Health Headlines - May 1

Low-Salt Diets May Harm Heart, Study Says

New research would appear to upend long-standing advice to limit daily salt intake if you want to protect your heart.

Combat Veterans Pay a Price Decades Later

Combat can take a lasting toll on veterans, making them more likely to drink heavily and smoke decades after battle, a new study finds.

Too Little Magnesium Tied to Artery Troubles

Not having enough magnesium in your diet may increase your chances of developing coronary artery disease, study findings suggest.

College, U.N. Fight Hunger in Guatemala

Danielle Mann, a senior at Georgetown College, was one of five students from the small, private Baptist college to visit Guatemala in February as part of a project to film a documentary on chronic malnutrition that will be used by the United Nations' World Food Programme.

Study: Risks Jump As Obesity Escalates

When the fat get even fatter, their risk of death jumps, too, especially if they have an apple-shaped waistline. So concludes a study of 90,000 women in the United States, the first to look closely at the alarming trend of extreme obesity, being at least 90 pounds overweight.

FDA OKs Lizard-Derived Shot for Diabetes

Type 2 diabetics got a new option to help control their blood sugar Friday, a drug derived from the saliva of the Gila monster — but one that must be injected twice a day.

Male Hormones May Help Women After Hysterectomy

Women who feel less sexy after a hysterectomy may get a boost from a seemingly unlikely source -- testosterone, new research reports.

Low Weight Common in Childhood Cancer Survivors

Adult survivors of childhood cancer are more likely to be underweight than the general population, study findings suggest.

Mom's Flu Infection Tied to Eye Problems in Baby

Having the flu during pregnancy or being infected with a microbe called Parvovirus raises the risk that the baby will be born with small eyes or even no eyes, new research shows. Still, even when the flu is present, the risk of these eye problems is very, very small.

Epidural During Labor Linked to Abnormal Head Position

Receiving epidural analgesia during labor seems to increase the risk that the baby will be delivered face up instead of the normal face -down position, new research shows. This may explain the higher rate of c-sections associated with epidurals.

Orthopedic Operation Linked to Erection Problems

About 40 percent of men who undergo "intramedullary nailing" for a broken thighbone, also called the femur, report erectile dysfunction (ED) afterwards, according to a recent report by French researchers. Receiving adequate amounts of muscle relaxant during the operation may help reduce the risk.

Food Fact:
Go nuts!

Eat the right number of nuts per week, and you may cut your risk of a fatal heart attack in half!

Fitness Tip of the day:
Make it a "cardio commute."

We've got an easy tip for giving yourself an energy boost in the morning.

FAQ of the day:
Is vitamin E good for my eyes?

Extra vitamin E may help, but eating foods rich in yellow plant pigments is probably far more important. Lutein, the pigment in spinach, kale, corn, peas and other foods, concentrates in the macula of the eye, where it filters out harmful ultraviolet light. It sounds like you're getting more than enough vitamin E, so concentrate on eating carotenoid-rich vegetables, such as carrots, to help preserve your vision.