Many Apple investors are quite nervous (and have been for months) about the health of company CEO Steve Job's health - concerned that Apple's co-founder and key creative architect may not survive the year.

Of course, there is no particular basis for this fear, other than 1) Steve's sickly appearance, 2) his history of having beaten back pancreatic cancer and 3) his reluctant admission that he is in fact ailing... from something.

Job's stated issue is a hormone abnormality, which he'll endeavor to resolve with a six month leave absence from the company. However, it took months for Apple to even address the issue, long after speculation regarding Job's gaunt appearance had rankled investor confidence.

Whether handicapping of Job's real or imagined health is fair game for the investorazzi is something the SEC is examining, according to Bloomberg. While not suggesting any wrongdoing, regulators are taking a keen interest in how the handling of Job's illness may have impacted Apple's stock price.

Some aren't waiting for an SEC opinion and are already talking about legal action against Apple over what they see as the company's lack of transparency regarding Job's health.

-- MDT