2002 February

Reading the New York Times one morning, there was something that gave me pause. There, right in the Metro section, was an ad for a new book: "The New York Times Guide to Alternative Health." The subtitle read "A Consumer Reference." And the description went on to describe how this "timely and authoritative report" would inform us about "the most controversial" form of medical care in America with "balanced, objective reports."

Most people think an "old wives' tale" is synonymous with silly, superstitious, useless information. But the fact is that women's oral tradition has passed on a lot of useful knowledge over the years.

In the Western world, the average daily intake per capita is about 300 mg – a little more than two cups of brewed coffee a day. Of course, it's also found in tea, sodas, chocolate, and hundreds of other foods in varying amounts. And according to new research, it may be contributing to the insulin resistance epidemic sweeping the world.

How many hours of sleep should you get each night for optimal health? If you're like me, your knee-jerk reaction to that question is "8 hours." But research is shedding new light on the conventional wisdom about sleep – and the new answers it provides may surprise you.

Now, there's another new study in the anti-HRT camp. This one strongly supports the long-held belief that HRT may increase a woman's risk of breast cancer – in fact, it shows that long-term HRT use may boost your odds of one of the most dangerous types of breast cancer by as much as 85 PERCENT.