5 Things: Diet Soda 'Like Meth' for Your Teeth

1. Mom as Breadwinner: According to the Washington Post, mom is now bringing home the bacon and frying it up in the pan with more frequency – or to be more straightforward, working moms account for 40 percent of household breadwinners, up from just 11 percent in the 1960s. Read on.

2. Toll bill. The House Public Works and Highways Committee today is expected to take up the toll bill, SB 3, sponsored by Senate President Peter Bragdon. The bill would eliminate the toll at Exit 12 in Merrimack, however, committee members during their last discussion of the bill appear to be moving toward tabling the bill until the discussion of the state turnpike system overhaul expected at the end of the year.

3. Before you take a dip: Water quality sampling has begun at public beaches across New Hampshire. The state Department of Environmental Services is posting all information on advisories and test results on their website. All current advisories are also listed. Swim safe!

4. Count Her Out: Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, R-Minnesota, has announced she won't seek reelection, and that "eight years was enough" as an elected official. Of course that frees her up for another presidential campaign, but she hasn't committed to that, either.

5. Are You a Diet Soda Junkie? It's always something. Now, researchers from Temple University are saying heavy consumption of diet soda can damage teeth as badly as methamphetamine or crack cocaine. "You look at it side-to-side with 'meth mouth' or 'coke mouth,' it is startling to see the intensity and extent of damage more or less the same," said Dr. Mohamed Bassiouny, a professor of restorative dentistry at the Temple University School of Dentistry in Philadelphia. My questions: A. What constitutes "heavy" consumption and, B. Should someone have noticed this, like, back in the 1960s?