Eastern Visayas Has 35 Confirmed H1N1 Flu Cases

Tacloban City - The Department of Health (DOH) has confirmed that there are already 35 confirmed cases of A(H1N1) virus infections in Region 8.

The victims were from different parts of the region. Eight of them are from Tacloban City. 163 persons are still under observation and 24 of them have already undergone throat swab test.

Dr. Jaime Opinion, Tacloban City’s health officer, however said that residents do not need to panic since these are mild cases only. Opinion also confirmed that some of the victims including the seaman from Catbalogan and the student from Philippine Science High School have already recovered and have already been released from the hospital.

The Tacloban City Health Office including the Department of Health however said that it continues to monitor people who might have gotten in touch with the people who tested positive from A(H1N1) flu.

For the fiesta celebration, the health office said it will set up five medical booths as part of the A(H1N1) prevention advocacy and information dissemination.

"We are just appealing to those who are sick not to join the celebration anymore or if they will do so, they have to wear a face mask to prevent from spreading the virus," Opinion also said.

Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez had assured that people from indigent families who might be infected with the A (H1N1) virus can avail themselves of free medicine from the city government.

By ABSCBN News

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H1N1 Influenza Update

Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III today reported 134 more mild cases of A (H1N1), noting that all are responding positively to their treatments. These additional cases bring the total count of confirmed cases of the novel virus to 861.

The total sum, on the other hand, of fully recovered patients still stands at 634 or 74% of the total number of confirmed cases reported since May 21.

“The number of fully recovered patients is the same as the previous update because the present reported cases are still getting treatment and recuperating either in hospitals or their homes,” Duque explained.

The additional 134 cases involved 60 males and 74 females. The age range of these cases is 2-58 years old, with 16 as median age. One hundred eighteen (118) of the new cases are Filipinos, the remaining 16 are foreigners. Twenty (20) of these cases have a history of travel to a country affected by A (H1N1).

Meanwhile, as of June 24, the World Health Organization reported 55,867 cases with 238 deaths from 102 reporting countries.

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How Badly Would H1N1 Flu Hurt?

Malacañang said on Thursday that, so far, there are no indications that the A(H1N1) flu virus would have an adverse impact on the economy even as the country has 727 persons infected with it.

Former senator and Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) leader Ernesto Herrera, however, warned the government against such nonchalance, saying the full brunt of the economic impact will be felt when the flu spreads in work places.

Gary Olivar, deputy presidential spokesman for economic affairs, said in a news briefing that public-health measures being implemented to address the health issue have been “adequate” and that the virus has claimed only one casualty—a woman with preexisting illnesses.

“If you look at these different responses and activities, they don’t seem to rise to the level of something that would have a material effect on our economic growth....In terms of what we know now and what we’ve seen so far about this disease, there’s nothing to warrant alarm about the effect of it on our growth prospects,” Olivar said.

He said the best way to protect the economy against the possible dampening effect of the virus is by keeping the public calm even as the number of confirmed cases continue to rise.

“Panic may have an effect [on economic activity] and that’s why we keep on reminding people that there’s nothing to panic about because what we have to fear is fear itself....We should not panic. The facts do not point us to that direction,” Olivar said.

Asked whether the government is monitoring the impact of A(H1N1) virus on the economy, Olivar said the government “remains alert to the possibilities.”

Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Lorelei Fajardo said increased government spending, as well as continued remittances of overseas Filipinos “would be enough for the economy to [stay] afloat.”

On the proposal of Muntinlupa Rep. Rozzano Rufino Biazon to impose a temporary shutdown of schools and businesses to contain the spread of the virus, Olivar and Fajardo noted that the situation in the Philippines has not reached alarming levels and cases continue to be generally mild.

“I don’t think that’s necessary. The important thing is that the virus is treatable, we have all the mitigating measures, our health officials are handling it and managing it very well. We just need the cooperation of the public. If we do [Biazon’s proposal], that is the time when our economy will really go down. I don’t think that this is the right approach to solve the problem,” Fajardo said.

Olivar said the situation in Mexico is different as there were thousands of people infected by the virus and over a hundred people died because of it.

Dr. Joy Pabellon a medical specialist, of the Applied Public Health Division of the Department of Health, said that the Mexican government was compelled to shutdown schools and businesses temporarily because at the time, the A(H1N1) flu virus was still new and not much was known about it and how to treat it.

“At that time... they didn’t know how this would evolve. Now, after a few months we’ve seen it in the Philippines, we’ve seen that it’s mild, like our seasonal flu. It is self-limiting, therefore, even with our guidelines there is actually no reason for us to do that because it’s mild,” Pabellon said.

