CAIRO, Egypt - A 27-year-old Egyptian woman gave birth to septuplets early Saturday in the coastal city of Alexandria, family members and the hospital director said.

Ghazala Khamis was in good condition after having a blood transfusion during her Caesarean section due to bleeding, said Emad Darwish, director of the El-Shatbi Hospital where she gave birth.

WASHINGTON - Don't be surprised if your doctor orders a vitamin D test during your next physical.

Blood tests to check levels of the so-called sunshine vitamin are on the rise as doctors and patients react to headline-grabbing research that suggests having too little may not only hurt your bones - it might increase your risk of certain cancers or heart disease.

MONTREAL - The federal government has extended the mandate of the Canadian Mental Health Commission for another five years, Health Minister Tony Clement announced Monday.

Clement said the commission is focused on projects including a mental health strategy, an anti-discrimination campaign and a knowledge-exchange centre.

Commission president Michael Kirby said he hopes to help Canadians change their attitudes toward people with a mental illness.

He said the government will spend $74 million over the next five years.

REGINA - The first human case this year of West Nile virus in Saskatchewan has been confirmed.

A health official with the Regina Qu'Appelle Health Region says it's important for people to protect themselves, even though the number of mosquitoes that carry the virus is low compared with last year.

In 2007, Saskatchewan had the highest number of human cases in Canada at 1,456.

Of those, 113 cases were of the severe neurological variety.

The risk of contracting the virus increases through July and peaks in August.

WASHINGTON - Despite ongoing safety concerns from parents, consumer groups and politicians, a chemical used in baby bottles, canned food and other items is not dangerous, U.S. federal regulators said Friday.

Food and Drug Administration scientists said the trace amounts of bisphenol A that leach out of food containers are not a threat to infants or adults. The plastic-hardening chemical is used to seal canned food and make shatterproof bottles. It also used in hundreds of household items, ranging from sunglasses to CDs.

TORONTO - Most teens consider themselves virtually invincible and seriously misjudge their risk of injury or death from motor vehicle and other accidents, say researchers, who suggest such misguided attitudes could be avoided with injury-prevention programs begun at an early age.

Teenage drivers have the highest rate of injury and death from motor vehicle crashes of any demographic group in Canada, but a study of Toronto high school students found that most adolescents are oblivious to their risk.

WINNIPEG - Manitoba has its first human case of West Nile virus for 2008.

The province's chief medical officer says the victim is a 50-year-old man from the Winnipeg area.

Further investigation is being done to figure out when and where he contracted the virus, as well as how severe his illness is.

Health officials are also looking into another case in a person who lives outside Manitoba, but who may have been infected near Brandon.

There were more than 580 cases of the virus, which is spread by mosquitoes, in the province last year.

People with chronic chest pain who are not in big danger of a heart attack now may have even less reason to rush into an artery-opening angioplasty: There's more evidence drugs should be tried first and often are just as effective.

The slim early advantage for angioplasty at relieving pain in these non-emergency cases starts to fade within six months and vanishes after three years, according to a new report from a landmark heart study.

WINNIPEG - A team of Canadian graduate students and two leading mathematicians is heading to Africa for a unique fight against AIDS and other infectious diseases.

They will travel to Botswana next week for a workshop that aims to teach students how to control the spread of diseases through math equations and formulas.

CHICAGO - You can look great in a swimsuit and still be a heart attack waiting to happen. And you can also be overweight and otherwise healthy.

A new study suggests that a surprising number of overweight people - about half - have normal blood pressure and cholesterol levels, while an equally startling number of trim people suffer from some of the ills associated with obesity.

The first national estimate of its kind bolsters the argument that you can be hefty but still healthy, or at least healthier than has been believed.