Q: I’m only 32, and I’ve been losing my hair for the past few years. It’s very sparse now. I have read your advice about taking omega-3s and I do take fish oil capsules. I’m wondering if there is anything else can I do?

You pride yourself on keeping a clean home. Dishes go into the dishwasher and come out sparkling, laundry is washed clean in the machine, and trash goes straight into the can and is hauled out to the curb regularly. But are the very tools you rely on for a clean home actually breeding the superbugs we all dread?

We thought we had shady dealings on our side of the pond. But over in the UK, they’re certainly giving us a run for our money. If you want to investigate the safety of a drug over there, you’d better not want to dig too deep–because what you’re looking for might just not exist anymore.

Q: I’ve been diagnosed with having an irregular heartbeat. What can I do?

You’d never chow down on radioactive meat. Heck, you wouldn’t want to get anywhere NEAR it, let alone douse it in steak sauce and have it for dinner. So why exactly is the man responsible for food safety in Japan shrugging his shoulders over adding contaminated meat to his people’s dinner menus?

Q: During the summer, should I stop taking my vitamin D supplement?

Q: About a week ago, one side of my mother’s face began to droop and she has had no control over it since. We initially thought she had a stroke, but her doctor diagnosed her with Bell’s palsy. He said it would go away on its own, but that it could take six months or longer for her to make a full recovery. Can you give us any suggestions for minimizing the effects of this disease in the meantime?

People like to joke around about certain foods. “These chips are like crack,” they’ll say. Or: “I’m addicted to those cookies you brought into the office last week–got any more?” We like to think it’s all hyberbole–but is there some truth to the food/drug analogy? A recent study says yes.

Last fall, the FDA made a promise to American diabetes patients–in the wake of the Avandia mess, they were to review its heir apparent, Actos, after its potential ties to bladder cancer. Almost a year later, the drug has been pulled from European shelves but is still kicking here. So what’s the story?

Q: I’ve been hearing a lot about the glycemic index lately. Can you tell me exactly what it is?