Meanwhile, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) has urged the government and the private sector to adopt more aggressive strategies to contain the spread of influenza A(H1N1) virus, warning that the lingering virus, if left unchecked, could soon invade the country’s factories and diminish labor productivity in a big way.

TUCP secretary general and former senator Ernesto Herrera cited the case of the House of Representatives, which was compelled to temporarily shut down after one of its employees, a 49-year-old woman, became the country’s first A(H1N1) virus fatality.

“If the Batasan Pambansa complex, with some 4,000 congressional staff members, were a manufacturing facility forced to close down for a week, one can just imagine the potential drag on labor and overall economic output,” said Herrera, former chairman of the Senate committee on labor, employment and human resources development.

“Like schools, factories and offices definitely have a high risk of becoming the potential sources of ‘community’ outbreaks because these are places where people congregate and interact in large numbers everyday for an extended period,” Herrera pointed out.

Herrera made the statement shortly after TUCP found out that the Philippines now ranks 12th worldwide in terms of “laboratory-confirmed cases” of influenza A(H1N1) virus, based on World Health Organization (WHO) June 24 update with 445 confirmed influenza A(H1N1) cases, including one death, in the country.

Based on the WHO June 24 update, the 11 other countries with the greatest number of Influenza A(H1N1) cases are the United States (21,449 cases, 87 deaths); Mexico (7,847 cases, 115 deaths); Canada (6,457 cases, 15 deaths); Chile (4,315 cases, four deaths); the United Kingdom (2,905 cases, one death); Australia (2,857 cases, two deaths); Argentina (1,213 cases, seven deaths); China (906 cases, zero death); Japan (893 cases, zero death); Thailand (774 cases, zero death); and Spain (593 cases, zero death).

Herrera also chided Education Secretary Jesli Lapus for “belittling” A(H1N1) flu virus, when the latter likened the virus to “sore eyes or cough.”

“Even the common flu is a debilitating ailment. It may or may not be fatal, but it certainly incapacitates you until recovery. So comparing the far more vicious influenza A(H1N1) to sore eyes or cough is like comparing apples to oranges,” Herrera said.

He earlier urged private employers and government agencies to relax their sick leave rules in order to encourage staff to stay home if they develop flu-like symptoms. This way, he said, firms and offices are not only kept free from influenza A(H1N1) virus, but also avoid or minimize potential productivity losses that may arise once large segments of their personnel get infected.

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Swine Flu Vaccine

US company makes first batch of swine flu vaccine.

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - A US company that was awarded a 35-million-dollar contract to develop an influenza vaccine using insect cell technology has produced a first batch against (A)H1N1 flu, company boss Dan Adams said.

"We turned out our first batch of doses -- about 100,000 -- against (A)H1N1 flu last week and we're continuing to manufacture it," Adams, chief executive officer of Connecticut-based Protein Sciences Corporation, told AFP.

The US Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday announced that it has awarded a 35-million-dollar contract to Protein Sciences, which could be extended for another five years to reach 147 million dollars.

The insect cell technology "has advanced in recent years to a point that we believe it could help meet a surge in demand for US-based vaccine for seasonal and pandemic flu," Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a statement.

A(H1N1), or swine flu, which emerged in Mexico in April, has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization, killing 231 people worldwide and infecting more than 52,000 people in 100 countries.

As the novel strain of swine flu spread, scientists around the world scrambled to develop a seed strain, a necessary first step in developing a vaccine using either chicken eggs or mammalian cells -- the way most vaccines are produced.

They warned that the virus could mutate during the southern hemisphere's flu season before returning north in a more lethal form in autumn, in a pattern similar to that seen in the deadly 1918 flu pandemic, which claimed an estimated 20 to 50 million lives around the globe.

Protein Sciences makes flu vaccine by infecting caterpillar cells with a baculovirus carrying the gene for hemagluttinin, a molecule that sticks out of the surface of the influenza virus.

"Using this method, vaccine candidates, clinical investigational lots, and commercial-scale vaccine production may be available faster than by using traditional vaccine production methods," the health department said in a statement.

The method does not need a seed strain to develop a vaccine, Adams said.

"While everyone else was waiting to get a seed strain, we worked with the genetic code from the virus," said Adams.

"The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) sent us a dead virus, which is perfectly safe, and then we extracted genetic information from that virus.

"We can be in manufacturing a lot, lot quicker than people who have to wait for a seed strain," he said.

Protein Sciences' technology is also safer "because these caterpillars don't have any association with man or other animals, so there's no chance for their cells to learn how to propagate human viruses," Adams told AFP.

