Elixir

For pregnant women, getting a flu shot might not be such a bad idea, both for her own benefit and for the benefit of her unborn child. Even though the flu shot is currently not licensed for infants younger than six months, a recent study at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, indicates that babies whose mothers got the flu vaccination during pregnancy were less likely to contract the influenza virus.

In fact, in this study there was a 63 percent decrease in proven influenza illness among infants born to vaccinated mothers. In addition, the number of serious respiratory illnesses to both mothers and infants dropped by 36 percent.

These findings are particularly important because this age group is the most vulnerable to influenza. “Infants under six months have the highest rates of hospitalization from influenza among children in the U.S. These admission rates are higher than those for the elderly and other high-risk adult groups,” says Mark Steinhoff, MD, the study’s senior author and professor in the Bloomberg School’s Department of International Health.

Despite these recent findings, and the fact that the flu shot has been recommended for pregnant women in the U.S. since 1997, only 15 percent of pregnant women are vaccinated each year.

The study, conducted in Bangladesh, observed 340 mothers and their infants as part of the Mother’s Gift vaccine evaluation study.

With the findings, health officials will continue to urge expecting mothers to get the vaccination.

“Pregnant woman should be encouraged to be vaccinated for the flu to protect their infants and themselves,” Steinhoff says.

If you think about it, it’s two for the price of one.

Steaks sizzling on the grill are as much a part of summer as shorts and sandals. But health experts caution the iconic grill fare could increase your risk of cancer.

Diets high in red meat, including beef, pork, lamb and processed meats such as hot dogs, bacon and ham, are linked to colon cancer, says a recent report from the American Institute for Cancer Research, Washington, D.C. This doesn’t mean you have to give up grilling if you “think outside the beef,” says David Joachim, a nutrition writer and cookbook author in the Philadelphia area.

Instead of a meat-centric menu, put the emphasis on vegetables, fruits and whole-grain breads. You’ll be delighted to discover those “healthful” ingredients you shunned for steak have robust tempting flavors when grilled.

“A pizza on the grill with a higher proportion of vegetables and less meat is fabulous,”says Joachim, co-author with Andrew Schloss, of “Mastering the Grill” (Chronicle Books, 2007).

Vegetables, which are often relegated to second-class status, become a first-rate dish when grilled. Grilling browns vegetables and brings out the sugars. “It’s a revelation; it’s delicious,” Joachim says.

His favorites include cauliflower and potatoes, which he prepares as grilled potato chips. It’s as simple as slicing a Russet potato paper thin, brushing with a little canola oil and grilling on a grill screen until golden.

Grilled sandwiches are more than an afterthought as well. Provide tortillas, Italian bread and focaccia along with grilled vegetables, condiments and cheeses and let everyone assemble a sandwich.

If meat is still on the menu there are steps you can take to lessen the risks. For red meats, select leaner cuts. Shorten grilling time by partially pre-cooking meat in a microwave oven (immediately move the food to the grill to finish cooking). You can also marinate meat, which limits the formation of harmful substances.

With a stroke of his pen, President Barack Obama granted the Food and Drug Administration regulatory control over tobacco on June 22. His signature may snuff out the multi-billion dollar tobacco industry by 2047, according to two national tobacco experts.

Michael Fiore and Timothy Baker, director and assistant director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention, Madison, Wisc., published “Stealing a March in the 21st Century: Accelerating Progress in the 100-Year War Against Tobacco Addiction in the United States” in the July issue of the American Journal of Public Health. Their report analyzes data from the 1960s to today to chart milestones in the war against tobacco while presenting a battle plan to eradicate its use.

“Numerous observers have claimed over time that tobacco use has plateaued and progress against its use has stalled,” Fiore and Baker write. “However, the remarkable decline in rates of tobacco use since the 1960s belies this claim and underscores the remarkable success of tobacco control efforts to date.” Tobacco use has not dropped every year since 1965, but the overall rate of adults smoking has declined from 42 percent to 20 percent between then and 2007, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta.

The authors claim that the descent in smoking is a result of stricter public smoking laws, increased economic benefits to not smoking, more successful quitting tools and widespread dissemination of the destructive qualities of tobacco.

Fiore and Baker’s report calls for more. They ask for higher excise taxes on tobacco on both state and federal levels, a blanket ban on tobacco advertising and emphasis on preventing those younger than 17 from starting smoking. Research shows that nonsmoking by that age suppresses a strong genetic impulse that leads to addiction.

One of their biggest dreams became reality with President Obama’s support. The new law, among other things, bans the terms “mild” and “light” from tobacco marketing campaigns and further restricts marketing of tobacco products to kids. Fiore and Baker believe the law is another step in the inevitable, a tobacco-free America within the youngest generations’ lifetimes.

