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Many of last year's health crazes have shown real staying power. Some examples:
A SHOT HELPED US BATTLE CERVICAL CANCER. Gardasil is a new vaccine that protects against human papillomavirus (HPV), a common infection that can cause cervical cancer. Since the FDA approved the vaccine for girls and young women ages 9 to 26, sales have skyrocketed — to over $286 million in the United States in the second quarter of 2007 alone. Critics say receiving the vaccine encourages promiscuity among girls. But the controversy is unlikely to stop the vaccine from becoming routine preventative health care for the preteen set.
ORGANICS WENT MAINSTREAM. The U.S. organic industry grew 21 percent in 2006, to $17.7 billion in consumer sales. The Organic Trade Association (OTA) anticipates organic-food sales will grow about 18 percent a year through 2010, and that sales of nonfood organic products will increase up to 40 percent a year during the same period. "People choose organic because of personal health issues, because they're new parents and believe it's better for babies, or because they are rejecting toxic pesticides, antibiotics, and synthetic hormones," says Barbara Haumann, a spokesperson for the OTA.
WE TOOK A BREAK FROM PERIODS. First came Seasonale, a birth control introduced in 2003 that enabled women to menstruate only once every three months. Then last July came Lybrel, a pill that eliminates periods altogether. In a recent survey, 97 percent of physicians said that continuous oral-contraceptive therapy to suppress a period is medically safe and acceptable. But since there are no long-term studies proving that fact, it's still considered uncharted territory.
WE SCARFED 100-CALORIE SNACKS. To give diet-busting treats a fighting chance among a population facing an obesity crisis, manufacturers began packaging cookies, crackers, and pudding in units of 100 calories, the amount nutrition experts consider reasonable for a snack. Stores now offer over 170 different 100-calorie products, more than double the number from 2006.
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