Under the terms of the grant made to Protein Sciences, if the company's new insect-cell technology proves to be safe and effective, the pharmaceutical minnow, which has just 50 employees, must boost its US manufacturing capability "to provide a finished vaccine within 12 weeks of pandemic onset."

It would also have to produce at least 50 million doses of flu vaccine "within six months of pandemic onset."

That should not be a problem, said Adams, because manufacturing a vaccine using insect cells can be easily and rapidly scaled up because it does not require the same specialized factories required to produce vaccine using egg or mammalian cells.

"We can manufacture our product facilities that make monoclonal antibodies, which is a huge class of products with a huge manufacturing capacity around the world," said Adams.

Protein Sciences' new vaccine against swine flu "could be available right away" if the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issues an emergency use authorization for it, as it did for the bird flu vaccine developed by Adams's company.

Swiss drugs giant Novartis, which the US government gave 289 million dollars to help develop a vaccine against (A)H1N1 flu, said around two weeks ago that it was poised to begin pre-clinical trials -- tests in vitro and on animals -- on its first batch of novel swine flu vaccine.

Sanofi-Pasteur of France has said it hopes to have doses of swine flu vaccine ready for clinical trials within weeks, while Taiwan's Adimmune Corporation said it expects to complete clinical trials on its A(H1N1) influenza vaccine around September.

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WHO: World Closer to Swine Flu Pandemic

World Health Organization Indicates Pandemic Alert Will Come With 'Moderate' Severity Warning

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The world is "getting closer" to a full-scale swine flu pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) warns.

The official declaration of a pandemic alert -- triggered by widespread H1N1 swine flu beyond the Americas -- will come with a new severity rating, said Keiji Fukuda, WHO interim assistant director-general for health security and environment.

The WHO has been dragging its feet over declaring a worldwide pandemic to avoid causing undue alarm and to allow it time to develop specific guidance for different parts of the world.

When swine flu broke out, the world was already at phase 3 of its six-phase pandemic warning system. That was because the deadly H5N1 bird flu was infecting humans but not spreading from person to person.

When swine flu burst upon the world in April, the WHO rapidly raised its warning level from phase 4 and then to phase 5 as it became clear a flu virus new to humans was spreading easily -- and widely -- from person to person.

"Globally we believe we are at phase 5 but getting closer to phase 6," Fukuda said today at a news conference. "It is clear the virus continues to spread internationally. There are a number of countries that appear to be in transition [to widespread infections at the community level]. These countries include the U.K., Spain, Japan, Chile, and also Australia."

When the WHO finally does declare a global swine flu pandemic, it likely will rate the severity of the disease as moderate, not mild or severe.

"It is fair to call the situation moderate," Fukuda said. "We know this infection can be fatal in a number of individuals. This includes people who have some underlying medical conditions and it includes women who are pregnant -- but it also includes people who are perfectly healthy. So we do have some hesitation calling such an infection mild."

Fukuda noted that severity does not solely depend on the virulence of the virus.

"Severity is not just a quality of the virus and its ability to harm people, but a combination of that virulence and the vulnerability of populations -- how well off they are in terms of chronic conditions and poverty and malnourishment," he said. "And it's also a matter of the resilience of nations, how well they are able to cope with diseases."

Fukuda said the WHO's rating would be flexible in order to change as the pandemic becomes more or less severe.

Meanwhile, all eyes are on the Southern Hemisphere -- particularly Chile and Australia -- as swine flu hits that part of the world just as it's entering normal flu season. At this early point in their flu season, Fukuda said, nearly all flu cases appear to be swine flu and not seasonal flu.

"We will look carefully to see if the kind of illness typical of flu is seen in the Southern Hemisphere, and particularly at which age groups," Fukuda said. "Will there be a change in the number of people who develop serious illness? Will there be a change in the virus itself? We expect the virus to drift, but does that really lead to any changes in the behavior of the virus, and to the antigenicity of the virus [that would affect vaccine development]? We will be monitoring that carefully."

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5 Lifestyle Steps for Better Bone Health

Maximize bone health and reduce the effects of osteoporosis with these simple steps.

If your doctor says you have thinning bones -- osteopenia or osteoporosis-- it's critical to take steps to slow the progression of this disease.

Calcium, exercise, no smoking, no excess drinking, bone density tests -- all these are necessary, says Kathryn Diemer, MD, professor of medicine and osteoporosis specialist at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

"These are basic things that all women should do," Diemer tells WebMD. But they’re especially important for women with low bone density. While you can never regain the bone density you had in your youth, you can help prevent rapidly thinning bones, even after your diagnosis.

Here’s a breakdown of five lifestyle steps to help you on the road to better bone health.

