dr. jennifer ashton. >> reporter: when expecting mom stacie walsh goes for her regular check-up -- >> take a nice slow deep breath. >> reporter: -- she's not alone. in fact, she's surrounded by pregnant women. >> we learn so much about the pregnancy, about what to expect, and we bounce ideas off of each other. >> massage and walking and position changes. >> reporter: unlike individual prenatal care where appointments are often just a few minutes per visit, women in group care spend two hours with their provider. boston mid-wife beth monahan says it's a win for everyone. >> i feel like i know my patients that i spend time in group with far more intimately than i ever do the patients i spend time in the office with. >> reporter: women receive all routine screenings in group prenatal care which also offers several health benefits. studies show that women receiving care together have a 33% reduction in preterm deliveries, fewer low birth weight babies and higher breast-feeding rates. >> this is a really big deal to be finding this because we're really working hard to look for strategies to red

dr. jennifer ashton, cbs news, new york. >>> in china, a black and white wildlife disguise. two biologists are dressing up as grown-up pandas when they handle the baby panda. it's to limit the cubs' contact with humans. they're trying to successfully introduce the baby panda, which was born in captivity, back into the wild. >>> straight ahead your tuesday morning weather. and in sports, the battle for afc bragging rights on monday night football. nighttime nasal congestion meant, i couldn't breathe right. i couldn't sleep right. next day it took forever to get going. night after night, i sat up. sprayed up. took a shower... or took a pill. then i tried drug-free breathe right advanced. and instantly, i breathed better! i slept better. it felt...better. thank you, breathe right! [ male announcer ] breathe better, sleep better, feel better. now try new breathe right advanced for free... at breatheright.com. [ woman ] it's my right to breathe right. isn't it your right, too? [ woman ] it's my right to breathe right. with olay challenge that. olay bodywash has 2 times the combin

dr. jennifer ashton, thanks. still ahead on the "cbs evening news," she helps women overcome their auto phobia. steve hartman's "assignment america." but up next, iran released her from prison but she won't rest until two other americans are home, too. thank you for calling usa pmy name peggy. peggy, yes, i'd like to redeem my reward points for a gift card. tell points please? 250,000. calculating... ooh! answer: five fifty! 550 bucks?! 5 dollar, 50 cents. minus redeeming charge. leaving 50 cents. say what? happy time! what kind of program is this? want better rewards? switch to discover. america's number 1 cash rewards program. it pays to discover. [ sneezes ] [ male announcer ] got a cold? [ coughs ] ♪ [ male announcer ] confused what to get? now robitussin makes it simple. click on the robitussin relief finder at robitussin.com. [ nose blowing ] [ male announcer ] click on your symptoms. ♪ get the right relief. ♪ makes the cold aisle easy. the robitussin relief finder it's that simple. the robitussin relief fi

dr. jennifer ashton, thanks so much.re on this, you can go to our partner in health news webmd.com and search "vitamin "d" recommendations." coming up next, sugar, spice, and a pinch of the american spirit. it's that time of year. time for campbell's green bean casserole. you'll find the recipe at campbellskitchen.com. campbell's.® it's amazing what soup can do.™ duracell batteries. and if you think all batteries are the same, consider this: these batteries are going... to the mattel children's hospital, u.c.l.a . because here they use the most... technologically advanced equipment for the healing... and the play. and to power all those toys the people at duracell... packed up a truckload of batteries. because nothing's better than powering a smile. duracell. trusted everywhere. [ but aleve can last 12 hours. tylenol 8 hour lasts 8 hours. and aleve was proven to work better on pain than tylenol 8 hour. so why am i still thinking about this? how are you? good, how are you? [ male announcer ] aleve. proven better on pain.

