A U.K. researcher confirms what many dog lovers already know -- dogs are good for your health.

Apparently, dog owners are generally healthier than non-pet-owners. They have lower blood pressure and cholesterol, suffer fewer minor ailments, and stray from serious medical problems too. Dogs can prevent their owners from getting sick, help them recover more quickly when they do fall ill, and they can even warn of cancer, heart attack, epileptic seizures, and hypoglycemia, says Dr. Deborah Wells from the Canine Behaviour Centre of Queens University in Northern Ireland.

Wells, whose study is published in the British Journal of Health Psychology, says dogs buffer us from stress -- a well-known cause of illness -- and promote general well-being. Owning a dog leads to increased physical activity and increases development of social interactions -- both of which minimize stress and contribute to human health.

While Wells found those who own both dogs and cats benefit from their pets, dog owners enjoy improved health for much longer than cat owners.

It can be a bit overwhelming and scary to read all the side effects on the sheet that the pharmacist gives with the medicine that has been prescribed by your physician. There always seems to be so many side effects that CAN happen. The thing is that most of the side effects are not life threatening and are mild. Some medications however do have severe side effects that if you are not aware of can prove to be deadly. This shouldn't happen of course if you are listening to what your doctor says and are being monitored closely.

It is important to read all the side effect information yourself and know what to look out for. In case something does happen that is abnormal, you will notice it sooner than later, and you can call or see your physician immediately.

In a report issued Tuesday, the Journal of the American Medical Association estimates that 700,000 people a year, especially the elderly, experience adverse drug events that lead to emergency room visits. In patients 65 or older, one-third of the drug reactions were caused by three medicines: Coumadin, a blood thinner, insulin and Digoxin, a heart medication.

The important thing to remember is to ask about any other drugs you are taking and the interactions with the newly prescribed drug. The report I saw on this issue mentioned that about 30 percent of us are taking around five pills every day.

So ask the nurse at the doctors office to explain the side effects and you can also talk to your pharmacist about the drug. I went and got a prescription filled the other day and the pharmacist asked me if I had any questions about that specific drug. I didn't this time, but I liked that he asked.

In all of my research on breast cancer -- and all of my attempts to discover what I may have done to invite this disease into my body -- I have learned that there are some behavioral risk factors related to cancer. Some risk factors are loosely linked and perhaps need further study. And some are definites. Like smoking. And consistent use of alcohol. Now a new study done on rats now shows that nicotine can reduce blood alcohol concentrations and can lead to heavier drinking. Smoking and drinking -- at the same time -- may be even more dangerous than originally thought.

Only two previous studies have examined the interactions between nicotine and alcohol. So there is very little research about how nicotine assists in the metabolizing of alcohol. Until now -- said Wei-Jung Chen, associate professor of neuroscience and experimental therapies at the Texas A&M Health Science Center in College Station, Texas. Chen said it was clear in her study that the presence of nicotine significantly reduced peak blood alcohol content. This was observed only when alcohol entered through the stomach -- and not when injected into the abdomen. For humans, this means that people smoking while drinking will have to drink even more to reach the effect they desire. This will ultimately lead to increased amounts of toxic byproducts in the body. And it may prevent absorption of beneficial drugs in some people who both smoke and drink. And I can't imagine that the list of negatives will stop here. But is there really any more information necessary to support the danger of this combination of risky behaviors -- behaviors that on their own are dangerous enough to cause worry and concern.

Lesbian women may be at higher risk of developing breast cancer than heterosexual women. Lesbians are often less inclined than heterosexual women to access conventional medical treatment due to lower economics, fear of discrimination and past negative experiences with health care causing them to avoid health care all together. Due to a lack of equal rights with partners that are insured, unlike heterosexual couples, many lesbians with lower income jobs that cannot afford individual insurance plans, can not join on the insurance policy of their partners.

There is no genetic difference between heterosexual and homosexual women that increases disease risk among lesbians but the lack of screening taking place within the lesbian community increases the chances that a woman will be diagnosed in more advanced stages of cancer. Then at later stages there are fewer treatment options. One other factor in the lesbian community is that women who have children after age thirty, or never at all, are at increased risk for breast cancer. It is believed that certain hormones released during pregnancy act as a preventative force against breast cancer. Studies show that lesbians are less likely than heterosexual women to have children, and therefore may be at increased risk. African American lesbians have the highest risk factors for breast cancer than any other group.

Like gay males, the lesbian and bisexual population tend to consume more alcohol and also smoke more than heterosexual women. Whether this is done as a tension reducer or for social interactions is not determined but addiction frequently follows and is associated with higher rates of cancers, heart disease, and emphysema which are the three major causes of death among all women.