Bone Health Step 1: Calcium and Vitamin D

Calcium builds strong bones, but vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium. That's why postmenopausal women need 1,200 milligrams calcium and at least 400 IU to 600 IU vitamin D daily for better bone health.

"Any patient being treated for osteoporosis should have both calcium and vitamin D levels checked in blood tests," says Diemer.

Most American women get less than 500 milligrams of calcium in their daily diet. "Sun exposure helps produce vitamin D, but as we get older, our skin is not as efficient at making vitamin D. Also, if we're careful to use sunscreen, we're at risk of having low vitamin D level."

Here are ways to give your body a boost of both calcium and vitamin D:

Calcium in food: We know that dairy has calcium, but other foods do, too.

* Low-fat milk or soy milk (8 ounces): 300 milligrams calcium
* Cottage cheese (16 ounces): 300 milligrams calcium
* Low-fat yogurt (8 ounces): 250-400 milligrams calcium
* Canned salmon (3 ounces): 180 milligrams calcium
* Calcium-fortified orange juice (6 ounces): 200 milligrams-260 milligrams calcium
* Cooked spinach, turnip greens, collard greens (1/2 cup): 100 milligrams calcium
* Cooked broccoli (1/2 cup) 40 milligrams calcium

A calcium supplement may be necessary to make sure that you're getting enough, says Diemer.

If you're taking osteoporosis medications, take calcium, too. "A lot of patients think if they start treatment they don't need calcium," she adds. "That's not true, and physicians often don't emphasize the point."

Take prescription calcium if necessary. In some cases, doctors prescribe higher-strength calcium and vitamin D tablets.

Bone Health Step 2: Weight-Bearing Exercise

Calcium supplements and osteoporosis medications can stop bone loss -- which allows the bone to rebuild itself, Diemer explains. "But the body needs 'encouragement' to rebuild bone," she adds. "The skeleton needs to be under stress so it will get stronger." That's why exercise is important for better bone health.

Be sure to talk with your doctor before you begin any exercise regimen. Here are some types of exercises your doctor may suggest.

Make walking a daily ritual. Walking, jogging, and light aerobics make your bones and muscles work against gravity -- which puts stress on the skeleton, which strengthens bones. Bicycling is also good for bones; it offers some resistance, which improves muscle mass and strengthens bones.

Swimming, however, is not a good bone-booster, says Diemer. "Swimming is great for joints if you have arthritis, but it's not doing anything for osteoporosis. With swimming, the skeleton is comfortable so it is not working to hold itself up."

She advises 30 minutes of weight-bearing exercise five days a week if you can. "I'm satisfied if they get 30 minutes, three times a week."

Core strengthening is critical, too. Abdominal exercises, lower back exercises, yoga, Pilates, and tai chi help strengthen the spine. "All that stuff is great, because the most common fractures are in the spine," Diemer tells WebMD. "Strengthening muscles to the spine gives more support to the spine. The other thing about yoga, Pilates, and tai chi -- they improve balance, which prevents falls."

Tell your instructor that you have osteoporosis. If you're taking yoga or Pilates, make sure you have a certified instructor. You need close supervision to make sure you don't harm yourself.

Bone Health Step 3: Don't Smoke & Moderate Alcohol

"Nicotine is toxic to bone," Diemer tells WebMD. "The first thing I tell patients who smoke is, if you don't stop smoking there's very little we can do for your bones. You counteract all medications."

Alcohol in moderation is fine, but just one or two drinks a week, she advises. "Alcohol in excess causes about 2% bone loss in a year's time. Nicotine also causes 2% bone loss. If you're having alcohol and nicotine both in excess, the combined bone loss is actually doubled -- 8% bone loss."

Bone Health Step 4: Talk to Your Doctor

Many factors affect bone strength. Use of certain medications to treat chronic diseases, for example, is an often-overlooked risk factor for developing osteoporosis. Also, certain medications may cause dizziness, light-headedness, or loss of balance -- which could put you at risk for a fall.

Your doctor can explain your own risk -- as well as options for preventing and treating bone loss.

These are questions you might ask your doctor:

* How can I best improve my bone health?
* What is the best calcium to take?
* What medication can help me?
* Has this medication been proven to lower risk of fractures of spine and hip?
* What are the side effects?
* Do I need special instructions for taking my bone medication?
* Will the medications affect other drugs that I'm taking for other conditions?
* How will I know if the treatment is working?
* How soon will I see a change?
* How long will I take this medication?
* Am I taking any medications that put me at risk for a fall?
* What exercise is safest for me?
* Are there exercises I should not do?
* How can I know if I've fractured a bone in my spine?
* How soon should I schedule my next appointment?
* What should I do to prevent falls?

