Snip that bit

Johns Hopkins infectious disease experts say the medical benefits for male circumcision are clear… [from the ] last decade of medical evidence that the procedure can substantially protect men and their female partners from certain sexually transmitted infections.

Among the research cited by Tobian and Gray, a professor at the University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health, are multiple studies conducted within the last five years showing that in heterosexuals, circumcision reduced HIV infection risk by 60 percent, genital herpes by 30 percent and cancer-causing human papillomavirus (HPV) by 35 percent in men. Females benefit from a 40 percent or greater reduced risk of bacterial vaginosis or parasitic trichomonas spread during sex, as well as HPV infection, which causes cervical cancer.

In addition, the experts say the data clearly show that having the procedure in infancy reduces the risk of urinary tract infections, as well as inflammation in the opening or head region of the penis. Risk of infection from surgically removing the foreskin, considered a minimal and simple surgery, is already low overall but even lower during infancy, at between 0.2 percent and 0.6 percent. In adults, infection and complication rates are higher, between 1.5 percent and 3.8 percent.
Plus!
In contrast to what circumcision’s opponents claim, Tobian and Gray say that research shows no reduction in sexual satisfaction or male performance. Indeed, they add, circumcised men in the trials, the gold standard of medical evidence, reported no difference or even increased penile sensitivity during intercourse and enhanced orgasms compared to uncircumcised men. The majority of female partners also reported either no change or increased sexual satisfaction, largely because of improved hygiene.
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STD 911 for over 40 women

A Johns Hopkins infectious disease expert is calling for all sexually active American women age 40 and older to get tested for the parasite Trichomonas vaginalis after new study evidence found that the sexually transmitted disease (STD) is more than twice as common in this age group than previously thought. Screening is especially important because in many cases there are no symptoms.

“We usually think of STDs as more prevalent in young people, but our study results clearly show that with trichomonas, while too many young people have it, even more, older women are infected,” says senior study investigator Charlotte Gaydos, M.S., Dr.P.H.
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Diet before going under the knife

Obese patients are nearly 12 times more likely to suffer a complication following elective plastic surgery than their normal-weight counterparts, according to new research by Johns Hopkins scientists.
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Still trying to decipher HRT

Women who took estrogen in mid-life but not in late life had a 26 percent decreased risk of developing dementia in old age compared with women who had never taken estrogen at any age, whereas women who took estrogen in late life but not in mid-life had a 48 percent increased risk of dementia compared with non-estrogen-taking women.

So many on the one hand, on the other when it comes to HRT. Here we just look at one item in the whole basket or benefits and risks.
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Costco that Birth Control

Rates of unintended pregnancies and abortions decrease significantly when women receive a one-year supply of oral contraceptives, instead of being prescribed one- or three-month supplies, a UCSF study shows.
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Worth repeating- Drinking
in moderation for women is important

Even low levels of alcohol consumption are associated with a significantly increased risk for breast cancer, although the risk remains "quite small," according to JAMA study.
Compared with women who didn't drink any alcohol, those consuming low amounts — the equivalent of 3 to 6 glasses of wine per week — had a significant, 15% increase in breast cancer risk. The risk rose with the amount of alcohol consumed, and drinking in either early or later adulthood posed increased risk.

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Eat right to save boobs

(Reuters Health) - Diets high in vegetables, fruits and soy might cut the risk of developing breast cancer by 30 percent, new research suggests.
In a study, Dr. Lesley M. Butler, of Colorado State University and colleagues, noticed a trend of "decreasing breast cancer risk with increasing intake of a vegetable-fruit-soy dietary pattern" in the 34,000 Chinese women studied.
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