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You're looking at the healthiest metro in American, says the ACSM.

Twin Citians defended our championship as the most healthy and fit metro in the land, says the American College of Sports Medicine in its 2012 American Fitness Index.

Researchers examined dozens of "personal" and "community" health indicators, including diet, exercise, smoking, chronic disease rates, availability of parks and athletic fields, school policies regarding physical education, access to health care -- even the percentage of residents who bike or walk to work. And for the second straight year, MSP topped the list.

The Twin Cities ended up with 19 "Areas of Excellence," compared to just four "Improvement Priority Areas," including a low percentage of folks eating enough fruits and veggies, high asthma rates, relatively few acres of parkland per capita, and relatively few swimming pools per capita. Hey, nobody's perfect, right?

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The public health building is making workers sick.

Well, this is ironic.

Workers have been moved out of the Goodhue County public health building in Red Wing after workers complained to the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Division that the building has a "very strong" shit odor, a leaky ceiling with visible mold, and is causing employees to develop headaches and nausea.

OSHA sent a letter detailing the complaints to the county earlier this month, and Goodhue County administrators immediately began moving affected workers out of the building. The entire structure should be evacuated by June 1.

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A monkeypox-infected hand.

A Detroit-to-Chicago flight was quarantined for three hours yesterday on Midway Airport's tarmac due to suspicions that a Red Wing, Minn., woman might have contracted monkeypox in Uganda.

Lisa Sievers, 50, was on her way back to Minnesota after spending more than three months in Uganda trying to finalize the adoption of two children. She had a rash that authorities suspected might have been symptomatic of monkeypox, a contagious disease that occurs mostly in western Africa and causes victims to break out in small, crusty bumps.

Turns out it was a false alarm, albeit a scary one -- Sievers had just been eaten half to death by bugs.

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Never fear -- your postal worker is here!

Neither rain, nor sleet, nor plume of weapons-grade anthrax stays these couriers come May 6.

That Sunday, the Minnesota Department of Health will launch a dry run of an anthrax attack response using postal workers and law enforcement escorts. It's a strategy that's been studied nationally since 2004, but no one has tried "Operation Medicine Delivery" in a full scale test until now.

"We're doing it with actual people out on the street," says Jane Braun, director of emergency preparedness.

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Sexy sex is less sexy if you get a whole buncha germs.

According to a new report out from the Minnesota Department of Health, 2011 was a banner year for STDs.

Finishing out the year with a record-setting 16,898 reported cases, chlamydia came out on top in the race to screw up our sex lives. Left untreated, that is a nasty little disease that can have real consequences, especially for women.

"There's a pretty strong possibility it can lead to infertility," says Peter Carr, manager of the STD and HIV Section.

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Fridley's cancer rate is "not unusual," the state concludes.

Last month, an epidemiologist at the Minnesota Department of Health found that Fridley's cancer rate is about 10 percent above the statewide norm -- a finding that prompted environmental activist Erin Brockovich to announce her investigative team is looking into possible causes of the so-called Fridley cancer cluster.

Today, a new state analysis concludes Fridley's cancer problem isn't as pronounced as it first seemed. The analysis also suggests Anoka County's historically high smoking rate might be partly to blame for Fridley's elevated cancer rate.

"Fridley's elevated overall cancer rate appears to be due largely to its high lung cancer rate," says a Health Department news release.

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A new Mayo study finds that skin cancer rates in Olmsted County have risen dramatically in the last 40 years.

​A new Mayo Clinic study found a dramatic rise in skin cancer rates among young people, with a particularly sharp increase for young women.

The study, which looked at melanoma rates for 18- to 39-year-olds in 85-percent-white Olmsted County, found that from 1970 to 2009, the incidence of melanoma increased eight-fold among women and four-fold among men. Minnesota as a whole is also roughly 85 percent white.

Though researchers didn't look at what's behind the rising cancer rates, some suggested the increase is correlated with the use of indoor tanning beds.

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Someone has been using Edgewater's pools as their own personal bathroom.

​Stop pooping in pools, people.

The Minnesota Department of Health said yesterday that nine people are suspected to have Cryptosporidium (or Crypto) after swimming at Duluth's Edgewater Resort and Water Park.

Crypto causes flu-like symptoms and diarrhea. It is caused by a parasite commonly spread through fecal matter, otherwise known as "poop."

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Fridley's elevated cancer rate is among Brockovich's 100 more urgent cases.

​Erin Brockovich's investigative team is looking into Fridley's elevated cancer rates.

Two months ago, concerns about the cause of Fridley's elevated cancer rates motivated residents to create a "Fridley Cancer Cluster" Facebook group. More than 440 members have used the page to share anecdotes about cancer-afflicted Fridley residents.

State data indicates that rates for certain cancers are indeed elevated in Fridley, and some residents believe it might have something to do with water contamination in the city. Brockovich heard about the issue and wrote to the Facebook group's founder, saying, "I am deeply sorry to hear about the situation in Fridley, Minnesota, and will be investigating this matter further."

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Homer would have an easier time running if he lived in the Twin Cities instead of Springfield.

​Spring has arrived in the Twin Cities, which, for many of us, means canceling gym memberships and getting our butts outside for some sun-soaked exercise.

This will come as no surprise to those who have gotten in the habit of using the Twin Cities' beautiful trails, but according to a new list compiled by Forbes, we live in one of the best metros for runners.

Well-maintained, dedicated pedestrian trails around picturesque lakes, complete with great views of the city: What more could you ask for as you get outside and try to shake off those few extra pounds we all pack on during the drab days of winter?

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