PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – As the death of legendary singer Whitney Houston continues to make headlines, rumors continue to swirl about the prescription medications she may or may not have ingested.

While it will take weeks to determine exactly what took her life, one thing is certain: prescription drug abuse in this country is a growing problem.

David Rotenberg, Vice President of Treatment at Caron Treatment Centers says the statistics are startling. “If you look at the last three years, over six-million Americans say they have abused prescription drugs in the last month.”

Listen to Michelle Durham’s interview with David Rotenberg in this CBS Philly podcast:

Rotenberg says the fact that the drugs come from a physician lulls people into a false sense of security.

What kind of drugs are we talking about? “Opiates like Vicodin, Percodan, Percocet, Oxycontin. The benzodiazepines: Xanax. Folks don’t understand there is a synergy between especially benzodiazepines and alcohol, so if you drink, it increases the strength of both.”

Rotenberg says it’s very important for folks who want to detox from opiates or benzodiazepines to understand it’s too dangerous to attempt that alone. They need medical help.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – So, does being in a loving relationship improve your life? If you have any doubts, decades of research say the answer is a resounding yes.

In the last 30-years, research has focused on why relationships are good for health. Patrick Markey, associate psychology professor at Villanova University, says being married or in a serious long term relationship change behaviors.

“Married individuals have higher levels of overall well-being, lower levels of depression, fewer neurological disorders, and they even live longer.”

Markey adds men actually benefit from being married more than women do, because women are generally healthier than men before marriage.

“Married men are more likely to eat healthy meals, they smoke less, married men drive not as fast as single men. Also, marriage provides social and emotional support.”

He says in general, the benefits from being married women come in the form of more financial security.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Just in time for Valentine’s Day: a way to mend broken hearts. Well, not exactly, but it’s very interesting nonetheless.

According to a report in the journal, The Lancet, stem cells can help fight problems associated with heart disease. Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute had a clinical trial that showed that treating heart attack patients with an infusion of their own heart-derived stem cells could help damaged hearts re-grow healthy muscle.

One thing we know about a heart attack is that, when the heart is damaged, a scar is formed and the heart is damaged forever. That’s why it’s so important to do whatever we can not to allow that damage to occur.

According to this information reported in The Lancet, patients who underwent the stem cell procedure demonstrated a significant reduction in the size of the scar left on the heart muscle after a heart attack. This is very important research, because it shows there may be hope for people who have experienced damage.

By Stephanie Stahl

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Whitney Houston had a long history of drug and alcohol abuse and addiction. 3 On Your Side Health Reporter Stephanie Stahl has more with that part of our coverage.

The 48-year-old singer had reportedly been in and out of rehab. Experts we talked to in Philadelphia say addiction is an extremely tough battle.

On Thursday night, friends say Whitney Houston was drinking champagne. And earlier in the week, preparing for the Grammy’s, she was reportedly disheveled and smelled of alcohol.

“Once you get caught up in that it’s hell. It’s pure hell,” said Frank Mount, who abused alcohol and drugs for decades. Like Whitney Houston, he stopped and started repeatedly, and had several scary episodes of overdosing.

“My last rehab was 1986. My first was 1974. I’ve been clean and sober for 25 years,” said Frank. Now he’s a supervisor at Gaudenzia, a drug and alcohol mental health agency, where they have both in and out patient rehab services.

“You really have to stay in touch with your support system ya know every day,” said Frank.

He says addicts like him, and Whitney Houston, can’t have just one drink.

“We have a fatal disease, and we’ve got to keep it in check, and there’s a way of doing it,” said Frank. He says the commitment to stay sober is difficult, hard work that needs to be constantly reinforced. He says it appears Houston couldn’t overcome the demons of addiction, but there are millions who have.

“People do recover, and people do bounce back. And they do become productive members of society,” said Frank.

Right now we don’t have a lot of official information specifically if drugs had anything to do with Whitney Houston’s death.

RELATED LINK:

Gaudenzia Rehab Information – www.gaudenzia.org

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – If you plan on participating in the city’s 33rd annual Broad Street Run, make sure you register on time. Registration for the May 6th race is expected to sell out within a matter of days.

“We’ve sold out the past three years and we want to make sure that they all have an equal opportunity to register this year.”

