“The incidence of breast cancer is decreasing in the United States.”  This was the lead sentence in a recent newspaper article, only one of many that have been written recently.  With the recent release of cancer statistics showing a decrease in breast cancer, the nation-wide fund raiser walk-a-thons for the Susan G. Komen Foundation, an entire issue of Time Magazine given to a discussion of the topic and a diplomatic trip through four Middle East countries by First Lady Laura Bush, breast cancer is the hot topic of the day.

The good news is that breast cancer is on the decline in the United States, so much so that many are wanting to share the prevention, diagnosis and treatment information with those in other parts of the world where breast cancer is steeply on the rise and where diagnosis and treatment are severely delayed or non-existent.

Over the past year I have been conducting statistical analysis on many different items that are related to the health of youth. One area of interest to me has been whether excessive internet use might be associated with the mental health of young people.

I obtained a database from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey of Idaho, 2009. In that questionnaire there were several different items that interested me such as how much high school students use the internet for three hours or more on school days for activities other than school use. We found that when students use the internet in such excessive amounts they are 1.5 times more likely to feel sad or hopeless, 1.6 times more likely to consider suicide, 1.8 times more likely to attempt suicide, twice as likely to purposefully hurt themselves by cutting or otherwise injuring themselves, and half as likely to talk to a parent or teacher when they are feeling low or having problem.

There are many studies that have demonstrated that the more you exercise the less likely you are to be depressed. A large study recently took a look at TV viewing and exercise in relationship to depression. 

The study followed nearly 50,000 nurses, ages 30-55, for a period of ten years. During this time they were periodically questioned regarding exercise levels, TV viewing, and the presence or absence of clinical depression. No one in this group was depressed at the beginning of the study. 

Depression was documented by a physician’s diagnosis of depression, the taking of anti-depressant medication, or depression diagnosed on a standardized questionnaire designed to pick up severe clinical depression. 

Humility is a human social characteristic that hasn’t been extensively studied. Studies recently conducted at Baylor University in Texas have shown that the presence of humility in a person’s life is a marker for being especially helpful to other people.

College students were evaluated by several psychological measures that included specific tools to identify the humble. Next, all subjects were asked to volunteer to help another student with studies because an injury prevented him from attending class.

The humble students offered to be of assistance more sessions per week and longer hours than any other group. The least likely to be helpful were those who were identified as being arrogant, immodest, egotistical and conceited.

Did you resolve to eat a healthier diet this year? That means that you are going to choose better foods, right? Simply reading food labels might prompt you to buy some items that really aren't good for you. It is important to understand the finer points of food labeling guidelines to avoid making poor choices. They can be tricky!

Robert Davis, PhD, a science journalist, has posted an intriguing list of the 10 most tricky food label claims on his blog. Here are seven of the trickiest.

New Year’s Eve has come and gone. So have many of the New Year’s resolutions that many people have made, like not texting while driving, taking better care of your health, being nicer to the dog, spending more time with the kids (grandkids). New Year’s resolutions are notoriously ineffectual in making life changes, especially when it comes to an area that resists change such as personal health and well-being.

Instead of making (and breaking) New Year’s resolutions, consider these principles and imagine some ways that you might make them happen in your life. Don’t make big changes or choose hard-to-do options. Instead, think about the general principle, then imagine how that principle would play out in your life. Write down (helps crystallize thinking) one or two ways you would be willing to try for two weeks. If it works for you, continue to do it, or consider other options to achieve the same goal.

A new year has arrived and it is the time we are thinking about making needed changes in our lives. We often refer to these as resolutions. I have a list and you probably do too. They might be things like,

• "This year, I’m going to relax and not worry so much."
• "I will eat less and exercise more so I can loose weight."
• "I’ll save more money this year."
• "I’ll want to get along better with my family."

I had to ask myself a question the other day: Why are some of my resolutions the same as last year? The answer is very disconcerting! They were important and worthy, but here I am including them again this year.

Our brains have enormous "plasticity." That means they can create new cells and pathways in most remarkable ways. At the same time, our brains create strong tendencies to do the same thing over and over and over again. The old pathways never disappear. 

You may be traveling to celebrate with family and friends, or, you may be spending quiet days at home. However you celebrate or wherever you go, we want to wish you a most fulfilling, joyous, healthy, and safe holiday season.

Our team will be doing the same, and we will resume our posts on January 3, 2012.

We trust that at this special time of year you will be surrounded by family and friends. Remember, the Reason for the season is the greatest gift of all, the Baby of Bethlehem, the Savior and soon coming King.

The emergency room is about the only place people can go for  health problems during major holidays, and each holiday presents its own health risks. Take for example:

• Fights by intoxicated guests as to who will carve the turkey sometimes result in serious injuries.
• EMTs arrived at one home to find a man lying stabbed on the floor by his brother with a carving knife. Yet his injury did not stop him from eating as much as he could "because he knew once he got to the ER he wasn't going to get any more food."
• The new trend in deep-fried turkey has increased the number of reported burns as a result of hot oil spatters, splashes and spills.

The majority of Christmas and Thanksgiving ER visits are the result of simple overindulgence and the resulting pain and nausea. Eating too much for some people could also be life-threatening. 

Nearly 50% of all cancer deaths can be prevented. It is reliably estimated that lifestyle and environmental factors are responsible for 42% of the cancers in the United Kingdom. What is true in the UK is likely to be true in much of the industrialized world. 

The research looked at the contribution to cancer made by tobacco, unhealthful foods in the diet, obesity, alcohol, lack of exercise, industrial exposures, radiation and several other factors that make a small contribution to cancer. 

Of the 314,000 cases of cancer in the UK in 2010, 134,000 were preventable. Tobacco caused 60,000 premature cancer deaths.There were 29,000 cancers caused by eating red meat or a lack of fruits and vegetables in the diet. Obesity was responsible for another 17,000 premature cancer deaths. Alcohol drinking caused 12,000 premature deaths.