According to researchers, teenagers who sleep less than eight hours a night on weeknights eat more fatty foods and snacks than their better-rested peers, particularly if they are girls. It is unclear why sleeping less might prompt teens to have poorer eating habits, but it has been shown that getting too little sleep lowers the body's production of the appetite-regulating hormones leptin and ghrelin, which can make a person feel hungrier and fuel cravings for high-calorie snacks. Over time, these bad eating habits can lead to weight gain and obesity. Discuss
The US birth rate dropped 2.6 percent last year to its lowest level in at least a century, and experts are attributing this to the economic downturn. This is the second consecutive year that the birth rate has declined and a stark contrast to 2007, when more babies were born in the US than any other year in the nation's history and when the current recession began. During the Great Depression of the 1930s, the birth rate also dropped as people, unsure about their economic futures, postponed having children. When the economy improved, the birth rate increased, and experts expect that the same will be true today.
Omega-3 fatty acids are thought to help promote heart health by preventing the formation of blood clots and reducing the risk of coronary heart disease, however, a new study suggests that low doses of omega-3 fatty acids do not provide additional benefits to heart attack survivors taking standard medications for their heart conditions. The patients in the study given a margarine enriched with omega-3 oils had the same risk of a second heart attack as those who did not supplement their diet with added omega-3s.
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