Bone Health Step 5: Bone Density Testing

A bone mineral density test (BMD) is the only way to determine the extent of your bone loss. The gold-standard bone density test is dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA), says Diemer. "It's a low-radiation test and is the most accurate bone test we have."

Your doctor will determine how frequently you should have a bone density test. If you're taking osteoporosis medications -- or have certain risk factors -- you may need a test every six months. Before having the test, check with your insurance company. Some will only cover bone density tests every two years.

"Usually we can get insurance companies to agree to cover yearly tests, at least for the first year after treatment starts," Diemer tells WebMD. "If the physician says it needs to be done, they usually will pay. But you may need to be persistent in getting it covered."

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Type 1 Diabete and Young Kids

Type 1 Diabetes May Double in Young Kids.

Researchers Say Rate of Type 1 Diabetes in Children Growing Faster Than Earlier

The incidence of type 1 diabetes among very young children will double from 2005 levels in a little over a decade if present trends continue, a new study shows.

The prediction is based on type 1 diabetes trends in Europe, but experts say there is every reason to believe that the U.S. will see a similar dramatic increase in the disease.

They are also convinced that environmental exposures are driving the increase, but it is far from clear what those exposures are.

Once known as juvenile diabetes, type 1 diabetes is much less common than type 2 diabetes, except among children and adolescents.

The most common age of diagnosis has been the early teen years, but epidemiologist Christopher C. Patterson, PhD, of Ireland's Queen's University, tells WebMD that the burden may be shifting toward younger children.

"We are likely to see more children with severe diabetes complications presenting at earlier ages if we fail to recognize and adequately treat disease in very young patients," he says.

In the latest issue of TheLancet, Patterson and colleagues concluded that rates of type 1 diabetes among children and young teens are increasing faster than previous predictions suggested.

Patterson and colleagues analyzed data from European registries, which included information on more than 29,000 children with type 1 diabetes, enrolled between 1989 and 2003.

They found that:

The overall increase in incidence of type 1 diabetes was 3.9% per year.

The increase was greatest among children under 5, who saw increases of 5.4% per year compared to an annual increase of 4.3% among children between the ages of 5 and 9 and 2.9% among children between the ages of 10 and 14.

If present trends continue, total cases of disease are projected to rise by 70% by 2020 and rates among children under 5 will double.

Reasons for Increase in Type 1 Diabetes

Since the increases are occurring so quickly, it is likely that environmental influences are driving the trend, Patterson says.

Researchers are examining a wide range of possible environmental triggers, including early-life diet, viral infection, and even C-section delivery. But they still have more questions than answers.

"Being born to an older mom and C-section birth seem to be associated with slight increases in risk, but neither one of these is sufficient to explain the increases we are seeing," he says.

University of Colorado epidemiologist Dana Dabelea, MD, PhD, tells WebMD that one of the key areas of interest is rapid early growth due to improved early-life nutrition.

Dabelea is a co-investigator on the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study, which is following children with type 1 and type 2 diabetes in different areas in the U.S. in an effort to better understand diabetes trends in non-adults.

In 2007, Dabelea and colleagues reported higher-than-predicted rates of type 1 diabetes. The increase was most pronounced among non-Hispanic white children.

In an editorial accompanying the new study, Dabelea called for more research on type 1 and type 2 diabetes in children.

"It is imperative that efforts directed at surveillance of diabetes in young people continue and expand, not only to understand its complex etiology, but also because of the increasing public health importance," she writes.

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5 Daily Habits That May Make You Sick

They say that home is where the heart is. But what you may not know is that it's also where 65% of colds and more than half of food-borne illnesses are contracted. The things we do around the house every day have a big impact on both our long- and short-term health. Here are six common household activities that may be making you sick.

1. Using a Sponge

The dirtiest room in everybody's home is the kitchen, says Phillip Tierno, PhD, director of clinical microbiology and diagnostic immunology at the New York University Langone Medical Center and author of The Secret Life of Germs. "That's because we deal with dead animal carcasses on our countertops and in the sink." Raw meat can carry E. coli and salmonella, among other viruses and bacteria.

Most people clean their countertops and table after a meal with the one tool found in almost all kitchens: the sponge. In addition to sopping up liquids and other messes, the kitchen sponge commonly carries E. coli and fecal bacteria, as well as many other microbes. "It's the single dirtiest thing in your kitchen, along with a dishrag," says Tierno.

Ironically, the more you attempt to clean your countertops with a sponge, the more germs you're spreading around. "People leave [the sponge] growing and it becomes teaming with [millions of] bacteria, and that can make you sick and become a reservoir of other organisms that you cross-contaminate your countertops with, your refrigerator, and other appliances in the kitchen," Tierno explains.

