Breast Cancer : Risk Factors
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BRCA2 Mutation
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DES Exposure
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Diet high in saturated fats
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Early Menstruation
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Family history of breast cancer
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women over 50
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Alcohol (ethyl alcohol or ethanol) consumption has a social aspect to it, but it is often abused. The effect of alcohol consumption on the body depends on how often it is consumed, how much, and the alcohol content of the drinks.
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Alcohol is produced by fermenting the starch or sugar in fruits and grains. Alcoholic drinks have different amounts of alcohol in them -- beer is about 5% alcohol, wine is usually 12 - 15% alcohol, and hard liquor is about 45% alcohol. See also: Alcohol and diet Alcoholism Alcohol withdrawal state
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This report includes information on recognizing the symptoms of problem drinking, treatment techniques, coping with a loved one's drinking, and overcoming denial.
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Researchers at the Harvard Medical School have discovered that the herb kudzu can curb the urge to drink alcohol.
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Alcohol is considered a drug because it depresses the central nervous system and can disrupt mental and motor skills, as well as damage internal organs when used excessively.
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It helps to understand why and when you drink if you are going to successfully reduce the amount of alcohol you consume.
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As a woman, your body is much more sensitive to the effects of alcohol and more easily damaged than a man’s body. Because women have less water in their body than men, alcohol doesn't dilute as much and more of it gets absorbed into the blood. That’s why women suffer greater physical damage and often become more intoxicated than men when they drink identical amounts of alcohol.
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A Harvard Medical School physician answers your question about forsaking the potential health benefits of moderate alcohol consumption.
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Excessive drinking can cause potentially fatal conditions, not only high blood pressure, but also damage to the brain, heart or liver; diabetes and stroke.
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Is there any connection between rheumatoid arthritis and alcohol consumption? Does a prior history of waterborne hepatitis predispose a person to RA?
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Tips for avoiding the worst consequence of holiday overindulgence.Drinking fluids may help with the morning-after misery from getting drunk.
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If you drink, you most likely want to drink reasonably and responsibly. But what are the factors that can help you keep a check on your blood-alcohol content so you don't embarrass yourself or, worse, hurt yourself or others?
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Alcohol-dependent employees incur twice the health care costs of the average employee, are more likely to steal from their employers, are more likely to be involved in workplace accidents and are five times more likely to file worker’s compensation claims.
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Breast Cancer—Understanding Genetic TestingCancer is a disease of the genes. Most cancers develop as a result of genetic damage we sustain over a lifetime.
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Genetic Testing for BRCA1 and BRCA2: It's Your Choice1. What are BRCA1 and BRCA2?
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First Aid: Chemical ExposureSome chemicals cause burns. Others may be absorbed through skin or lungs, causing hidden damage.Seek Medical HelpChemicals may cause serious damage not only to the outside of the body but also to the inside.
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All About MenopauseMenopause -- when estrogen and progesterone production, ovulation and menstruation stop -- is a natural part of a woman's life. The average age that women reach menopause is 51.The years leading up to menopause, called perimenop...
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A Prescription for Health in MenopauseThe best approach to menopause is to follow a healthy regimen. That includes dealing with smoking, nutrition, exercise, weight management and stress reduction.SmokingSmoking is a leading cause of preventable i...
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DES (diethylstilbestrol) is a hormone that was prescribed for pregnant women in the 1950s and early 1960s. Many years later, doctors discovered that the daughters of the women who received DES were at high risk for a variety of problems, including infertility , premature labor , and cancer of the vagina and cervix.
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Women ' s health differs from men ' s health, and not just with respect to reproduction. To understand and examine these differences appropriately, the variables of sex and gender are each relevant.
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Natural hormone replacement therapy (NHRT) is the use of non-synthetic, bio-identical hormones (estrogens, progesterone, and/or testosterone), derived from plants), to treat hormone imbalances and deficiencies. The first oral contraceptive pill was originally derived from Dioscorea species, wild yam; later soy was used as the precursor for oral contraceptive hormones.
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Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) is medication containing one or more female hormones, commonly estrogen plus progestin (synthetic progesterone). Some women receive estrogen-only therapy (usually women who have had their uterus removed). HRT is most often used to treat symptoms of menopause such as "hot flashes," vaginal dryness, mood swings, sleep disorders, and decreased sexual desire. This medication may be taken in the form of a pill, a patch, or vaginal cream.
