What time of the day should you have your cholesterol test?

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Most of us have been told to have "fasting" cholesterol test. As you would NO DOUBT be aware - being a faithful reader of this site (yes, YOU) - my previous posts have outlined studies showing that fasting is not all that necessary for cholesterol test.

Fasting for cholesterol test is not absolutely necessary - more evidence

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My previous post discussed about a recent study showing that fasting is usually not necessary for cholesterol test. To further strengthen this argument, here is another older study to support this.

Diets rich in Berry cut down Heart Attack risk by one third

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For those of you who enjoy eating berries - GOOD NEWS! Your risk of heart attack is reduced by one third.

What kind of berries you ask?

Can you have too many video game memorabilia?

Image with permission - Guinness World Records

Just how many video game memorabilia can one person have?

Fifty? Eighty? Two hundred?

You only need 4 minute 58 seconds to beat Super Mario

Video proof from Andrew Gardikis

Super Mario, the addictive nintendo game that took up a big part of some of our childhood. Many hours have been spent by kids (and adults) on playing and trying to beat this game, and many times have parents had to yell at kids to "stop wasting so much time playing" it.

Well, honestly, it doesn't really take that long to play Super Mario.

Antibiotics in uncomplicated lower respiratory tract infection: Is it necessary?

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Remember the last time you were sick and coughing and your doctor prescribed you with some antibiotics and you felt better after a few days? Ever wondered whether you would have felt any different without the antibiotics?

Aerobic exercise improve psychosocial well-being in obese adolescents

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Obesity can often be associated with low self esteem, depression, body image dissatisfaction. As an adolescent, this is further exacerbated by being teased in school, not being able to perform as well in sports, and sometimes social isolation as a consequence of these.

Diet and exercise are the way to lose weight. Reducing calorie intake by decreasing dietary intake by a significant amount is the best way to lose weight. Exercise to burn off calorie, on the other hand, struggles to keep up to anywhere near impact of diet.

However, there are other more important benefits associated with exercise.

Guideline Corner - Dietary Guideline for Americans 2010

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Eating healthy is an important and widely discussed topic. Let's take a look at the Dietary Guideline for Americans 2010

Foods and Food Components to reduce

Home visits by nurse reduce childhood obesity

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Obesity is a growing epidemic associated with a large number of medical conditions, resulting in significant impact on quality and quantity of life, and also health care cost.

The combat against obesity should start from childhood. Studies have demonstrated that excess weight and fast weight gain in early childhood are related to overweight later in life.

Amongst the various strategies of reducing childhood obesity, LM Wen, VM Flood and

Stress linked to increased risk of Stroke and Death from stroke

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Stress is the unpleasant feeling that we experience from time to time, some of us more frequently than others. It is also known to be linked to several medical conditions.


Everson-Rose and coauthors have published a study in Stroke Journals (American Heart Association Journals) December 13 2012 demonstrating association between stress and stroke:

Is being active associated with better cognition in the elderly?

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Being active is good for health. Looks like it can be good for your brain too.

Below is a study by BM Brown, RN Martins, and coauthors, published in the journal Translation Psychiatry (November 20, 2012):

Fasting for cholesterol test - is it necessary?

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Most of us would either have done a fasting cholesterol test, or heard about it.

Traditionally fasting was thought to be crucial for accurate cholesterol test results, but just how much difference does fasting improve the test result?

Potential benefit of alcohol - lower risk of Rheumatoid Arthritis in women

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Is alcohol good or bad for you?

While most people agree that uncontrolled alcohol consumption is bad for you, researches suggest that moderate alcohol consumption may have some benefits. Of course, the important thing is to remember the keyword "moderate", and also to put in perspective the potential harms that may arise with the potential benefits, and whether the harms outweigh the benefits.

Di Giuseppe and coauthors have added yet another potential benefit of moderate alcohol consumption through their research published in BMJ

Vitamin D - is deficiency associated with increased risk of Heart Attack and Stroke?

          Vitamin D deficiency is bad for your bones.

          But did you know that it can also increase the risk of heart
          attack and strokes?



Wang and coauthors performed a meta-analysis of available studies to assess this:
(Wang L, Song Y, Manson JE, et al. Circulating 25-hydroxy-vitamin d and risk of cardiovascular disease. A meta-analysis of prospective studies. Circ Cardiovasc Qual Outcomes 2012)

Vitamin D - how much do you need to get your bone stronger?

We've all heard this before - Vitamin D is good for your bone.

But just how much Vitamin D do you need?

Could Rudolf the red nose reindeer exist?

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Rudolf may not actually exists.

However if he did, it is quite possible that he may have had a red shiny nose - according to a study done in Norway and the Netherlands, published in BMJ, 17 December 2012
(BMJ 2012;345:e8311)

Being stronger = reduced risk of premature death. Lift, and thou shalt live.

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There are lots of perks for being stronger, especially as a man.

You can perform better at sports, look better, impress others, move your own furnitures, feel more confident about yourself, and the list goes on.

But wait, there's more!