Solution: Tierno suggests dipping sponges into a solution of bleach and water before wiping down surfaces. "That is the best and cheapest germicide money can buy -- less than a penny to make the solution -- so that you can clean your countertops, cutting boards, dishrags, or sponges after each meal preparation."

In addition, once you've used your sponge, be sure to let it air-dry. Dryness kills off organisms. Another way to keep bacteria from building up in your sponge is to microwave it for one to two minutes each week. "Put a little water in a dish and put the sponge in that," Tierno advises. "That will boil and distribute the heat evenly [throughout the sponge] and kill the bacteria."

2. Vacuuming

Conventional vacuum cleaners are intended to pick up and retain big pieces of dirt, like the dust bunnies we see floating about on our floors. But it's the tiny dust particles that pass right through the porous vacuum bags and up into the air. So, while our floors may look cleaner after running a vacuum over them, plenty of dust, which can exacerbate allergies and asthma, remains.

Pet allergens and indoor dust, which contains the highest concentrations of hazardous materials like heavy metals, lead, pesticides, and other chemicals, are found in higher concentrations in the smallest particles of the dust, explains David MacIntosh, MD. He is principal scientist at Environmental Health & Engineering (EH&E), an environmental consulting and engineering services firm based in Needham, Mass.

"The everyday habit of cleaning with a conventional vacuum cleaner results in a burst of particles in the air and then they settle back down over the course of hours," says MacIntosh.

Solution: Look for a vacuum cleaner with a high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter. Unlike those in conventional vacuums, HEPA filters are able to retain the small particles and prevent them from passing through and contaminating the air you breathe in your home.

3. Sleeping With Pillows and a Mattress

The average person sheds about 1.5 million skin cells per hour and perspires one quart every day even while doing nothing, says Tierno. The skin cells accumulate in our pillows and mattresses and dust mites grow and settle.

If that's not gross enough for you, Tierno explains that a mattress doubles in weight every 10 years because of the accumulation of human hair, bodily secretions, animal hair and dander, fungal mold and spores, bacteria, chemicals, dust, lint, fibers, dust mites, insect parts, and a variety of particulates, including dust mite feces. After five years, 10% of the weight of a pillow is dust mites. This is what you're inhaling while you sleep.

"What you're sleeping on can exacerbate your allergies or your asthma," says Tierno.

Solution: Cover your mattress, box springs, and pillows with impervious outer covers.

"Allergy-proof coverings seal the mattress and pillow, preventing anything from getting in or out, which protects you," Tierno says. He also suggests that you wash your sheets weekly in hot water. Make sure the temperature range of the water is between 130 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit.

4. Grilling Meat

So much for the summertime staple: Barbecuing meat creates the cancer-causing compounds polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and heterocyclic amines (HCAs). When fat drips from the meat onto the hot grill, catches fire, and produces smoke, PAHs form. That's what's contained in that delicious-looking charred mark we all look for on our burger. HCAs form when meat is cooked at a high temperature, which can occur during an indoor cooking process as well.

Solution: "Limiting your outdoor cooking, using tin foil, or microwaving the meat first is a sensible precaution," says Michael Thun, MD. He is emeritus vice president for epidemiology and surveillance research with the American Cancer Society.

Wrapping meat in foil with holes poked in it allows fat to drip off, but limits the amount of fat that hits the flames and comes back onto the meat, Thun tells WebMD. Some of the excess fat can also be eliminated by first microwaving meat and choosing cuts of meat that are leaner.

5. Sitting in Front of the TV

Sitting in front of the television has become a national pastime and one of our least healthy behaviors, particularly because we often do it while snacking on food that is high in calories.

"When you're sitting there in a trance, you can really pack on some calories," says Thun. "Today, many of the global population qualifies as obese and one-third qualifies as overweight. Some people are morbidly obese."

Excess body weight puts us at greater risk for heart disease, cancer, arthritis, and a host of other diseases, Thun says. "That poses a greater health risk than the toxic cleansers under our sinks."

Solution: Turn off the TV, put away the bag of chips, and go for a walk.

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High Cholesterol Risks: Top 2 Dangers

There are usually no symptoms of high risk cholesterol, yet the dangers are very real -- even fatal.

A lot of people don't take the risks of high cholesterol very seriously. After all, one out of five people have high cholesterol. A staggering 50% of Americans have levels above the suggested limit. Could something so common really be a serious health risk?

Unfortunately, yes. Cholesterol is a direct contributor to cardiovascular disease, which can lead to strokes and heart attacks.

