Blog Posts by Health.com

Getty ImagesBy Erica Kain

I just turned 38. Am I too old to contemplate one more pregnancy before I hang up my fallopian tubes?

After all of the drama I've endured with my last five pregnancies (and three births), I feel like I've gotten pregnancy down to an art. It seems unfair that I might be considered too old or too risky to bear another child.

So I wondered: Is there a perfect age to have kids? If so, how did I miss it?

First, I learned that I'm not the only one who got started late. According to an August 2009 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the average age of first-time mothers in the United States jumped from 21.4 in 1970 to 25 in 2006. The number of first births for women 35 and older has increased nearly eight times since 1970.

Clearly I'm part of a fashionable trend, having had my babies at ages 34, 36, and 37. But is 39 a completely reckless proposition? How far am I from the "perfect age" at this point?

I consulted Ron Jaekle,

By Lynne Peeples

If you're trying to lose weight by cutting calories, make sure to get a good night's sleep. According to a new study, too little sleep appears to hinder your body's ability to burn fat.

In the study, 10 overweight but otherwise healthy volunteers on a low-cal diet spent four weeks confined to a research lab. Their diets remained the same throughout, but they slept 8.5 hours a night for two weeks, and just 5.5 hours a night for two weeks.

Although the participants lost roughly the same amount of weight (about 6.5 pounds) on each sleep schedule, the makeup of those pounds differed substantially, the researchers found.

Health.com: 7 tips for the best sleep ever

When they were sleep-deprived, the participants lost half as much weight in fat and almost twice as much in muscle and other lean body weight, according to the study, which was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Lean muscle is important to maintaining weight loss, as it keeps a person's metabolism

IstockphotoQ: Should I worry about eating soy?

A: No. If you're a healthy woman with no history of breast cancer or thyroid disease, soy can be part of a balanced diet.

Chances are you've heard confusing reports about soy. Some say it's a healthy superfood; others claim it boosts cancer risks. Here's what we know for sure: Soy foods are high in protein, fiber, calcium, potassium, and B vitamins. And a European research review found that soy could lower heart disease risk and relieve hot flashes. So, eating a little soy each day is OK for healthy women, experts agree. But there are caveats.

For starters, soy is most healthful when eaten in its most natural forms and limited to one serving a day, says Maria Romano, RD, an oncology dietitian at Montefiore-Einstein Center for Cancer Care in New York City. She suggests choosing edamame or tofu over refined items such as soy "meat."

Health.com: 25 breast cancer myths and misunderstandings

Soy should be eaten in moderation because

Getty ImagesBy Denise Mann

Forget diet pills and cleanses. A new study suggests that an effective weight-loss aid is available straight from your kitchen sink.

Drinking two 8-ounce glasses of water before breakfast, lunch, and dinner while also cutting back on portions may help you lose weight and keep it off for at least a year, according to research presented today at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society, in Boston.

"As part of a prudent, low-calorie weight-loss diet, adding water may help with weight-loss success," says Brenda Davy, Ph.D., the lead author of the study and an associate professor of nutrition at Virginia Tech, in Blacksburg.

Health.com: The wet way to lose weight

Dietitians have long recommended drinking water as a way to shed pounds, but little research has been done to confirm this conventional wisdom, the researchers say. Though small, Davy's study is the first randomized controlled trial to examine the benefits of "preloading" with water before

By Kate Stinchfield

A report due yesterday, 100 ladybug-shaped cupcakes to make for the school bake sale (tomorrow morning!), and your mother-in-law arriving for the weekend … Feeling stressed yet?

That might not be a bad thing, if you know how to take advantage of it. While chronic or extreme stress levels have been linked to heart disease and hypertension, among other things, research suggests that moderate levels can actually boost your health.

"The positive aspects of stress are underappreciated," says Ken Robbins, MD, a clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Here's how it works: When you're stressed, your adrenal glands release a cascade of hormones, including adrenaline, which ups your heart rate and boosts energy, and cortisol, which increases glucose in the bloodstream. When your body gets overwhelmed with these chemicals for weeks and months, you start to see ill effects.

But in short bursts (like a day or less) stress can make

Getty ImagesBy Colleen Oakley

Inhale. Exhale. You do both all day long without even thinking about it. But did you know that simply paying attention to how you breathe between the sheets could be the difference between so-so and sensational sex? Give these Tantric sex-inspired breathing techniques a spin to feel more tuned in-and turned on-when it counts.

Slow it down
Most women breathe rapidly and shallowly during love-making, and then hold their breath during an orgasm. "All of this occurs automatically, without your even thinking about it," says Barbara Bartlik, MD, a psychiatrist and sex therapist in New York City. "To increase the intensity of your orgasm, deliberately take slow, deep breaths as you feel yourself becoming more and more aroused. By slowing everything down, you will delay your orgasm and build the pleasurable tension." You can do this over and over again, until you finally let yourself go.

Feel it where it counts
Want to get revved up before foreplay?

IstockphotoBy Julie Upton, RD

Fiber used to be an unglamorous word for most of us, mainly because of its association with bowel movements, GI health, or "waste management," as my girlfriends like to say. But there's no roughing it today-not with all of the great-tasting, high-fiber foods now in supermarkets.

According to the 2009 HealthFocus USA Trend Report, nearly half of all shoppers are trying to increase the fiber in their diets, and 43% are looking for foods that are high in fiber. That should be easy, considering the hundreds-if not thousands-of new fiber-fortified foods in our groceries, such as dairy products like yogurt and milk, fruit juices, chewy granola bars, and even desserts.

The downside to fortified foods
But the problem is that nutrition scientists contend that all fiber is not created equal-and eating a diet rich in naturally occurring fiber sources (i.e., fruits, vegetables, and whole grains) will do more for your health than eating products that normally lack fiber but

Getty ImagesBy Amanda Gardner

If you're a woman, this probably sounds familiar. One week out of every month, you find yourself crying more than usual. You have to refrain from snapping at your co-workers. You constantly crave chocolate.

Experts tell women these are just side effects of premenstrual syndrome, or PMS. But if you find yourself in a serious emotional funk that goes so far as to disrupt your work and relationships, you may have PMS's debilitating cousin, premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). And if the blues continue even after your period, they could be a sign of depression or bipolar disorder.

What is PMDD?
PMDD wreaks the same emotional havoc of PMS, but more so. The disorder strikes women the week before their period and subsides when their period starts, just like PMS. Experts associate PMDD with higher incidences of suicidal thoughts in women.

While about 75% of women have at least mild premenstrual symptoms, only about 5% have symptoms severe enough to quality for PMDD,