Blue Cross Broad Street Run registration opens this Wednesday, and race director Jim Marino says once they hit 30,000 participants, no one else will be allowed to register.

Listen to Hadas Kuznits’ interview with Jim Marino in this CBS Philly Podcast:

“We obviously want to get the word out early, so all the runners have an equal chance to get into the race this year.”

With such high demand, why are they capping the race at 30,000?

“The most important consideration obviously is the safety factors. Obviously we have to make sure that they’re protected medically along the way. We want to make sure that we have enough water stations available, enough EMT services along the way and just to make it comfortable along the way. I mean, it is a long stretch — 10 miles.”

The way to register is online.

“This year, we’re going to open registration on February 15th, so it’s the day after Valentine’s Day, so everybody can remember the date.  The most important thing is go to BroadStreetRun.com.”

He says they’ve made improvements to the registration process.

“This year, one thing we are going to offer is we’re going to offer electronic transfer in the event that a person registers early and they cannot run, we’re going to be able to give another person an opportunity later on to transfer into the race and take their place.”

Marino says they’re not telling exactly when the website will be accepting participants, because they don’t want their server to crash. But, he will say that it will be sometime in the late morning on Wednesday.

“We do ask everyone to be patient as they go to enter and make sure that they fill out everything carefully the first time so that they don’t get shut out of the event.”

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – “Project Not Me” is the name of a 12 month study that is aimed at helping those who are at risk for type-2 diabetes. More than 300 adults are being sought for the pilot program in two test markets including one in Philadelphia.

If chosen, pre-diabetes participants will watch 16 Xfinity on demand video episodes in the comfort of their own homes and incorporate information from support materials into their daily lives.

The goal is to prevent or delay the onset of diabetes by promoting healthy eating, increasing physical activity and other life style changes.

UnitedHealth Group and Comcast Corporation have partnered for the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP).

“We know we have to rethink health care and rethink the way that we deliver care,” says Deborah Sundal who heads UnitedHealthcare’s Center for Health Reform and Modernization.

“The good news is that there are many lifestyle changes that with support you can make and significantly reduce your chance of getting type-2 diabetes.

For more information, go to www.projectnotmedp.com.

2012 Grammys

Philadelphia (CBS) – A city councilman is calling for hearings into what he says is an insufficient number of emergency shelter beds for women who are victims of domestic violence.

Freshman councilman Kenyatta Johnson says the city has a limited number of emergency shelter beds set aside for victims of domestic violence, and he believes shelters as a result have been forced to turn women away.

Johnson says he grew concerned about the issue in his last job as State Representative and now as city councilman he wants hearings on the issue.

“So we can see the type of support systems that are there from the city, and also to look at how we can ramp up that support as we move forward. One organization that I’m looking at partnering with is Women Against Abuse. That’s in my district, and so we’re going to make sure they have the type of support they need.”

Johnson represents the city’s 2nd district encompassing a large portion of South Philadelphia. No date has yet been set for the council hearing.

Philadelphia (CBS) – The path to better brain function is the subject of a new six-step guidebook.

Cornell Dr. Eric Braverman, author of “Younger Brain, Sharper Mind”, says that while our modern environment does contribute to mental decline, perhaps the largest factor is that for millennia people died in their thirties and now it’s their seventies or later. He got his start in science at age 17 when his mother got him a job at the Princeton Brain Research Center.

“Thirty-seven years later and seeing every single fad come and go. You know they say that computer games will make you smarter. There is no one easy technique, but there are cornerstones everywhere. Cornerstones are: tea’s your main beverage. Spices always have to be fresh. You can’t get by without fresh fruits and vegetables. You can’t get by without massive amounts of exercise,” said Braverman.

He says the brain has been the missed organ in terms of optimizing how it works, but his techniques provide a totally new brain health approach.

For more information call 888-304-PATH (7284) for the Place for Achieving Total Health for a free booklet. The book itself is not free.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Big surprise, if your doctor could stand to lose a few pounds chances are he won’t tell you to.

Too many Americans are overweight and researchers have discovered if your doctor is one of them, he won’t be counseling patients to diet and exercise as a way to curb such problems as sleep apnea and diabetes. So should you seek out a thinner doctor? Not necessarily, says Dr. Lawrence Kaplan a professor of medicine at Temple University School of Medicine. He says stick with one you like.

