Like many women, I love lipgloss. I love the way it goes on so easily, making it feel a lot more casual than lipstick, and I love the way I look so much more polished after applying it. But, I don't love all lipglosses -- I don't like them if they're too sticky, too smelly, too glittery, not shiny enough, or if they bore me in any way. And, the biggest problem: Many of them dry out my lips to the point of being painful.

I recently had the opportunity to try out a couple of lipgloss colors from Cosmoholic Cosmetics, a company started by a woman who had worked as a makeup artist and was frustrated by the lack of vibrant lipgloss colors. She created a collection of seven colors, each with a nourishing "repair kit" for your lips to keep them moisturized and protected from irritants. No fragrances are included, but vanilla and macademia nut oil are used for moisturizing in addition to vitamin E, vitamin C, and antioxidants.

So how did Cosmoholic hold up to my picky pout?

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Recently, my son's two favorite activities have been going to the skate park and going to the BMX track. They're both favorite activities in my book as well. They're free, my son is being active and meeting friends, and I get time to walk around the parks or just relax and read a book.

I'm constantly surprised at how few children wear helmets or other safety gear. My son hates his wrist guards, but he doesn't complain otherwise. And, thankfully, none of the non-helmet wearing crowd has poked fun at my son. My son knows that he only has one choice in the matter -- wear the safety gear or don't skateboard/bike. It's just not a risk worth taking.

According to the CDC, about 300,000 sports-related concussions occur each year in the US. There are some basic pieces of safety gear kids should wear when playing sports.

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If you're concerned about your dental health (and I hope you are), one of the best investments you can make is in an electric toothbrush. Research has shown that the circular motion made by electric toothbrushes is more effective than the up and down motion made by a standard hand-held brush.

Years ago, owning an electric toothbrush meant shelling out a pretty penny, but that's no longer necessarily the case. You can get a battery powered toothbrush for under $10, although you certainly can still spend over $100 for a good rechargeable one.

Consumersearch.com has some of the top ranked toothbrushes -- click through the gallery to see which might be the best match for your mouth. After all, while it's great to have toned abs and firm thighs, a beautiful, healthy smile is often the first thing people notice, and you owe it to yourself to keep it that way!

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'Do you mind if I double dip?' a friend of mine asked over shared appetizers and wine at one of our favourite restaurants. I replied as I always do: Of course not. I'm not a germaphobe, and even if I was, double dipping doesn't spread many germs, does it?

Well, actually, it does. According to this article from Prevention Magazine, double dipping deposits thousands of saliva bacteria into the dip, hundreds of which can be transferred onto the next clean chip or cracker. Yuck.

Still, a little bacteria won't hurt you if you have a normal immune system, but if you're concerned about germs, it's good to know what you're putting into your mouth.

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Not to sound like a V.O. guy in a toothpaste commercial, but, do you have plaque? If you're not sure, check the bottom two front teeth in the center of your mouth, as it is there where it is typically most visible. How are you looking?

If the results of you quick self-exam are less than stellar, you're probably not alone -- studies show that one in five people admit to brushing their teeth less than twice a day. In addition to giving your teeth a good brushing more often, you can also try eating raisins. Researchers from the University of Chicago found that these tasty little fruits contain chemicals that prevent black from sticking to your teeth.

Of course, a trip to your friendly neighborhood D.D.S wouldn't be a bad idea, either. Oh, and at the end of your visit, when the hygienist offers you the choice of a complimentary tooth brush of roll of floss, go with the floss ... and unlike 72 percent of the rest of people living in America, do it every day.

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Halitosis, the technical term for bad breath (aka oral malodour, apparently), can be an embarrassing and touchy subject. Let's face it, nobody wants to repel people with their breath. There are a range of potential causes for bad breath, some of which are medical and may be helped by a simple visit to the doctor. Others though, have more to do with what you eat and various habits.

If you know you suffer from halitosis and want to try to remedy the situation, it might be worthwhile to take some (or all) of the advice suggested here. Avoiding food like garlic and onions might help, but apparently not eating at all may cause bad breath, so make sure eat a regular, healthy diet. Other tips include staying hydrated as dry mouth can cause foul breath, giving up cigarettes and looking after your mouth and teeth by brushing, flossing and gargling with mouthwash.

As mentioned, if none of these things seem to work, it's probably a good idea to make an appointment to discuss the situation with your doctor.

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Straight white teeth: a universal sign of beauty and good health. And thankfully both can be come by fairly easily if you aren't lucky enough to have them naturally, or if you've ruined them somehow in the process of living (smokers!). Of course you'll have to see your dentist to straighten out crooked teeth, and although you can go there for whitening too there are fairly effective ways to do it yourself at home. From cheap to expensive there quite a few options out there, like whitening toothpaste, whitening strips, and whitening gels -- and then of course the professional options available in the spa or dental office. What works for you? eDiets gives their opinions here, share yours in the comments!

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How often do you chew gum? Do you chew just to freshen your breath or as a way to relieve stress? I bet it does relax you at least a little, whether you realize it or not, because that's part of the appeal of gum versus breath mints. But chewing gum can cause problems if you overdo it (like anything) especially if you're feeling tense to begin with. According to the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, chewing gum when you're stressed can cause you to chew more vigorously, which can lead to any number of problems like a strained jaw, fatigue, soreness, and even a serious condition of the jaw joint called TMJ.

Huh, who knew?