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Hormone Therapy For WomenHormone therapy (HT) increases your levels of the hormones estrogen and progesterone. This will help reduce signs of menopause.
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Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is the use of synthetic or natural female hormones to make up for the decline or lack of natural hormones produced in a woman ' s body. HRT is sometimes referred to as estrogen replacement therapy (ERT), because the first medications that were used in the 1960s for female hormone replacement were estrogen compounds.
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Detailed information on hormone replacement therapy, including the controversy over its use
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Detailed information on hormone replacement therapy, including the controversy over its use
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Is HRT right for you? That's up to you and your healthcare provider. Your healthcare provider will review your health needs. Then he or she will suggest steps you can take to control any symptoms or health risks. HRT may be one part of your overall program.
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Hormone Replacement Therapy: Friend or Foe?Menopause is a natural stage of life for women.
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A Harvard Medical School professor and prostate disease expert discusses the benefits and risks of testosterone-replacement therapy, including misconceptions about whether this treatment increases the risk of prostate cancer.
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Women often perceive heart disease as an older person's disease that need not concern them until menopause.
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What is the oldest age a woman can still take low-dose birth control pills as a form of HRT if no problems exist?
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Obesity is an abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually 20% or more over an individual ' s ideal body weight. Obesity is associated with increased risk of illness, disability, and death.
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Obesity is a term used to describe body weight that is much greater than what is considered healthy. If you are obese, you have a much higher amount of body fat than lean muscle mass. Adults with a BMI greater than 30 are considered obese. Anyone more than 100 pounds overweight or with a BMI greater than 40 is considered morbidly obese.
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Detailed information on obesity, including obesity causes, obesity health effects, obesity medical treatment, obesity surgical treatment, maintaining weight loss, and obesity prevention
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Obesity is the condition of having an excessive accumulation of fat in the body, resulting in a body weight more than 20% above the average for height, age, sex, and body type, and in elevated risk of disability, illness, and death. The human body is composed of bone, muscle, specialized organ tissues, and fat.
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We've all heard warnings, yet many of us keep gaining weight. More than half of American adults are overweight or obese, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Detailed information on obesity, including obesity facts, obesity causes, and obesity health effects
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Detailed information on obesity, including obesity facts, obesity causes, and obesity health effects
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Detailed information on obesity, including cause, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention
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Detailed information on obesity, including obesity facts, obesity causes, and obesity health effects
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Weighing too much is harmful, but the location of those extra pounds can worsen the risk.
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Obesity , defined as a body mass index of 30 or greater, is an epidemic in the United States and other industrialized nations, and it is rapidly becoming one in developing nations. As countries transition to westernized lifestyles, obesity tends to increase.
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obesity increases the risk for illness from 30 serious medical conditions, including diabetes, heart disease and several types of cancer.
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Detailed information on obesity prevention strategies during infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood
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Detailed information on obesity, including obesity causes, obesity health effects, obesity medical treatment, obesity surgical treatment, maintaining weight loss, and obesity prevention
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Detailed information on obesity prevention strategies during infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood
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Detailed information on obesity, including obesity causes, obesity health effects, obesity medical treatment, obesity surgical treatment, maintaining weight loss, and obesity prevention
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Detailed information on obesity, including obesity facts, obesity causes, and obesity health effects
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With childhood obesity on the rise, should parents worry about the weight of their babies?
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Obesity is an abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually 20% or more over an individual's ideal body weight. Obesity is associated with increased risk of illness, disability, and death.
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As your body mass index goes up, so does your risk for health problems. Your blood pressure goes up and so do your cholesterol levels.
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Detailed information on obesity prevention strategies during infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood
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Detailed information on obesity prevention strategies during infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood
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Obesity is an abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually 20% or more over an individual ' s ideal body weight. Obesity is associated with increased risk of illness, disability, and death .
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The analysis of more than 15,000 young people in the United States found about a third of the cases of depression and obesity among those teens could be attributed to being from families with low incomes.
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There is growing evidence that obesity increases a man's risk of developing prostate cancer. The reasons are still unclear, but obesity affects hormone production, which could in turn be influencing cancer growth.
