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What was I going to do with cucumbers larger than my arm? We had already eaten cucumber-tomato salad every day since arriving; I had to come up with something else. Since I knew that almost 90% of a cucumber was water I decided on trying to make a Cucumberade.

If you were to ask random people on the street what makes a person's bones strong, many people might say that a diet rich in calcium will do the trick. A few people might know that vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin, affects bone strength, some might understand that using one's bones with weight bearing exersise will strengthen bones, and even fewer might know that inadequate testosterone reduces bone strength. But did you know that adding foods rich in vitamin C to your diet, such as oranges, can also improve the health of your bones as well?

Quercetin works by blocking the production and release of a body chemical called histamine. Common allergy medications such as Benadryl (diphenhydramine) work in a similar way. Apples, cherries, and several other fruits and vegetables have good quantities of quercetin.

That old saw about eating raw oysters only in months with the letter R? It only applies if the oysters are harvested from northern lattitudes; for warmer waters permit greater growth of dangerous bacteria. But even if you follow cold-water rule, you can still get sick.

The infectious agenst range from bacteria such as Vibrio cholera, the scourge of the developing world, to Norovirus, of cruise ship fame.

The Environmental Protection Agency has banned the use of the pesticide carbofuran on food crops, the associated press reports. The pesticide was deemed to be too high a risk for use in food crops due to the risk that its residue might remain on food eaten by humans, especially children. Carbofuran is a cholinesterase inhibitor, and as such, it works in a similar way to chemical warfare agents like VX and Sarin.

The big problem with the diagnosis of lactose intolerance is that there are no good diagnostic tests. People often assume they have lactose intolerance when their symptoms are actually unrelated to lactose malabsorption. So what do we do?

It turns out that most lactose intolerant people can actually tolerate the lactose that is found in a single glass of milk, if consumed with other foods.

According to a new statement from the Food and Drug Administration, Americans are eating way too much salt. The FDA has called for the government to impose stricter regulations on how much salt food products can contain. Unfortunately, the government has no plans to institute these suggestions. Instead, the FDA must rely on voluntary salt reductions from food manufacturers. To date, this approach has not worked very well.

With the world more conscious about cardiovascular disease and cholesterol levels, red meat burgers may become extinct. If this were to happen, what would we be missing, aside from taste? As it turns out, we would miss a lot.

But what could a garden class do for children? Don't they run around in the dirt enough on weekends anyway?

It turns out that teaching children to garden may have unique health benefits. Kids who are offered gardening instruction in schools tend to choose to eat vegetables at lunchtime.

When we get conflicting advice to avoid fish containing mercury and contaminants, and to eat more fish for the essential fatty acids, what should we do? In this article we review the risks and benefits of eating fish, and provide insight into how to get essential fatty acids into your diet without becoming over exposed to toxins.

If you have not had the pleasure of experiencing an oral canker sore then you are lucky. Imagine holding a lit match to the inner lining of your mouth for a few seconds. That is what it feels like. But some nutritional supplements appear to keep them at bay.

When I read the summary headline in the UK's Telegraph that Bacon and Eggs fed to mothers should make babies smarter, I wasn't surprised at all. The conclusion is a bit of a stretch, because the study that it referred to was done in mice, not in people, and they were supplemented with the nutrient choline found in bacon and eggs, not the bacon and eggs themselves, but I still believe it.

Pop, tonic, soft drink, I don't care what you call it, soda is everywhere. In most supermarkets, an entire aisle is dedicated the display of soda. Many adolescents drink soda daily, but raising prices should reduce consumption.

In our house, Santa is lactose intolerant, and one of his constituents is allergic to soy. Soy is a stealth ingredient in most types of chocolate (in the form of soy lecithin, an emulsifier). Yet making cookies for Santa that are dairy free and contain no chocolate is not boring; a soy free, dairy free, chocolate cookie is not hard to make, and it is tasty as well.

When I was growing up, my teenage brothers and I were always on high alert to detect each other's farts. When we heard or smelled one, we cried foul, and ribbed each other mercilessly. Sometimes, to avoid embarrassment, we passed one off by pretending that we had stubbed a toe, creaked a chair, or coughed or sneezed. A fart, otherwise known as flatulence, was our own f-word. But flatulence is entirely natural. And yes, beans do make you toot.

The risk of holiday weight gain is looming, but in addition to a brisk walk, dietary choices rich in conjugated linoleic acid may help prevent weight gain. CLA is found naturally in the milk and meat of grass-fed ruminants such as cattle, goats and sheep.

