old mom is part of a new Wake Forest University study that found some frequent users of tanning beds get a regular endorphin hit, experiencing a "high" similar to drugs like heroin. "Their skin looks terrible: It's all loose, and wrinkled, and mottled-colored and leathery looking," said Dr. Steven Feldman a professor of dermatology at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine. "And you ask these people, 'Why are you doing this to yourself?' and they say, 'Ahh, it makes me feel so good.' " In the study, frequent tanners were given a drug that blocked the pleasurable sensations that go along with the tanning bed experience after their sessions. Half of them suffered withdrawals.

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ATLANTA - Scientists disagreed Thursday over whether the abortion pill RU-486 played any role in the deaths of four California women who died from a rare bacterial infection. One researcher said he believes RU-486 enabled the deadly bacteria, and another scientist recommended use of the pill be reduced or eliminated. But other experts at a scientific meeting exploring the cases emphatically challenged those conclusions, calling them at best premature. “I don’t think there’s a consensus” among medical experts, said Dr. Sandra Kweder of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

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Next time you chat online, think twice about your screen name. A new study finds that using a female screen name like Cathy, Melissa or Stephanie is more likely to elicit threatening and sexually explicit messages. In the study, automated chat-bots and human researchers logged on to chat rooms under female, male and ambiguous screen names, such as Nightwolf, Orgoth and Stargazer. Bots using female names averaged 100 malicious messages a day, compared with about four for those using male names and about 25 for those with ambiguous names. Researchers logging on themselves produced similar results.

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One out of every seven prescriptions in 2001 was written by U.S. doctors on “little or no scientific support.” They’re called off-label prescriptions — the use of drugs for therapies not listed on the product labels or approved by the Food and Drug Administration... Some off-label uses are beneficial and based on good science. But because virtually every drug has side effects, an off-label prescription can do more harm than good.

So talk to your doctor and ask for more information before venturing into off-label prescriptions.

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Medtronic Inc., the world's biggest maker of medical devices... is trying to develop a battery-powered gastric pacemaker that causes the stomach to contract, sending signals of satiety to the appetite center in the brain, [while] a small start-up also is working with the famed Mayo Clinic on a device that uses electricity to paralyze the stomach, reducing or stopping contractions that churn food as part of the digestion process.

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Give yourself a full day to find a suit - don’t try to squeeze it in on your lunch hour. Don't wear granny panties when trying on skimpy bottoms: You won't be able to really see your suit's lines. Be ready to go up a size or two. Many suits are cut small, so if you're a size 8, take an 8, 10 and even a 12 into the fitting room. And be sure to ask about the store's return policy before you buy.

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Frito-Lay Inc. announced that its two top-grossing brands of chips — Lays and Ruffles — would be prepared with NuSun sunflower oil rather than cottonseed oil. The oil switch will reduce the amount of artery-clogging saturated fat in the chips by more than 50 percent, but it will not reduce the amount of calories by very much. A one-ounce serving of Lays Classic Potato Chips has 150 calories and 10 grams of fat (1 gram is saturated — it was previously 3 grams).

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In a deal announced Wednesday by the William J. Clinton Foundation, the nation's largest beverage distributors agreed to stop selling non-diet sodas to most public schools, where childhood obesity has become an increasing concern. "This is a bold step forward in the struggle to help 35 million young people lead healthier lives," former President Clinton said.

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Chain store retailers — especially teen retailers — reported strong performance at the register... A quick look at the performance of some of the major retailers:

Abercrombie +17.0%
Costco + 7.0%
Federated - 0.8%
Gap - 3.0%
JCPenney + 2.6%
Limited + 9.0%
Nordstrom + 7.3%
PacSun +14.0%
Talbots +10.8%
Target +10.4%
Wal-Mart + 6.8%

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In a recent study, 66 percent of participating parents said they thought supplements did not interact with other medications... Many companies selling the products have bypasssed parents altogether and are marketing them to teens directly. "The model of tobacco companies is what many companies are following," said Dr. Jordan Metzl of the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York. "I think it is really frightening"... But doctors point out kidney failure and other complications have already been linked to body-bulking supplements.

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Dr. Najah S. Musacchio... and fellow researchers conducted a small survey of college-age males in Chicago... Thirteen percent — or about 30 men out of 234 — reported having erectile dysfunction, while 25 percent said they lost an erection while putting on a condom, and another 6 percent said they had used drugs like Viagra, Cialis or Levitra to help out... Dr. Irwin Goldstein, a Boston-based urologist specializing in sexual medicine, said more younger men suffer from ED than people might think. Goldstein estimates that between 20 percent and 25 percent of college-aged males have some sort of sexual problem. And he said that if you were to study men who use alcohol, the number is probably higher. "If you flip the coin to females, the prevalence of sexual dysfunction is over 30 percent," Goldstein added.

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"Most of us have a sneeze style that we stick with throughout our lives that matches our personality," said Patti A. Wood, a body language expert who created the Achoo IQ Study for Benadryl.

If you're a single sneezer that turns away when you sneeze, Wood would classify you as a "nice sneezer." These people are characterized as being warm, helpful, supportive and nurturing of others.

Or are you the type to let a big loud sneeze out? These sneezers, or "get it done" sneezers, are found to be fast, decisive and to the point. They typically make the best leaders.

Do you always keep tissues handy and cover your mouth when you feel a sneeze coming? These are the "be right" sneezers and are typically the careful, accurate, deep-thinking type.

The last group are the "enthusiastic" sneezers, Wood said. These are the people with sneezes you notice — such as your grandfather whose sneezes perhaps terrify you, or your co-worker who always sneezes five times. The enthusiastic sneezers were found to be charismatic and social and have the ability to motivate others.

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