There is a new study now that says walking while listening to music, on headphones, can really be hazardous.

The Wall Street Journal reports that according to a six-year study of some 442 Swiss patients published in the Archives of Surgery, Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery appears to produce quicker and more long-lasting weight loss than gastric banding.

There’s Interesting new research out about how infants learn to talk. While they tend gaze directly into the eyes of those holding them until the age of six months, they often then switch to reading lips, watching mouth movements intently as a way of learning how to sound out words themselves.

Reuters reports that according to a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, consumption of a liter of sugared cola on a daily basis may raise fat buildup in the liver, in muscles and around abdominal organs.

Reuters reports that according to a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, girls who ate meals and snacks frequently gained less weight than girls who ate only a few times every day.

Health and fitness experts have for years tried to entice people to exercise more by flogging long-range benefits such as losing weight or avoiding long-term illness caused by chronic disease. However, they might have been going about it all wrong.

When it comes to the consumption of alcohol, the message has been decidedly mixed. Some studies show that moderate consumption might offer some health benefits, especially for the heart; other studies show an increased risk for certain cancers, especially breast cancer, with even the consumption of a very small amount of alcohol. What’s a woman to do?

The National Journal reports, “A tax on sugary soft drinks could discourage consumption just enough to save 26,000 people from dying of strokes, heart attacks, or other obesity-related ills over the next decade,” according to a study in Health Affairs.

Here are the contents of this month’s Family Newsletter:

• Walt’s Books On Sale
• Family Update
• Publication Update
• 1) Walt’s New Devotional
• 2) Article in Significant Living magazine
• 3) First Endorsement for The Ultimate Guy’s Body Book
• 4) First Review for The Ultimate Guy’s Body Book
• 5) 15th Printing of Lintball Leo
• 6) Professional Article published
• Events of the last month
• Upcoming Events

USA Today /Arizona Republic reports that a meta-analysis in published in the journal Perspectives on Psychological Science reviewed “more than 30 published studies” and “found divorced adults have a significantly higher risk of early death compared with married adults.

The Washington Post “The Checkup” blog reports, “Smoking marijuana doesn’t appear to do the kind of damage to people’s lungs as smoking tobacco does,” according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. “But that may have to do more with the way marijuana is typically smoked than with anything inherent in the substance itself.”

Reuters reports that, according to a study published online in Stroke, red meat consumption may be linked to an increased risk of stroke.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports a study in Nature showing that irisin, “a hormone naturally found in muscle cells … rises during exercise, converting white fat into brown fat, a substance whose primary function is to generate body heat.”

The Los Angeles Times “Booster Shots” blog reports, “A recent study  … concluded that doctors can consider transferring two embryos in some women but that there is no justification for transferring three or more embryos in any patient.”

The Wall Street Journal reports that new research suggests that the risk of cardiac arrest for those participating in marathons may be very small.

Neti pot users had a scare after recent news about two deaths from amebic brain infection in people using a neti pot. But this does NOT mean that nasal irrigation with a neti pot is unsafe.

Bloomberg News reports, “People who are genetically susceptible to developing Alzheimer’s disease may be able to reduce their risk with exercise,” according to a study published in the Archives of Neurology.

The Washington Post asks, “Research has indicated that smokers may have a lower incidence of Alzheimer’s disease. Might nicotine patches offer memory benefits, too?”

On its website, ABC News reports, “Scientists have found new evidence that grief might actually break your heart.”

ABC World News reported, “And we have a red flag to tell you about tonight about the most popular prescription drug in the world: statins.” Investigators “at Harvard Medical School” found that “people who take statins to reduce their cholesterol are at slightly higher risk of diabetes.” Sounds scary, right? Not to worry … it isn’t!

Fast foods, sodas, and ice cream may be American kids’ favorite menu items, but they’re also probably the worst for those with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a new literature review suggests.

According to two researchers from Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago, a relatively simple diet low in fats and high in whole grains, fruits, and vegetables is one of the best alternatives to drug therapy for ADHD. Omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acid supplements have also been shown to help in some controlled studies, they noted.

This state-of-the-art review suggests dietary interventions for children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) if:

1. medications are ineffective,
2. parents or children wish to try dietary approaches, or
3. mineral deficiencies were present.

Diets to reduce symptoms associated with ADHD include sugar-restricted, additive/preservative-free, oligoantigenic/elimination, and fatty acid supplements.

The authors write, “In practice, additive-free and oligoantigenic/elimination diets are time-consuming and disruptive to the household; they are indicated only in selected patients.”

Reuters reports that a study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology surveyed over 600 prostate cancer patients and found that robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy, compared with traditional open surgery, showed no difference in problems, such as urinary incontinence and sexual problems, after the surgery.

USA Today reported, “Screening men with the PSA test increases their chances of being diagnosed with prostate cancer but doesn’t reduce their overall risk of death, according to a large, long-running government study” published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

When it comes to neck pain the best medicine is no medicine at all according to a new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

USA Today reports that according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics, “the number of twin births in the USA more than doubled from 1980 to 2009.”

The Wall Street Journal reports that, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, weight-loss surgery may be linked to a reduced risk of death from heart disease.

The Wall Street Journal reported on a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggesting that a person’s total calorie intake, regardless of the nutritional source of the calories, determines how much fat accumulates in the body.

Reuters reports on a study published in the Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine, which found that some young women who have received the HPV vaccine believe that it protects them against STDs such as syphilis and gonorrhea, and indicates that greater education efforts may be necessary.

The Los Angeles Times reports, “Numerous studies show that small tweaks to one’s routine can improve a person’s health.”

Here’s a practice changer for me. HealthDay reports, “Hepatitis B vaccination is recommended for ALL unvaccinated adults with type 1 and type 2 diabetes aged 19 to 59.”