Your health

Reducing discomfort: Getting a screening mammogram isn't a pleasant experience, but for some women it's so uncomfortable they delay getting this potentially lifesaving test. Applying an over-the-counter anesthetic before the exam can help make it less painful, according to a new study.

Researchers recruited 418 women who expected to have significant discomfort during their mammograms. One group was premedicated with acetaminophen or ibuprofen, one group got a placebo and the third group had Topicaine lidocaine gel applied to their breasts and chest wall. Only the women in the gel group reported significantly less discomfort doing the exam.

The gel was removed before the test and had no effect on image quality, according to the study published in the online edition of Radiology.

Yummy gummies: Your kids love gummy bears, but you worry about their smiles. Here's good news for both of you: Adding the tooth-protecting sugar substitute xylitol to the sticky confection can help protect their teeth.

Children who ate xylitol bears three times a day for six weeks had a decrease in the plaque bacteria that causes tooth decay, according to a University of Washington study published in BMC Oral Health. Some chewing gums contain the ingredient, but researchers figured gummy bears would be better for little kids.

Now, if they can only find a way to keep the gummies from sticking to braces.

Calories add up: Do those 100-calorie snack packs of cookies and other goodies help you lose weight?

Not if you figure the calorie count's so low you might as well have another - and another.

Dutch researchers gave a group of students either two big bags of potato chips or nine portion-controlled small packs while they were watching TV. Half the students were also asked questions and weighed in front of a mirror to plant "weight thoughts" in their heads.

Among the students prompted to think about weight, those who opened the small packs wound up eating almost twice as many chips as those who cracked open the large bags, New Scientist magazine reports.

People may also tend to consumer more calories than they intend when the food is low-fat or "natural."

- Anna Madrzyk