Army endorses Egyptians' right to protest

(Reuters) - Egypt's armed forces pledged not to fire on peaceful demonstrators on Monday as thousands of people, freed from fear after decades of oppression, tried to press home their campaign to oust President Hosni Mubarak.

The army, which put Mubarak into power in 1981, seemed to be weighing whether to shift its loyalties as the former general's opponents spoke of getting a million people onto the streets on Tuesday to mark a week since the unprecedented protests began.

The military command, which may be keener to preserve a 60-year-old system of army-backed government than to prolong the personal rule of the 82-year-old Mubarak, issued a statement on Monday calling protesters' demands "legitimate" and promising not to use force against people expressing themselves peacefully.

The White House and the European Union renewed their calls for Mubarak to accept the will of the people, though refrained from telling their veteran ally outright that he should quit.

Egyptians in the streets had no such reservations.

"The people want the president out!" chanted thousands in Cairo. "Wake up, Mubarak! Today is your last day!" was the cry of a crowd in Mahalla, a textile mill town in the Nile Delta.

On the sixth day of rallies that have roused fellow Arabs and undermined the long-entrenched assumptions of diplomats and investors, tens of thousands on the streets of Cairo and other cities poured scorn on Mubarak's bid to save his 30-year rule by naming a new set of loyalists to his government.

"There is no turning back. There is no fear," 35-year-old Hassan Shaaban said at the permanent rally in central Cairo. "After Mubarak, no other president will dare to oppress us."

Tracy Morgan: Palin's one hot mama

Washington (CNN) -- Politics is serious business -- but not all the time. From the halls of Congress to the campaign trail to the international stage, there's always something that gets a laugh or a second glance.

How do you really feel?

Comedian Tracy Morgan is if nothing but brutally honest. Maybe too honest.

At the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday, Morgan weighed in on "mama grizzly" herself, Sarah Palin.

"Sarah Palin, you're the hottest MILF in the world," he said to one interviewer. MILF is a crass acronym for a mother with whom one would like to have sexual relations.

This isn't the first time he has expressed his love for the former governor of Alaska -- though his comments came under fire.

Something's fishy

Salmon is serious business in Alaska. Just ask the state's Democratic Sen. Mark Begich, who recently sent smoked fish -- along with a letter -- to President Obama, Politico's Glenn Thrush reports.

It was in response to Obama's State of the Union address where he discussed the inner workings of government -- and used salmon as an example of how multiple agencies can oversee one thing.

"Begich took the president's humor in stride, reminding him in writing that smoked salmon is 'as healthy as it is delicious' -- but he would rather the president taste it for himself."

Judge may escalate battle over healthcare reform

(Reuters) - A Florida judge could on Monday become the second U.S. judge to declare President Barack Obama's healthcare reform law unconstitutional, in the biggest legal challenge yet to federal authority to enact the law.

The judge, Roger Vinson of the U.S. District Court in Pensacola, Florida, was expected to rule on a lawsuit brought by governors and attorneys general from 26 U.S. states, almost all of whom are Republicans. Obama is a Democrat.

The plaintiffs represent more than half the U.S. states, so the Pensacola case has more prominence than some two dozen lawsuits filed in federal courts over the healthcare law.

No specific time has been given for Vinson's ruling, which was unlikely to end the legal wrangling over the contentious reform law, which could well reach the U.S. Supreme Court.

But an aide said he was determined to issue his opinion in the course of Monday on the suit filed on March 23, 2010, just hours after Obama signed the reform into law.

The healthcare overhaul, a cornerstone of Obama's presidency, aims to expand health insurance to cover millions of uninsured Americans while also curbing costs. Administration officials insist it is constitutional and needed to stem huge projected increases in healthcare costs.

Diabetes in pregnancy a risk for mom years later

WASHINGTON (AP) A type of diabetes that strikes during pregnancy may disappear at birth, but it remains a big red flag for moms' future health - one that too many seem to be missing.

Graphic shows gestational and postpartum screening rates of women by race

Roughly half of women who've had gestational diabetes - the pregnancy kind - go on to develop full-fledged Type 2 diabetes in the months to years after their child's birth.

Yet new research shows fewer than one in five of those women returns for a crucial diabetes test within six months of delivery. That's the first of the checkups they're supposed to have every few years to guard against diabetes' return, but no one knows how many do.

The research, by testing-lab giant Quest Diagnostics, is sobering because if they only knew, many of these new mothers could take steps to reduce their chances of later-in-life diabetes that can bring with it such complications as heart disease and kidney damage.

"It's almost as if you got a preview . a window to the future," says Dr. Ann Albright, a diabetes specialist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "This is a population that really should be targeted for intervention."

And more mothers-to-be soon may join the ranks. The American Diabetes Association is recommending a change in how pregnant women are tested that will identify more mild cases than today, based on some recent studies that found treating even those mothers leads to easier deliveries. If obstetricians eventually sign on, it has the potential to double diagnoses - although most mild cases would need only better nutrition and exercise, not diabetes medications, the association cautions.

Federal dietary guidelines target salt, saturated fats

The federal government unveiled new dietary guidelines Monday that urge certain people to cut down on salt.

The guidelines, which are updated every five years, recommend that people over age 51, African-Americans and people with a history of hypertension, diabetes or kidney problems limit their daily salt intake to a little over a half a teaspoon. For everyone else, the daily recommendation remains at 2,300 milligrams -- about one teaspoon of salt.

But that could be tough. A cup of spaghetti and meatballs has approximately 1,000 milligrams of salt in it, and an average frozen meal can have up to 1,500 milligrams in just one serving.

"Most of that salt comes from processed, packaged pre-prepared foods," said Cheryl Achterberg, dean of the College of Education and Human Ecology at The Ohio State University. "So, cutting back a little bit on that and doing some more home-food preparation will make a big difference."

"I think it is attainable," Achterberg said of the guideline. "It's within reach of many, if not most Americans."