There has been a lot of push back when it comes to the H1N1 flu vaccine. Of course, as with any medication, there could be side effects because not all immune systems are created equal.

But what people have to remember is their reasons for not supporting the vaccine – mainly because of the fear that it was rushed and long-term side effects are not yet known – are some of the same reasons preliminary reports of possible side effects could also be coincidental. For example, if someone has a heart attack after receiving their H1N1 flu shot, are they going to assume it’s directly related to the vaccine or attribute it to unhealthy lifestyle decisions?

The Associated Press recently published an article on this topic that looked at how the government will be intensely tracking the side effects of this vaccine and separating legitimate medical concerns from inevitable coincidences.

This is a proactive plan. The government is going to be putting information together for the public in an effort to stop the spread of false rumors and try to put the public at ease.

One major focus will be miscarriage since they are encouraging pregnant women to get the vaccine and miscarriages are quite common anyway.

Like the seasonal influenza vaccine, medical professionals expect the side effects associated with the H1N1 flu vaccine should be minimal. The most common side effect with all flu vaccines is soreness at the injection site, and sometimes people feel achy.

Many Americans are concerned about the safety and efficacy of the newly developed H1N1 flu shot because of a similar vaccine that was linked to a swine flu-like outbreak at Fort Dix in 1976.

Guillain-Barre occurs naturally following upper respiratory illnesses, digestive illnesses and on rare occasions – is associated with drugs and vaccines. However, the frequency is still 1-2 per 100,000 people.

I’ll be keeping a close eye on this, and if anything is reported, I’ll be the first one to let you know.

Dear Mr. Jackson:

The occasion of your child’s death is a moment when all parents, including me, offer you every wish for strength and God’s healing power in the face of your loss.  Any father or mother can sense the tragedy it is to lose a son or daughter, yet no one who has not suffered such a loss can truly know your pain.

I would write no more than this were it not for the fact that you have used the occasion of your son’s passing and the attendant publicity to also promote your own business ventures, including your new record label.  This makes me feel it important, as a psychiatrist with access to the media, to reach out to you, with other parents and their adult children “listening” in. 

The foundation of our nation assures each person in this great country of certain inalienable rights, including life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  Great leaders and courageous soldiers have safeguarded these rights for our citizens, and they would make a decent Bill of Rights for parents raising children, too.  Fathering a child, you see, means far more than participating in a child’s conception and witnessing his birth; it means doing everything possible to optimize that child’s life.  This requires many acts of love and self-sacrifice. It pays immeasurable dividends in the growing self-confidence and autonomy you witness developing in the child you care so much about.

Somehow, perhaps because of pain suffered in your own early life experience, you stole that God-given potential for healthy development from your son.  You have admitted lashing him with a belt or a switch when he failed to perform dance steps to your standards.  According to him, you called him ugly when acne affected him as a teenager.  You brutalized him by placing your own pathologic need for control and for “success” above his needs for security and comfort and self-esteem.  In a very real way, you buried enough of his love for himself that he was no longer comfortable with his race or age or sexuality or even his great fortune.  Trying to please a father who beats you with a belt for missing a dance step will do that to you.

Now, even when saying goodbye to your son, you think of yourself and your business.  You are deprived of a purer life and love.  This makes me feel badly for you, but feel worse for the son you injured so deeply. 

Some will see you only as a monster.  I know that monsters are made through cruelties suffered in life; they never spring fully-formed onto the planet.

In your quiet moments, I hope that you can dig up the roots of the emotional and physical violence you visited upon your child.  One of the wonderful things about still being on the planet is that you always have some chance to win back the potential for real humanity buried inside you.  

Here’s a hint:  Success or failure in becoming human isn’t measured in record sales or reflected in the lenses of television cameras.  You have to look much, much deeper.

Michael Jackson’s sudden death by cardiac arrest is less shocking than the slow, but steady demise of his soul, which turned him into a music machine fueled by addictions to drugs, money, possessions, fame and plastic surgery.  As my friend and fellow journalist Josh Resnek has remarked, Jackson’s body died at 50; the rest of him died much younger.

