Health Headlines

June 13, 2011

The list of long- and short-term benefits of breastfeeding continues to grow

Long-time readers of this blog know I’m a big, big fan of encouraging, equipping, and enabling new moms to exclusively breastfeed their infants for at least […]

June 13, 2011

Breastfed babies have better head growth and lower blood pressure

Breastfeeding is universally recommended as the superior method for feeding infants because it’s linked to prevention of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) and long-term prevention of […]

June 13, 2011

Breastfeeding protects against SIDS

According to a review (meta-analysis) of 24 studies in the journal Pediatrics, breastfeeding substantially reduces the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), especially when breast milk […]

June 12, 2011

Breast-feeding reduces later behavior problems

A recent British study finds more behavioral issues among kids who were formula-fed, as compared to kids who are breastfed. In fact, breast-fed children are significantly […]

June 12, 2011

Prolonged bottle feeding boosts kids’ obesity risk: study

Nearly one-quarter of 2-year-old babies who are still drinking from a bottle at 2 years of age may be prone to obesity by the time they […]

June 9, 2011

Daycare centers purposely flout TV guidelines

A shocking study has reported that media, such as just turning on the TV, is used far too often as a replacement for adult-child interaction. In […]

June 9, 2011

Caution about ‘ear candles’

After my blog, “Cotton swabs linked to ruptured eardrums,” a reader wrote, “Dr. Walt, what do you think about ear candles?” I thought I had blogged […]

June 8, 2011

Cotton swabs linked to ruptured eardrums, study shows

A new study has found a direct association between using cotton swabs to clean the ears and ruptured eardrums. The good news is that almost all of […]

January 8, 2010

Full-body scanners at airports pose no health risk

ABC World News is reporting on whether radiation exposure from full-body scanners to be implemented by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) pose health risks for passengers. ABC’s […]

January 12, 2010

Twelve Reasons Why the Senate Health Care Bill Should Alarm Each of Us

My friend, family physician and U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, MD, has my undying respect and admiration. When he speaks, I listen. So, his most recent piece […]

January 12, 2010

Adult Stem Cell Treatment Restores Sight to Partially Blind Man

The Guardian in England has an amazing story about a partially blind man regaining his vision. Russell Turnbull, 38, suffered massive damage to his right eye […]

January 12, 2010

Dr. Walt’s Testimony Before Congress on Faith-based Perspectives on the Provision of Community Services

Back in 2004, while serving as Vice President of Medical Outreach at Focus on the Family, I was asked to testify before the Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, […]

January 13, 2010

Obesity Outweighs Smoking as Life Expectancy Threat

When I wrote my book, SuperSized Kids: How to protect your child from the obesity threat, I predicted that if the obesity epidemic was not stemmed, […]

January 13, 2010

Active Girls Make Better Grades

Girls who spend more time in vigorous physical activity may do better in school, even if they are not particularly fit, study findings hint. According to […]