dr. jennifer ashton who is an ob/gyn is here with us.uce ovarian cancers by 11%. why so low? >> and called by the american cancer society a modest reduction in risk from dying of ovarian cancer. the reason is that they are not accepted screening tests per se. all we have. we're talking about specifically a physician exam, pelvic exam by a gynecologist, a pell vic ultrasound and usually most people heard of a blood test known as a ca-125. not 1 harry smith% accurate. not even close. they can give a normal result when there is cancer and abnorming when there is not. with that blood test, there are actually six other blood test markers that women should get and they should ask their doctors for if there is a is suspicion for ovarian cancer. most doctors even are not aware's those other markers. they should ask for them. >> the key is finding it, detecting it, but it's difficult to detect, correct? >> exactly. because are where the ovaries sit. they present vague symptoms. a lot of them can be missed by the patients and the doctors. the big

jennifer ashton. dr. ashton, thanks so much. and coming up next here on the "cbs evening news," why the best teams in college football may not be playing for the championship. ampionship. ffice... ok. uh, a little help... oh! you know shipping is a lot easier with priority mail flat rate boxes. if it fits, it ships anywhere in the country for a low flat rate. plus, you can print and pay for postage online. and i can pick them up for free with package pickup. perfect! cause i'm gonna need a lot of those. wow! i knew i should have brought my sleigh. priority mail flat rate shipping starts at $4.90 only from the postal service. a simpler way to ship. this holiday, do you really want to cut corners by using a broth with msg? 'zuo swanson chicken broth has no added msg. so for a perfect meal, the secret is swanson, 100% natural chicken broth. another heart attack could be lurking, waiting to strike. a heart attack that's caused by a clot, one that could be fatal. but plavix helps save lives. plavix, taken with other heart medicines,

dr. jennifer ashton is here to separate cold facts from fiction.d weather actually bring on colds. >> what do you think? >> initially i thought, fact, because so many people get colds this time of year, but after thinking about it, i'm thinking, maybe not. >> not true. it's fiction. tell your mom, your grandmother. being in cold weather does no predispose to you get a cold. remember, the cold is a virus. what happens in cold weather that more people tend to be inside, in close proximity to each other. so it's easier to pass the germ. those germ, still around in the summer. the cold weather has nothing to do with it. >> number two. echinacea, a popular herb remedy can stop a cold. >> this is fiction. a big one. this is a very popular herbal remedy that's actually been studied in a scientific manner and found to be no more effective than dummy pill it's in stopping the severity and at most studies it can shorten duration of symptoms by seven or eight hours. again, talking a risk-benefit a low-risk herb. if it makes you feel better taking it, go ahead

dr. jennifer ashton is here to help us avoid the burn. great to see you. >> good morning, rebecca.>> they can make you unhappy. what's the cause? >> it doesn't have anything to with your heart and may not really be caused by annoying relatives we tend to be around during the holiday season. if you look at basic anaty, the heart and esophagus and the stomach sit close to each other in the chest and under abdomen. basically a ring of muscle at the bottom of the asof kis and allows all the acid from the stomach to be pushed up into the esophagus. if you've it h it it's painful. it gets your attention. >> counterintuitive that something relaxes and then the heartburn comes on. you also say food has major issues with heartburn, too. >> exactly. stress is a little factor. big food triggers that differ for everyone. the kind of common foods we're all facing in the holiday season. really it can range fra alcohol in the form of your cocktail to caffeine. whether it's coffee, tea or soda. coffee is a big trigger. spicy sauces, citrus foods, fatty foods, anything fried tends to irritate the p

dr. jennifer ashton. >>> up next, sometimes you just have to complain.bs. >>> cbs healthwatch >>> cbs healthwatch sponsored by sensodyne iso active. nine out of ten dentists recommend sensodyne. for those that are looking for it. it comes in a canister. it starts out as a gel. now this is where the fun begins. once you start to brush with it, it micro-foams. having those small micro-bubbles really allows it to get to those hard to reach areas. it's providing a cleaner experience. the benefits for sensodyne iso-active whitening, it's going to provide protection against sensitivity. and it's going to help restore teeth to their natural whiteness. and it's going to help restore teeth ♪ i'll stop the world and melt with you ♪ ♪ i'll stop the world ♪ ♪ i will stop the world ♪ ♪ you've seen the difference ♪ ♪ and it's getting better all the time ♪ ♪ i will stop the world ♪ ♪ i'll stop the world and melt with you ♪ ♪ i'll stop the world ♪ ♪ i'll stop the world, i'll melt with you ♪ >>> this time of year the stores are packed, tensions are high. you don't always

