Abortions increase the risk of low birth weight in future pregnancies by a factor of three, and of premature birth by a factor of two, according to the largest U.S. study of its kind. The study is hardly perfect; the data is more than 40 years old and doesn't distinguish between medical abortions and "spontaneous abortions," better known as miscarriages. Yet the report, published today in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health (JECH), shows one of the strongest links yet between miscarriage or abortion on premature birth and low birth weight — major risk factors for infant death or sickness.

What makes report significant is the size and detail of data. Some previous, smaller studies on abortion and future birth weight have suffered because researchers were unable to untangle the effects of abortion from, say, the effects of being poor (which also happens to increase a woman's odds of having an abortion). But the researchers behind the JECH study, which evaluated just over 45,000 single-child live births from 1959 to 1966, were able to adjust for an impressive array of confounding variables, including race, age, weight, height, marital status, occupation, the number of prenatal visits, the number of previous children, smoking and drinking habits, drug habits, infant gender and both parents' education levels.

Full story here.

This study only confirms what most people have already observed. An observation that has been swept under the rug by the likes of Planned Parenthood. Planned Parenthood would like you to think that an abortion is nothing more than getting rid of some tissues, nothing to worry about.

Since abortion is so widely available many women are using abortion as a birth control. I wonder if women who are going for abortions for the first time, or for the second or third time for that matter, are going to be cautioned about the consequences of the actions; what the effects of their abortion is going to do to any future pregnancies where the child is wanted.

I don't know if the result of this study is going to lead to less abortions, especially for women who intend to become pregnant in the future and carry that pregnancy to full term.

One can only hope.

A national TV personality, Robin Roberts, recently was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent surgery. Well-known Malaysian actress, Azean Irdawaty was also diagnosed with stage three breast cancer and currently undergoing treatment. Laura Ingraham, a radio talk show host, was also diagnosed with breast cancer but has been cancer free for two years after successful medical treatment.

These news highlight the importance of breast self exams because early detection of lumps in the breasts, and immediate medical treatment can save a woman's life.

(HealthDay News) -- Women should examine their breasts regularly to detect lumps or abnormalities that could signal breast cancer. An exam should be done once a month, several days after the last day of a woman's period.

Here are the five basic steps to a breast self-exam, courtesy of Breastcancer.org:

• Standing with your shoulders straight and your arms on your hips, face a mirror. Look for any differences in size, shape, color, swelling or bulging of the skin, changes in the nipple, or any signs of redness or rash.
• Raise your arms, and examine your breasts for any of those differences.
• Gently squeeze each nipple to check for any discharge.
• Lie down, and feel each breast with the hand of the opposite arm. Feel all the tissue, applying pressure to check deep tissue for any lumps or abnormalities.
• Examine the breasts while you are standing or sitting, gently examining the entire breast. You may want to try this method in the shower, while the skin is slippery.

TUESDAY, Aug. 21 (HealthDay News) -- Women are more likely than men to search for health information on the Internet, according to researchers who analyzed four years of U.S. national survey data.

A team at Bryant University in Smithfield, R.I., also found that:

• women are more likely than men to seek online support groups for medical problems;
• women are more likely than men to seek health care information for others;
• women visit more health sites than men;
• men are more likely than women to go online for sensitive health information that may be difficult to talk about.

According to the researchers, health care is one of the few areas where women use the Internet much more than men. The other two areas are religion and driving directions.

Read more here.

How true that is! I don't know how many times I have used the internet to try to understand my health issues. I am quite the hypochondriac so a little knowledge can be quite dangerous sometimes!

One of my closest friends have become the "doctor" in her office because every time a colleague comes in complaining about some aches and pains, she will tell them what they have been doing wrong to themselves. And usually she is right. For example one of her colleagues suffers from gout and gout can be aggravated by eating certain foods.

The advent of the internet and the free flow of medical information have left women empowered and more in control of their health issues. They do not have to feel helpless any more and dependent on their medical doctor to tell them everything about their illnesses.

Women suffering from certain illnesses can find support from other sufferers in many support groups on the internet too.