Jackson’s life story is a cautionary tale about what happens when a child is deprived of his core self.  That deprivation likely stemmed from what Jackson himself described as the physical and psychological brutality of his father Joe, who reportedly whipped him and verbally abused him and monetized his talents from age 10 through endless rehearsals and performances of The Jackson 5.  Now Joe is planning a big, public funeral for his twice-dead son, keeping him on the stage even after he is gone from this earth.

Jackson’s first, long, tortuous death was a gradual stopping of his metaphorical heart—the heart of a boy harnessed to a father’s tyrannical plans to enslave him.  It left him uncertain whether anything at all was authentic about him, whether there was anything whatsoever he could embrace as the truth. 

He was forever ambivalent about his race, bleaching or otherwise altering his skin tone to appear Caucasian. 

He was forever ambivalent about his facial structure, undergoing plastic surgeries until his nose seemed in danger of falling off his face, his chin became a caricature of the kind with a cleft he must have admired on other people’s faces, and his jaw line became a haunting skeletal representation of just how dead he really was inside.

He seemed forever ambivalent about his gender, because he could not claim even that as his own, morphing from tough guy to girl in appearance and garb. 

He seemed ambivalent about his age, living in an amusement park he built, with zoo animals on display.  Could he have actually missed the fact that he was a caged animal himself, thrilling crowds with his exotic movements and appearance? 

He may have been ambivalent or twisted about what pleased him sexually, given his habit of inviting young boys into his bed and his history of having paid out $20 million to settle a child sexual molestation suit.

He staged sham marriages and “fathered” children who appeared wearing carnival masks in public—all part of the show.  He dangled his baby boy over a railing for his fans, in what may have been the starkest representation of how he felt his own life had ended shortly after birth. 

The distance between a man’s mind and his core self — his soul — is the breeding place for anxiety and depression.  And Jackson apparently tried to contain those unwieldy emotions in the predictable ways — drugging himself by acquiring possessions and trying to shut up the long-dying person inside him with opiates and tranquilizers.  Then the truth asserted itself in the final way it sometimes does.  It stopped his heart suddenly, when, for all intents and purposes, it had not been beating (not for real) for decades.

One size fits all — isn’t that what we all want? And at a time of exorbitant medical costs, isn’t it practical that scientists have developed the mega-pill that cures all our ills and keeps us from having heart attacks and strokes? I wish it were that easy!

A new study from Canada and India published in the prestigious journal Lancet and presented at the American College of Cardiology meetings takes a look at a pill that combines aspirin, statin, and three blood pressure pills (a beta blocker, an ace inhibitor, and a diuretic) in patients with heart risk factors. The study took place over 12 weeks and showed that the ultimate combo drug continued to lower cholesterol, blood pressure, and be as well tolerated as the drugs taken alone.

Not only that, the results project out to a decreased risk of stroke by 48 percent and heart disease by 62 percent over a longer period.

The obvious advantages are in terms of patient compliance and low cost. But the disadvantages are also worth considering. As I’ve seen in my medical practice, for all combo pills, the problem is not knowing which pill is doing what, and if there is a side effect, which component is causing it. A patient may develop a problem and stop the pill and then refuse to take any of the drugs that make it up. Decisions like that can end up being more expensive in the long run, in terms of health care outcome.

And despite cardiac risk factors, some patients need one of these drugs and not the other. The diuretic may cause electrolyte abnormalities, dry people out, or make them urinate frequently. Not everyone tolerates this the same. Altace can cause a cough and the beta blocker may make some dizzy. In the final analysis, the “one size fits all” approach may not be as cost effective as it first appears.

Dr. Marc Siegel is an internist and associate professor of medicine at the NYU School of Medicine. He is a FOX News medical contributor and writes a health column for LA Times, where he examines TV and movies for medical accuracy. Dr. Siegel is the author of “False Alarm: The Truth About the Epidemic of Fear“ and “Bird Flu: Everything You Need to Know About the Next Pandemic.”  Read more at www.doctorsiegel.com

In these uncertain economic times, it is not unusual for many patients to postpone their regular preventive care. Often viewed as unimportant if there are no obvious problems and “nothing hurts,” the routine dental checkup and cleaning are put on hold in the interest of saving some money.

