Is organic food healthier than nonorganic? There’s no clear answer, but here are the facts.

• As defined by the USDA, organic foods are grown without the use of conventional pesticides, petroleum- or sewage-based fertilizers, genetic engineering, or radiation.
• For meats, eggs, and dairy products to be called organic, farmers can’t give the animals antibiotics or growth hormones. Livestock must eat organic feed that doesn’t contain parts of slaughtered animals, and the livestock must be allowed outdoors.
• The USDA makes no claims that organic food is safer or more nutritious than conventionally produced foods. Harvard nutrition experts say there’s no solid evidence that organic foods, in general, are healthier for humans, but that organically raised meat may prevent the spread of diseases, such as mad cow disease.

Smokers cut at least 10 years from their lives, according to a report in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute that compared age, gender, and smoking status.

Major findings include:

• A 55-year-old man who smokes has almost the same chance of dying in the next 10 years as a 65-year-old who has never smoked.
• Smoking worsens the chance for survival. Seven of every 1,000 women will die of breast cancer between ages 60 and 70—and 14 of 1,000 will die of heart disease. Among smokers, however, 31 of 1,000 women will die of heart disease between ages 60 and 70, and another 41 of 1,000 will die of lung cancer.
• Risks change with age. For men who don’t smoke, accidents are the single largest cause of death until age 45. They’re then tied with heart disease until 50, when heart risks take over.

Just as depression can cause sleep problems, insomnia and other chronic sleep problems can cause depression. In one study published in the journal Sleep, of 591 men and women, 17 to 50 percent with insomnia lasting two weeks or longer later developed major depression. Further research found people with mood disorders who experienced chronic insomnia had an increased risk for suicide.

In response, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine in Westchester, Ill., recommends that anyone who suffers from insomnia or another sleep disorder see a doctor or a sleep specialist for treatment to prevent the problem from escalating into a more serious, potentially life-threatening condition.

Insomnia treatment is quite successful due to effective therapy and medications.

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