“If you have a higher BMI, seeing a physician who looks lean and actually runs marathons, that may be something that’s so totally unattainable in that person’s mindset. ‘It’s easy for you to tell me to exercise, probably never struggled with your weight at all.’”

Ninety-three percent of normal weight doctors would write down that a patient was overweight, but only seven percent of obese physicians make notation.

By Stephanie Stahl

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Sleep trouble affects millions of Americans. Health Reporter Stephanie Stahl joins has more on a treatment that studies show can be just effective as medication.

Insomnia can be short lasting, or chronic. If left untreated, it can cause serious health problems. But for those who want to avoid medication, a certain therapy may be able to help.

Geoffrey Childs has suffered with insomnia for years, making it difficult to function during the day.

“I would have fragmented sleep of an hour and half at a time,” said Geoffrey.

Then he tried cognitive behavioral therapy, or talk therapy, with a Sleep Specialist.

To start, Dr. Shelby Harris helps patients change their behaviors. She says people with insomnia should eliminate caffeine in the afternoon, exercise late in the day, and try to wind down an hour before bed–without TV.

Next comes the cognitive part of the therapy, which includes relaxation techniques, such as meditation.

“We’ll teach them ways to quiet their minds and also not worry as much about sleep,” said Dr. Harris.

Research shows that talk therapy can be just as effective as medications to treat insomnia. If left untreated, serious health problems can arise.

“Problems with memory, attention, concentration, increased risk of stroke, heart attack, increased risk of accidents,” said Dr. Harris.

After six months of therapy, Geoffrey now gets six hours of sleep a night.

“I work better. I have more energy,” said Geoffrey.

Doctors also recommend that people with insomnia not nap during the day and have a regular sleep schedule.

For more information on insomnia, click here.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — The Obama administration is said to be working toward a compromise on a provision of the health care reform law that requires employer health plans to cover contraceptives (watch related video).

Some religious groups object to the provision, but women’s health groups say it’s an important advance.

Last Sunday, area Catholics heard a letter from Archbishop Charles Chaput, denouncing the regulation as a violation of religious freedom.   The new rule would force many Catholic employers to cover contraceptives in its health plans even though the church officially opposes them.

Chaput warned that Catholic employers might drop health coverage for employees altogether.

Even US senator Bob Casey (D-Pa.), a supporter of health care reform, has asked for an exemption for Catholic employers. But women’s health advocates say that would be a step backward.

“The regulation is fundamental to improving women’s health,” says Dayle Steinberg of Planned Parenthood.  She says it also improves overall family health:

“It saves lives, it improves outcomes for children, and importantly, it reduces the need for abortion.”

Advocates estimate that more than 11 million women use contraceptives.  Twenty-eight states, including New Jersey and Delaware, already require employer health plans to cover them.

By Jim Melwert and Robin Rieger

LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. (CBS) - Dozens of students at Rider University were hospitalized Wednesday night and four were taken to the hospital on Thursday, suffering from a gastrointestinal illness.

Rider University says they suspect a norovirus outbreak which recently broke out on some cruise ships.

Four students were taken to the hospital Thursday. Over a dozen others were treated at the student health center in the morning according to school spokesman Dan Higgins.

Rider says local health authorities and EMT’s worked throughout Wednesday night to find students in residence halls who may have had symptoms.

Symptoms of norovirus include diarrhea, throwing up, nausea and stomach cramping. The school says it’s not usually considered serious, but is very contagious, transmitted by food or drink or by contaminated surfaces.

A spokesman with Rider says the school is taking any steps they can to contain the virus, including sanitizing university buildings and dorms. Classes were scheduled as normal.

The school issued a statement on its’ website. READ IT HERE

Many Rider University students are expressing apprehension heading back and forth to class.

“It’s kind of scary that so many people are getting sick,” said Angelina Franco, a Rider University senior and class president.

Freshman Dante Taylor says his friend is sick. “We hope we dont get sick,” he said.

Rider University officials say an outbreak also started a week ago and continues at Princeton University.
According to a spokesperson for Princeton, there are 100 cases of illness suspected to have been caused by norovirus. They started testing when students started coming back January 29th.

