Emily Garrett

College students have long been known as some of the most sleep-deprived people in the nation, but one recent study found that sleepiness may be the least of our problems. Sleeping too much or too little is associated with higher rates of obesity, smoking and alcohol use, according to a study released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Although shoppers have generally accepted that eating organic foods will be more costly, a recent and rapid rise in prices may force some consumers to alter their eating habits. Food prices have been rising for several months now, and at first, organic prices stayed steady.

Sipping water out of that Nalgene bottle might not be so good for you. Numerous studies, including one at the University of Cincinnati earlier this year, show that traces of the toxic substance bisphenol-A, commonly called BPA, are released from Nalgene bottles' "unbreakable" plastic.

We've long been told to drink eight glasses of water a day - but that may not be necessary. Penn researchers Stanley Goldfarb and Dan Negoianu reviewed research on water intake and concluded that there is no reliable scientific data to support the idea that drinking those eight glasses makes a person healthier.

Hospitals are in the business of curing what ails their patients, but in 2006 about 19 out of every 1,000 patients developed an infection while being treated at Pennsylvania hospitals. This data, released last Thursday by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council, is the group's second state-wide report on hospital-acquired infections.

The Recording Industry Association of America has hit a roadblock in its efforts to prosecute four students at Boston University for copyright infringement. Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Nancy Gertner forbade Boston University - which had been subpoenaed by the RIAA - from providing the names of students to the organization until she further investigates the school's privacy policy.

Twenty percent of college students - a total of 1.7 million individuals - lack health insurance and racked up $120 to 235 million in uncompensated medical bills, according to a recent report released by the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Of those who are insured, there was a great disparity in the quality of their coverage, the report found.

All patients are not completely satisfied with their treatment at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, but the hospital scored above average on a recent government survey of patients. On average, 67 percent of patients surveyed nationwide said they would definitely recommend their hospital to others.

There is a growing gap between the life expectancies of richer and poorer Americans, recent government data shows. Although Americans as a whole are living longer lives, the life expectancy gap is growing between the rich and the poor, according to data from the Department of Health and Human Services.

Sometimes, good can come from tragedy - and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania is trying to make that happen more often. In the last few years, HUP has made a concerted effort to raise its rate of organ donation. For the past two years, HUP's transplant program has received the Medal of Honor from the Department of Health and Human Services for having 75 percent of eligible donors do so.