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CIA drone strike kills Al Qaeda leader wanted in USS Cole bombing, US officials say

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An airstrike Sunday killed a top Al Qaeda leader on the FBI's most wanted list for his role in the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole warship, Yemeni officials said. The drone attack was carried out by the CIA, U.S. officials said.

  Fahd al-Quso was hit by a missile as he stepped out of his vehicle, along with another Al Qaeda operative in the southern Shabwa province, Yemeni military officials said. They were speaking on condition of anonymity in accordance with military regulations.

  The drone strike that killed Quso was carried out by the CIA, after an extended surveillance operation by the CIA and U.S. military, two U.S. officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

  The strike was authorized by the Yemeni government, which then made the announcement after the operation was complete, the officials said, part of the U.S. strategy to give the host government more public ownership of the operation being carried out on Yemeni soil.

  The airstrike came as the U.S. and Yemen cooperate in a battle against Al Qaeda in southern Yemen.

  Al-Quso, 37, was on the FBI's most wanted list, with a $5 million reward for information leading to his capture. He was indicted in the U.S. for his role in the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole in the harbor of Aden, Yemen, in which 17 American sailors were killed and 39 injured.

  He served more than five years in a Yemeni prison for his role in the attack and was released in 2007. He briefly escaped prison in 2003 but later turned himself in to serve the rest of his sentence.

  A telephone text message claiming to be from Al Qaeda's media arm confirmed al-Quso was killed in the strike.

  Al-Quso was also one of the most senior Al Qaeda leaders publicly linked to the 2009 Christmas airliner attack. He allegedly met with the suspected Nigerian bomber, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, in Yemen before he left on his way to execute his failed attack over Detroit with a bomb concealed in his underwear.

  In December 2010, al-Quso was designated a global terrorist by the State Department, an indication that his role in Al Qaeda's Yemen offshoot, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, had grown more prominent.

  Local Yemeni official Abu Bakr bin Farid and the Yemeni Embassy in Washington confirmed al-Quso was killed in Rafd, a remote mountain valley in Shabwa. It is the area where many Al Qaeda leaders are believed to have taken cover, including the U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who was killed in a U.S. airstrike in Yemen last year.

  Yemeni government officials reported that al-Quso and al-Awlaki were killed in an airstrike in 2009 in Rafd, but they both resurfaced alive.

  Al-Quso was known for his ability to move in disguise. He was from the same tribe as al-Awlaki, and local tribesmen said he was a close aide. He studied ultraconservative Salafi Islam as a teenager in northern Yemen, then returned home to learn welding.

  The White House and the State Department had no immediate comment.

  Yemen's government has been waging an offensive on Al Qaeda militants, who have taken advantage of the country's political turmoil over the last year to expand their hold in the south.

  The new Yemeni president has promised improved cooperation with the U.S. to combat the militants. On Saturday, he said the fight against Al Qaeda is in its early stages.

  Al-Quso's association with Al Qaeda dated back more than a decade, when he met with Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan. Bin Laden allegedly told him to "eliminate the infidels from the Arabian Peninsula."

  From there he rose through the ranks. He was assigned in Aden to videotape the 1998 suicide bombing of the USS Cole, but he fell asleep.

  Despite the lapse, the local leader, Nasser al-Wahishi, declared him the regional leader in Aden. He was also believed to have played a prominent role in Al Qaeda's attack and capture last year of Zinjibar, the capital of Abyan province.

  Government troops are trying to drive Al Qaeda out of Zinjibar.

What to do when your child has a high fever

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A fever is typically a sign that something out of the ordinary is happening in your body.  But a temperature reading isn’t the only sign that a fever is serious.

Leisa Priddy, a Fox News Health viewer, asked this question about her grandson:

“My grandson had a fever of 105.1.  What temperature is too high in a toddler, and at what point should you take them to the doctor?”

When it comes to fevers in small children, it’s important to be cautious, because a fast-rising fever could put a child at risk for a febrile seizure.

Parents should call a doctor if a child’s temperature is more than 103 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.  The Academy also recommends seeing a doctor if your child experiences symptoms like:

-Loss of appetite

-Cough

-An ear ache

-Irritability or fatigue

-Vomiting

-Diarrhea

Celeb Body Part Boot Camp: How to get legs like Charlize Theron and David Beckham

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By Jo Piazza

Stomachs have crunches and butts have squats, but what do legs have? 

Legs are one of the trickiest body parts to perfect. Sure we admire David Beckham’s perfect calves when they’re on a sky high billboard in Times Square and Charlize Theron’s girlish gams when they peak through a sexy dress on the red carpet, but most of us regular folk have no idea how to actually get legs like the ones we covet.

This is one body part where men and women need to do completely different things. The goal for men is to build muscle and sculpt, whereas women are interested in a long and lean look like Charlize, without a lot of bulk.

Barry Jay, founder of Barry’s Bootcamp, kicks celebrity butts (and arms and legs and bellies) into serious shape. He has worked as the trainer for stars like Katie Holmes, Stacy Keibler, Eliza Dushku and Juliette Lewis. Barry’s personal training sessions can be pretty pricey, but he gave Fox411.com an inside look at how he helps his stars keep their legs looking so darned good—for free.

For the guys, Jay suggests three exercises, dead lifts to build muscle, squats to sculpt and jump rope to tone and shed that extra fat.

Squats

Stand with your feet parallel, a little wider than your hips. make sure your knees don't go past your toes when you squat down.  Look straight ahead not down. Keep your back straight and abs tight.  Put the body weight in your heels. You should be able to wiggle your toes and add a good old-fashioned squeeze of the butt at the top for extra firmness.  

Remember you're not bowing and that means your chest shouldn't be lower than your butt. Have a problem keeping your chest up? Hold a broom horizontally in front of you with two hands. You chest will be up and your back will remain straight. Once your posture is set, men should do four sets of squats, 10 repetitions with 20 lb. weights.

Jumping Rope

Jumping is great cardio and does wonders for calves. Start off with 3 min. in between your weight training exercises to boost your heart rate.

Dead Lifts

Align your feet with your hips and slowly bend at the waist. Keep arms straight with one dumb bell in each hand. Go down as far as you can without arching your back. Slowly come up back, pulling your abs in and squeezing your butt at the top.  Engage your hamstrings on the way up. Do four sets of ten to 15 repetitions.

Ladies looking for a longer and leaner leg without all that muscle should try exercises on all fours with no weights. Barry recommends three moves: kickback, fire hydrant and lunges.

Kick Back

Do one hundred kick backs each side for the upper thighs. While on your hands and knees bring knee to chest and extend it fully back in line with your spine. 

