The recall of ground beef at Whole Foods Market has shed a new spotlight on Nebraska Beef of Omaha, one of the country’s largest meatpackers. Seven people in Massachusetts, from ages 3 to 60, were sickened by E. coli from beef bought at Whole Foods stores. The same strain has sickened 31 people in 12 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada.

The Whole Foods ground beef was among 1.2 million pounds of Nebraska Beef recalled on Friday. The processor also recalled 5 million pounds produced in May and June after its beef was blamed for another E. coli outbreak in seven states.

Sanitation violations over the past six years at Nebraska Beef, include:

• The USDA shut down the plant three times in 2002 and 2003 for problems such as feces on carcasses and water dripping off pipes onto meat
• In 2004 and early 2005, Nebraska Beef was written up at least five times for not removing brains or spinal cords from the food supply, as required
• U.S. inspectors in August 2006 threatened to suspend Nebraska Beef operations for not following requirements for controlling E. coli
• Also in 2006, Minnesota health officials blamed Nebraska Beef for sickening 17 people who ate meatballs at a church potluck; several victims filed lawsuits against Nebraska Beef, including the family of a woman who died

Whole Foods claims that it did not know that their supplier, Meyer Natural Angus, had switched processing plants to the Nebraska Beef facility. Whole Foods has long audited the slaughterhouse facilities from which it is supplied.

Every person who takes up running has been confronted by a “helpful” critic who is more than happy to reel off the reasons running will ruin your life. Here’s a look at three questionable claims about running and health:

1. Running will give you a heart attack or other heart problems. It is true that exercise temporarily raises the odds of a heart attack while you’re mid-workout, but doing it consistently reduces that risk over the long haul, leading to a net benefit. Going for a run most days of the week is doing far more good than bad for your heart.

2. Running will ruin your bones and joints. A study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found no evidence of accelerated rates of osteoarthritis among long-distance runners. Weight-bearing exercise like running helps stave off osteoporosis by maintaining bone mineral density.

3. Running will kill you before your time. According to a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine, running and other vigorous exercise in middle age is associated with a longer life. Not only that, it will make your later years more pleasant by reducing disability.

The human brain went through two enormous evolutionary changes — one in size, followed by an even more important one in cognitive ability. Your brain consumes huge amounts of calories and exhibits incredible prowess. In fact, your brain’s roaring metabolism, possibly stimulated by early man’s invention of cooking, may be the main factor behind our most critical cognitive leap, new research suggests.

About 2 million years ago, the human brain rapidly increased its mass until it was double the size of other primate brains. Some believe this is because humans started to eat better food. But then, about 150,000 years ago, a different type of spurt happened — those big brains suddenly got smart. Humans started innovating, invented many new tools, and started creating art and perhaps religion.

Research suggests that increased access to calories spurred these cognitive advances. The extra calories may have come from the first hearths. Cooking, by breaking down fibers and making nutrients more readily available, is a way of processing food outside the body. Eating cooked meals would have lessened the energy needs of the human digestion system, thereby freeing up calories for the brain.

Nearly half of cancer patients in England are being forced to cut back on food or heating in order to pay for their prescriptions drugs. Almost two-thirds miss out on simple leisure activities, like family days out, to cope with their medication costs.

A survey of nearly 500 cancer patients in England found that 44 percent were struggling to cope with drug costs.

Prescription charges were eliminated in Wales in 2007, and will be phased out in Scotland by 2011. Northern Ireland has frozen its charges while it considers whether to abolish them entirely. In England, however, the government has ruled out any move towards free prescriptions.

Even when your budget is tight, you never want to skimp when it comes to your health. Fortunately, there are ways to get well and stay that way for less.

1. Reduce Your Need for Allergy Meds

Don’t keep stacks of books and magazines, stuffed animals, decorative pillows and other “dust-mite breeding grounds” in the bedroom. Dust mites are the leading cause of indoor, year-long allergies. If outdoor pollens set off your allergies, close your windows and turn on a fan. If you’re a jogger, jog in the evening when pollen counts are lower, and when you get home, remove your clothes immediately and shower to get rid of the pollen that has attached itself to your clothes, skin and hair. And don’t let your pet sleep in your room or in your bed.

2. Substitute Honey for Antibiotic Cream

Raw, unprocessed honey — the kind you buy at the farmers’ market or in the health food section of the grocery store — can also be used to treat mild skin infections and burns. In fact, when compared with over-the-counter creams, honey might be even more effective for small burns. Most anti-bacterial creams stick to the skin as well as the gauze, causing further irritation when the gauze is lifted. Honey is partially absorbed by the fragile, puffy skin, providing a slippery membrane between the flesh and the bandage.

3. Go to Sleep Early

Researchers have long reported that six to eight solid hours of lights out is critical for optimal brain functioning and a healthy immune system. But stay away from sleeping pills and painkillers — they may knock you out at bedtime, but the flat, dreamless sleep they induce does not generally provide the healing and repair your mind and body craves.

4. Work Out At Home

Who needs to pay hundreds of dollars to work out at a gym? Why not rent exercise DVDs, or make your living room a yoga studio a few nights out of the week? The only thing you risk losing is the camaraderie you can find at the gym. But that’s easy to re-create at home. Invite a few friends over, pool your tape collection, set realistic goals and make a commitment to stick to the plan.

5. Take Advantage of Free Screenings

If you have a history of skin cancer or have a suspicious mole, you really need to make a habit of getting your skin checked for skin cancer — insurance or no insurance. The American Center for Dermatology has partnered with dermatologists across the country to offer free screenings. Just go to www.melanomamonday.org to find a convenient location. Free blood pressure machines in pharmacies and malls can be located through www.lifeclinic.com/locator/search.asp, and free mammograms are offered by government or local programs in a number of states.