Where did this idea, that serving sizes of movie snacks ought to accomodate the appetites of teenage football players, ever come from?
Whomever is in charge of the anti-obesity push in this country obviously has not been to movies lately. After having to endure some very big eyes from two little girls, I caved in and bought a $7 small size serving of popcorn, which looked like the jumbo they used to serve in the olden days at the 99-cent theater.

Yes, we know, we can't really make any health claims that Butternut Squash soup with tumeric will prevent leukemia, or the FDA police will pull us over for speeding with a bad attitude. But two components of the soup, Vitamin A and curcumin, appear to work synergistically to prevent the proliferation of leukemia HL-60 cells. And it tastes good too!

The Great Pumpkin won't be visiting the unfortunate children of Democrats this year in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan. Some uptight witch in the neighborhood has announced she won't give any candy to kids whose parents support President Obama. There's always the chance that she's actually a closeted liberal hoping to make the area's future right-wingers fatter and shorten their lifespans at the same time. Aside from this wacky scenario, for parents today, Halloween has become a dilemma--to give candy and contribute to the obesity epidemic or buck up and give out apples or toothbrushes or erasers...Recent research shows that kids like small toys just as much as candy.

While I can't seem to catch a fish to save my life, we do manage to eat fish regularly. Even the kids eat fish and seafood; salmon, squid and flounder are their favorites.

That's a good thing, because eating fish keeps us healthy: medical research indicates a that a diet rich in fish can keep you smart, happy, and can prolong your life.

Infertility rates are on the rise (1% of births in 2005 were from assisted reproductive technology (ART)) and according to Wright et al almost half of the 52,041 ART births in 2005 produced multiple children. It's probably worth your time to consider the evidence if you are trying to have a baby: certain foods and food habits seem to be associated with fertility and infertility.

Honey isn't necessarily better for you than regular sugar--and it's more fattening, with 64 calories per tablespoon compared to 45 calories per tablespoon of white sugar. But unlike white sugar, it does have a couple of health benefits: it makes a decent burn treatment and it's often more effective at treating and soothing common coughs than fancy cold medicines with dextromethorphan.

My wife thinks that garlic wards off the common cold. While a Cochrane review found no consistent evidence that it works, she clings to the results of one positive randomized controlled trial.

To get her to stop eating garlic raw, I had to promise to make her a garlic-laden meal.

Serious Masters of the Barbecue should reach for marinades with antioxidant ingredients such as mint, basil, and rosemary.  Why?  According to new research, marinades with such ingredients can prevent the formation of cancer causing agents in overcooked meat.

From the kitchen of Dr. Robert Latkany, MedPie.com brings you an original marinade recipe. 

Not long after President Obama’s weekly address about targeting the dangers of food production on merchants in New York City started riding the Obama food safety wave by using his name in fast food restaurants such as Obama Fried Chicken. Eating at fast food restaurants translates to higher fat and lower vegetable intakes.

While the American Dietetic Association , the Dietitians of Canada, and a new study reported on CNN claim that a diet high in red meat is bad for your health, the evidence is somewhat more nuanced.

Scurvy, or vitamin C deficiency, was the scourge of long sea voyages until methods of preserving fruit or vegetables high in vitamin C were discovered. While low vitamin C is associated with cardiovascular disease, high vitamin C is associated with increased frequency of sexual intercourse. Watch the YouTube video called Scurvy Love.

The acai berry (pronounced ah-cye-EE), found on the acai palm in South American rain forests has been touted as a top anti-aging, high-energy-producing superfood, and has attracted the attention of numerous celebrity promoters such as Dr Mehmet Oz on Oprah Winfrey’s show, media mogul Summer Redstone, and Dr. Nicholas Perricone. Despite the published skepticism about the Acai berry's health benefits in the New York Times, Medpie.com could not find any negative claims about the acai berry in electronically available published literature.

Researchers at Boston University Medical Center found that only 51 percent of U.S. prenatal multivitamins contain iodine, which could result in iodine deficiency, the UPI reports. Iodine is found in seafood, and supplemented salt. Iodine deficiency in pregnant women can lead to hypothyroidism, and cretinism in the child, a syndrome of significantly impaired physical, mental and cognitive growth. Hypothyroidism from iodine deficiency is most commonly found in people who live in landlocked countries where seafood is inaccessible.

Just about everyone, aside from those with nut allergies, has enjoyed the taste of peanut butter. Peanuts are rich in oil, protein, and B vitamins, and the antioxidant of red-wine fame, resveratrol.

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine revealed a report which suggests that more than one in ten children use alternative medicine (AM) according to the associated press.