Fire Hydrant

Put your legs shoulder width apart.  Keep your back straight and your head aligned in a neutral position.  Lift the bent knee up to the side of the body (like a dog does with a fire hydrant). Squeeze your butt at the top.   Do 15 with a 15 second hold on each side. 

Lunges

Try one minute lunges with no weights. Lunge long and low, not letting the front toes go beyond the front knee. Let the back knee bend towards the floor. Don't lean or arch. Keep a good straight spine and use your core for balance. Do four minutes for each leg.

The meaning of Sunday's European elections

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By Amb. John Bolton

 Sunday’s elections results in six European countries, particularly France, Greece and Germany, bode poorly for satisfactorily resolving the European Union’s ongoing financial and political crisis.  

Moreover, from the U.S. perspective, the left turns in France and Greece mean more difficult times ahead for our own anemic economic recovery, and our continuing efforts to lead NATO and other allies in the struggle against Iran’s nuclear weapons program and international terrorism.  

Here are “instant analyses” of the three most important of Sunday’s results.

France.  

Although incumbent President Nicolas Sarkozy’s defeat at the hands of Socialist Francois Hollande had been consistently forecast in public opinion polls, the final result was much closer than expected.  Nonetheless, Sarkozy’s fall almost certainly means that France’s domestic policies, and its position in European deliberations over the future of the Euro, the common currency of seventeen European Union (“EU”) members, will shift decisively left.  That means abandoning or at least substantially modifying France’s support for austerity that made Sarkozy’s alliance with German Chancellor Angela Merkel so powerful in setting Euro policy over the last several years.  Whether or not that policy was correct, a fiercely debated point, it will not be the Eurozone’s policy much longer if Hollande is true to his Socialist platform.

Nor will Socialist policies in France incline toward the pro-growth agenda that Europe really needs.  Instead, an enhanced French emphasis on the government sector over the private sector and free markets will simply exacerbate Europe’s existing difficulties, making it harder for Greek, Italian and Spanish governing coalitions to hold the line in their own countries.  

On Iran’s increasingly menacing nuclear weapons program, Hollande’s election almost certainly means a weakening of the already weak EU position, and decreased pressure on Tehran.  As Iran’s negotiator’s press for legitimization of their well-advanced uranium enrichment program, Hollande will likely be sympathetic to accepting what Iran already has in place, and even relaxing new EU economic sanctions set to come into effect this summer.  Hollande’s election will also mean a return to a difficult France in NATO, thereby fostering an even less-cohesive alliance, increasing America’s leadership travails, especially as NATO winds down in Afghanistan.

Sarkozy’s defeat also represents a success for Marine Le Pen’s National Front, which placed third in the first round of presidential elections, an unexpectedly strong showing.  On May 1, Le Pen told her followers she would abstain in today’s voting, and almost certainly many of them followed her lead.  Given the closeness of Hollande’s victory, Le Pen thus effectively ended Sarkozy’s chances for re-election.  Given the absence of anyone else on the center-right approximating Sarkozy’s stature, Le Pen will now try to emerge as the de facto leader of the right, and presumptive leading candidate to challenge Hollande in the next presidential election.  

The second test of Le Pen’s strategy comes quickly, in France’s June parliamentary elections.  Until now, because of the rules governing voting for the National Assembly, Le Pen’s party has not had even a foothold.  With Sarkozy’s party now in disarray, however, that could well change, to the National Front’s advantage.  (In France, as in many European countries, “rightist” parties like Le Pen’s National Front often have economic policies far-removed from the market-oriented policies of U.S. conservatives.)

Greece.   

Although the center-right New Democracy Party, led by Antonis Samaris, emerged with the highest party total vote, just under 20 percent, the real surprise was the strength of extreme leftist parties.  What the overall results show is that the Greek electorate still hopes to reject the austerity budget and long-term fiscal policies imposed on Athens by the EU, and yet also, somehow, remain within the EU.  When it is finally understood that this “have your cake and eat it too” approach is impossible, the effects within Greece are likely to be explosive.  Even before the elections, public-sector unions and radicals had rioted in protest of austerity and against the imposition of policy by distant Brussels.  Now, the prospect of real social unrest looms even larger.

The fractured electoral outcome will make the task of forming an effective coalition government, which will likely fall to Samaris, extraordinarily difficult.  He may begin, as many predicted before Sunday’s election, by combining with the Greek Socialists, the former ruling party, to form a left-right core, from which he can reach out to the least extreme of the remaining parties.  But given the size of the “rejectionist” vote on the left, finding a “responsible” governing coalition is substantially more difficult.  Alternatively, to preserve his options, Samaris could try to rule as a minority Prime Minister, which would significantly increase the prospect of new elections in the near future.  Whichever course Samaris elects (or is forced by political circumstances to follow), the pressure will be intense for him to move quickly.  Greece’s economy was already failing to meet the benchmarks imposed by the EU-led austerity policy, and protracted delay and political uncertainty would simply worsen an already difficult economic picture.

Continued problems for Greece inevitably mean greater trouble got the EU and the Eurozone, and less attention by the Europeans to the outside world.  And considering Greek reliance on oil imported from Iran, pressure from Athens to relax the new EU sanctions could well increase no matter what the shape of a new government.

Germany.  

In elections in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state, Chancellor Merkel’s governing coalition, the same as that ruling at the national level, has been defeated.  Merkel’s Christian Democratic Party had the highest vote total, but its coalition partner lost almost half its support.

While there is no inevitable fallout for Merkel’s coalition at the national level, North Rhine-Westphalia elections often foreshadow what happens in Germany as a whole.  Therefore, while Merkel will not likely shift her strongly held views on the Euro and the EU, other countries may see her overall political position in Germany weakened, thereby making it more difficult for Germany to prevail in intra-European decision making.

How to Stay Motivated at Work

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Consider this situation: Your organization has just laid off 20% of its workforce, and you and your team have to pick up the extra work. To make matters worse, the organization has been losing money throughout the economic downturn, and the leadership team expects increased productivity rates from the staff. To top it off, a pay freeze has been put in place for the next 18 months. 

For many workers, this workplace situation is a reality. Increased workloads, high-stress working environments, and stagnant wages are creating a perfect storm for low morale and motivation in the office. This combination creates a vicious cycle: As motivation and morale fall, so does your ability to produce quality work and stay productive, which can make you more vulnerable to a layoff. 

Salary increase projections for this year are holding steady at 2011 levels, which were 2.0%. However, this is lower than the rate of inflation which, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), currently stands at 2.9%. This means that even if you do get a raise, inflation will consume all of it and then some. Productivity is also suffering as a result of the down economy, with the BLS reporting the productivity rates grew less than 1% in the fourth quarter of 2011. 