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Detailed information on obesity treatment, including obesity medical treatment, and obesity surgical treatment
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Detailed information on obesity treatment, including obesity medical treatment, obesity surgical treatment, obesity gastric bypass (malabsorptive) surgery, and obesity gastric stapling (restrictive) surgery
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Detailed information on obesity treatment, including obesity medical treatment, and obesity surgical treatment
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Detailed information on obesity treatment, including obesity medical treatment, obesity surgical treatment, obesity gastric bypass (malabsorptive) surgery, and obesity gastric stapling (restrictive) surgery
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Detailed information on obesity treatment, including obesity medical treatment, and obesity surgical treatment
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Detailed information on obesity treatment, including obesity medical treatment, obesity surgical treatment, obesity gastric bypass (malabsorptive) surgery, and obesity gastric stapling (restrictive) surgery
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Detailed information on obesity, including obesity causes, obesity health effects, obesity medical treatment, obesity surgical treatment, maintaining weight loss, and obesity prevention
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Detailed information on obesity treatment, including obesity medical treatment, and obesity surgical treatment
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Detailed information on obesity treatment, including obesity medical treatment, obesity surgical treatment, obesity gastric bypass (malabsorptive) surgery, and obesity gastric stapling (restrictive) surgery
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Term describing a condition where the ratio of body fat to total body mass is higher than accepted norms. Obesity is a relative term used to describe the condition where the ratio of body fat, which is measurable, to total body mass is higher than the accepted norm.
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Extreme obesity plagues more than a million teens and young adults, experts estimate. What's a parent to do?
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Detailed information on weight and weight control, including healthy tips for maintaining your weight
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Detailed information on obesity medical treatment, including obesity prescription medications and supplements, obesity behavioral strategies, and psychotherapy for eating disorders
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Detailed information on obesity medical treatment, including obesity prescription medications and supplements, obesity behavioral strategies, and psychotherapy for eating disorders
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Detailed information on obesity medical treatment, including obesity prescription medications and supplements, obesity behavioral strategies, and psychotherapy for eating disorders
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Detailed information on obesity medical treatment, including obesity prescription medications and supplements, obesity behavioral strategies, and psychotherapy for eating disorders
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Obesity is an abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually 20 percent or more over an individual ' s ideal body weight. Obesity is associated with increased risk of illness, disability, and death.
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Bariatric surgery, which helps extremely obese people lose weight by reducing the size of the stomach and intestines, carries a higher risk of death than previously believed, new research shows. Three studies, published October 19 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found death rates of 3% to 5% for middle-aged adults and more than twice that high for patients 65 to 74, the Associated Press (AP) reported. Among patients 75 or older, 40% of the women and half of the men died, the AP story said.
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Exploring the causes and consequences of America's growing epidemic of obesity.Obesity is not a new problem. Forty years ago, 4 of every 10 Americans were overweight or obese. But obesity is a growing problem, and it’s growing quickly; today, two of every three Americans need to lose weight. In the 1960s, obesity was an epidemic; today, it’s a pandemic.
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Detailed information on obesity surgical treatment, including gastric bypass surgery, and gastric stapling surgery
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Detailed information on obesity surgical treatment, including gastric bypass surgery, and gastric stapling surgery
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Detailed information on obesity surgical treatment, including gastric bypass surgery, and gastric stapling surgery
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Detailed information on obesity surgical treatment, including gastric bypass surgery, and gastric stapling surgery
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More than 19 million Americans have type 2 diabetes, and millions more have a condition that puts them at high risk for developing it.
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The American Diabetes Association estimates at least 20.1 million people in the United States have pre-diabetes. Pre-diabetes means having a blood sugar level that is higher than normal, but not yet persistently high enough to be considered type 2 diabetes. By taking steps to control your blood sugar, you can delay or prevent type 2 diabetes from developing.
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What is responsible for obesity, how to treat it.At one time it was commonly believed that overweight and obese people were compulsive eaters, anxious, depressed, under stress, or trying to compensate for inadequate upbringing, family conflict, or other deficiencies in their lives. But since then, when almost everyone seems to be getting heavier and obesity has become a national political issue, both experts and the public are turning away from the idea that weight gain is a personal emotional problem. Instead the trend toward obesity has become a subject for biologists and sociologists, regarded as the physical consequence of a general social condition. It’s become less clear what role psychotherapists and other mental health professionals should play in managing the problem.