When many came back with norovirus, they stopped testing and started to alert the campus about the illness and how to try and prevent it with hand washing, hand sanitizer, not sharing any food and using utensils.

By Stephanie Stahl

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — 3 On Your Side with a cautionary tale for parents. Is there a mold problem with a popular fruit juice? Health Reporter Stephanie Stahl has one mom’s exclusive story.

Capri Sun juice boasts it has no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives, and 25 percent less sugar. Instead of chemicals, you might find mold.

Ashley Parks, who lives in Havertown, says a black substance was clogging the straw of a Capri Sun fruit punch her daughter, Emma, was drinking Tuesday. When she cut open the pouch, she saw a glob of something.

“Very gross looking, and then if you turn it, you can see little black particles,” explained Ashley.

Stephanie asked Emma, “what did you think when you saw it?”

Emma replied, “Ew, it was gross.”

The 8-year-old says it didn’t taste funny, and it didn’t make her sick.

Ashley got online and quickly found a litany of complaints about mold in Capri Sun drinks.

“I’m concerned about my daughter’s health, about kids drinking this and if they’re at risk,” said Ashley.

Back in June 2010, Kraft, the maker of Capri Sun, posted a note on Facebook saying because the beverages don’t have preservatives, a hole in the pouch can cause them to spoil.

“Emma’s box was not leaking. There was not a hole it in,” said Ashley.

Ashley says she found out online there can be undetectable holes that allow air inside the pouch. And on the Capri Sun box, there’s a warning that says if the pouch is damaged, fermentation can occur. But there’s no way to know if this is inside until you take a sip.

“I’m very angry,” said Ashley.

3 On Your Side called Kraft about the Park’s discovery. A spokesperson said the mold is similar to common bread mold.

The response also said in part, “… we’re very sorry the family who contacted you had an unpleasant experience with Capri Sun … Unfortunately, among the many, many millions of pouches we sell each year, occasionally a consumer will discover mold in a pouch.”

“They really are not doing anything to fix the problem. They just want to cover their butts,” said Ashley.

We talked to experts from the Poison Control Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia about ingesting mold. They say it may be unappetizing and upsetting to the stomach, but it’s usually not medically dangerous.

Ashley said she also called her pediatrician, who wasn’t concerned.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — If you pull into the parking lot of your local pharmacy or shopping mall in the next few months, chances are you may see a big blue Thomas Jefferson University bus parked there. The bus is staffed with professionals who can do health screenings.

Team Leader of the Jefferson University Hospital bus, Belinda Spruhde, explained what screenings were being performed inside the bus at the Rite-Aid Pharmacy parking lot in Ardmore.

“We’re doing preventative screenings for heart attacks, strokes, and aneurysms,” said Spruhde. “There are ultrasounds and we do a blood circulation test, hardening of the artery and EKG.”

Dr. David Fishman, Co-Director of the Cardiac Catherization Laboratory, explained why these screenings are so important.

“About 50% of the individuals who first present with a heart problem, present with a heart attack, never had a symptom in their life,” said Fishman.

Russ, a patient, said he came for the convenience and because of the cost.

“It’s a great bargain,” he said. It’s about 10% of what you’d pay. It’s in the $2-hundred to $3-hundred range rather then $25-hundred to $3-thousand.”

To schedule a screening on the Jefferson bus, call: (855) 712-8378 or click here.

EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBS) — After months of searching, a number of rejections and threats of legal actions, it appears a medical marijuana facility is likely to set up shop in South Jersey.

The Compassionate Care Foundation filed suit after Westampton, Burlington County rejected what appeared to be a locked in deal for a growing center and dispensary in a warehouse.

Now, there’s a deal in place with Egg Harbor Township in Atlantic County to open up in an industrial park off Delilah Road.

“This area that is designated in Egg Harbor Township is very rural,” said Township Mayor Sonny McCullough. “It doesn’t even have public transportation to it.”

The plan meets local zoning requirement, so he won’t stand in the way.

The state health department, however, needs to give its blessing.

The Foundation, one of six licensees of medical marijuana, has yet to submit the paperwork to Trenton.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - At one Philadelphia consulting firm, being a desk jockey is not nearly as sedentary as it often is.