The economic climate has made it hard for employers and employees to make ends meet and remain optimistic about the future. But there are steps you cant take to stay motivated and productive in the office.

Finding Deeper Meaning in Your Work

No matter what you do, your job exists for a reason, and experts says finding the human element in what you do is key to staying motivated when raises are nonexistent.

"When cash is short, people need to focus on the meaning of their roles," says James Manktelow, productivity expert and CEO of leadership coaching site MindTools.com. "If they can see how their work helps others, they can set stimulating, challenging, useful goals for themselves, and they can take real satisfaction when they achieve these goals." 

Prioritize 

When organizations go through a round of layoffs to trim expenses, the remaining employees are often left with an increased workload without additional compensation. This can make anyone feel stretched to the breaking point. Knowing how to prioritize your work is essential for focusing on important, and not just urgent, work.

"Professionals need to focus on high value, high importance tasks," states Manktelow. "They need to delegate, renegotiate, delay, or eliminate low value activities. By prioritizing intelligently, people can actually increase the importance, quality, and value of their work, at the same time that they bring their workload back under control." 

Take Time for Yourself

With the threat of layoffs looming and a to-do list spanning several pages, it's tempting to come in early, skip lunch, and stay late in order to show your worth and get everything accomplished. But spending this much time working without a break can quickly lead to exhaustion and career burnout. 

Experts say it is essential you take time for yourself during the day to give your mind a break and recharge. No one can focus effectively for eight hours straight. Every hour, take five minutes away from your desk. Go for a short walk, drink water, and stretch. Even a little amount of exercise will get your blood flowing, help relieve stress, and help you focus better. And make sure you take the time for a healthy brown bag lunch.

Use Your Skills

Everyone has natural talents and it's important to recognize how to use them to your advantage. "Take a moment to write down the three things you are naturally good at," says Julie Lynch, principal at Uncommon Consulting and an expert in motivation and productivity.

Her advice is to do whatever you can to use your strengths on a regular basis. "These are things that colleagues, friends, and family seek you out for when they need help. These are some of your inherent talents. Now consider how you feel when you're engaged in doing those things. It feels good right? Brain research shows that when you use your natural talents, you get a neuropsychological boost. Actively applying these personal strengths to your work is like having your own personal motivation engine

 

Manufacturing and exports show signs of strength

After a string of disappointing economic reports in April, May began with an encouraging report on U.S. manufacturing growth. One of the few strong points in the first quarter GDP report may also be related to this recent strength in manufacturing, which could represent a sustainable source of progress for the economy.

The question remains, though: Will this be enough to break the economy out of its rut?

Escaping the rut

The recent economic rut represents more than just the dreary series of economic reports that appeared in April -- disappointing employment growth and weak GDP figures among them. Although the economy technically escaped from recession in the third quarter of 2009, for most of the time since it has been in slow-growth mode. Real GDP growth has reached a 3 percent annual rate just once in the past seven quarters.

The signs of the rut are everywhere. Nearly three years into the economic recovery, unemployment is still high. Interest rates, from savings accounts to treasury bonds, are anemic. The stock market's progress comes in fits and starts, and investors are so cautious that they seem almost to be walking on egg shells.

Manufacturing rises

Against this dreary backdrop, a May 1 report on the manufacturing sector provided some welcome good news.

The Institute for Supply Managers announced that its manufacturing index rose to 54.8 in April, up from 53.4 in March. That's the highest level in 10 months, and pushes the index more firmly into the above-50 territory that represents an expansion.

The manufacturing report takes on special significance because it is one of the first major economic indicators for the month of April. Following generally disappointing reports for March, economists are looking anxiously to see if the economy is sliding again toward recession.

Exports provide a source of new demand

One reason for the strength in manufacturing may be found in the first-quarter GDP report. Although overall GDP growth was lackluster, one bright spot was export growth. The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that real export growth was 5.4 percent in the first quarter, up from 2.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Foreign markets have mostly been a cause of concern lately, with a focus on the troubled economies of Europe. However, if large developing economies such as China and Brazil can sustain their growth, it could help demand pull through the current malaise.

What to watch for

Will the strength in manufacturing lead to more jobs, higher rates for savings accounts and a more reliable stock market? The stock market rallied on the news about the manufacturing index, so that's a start. It will take much longer before this translates into higher rates on savings accounts, but in the meantime, the next key sign for the economy will be if the job market firms up after its March stumble.

 

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Biden says ‘absolutely comfortable’ with gay marriage rights, cites ‘Will & Grace’

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Vice President Biden said Sunday he is "absolutely comfortable" with same-sex couples having the same rights as others, in a statement that appeared to go beyond what President Obama has said publicly on the issue. 

While stressing that "the president sets the policy," Biden described his personal view during a Sunday show interview. The Obama campaign quickly claimed Biden was merely echoing the president's position, but the language the vice president used was certainly stronger than Obama's past statements. 

"I am absolutely comfortable with the fact that men marrying men, women marrying women and heterosexual men and women marrying are entitled to the same exact rights, all the civil rights, all the civil liberties," he said on NBC's "Meet the Press." "And quite frankly, I don't see much of a distinction beyond that." 

Biden went on to say the situation is "evolving" and that the "social culture" is changing. In doing so, he cited the hit sitcom "Will & Grace," which was about a woman living with a gay man. "I think 'Will & Grace' probably did more to educate the American public than almost anything anybody's ever done so far," he said. 

Asked whether the Obama administration would openly endorse same-sex marriage in a second term if Obama's re-elected, Biden said he "can't speak" to that. 

Obama has signaled support for the gay-rights community, in both his push to overturn the "don't ask, don't tell" policy banning gays from serving openly in the military and his administration's decision to stop defending the Defense of Marriage Act -- which defines marriage as between a man and woman. 

Still, the president has frustrated some gay-rights groups by not explicitly backing gay marriage. On the issue, he has said his views are "evolving." 

Faced with a flurry of questions about Biden's Sunday show comments, Obama campaign adviser David Axelrod tweeted: "What VP said-that all married couples should have exactly the same legal rights-is precisely POTUS's position." 

A Biden spokesperson also said in an email that Biden "was saying what the president has said previously -- that committed and loving same-sex couples deserve the same rights and protections enjoyed by all Americans, and that we oppose any effort to roll back those rights.   

"That's why we stopped defending the constitutionality of section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act in legal challenges and support legislation to repeal it. Beyond that, the vice president was expressing that he, too, is evolving on the issue, after meeting so many committed couples and families in this country," the spokesperson said. 

That didn't appear to be how the Human Rights Campaign, a national gay advocacy group, took it. 

