When you're done checking in on this blog, head on over to these three for a dose of insight and advice all about allergies. The bloggers who author these sites are allergy-affected themselves. You might find their words helpful as you battle the allergens in your life.

allergicgirl.blogspot.com
This allergic girl lives a wheat/gluten-free, processed sugar-free, lactose-free, low processed food-free lifestyle because she's allergic to tree-nuts, salmon, some veggies, melons, tropical fruits, and lemongrass. She also has asthma and GI distress and clearly, has some educating to do. Check her out.

gluten-free-blog.blogspot.com
This writer, a gluten-free/Celiac person, says the best way to overcome the trauma of no longer eating your favorite foods is to find replacements that are just as good. And maybe even better. Check out this February 17 post about a gluten-free pancake diet.

mykidshavefoodallergies.blogspot.com
With two kids and combined allergies to milk, eggs, peanuts, pistachios, cashews, and sunflower seeds, this one has some wisdom worth reading. Find out how she handled a Chuck E. Cheese birthday party here.

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January's Men's Journal magazine calls these five outdoor websites incredibly helpful. If you're the outdoorsy type -- I'm thinking of you, Bev -- then take a peek at these for the lowdown on finding mountains and rocks, investigating a forecasted snowfall, or hunting down the perfect camping spot.

summitpost.com
For serious climbers, take a look at this stocked site.

onthesnow.com
For the skiing obsessed, this destination has it all.

reserveamerica.com
For the camping set, this resource awaits you.

trails.com
For $50, you'll get information on 40,000 trails around the world.

mbpost.com
For mountain biking enthusiasts, take a spin here.

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Since October is breast cancer month, I recently wrote a post on some of the best websites about the topic and asked readers to contribute their own favorite sites. One response I received directed everyone toward the Survivor Celebration site.

Part of what I like about the site is that it gives information on the 2007 Survivor Celebration Tour, a 23-day cross-country adventure that began in New York on September 23rd and reaches its final destination in Los Angeles on October 15th, after stops in a range of cities including Philadelphia, Chicago, Atlanta, Phoenix and Las Vegas.

A team of doctors and experts traveling in a pink Survivor Celebration bus are making the trek to raise awareness about breast cancer. If you'd like more information on the tour, visit the website, which also offers survivor stories, personal blogs and photos, information on local support groups and much more.

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What's the first thing you do when you have a new ailment? Do you call the doctor, chat about it with a spouse or colleague (assuming it's not embarrassing), or check online for more information?

Chances are, you chose the latter. A new poll shows that 160 million people used the Internet to find information about their health problems, which is up 37% from the two previous years. In fact, the practice is so common, that these so-called "cyberchondriacs" make up a whopping 84% of all online adults.

The good news is, that people seem to be finding whatever it is they're looking for -- and, even better, is that the majority of them are then using this information to have an informed conversation with their doctor.

Because let's face it, no matter how much you read, you don't have a medical degree, and there's an enormous amount of information out there -- some of it skewed to scare you, and still more that's just flat out inaccurate. If you're worried about a health problem, the Internet is a great resource, but make sure you follow up on real concerns with your doctor.

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