In its offices overlooking Love Park, Vynamic has many types of desks, including one workspace over a treadmill, and others where the surface can be lowered for sitting or raised for standing.  Across from founder and CEO Dan Calista, I tried perching on something like a big, black-rubber-clad bedspring.

The treadmill is kept at low speed so employees aren't huffing and puffing on client phone calls. (credit: John Ostapkovich)

“It’s a chair that’s designed for your ergonomics to really keep your core kind of engaged while you’re working, while you’re sitting. What our team is doing all day is, like part of the day, we’ll sit in our more traditional work chair and then we’ll grab one of these chairs that you and I are sitting in right now.”

Calista says the idea is, not just to encourage fitness, but office culture, organization and interaction in a way that serves clients, and employees, better. He points to two awards the firm just got as evidence it’s working.

“In 2011, we were recognized as the best place to work by the Philadelphia Business Journal for medium-sized companies in Philadelphia. We were the gold winner, and that was balanced with the Chamber of Commerce honoring us with the 2012 Professional Services excellence award.”

For Calista and company, healthy is more than just physically fit but embraces how employees live, lead, learn, grow and thrive in serving the needs of health care management clients, and in employee off-hours.

By Stephanie Stahl

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Think Yourself Thin. A new kind of hypnosis for weight loss is now being done in our area. 3 On Your Side Health Reporter Stephanie Stahl has results from some of the first success stories.

Mark McGovern gets full after eating just a few bites of tuna. He can’t wolf down a pizza with ease like he used to.

“It was like a switch got flipped,” said Mark. With a starting weight of 320, Mark so far has lost 35 pounds, in just six weeks. It’s happened thanks to Mark being hypnotized to think he’s had gastric surgery. That a lap band is making his stomach smaller, like the size of a golf ball, even though he never had an operation.

“It’s been so easy it scares me,” said Mark.

Like many, Mark was skeptical thinking hypnosis was about getting sleepy, being put in a trance.

“I was afraid of getting up and clucking like a chicken on someone’s key word,” said Mark.

“Hypnosis is not a trick. It’s just a mental image that you place in yourself,” said Ellinor Burke, a licensed psychologist and hypnotherapist in Medford. She says people in a relaxed state are more open minded and susceptible to suggestions.

It’s called Virtual Gastric Band Weight Loss System. There are four hypnosis sessions, and patients listen to a CD daily, to be reminded of thinking they have a smaller stomach

Stephanie asked, “So you convince people in their mind that they’ve had surgery when they haven’t, and they have no scars no evidence of surgery, but still think it?”

“In essence the surgery is just a vehicle to think that your stomach is small,” said Burke.

To make sure it could work, she says she was hypnotized by someone else and lost 45 pounds.

“It’s just become so much a part of me that I just eat small portions,” said Burke. She claims a 90 percent success rate in helping people lose weight, but says it won’t work for everyone. And she acknowledges there are no scientific studies to prove it works.

Dr. Gary Foster is the Director of the Obesity Center at Temple University.

“The idea that you’ll get surgical weight losses without surgery is probably more wishful thinking than reality,” said Dr. Foster.

Debbie Baylor says losing 62 pounds so far, going from 270 to 208 pounds, hasn’t been wishful thinking for her. She says the gastric hypnosis has changed the way she eats.

“It really puts you in that mind set you feel that you went for that surgery even though you don’t have stitches, you have no side effects,” said Debbie.

Stephanie said, “A lot of people would say that’s crazy, it doesn’t make sense.”

“People just look at you like are you serious. But it really, really works,” said Debbie.

Mark says it might sound goofy, but it’s working for him, and he’s already ditching his old fat shirts.

“I feel full, and I feel great. And I’m not hungry,” said Mark.

The cost is $150 a session, and it is not covered by insurance. There are four sessions in all. Patients are not required to pay for all sessions at once.

RELATED LINK:

Virtual Gastric Band Weight Loss System Information

By Stephanie Stahl

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — A salt shocker! Americans consume too much sodium, and  a new government report lists the saltiest foods—with some surprises.

The report, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says 40 percent of our salt consumption comes from just ten foods.

At the top of the list? Not chips, not even canned soup.

In fact, bread and rolls are the number one source of salt in the American diet, according to the new federal health report. It says that bread products have more than twice as much sodium as snacks like chips and pretzels.

