Economy | ANALYSIS
Households to take hit from tax hike
by Tomoko Otake
The consumption tax increase will hit every household in Japan hard, with many people’s financial future hanging on whether their wages rise enough to offset the hike's impact.
Science & Health Jul 24, 2013
U.S. regulator cites menthol cigarette risks
The Food and Drug Administration said for the first time Tuesday that menthol-flavored cigarettes appear to pose a greater risk to public health than standard smokes, largely reaffirming the findings of an agency advisory committee two years ago and potentially laying the groundwork for ...
Business Jul 24, 2013
U.S. health-care law tied to pay cut for part-timers
For Kevin Pace, the president’s health care law could have meant better health insurance. Instead, it produced a pay cut. Like many of his colleagues, the adjunct music professor at Northern Virginia Community College had a hefty course load, despite his official status as ...
Lifestyle Jul 15, 2013
Walk away from dessert or literally walk it off
by Gabriella Boston
If you knew that a 340-gram chocolate-chip frappe (530 calories) would cost you up to two hours of brisk walking, would you still order it? New research shows that when we have “exercise cost” information readily available, we are less likely to make unhealthful ...
Science & Health Jul 14, 2013
New dose of old Chinese medicine keeps Hong Kong residents healthy
The young woman pours a pack of brown powder into a glass of hot water, stirs it well and downs the murky mixture, hoping the traditional Chinese medicine will cure her feverish cold. Sofie Lau may work as a pediatric nurse and she may ...
Voices | HOTLINE TO NAGATACHO Jun 18, 2013
Mr. Mayor, tear down this smoking area and make Toshima a true 'safe community'
To Yukio Takano, Mayor of Toshima Ward, Tokyo: I urge you to dismantle the new tobacco industry-funded smoking area in the crowded center of our ward. Please instead respect Toshima Ward’s commitment as a World Health Organization-certified Safe Community and our nation’s obligations under ...
Science & Health Jun 17, 2013
Open-source software aids NPOs
The Grameen Foundation was providing health care to pregnant women in Ghana in 2010 when it came up with a new idea: As cellphones become more widely available in developing nations, health information can be more quickly disseminated to poor patients in remote locations ...
Science & Health Jun 2, 2013
Survey finds many Indian smokers unfazed by health risks
Over three-quarters of smokers surveyed in India believe that cigarette smoking does not have health consequences, according to the results of a survey by an insurance company released Friday. The results of the survey by ICICI Lombard General Insurance Co., the country’s largest private ...
Science & Health May 14, 2013
Cover of iPad2 'poses heart risk'
Gianna Chien was somewhat different from all the other researchers reporting on their work to more than 8,000 doctors at last week’s Heart Rhythm Society meeting. Chien is 14, and her study — which found that Apple Inc.’s iPad2 can, in some cases, interfere ...
National Apr 18, 2013
Crown Princess to visit Netherlands in first overseas trip in 11 years
The Imperial Household Agency is making final arrangements for Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako to attend the coronation of the new Dutch king later this month, agency sources said Wednesday. It would be the first official overseas trip in 11 years for ...
Review Apr 7, 2013
The unholy trinity of junk food redux
by Joanna Blythman
New York Times journalist Michael Moss spent 3½ years working out how big food companies get away with churning out products that undermine the health of those who eat them.
Corporate Mar 25, 2013
Joe Weider, 'godfather of fitness' dies at 93
Arnold Schwarzenegger paid tribute to fitness publisher Joe Weider after he died Saturday aged 93, calling him a “father figure” who helped the Austrian movie star achieve the American dream. Weider, who built a multimillion-dollar publishing empire that included Muscle and Fitness, Flex, Shape ...
Science & Health Mar 15, 2013
Moderation best for eating meat, milk products
People who consume a lot of saturated fatty acids contained in meat and dairy products are less likely to be hit by stroke but face a larger risk of heart attack, a recent study by the National Cancer Center and other bodies found. “It ...