"Despite all of the amazing medicines and treatments we have, cardiovascular disease is still the number one cause of death and illness in our society," says Laurence S. Sperling, MD, director of preventive cardiology at the Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Ga.

The World Health Organization estimates that almost 20% of all strokes and over 50% of all heart attacks can be linked to high cholesterol.

But if you've been diagnosed with high cholesterol, don't despair. The good news is that high cholesterol is one risk factor for strokes and heart attacks that you can change. You just need to take action now, before your high cholesterol results in more serious disease.

All About High-Risk Cholesterol Numbers

When it comes to high cholesterol risks, it's tough to keep the details straight. We might have a vague idea of whether our cholesterol is "good" or "bad," but we forget the actual numbers by the time we get to the parking lot outside our doctor's office. So it may be worth reviewing the basics.

Cholesterol is a fat-like substance circulating in your blood. Some of your cholesterol comes from the foods you eat. But the bulk of it is actually made in your own body, specifically in the liver. Cholesterol does have some good uses. It helps produce new cells and some hormones. But an excess of it in the bloodstream can lead to trouble.

There are two types of cholesterol: LDL cholesterol and HDL cholesterol.

* LDL is also called "bad cholesterol" -- Sperling suggests that you think of the "L" as standing for lousy. LDL cholesterol can clog your arteries, increasing the risk of heart attack and stroke. Most people should aim for a level of less than 100 mg/dL. However, people who already have heart disease may need to aim for under 70 mg/dL.

* HDL is "good cholesterol." Imagine the "H" stands for healthy, Sperling suggests. This type of cholesterol attaches to bad cholesterol and brings it to the liver, where it's filtered out of the body. So HDL cholesterol reduces the amount of bad cholesterol in your system. You should aim for 60 mg/dL or higher.

* Triglycerides are not cholesterol but another type of fat floating in your blood. Just as with bad cholesterol, having a high level of triglycerides increases your risk of cardiovascular problems. Aim for a level of less than 150 mg/dL.

So although we all talk about high cholesterol risks, the term is a little misleading. What we really mean is high levels of bad LDL cholesterol and triglycerides and a low level of good HDL cholesterol.

What about total cholesterol, which is the sum of your LDL and HDL? While anything under 200 mg/dL is still considered the target, most experts don't focus on the number. It doesn't mean all that much. "Someone can have a total cholesterol of under 200 -- which is lower than average for Americans -- but still have unhealthy levels of HDL or LDL," says Sperling.

Realizing the Risks: How Harmful Is High Cholesterol?

Everyone has cholesterol in their blood. But if your levels of LDL are too high, the excess can accumulate on the walls of your arteries. This build-up of cholesterol and other substances -- called plaque -- can narrow the artery like a clogged drain. It can also lead to arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, which turns the normally flexible tissue into more brittle.

Plaques can form anywhere. If they form in the carotid artery in the neck, it's carotid artery disease. When they form in the coronary arteries -- which supply the heart muscle with blood -- it's called coronary artery disease. Like any organ, the heart needs a good supply of blood to work. If it doesn't get that blood, you could get angina, which causes a squeezing pain in the chest and other symptoms.

There are other high cholesterol risks. If these plaques break open, they can form a clot. If a clot lodges in an artery and completely chokes off the blood supply, the cells don't get the nutrients and oxygen they need and die.

If a clot gets to the brain and blocks blood flow, it can cause a stroke. If a clot lodges in the coronary arteries, it can cause a heart attack.

Do We Underestimate High Cholesterol Risks?

The risks of high cholesterol are quite clear. "If you look at populations of people," says Sperling, "the higher the cholesterol, the higher the level of heart and blood vessel disease." It's that simple.

But experts say that people don't take high cholesterol risks seriously enough. According to the CDC, in 2005 almost a quarter of American adults said they hadn't had their cholesterol checked in the last five years.

One problem is that high cholesterol doesn't cause symptoms that make people pay attention.

"People naturally respond more to medical conditions that cause symptoms," says Nathan D. Wong, PhD, fellow of the American College of Cardiology and director of the Heart Disease Prevention Program at the University of California, Irvine. Since you won't feel your rising cholesterol levels, you won't go to the doctor about it.

By the same token, people may be less likely to stick to treatment for high cholesterol than they would be for a painful condition.

"People on cholesterol-lowering medicine don't feel any better," says Sperling. "It's not like taking a painkiller for an aching knee, where you know it's working." As a result, people may be less likely to follow their treatment plan over the long-term, Sperling says.

