Americans' belt size continues to inch up, and women's waistlines are widening faster than men's. The average waist size ballooned more than an inch. While men's waists increased less than an inch women's midriffs grew about twice that. Waistlines larger than 35 inches for women and more than 40 inches for men are considered abdominal obesity, a risk factor for heart disease and diabetes. Waist circumference is a simple tool that reflects the amount of total body fat and intra-abdominal body fat. 
Including women older than 70 in national breast cancer screening programs won't lead to a sharp reduction in advanced forms of the disease. In fact, mass breast cancer screening programs could result in older women being overdiagnosed and overtreated. So, the decision to screen older women for breast cancer should be made on a case-by-case basis. The researchers concluded that for every one advanced-stage cancer diagnosed by screening older women, about 20 overdiagnosed early stage cancers are detected. They noted the overdiagnosis and treatment of breast cancer could take a significant toll on a woman's quality of life. 
A combination drug therapy aimed at opening the airways and reducing inflammation appears to be the best treatment for older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease  or COPD especially those with asthma. COPD patients who received a combination of long-acting beta agonists and inhaled corticosteroids were less likely to die or require hospitalization because of their breathing disorder, compared to people receiving only one of the two medications. 
The number of Americans dying from accidental overdoses of narcotic painkillers jumped significantly from 1999 to 2011. Deaths from overdoses of drugs such as hydrocodone (Vicodin), morphine and oxycodone climbed. That means about 3,000 people died in 1999 from unintentional overdoses. By 2011, that number was up to nearly 12,000 deaths. Despite the rising number of deaths, the rate of the increase has actually slowed since 2006.