Unfortunately, nothing can be further from the truth. To begin with, the checkup examination can often help you avoid or detect a dental problem early before it becomes painful both physically and financially. Regular dental care helps ensure healthy teeth and gums, which in turn strengthen a healthy oral immune system.

Good oral health is essential to maintaining total body health as research continues to emerge showing a strong correlation between dental disease and many systemic problems ranging from Alzheimer’s disease to pancreatic cancer. If you are a pregnant woman, you have a seven times higher chance of having a pre-term baby. You also have up to a ten times greater chance of heart attack or stroke, and a seven times higher chance of developing type 2 diabetes. Basically, gum disease is a major source of chronic low-grade inflammation which can have ravaging effects on many body organ systems.

Several recent studies, including one completed with 145,000 patients at Columbia University’s dental school, went even one step further. They found that maintaining or restoring good oral health actually reduced total health care costs up to 21 percent for the management of patients with various systemic diseases. A study performed in Japan concluded virtually the same. The actual potential health care cost savings could easily be in the trillions of dollars if this is considered on a large population scale.

So if you’ve considered putting off your last checkup, think again. There’s a lot to be said about being “penny wise and dollar foolish.”  Now is the time to be more preventive and proactive about your health as a healthy smile is also healthy for your wallet.

Dr. Gerald P. Curatola is a renowned aesthetic dentist and pioneer in the emerging field of rejuvenation dentistry, which improves patients’ overall health and appearance by integrating total wellness with cutting edge oral care and restorative procedures. In addition to his private practice, research, and work as a Clinical Associate Professor at NYU College of Dentistry, he is an internationally sought after speaker, author and expert who has been featured widely in print and broadcast media. For more information, go to DrGerry.net

America has been called a “fast food nation” and for good reason. Every day, one out of four Americans eats a fast-food meal. Eating just one fast-food meal can pack enough calories and fat for an entire day. With that said, an obesity epidemic has indeed overtaken the United States, with some two-thirds of Americans now considered overweight, and about one-third categorized as obese.

Studies have indicated eating out as one factor contributing to the spread, and Americans are demeaning restaurants more than ever.  These days, at most fast-food restaurants, they have a menu that is dedicated to eating healthier foods. You will see items such as grilled chicken, salads, baked potatoes, reduced-fat desserts, and many other menu items that can be healthier for you to order. So you can still go to your favorite fast-food restaurants and order tasty, but healthy dishes.

Fast Food Facts:

• According to studies at the University of Minnesota, fast-food consumption has increased in the United States over the past three decades.

• In 1972, we spent 3 billion a year on fast food — today we spend more than $110 billion.

• Harvard Medical Center reported that currently, Americans eat 200 calories more food energy per day than they did 10 years ago; that alone would add 20 pounds annually to one’s weight.

• Portion sizes offered by fast food chains are now two to five times larger than when first introduced in 1950.

• 40 percent of American meals are eaten at chain restaurants.

Tips to help you dine out healthfully:

• Steer clear of large, jumbo and king size orders. Even a medium portion can be big, so share it with a friend. Better yet, opt for the small. The government recommends a three-ounce portion of protein. A great way to make sure you have the correct portion size is by using the “deck of cards” rule. The correct portion size should be about the size of a deck of cards.

• Eat half of what you order. Ask for a doggie bag and take it home. 

• Have a bottle of water or diet soda instead of a regular soda or fruit drink.

• Start your meal with a soup and salad.

• Order vegetables as your side dish.

• Savor your food and put your fork down between bites — this will help you eat less.

Red Lobster
Seafood is a great source of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, but when prepared in butter and sauces, it adds an extra 21g of fat. When ordering dishes at Red Lobster ask for a lemon wedge or cocktail sauce as a healthier compliment to your fish.

Best Appetizer
• Chilled Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail: 6 shrimp = 138 calories, 2g fat, 0g fiber
Shrimp Cocktail is probably one of the best appetizers to order at a seafood restaurant. It is a lean protein, and for 138 calories, you can enjoy six succulent pieces of shrimp.