Also, high cholesterol risks are usually not immediate. The damage accumulates over years and decades -- high cholesterol in your 20s and 30s can take its toll in your 50s and 60s. Because the effects take time, many people don't feel real urgency in treating it. They feel they can just deal with it later.

"Unfortunately, I think that many people are too casual about their high cholesterol," says Adolph Hutter, MD, a cardiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital and a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. "They ignore it for years and it only gets their attention when they actually develop vascular disease."

Taking Action to Lower High Cholesterol Risks

There are many good treatments for heart disease, arteriosclerosis, and other serious conditions caused by high cholesterol. But it's a terrible shame to let things get that far when making changes now could prevent these life-threatening illnesses. Reducing your high cholesterol risks is a crucial step.

So what should you do? First, go to the doctor. "It's very important for all adults to get their cholesterol tested," says Wong. Every adult over 20 should have a cholesterol test at least once every five years.

Also, keep track of your cholesterol levels yourself. Write down your current numbers and, if they're high, what numbers you should be striving for.

If you do have high cholesterol, get serious. Talk with your doctor about what your goals should be and how you should achieve them. Make sure you understand what lifestyle changes you need to make. If you already have heart disease or other risk factors like diabetes, you need to be even more careful.

Whatever you do, don't ignore your high cholesterol risks. Don't put off treatment for another year.

"Having high cholesterol may not hurt you today or tomorrow," says Sperling. "But if you don't do something about it, it can have a terrible cost down the road."

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What Your Skin Says About Your Health

Your Skin: A Window to Your Health

Your skin can be a window to your underlying health, says Wake Forest's Joseph Jorizzo, MD, one of the experts who literally wrote the book on skin signs of internal disease. Many underlying health conditions — some very serious — first appear as skin problems.

Butterfly Rash

A butterfly rash across the face is often the first sign of lupus erythematosis. But don't jump to conclusions. "It could be rosacea, it could be contact dermatitis. Unfortunately, sometimes it is a sign of lupus," says University of Miami dermatologist Paolo Romanelli, MD. Only further tests can tell if it's really lupus.

Velvet Plaques

Velvety plaques around the neck and/or armpit suggest diabetes. This condition — acanthosis nigricans — could be benign, or just from being obese. But it is very often a sign of diabetes, and may indicate an internal malignant cancer.

Leg Plaque: Red on Edge, Gold in Center

Doctors call it necrobiosis lipoidica diabeticorum. As the name suggests, it's a distinctive sign of diabetes. And not a good sign. This skin condition suggests the underlying diabetes may have damaged eyes and kidneys.

Itchy, Violet Bumps on Wrist

Lichen planus is a rash made up of reddish-purple, flat-topped bumps that may itch like crazy. It usually appears on the wrists or ankles, but may be on the lower back, neck, legs, and genitals. The cause isn't known — but if you have it, you'll need to get liver tests. It could be a sign of hepatitis C.

Flesh Colored, Orange-Peel Patches on Back

Shagreen patches are flesh-colored lesions on the lower back that have the texture of an orange peel. They often occur with other skin signs: red or brown acne-like bumps spreading across the cheeks and nose; and ash-leaf spots of under-pigmented skin, most often on the trunk, that are oval at one end and pointy at the other. These are signs of a rare genetic disease called tuberous sclerosis that causes benign tumors to grow in the brain and other vital organs.

Tripe Palms

Tripe palms describes a skin condition in which the skin of the palm becomes thick and velvety-white with pronounced folds in the lines of the hand. The skin resembles boiled tripe. It's a sign of cancer. If only the palms are involved, it's most likely lung cancer. If tripe palms is accompanied by acanthosis nigricans, it's most likely gastric cancer.

Hardening of Skin in Extremities, "Wooden" Hands and Feet

First described in 1997, nephrogenic systemic fibrosis starts as a brown discoloration and indentation of the lower arms and legs. Very soon, the hands and feet become brown and like wood. Sometimes there's also a small yellow spot in the eye. Researchers only recently found that the gadolinium contrast agent used during MRI exams triggers this condition in some patients with kidney failure.

Scaly Rash on Buttocks, Red Tongue

Fortunately, necrolytic migratory erythema is pretty rare. It's a red, scaly rash, sometimes with small erosions of the skin, usually seen in elderly patients. It tends to start in the fold of the buttocks or palms but can be elsewhere on the body. A bright red, painful tongue is common. The condition usually signals a pancreatic tumor, usually a glucogenoma.

Not All Skin Conditions Scary

Many skin conditions do not indicate that anything else is wrong with you. For example, granuloma annulare is raised, reddish or flesh-colored bumps forming ring patterns on the hands and feet. They usually go away within two years, and don't mean anything is wrong with you.

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