The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports is all set to unveil an adult fitness on Wednesday. The test will measure factors such as resting heart rate, muscular strength and endurance and body mass to determine if you are healthy or at risk for disease.

The new test, which is targeting people18 and older will measure most of the exercises that students undertake each year to get a certificate signed by the president. The test involves three basic components: aerobic fitness, muscular strength and flexibility. It tests the aerobic component by a one-mile walk or 1.5-mile run but is not recommended for those who don't run for at least 20 minutes, three times a week

Girls and young women who exercise regularly between the ages of 12 and 35 can substantially cut their risk of developing breast cancer, according to a major new study.

Remaining physically active until the age of 35 can reduce the chances of developing the disease before menopause by up to 23 per cent, researchers found. The study, conducted by researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Harvard University in Boston, analysed 65,000 women

The value of bed rest on human health will be the subject of a four-month study by NASA scientists at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.

Participants will stay in a special research unit for the duration of the study and eat a controlled diet

Children living on streets with plenty of trees are less likely to have asthma than children who have fewer trees where they live.

That information comes from a study of children living in 42 health service districts in New York City, where asthma is the leading reason for hospital admissions of children under the age of 15

Australian scientists say it is may be possible to lose weight without cutting back on food.

Researchers manipulating fat cells in mice scientists in Melbourne were able to speed up metabolism of a person. When scientists removed an enzyme known as angiotensin converting enzyme, or ACE, the mice were able to eat the same amount as others but they burned more calories and gained less weight