dr. jennifer ashton. good morning. >> good morning, harry. >> i just thought of this.>> we would be a much more handsome country. >> much better looking and healthier. >> yes, if we would just get more sleep. how much of a difference does it make? >> one of the first studies that actually looked at this. looking at the correlation between sleep and the perception of beauty and good health. so done out of sweden, small study, though. looked at 23 people who got more than eight hours of sleep or less than eight hours of sleep, and 65 untrained observers compared the two, the same person with sleep, without sleep and guess what they found? the people who slept less were rated as 6% less healthy, and 4% less attractive than the people who slept more. so we have an example i think we're going to show you. see if you can figure out who got more or less sleep. >> ah -- the guy who's smiling must have gotten more sleep. but it also may have been what he did overnight. >> right. you're correct. the person on the right got more sleep, but what this really speaks to is the amount

dr. jennifer ashton, we appreciate it. we'll be right back.h" sponsored by campbell's. >> "cbs healthwatch" sponsored by campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do. you want to try lifting one of these. a unique sea salt added to over 40 campbell's condensed soups. it helps us reduce sodium, but not flavor. so do a few lifts. campbell's.® it's amazing what soup can do.™ >>> you've probably heard by now all about the big royal wedding coming up in april. >> is there one coming up? >> yes, read all about it. kate/william. but what you haven't heard is what we are going to be sharing with you, the author christopher andersen has a book about all the background, the things you haven't yet heard. >> hmm. >> it's all coming up right here on "the early show." ♪ hey! wait up! ♪ [ female announcer ] you see a mud stain. but new wisk sees a particulate stain. with our breakthrough stain spectrum technology, wisk is engineered to fight all the major stain groups like particulates and oils. [ girl ] that lip gloss is soooo cute on you. [ female announcer ]

dr. jennifer ashton is here to help you avoid those diet traps while you're on the go.ally when you could be traveling 10 or more hours. >> for sure. with the weather problems and everything else. let's first talk about some of the airlines that had better food than others. >> well, of course, like so many things they've been rated. an organization called diet detectives looked at a lot of airlines and rated their in-flight food options from a health standpoint. united did the best followed by jetblue, then american airlines and really got high health points for feeding us at 35,000 feet, because they serve things like sandwich, fruits and veggie, even humus, nuts, and rated the country's top airport for healthy dining options. detroit metro airport, number one. >> how about that? help us avoid some of the diet traps that are out there, and they are -- there are multiple traps? >> like an obstacle course, harry. if you have connecting flights, delayed because of weather or because of all the security precautions in place, you have to spend a lot more time at airport. pe

dr. jennifer ashton is here to tell us why our bodies react the way they do. thinking of the shivering, the teeth chattering would while you are outside, why is this going on. >> inside in some cases. you have to distinguish one shivering because of cold temperatures, even warm temperatures, general shivering teeth chatter versus shaking chills with a completely different meaning. really your body's attempt through internal mechanisms to generate heat through muscle contraction. that's what it does, the more movement on a tiny little level the greater your temperature will get and hopefully get better. talking about shaking chills normally as a doctor when we hear somebody have shaking chills we think of viral or bacterial particles circulating in their blood. completely different mechanism. >> speaking of big concerns when i was growing up my mom always had my concern did i have hat with me leaving the house. >> don't leave with a wet head. my mom and your mom must have gone to the same mothering schooling that. was a very common concept, not entirely wrong.

