I couldn't be more excited about this new development from the Obama Administration.

Starting on August 1st, employers will be "required to cover contraception in their health plans, along with other preventive services, with no cost-sharing such as co-pays or deductibles. This means that after years of trying to get birth control covered to the same extent that health plans cover Viagra, our country will finally have nearly universal coverage of contraception."

This is a huge step in our country. This will not only help to protect women's rights, but it is also a step towards making men and women equal in the eyes of the government.

Do you doubt the positive impact that this decision may have? Then read on. More Here...

Settling into a healthy diet is harder than it sounds. You get to the grocery store and everything looks sort of nebulous on the good-to-evil spectrum. From the 1990s' racket about carbs being your waistline's enemy to the constant struggle over what part of the egg is the right part to eat, we're often functioning under very strange notions about food. The better choice is to find the whole foods that go well together, that you feel comfortable preparing, and that have flavors you can get excited about (I'm sorry, lettuce just doesn't thrill me most days). That way, you don't eat your healthy meal and then end up darting for the cheese puffs because you were left unsatisfied. Here are some of my kitchen staples that help keep me out of trouble. More Here...

Reuters Health said that a research on studies spanning 45 years revealed that there is a decrease in stroke incidence among people on a magnesium-rich diet.

Quoting the article: "For every extra 100 milligrams of magnesium a person ate per day, their risk of an ischemic stroke -- the most common kind, typically caused by a blood clot -- fell by nine percent.... The U.S. recommends men and women over age 31 eat 420 and 320 mg/d of magnesium, respectively."

The researchers, however, admitted that they could not ascertain whether there are other factors that influenced the result of the studies that they evaluated. But doctors and dieticians agree that a diet low on sodium and high on potassium and magnesium is highly recommended. More Here...

Wow.

Darren Aronofsky, the director of Black Swan, apparently created a slew of anti-meth commercials that are incredibly strong, slightly disturbing, and just overwhelmingly powerful.

As warning, these videos touch on topics including gay sex, drug addiction, and suicide - and should only be viewed by those who can handle such sensitive topics. More Here...

This comes from our Advice column!

From Katja88@xanga:

"As a grad student in the health sciences, I know that exercise is important, but I also have limited time in which to do it. I know I need to schedule in gym time, but on days when I can't, I'd like to have some little things I can do in between other activities.

In the past, I've committed to doing exercises in short bunches--so many crunches and push ups at a time-- but I want something different. More Here...