Worst Appetizer
• New England Clam Chowder: 940 calories, 65g fat, 6g fiber
This bowl of cream, milk and butter contains as many calories as 4 custard filled donuts.

Best Entrée
• Broiled Flounder: 240 calories, 5g fat,0g fiber
Lean white fish, like flounder is one of the healthiest fish in the sea. Fish provides protein, vitamins and minerals. Most of the health benefits of sea bass can be attributed to the presence of Omega 3 essential fatty acids.

Worst Entrée
• Cajun Chicken Linguini Alfredo: 1,828 calories, 117.2g fat, 1g fiber
You will be hard-pressed to find any Alfredo dish that isn’t packed with fat and calories. Once this sauce is soaked over the pasta, this dish must be ordered with a side or Lipitor and a heart pump.

Olive Garden
The Olive Garden is one of the most popular Italian food chains in America. When dining at Italian restaurants, pasta is usually the main focus. A main course of pasta in the United States can have as much as 1,000 calories — that’s more than half your total calories for the day.  Therefore, pasta-rich dishes probably aren’t on the menu for you, but there are many yummy dishes to order instead. But you can shave roughly 200 calories off any pasta dish by ordering a lunch portion (any time of day). To its credit, Olive Garden offers unlimited salad or soup with all entrees. Ask for half the dressing and it’s an offer you can’t refuse. Another plus: a side of vegetables comes with most dishes.

Best Appetizer:
• Minestrone Soup: 120 calories, 1.5g fat, 1g fiber
Ordering minestrone soup can be a great starter during these cold winter months. One cup contains a whopping amount of fiber, allowing you to fill up without filling out. Starting a meal with a vegetable-based soup will enable you to eat less of your entrée while remaining full and satisfied.  Your best bet is to always start your meal with a soup and a small salad with the dressing on the side. This combination helps to provide both fiber and protein, and fills you up while adding a minimal amount of calories.

Worst Appetizer:
• Hot artichoke and Spinach Dip: 1099 calories, 94g fat, 4g fiber
Don’t be fooled by the fact that this dish has vegetables in it.  Most dips are made with regular mayonnaise and/or sour cream, which contain ample amounts of calories and fat. This appetizer is the highest in calories and fat on the menu.

Best Entrée:
• Venetian Apricot Chicken: 380 calories, 4g fat, 8g fiber
This dish is a scrumptious twist to a classic chicken cutlet. The apricots provide you with a boost of fiber, making this a great fiber and protein combination.

Worst Entrée:
• Stuffed Chicken Marsala with Garlic Mashed Potatoes: 1315 calories, 86g fat, 8g fiber
While you may think you’re choosing to be healthy because you not ordering pasta, any chicken drenched in a buttery sauce with a side of mashed potatoes, will only put you at greater risk for a heart attack.

Boston Market
Boston Market has been highly praised for its home-style menu. They are known for their rotisseries and side dishes, but choose wisely as the calories and fat can definitely throw you. Dark meat with the skin can even be as fattening as prime rib, so go with the breast meat, no skin.

• Usually the meals come with 2 side dishes so try to choose at least one healthy side like steamed veggies and the other not so healthy.

Best Entrée:
• White Rotisserie Chicken with 2 sides: 210 calories, 2g fat
White meat chicken is one of the leanest proteins you can choose.  Ordering two sides of vegetables provides you with the ultimate combination of fiber and protein. Fiber and protein are the two nutrients that take the longest to digest and have the fewest calories.  These foods keep your serum glucose levels consistent, leading to improved energy throughout the day

Worst Entrée:
• Pastry Top Chicken Pot Pie: 780 calories, 47g fat, 2g fiber
A flaky crust plus a rich, gravy-like filling, chicken, potatoes, carrots, and onions, probably sounds like the closest thing to heaven. However this artery clogging dish is one of the worst items on the menu. 

Best Sides:
• Fresh Steamed Vegetables: 60 calories, 1g fat, 3g fiber
• Caesar salad with dressing on the side: 40 calories, 2g fat, 1g fiber

Worst Sides:
• Sweet Potato Casserole: 460 calories, 17g fat, 3g fiber
• Market  chopped salad: 450 calories, 43g fat, 4g fiber (dressing: 360, 39)
Steer clear of the word casserole. Casseroles are loaded with butter, cream and sugar — nothing good to maintain a healthy weight.