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America is more overweight and out of shape than ever. The result? Soaring medical costs and lost productivity. The U.S. government is working to change that with "Healthy People 2010," its latest effort to show us that national health demands personal health. The drive includes 10 "leading health indicators," modeled after our leading economic indicators.
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Detailed information on maintaining weight loss, including weight loss benefits, weight loss maintenance strategies, and weight cycling
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Detailed information on maintaining weight loss, including weight loss benefits, weight loss maintenance strategies, and weight cycling
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Detailed information on maintaining weight loss, including weight loss benefits, weight loss maintenance strategies, and weight cycling
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Detailed information on maintaining weight loss, including weight loss benefits, weight loss maintenance strategies, and weight cycling
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The prevalence and consequences of obesity and how to treat it; explanation of BMI and waist-to-hip ratio.
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A study claims that obese people are more likely to suffer from anxiety and depression, but the findings do not prove that the conditions are causally related to each other.
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Portion sizes are bigger today, and that increase has contributed to the growing numbers of overweight or obese Americans.
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Each overweight or obese American spends $700 more a year on medical bills than trim neighbors, one expert says.
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Obesity has become a public health crisis in the United States, in part, because Americans are consuming more calories than they did 30 years ago. A large part of that increase in consumption can be pinned on a greater use of foods prepared away from home -- those ready-to-eat items available at restaurants, grocery store food counters and fast-food eateries.
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Obesity is the most common health problem facing children, child health experts say. More than 30 percent of children and teens are overweight, and 15 percent are obese.
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We've all heard warnings, yet many of us keep gaining weight. More than half of American adults are overweight or obese, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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Experts in one study say the study shows the limitations of the Body Mass Index (BMI) as a measure of obesity, especially because it doesn't account for weight that is muscle rather than fat. A study of 90,000 U.S. women, described in the second article, says the risk of death jumps sharply for extremely obese women -- those at least 90 pounds overweight.
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I am 19 years old and weigh 300 pounds. I have tried diets and they don't work. I have had a physical and am healthy except for my weight. I would like to have stomach banding surgery done. Am I a good candidate for this procedure?
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Experts are challenging a recent, widely reported study that suggested being overweight is not associated with early mortality.
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The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) is warning that obesity during pregnancy increases the risk of several complications, including high blood pressure, a serious condition called preeclampsia and gestational diabetes. The ACOG opinion, published in the September issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology, says obese women also are more likely to miscarry, to need a Caesarean section, and to have excessive bleeding and infection after a Caesarean section. Babies of obese women are more likely to be stillborn, be born prematurely and have spinal cord abnormalities called neural tube defects. The risks affect women with a body mass index (BMI) of 25 to 30, and are even higher for women with a BMI of more than 30.
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Many obese adults don't believe they are obese. A small survey (104 adults ages 45 to 64 were polled) found that 71% of normal-weight people placed themselves in the correct weight category, as did 73% of overweight people. However, only 15% of obese people identified themselves as obese. The Associated Press reported April 9 on the survey, done by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). According to the CDC, an adult who is 5 feet 10 inches tall is overweight at 174 pounds and obese at 209 pounds.
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True or false? Most overweight people got that way because they're self-indulgent weaklings without the will power to say no to super-sized french fries and fudge-slathered ice cream.
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Children whose parents are overweight or obese are at higher risk for becoming obese themselves, studies have shown. One study, in the New England Journal of Medicine, found that for a child under 10, having an obese parent more than doubled the child's risk for becoming an obese adult.
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With two out of three Americans overweight or obese, it's become a community problem. The solution requires cooperation from public and private institutions.
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The fact is, you might not care as much about looks as your wife does, but that fat around your abdomen is no laughing matter. A man's potbelly often warns of later problems ranging from heart disease to cancer, diabetes, arthritis, back pain and sleep apnea.
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Oral contraceptives are medicines taken by mouth to help prevent pregnancy. They are also known as the pill, OCs, or birth control pills.
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Oral Contraceptives and Cancer Risk: Questions and AnswersKey PointsSome cancers depend on naturally occurring sex hormones for their development and growth. Researchers are interested in learning whether the hormones in oral contraceptives affect...
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