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BOTTOMLINE April 22nd 2007

	Blast Away High Cholesterol
	5 Questions Your Doctor Should Ask -- But Won't
	The Germinator!
	How to Find Anything on the Web
	3,379 Very Simple Ways to Make Your Home More Lovable

In the rush of managed care, many doctors can't devote the time necessary for a thorough examination, including asking in-depth questions to get a good diagnosis, says Leo Galland, MD, director of the Foundation for Integrated Medicine in New York City. In "5 Questions Your Doctor Should Ask -- But Won't" Dr. Galland explains how it's important to look at some issues beyond the symptoms, and why you should raise them even if your doctor doesn't. It's one of the easiest things you can do to be sure you get the best possible medical care.

Another health trend is patients' use of the Web as a primary resource for health information. Unfortunately, it's not always so easy to find what you need -- unless you know where to look. Read advice on "How to Find Anything on the Web," from Guy Hart-Davis, who has written more than 30 books about computers. Whether you're searching for cardiac screening tests, a local window washer or a way to locate your neighbor from 20 years ago, it's just a click or two away if you know where to look.

This approach can be effective for emergencies or acute illnesses, such as earaches, bronchitis or chest pain. It doesn't work as well for chronic diseases, such as diabetes, arthritis, asthma or fatigue.

Reason: Doctors don't ask questions that reveal the key facts about a person's life that can significantly affect the development and progression of disease.

Example: One of my patients had severe rheumatoid arthritis. She failed to improve even with the latest, most powerful drugs. None of her doctors thought to ask about her diet, which was triggering the release of inflammatory chemicals that exacerbated her symptoms.

I ask my patients to complete a 20-page questionnaire before their initial visit with me. In many cases, their answers give important clues to an accurate diagnosis. Even if your doctor doesn't ask the questions listed below, you should bring up these issues with him/her during your appointment.

Questions your doctor should ask -- but may not...

1. Have you ever felt better after avoiding particular foods? Up to 40% of healthy Americans report having an intolerance to one or more foods.

Why it matters: Millions of Americans react to wheat, dairy or other specific foods or food groups. Food intolerance is a frequent cause of diarrhea and other digestive problems. It also can cause fatigue and headache. Patients often suffer for years without being accurately diagnosed. The quality of a person's diet can have a significant impact on the risk for chronic or recurrent disease... energy levels, mood and body weight... recovery from infection... and the control of chronic disorders, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

What you can do: If you have unexplained symptoms, such as headache or diarrhea, keep a food diary to record everything you eat and drink over a three-day period, including spices and condiments, such as pepper and mustard. The most common culprits are milk products, wheat, corn, yeast, sugar, artificial colors and flavors and spices. Eliminate a suspected problem food from your diet for five to seven days. Do your symptoms improve when you avoid the food? Do they get worse when you reintroduce it? If you find a problem food, ask your doctor if you may have a food intolerance.

2. What are the major sources of stress in your life? Our bodies' nerves, hormones and immune cells work together to help us cope with emotional stress. In people who suffer chronic stress, this network becomes overwhelmed and stops working efficiently.

Why it matters: The body is designed to respond to stress and often benefits by becoming stronger. However, when people experience high levels of stress on a daily basis, the cost of responding to stress exceeds the benefit. This results in an increased risk for cardiovascular disease, infection, depression and other illnesses.

What you can do: It's impossible to eliminate stress altogether, but we all can learn to manage it more efficiently. For example, daily exercise -- 30 minutes of walking at a moderate to brisk pace -- diminishes the effects of stress-related hormones.

3. Do you feel close to your family and/or friends? Doctors are often reluctant (or too busy) to ask about patients' personal lives. However, personal relationships are among the most important factors in preventing and treating disease.

Why it matters: Patients who are diagnosed with serious illnesses, including cancer and heart disease, live longer when they have strong social networks. Research also shows that people who are active in their communities or close to family and friends are less likely to get sick in the first place. A social support network also eases depression and protects you from the effects of daily stress.

What you can do: Take stock of your relationships with other people, and nourish them by spending time with people you care about. If you are isolated, get involved in activities that help others.

