Prospective studies show no increased risk of recurrence.

At one time, soy seemed to be just the ticket for women: heart-healthy, good for bones, and helpful for hot flashes. And then there was the low rate of breast cancer in soy-consuming countries. But as so often with "miracle foods," closer study has dampened some of the enthusiasm.

Early research indicated that soy protein could lower LDL (bad) cholesterol, but later studies were so unimpressive that the American Heart Association asked that food companies no longer be allowed to label soy products as helpful in preventing heart disease. It's still unclear ...

Hyperhidrosis can dampen your social life and interfere with work. Fortunately, there are several ways to manage it.

Excessive sweating, or hyperhidrosis, can take a serious toll, making handshakes unpleasant, intimacy difficult, and some types of work impossible. People with hyperhidrosis may have to change their blouses or shirts two or three times a day. Although the underarms, palms, feet, and groin are most often involved, any part of the body may be affected. The condition is also associated with certain skin problems, including atopic dermatitis. And it's not rare — 2% to 3% of the population suffers from hyperhidrosis.

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Painful bunions interfere with walking and exercising. You can prevent them from getting worse.

Many women have a bunion — a deformity of the metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint at the base of the big toe. A bunion develops when the first metatarsal bone of the foot turns outward and the big toe points inward (toward the other toes), causing the joint to jut out (see "Anatomy of a bunion"). The Latin name for the deformity is hallux valgus (hallux means big toe, and valgus means turned away from the midline of the body). Most shoes don't accommodate the resulting protrusion and ...

Besides hot flashes and extra-heavy periods, what else might the menopausal transition have in store for you? Possibly major depression, according to findings from the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (SWAN), a multi-ethnic study of women's health at midlife. Perimenopause begins several years before menopause (the end of menstruation) and ends a year after the last menstrual period. During this transition, ovarian hormones are in flux, resulting in irregular periods and sometimes vasomotor symptoms (hot flashes and night sweats). Many women also report depressive symptoms, but it's unclear whether women are at increased risk for major depression at ...

Q. I have a family history of cardiovascular disease. Although I don't have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, or any other risk factor, I'm concerned about how my cardiologist is screening me, because women can have small-vessel disease and not necessarily arterial disease. How should I be screened?

A. In general, the decision to screen a woman for cardiovascular disease depends on her risk for the disease and whether she has symptoms. The risks include some things that are out of our control, such as a strong family history (that is, heart attack or stroke in a father or ...

Q. I enjoyed your article on diverticular disease and the fiber content of various foods. However, could you make some distinctions between soluble and insoluble fiber? Some fiber makes me feel very bloated.

A. Dietary fiber, sometimes referred to as roughage, consists of the indigestible parts of plant foods. As you note, there are two kinds. Soluble fiber dissolves in water; insoluble does not. Both are important for healthy digestion; both can help prevent not only diverticulitis and constipation but also heart disease, obesity, and diabetes.

Soluble fiber absorbs water in the stomach and intestine and forms a gel that ...