You may also be surprised to learn that the market chopped salad is the highest caloric and most fattening side on their menu. This is because it is dressed in cream based dressing that contains a whopping 360 calories. To avoid salad sabotage, ask for the dressing on the side and always dip your fork lightly in the dressing before digging into each bite. This will drastically reduce your dressing consumption.

PF Chang’s
PF Chang’s is a great Chinese restaurant that exists in so many malls throughout the nation. It is known for its large-style portions because you can dip in to every plate on the table. What makes Chinese cuisine so tasty is usually their delicious sauces. Be cautious of the fact that each tablespoon of oil contains 120 calories and 14g of fat. Limit your intake of fatty meats, fried wontons, egg rolls, shrimp toast, and fried rice (loaded with oil).  Anything labeled “sweet and sour” invariably means fried and coated in a sugary sauce. 

Best Appetizer:
• Seared Ahi Tuna: 210 calories, 9g fat, 1g fiber
You can never go wrong starting a meal with a lean protein, like tuna.

Worst Appetizer:
• Chang’s Spare Ribs: 1356 calories, 89g fat, 1g fiber
While spare ribs are a tempting and tasty menu item, be aware that they can contain more calories than half the entrées on this menu, and this is just a starter.

Best Entrée:
• Cantonese Shrimp: 330 calories, 12g fat, 4g fiber
Shrimp is a healthy and tasty seafood, and paired with veggies or a salad is great combination of fiber and protein which will keep you full on the fewest calories.

Worst Entrée:
• Pork Lo Mein = 1820 calories, 127g fat, 8g fiber
This dish alone contains more calories and fat than the average American eats in one day.

T.G.I.Fridays
When dining at T.G.I. Friday’s, you might have to skip some of the typical appetizers. Most, if not all, are fried, breaded and soaked in sauces. Fried foods are very rich, tasty and crispy. Nowadays, almost all food is fried for added taste and flavor. However, they are high in calories and eating them increases the risk of obesity. They now offer a “lighter” side on their menu. This will help you choose healthier dishes than those loaded with excess calories and fat, and we’re sure your taste buds will be tantalized.

Best Appetizer:
• Strawberry Fields Salad with Chicken: 390 calories, 2g fat, 3g fiber
This salad will satisfy both your sweet and savory cravings. The addition of fresh strawberries adds an extra boost of fiber, making this a one of a kind salad. Ask for the dressing on the side.

Worst Appetizer:
• Cheese and Broccoli Soup: 540 calories,
Although soup may have a reputation as a low-calorie meal option, heavy cream-based soups are most certainly not. This dish may seem like a “fiber and protein option,” but due to its high fat content from the cheese, butter and cream will only provide you with unwanted calories and fat. When ordering soups, opt for broth-based soups or ones filled with vegetables.

Best Entrée:
• Shrimp Key West: 225 calories, 7g fat, 5g fiber
This is a tasty, light dish that will keep you feeling full for less calories.

Worst Entrée:
• Chipotle Grilled Steak Sandwich: 1509 calories, 98g fat, 8g fiber
Some cuts of red meat may contain the highest amount of fat from all other proteins. Within one bite of this sandwich, your arteries will be instantly clogged!

Starbucks
Starbucks is one of the biggest coffee franchises in America today.  They serve the most yummy and unique blends of coffees. Don’t drink your calories. Research shows that our bodies do not register calories from fluids.  Meaning that the amount of calories that your drink contains has absolutely no effect on your satiety level. Starbucks will adapt to your healthy lifestyle by making their tasty beverages in low-fat versions.

Best Beverage:
• Café Misto with Skim milk(grande)70 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber
Choosing low-fat or skim milk and no cream, will instantly cut your calories in half. Whole milk and skim milk have the same amount of protein, yet 1 cup of whole milk contains 160 calories and 5g of fat versus skim milk which contains 80 calories and 0g fat.

