Health

Q: In the Feb. 2 Berkshire Eagle Notes and Footnotes by D. R. Bahlman, mention is made of a bird called the Whiskey Jack. Is it a real bird?   Full Story

In the more than four decades that I have been reading and writing about the findings of nutritional science, I have come across nothing more intelligent, sensible and simple to follow than the 64 principles outlined in a slender, easy-to-digest new book called "Food Rules: An Eater's Manual," by Michael Pollan.   Full Story

Q: I have had restless legs and charley-horse cramps for years, and tried everything I could.   Full Story

PITTSFIELD -- Even with the sluggish economy, Hillcrest Dental Care, a division of Hillcrest Educational Centers, has raised the $130,000 it needed to finance an expansion project at its South Street facility.   Full Story

PITTSFIELD -- Berkshire Medical Center has received five-star ratings and top national rankings for clinical quality from HealthGrades, the leading independent health care ratings organization.   Full Story

Remember Old Bill?   Full Story

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The scientist in Dr. David Dosa was skeptical when first told that Oscar, an aloof cat kept by a nursing home, regularly predicted patients' deaths by snuggling alongside them in their final hours.   Full Story

Kira Marchenese works in online communications, and so she arrived on a business trip to New York earlier this week equipped with all the gadgets you might expect: personal smart phone, work smart phone, laptop, iPod touch.   Full Story

In a scientific analysis published last week in The New England Journal of Medicine, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco;   Full Story

Q: When one of our sons was 9 months old, almost 50 years ago, he had earaches.   Full Story

NORTH ADAMS -- A Brooklyn-based Internet company that runs its customer service operation out of a local office has changed its name and is about to sell ownership shares in the form of common stock.   Full Story

PITTSFIELD -- Looking to increase patient screenings, Berkshire Medical Center is offering a new program designed to streamline appointments for   Full Story

The amount of money Massachusetts health insurers pay to hospitals and doctors is not directly correlated to the quality of care patients receive, and some hospitals and doctors are paid 200 times more than other providers in the state for the same kinds of services, according to a preliminary report released by the Attorney General's Office on Friday.   Full Story

PITTSFIELD - With the Pittsfield teen pregnancy rate more than twice that of the state average, some community members are trying to form an action plan to better educate young people and give them reason to believe they have something to lose in their future if they become pregnant today.   Full Story

A panel of experts is recommending substantial changes in forest management on state-owned lands and significant organizational changes for the department responsible for overseeing the state's parks.   Full Story