dr. jennifer ashton.ning, harry. >> i just thought of this because everybody in america doesn't get enough sleep. >> correct. >> we would be a much more handsome country. >> much better looking and healthier. >> if we got more sleep. how much a difference does this make. >> this was one of the first studies look at sleep at the corlelgs of -- a small study looked at 23 people who got more than 8 hours of sleep or less than 8 hours of sleep. 65 untrained observers compared the same person with sleep, without sleep. and guess what they found? the people who slept less were rated as 6% less healthy and 4% less attractive than the people who slept more. so, we have an sclampl i think we'll show you. see if you can figure out who got more sleep and who got less sleep. >> uhh. well, the guy who is smiling must have gotten the most sleep but also may have been what he did overnight. >> right. you are correct. the person on the right, b, got more sleep. but, what this really speaks to is that the amount of sleep

dr. jennifer ashton, who's an ob/gyn is here for us. annual screenings reduce deaths by 11%. why so low? >> exactly. being called by the american cancer society only a modest reduction in risk from dying of ovarian cancer. the reason, betty, they are not accepted screening tests per se. they're all we have and talking about here specifically is a physician exam, a pelvic exam, a pelvic ultrasound and then a blood test known as a c-1-25. not 100% accurate. they can give you a normal result when there's cancer there. it's important to remember, betty, i say this to a lot of my patients, with that blood test, there are about six other blood test markers that women should get and ask their doctors for if there is a suspicion for ovarian cancer. most doctors even are not aware of those other markers so they should ask for them. >> the key really is to finding it and detecting it but it's difficult to detect. correct? >> exactly. the reason for that is because of where the ovaries sit in the pelvis presenting with very, very vague and common

dr. jennifer ashton will be here to tell us more. let me give awe hint. oatmeal.>>> whit johnston at the newsdesk. >> you two look comfortable out there. wow. can't wait to join you later in the show. >>> good morning, everybody, speaking of the weather a deadly deep freeze engulfed much of the nation. the latest punch from the storm that punished the midwest. a report, indiana a state of emergency remains in effect. more snow and bitter cold is forecast for today as well. at least 16 deaths in four states are blamed on the storm. cbs news news correspondent dean reynolds is in saint joseph, michigan with more. dean, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, whit. well, the east coast is getting a taste of what the people here in the midwest saw on monday. and the remedy is simple. you can see behind me. it's stay indoors where it's warm. the wind continued to howl overnight knocking out power to thousands and making any kind of travel a real nightmare. in some areas not even the snow plows could handle the chore. >> it was pretty scary. >> reporter: tammy logan le

dr. jennifer ashton is here to help you prevent that from head to toe.tart with the face because boy, is it vulnerable, right? >> absolutely. because that really bears the brunt entime we go outside, even inside because we're cranking up the heat inside. the easiest thing you can do is get a simple, inexpensive humidifier. put it in your bedroom because that's where you're spending the bulk of your time in your home. and it really will work wonders. not only superficially for your skin but also for your nasal passages and your throat. >> and you don't have to spend a lot of money. >> oh, my gosh, no. >> less than 50 bucks. >> also on the face, you don't want to forget about the mouth. a lot of people don't realize how much moisture and hydration we lose through mouth breathing, through talking. don't forget, a simple lip balm, put it on in the morning and also before you go to sleep. >> some people get addicted to it, right? >> you don't want to use it too much because you might be swallowing more than you realize. a basic amount is good. >> i'm glad you

dr. jennifer ashton is here to tell us, i didn't realize there was a national flu vaccination week untilight. the flu season goes really through the end of march into april. it is not too late, really in the beginning of it. >> just in the start. that was my question, generally hear bit in the fall and everybody is freaking out and everybody has to dpet your shots and it was fairly quiet this year. >> right. >> but not a reason to avoid it. >> correct. this year the cdc recommended pretty much everyone over the aiks of six months old get vaccinated. the only difference, the qualification in the six months to nine years age group if it's the first time children are getting a flu shot they will need two doses separated by four weeks, everyone else, 9 and over can get one dose, the mist, the injectable form, you can get it now. >> and there's plenty of it this year, we should point out. >> exactly. 160 million doses. >> only one dose this year. you don't need a separate h1n1. >> correct. what we see in terms of flu activity it's been quiet so far, luckily, erica, just high cases in the sout