4. How much personal control do you believe you have over your health? There are two primary ways that you can approach your health -- you can rely on your doctor to tell you what to do... or you can actively participate in your health care.

Why it matters: Research shows that people are healthier and have better medical outcomes when they take responsibility for their own care... make important lifestyle changes... and generally put themselves in charge of their own health.

What you can do: The first step is to motivate yourself and make a commitment to yourself and those you love that you will be proactive in advocating for your own health. The second step is to learn what you can about the health conditions that affect you.

5. Do you have physical problems or certain personality traits that remind you of someone in your family? Your family medical history can help identify diseases that you may be predisposed to develop. Family history is an especially important risk factor for depression, heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and allergic and autoimmune disorders. Most cancers are not due to genetic risk factors, but to environmental exposures or diet.

Why it matters: A family history of a disease doesn't mean that you will develop that illness -- but knowing your history, or just noticing similarities, makes it easier to predict and prevent future problems. For example, if you suffer from unexplained fatigue, weight gain or mood disturbances, and there is a history of thyroid problems in a close family member, such as a parent or sibling, your symptoms may be thyroid related.

What you can do: Maintain a family tree that includes the health status and cause of death of grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles and siblings -- and show it to your doctor.

Bottom Line/Health interviewed Leo Galland, MD, director of the Foundation for Integrated Medicine in New York City. He has held faculty positions at Rockefeller University and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, both in New York City, and State University of New York, Stony Brook. He is the author of The Fat Resistance Diet (Broadway) and The Four Pillars of Healing (Random House).

How to Find Anything on the Web Guy Hart-Davis inding quality content on the Web can be frustrating and tedious. If you can't find what you are looking for by using your favorite search engine, it may be time to try searching on another site. Among the best ones today... Ask.com began as a question-answer Web site, but now it also offers conventional keyword searches. At www.ask.com/webadvanced , searches can be restricted to a Web site, geographical area or time period when a page was last modified. Google ( www.google.com ), the current search engine king, covers more than 8 billion Web pages. Special features include local business lookups... "SafeSearch," which blocks sexual content (click "Preferences," then check "Use Strict Filtering")... and many other advanced tools for narrowing your search. MSN ( www.msn.com ), the Microsoft Network, has both a search engine and an Internet portal -- a site that organizes information so that you can click on a category (such as movies or sports) to browse rather than search the entire Internet. Yahoo! ( www.yahoo.com ... search.yahoo.com) is a veteran search engine combined with an Internet portal. Also: Click on "Advanced Search" to search by domain (.org, .gov, etc.), for pages updated within a certain time frame and more advanced features. Beware: Many Web services, including Google, insert cookies, or tracking files, into users' computers. People with privacy concerns can use Scroogle ( www.scroogle.org ) or another Web-based "Google scraper" that lets you search with Google but blocks its cookies. Specialized search engines can speed searches in subject areas or for specific content. Examples... Singingfish ( www.singingfish.com ) offers free audio and video content -- songs, music videos, radio shows and more. BookFinder.com ( www.bookfinder.com ) searches more than 100,000 sellers for new and used books. Technorati ( www.technorati.com ) specializes in finding information posted on Web logs ("blogs") about everything from news stories to recipes. Alternative: Use a metasearch engine, which delivers results from several search engines, to get an overview of the range of information available on a subject. Among the best: Ixquick ( www.ixquick.com ) and SurfWax ( www.surfwax.com ). Bottom Line/Personal interviewed Guy Hart-Davis, author of more than 30 computer books, including Windows XP Professional: The Complete Reference ... PC QuickSteps ... and Mac OS X Panther QuickSteps (all from McGraw-Hill). 3,379 VERY SIMPLE WAYS TO MAKE YOUR HOME MORE LOVABLE Household tricks... garden secrets... indoor and outdoor projects that require little effort or money -- but provide very big reward. BOTTOM LINE has teamed up with America's legendary home and garden experts, John and Martha Storey -- and their 30 years of wisdom -- to help Americans do "the impossible." Plus, the best from more than 100 of their expert home and garden associates to help make your home "the most admired on the block." Read on...

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