"We are encouraged by Vice President Biden's comments, who rightly articulated that loving and committed gay and lesbian couples should be treated equally. Now is the time for President Obama to speak out for full marriage equality for same-sex couples," campaign President Joe Solmonese said in a statement. 

Biden had previously described national acceptance of gay marriage as inevitable, but did not speak specifically about his own beliefs.

How to Measure Social Media Campaigns

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1. Determine your goals.
Before you jump into measuring every single tweet, photo and Facebook comment posted about your brand, first think about your goals with social media. What are you trying to accomplish or gain through these channels? Which channels are most relevant to those goals?

Social media can serve a variety of purposes, from broadcasting news and information, to answering customer questions and engaging with a community. Generate a list of what you're trying to achieve from your social media efforts.

Next, think about what you want your audience to do with your content on the social channels you're using. Are you trying to get them to read, share, reply, click, purchase or engage?

2. Create metrics to measure your goals.
Match your goals to actual metrics and behaviors you can measure. For example, if you're trying to measure engagement, then what is the practical form of engagement you want to track? Is it retweets or reposts? Replies or comments? Clicks? Here are a few suggestions of behaviors to measure, based on a few common social media goals:

• If you want to measure awareness, then use metrics such as volume, reach, exposure and amplification. How far is your message spreading?
   
• If you want to measure engagement, then look for metrics around retweets, comments, replies and participants. How many people are participating, how often are they participating and in what forms are they participating?
   
• If your goal is to drive traffic to your website, track URL shares, clicks and conversions. Are people moving through social media to your external site and what do they do once they're on your site?
   
• If your goal is to find advocates and fans, then track contributors and influence. Who is participating and what kind of impact do they have?
   
• If your goal is to increase your brand's share of voice, then track your volume relative to your closest competitors. How much of the overall conversation around your industry or product category is about your brand?

3. Measure.
After you've listed the metrics you want to focus on, find tools that capture these metrics. In some cases, social media channels themselves provide some form of analytics. In other cases you might need to use third party tools or build your own using APIs.

If you're not sure which tools to use for which channels, ask around or do a quick online search and you'll find numerous options. SocDir can be a useful source with a list of more than 300 social media metrics tools.

Many social analytics tools work in real-time, so if you can plan ahead and set up tracking before your campaign begins, it can be easier to access the data you need later.

On Twitter, for example, accessing tweets that are more than a few days old can be difficult and far less reliable than collecting and archiving them in real time. When possible, set up your measurement tools before your campaign begins.

4. Monitor and report.
Use your initial findings to set a baseline for future measurement and share these early figures with your important stakeholders. Two important questions to nail down are:

• How do your numbers compare to what you expected?
• How do they compare to your competitors' or related products and campaigns?

This can also be a good time to consider your schedule for regular reporting. Depending on your schedule, monthly or quarterly reporting may work best, but weekly reporting may work well for others. No matter the schedule, make sure you're checking in regularly on your metrics.

In your reports, be sure to include benchmarks or other contextual information so that your stakeholders can quickly understand what all the figures mean. Also consider including visualizations of your data to help communicate your results quickly and clearly.

5. Adjust and repeat.
Review your measurement program. How are these metrics doing? Are you missing anything? Was anything superfluous or unnecessary?

Figure out what you can improve, make changes, and then measure some more. Check back in with the goals you set initially and make sure your new metrics help you address those goals.

Study: Omega-3s may help lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease

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By Alex Crees

Eating foods such as chicken, fish and nuts may help lower blood levels of a protein strongly associated with Alzheimer's disease and memory problems, according to new research.

In the Columbia University study, people who consumed diets rich in omega-3 fatty acids had significantly lower levels of a protein called beta-amyloid in their blood than those who did not consume as much of the nutrient.  

According to the research, eating one more gram of omega-3s than average per week was associated with 20 to 30 percent lower levels of beta-amyloid.  One gram is approximately equal to half a fillet of salmon.

However, study author Dr. Nikolaos Scarmeas, a neurologist at Columbia University Medical Center in New York and a member of the American Academy of Neurology, recommended not focusing on eating particular quantities of omega-3s, but rather, simply incorporating as much of the nutrient into one’s diet as possible.

"It was a continuous association.  More and more intake of omega-3s was associated with lower and lower levels of beta-amyloid in the blood.  There was no threshold effect," Scarmeas said.

The association between omega-3 consumption and beta-amyloid was unaffected by whether or not a person took supplements - meaning if two people consumed the same amount of omega-3s, one through food and the other through supplements, the person who consumed more omega-3 rich foods typically had lower blood levels of beta-amyloid.

It is believed that the build-up of beta-amyloid in the brain,  not the blood, is a precursor for Alzheimer's.  However, past studies have indicated there may be a relationship between blood levels and brain levels of the protein.

“There is complex, conflicting literature; we do not understand very well biologically how levels of beta-amyloid in the blood, brain and spinal fluid are related exactly,” Scarmeas said. "In some studies, higher levels of beta-amyloid in the blood relate to higher levels of beta-amyloid in the brain.  Other studies have suggested the opposite."

Scarmeas added that his own lab had observed that people with higher blood levels of beta-amyloid were more likely to develop dementia, while people with lower levels tended not to.
“Some of these [participants] have already been followed up on,” he said. “We know those with lower levels of beta-amyloid  in the blood were less likely to develop dementia.”

The beneficial impact of omega-3 on brain health would fall in line with past studies of the nutrient, according to Scarmeas.  Omega-3s have long been associated with positive benefits for memory and cognition.

Scarmeas speculated that omega-3s may be able to reduce oxidative stress on the brain and the resulting vascular damage, or even have some kind of impact on beta-amyloid in the brain.  Though, there is not enough support yet to suggest the nutrient and protein are directly related, he added.

"Previous studies have suggested that omega-3s and other aspects of diet may be related to brain function," he said. "Here we demonstrate one possible mechanism could be through amyloid, the main biological mechanism that relates to Alzheimer's disease. There have been animal studies suggesting omega-3s could relate to amyloid brain biology.  We've demonstrated this association may also be present in humans."

The study was published Wednesday in the journal Neurology.

Celeb Body Part Boot Camp: How to get legs like Charlize Theron and David Beckham

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By Jo Piazza

Stomachs have crunches and butts have squats, but what do legs have? 

Legs are one of the trickiest body parts to perfect. Sure we admire David Beckham’s perfect calves when they’re on a sky high billboard in Times Square and Charlize Theron’s girlish gams when they peak through a sexy dress on the red carpet, but most of us regular folk have no idea how to actually get legs like the ones we covet.

This is one body part where men and women need to do completely different things. The goal for men is to build muscle and sculpt, whereas women are interested in a long and lean look like Charlize, without a lot of bulk.

