Blog Posts by Sarah B. Weir, Yahoo! blogger

Beware gluten in unexpected productsThe grains wheat, barley, rye, and triticale contain a protein called gluten. People with Celiac disease, an autoimmune condition that effects about 1% of the population in the United States, are gluten-intolerant; their immune system attacks the protein when it reaches the small intestine triggering symptoms such as bloating, diarrhea, and nausea. It can also make it hard for the body to absorb nutrients and lead to fatigue, anemia, and osteoporosis. Celiac disease may slow growth in children.

Diagnosing Celiac disease

If you think you have Celiac disease, your doctor can diagnose it with a blood test. They may also perform an endoscopy to look inside of the small intestine and take a biopsy. Adopting a gluten-free diet usually improves symptoms in about two weeks.

Gluten sensitivity

About one in twenty people react badly to eating gluten but test negative for Celiac disease. "Gluten sensitivity" is an umbrella term that covers about 100 different issues from hives, to

Alicia SilverstoneActress and vegan diet enthusiast Alicia Silverstone has a strange way of feeding her 11-month-old son Bear Blu. In a video posted on her healthy living website thekindlife.com, Silverstone chews a bite of food and then passes it straight into her little boy's mouth mama-bird style.

Related: Letting Baby Eat Finger Foods May Spur Healthier Weight

"I just had a delicious breakfast…" writes Silverstone introducing the video, "I fed Bear the mochi and a tiny bit of veggies from the soup…from my mouth to his. It's his favorite...and mine. He literally crawls across the room to attack my mouth if I'm eating."

Though pre-chewing babies food is common cultural practice around the world, especially in underdeveloped countries where people might not have access to modern conveniences such as blenders, not everyone thinks it's a healthy idea. Speaking with Fox News, Dr. Jennifer Landa, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of BodyLogicMD warned, "Various viruses and bacteria, but especially

Popcorn, the virtuous snackEating healthy just got a whole lot crunchier. A team of researchers from the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania has found that popcorn contains more antioxidants than other fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants are substances that many scientists believe help protect against cancer and heart disease. According to Joe Vinson, PhD, who presented the findings at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society, "popcorn may be the perfect snack food." Vinson is known for his pioneering research on micronutrients in chocolate, nuts and other foods.

Related: Seven Nutrients that Pack in Antioxidants

Although earlier research had already discovered antioxidants called polyphenols in popcorn, Vinson's study measured the exact amount and found that it contains about twice as many as fresh sweet corn or fruit per serving. Polyphenols are diluted up to 90% in most fruits and vegetables because of their high water content. They are more concentrated in popcorn because it only

Jenna Talackova (right)Miss Universe Canada officials have banned 23-year-old transsexual Jenna Talackova from participating in the pageant finals to be held in Toronto in May, 2012. The Vancouver contestant was one of sixty-five women chosen to compete in the national contest (which is owned by Donald Trump). The Daily Mail Reports that Denis Davila, national director of Miss Universe Canada, asserts that every contestant must be a "naturally born female." Critics of the decision claim that the rules do not specifically address sex change or plastic surgery.

Related: Should the United States Ban Child Pageants?

The statuesque blonde Talackova is calling it a human rights issue. She says that she knew she was a girl by age four, started hormone therapy at fourteen, and had sex reassignment surgery at nineteen. She's previously competed in both transsexual and women's beauty pageants. "All I can say is that they disqualified me because I'm not 'natural born,' she told the National Post. "[That]

Actress January JonesMost mammals eat their own placenta after giving birth and according to "Mad Men's" January Jones, more women should try ingesting their offspring's afterbirth as well.

Related: Mad Men Era Advertisements

Speaking at a press junket before the show's season premiere, the actress told People magazine that she pops a dehydrated placenta capsule when she's feeling tired or blue. "Its not witch-crafty or anything, I suggest it to all moms!" Jones enthused. Since the 34 year-old single mom was able to return to the set about seven weeks after her son Xander was born, her controversial elixir may be working.

There is little scientific evidence to show any benefits to eating placenta, but advocates say that it helps increase milk flow and ease post-partum depression. Speaking with the BBC, obstetrician Maggie Blott explained, "Animals eat their placenta to get nutrition--but when people are already well-nourished, there is no benefit, there is no reason to do it."

Still, there is a

Cate BlanchettThis week, readers of Intelligent Life were treated to a cover that featured a refreshingly natural looking Cate Blanchett.

Editor Tim de Lisle expressed that it was a conscious choice to allow the actress to look like her self, a forty-two-year-old mother of three. "When other magazines photograph actresses, they routinely end up running heavily Photoshopped images, with every last wrinkle expunged," he wrote in the magazine. "Their skin is rendered so improbably smooth that, with the biggest stars, you wonder why the photographer didn't just do a shoot with their waxwork...."

Related: The Naked Face Project: Two Women's Primp-Free Challenge

Blanchett's image is in stark contrast to another photograph that made the rounds earlier in the week. Forty-nine year-old Demi Moore appeared in a new campaign for Helena Rubenstein so extensively retouched she looked more like an avatar than a flesh and blood woman.

Demi MooreIn November 2011, researchers at Dartmouth University developed a

Las Vegas, NevadaMany kids have "Home Alone" fantasies, but the reality of being left to fend for your self as a child is a lot scarier and more dangerous. Two Chicago kids, ages twelve and nine, got to find out for themselves when their parents left them for two days and took a jaunt to Sin City.

What happened in Vegas did not stay in Vegas. On Tuesday, March 20, police charged Antowain Johnson, thirty-six, and Shanpreta Howard, thirty-four, with misdemeanor child endangerment reported ABC News.

In the days leading up to the trip, Facebook posts suggested that the parents were stoked about their plans:

"I am really excited about this trip……ready to go n enjoy myself," posted mom.

"Hangover Part 3," dad replied.

The kids were a little less pumped. Reportedly, the parents left for their trip on Wednesday evening, February 22, and the next day, the 12-year-old tattled to his teacher who then informed the police. The police took the children to stay with an aunt until the parents

Sarah B. Weir, Yahoo! Shine Blogger
In the boom-boom years post-World War II, American consumerism reached new heights and a generation of "Mad Men" (and some women) revolutionized the advertising industry. It was a time before cigarettes were bad for you, before carbon emissions were heating up the planet, and when workplace sexual harassment was still thought of as "flattery." Execs kept their office bars fully stocked and even promoted soup by picturing it "on the rocks." 'Mid-Century Ads: Advertising from the Mad Men Era' (available in early April) captures the zeitgeist of the period with hundreds of images of popular sales campaigns from the 1950s and 60s. Here are some of our favorites.

Related: Don Draper "in a different place" as 'Mad Men' returns

Have a caption idea for any of the ads? Please let us know in the comments section.