Health

Benjamin Natelson is a neurologist who directs the New Jersey Chronic Fatigue Center. He's just written "Facing and Fighting Fatigue: A Practical Approach." (Yale University Press) He specializes in treating chronic fatigue syndrome. He says that while many people think CFS is all in their heads, there is actually a physiological component to the condtion.

Sonia Ancoli-Israel specializes in sleep disorders, including sleep apnea, insomnia and sleep disturbances in the elderly. She is the author of "All I Want is a Good Night's Sleep." (Mosby-Year Book) She directs the Sleep Disorders Clinic at the Veterans Affairs Division of the San Diego Health Care System.

Epidemiologist Michael Osterholm is a leading expert on food-borne illnesses, like E-coli and toxoplasmosis. Some illnesses are less serious resulting in diarrhea, and stomach and abdominal pain. Food-borne illness is on the rise, partly because of the increased consumption of fruits and vegetables in this country, and their importation from developing countries. Osterholm is State Epidemiologist and Chief, Acute Disease Epdemiology Section, of the Minnesota Department of Health.

Epidemilogist Susan Oliveria is an expert on the link between nutrition and cancer. She is one of the authors of the new book, "The Strang Cookbook for Cancer Prevention: A Complete Nutrition and Lifestyle Plan to Dramatically Lower Your Cancer Risk" (Dutton). The book includes recipes from gourmet chefs. Oliveria teaches at the Strang Cancer Prevention Center, Cornell University Medical College, and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

Editor-in-chief of Harper's Bazaar, Liz Tilberis. She's written a new memoir about working in the fashion industry while battling ovarian cancer. It's called "No Time To Die" (Little, Brown & Co.) (Interview by Barbara Bogaev)

Reporter Malcolm Gladwell of the New Yorker speaks about the Spanish influenza of 1918. Gladwell's article in September 29th's New Yorker explores the medical potential of seven buried bodies stricken by this flu. Lodged in the Arctic tundra, the bodies, soon to be exhumed, may hold clues on how to prevent a similar epidemic in the future. Gladwell is the former New York bureau chief of the Washington Post. (Interview by Barbara Bogaev)

Dr. Charles Gerba is an expert on germs and bacteria. As a microbiologist at the University of Arizona in Tucson , Gerba says to many people’s surprise it’s the kitchen not the bathroom that has the most germs and bacteria. Gerba talks about why germs and bacteria thrive in the kitchen. They colonize your sink and sponges and rags, and grow by the billions overnight.. In addition, Dr Gerba has done extensive research on public bathrooms and has found more bacteria in women’s washrooms than men's. (Interview by Barbara Bogaev)

Psychiatrist and author Peter Kramer. His book, "Listening to Prozac" was a bestseller. His new book is about relationships: "Should You Leave?: A Psychiatrist Explores Intimacy and Autonomy -and the Nature of Advice" (Scribner) Kramer is an associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Brown University and writes a monthly column for Psychiatric Times.

Journalist Philip Hilts is a longtime correspondent on health and science policy for The New York Times. He broke the now-famous story of the Brown and Williamson tobacco industry papers, and is the author of "Smokescreen: The Truth Behind the Tobacco Industry Cover-Up." He'll discuss recent developments in the industry: the federal court ruling allowing the FDA to label tobacco a drug, and the historic admission by the Liggett Company that cigarettes are a health hazard and addictive.

Dr. Stephan Rechtschaffen is author of the book "Time Shifting: Creating More Time to Enjoy Your Life." It's about how to change the way we think about time. Rechtschaffen is also a pioneer of the wellness movement and founder of the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies in New York's Hudson River Valley.