Worst Beverage:
• Strawberries and cream blended frappucino (grande) 570 calories, 15g fat,1g fiber
This drink contains as many calories as a slice of NYC pizza. Instead of ordering regular frappucinos, opt for the light, blended versions, for a savings of over 400 calories. 

Tanya Zuckerbrot, MS, RD is a nutritionist and founder of Skinnyandthecity.com.    She is also the creator of The F-Factor Diet™, an innovative nutritional program she has used for more than ten years to provide hundreds of her clients with all the tools they need to achieve easy weight loss and maintenance, improved health and well-being.  For more information log onto www.FFactorDiet.com.

Watching the worried pundits on the FOX Business Channel for the past few weeks, I’ve been wondering, medically speaking, what the solution is going to be for all the stress that is sure to result from our flailing economy. It has been well documented that stress, including the financial kind, can lead to heart attacks, strokes, depression, suicide, and certain kinds of cancer.     

But as often is the case with health, a complex problem may lead to a simple solution. Coincidentally, in the middle of all our worry, a new study was published that shows the positive effects of touch.

*  A new study from Utah researchers published in Psychosomatic Medicine shows that warm touch decreases stress hormones and lowers blood pressure. The study looked at married couples ages 20 to 39 in their own environment and found that massage, touch, hugging, kissing, had these effects and also increased the calming hormone oxytocin. A key positive feature of this study was the non-laboratory setting. Criticism of previous studies on stress and touch have included concerns about the artificial environment of the laboratory.

*  According to the American Hospital Association 37 percent of hospitals in the U.S. use complementary and alternative treatments including touch therapy. This policy is growing, and may help improve disease outcomes.

*  Previous studies from Miami (Touch Research Institute) show that massage and relaxation therapies enhance mood and immune function for women with breast cancer. The institute has also published data revealing faster growth in premature babies, a better tolerance of pain, lower glucose level in diabetic children who were frequently touched.

*  Another interesting study from Virginia showed a decrease in fear, danger, and threat responses in the centers of the brain when women touched the hands of their husbands while experiencing pain.

* Petting dogs has been shown to be calming, to lower stress, and to have a positive impact on immune function and the fight against disease.

I am advocating touch as a treatment for stress, but there is a downside. Of course touch increases the risk of spreading many bacteria and viruses. And with cold and flu season right around the corner, I am compelled to add that while you are hugging and stroking to compensate for your worry, make sure to wash your hands afterward.

Dr. Marc Siegel is an internist and associate professor of medicine at the NYU School of Medicine. He is a FOX News Medical Contributor and writes a health column for LA Times, where he examines TV and movies for medical accuracy. Dr. Siegel is the author of “False Alarm: the Truth About the Epidemic of Fear” and “Bird Flu: Everything You Need to Know About the Next Pandemic”. Read more at www.doctorsiegel.com

Plantains, though they look very similar to their cousin, the banana, are actually quite different and act more like potatoes; they must be cooked prior to eating. Throughout Latin America, plantains are more than just wonderful additions to soups and stews. Unlike potatoes, these treats can be used in all stages of ripeness—from green to almost black! Plantains do not contain any cholesterol or sodium and are low in fat. They contain a good dose of calcium, iron, and potassium, are high in vitamin A, and provide an excellent source of fiber.

Pumpkin, another ubiquitous vegetable found throughout Latin America, is full of taste and health benefits! Whether it’s steamed or baked, or added as a flavorful thickener to all kinds of soups and rice and bean dishes, it makes a delicious and healthy addition. Though low in calories, its bright orange flesh is rich in antioxidants and carotenes, as well as potassium and vitamins C and E. It may lower cancer risk, heart attacks, cataracts, and strokes.

Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of both men and women in the United States. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that 770,000 Americans will have a new coronary attack in 2008, and about 430,000 will have a recurrent attack.

If your heart stops for an hour-and-a half, are you dead? There’s a walking, talking French man who might disagree with you.

The 45-year-old man suffered a massive heart attack and rescuers used cardiac massage to try and revive him without success before transferring him to a nearby hospital.

He was revived just as doctors were preparing to remove his organs for transplants, now fueling ethical debates in France about when a person is dead.