Cold cuts are number two on the list. If you have a seemingly healthy turkey sandwich for lunch, it could actually have over 1,500 milligrams of sodium–close to what you should have for the whole day.

“We’re looking at a recommendation of less than 2300, 2400 milligrams per day. And this report shows the average consumption is well over 3,000 milligrams a day,” said Dr. Steven Rothman, Chief of Cardiovascular Diseases at Lankenau Medical Center.

He also said sodium causes fluid retention and high blood pressure.

“High blood pressure leads to coronary disease, leads to stroke,” said Dr. Rothman, who added that processed items and restaurant foods are generally the main culprits for our salt overload.

Pizza is third on the sodium list. And number four is chicken from the grocery store, because many brands are injected with a salt solution to improve taste and moisture.

“It’s just everywhere,” said Dr. Rothman.

The top ten new sodium list also includes cheese, soups, and pasta. Experts recommend looking for items that say low sodium, and eating fresh produce without sauce.

For more on the sodium report, click here.
For sodium information, click here.

CHERRY HILL, N.J. (CBS) – Two cases of whooping cough have been confirmed in a pair of Cherry Hill public schools, but local and state health officials caution there’s no concern of a regional outbreak here.

Between the incidents at the Kilmer and Stockton schools and four others in Chester County, one might be worried that the malady could run rampant around here. Dr. Arturo Brito with the New Jersey Health Department suggests you relax.

“It doesn’t seem to appear that this is anything out of the ordinary comparing the data over the last 7 or 8 years.”

That said, the best way to prevent pertussis, also know as ‘whooping cough,’ is to make sure your child’s shots, and yours, for that matter, are up to date.

If your child comes down with that persistent cough, get them to a doctor for treatment.

Make sure they stay out of school, and you out of the workplace, until it clears up.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Surgeons in Europe have successfully replaced a woman’s jaw. That’s nothing noteworthy — until you learn just how the implant was made.

Usually, the patient’s own body lends a hand (or a leg) in this kind of surgery.

“The lower leg has a bone not needed for standing, so we take that bone called the fibula and create a new jaw bone out of it,” says Dr. David Cognetti, co-director at the Jefferson Center for Head and Neck Surgery in Philadelphia. (He wasn’t involved in the procedure in Europe.)

Just like architects use specialized computer software to create 3-D models of their designs, doctors printed — from titanium, using a high-powered laser — a new lower mandible for the woman, who lost hers due to a severe infection.

“Hopefully, the future of medicine is that we’re able to bioengineer real bone from the patient somehow, then have the 3-D technology to help shape it or mold it to that specific patient.”

The 83-year-old who received the 3-D printed jaw could speak and swallow normally just a day after surgery.

By Stephanie Stahl

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Millions of couples struggle with infertility. Not being able to have a baby can be devastating. 3 On Your Side Health Reporter Stephanie Stahl has more on a new kind of fertility service.

Navigating infertility treatments can be a difficult, confusing and lonely process. For one woman, her journey to have children turned into a mission to help others.

“It’s love, it’s fun. Basically they are miracles,” said Liz Platt, who struggled for years to have her twins. Eight rounds of in vitro fertilization, nothing was working. She saw eight different doctors, and the more she was told to keep along the same path. The harder it became.

“Procedure after procedure after biopsy, you really, you’re a different person,” said Liz.

“Ya know, I didn’t know if we would ever get through it, and the prospect of going through all that and not ending up with a child was just absolutely daunting,” said Michael Platt, Liz’s husband.

A surrogate was finally their solution.

But she felt all alone no matter how many doctors they saw, they were navigating alone.

“It would have been wonderful to have somebody there to guide us, as the intended parents through the process,” said Liz. That’s what she is doing now, guiding others through the journey she once went through. She says her company, called Baby Steps Fertility, saves couples time and money.

“Unbelievable. I have three babies on the way, and it’s just an astounding thing,” said Liz.

Liz says her fees depend on what couples are looking for. A consultation is 300 dollars. Fertility treatments usually costs thousands of dollars.

RELATED LINK:

Baby Steps Fertility – http://babystepsfertility.com/

By Stephanie Stahl

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Robots to the rescue for the millions of people who suffer with a common sleep problem.

