Daily Health News Blog

The day after Thanksgiving Day will be marked by millions of shoppers and businesses as something worth celebrating. Some people like it as much as the holiday turkey.  Store sales are plentiful and prices are dramatically lowered on the 23rd. Although Black Friday comes during what many have come to believe is a 4-day holiday, it's not. Most people have to work on Friday, unless they've taken the day off or their state has proclaimed a legal holiday. Mail delivery resumes. Some major retailers open at midnight with a "midnight madness" tactic; some even earlier. They want to capture as many shoppers as possible before they run out of spending money. But that's not a problem in many stores that have layaway programs: buy now, bail out your stuff before Christmas.  Increasingly, people are concerned sales will begin on Thanksgiving Day, and some already do. They're signing petitions against Thursday hours that can spoil the attitude of togetherness and...

Discover the Value of Vitamin D By Sara Lovelady The US Institute of Medicine of the National Academies recently tripled the recommended daily vitamin D intake to 600 IU for people between 1 and 7 If there was ever such a thing as a “popular” vitamin, then vitamin D surely qualifies. After a flurry of scientific studies showed a link between vitamin D deficiency and increased risk of several chronic diseases, it captured widespread interest. Here are the basics to know about this compelling nutrient. What does D do in the body? Vitamin D helps maintain blood levels of calcium, so it increases bone strength. It also works with calcium to prevent falls in seniors. But vitamin D is more than just calcium’s sidekick. Intervention studies have shown that supplementing with vitamin D may provide modest benefits in helping you kick the winter blues and tamp down high blood pressure—and, if you have diabetes—balancing blood sugar. Population studie...