Barry Jay, founder of Barry’s Bootcamp, kicks celebrity butts (and arms and legs and bellies) into serious shape. He has worked as the trainer for stars like Katie Holmes, Stacy Keibler, Eliza Dushku and Juliette Lewis. Barry’s personal training sessions can be pretty pricey, but he gave Fox411.com an inside look at how he helps his stars keep their legs looking so darned good—for free.

For the guys, Jay suggests three exercises, dead lifts to build muscle, squats to sculpt and jump rope to tone and shed that extra fat.

Squats

Stand with your feet parallel, a little wider than your hips. make sure your knees don't go past your toes when you squat down.  Look straight ahead not down. Keep your back straight and abs tight.  Put the body weight in your heels. You should be able to wiggle your toes and add a good old-fashioned squeeze of the butt at the top for extra firmness.  

Remember you're not bowing and that means your chest shouldn't be lower than your butt. Have a problem keeping your chest up? Hold a broom horizontally in front of you with two hands. You chest will be up and your back will remain straight. Once your posture is set, men should do four sets of squats, 10 repetitions with 20 lb. weights.

Jumping Rope

Jumping is great cardio and does wonders for calves. Start off with 3 min. in between your weight training exercises to boost your heart rate.

Dead Lifts

Align your feet with your hips and slowly bend at the waist. Keep arms straight with one dumb bell in each hand. Go down as far as you can without arching your back. Slowly come up back, pulling your abs in and squeezing your butt at the top.  Engage your hamstrings on the way up. Do four sets of ten to 15 repetitions.

Ladies looking for a longer and leaner leg without all that muscle should try exercises on all fours with no weights. Barry recommends three moves: kickback, fire hydrant and lunges.

Kick Back

Do one hundred kick backs each side for the upper thighs. While on your hands and knees bring knee to chest and extend it fully back in line with your spine. 

Fire Hydrant

Put your legs shoulder width apart.  Keep your back straight and your head aligned in a neutral position.  Lift the bent knee up to the side of the body (like a dog does with a fire hydrant). Squeeze your butt at the top.   Do 15 with a 15 second hold on each side. 

Lunges

Try one minute lunges with no weights. Lunge long and low, not letting the front toes go beyond the front knee. Let the back knee bend towards the floor. Don't lean or arch. Keep a good straight spine and use your core for balance. Do four minutes for each leg.

China's Communist Party is entering its most perilous phase

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By Minxin Pei

Nowadays Chinese leaders seem too busy putting out fires to think about their regime's long-term survival. Last month, they had to dispatch Politburo member Bo Xilai in a messy power struggle on the eve of a leadership transition. This past week, the daring escape of blind rights activist Chen Guangcheng from illegal house arrest to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing provoked another crisis. When rulers of one of the most powerful countries in the world have to worry about the defiant acts of a blind man, it's high time for them to think the unthinkable: Is the Communist Party's time up?

Asking such a question seems absurd on the surface. If anything, the party has thrived since its near-death experience in Tiananmen in 1989. Its ranks have swelled to 80 million. Its hold on power, bolstered by the military, secret police and Internet censors, looks unshakable.

Yet, beneath this façade of strength lie fundamental fragilities. Disunity among the ruling elites, rising defiance of dissidents, mass riots, endemic official corruption—the list goes on. For students of democratic transitions, such symptoms of regime decay portend a systemic crisis. Based on what we know about the durability of authoritarian regimes, the Chinese Communist Party's rule is entering its most perilous phase.

 

Russia's military threatens pre-emptive strike if NATO goes ahead with missile plan

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Russia's top military officer has threatened to carry out a pre-emptive strike on U.S.-led NATO missile defense facilities in Eastern Europe if Washington goes ahead with its controversial plan to build a missile shield.

President Dmitry Medvedev said last year that Russia will retaliate militarily if it does not reach an agreement with the United States and NATO on the missile defense system.

Chief of General Staff Nikolai Makarov went even further Thursday. "A decision to use destructive force pre-emptively will be taken if the situation worsens," he said at an international conference attended by senior U.S. and NATO officials.

Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov also warned on Thursday that talks between Moscow and Washington on the topic are "close to a dead end."

U.S. missile defense plans in Europe have been one of the touchiest subjects in U.S.-Russian relations for years.

Moscow rejects Washington's claim that the missile defense plan is solely to deal with any Iranian missile threat and has voiced fears it will eventually become powerful enough to undermine Russia's nuclear deterrent. Moscow has proposed running the missile shield jointly with NATO, but the alliance has rejected that proposal.

Makarov's statement on Thursday doesn't seem to imply an immediate threat, but aims to put extra pressure on Washington to agree to Russia's demands.

The two-day conference in Moscow is the last major Russia-U.S. meeting about military issues before a NATO summit in Chicago later this month. Russia has not yet said whether it will send top officials.

In a candid, lively exchange during a conference side session, officials talked about the high level of distrust remaining between the two sides.

"We can't just reject the distrust that has been around for decades and become totally different people," Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov said in addressing U.S. and NATO officials. "Why are they calling on me, on my Russian colleagues, to reject distrust? Better look at yourselves in the mirror."

U.S. State Department special envoy Ellen Tauscher responded that neither country can afford another arms race.

"Your 10-foot fence cannot cause me to build an 11-foot ladder," Tauscher said. "It's going to have to take a political leap of faith and it's going to take some trust that we have to borrow, perhaps, from each other and for each other, but why don't we do it for the next generation?".

At a later news conference, Tauscher played down Makarov's comments on pre-emptive measures

"We've heard it before," she said. "We think that's off on the horizon.We think they were showing us what could happen. I think we're far from there, but we're aware of what they're saying."

The Obama administration tried to ease tensions with Russia in 2009 by saying it would revamp an earlier Bush-era plan to emphasize shorter-range interceptors. Russia initially welcomed that move, but has more recently suggested the new interceptors could threaten its missiles as the U.S. interceptors are upgraded.

The U.S.-NATO missile defense plans use Aegis radars and interceptors on ships and a more powerful radar based in Turkey in the first phase, followed by radar and interceptor facilities in Romania and Poland.

Russia would not plan any retaliation unless the United States goes through with its plans and takes the third and final step and deploys defense elements in Poland, Antonov said Wednesday. That is estimated to happen no earlier than in 2018.

Russia has just commissioned a radar in Kaliningrad, its western outpost near the Polish border, capable of monitoring missile launches from Europe and the North Atlantic.

On Thursday, at the start of the conference attended by representatives from about 50 countries, Russia's Security Council secretary reiterated Moscow's offer to run the missile shield together with NATO. Nikolai Patrushev said such a jointly run European missile defense system "could strengthen the security of every single country of the continent" and "would be adequate for possible threats and will not deter strategic security."

