Blog Posts by The Editors at Sharecare

Get more health tips from RealAge:

• Take the new RealAge Test to see whether you're older than your years.
• Is your laptop hurting your back? Use these basics of a comfortable workspace.
• Tame the pain and stress of fibromyalgia with this helpful guide.
• Oh, your aching back? Beware of 5 bad habits that hurt backs.
• The easiest way to lower your cholesterol.
  

Get more health tips from RealAge:

• Are you as young as you feel? Take the new RealAge Test and find out.
• Do you know your good cholesterol from your bad? Use this cheat sheet.
• The eye-opening truth on carrots and other eye urban legends.
• Knees, hands or feet hurt? These 5 foods can alleviate the pain.
• 4 smart ways to tame chronic pain.
  

Are yoga pants and high heels hurting your health?Is your closet filled with chic threads and killer shoes? Beware: Your favorite wooly sweaters, stylish yoga pants, and high heels could be health hazards. Here's why -- and what you should wear instead.

1. Comfy Yoga Pants

The trap: Yoga pants are the fashion diva's answer to sweats. But all that stretch lets you ignore an expanding waistline -- bad for your heart and your self-esteem.

The impact: A thick middle -- over 35 inches for women, 40 inches for men -- boosts your diabetes risk up to 10 times, even if you're not overweight! Your odds for high blood pressure and high cholesterol rise, too. The cause: visceral fat around your mid-section. Its gooey globules inflame your liver, blood vessels, immune system, and more.

Swap 'em for: Pants that button at the waist. When they feel snug, you know it's time to exercise more and eat less. (Save your Lululemons for yoga class.)

2. Cozy-Chic Wool

Wondering what injectable muscle relaxers, such as Botox, and fillers, such as laViv, can do for you? If you're considering a facelift, these products may make it postponable, if not completely unnecessary. And fillers can vastly improve the appearance of scars, too. If you have liposuction, you can have your own fat injected. If not, there's a menu of other choices -- natural and synthetic, semipermanent and permanent.

How does your skin look to others? Take the SkinAge Test and find out.

Muscle Relaxers
Muscle relaxers paralyze tiny muscles to stop the expressive movements that etch-in frown lines, crow's feet, neck bands, and brow furrows. This is accomplished with an injection of botulinum toxin A or B.

• Brand Names: Botox Cosmetic, Myobloc (not often used for cosmetic reasons), and Dysport
• Cost: About $400 per area, but prices vary considerably.
• Lasting Power: 3 to 6 months. Over time injections are needed less frequently to maintain

For people trying to lose weight, here's the good news: Nutrition researchers have scoped out the enemy. Turns out potato chips and soda are the top waistline assassins.

Everyone knows to cut back on junk food, but in a recent large study examining what foods were most associated with weight gain, potato chips and sweetened drinks stood out as the ultimate arch villains. Indeed, not all snacks are created equal. Here's why:

Scientists have started to suspect that when it comes to junk food, some snacks are worse than others. In a recent Harvard study, researchers tracked 100,000 Americans who were not overweight to begin with every 4 years to see who gained the most weight and what foods they ate. They found that an expanding waistline was most strongly linked to potato chips and sugar-sweetened drinks.

Learn 3 secrets to a slimmer body.

The researchers can't say for certain that chips and sweet drinks caused the weight gain. It could be that people who enjoy

Get more health tips from RealAge:

• Should you take some candles off your birthday cake? Take the RealAge Test to find out how young you really are.

• Take this simple test that could save your life.

• Joint pain start in your 30s? Check your symptoms.

• Stock up on these blood-pressure-friendly foods.

• Thinking of quitting smoking? Read this first.

Get more health tips from RealAge:

• Take the RealAge test and find out if you're older or younger than you think.
• Do you have creaky knees? Find out how old your joints really are.
• Are toxic chemicals from plastic in your baby's food?
• Distracted? Having trouble getting things done? Take the ADHD test.
• Could your breathing problems be asthma? Take this quick quiz.

Get more health tips from RealAge:

• Is your lifestyle making you older than your years? Take the RealAge test.
• Distracted? Having trouble getting things done? Take the ADHD Assessment.
• Hot or cold therapy? Here's how to use both for relieving aches and pains.
• Tackle the tough stuff. Take this advice on talking with your kid about sex.
• Should you rush your kid to the ER? Here's what to do in an emergency.