dr. jennifer ashton is here to tell us more about good cholesterol and how to get it.sterol. >> so many people hear the word cholesterol and they think it's got to be bad. the fact of the matter is like most things in medicine, we need it in moderation. it's very important to the function of our cells. when you talk about the difference between good and bad cholesterol, good way to remember, h-cholesterol, hdl is the healthy or good cholesterol. ldl is the lousy or bad. >> that's good. >> to remind everyone. there are two numbers you need to know. you want your ldl or bad cholesterol below 100. and your hdl or good cholesterol over 60. >> all right. what are the correlation between cholesterol and alzheimer's disease? >> this is a study done out of columbia university. they looked at over 1100 people, age 55 and over, and divided them into groups based on their hdl or healthy cholesterol number and found that those with an hdl above 65 were at a 60% lower risk of having alzheimer's disease. this is what we call an associated finding. they didn't explain cause and effec

dr. jennifer ashton is here to answer very serious health-related holiday questions.eah. >> ah. >> also, whether those poinsettias are truly poisonous or not, and the all-important how much weight do you really gain over the holiday? yeah. holiday health i.q. test coming your way. >> a lot of groans out there. >>> saving money during the holidays sounds impossible. we're not telling you to cut down on your shopping list, but you can make a few simple lifestyle changes now that will help you save up to $500 by the new year. we're going to tell you how do that in a couple minutes. >> i'm objectionsed with this segment. i love that. >>> also, time to hunt down that perfect christmas tree. we're going to the perfect spot. >> oh! >> big john's. >> there he is. >> taking you to rhode island this morning. our friend big john is going to show us what he's didn't growing over the year. explain how to find the best tree for your home, keep it green throughout the holidays. you've been up to that christmas tree farm? >> big john's mantra. real trees for real people. >> i love it

dr. jennifer ashton is here to explain all that.ng news about michael douglas. we've seen some pictures of them at disney now opening up about his tough battle with throat cancer. cbs news correspondents betty nguyen has more on the actor's recovery. >> reporter: family vacation pictures tell the story. the 66-year-old oscar winner was having the time of his life with wife catherine zeta-jones and two children on a florida vacation over thanksgiving. michael douglas tells "people" magazine his recovery from stage four throat cancer is going well. >> the fact that michael douglas was able to fly to florida and go to an amusements park with his kids definitely shows that se better, in some ways, you know, his treatment is over. he seems to be healthier. he looks better. >> reporter: after complaining of a sore throat early last summer, doctors discovered a walnut-sized tumor on the base of douglas's tongu ed. he spoke publicly and courage s courageously the first time in late august on david letterman. >> i've got cancer, found out ab

dr. jennifer ashton is here with her top five tips.d this is -- really working this all year this year and your big one is sleep. >> it's my mantra, so so few get enough sleep. really, you have to understand this should be a non-negotiable part. seven to nine hours of sleep a night. if you're not getting that your health is suffering even if you're not aware of the consequences. just increasing that amount by 10% a night gradually which could be as little as a half hour, 30 minutes, can make a huge difference in your health. help your immune system. people with not enough sleep, high risk for diabetes, hypertension, depression -- >> the list is endless. >> absolutely. >> a new one, can you floss your way to better health? >> it takes about 60 seconds a day, harry. listen, dentists have known about the importance of flossing a long time in terms of reducing periodontal disease. recently, internist, general physicians, also have become aware of it because of the link between poor dental health and heart disease. again, one minute a day c