NATO's deputy secretary general, Alexander Vershbow, told the conference that the U.S.-led missile shield is "not and will not be directed against Russia" and that Russia's intercontinental ballistic missiles are "too fast and too sophisticated" for the planned system to intercept.

Meanwhile, U.S. Senator John McCain, on a visit to Lithuania, lashed out at Russia's plans in Kaliningrad.

McCain said using missile defense as an "excuse to have a military buildup in this part of the world, which is at peace, is really an egregious example of what might be even viewed as paranoia on the part of Vladimir Putin."

 

British spy likely killed by mystery person, coroner says

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Even after a coroner's verdict, it remains a mystery: A naked spy found dead in a locked bag, lurid details of a kinky sex life and allegations that someone in Britain's spy agencies may have been involved in his death.

A British coroner ruled Wednesday that another person was likely involved in Gareth Williams' death — a finding that puts more pressure police to uncover the cyberwarfare expert's killer and continue to investigate possibilities that include whether he could have died in a sex game gone awry or in a more sinister scenario that involved his counterterrorism work.

In Britain, coroners are asked to investigate unexplained deaths, and their findings can often carry weight as police investigations proceed.

Although Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the death of Williams, 31, will ever be "satisfactorily explained," she said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act." She also said it was possible that someone from one of Britain's spy agencies was involved.

Williams, described as an introverted math genius, worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ. But he was attached to the MI6 foreign spy agency when his remains were found in the bathtub at his London apartment on Aug. 16, 2010, just a few days after returning from a trip to the United States.

Forensic experts found some 20,000 thousand pounds worth of luxury women's clothing, shoes and wigs in his apartment. Police also discovered that he had visited bondage and sadomasochism websites, including some related to claustrophilia — a desire for confinement in enclosed spaces.

William's landlord testified during the coroner's hearing that she once found him handcuffed to his bed. She said he had appeared embarrassed after asking for help.

Still, Wilcox said there was no immediate evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage. She said, however, that tales about his sex life could have been fueled in an attempt to "manipulate the evidence."

In the past, spy recruits were often cautioned that their sex lives could make them vulnerable to blackmail.

The case has frustrated Scotland Yard detectives who have been investigating the case for 21 months now and say that the secrecy surrounding Williams' job has thwarted their efforts.

"Obviously a lot of information has come out through the course of this inquest which we have not been party to," lead detective Jackie Sebire said.

But Wilcox also criticized the police detectives.

Time and resources were wasted, she said, when forensic teams investigating a DNA sample taken from Williams's hand later turned out to belong to one of the forensic scientists. She also questioned the handling of William's iPhone, which contained deleted images of him naked in a pair of boots.

Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who was the police liason with MI6, said he had seized it from the spy's workplace and kept it until the next day when he gave it to another officer.

"I find this is either not what occurred ... or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence," Wilcox said.

Wilcox also criticized officers who interviewed Williams' colleagues without taking any formal statements.

"I find that this did affect the quality of evidence that was heard before this court," she said.

Still, the coroner said she had seen no evidence to indicate his death was linked to his work.
When the case emerged, some had speculated that he could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an Al Qaeda extremist. 

Other media reports had said there had been a break-in at the property where he lived — a building sometimes used by MI6 to house its agents.

Wilcox said while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing — which would need a high burden of proof — it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.

She said while it appeared unlikely, speculation that British intelligence agencies may have had a role in the death continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry."

MI6 waited a week to investigate why Williams hadn't shown up for work — a delay that made it difficult for Williams' family to identify his badly decomposed body.

John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement following the corner's verdict that he apologized "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.

During the coroner's hearing, MI6 accepted that Williams disliked the agency's boozy culture of post-work drinking and tedious bureaucracy, and had requested to return to his job at GCHQ.

One MI6 officer claimed that Williams hadn't been reported as missing because colleagues assumed he was preparing for his return to the southern England headquarters of the eavesdropping service.

Wilcox said it appeared unlikely that Williams could have climbed inside the duffel bag and locked it himself. 

Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat without success. Williams was discovered in the fetal position inside the bag with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.

Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but said his cadaver was too badly decomposed to be certain.

Williams' family, who have been left distraught by parts of the inquest, did not speak outside court but offered a statement.

The family, from Wales, described Williams as a "special and adored son and brother" and said they "cannot describe the depth of the sorrow his absence leaves in our lives."

The police investigating is ongoing.

Pettitte testimony could sink Justice Department's case against Clemens

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By Shannon Bream

The Justice Department, following what many viewed as a balk Wednesday by the prosecution's top witness, may be scrambling to avoid another loss in its efforts to score a perjury conviction against baseball great Roger Clemens.

Clemens is facing charges that he lied under oath when testifying before Congress in 2008 that he didn't use performance-enhancing drugs.

The government fouled out in its original attempt to try Clemens in 2011 after a Justice Department attorney introduced an inadmissible piece of evidence. Federal Judge Reggie Walton quickly declared a mistrial amidst allegations of prosecutorial misconduct.

Many thought that would absolve Clemens, but the government decided to make it a double-header.

This week a beefed-up team of prosecutors is taking another swing at Clemens, but his former teammate Andy Pettitte may have complicated that effort during his testimony on Wednesday.

Up to this point, Pettitte had maintained that Clemens confided in him regarding the use of human growth hormone, or HGH. But under cross-examination this week, Pettitte threw the prosecution a curve ball when he admitted that there was a 50-50 chance he misunderstood the conversation with Clemens.

And during cross-examination Thursday, agent Jeff Novitsky -- who obtained syringes and cotton balls allegedly with Clemens' DNA on them -- admitted he has no personal knowledge what happened to those items before they came into his possession. The defense has called this evidence fabricated "garbage."

After a series of questions and objections from the prosecution, Judge Walton, who also is presiding over the retrial, asked Novitsky, "[Do you] know what the circumstances were regarding that evidence before you got it .. based about your own faculties?"

"No," Novitsky said.

Court watchers say another loss will only intensify criticism of the Justice Department for going after Clemens in the first place. Former federal prosecutor David Debold says the government has likely already spent "multiple millions" of taxpayer dollars on the Clemens trials.

"When you have these big, high-profile cases and a jury doesn't convict or a jury throws it out for some reason, it really raises questions about whether the government is putting its resources in the right location," Debold said.

Attorney General Eric Holder is standing behind the decision to prosecute Clemens twice.

"The charges are serious ones," Holder said Wednesday, adding, "It's about testifying falsely before Congress."  On that basis alone, Holder said, the prosecution is a "justified" use of resources.

