Between 1982 and the spring of 2010, there were over 1,100 catastrophic injuries in high school and college sports, which includes any severe or fatal injury that occurred while participating in the sport.

Yet, a great portion of those injuries did not occur during a football, hockey, wrestling or any other type of contact sport, like you might suspect. They did not all occur during a baseball, soccer or basketball game either.

As it turns out, according to the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, which recently released its 26th annual report on the topic, the sport that causes more serious and deadly injuries among women than any other sport is … cheerleading.

In all, during the period spanning 1982 to spring 2008, there were 152 fatalities, 379 non-fatal injuries and 374 serious injuries among high school sports, and 22 fatalities, 63 non-fatal injuries and 126 serious injuries among college sports.

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If you have allergies, chemical sensitivity or sensitive skin, even something as simple as washing your face can be irritating. This is because soaps, shampoos and other personal care products often contain a toxic slew of chemicals.

Even for someone without sensitivities, everyday use of personal care products can lead to “chemical overload,” which may cause allergies or disease, according to a study by the Environmental Working Group (EWG).

On average, the study found that an adult uses nine different cosmetics each day, with exposes them to about 126 chemicals!

“It is not just the fact that these chemicals are being absorbed through the skin that is worrying,” says Lindsay McManus, an adviser on chemical sensitivity for Allergy UK on EWG.com. “Many of them are perfumed and the fragrance alone can contain 200 chemicals that need not be listed individually on the label, so people don’t know what they are getting.”

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If you must visit a hospital, doing your homework first can, quite literally, mean the difference between life and death. That’s because, according to the Annual HealthGrades Hospital Quality in America Study, conducted by health care ratings group HealthGrades, the quality of care at America’s 5,000-plus hospitals varies drastically.
As is written in the study’s executive summary, “hospitals are in fact not the same,” and neither is the care you’ll receive at a one-star hospital as opposed to a five-star one.

HealthGrades analyzed 40.6 million Medicare hospital records over a three year period in order to evaluate the quality of care at more than 5,000 U.S. hospitals. The team rated hospitals using a five-star system (with five stars being the best, three stars “as expected” and one star “poor”) that was based on patients’ risk of dying or having serious complications from various procedures.

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Nearly 21 percent of U.S. adults smoke cigarettes, and countless others have smoked at some point in their life. This habit continues to be the leading cause of preventable death in the country, causing about one out of every five deaths each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

A top health concern for smokers is lung cancer, of which smoking causes about 90 percent of cases. Your risk of dying from lung cancer is 23 times higher for men who smoke cigarettes and 13 times higher for women compared to non-smokers. Aside from lung cancer, smoking can lead to other forms of cancer, coronary heart disease, stroke, and chronic obstructive lung disease.

The best way to prevent these illnesses, of course, is to quit smoking. But for those who are current or past smokers, there may be a way to reduce some of the harm cigarettes do to your body: make wise food choices.

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 There were over 36 million older people (65 or older, for this definition) in the United States in 2004, a group that made up more than 12 percent of the population. By 2030, people aged 65 and older will account for 20 percent.

With age comes greater wisdom, experience and, hopefully, contentment with your life, but it may also increase your likelihood of needing to visit a doctor. Unfortunately, at a time when health care may be needed most — in your later years — is when patients may be most at risk.

Whether this scenario applies to you, a family member or another loved one, watch out for these common mistakes that doctors may make with elderly patients; they are ALL preventable.

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It happens to just about every U.S. President as they struggle through their term in office, and it reportedly happened to Marie Antionette in the days before she was guillotined. Of course, just about every parent of a teenager (or a 2-year-old, for that matter) has likely experienced it too: Gray hair!
Yet, contrary to the old wives’ tale that stress will make your hair turn gray, scientific studies showing such a link are lacking. Rather than the emotional stress we often associated with premature gray, a new study in the journal Cell found that cell stress may be a more likely cause.

DNA Damage May Color Your Hair Gray

Researchers from Tokyo Medical and Dental University found that cellular stress, caused by damaging agents like chemicals, ultraviolet light and ionizing radiation, may explain why your hair turns gray.

As the study’s lead author, Emi Nishimura, pointed out, a single cell may encounter up to 100,000 events a day that damage DNA, and stem cells in your hair follicles responsible for color are impacted by this damage.

While you’re young, stem cells in your hair either reproduce or mature into more specialized cells that produce pigment to color your hair. But as you age, too many stem cells mature until there are no pigment cells left to be added to your hair.

The researchers believe that accumulated DNA damage may be the trigger that causes stem cells to mature, which then allows these damaged cells to be purged.

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What does it take to live to be 100, or even 91? Ask a handful of centenarians, and you’re likely to get a handful of different answers.
“Keep a smile on your face,” “No tobacco,” “Treat others how you want to be treated,” and “Drink a warm beer before bed,” are all words of longevity from people who have passed the 100-year point.

In fact, this exclusive group of people who are over 100 are the fastest growing segment of the U.S. population, their numbers at 40,000 and growing strong.

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Anyone who’s ever been caught in the throes of indecision –and who hasn’t- knows that it can be downright maddening. Thinking about what to do, whether the decision is big … Should we buy this house? … or small … Do I want mashed potatoes or baked? … can become borderline obsessive. It consumes your thoughts until you choose one outcome over the other, and even then may continue to harass you as you worry whether you made the right choice.

Certainly, indecision is frustrating for the indecisive person. But that’s not all. Being indecisive also affects those around you. Your coworkers, your spouse, your family and friends are all influenced by your decision-making, or lack thereof.

What’s Wrong With a Little Indecision?

Being unable to make a decision happens to the best of us. But when being indecisive begins to become more of a regular occurrence than a rare one, your relationships and career may suffer.

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If you secretly sashay across your living room when you’re home alone or long to cha-cha with your significant other, you’re in luck. Not only is dancing an exceptional way to let loose and have fun, but it also provides some terrific benefits for your health.

In fact, Mayo Clinic researchers reported that social dancing helps to:

• Reduce stress
• Increase energy
• Improve strength
• Increase muscle tone and coordination

And whether you like to kick up your heals to hip hop, classical or country, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) says that dancing can:

• Lower your risk of coronary heart disease
• Decrease blood pressure
• Help you manage your weight
• Strengthen the bones of your legs and hips

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Sprouts are tiny, baby plants that are just beginning their journey into the familiar veggies we know. Yet, at this stage the sprout is packed with high concentrations of vitamins, minerals, amino acids and more, which it will need to grow into a mature plant.

Eating sprouts, therefore, is said to be among the healthiest ways to consume your vegetables, because you get higher concentrations of nutrients, and, because the sprout is still alive and growing when it’s consumed, it is a raw food, full of live nutrition (which cooked vegetables do not provide).

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