dr. jennifer ashton is here this morning with answers. because we've talked about it a lot. >> yes, it, is so many people are afraid to call in sick, they can't call in sick, they feel their job really depends on them. your job actually depends on you being there and being healthy and functional and doing the best job you can. sometimes you can't when you are not feeling well. >> if you are not feeling well, whether it's headache or chills or runny nose, injure throat hurts, you have questions we should ask ourselves to basically help us determine whether or not we should stay home. >> exactly. the first is so basic, erica are, you contagious, talking about an upper respiratory infection like the cold or a flu, obviously the answer is going to be yes. if you are not feeling well, then you are, by definition from an infectious disease standpoint, contagious. certainly if you have a gastrointestinal virus or bug, vomiting or diarrhea, by definition you are contagious and by going to work exposing your co-workers in some cases, as a doctor o

dr. jennifer ashton.e a happy and healthy new year. >> always have surprises for us. >> yep. >> we are coming right back. this is "the early show" on cbs. ♪ ♪ if you've had a coke in the last forty years, you've played a part in one of the largest... beverage recycling efforts in the world. ♪ ♪ nothing beats prevacid®24hr. just one pill helps keep you heartburn free for a full 24 hours. prevent the acid that causes frequent heartburn with prevacid®24hr, all day, all night. nothing works better. to bring you a low-price medicare prescription drug plan that has the lowest national premium in the country of only $14.80 per month. so you can focus on the things that really matter. go to walmart.com for details. >>> it's not too bad outside today. sir paul mccartney, new kennedy center honoree coming up. an exclusive interview with the former beatle. favorite beatles song? >> i can't even name one because i love so many of them. my mom would get upset if i said it. in one -- so it goes on bold, and looks even

dr. jennifer ashton has important information to help you protect yourself.ing, rebecca. >> tell us, what is this and how widespread is it? >> it is widespread and potentially dangerous and the problem here when you are talking about dietary supplement, even if they are quote/unquote natural products is that the fda does not have to police their safety before they come to market. so, they are only responsible for ascertaining their safety after they are on the shelf. what you are talking about here three very popular categories of supplements that are available both on the internet and in some cases in retail stores for weight loss, for sexual enhancement and body building. so, three very popular categories with potentially very dangerous sidefengts. >> let's talk weight loss. what do you see there? >> talking about the weight loss category, the concern some contain a substance very similar to a medication called sabutramine in a drig called meridia just pulled from the market the concern is not only liver problems but stroke and potentially hard problems and

dr. jennifer ashton has information about how to protect yourself. >> good morning. >> tell us, what is thistially dangerous. the problem here when you're talking about dietary supplements, even if they're, quote, unquote, natural products, is that the fda does not have to police their safety before they come to market. so they are only responsible for ascertaining their safety after they're on the shelf. what you're talking about here are three very popular categories of supplements that are available both on the internet and in some cases in retail stores for weight loss, for sexual enhancement and for body building. three very popular categories with potentially very dangerous side effects. >> let's talk weight loss. what do you see there? >> when you're talking about the weight loss category the concern here is that some contain a substance that is very similar to a medication called subumarine, which is like meridia just pulled from the market. stroke and potentially heart problems and heart attacks. when you're talking about weight loss, natural does not always mean safe. >> and you've

dr. jennifer ashton our medical correspondent. good to have you both with us this morning.er and how are they preparing? >> she is at home. she is surrounded by loved ones. her children are all there. she has good friends there. her sister's there and sort of hanging out and talking and looking at photos and that's what we know. she's obviously very sick. she had stomach pains over thanksgiving and they found that that the cancer spread to the liver. >> and when you hear this and seems like it was such an aggressive cancer for her. 2004 breast cancer. 2006, spread to her bones. we have now learned it spread to the liver and doctors saying basically there's nothing more we could do. what could the condition be at this point with that diagnosis? >> obviously, the unfortunate reality talking about cancer and cancer treatment is not all cancer is curable. so a large part of cancer treatment involves treating the cancer and the sites to which it's spread. really, once cancer is in the liver, the big concern is that the liver is not able to clear the toxins of our body and usuall