The defense has asked Judge Walton, who is also presiding over the current trial, to throw out portions of Pettitte's testimony regarding his conversations with Clemens about HGH. As the umpire in this case, it will ultimately be Walton's call to make.

 

Report: Merkel urges treatment for Tymoshenko

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Ukrainian leaders on Thursday to allow jailed ex-Premier Yulia Tymoshenko "proper treatment" for her ailments, as more top officials announced they would boycott the Euro 2012 soccer championship co-hosted by Ukraine.

Merkel insisted that she had not yet decided whether to stay away from the matches to be held in Ukraine and that her priority now is the former leader's health.

"Much more important than my travel plans is that we must now do everything possible to see that Yulia Tymoshenko gets the proper treatment for her medical problems as soon as possible," Merkel was quoted as saying by the Koelner Stadt-Anzeiger newspaper. "The German government has been working on this for weeks and our offer stands for her to receive this medical treatment in Germany."

European Union President Herman Van Rompuy, meanwhile, announced Thursday he would not travel to any of the matches in Ukraine, joining other top officials such as the European Commission's President Jose Manuel Barroso and the governments of Austria and Belgium.

The decisions have come as a blow to a country that had hoped the soccer championship would showcase it and boost its ties with the EU.

In Warsaw, however, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that while he is disturbed by Ukraine's treatment of Tymoshenko and is urging Ukraine to observe human rights standards, he does not plan on supporting a boycott of the June 8-July 1 Euro 2012 tournament, which is being co-hosted by Poland.

"I have appealed multiple times to the authorities in Ukraine not to let politics ruin this national celebration and nothing will affect our determination to fight for human rights and alleviate the situation of Yulia Tymoshenko," he told reporters.

Russian Prime Minister and President-elect Vladimir Putin also weighed in Thursday, saying Russia would be willing to allow Tymoshenko to come for medical treatment, if she and Ukrainian authorities agreed to it, according to news reports.

But Putin said the Tymoshenko situation should not involve Euro 2012. "One must not in any circumstances mix politics, business and other questions of this sort with sports," he said.

Tymoshenko, 51, is on a hunger strike to protest alleged mistreatment in a Ukraine prison where she is serving a seven-year sentence on charges of abusing her powers while prime minister. She claims guards punched her and twisted her arms and legs while forcibly taking her to a hospital to be treated for debilitating back pain.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych is a fierce rival of Tymoshenko, but government officials have denied any claims of bias in the case, which the West widely sees as political.

The case is overshadowing Ukraine's hopes for Euro 2012, one of Europe's top sporting events of the year.

"The Tymoshenko case has dramatically darkened the chances of Ukraine improving its image during the Euro," Ukrainian political analyst Vadym Karasyov said. "Ukraine will be judged not by how well it organizes a European sporting event, but by Tymoshenko's case, the political repressions, the bruises on Tymoshenko's body that she said she got in prison."

In Kiev, Parliament Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn acknowledged the Tymoshenko case has put Ukraine in a difficult position.

"The situation is pretty tough today in the country," said Lytvyn, a Yanukovych ally. "This is linked to the court hearings, the reaction from Western countries. All of this has become a problem for the country and obviously for Europe."

During a visit to Lithuania, U.S. Sen. John McCain joined the chorus calling for Tymoshenko to receive urgent medical care.

McCain also said the Ukraine's leadership cannot expect closer relations with Europe while it persecutes political opponents and fails to hold free and fair elections.

"The message needs to be clear and sent now by the EU to the Ukrainian government," he said, suggesting that international observers could go to Ukraine and arrange for Tymoshenko to leave.

FAA rips Delta passenger for filming bird strike with iPad

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A Delta passenger who filmed birds striking his plane over New York City's John F. Kennedy International airport received a scathing letter from the Federal Aviation Administration condemning his use of an electronic during flight takeoff.

Grant Cardone, 54, became a viral hit after posting a video of birds being sucked into the engine of his Los Angeles-bound Delta flight on April 19. The plane was forced to turn back to the airport and landed safely, the New York Post reports.

Soon afterward, Cardone received an official letter from the FAA complaining the video was taken illegally because he used his iPad to film the strike, and use of portable electronic devices is prohibited during "critical" phases of a flight, such as takeoffs. Electronic devices also cannot be used during an in-flight emergency.

"Your failure to comply with flight attendant instructions during a critical phase of flight and an aircraft emergency could have affected the safe outcome of the flight," the letter says.

Cardone defended his actions.

"I didn't think I was breaking a law. I didn't think I was putting passengers at risk," Cardone said Thursday in an interview with Fox News' Neil Cavuto.

"If these electronics are actually dangerous, the FAA doesn't need to send me a letter. They should ban them from the airlines."

Cardone, a Los Angeles business consultant and frequent flier, will not be fined, but the letter "will be made a matter of record for a period of two years," the FAA said.

 

Police probe possible connection between murder suspect, missing college student Lauren Spierer

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Indiana police are investigating a possible connection between a man accused of murdering several women and a missing college student.

The Bloomington Police Department said in a press release Thursday that a detective has been assigned to investigate whether murder suspect William Clyde Gibson is linked to Indiana University student Lauren Spierer, who disappeared almost a year ago.

Gibson, 54, was charged last week with murder in the deaths of a 75-year-old family friend found dead April 19 in Gibson's New Albany, Ind., home, and the 2002 death of a Florida hairdresser whose body was found near the Ohio River.

Police also are investigating the death of a 35-year-old woman whose body was found Friday in Gibson's backyard.

Bloomington police said there is no known connection between Gibson and Spierer, but said they are still investigating the matter.

"We have no indication that there is any connection to Lauren's case, but we are certainly interested in anyone who comes to the attention of law enforcement for targeting women as victims," the department said in a statement obtained by FoxNews.com.

Bloomington police reached out to Illinois authorities in early April, after skeletal remains were discovered in a remote area of eastern Illinois, Fox affiliate WXIN-TV reported. An autopsy revealed the remains were those of a man.

Spierer disappeared on June 3, 2011. She was last seen on surveillance video, walking home after a night out with friends. She is described as 4 feet, 11 inches tall with blonde hair and blue eyes.

'Bucket list' baby Avery loses battle with rare disorder

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Avery Canahuati, a 5-month-old baby known for her "bucket list" blog, has passed away, myFOXhouston reported.

The Canahuati's, a Houston-area family, announced on their blog Tuesday that Avery died Monday afternoon after one of her lungs collapsed.

"I immediately performed CPR on her and was able to bring her back to life, but only for a brief period of time before she passed away shortly after arriving at the hospital," writes Avery's father. "Avery's passing this quickly came as a complete shock to all of us, as she had just been given a thumbs up at her last doctor's appointment only three days ago."

