March 1, 2004

Healthfinder Update

This Monday we are sending you the latest news about information on Healthfinder, the website from the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services.

Keeping a record of what you eat for a week or two is a great way to start improving both your diet and your health,  according to the American Dietetic Association, sponsor of March's National Nutrition Month®.  For more nutrition tips, take the National Nutrition Month® 2004 Quiz, http://www.eatright.org/Public/NutritionInformation/92_18781.cfm or visit the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's Web site for heart-healthy recipes http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/index.htm#recipes and an interactive menu planner that can help you count calories, fat, and carbs. http://hin.nhlbi.nih.gov/menuplanner/menu.cgi

New information also is available on many products food labels to help you choose healthier foods. http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/transfat.html. The Food and Drug Administration is requiring new trans fat information on food labels.  Trans fat, like saturated fat and dietary cholesterol, raises the LDL (or "bad") cholesterol that increases your risk for coronary heart disease.

March is also Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, http://www.preventcancer.org/colorectal/index.cfm sponsored by the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation and 50 partner organizations.  The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force "strongly recommends that clinicians screen men and women 50 years of age or older for colorectal cancer," http://www.ahrq.gov/clinic/uspstf/uspscolo.htm and the Foundation has made it easy for you to remind family members and friends to get screened with free e-cards. http://www.preventcancer.org/colorectal/colo_email.cfm

For Save Your Vision month, http://209.83.210.5/AOA/eweb/DynamicPage.aspx?site=AOAstage&WebCode=Even
tsSYVM American Optometric Association offers vision checklists for adults http://209.83.210.5/AOA/eweb/Documents/34511-adult-cklst.pdf and children http://209.83.210.5/AOA/eweb/Documents/34511-SYV-childrens.pdf (PDF files) as well as its new Healthy Eyes, Healthy People platform. http://209.83.210.5/AOA/eweb/DynamicPage.aspx?site=AOAstage&WebCode=HEHP
On this site, you will find online quizzes on vision care, eye safety, diabetes and vision, and many more topics.  The National Eye Institute's Web site http://www.nei.nih.gov/health/index.htm includes even more eye health topics.

For more March health observances, check the 2004 National Health Observances calendar online. http://www.healthfinder.gov/library/nho/nho.asp?year=2004#m3. Of course, please visit www.healthfinder.gov which offers daily health news, an extensive health library, and a directory of over 1,700 health-related organizations, any time you have a health question.

This page © 2003 NAHEC

This page last modified: 02/14/03