What is the significance of Wal-Marts initiative to require producers to meet certain nutritional standards? What do we know about what works and what doesnt in changing peoples eating habits? Follow the discussion on the New York Times blog.
Category: News - Part 31
Wal-Mart, the nations largest retailer, will announce a five-year plan on Thursday to make thousands of its packaged foods lower in unhealthy salts, fats and sugars, and to drop prices on fruits and vegetables. Read the New York Times story.
By Katie Kerwin McCrimmon ASPEN The mountain man drives up the aptly named Castle Creek Canyon in a beat up 1981 rust-colored Chevy pickup. He winds past massive multimillion dollar estates owned by California wine billionaires and Texas oil barons. Hollywood stars Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith own a home nearby, and tennis great Martina Navratilova lives up the road. Wearing a gas-stained Aspen Ski Co. parka from decades ago when he worked on World Cup courses, A. Paul Disnard drives as far as he can. Then, the jeep road becomes impassable, buried in several feet of snow. The 64-year-old…
By Katie Kerwin McCrimmon The iconic Western cowboy has long enchanted artists and pioneers alike. Who could be more carefree than a man alone on his horse, herding cattle as jagged peaks tower overhead? The romance with the Rocky Mountain West is fundamental to our American DNA. Yet, there is a hidden peril for these mavericks and stoic ranchers, as poisonous as cigarettes were to the rugged Marlboro man. Depression and suicide rates are alarmingly high among ranchers and rural residents in Colorado. Throughout the state, Colorado has set an unfortunate record with the highest number of suicides ever recorded…
By Katie Kerwin McCrimmon For John Fielder, Colorados mountains are his medicine and his muse. Craggy high-altitude peaks, bathed in the glow of a new days light, have fed the soul of Colorados most famous nature photographer for nearly four decades. Fielder has captured achingly beautifully images and fought to save sacred lands, including his most recent preservation project: Ranches of Colorado. Yet, the mountains were also the setting for the most tragic moment of Fielders life. On March 21, 2006, Fielders oldest child and only son, John J.T. Fielder III, killed himself on a 13,000-foot ridge above Butler Gulch…
By Diane Carman The March of Dimes has a news flash for women everywhere: pregnancy is more than a nine-month commitment. Actually, its closer to 10. And if you want a healthy baby, there are no loopholes. As a society weve really focused on nine months of pregnancy, said Scott Matthews, director of program services for the Colorado Chapter of the March of Dimes. Surveys have found that women view pregnancy as 36 weeks long. But full term is 40 weeks, and research has shown that significant fetal respiratory and brain development occurs in those last four weeks. In the…
By Diane Carman Healthy babies come from healthy moms. So, in a groundbreaking change, the nations leading advocates for infants are focusing on the overall health of potential parents. For the first time, we have begun to move toward thinking about the health of people, said Scott Matthews, spokesman for the Colorado Chapter of the March of Dimes. How healthy are teenagers and women of child-bearing age? How can we work toward healthy citizens? Its not good enough to wait until women are pregnant to begin focusing on their health, Matthews said. Fifty percent of pregnancies are unplanned, so we…
By Abby Burton Induction of labor rates in the United States are increasing. This increase is driven by pregnant women and their families and by obstetric providers. Women have many reasons for wanting an induction of labor. Some are anxious and excited to meet the new family member; some are extremely uncomfortable as their girth and weight increase; some have such busy lives that theyd love to be able to schedule the birth as they would schedule a dinner party; some fear the process of labor and want it behind them.Some providers also encourage a scheduled induction of labor. A…
Women who suffer from both depression and diabetes have a increased risk of dying from heart disease, as well as having a higher chance of dying over a six-year period, according to a new study out this week. A CNN report.
Millions of Americans take multivitamins daily, looking to get all sorts of health benefits. But when it comes to a good nights sleep, can these pills do a disservice? Read the New York Times story. Speaking of sleep, the Washington Post explores new research that validates the idea that people who get a good nights sleep do look more attractive. John Axelsson from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden and colleagues studied 23 subjects ages 18 to 31. They were photographed between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. on two occasions once after getting a normal nights sleep of eight hours and…