Baby Avery was diagnosed with an incurable genetic disease known as SMA , which limits infant's lives to no more than 18 months.

Avery's parents started a blog celebrating the little girl's life so she could cross things off her "bucket list" as well as inform people about SMA. Avery made national news and gained thousands of followers.

 

What you really need to know about your breasts

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 By Hallie Levine Sklar

Admit it. There's no other body part you obsess about more than your breasts, and no wonder: They enhance our sexual pleasure, nourish our babies, and change (all too visibly) over time. And there's a lot to feel angst over, too, from finding a lump to feeling a strange pain. 

Worry not: We've got answers to all your breast questions and concerns. Read on for your complete guide to "the girls."

Problem #1: Breast Pain

The lowdown. All-over tenderness is usually caused by hormonal changes (hello, PMS!). It may worsen in your 40s, when perimenopause begins. Pain in one specific spot is most likely due to muscle strain. More rarely, you can also feel pain from a cyst, which is a fluid-filled sac, or from a fibroadenoma, a benign mass. If you're nursing, you may have mastitis, an infection that can occur when a duct gets clogged.

What it feels like. Aches can feel stronger in the outer part of the breasts, where you have
more tissue. Strains cause a sharper, burning pain.

Rx. See your gyno. If you have a lump, she may send you for a mammogram, but don't worry: Breast pain is usually not associated with cancer. She can also give you antibiotics for mastitis. Strains—which can happen after lifting something heavy—usually go away on their own; over-the-counter anti-inflammatories can help.

If you seem to have cyclic pain—meaning it's period related—your doc may suggest taking vitamins B6 and E, which studies have shown ease symptoms, or prescribe medications such as Danazol to balance your hormone levels.

Problem #2: Discharge

The lowdown. Believe it or not, it's totally normal for a bit of fluid to come out of your nipples when you squeeze them. That's just the normal proteins and liquids that live in your ducts. "They're pipelines made to carry milk, so a little fluid now and then shouldn't be surprising," Love says.

You may notice it more if you're approaching menopause, since fluctuating hormones can elevate your levels of prolactin, the hormone that tells your breasts to make milk—causing you to produce discharge even if you're not lactating. It may also be exacerbated by certain meds such as the birth control pill or blood pressure drugs. Just don't keep squeezing, because stimulating your nipples sends a message to your brain to keep making that liquid-producing prolactin.

What it looks like. Clear, milky white, yellow, green, or even bloody fluid that can range in consistency from thin and watery to thick and sticky.

Rx. Call your gyno if your discharge has any tinge of blood, or if it's coming out when you're not squeezing your nipples. About 80 percent of the time, the cause is intraductal papilloma, which is a noncancerous growth in your ducts, says Dr. Katherine Lee, a breast specialist at the Cleveland Clinic Breast Clinic in Ohio. To treat them, your ducts are examined and removed surgically if any blockages are found; just to be safe, the cells are checked for cancer.

If your nipple discharge is coming from both breasts, your doctor should check your prolactin levels to make sure you don't have galactorrhea (spontaneous milk flow). This is usually due to a problem in your pituitary gland, like a small tumor or reaction to certain medications, Love says. Nipple discharge can indicate breast cancer about 10 percent of the time in women between the ages of 40 and 60, so if you don't have a papilloma or galactorrhea, your doctor will likely send a sample of the fluid to a lab to check for cancer; he may also want to do a mammogram.

The good news? "If it is cancer, it's most likely just confined to the milk duct, which has a 10-year survival rate of 99 percent," Lee says.

Problem #3: Sagging

The lowdown. Blame the stretching of the Cooper's ligaments. "It's like wearing the same bra for years—inevitably, the fabric will wear down," says Dr. Adam Kolker, a plastic surgeon and an associate clinical professor at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. "The collagen and elastin in your skin also break down, causing sagging everywhere, including your breasts." And as you get older, hormonal changes mean denser glandular tissue is replaced by softer, spongier fat that's more prone to drooping.

If you've had kids and/or breast-fed, you may notice the sagging even more: "When you're pregnant or nursing, your body sends signals to your brain to keep your breast glands engorged," Kolker says. "After you're done breast-feeding, the glands shrink back down and may become even smaller than before. But since your skin has been stretched out, the breast will look deflated." That's also true if you've gained or lost a lot of weight.

Rx. Since breast tissue is mostly fat, and contains no muscle, exercise won't help reverse sagging, as there's nothing to tone. But exercises that firm up the pectoral muscles around your chest will help pull up those ligaments, making your set look a little perkier, too.

When you hit the gym, a supportive sports bra is a must. "Many of the women we fit have gotten breast ligament tears—which contribute to sagging—from skipping a sports bra or wearing the wrong kind," says bra-fitting expert Susan Nethero, founder of the Intimacy lingerie stores (myintimacy.com). Skip compression sports bras, which hold your breasts against your chest and have molded cups that aren't supportive enough to fully prevent bounce. 

Instead, look for a bra that encapsulates each breast with stitched-in seam support or underwire. Just don't waste money on breast-firming pills or creams—there's absolutely no evidence they work, Kolker says.

 

Supermoon alert: Biggest full moon of 2012 due Sat

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Skywatchers take note: The biggest full moon of the year is due to arrive this weekend.

The moon will officially become full Saturday (May 5) at 11:35 p.m. EDT. And because this month's full moon coincides with the moon's perigee — its closest approach to Earth — it will also be the year's biggest.

The moon will swing in 221,802 miles (356,955 kilometers) from our planet, offering skywatchers a spectacular view of an extra-big, extra-bright moon, nicknamed a supermoon.

And not only does the moon's perigee coincide with full moon this month, but this perigee will be the nearest to Earth of any this year, as the distance of the moon's close approach varies by about 3 percent, according to meteorologist Joe Rao, SPACE.com's skywatching columnist. This happens because the moon's orbit is not perfectly circular.

This month's full moon is due to be about 16 percent brighter than average. In contrast, later this year on Nov. 28, the full moon will coincide with apogee, the moon's farthest approach, offering a particularly small and dim full moon.

Though the unusual appearance of this month's full moon may be surprising to some, there's no reason for alarm, scientists warn. The slight distance difference isn't enough to cause any earthquakes or extreme tidal effects, experts say.

However, the normal tides around the world will be particularly high and low. At perigee, the moon will exert about 42 percent more tidal force than it will during its next apogee two weeks later, Rao said.

The last supermoon occurred in March 2011.

To view this weekend's supermoon to best effect, look for it just after it rises or before it sets, when it is close to the horizon. There, you can catch a view of the moon behind buildings or trees, an effect which product n optical illusion, making the moon seem even larger than it really is.