If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: the jury is still out on whether or not caffeine is good for you. As a matter of fact, I should have actually put it this way: if I've said it once, I've said it 21,000 times -- because that's how many studies have been conducted on the effects of caffeine, yet the last word on the matter has yet to be spoken.

Until now. No, I'm just kidding. I have new information, but certainly nothing that can be considered the last word. In typical caffeine-related fashion, the new information I have is contradictory; one study shows its benefits, while the other its detriments.

Let's start first with the good news. A new study from Harvard found that women who consume at least 500mg of caffeine daily were 20 percent less likely to develop ovarian cancer than those who consumed far less. Now for the bad news. A Duke University study revealed that people with diabetes (type 1 and type 2) who consume 500mg of caffeine daily witnessed an average increase of eight percent in their blood glucose levels.

Like I said, it's new information. Does it get us any closer to a verdict? Not really. Just the same, I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on whether or not you think caffeine is good for you. Feel free to weigh in on the issue in the comments section.

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Whether you believe that global warming is a real or if it is -- as some people claim -- the greatest hoax ever perpetuated on mankind, it goes beyond debate that we're once again experiencing some unseasonably warm January days. Politics, science, and personal beliefs on global warming aside, these warmer days make for some bonus outdoor workout weather.

A nice, brisk jog is always a great way to get the heart pumping and burn some calories. Just as effective as jogging, say Duke University researchers, is taking an equally as long walk. Based on their findings, walking 10 miles a week burned around 1,200 calories, which is just about the same amount burned from jogging the same distance.

Because it took the research volunteers an average of two hours to jog the 10 miles in a week and about 3 hours to walk this distance over the same amount of time, researchers concluded that duration appears to make up for the difference in intensity.

When I was 17, I sneaked into a tattoo shop and had some really badly done ink put onto the back of my left shoulder. Fortunately, I don't see it every day because of its location, but still I know it's there, serving as a constant reminder of how much of an idiot I actually was in my teens. Barring repeat laser surgeries (which may not even remove the tattoo in its entirety), I'm pretty much stuck with this manifestation of youthful impetuousness.

Fast forward to present day. Had I been someone getting a tattoo now, I may have at least given myself a fighting chance to have it later removed if I was so inclined. This is because there is currently an FDA-approved ink being developed (by scientists at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard, Brown, and Duke universities) which can be completely erased with a single laser treatment.

Known as Freedom-2 (www.freedom2ink.com), this brand of ink is a combination of dyes and polymer, which means that it can't be absorbed by the body, thereby making its removal by laser much easier than traditional tattoos.

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