It’s estimated 10 to 12 million Americans suffer from obstructive sleep apnea, that’s when the airway is blocked during sleep. It can lead to all sorts of health problems. Now a new robotic surgery could be the solution.

Judy Oderwald finally has the energy to read without falling asleep.

“Now when I go to bed, I have to fight to go to sleep. The other times I would hit the pillow and that would be it,” described Judy.

She was always tired because like millions of Americans she suffered from obstructive sleep apnea. Her airway closed up during sleep causing her to snore and stop breathing hundreds of times each night.

Now a revolutionary new robotic surgery is bringing relief to Judy and many others.

Going through the mouth tiny robotic tools are used to cut out excess tissue, opening up the patient’s airway. The technology lets surgeons operate in a place that until now was difficult to reach with human hands.

“This is really an amazing technology that boosts the ability of the surgeon,” said Dr. Jeffrey Ahn, an Otolaryngologist. He says the surgery is only for those who have tried everything else from a breathing mask to partial surgeries.

Judy had some discomfort after the surgery, but because of the robotic surgery she’s finally getting good sleep.

“It’s just a new outlook on life,” said Judy. And her new found energy even helped her lose 30 pounds.

The robotic surgery for sleep apnea is being done here in Philadelphia, at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

For information on the robotic sleep apnea surgery, visit http://www.uphs.upenn.edu/pennorl/research/tors/

MALVERN, Pa. (CBS) – Listen to the sports report and you’ll likely hear about another athlete with a concussion. The rise in the number of patients seeking help has prompted a local rehab center to expand.

Bryn Mawr Rehabilitation Hospital in Malvern is spending $1-million on an expansion program and one part of that is more space and new facilities for its outpatient center for brain injuries and other neurological disorders.

Marketing Director Leighton McKeithen says in the past year, the number of patients suffering post concussion symptoms has increased 35 percent.

“We are actually currently treating 148 patients at the present time for concussions. People as young as 11 and up to their 70′s.”

McKeithen doesn’t believe there are more brain-injured patients.

“I think, with the tremendous growth and awareness of concussion as a serious brain injury, more and more people are being aware of the need to get treatment, so we are needing to expand.”

The expansion to the outpatient center for patients with brain injuries, he says, will allow the hospital to treat more people with better equipment and facilities.

“They need to start out in an environment that won’t over stimulate them, so the rooms that we’ll be providing will be specially sound deadened so the room noise level can be brought down and the lights can be brought down.”

Another part of the expansion includes a physical therapy facility opening this spring on Andrew Drive in West Chester.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Actress Demi Moore’s suspected smoking of “incense,” which led to her recent hospitalization and entry to rehab, is drawing public attention to a dangerous substance that’s being used by teens and twenty-somethings as a cheap high.

A local expert says the synthetic marijuana properties it possesses can cause serious health problems for even first-time users.

Dr. Robert Middleberg, a forensic toxicologist at NMS Labs in Willow Grove, says there is a thriving market that sells herbal products, which are essentially laced with a drug that mirrors the effects of smoking marijuana.

“The giddiness and the euphoria associated with marijuana. However, the side effects are not what people are seeking and that would include such things as potential psychosis, panic attacks.”

He says the product is sold legally at specialty shops and over the Internet. But law enforcement is becoming concerned and Middleberg says parents should be, too.

“Parents should be on the lookout for colorful packets of things with fancy names such as ‘Spice’ and ‘K2′ and other things like that and they are labeled sometimes as ‘incense’ with a labeling that says ‘not to be consumed.’ However, that is, of course, somewhat deceitful.”

He says law enforcement is working to stop the sale of the materials, but off-shore distributors are continually changing the formula to avoid a drug labeling and prosecution.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – A new report out today sheds light on the amount of exposure to secondhand smoke children and teenagers receive. The danger, according to the Centers for Disease Control, lurks in the car.

We know that exposure to secondhand smoke can lead to serious health problems, and there have been many laws put in place to try to reduce exposure. But there is one area where kids still are at great risk, that’s in the car.

According to a new report in the journal Pediatrics, from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, more than one in five high school students and middle schoolers ride in cars while others are smoking.

On many cases parents are smoking, but in a growing number of cases, it might be another teenager.

The CDC says there is no risk-free level of secondhand smoke.