This season get the facts on how to keep your family healthy.

Lately so much attention has been focused on the potential for a bird flu pandemic that it's easy to lose sight of the perils of the regular flu season. The flu is more common than many people realize. In the United States, the flu season may begin as early as October and last until May, peaking between December and March.

The overall impact varies from year to year, but the CDC reports that 5 percent to 20 percent of the population gets the flu every year with more than 200,000 hospitalized for flu complications. Even more alarming is that approximately 36,000 people die each year from the flu (see www.cdc.gov/flu/keyfacts.htm).

Cervical cancer begins in the cervix, which is the part of the uterus that opens to the vagina. It has become rare in the United States in recent years because most women get Pap tests that detect it before it starts or find it early enough to treat it easily.

IMPORTANCE OF REGULAR PAP TESTS
A Pap test, which is conducted during a pelvic exam, helps doctors identify early changes in the cervix that might lead to cancer.

What are the benefits and risks involved in using the Internet for health information and resources?

Whenever I attend medical meetings, I often hear doctors sharing war stories of patients who bring in thick piles of computer printouts from the Internet.

From the doctors' viewpoint, if they don't take the time to read the articles, their patients may be upset. On the other hand, most doctors don't have (or won't take) the time to enter into what they see as long discussions about potentially false or misleading information. They've seen more than one patient who believes, "If it's on the Internet, it must be true!"

You’ll need more than cosmetics for great-looking skin and a lovely appearance. You’ll need to understand the health and beauty connection.

Beauty truly does radiate from within. A healthy, vibrant woman defies age. As a testimony and reflection of our self-esteem, inner beauty and vibrancy, true beauty is the result of inner vitality, balance, health and happiness, not vanity.

Optimal nutrition, stress-relieving exercise and a positive frame of mind are requirements you must tote along on your continued journey toward complete balance. A balanced body and a beautiful spirit are better than the very best cosmetic application or surgery.

Some researchers are predicting that UV-related eye disorders will increase over the next decade due to thinning of the ozone layer and an increased interest in outdoor activities among Americans. These eye problems include macular degeneration, cataracts, pterygium (a growth on the white of the eye that can eventually block vision), skin cancer around the eyelids and photokeratitis (corneal sunburn).

"We can't stress enough how important it is to protect your eyes every day from the sun," says Daniel D. Garrett, senior vice president of Prevent Blindness America on their Web site. "Even when the weather is overcast, the sun still emits intense, harmful rays."

Don’t let this summertime nuisance run you and your family indoors. Get all the facts on West Nile Virus.

It's that time of year again for picnics, camping trips, water sports—and mosquitoes. Although the summer months used to evoke excitement among many people, today they seem to evoke fear. Rather than anticipating fun-filled activities with family and friends, many people dread mosquito dodging.

The media has done an effective job of alarming people of the dangers of bug-borne diseases. But the Bible tells us: "God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" (2 Tim 1:7, NKJV). Therefore, fear no mosquitoes! Instead, try arming yourself with knowledge.