Red meat makes headlines -- again -- due to new research indicating it increases a woman's chances of developing breast cancer. I've heard this before. Maybe that's because it's becoming pretty conclusive.

Findings are most significant for post-menopausal women because these are the women with the highest rates of consumption -- about one portion of red meat per day. This daily doses puts them at a 56 percent greater risk than women who eat no red meat.

Researchers at the University of Leeds followed the eating habits and health of more than 35,000 women over the past seven years to gather their data, published in the British Journal of Cancer.

Four-time Iditarod champion Susan Butcher died Saturday of complications from a recent bone marrow transplant. Her health concerns began three years ago when she was diagnosed with polycythemia vera -- a rare disease that causes bone marrow to produce excess blood. Then last winter, she was diagnosed with leukemia. Her subsequent bone marrow transplant on May 16 cleared her system of cancer. But she developed graft-versus-host disease -- where transplanted cells start attacking the digestive system. A fever, a change in her potassium level, and a trip to intensive care prompted her husband to write on his blog Friday of her condition. He reported that if she remained stable, she would return to her previous hospital room and would work on recovering. But sadly, Butcher did not recover.

Butcher dominated the 1,100-mile sled-dog race from Anchorage to Nome in the late 1980s and brought national attention to the grueling competition. She won the 1986 race and became the second female champion -- and then won again in 1987, 1988, and 1990. She finished in the top four through 1993. Butcher also made headlines in 1979 when she helped drive the first sled-dog team to the 20,320-foot summit of Mount McKinley -- the highest peak in North America.

Butcher, who ran her last Iditarod in 1994, grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts and was married with two daughters -- ages 10 and five. Butcher was 51 years old.

The bikini turns 60 this month and makes news not just for its birthday but also for its new feature -- a built-in alarm to warn wearers to get out of the sun. Not all bikinis will talk -- but those made by Canadian company Solestrom will. Solestrom has created a new bikini that goes on sale next month with a UV meter built into its belt and an alarm that sounds when it's time to seek shade. The meter on the $190 bikini displays a level of UV intensity on a scale from 0 to 20. Three to five is moderate strength, eight to 10 is very high, and anything above 11 is extreme. A person's sensitivity to UV depends mainly on skin type so this scale operates in general terms.

Despite increasing awareness of the sun's dangers, sales remain strong for the bikini. So Solestrom developed this suit to ease some of the worries about the sun's damaging rays. They have already been met with high demand from Australia and South Africa -- where skin cancer rates are highest. The United States -- now in the loop too -- has about 1 million new skin cancer cases each year.

I woke yesterday morning to voices on the Today Show telling me that the use of hair dye is linked to incidences of lymphoma -- a general term for a group of cancers that originate in the lymphatic system. I know I've heard in the past about the possible link between cancer and the chemicals that add color to hair -- but the connection has never been revealed as very strong and the topic did not ever apply to me so I filed the information in the back of my mind. But now, it appears the link may be stronger than originally thought -- and I recently dyed my own post-chemo brown hair -- so I listened more intently this time and learned about the study that implies that touching up my roots may not be a wise practice.

The results of a European study, appearing in the July 1 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology, reveal that roughly 10 percent of lymphomas in women could be caused by the use of hair dyes. The data suggest a small increase in risk -- and clearly more research is necessary -- but what researchers have found is that for the women who have dyed their hair more than 12 times, the risk is highest. And those who colored their locks before 1980 have the greatest risk. Since 1980, chemicals thought to be cancer-causing were eliminated from dyes -- although it is still not definite whether or not current hair dyes are risk-free. It is definite, say researchers, that further study of this topic is important. In the meantime, I think I will let my artificial reddish chestnut hues fade away while I enjoy the plain brown hair that covers my once-bald scalp.

Earlier this month, I shared the results of a study that drinking coffee reduces the risk of a genetic type of breast cancer. Good news for women who enjoy a cup of java -- or two -- or three -- to start the day. I have found more good news about coffee. Did you know that a cup of coffee is the number one source of antioxidants in the U.S. diet? So this could mean that we do not get very much in the way of antioxidants in our diet, or it might be that coffee has antioxidant super powers.

"Americans get more of their antioxidants from coffee than any other dietary source. Nothing else comes close," says study leader Joe Vinson, Ph.D., a chemistry professor at the University of Scranton.

Dr. Vinson explained that, "Although fruits and vegetables are generally promoted as good sources of antioxidants, the new finding is surprising because it represents the first time that coffee has been shown to be the primary source from which most Americans get their antioxidants." Antioxidants protect from the potential damage to cells of free radicals. Past research findings have indicated that coffee provides a certain level of cancer prevention for breast, colon and liver  cancers.

Researchers analyzed the antioxidant content of more than 100 different food items, including vegetables, fruits, nuts, spices, oils and common beverages and the amount of daily consumption. Coffee was number one on the list. According to the National Coffee Association, over 50 percent of Americans drink coffee. With all the constant news concerning what is bad for you, this is better than good news for coffee drinkers.