health check

If you find yourself dragging in the middle of the day, don’t reach for the coffee pot — reach for a pillow instead. Experts say naps may be a good way to make up for the sleep deficit many of us have from not getting enough shut-eye at night.

Smokers have a gum that helps them quit smoking, so it’s only fair that overeaters have a gum to help them quit eating. Thankfully, scientists are getting close to making a safe appetite suppressant gum a reality.

While surveys consistently show that more than 3 out of 4 smokers would like to quit, only about 10 percent of those who try each year are successful. Fortunately, new studies show one way to raise those numbers is to treat smoking as a chronic disease — like high blood pressure — for which long-term treatment is offered.

Researchers have narrowed down the task of warding off Alzheimer’s disease into a simple one — eating more fish. In a new study, 260 people with an average age of 71 were followed to see how much fish they ate and how it was prepared. The results showed those who ate baked or broiled fish on at least a weekly basis were much less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease or mild mental impairment. Re

While brain activity during sleep is still largely a mystery, scientists have discovered that dreaming not only consolidates our memories and helps us learn, it may also soothe stressful reactions to bad experiences.

Veteran dieters know one way to eat less is to use smaller plates to fool the eye into thinking we have more food in front of us. But new research revealed the color of our plates and tables matter just as much.

If you’ve ever wondered why some people can get by on just a few hours of sleep while others need much more, scientists may have found an answer. Research conducted on 4,000 Europeans discovered that those who had two copies of a particular variant of a gene called ABCC9, which influences sleep duration, generally reported sleeping less than those who had two copies of a different version of the g

The average American adult drinks about three cups of coffee a day, and while many can’t imagine a morning without it, people taking certain drugs may want to think twice. Studies show that more than a dozen medications — antidepressants, estrogen, and thyroid and osteoporosis drugs, for example — can be affected by coffee, which can block absorption or enhance the effects of the drugs.

We never used to think of chubby kids as being anything other than adorable, but researchers are now more concerned about children’s eating habits now that more Americans are being considered obese. According to a new study, 40 percent of American children enter kindergarten with a body mass index (BMI) greater than the 75 percentile. Anything over the 85th percentile is considered “overweight,” a

Parkinson’s Disease is a frustrating and frightening medical condition, and treatment options are few. However, a group in Canterbury, England may have made a surprising discovery that could benefit not only them, but everyone else in the world – singing seems to make them feel better.

While you should eat, drink and be merry on Thanksgiving, doctors are warning not to overdo it. Excessive alcohol consumption can lead to what’s known as “holiday heart syndrome.” The term was coined back in the 1970s when researchers detected heart rhythm abnormalities in 24 study participants, none of whom had a history of heart disease — but all of whom had too much to drink over the holidays.

If you’re one of those women people tease because you’re never seen without a Starbucks cup in your hand, you may actually be bettering your health. All that coffee might be warding off cancer. Researchers at Harvard University who followed the medical records of more than 67,000 women over a 26-year period found that those who drank at least four cups of java per day had a 25 percent lower risk o