The Witch-Hunt that’s Taking it To One of America’s Healthiest Food Choices…
December 31, 2010 by admin · Comments Off
Domino's Pizza's domestic sales were falling last year. Then an organization called Dairy Management offered to help. They developed pizzas for Domino's that contained 40 percent more cheese, and then devised and paid for a $12-million marketing campaign.
But Dairy Management is not a private business -- it is a creation of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The USDA helps helm a government anti-obesity program that discourages some of the very foods that Dairy Management is vigorously promoting.
The New York Times reports:
"... [I]n a series of confidential agreements approved by agriculture secretaries in both the Bush and Obama administrations, Dairy Management has worked with restaurants to expand their menus with cheese-laden products."
Memory Foggy? 5 Signs It’s Not Serious
December 30, 2010 by admin · Comments Off
It's natural to feel nervous when you forget something, knowing that Alzheimer's disease now affects 5.3 million Americans. But a memory slip doesn't always mean the worst. According to KPHO, the following five situations point toward normal, age-related memory loss.
- Lapses Don't Interfere With Everyday Life
Slowed recall of information from time to time is normal -- erverybody forgets stuff. What's not normal is when memory impairment interferes with your ability to get through the day.
- You See an Improvement After 'Brain Training'
Dementia is not a problem of retrieving old memories so much as it is is an inability to form new ones. If you can still learn new things, you're still forming new memories.
- You've Just Started A New Medication
Drug side effects are one of the more common causes of memory trouble.
- Nobody Else Seems To Notice Anything's Amiss
Usually, there's a lot of family friction around the kind of memory loss that predates a diagnosis -- arguments over who neglected to do something, missed appointments, or forgotten messages.
- You're Forgetful When Stressed, Sleep Deprived or Multitasking
A stressed brain is not the same thing as a demented brain.
The Lethal Medical Failure That’s Still Recommended by Your Doctor
December 29, 2010 by admin · Comments Off
In April, the government of India called a halt to trials of the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine. This came about because of a civil society-led investigation which highlighted serious ethical violations in at least one trial.
In India, civil society groups have long been voicing their concerns regarding the safety and efficacy of the two HPV vaccines, along with the aggressive promotion of the vaccines and the need to investigate reported deaths and adverse events post vaccination.
According to Economic and Political Weekly, the investigation that led to the ban highlights how:
"... the promotional practices of drug companies, pressure from powerful international organizations, and the co-option of, and uncritical endorsement by India's medical associations are influencing the country's public health priorities."
In the US, only about one third of eligible young U.S. women complete a full course of the vaccine against the human papillomavirus. The older the woman, the less likely she is to have gotten even one of the three doses.
A study looked at almost 10,000 women between the ages of 9 and 26 eligible for HPV vaccination. Of these, only 39.1 percent received a single dose, 30.1 percent received two doses, and 30.8 percent completed the three dose regimen.
According to Yahoo News:
"Women between the ages of 18 to 26 were least likely to get even a single dose, which ... was probably due to the influence of parents on younger women, since parental consent is required for getting the vaccine under age 18."
Manmade Problem Turned Deadlier than AIDS – Is There Still Time to Correct Course?
December 28, 2010 by admin · Comments Off
Animals in factory farms are given doses of antibiotics -- both to keep them alive in stressful, unsanitary conditions, and to make them grow faster. The practice leads to new strains of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, such as the now-widespread form of staph (MRSA) known as ST398.
Federal regulators have in the past refused to release estimates of just how much antibiotics the livestock industry uses. But recently the FDA released its first-ever report on the topic. And the amount? Twenty-nine million pounds of antibiotics in 2009 alone.
According to Grist:
"[T]he Animal Health Institute, a veterinary-drug trade group, estimated total use in livestock at 17.8 million pounds. The industry has been clinging to that number ever since ... [T]he industry figure is woefully off -- about 40 percent lower than the real one."
One of the WORST Winter Mistakes You Can Make if You Live in These “25 Coldest Cities”
December 27, 2010 by admin · Comments Off
The Daily Beast offers a list of the twenty-five coldest cities in America. Here are a few of them --
#1 -- Anchorage, Alaska
Average winter temperature 2009: -0.6 degrees
Coldest day: -41.1 degrees, January 12
Warmest day: 48.2 degrees, March 29
Days with snow: 38 percent#2 -- Grand Forks, North Dakota
Average winter temperature 2009: 14.8 degrees
Coldest day: -32.8 degrees, January 2
Warmest day: 66.2 degrees, March 30
Days with snow: 47 percent#3 -- Bismarck, North Dakota
Average winter temperature 2009: 16.7 degrees
Coldest day: -33 degrees, January 8
Warmest day: 73.9 degrees, March 30
Days with snow: 51 percent#4 -- Fargo, North Dakota
Average winter temperature 2009: 16.8 degrees
Coldest day: -33 degrees, January 2
Warmest day: 68 degrees, March 30
Days with snow: 36 percent#5 -- Watertown, South Dakota
Average winter temperature 2009: 16.9 degrees
Coldest day: -29.2 degrees, January 2
Warmest day: 70 degrees, March 30
Days with snow: 45 percentTo see if your town is on the list, click the Daily Beast link below!
These cold temps can put a damper on your health and mood in more ways than one. For health advice related to these winter months, please see my comment below.
As for your mood, CNN Health offers several tips for maintaining a sunny outlook, regardless of the weather:
"There are simple things you can do to stay positive," says Sonja Lyubomirsky, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at the University of California, Riverside, and author of "The How of Happiness."
"It's important to keep your mood up because it can help you avoid everything from gaining extra pounds to feeling lethargic."
Try these techniques to stay sunny all winter long -- no trip to the Bahamas required!”
Here’s a summary of a few of my favorites. For the rest, please see the original CNN article:
- Winterize your workout -- consider braving the elements: Research shows that exercising outside can lift your spirits, but if the weather won't cooperate, keep a go-to exercise DVD on hand.
- Eat mood-boosting foods -- resist the call of fatty, sugary comfort fare. Highly refined carbs and sugar can wreak havoc on your blood sugar level, which can leave you feeling cranky. Some comfort foods, however, can double as healthy pick-me-ups, especially if they contain mood-boosting nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids, good carbohydrates (think vegetables), protein, and B vitamins.
- Socialize -- set aside some time each day for a "buddy moment," whether that's grabbing a quick lunch with a co-worker or meeting your sister for some exercise.
- Dress for the weather
- See the light -- sunlight increases your vitamin D and serotonin levels. In the winter, most northern areas simply do not provide enough natural sunlight to maintain optimal levels, so to get your fill, consider investing in a light box, which can help combat sluggishness. And any day the sun comes out, be sure to pop outside for some rays.