When it comes to your health, being a little more extroverted may go a long way. A new study at the Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden, says that people who are socially active and not easily stressed have a decreased chance of developing dementia. The lifestyle questionnaire, which surveyed 506 older adults, found that risk of dementia was reduced by 50 percent for those who were categorized as composed and relaxed or outgoing and calm, versus those who were isolated or experienced high stress levels. “In the past, studies have shown that chronic distress can affect parts of the brain, such as the hippocampus, possibly leading to dementia,” says study author, Hui-Xin Wang, PhD., “but our findings suggest that having a calm and outgoing personality in combination with a socially active lifestyle may decrease the risk of developing dementia even further.”

A new study published in the online health journal, Respiratory Research, claims that people eating soy-rich diets have a greatly diminished risk of developing chronic pulmonary obstructive disorder (COPD) - the fourth leading cause of death in the US.

And while smoking causes 90 percent of COPD cases, those among the 640 study participants who ate the most soy had better lung function. According to HealthDay,

“Previous research has suggested that soy can reduce cholesterol and ease menopause symptoms. This new study is the first to link soy intake and reduced COPD risk.”

It’s a good thing summer gives us more hours of the day to spend outdoors because Mars, the makers of M&Ms, is trying to make us all just a little fatter via their chocolatey wares.

Coconut M&Ms, coming to a store near you this August, will likely be met with the same thunderous applause (at least by me) as their current limited edition flavor, Strawberried Peanut Butter M&Ms.

Dieters beware - the 1.5 ounce package doesn’t offer any of the benefits of coconut because there isn’t a bit of coconut to be found inside the candy-coated shell. Nonetheless, it sounds like the perfect companion to a poolside afternoon.

After all, it’s less caloric than a piña colada. Or at least that’s what I’ll be telling myself …

In a televised commercial for the Healthy Lifestyle Expo at Navy Pier in Chicago, I noticed the event was sponsored by Medical Tourism Brazil. Medical tourism was new to my vocabulary - did they mean taking a vacation to have some work done or jaunting off to a country in-need of assistance to lend a helping hand?

As it turns out, it is a “vacation” during which you have a pricey procedure completed somewhere where medical expenses are far less. And, as it turns out, medical tourism is booming. In 2007, Asia generated $3.4 billion in medical tourism.

Before you book your flight, however, you might want to consider a few things to keep yourself safe. After all, sometimes  you really do get what you pay for.

If it tastes too good to be low-cal, it just might be.

A New York CBS station discovered eateries across the Big Apple have laid false claims to how many calories were in the food they served. One Starbucks customer was shocked to discovered that her “skinny”, 12-calorie peach apple tart was in fact 280 calories. The blueberry muffin and pumpkin scone both were also found to be under-reporting calorie totals.

At Dunkin’ Donuts, they found that the turkey, cheddar and bacon sandwich advertised as 360 calories was actually 460. As reported on CBS2Chicago.com, both eateries promise to re-labele the foods with updated information and, in the case of the Starbucks blueberry muffin, labeled as 420 calories but clocking in at 580,  it has been removed from the pastry case until further notice.

While the benefits of an animal companion to those aging or chronically ill are well known, the help of our four-legged friends may actually be ageless. According to a survey conducted at Ohio State University, college students also find comfort in their pets during difficult times.
The survey of students at a Midwest commuter campus and other adults in the area found that young people attribute comfort in stressful situations and a hedge against loneliness to owning a cat or a dog.

“We might not think of college students as being lonely, but a lot of freshman and sophomores are in an early transition from living at home to living in dorms or off-campus,” says Sara Staats, lead author of the study and professor emeritus of psychology at Ohio State’s Newark Campus. “Many feel their pets will help get them through these difficult and stressful situations. And many more say that without their pet, they would feel lonely.”

The study, based on survey responses from nearly 350 college students, showed that avoiding loneliness was the top reason given for owning a pet, but that pets also helped students stay active and improve their overall health in a number of ways.

“Many students said that their pets fulfill a significant role that is missing in their lives,” Staat says. “The pets are not a substitute for human social interaction and support, but do provide important interaction for these kids who might otherwise feel isolated from their current environment.”

Apparently so, according to a report on Forbes.com. It may come as a shock to those of us who love life here — we could go on forever with the superlatives — but this paragraph does at least make you see how they got to their reasoning.

Lousy weather, long commutes, rising unemployment and the highest sales tax rate in the country are to blame for the Windy City being near the top of our list. High rates of corruption by public officials didn’t help either.

Point taken, and yes, the winter’s are rough, but Chicago is still the greatest city to live in, as we all know. To come to its conclusion, the Forbes study looked at the nation’s 150 largest metro areas (population at least 378,000) and ranked them in the following categories: commute times, corruption, pro sports teams, Superfund sites, taxes (both income and sales), unemployment, violent crime and weather.