Dr. Chet’s Health Memos
If it’s in the health news today, I’ll be writing about it as soon as I read the research, both old and new. With my email Health Memos, you’ll know more about making lifestyle choices that will help you get and keep good health. These free, concise updates on health are emailed to subscribers twice a week. Subscribe today and get a free MP3, in English or Spanish, of Dr. Chet’s Top Ten Tips—Small Changes for a Healthier Life.
The Unproductive Office Visit
I recently got an email from a long-time listener to my local radio show Dr. Chet’s Straight Talk on Health. The gist of what she wrote went something like this. “You always tell me to work with my physician for my better health, that they should be my partner for good health. What if I […]
Travel Bugs: Everywhere but Planes
Given the results of this study, where would a person most likely pick up a bug while traveling? Remember, the results of the air and physical locations of the plane that were tested and sent for analysis showed no measurable respiratory viruses of any kind, so the authors speculated about the most likely locations for […]
The Safest Seat on a Plane
If you want to boost your odds of remaining healthy after a flight, let’s begin with the location of your seating assignment. Researchers determined that the people in the center of coach had the most contacts with other passengers and flight crew. That makes sense. Everyone with the need is going forward or backward to […]
Can Airline Travel Make You Sick?
Have you ever flown for a vacation and found you were beginning to get a cold or other respiratory infection? How about when you fly for business? Just when you want to be at your peak, you’re feeling congested and beginning to cough. You immediately want to blame the flight for making you sick; after […]
Rising CO2 and Nutrition: The Bottom Line
All of nature is a delicate balance; when any component changes, there will be some sort of effect—maybe good, maybe not. The mineral nutrient and trace element content composition of a plant, technically called the ionome, reflects a balance between carbon, obtained through CO2 in the air, and the remaining nutrients, obtained from the soil. […]
How Researchers Determined the Effect of CO2 on Nutrition
An international group of researchers wanted to know how higher CO2 levels would impact the nutrient content of a staple in the diet of over two billion people: rice. If the nutrient levels change substantially, that could have an impact on the nutritional status of many people who might already be undernourished. Over several years […]
Does Carbon Dioxide Affect Nutrition?
Carbon dioxide is a waste product of energy metabolism. When we burn the food we eat, the protein, carbohydrates, and fat will be eliminated as carbon dioxide and water. When we use the gasoline in our cars or lawnmowers, CO2 and water are also released during that form of metabolism (called combustion) as well. The […]
Celebrate Your Independence
Tomorrow we celebrate Independence Day in the U. S. with parades, picnics, and fireworks. We will eat our favorite grilled foods—burgers and dogs or smoked slow-cooked ribs and corn on the cob and on and on. The problem is that while we celebrate our nation’s Independence, we are giving up our own independence. Based on […]
Toddler Health Tip: No More
“No more!” Those are the words Riley says when he doesn’t want any more milk, food, or anything else we feed him. When he says “no more,” that’s really it—he’s done. At dinner last week, Paula said, “That pasta was great and I could eat more, but I think I’ll be like Riley: no more.” […]
Common-Sense Health: Pillow Talk
Sometimes the smallest mechanical changes can make a big difference. Here’s an example. When I lived in Indiana, a member of my running club had developed chronic hip pain. He spent over a year trying one thing after another with no real relief: new shoes, different types of shoes, orthotics, stretching the iliotibial band that […]
