A stroll is a pleasant way to burn calories; changing one's pace is even better.

Engineers at Ohio State University say walking at varying speeds increases a person's metabolic rate by 20 percent over a steady pace. They compared it to driving a car: If you step on the gas every once in a while, you burn more energy — and more calories.

The researchers had other tips as well: Walk with a backpack. Walk in a curve. Walk and stop repeatedly. They may look odd, but each requires your body to work a little harder.

Body of Knowledge

A normal breath takes five seconds: two to inhale, three to exhale.

Get me that, Stat!

The Centers for Disease Control and Infection estimates approximately 3,000 Americans die each year from food poisoning.

Counts

20 — The success rate, as a percentage, of conventional antibiotic treatments of Clostridium difficile infections

85 — The success rate using fecal transplants (introducing bacteria from a healthy person's stool into the gut of a sick person

Source: British Medical Journal

Stories for the Waiting Room

The percentage of Americans who reported using marijuana in the past year more than doubled between 2001-2002 and 2012-2013, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, from 4.1 percent to 9.5 percent.

Almost as large: the increase in "marijuana use disorder," which is broadly described as a condition characterized by the harmful consequences of repeated cannabis use. The prevalence of marijuana use disorder rose from 1.5 percent to 2.9 percent.

Phobia of the Week

Coimetrophobia — fear of cemeteries

Best Medicine

Insomniac: "I've tried everything. Nothing works."

Well-rested friend: "I'm sorry to hear that. Sleep just comes naturally to me. I could do it with my eyes closed."

Hypochondriac's Guide

Quite the puzzle: The journal JAMA Neurology recently reported on the case of a 25-year-old who began suffering from leg seizures after being buried in an avalanche, which resulted in 15 minutes of hypoxia. More oddly, he subsequently began experiencing seizures in his left arm when doing Sudoku puzzles. He's stopped doing the number puzzles and has been seizure-free for five years.

Last Words

"Now why did I do that?"

— English general William Erskine (1770-1813) after jumping from the window of a tall building in Lisbon, Portugal

To find out more about Scott LaFee and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.