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While I've never been a smoker, I do enjoy drinking wine and I love spending time outdoors in the sunshine. I admit that I worry sometimes about the negative effects these habits may have on my health, but I guess I don't worry enough to stop doing either.

I find it pretty scary though to read that cancer charities in the UK are warning smokers, drinkers, sun-worshipers and those who are obese that incidents of deadly lifestyle-related cancers are on the rise. I realize that this news is coming out of a different country, but I also know that alcohol, cigarettes, over-eating and suntanning will have the save effects on me as on anyone in Britain.

The usual suspects like lung cancer and melanoma are named in the piece, but so are womb and mouth cancer, among others. They sound pretty terrifying and agonizing to me. I still stand by the notion that things are alright in moderation but this information makes me think that I may have to change my idea of what moderation is.

Are you concerned about lifestyle cancers?

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As far as minor inflictions of the body go, I find few things more annoying that canker sores (itchy mosquito bites are probably the only thing that I find as irritating). The painful sores make eating less enjoyable -- it's hard to get excited about a tasty meal when every mouthful brushes against the spot and sends a minor jolt through your face, and make brushing teeth a chore.

According to this, the good news is that cankers are not caused by a virus or bacterial infection but result from an injury to a part of the mouth (in my case, too much sour candies or a bite to the tongue tend to be the culprits). While painful, most cankers go away on their own within a few days. Cold sores are a slightly different story.

I've been lucky enough so far to not catch the herpes simplex virus 1 that causes the nasty lesions (according to the piece cold sores can also be contracted via oral sex from the herpes simples virus 2. Yikes!) but I've heard others complain about what a pain they are. Like cankers, these sores, which consist of a group of small blisters that eventually burst, will go away on their own after approximately 2 weeks.

They certainly don't sound like fun, so to learn more about prevention and treatment read more about cold sores here. And keep in mind, that any unidentifiable sore in your mouth could be the sign of something more serious so if you've got something in there that seems funny and doesn't go away on its own, make sure to see your doctor about it.

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We're usually too wrapped in in calories to consider another important factor to what we're drinking -- the acidity. Acidic drinks can not only lead to ulcers, but they can rot your teeth too. Fitsugar has a handy breakdown of the worst offenders acid-wise. What are the some of the worst offenders?

• Coke, with a pH of 2.63
• Pepsi at 2.49
• Gatorade at 2.95
• Doctor Pepper at 2.95
• Minute Maid at 2.8

For comparisons sake, consider this: Neutral pH (water) is 7.0. Battery Acid is 1.0 and you mouth's normal pH should be about 6.2-7.0. So if you haven't quit drinking soda for the sake of your health, maybe you should consider giving it up for the sake of your pearly whites?

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80 percent of all cancers are due to identified factors according to the National Cancer Institute. Which means a lot of cancers can be preventable. So why is the disease increasing and why don't Americans pay more attention to the facts?

30 percent of cancers are due to smoking. Up to 50 percent of cancers are due to the foods we eat. Drinking excessive alcohol raises the risks for breast, mouth, pharynx, and esophagus cancers. Drinking alcohol and smoking makes cancer risks skyrocket as well as raises the risks for stomach, liver, and colon cancers.

In my humble opinion the following basic food facts should be taped to every refrigerator in this country.

Some vitamins in plant foods are known to be cancer inhibitors and dietary fat is known to be a promoter in cancer by helping the abnormal cells grow quickly. Especially animal fat. The best diet for cancer prevention points to a low fat, high fiber diet that includes a variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and beans and also minimizes or excludes alcohol and eliminates smoking. The best diets are pure vegetarian diets.

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Cancer is one of the most terrifying words in the modern lexicon. There are so many types that you can get in so many ways, it is pretty overwhelming. Some forms of the disease are influenced by genetics, but many of these, as well as loads of others, can be prevented.

Oral cancer, which affects the mouth and pharynx (a section of the throat that includes part of the digestive and respiratory system) is one of the forms of the disease that each individual can take measures to try to prevent on their own. According to this, regular use of lip balm with SPF is an important step, as excessive sun exposure can lead to lip cancer and the sunscreen in lip balm can help protect your kisser.

In addition, one of the most important things to avoid is tobacco products including cigars and cigarettes. You should also avoid drinking too much alcohol and make sure to include a cancer screening in each check-up at the dentist. Oral cancer is very serious but steps can be taken to avoid it, so make sure to look after yourself accordingly.

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This is a statistic I can honestly say shocked me: 12% of people don't brush their teeth daily. Eeeeew! And it's not like they only brush once a day or something, which would be bad enough, but they don't even brush every day. Wow!

Now this was a British survey, so I'm hoping we're better than that over here in the U.S. Overall oral health has improved by leaps and bounds over the last 30 years or so, but obviously there is still room for improvement. And your oral health is not an area to be fudging on as it's been linked to heart disease and all kinds of other seemingly unrelated health conditions in recent research.

So brush and floss, people! We all need to, but those 12% especially -- you know who you are...

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Recently there has been talk about how having a healthy mouth and assertive treatment for gum problems can have a direct impact on your cardiovascular health. Well now it seems that your blood vessels aren't the only (seemingly) unrelated part of your body that is effected by how healthy your mouth is: women with gum disease are at an increased risk for premature birth of their babies, as well as low birth weight.

Unfortunately, they have yet to determine how treatment of periodontal disease during pregnancy affects the outcome, so it looks like being proactive and starting your pregnancy healthy is your best bet. Isn't it always?

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