Archive: April 20, 2008 - April 26, 2008
Starry-Eyed Over Lasik?
As Rob Stein tells us today, officials at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are likely getting an earful -- or an eyeful -- at this morning's public hearing on Lasik surgery, the popular but pricey procedure in which a laser is used to slice open the eye, allowing...
By Jennifer Huget | April 25, 2008; 7:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
Want A Boy? Eat Cereal!
Can a woman really determine whether she will have a boy or a girl? Folk lore offers lots of advice: Indulge in chocolate for a girl. Eat red meat for a boy. Conceive under a full moon to get a girl. Then there's the high-tech option: Fertility clinics offer...
By Rob Stein | April 24, 2008; 7:00 AM ET | Comments (8)
Mucking with My Martini
Judging from readers' comments on Sally Squires's article yesterday about the link between women's alcohol consumption and breast-cancer risk, I'm not the only one feeling caught off guard. Several readers wondered what this might mean for their individual risk, and others wondered whether alcohol's stress-reducing qualities might help offset its...
By Jennifer Huget | April 23, 2008; 7:15 AM ET | Comments (0)
Wearing Crocs? Watch Your Step!
My daughter and I, both big-time Crocs wearers, had just been admiring the new high-heeled versions when I read that the Japanese Trade Ministry has called on the Colorado-based manufacturer to redesign the ubiquitous rubbery shoes. Seems 65 Japanese people, mostly kids, have got their feet stuck -- and sometimes...
By Jennifer Huget | April 22, 2008; 7:00 AM ET | Comments (37)
Shaken Faith in the Flu Vaccine?
They account for some of the great victories in the history of public health, but vaccines have had a rough time of it lately. First there was the federal government's agreement in March to compensate an Atlanta family whose daughter developed autism after receiving a set of routine childhood shots....
By Jennifer Huget | April 21, 2008; 7:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
