Ever wanted to play DJ in spin class? Crunch and SELF magazine are coming together this summer to make that happen. You’ll get to choose the tunes to play in the Songs of Summer Ride this July!

Vote for your favorite summertime jam on self.com for the ultimate Songs of Summer playlist. The winner’s songs of choice will be played during one-hour-long Ride classes around the country on Saturday, July 20. All proceeds go to the Challenged Athlete Foundation.

The Challenged Athletes Foundation® (CAF) mission is to provide opportunities and support to people with physical disabilities so they can pursue active lifestyles through physical fitness and competitive athletics. CAF believes that involvement in sports at any level increases self-esteem, encourages independence and enhances quality of life.

If you would like to enter a chance to win in the Songs of Summer contest and help a challenged athlete at the same time head over to Crunch.com for more info.

According to the National Institute of Health, the brain’s activity after a charitable gesture or random act of kindness (“RAK”) shows a spike in the level of oxytocin coursing through it.  This brain chemical is sometimes referred to as the “Love Hormone” as it also spikes in the early stages of falling in love.  Oxytocin has also been shown to trigger the release of nitrous oxide, which dilates blood vessels, lowers blood pressure and produces an emotional warmth that reduces anxiety.  This brain hormone is actually considered “cardio-protective” among the medical community.  David R. Hamilton, author of “Why Kindness Is Good For You”, points out that on a biochemical level, RAKs also elevate the levels of endogenous opioids, or the the body’s natural versions of morphine and heroin, producing a “Helper’s High”.  He also points out that oxytocin reduces levels of free radicals and inflammation, two primary culprits in the aging process.  Studies using the Tibetan Buddhist “Loving Kindness” meditation demonstrated a reduction in inflammation through its effect on the vagus nerve, which regulates our heart rate and bodily inflammation.

At the University of British Columbia, people with high levels of anxiety were asked to do at least 6 RAKs over the course of a week, like holding doors open, doing chores for someone, donating to charity, paying someone’s toll or buying someone a meal.   The researchers found that these RAKs led to a significant increase in people’s positive moods, higher relationship satisfaction and a decrease in social anxiety.  Sonja Lyubomirsky, Ph.D., professor of psychology at the University of California, has studied happiness for 20 years and her research shows that performing RAKs leads to the most happiness.  David McClelland, behavioral psychologist, has demonstrated that just witnessing RAKs, like Mother Teresa tending to the poor in Calcutta, can significantly boost Immunoglobulin A cells, a critical component of our immune systems.

Stephen Post of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine is president of the Institute for Research on Unlimited Love.  His research on compassion and service has shown that they can delay mortality, reduce depression and increase well-being and good fortune.  Perhaps the most significant finding is that RAKs are contagious!  Much like dropping a pebble into a calm pool of water, they have a ripple effect of geometric proportions.  The health benefits mentioned herein impact not only the donor and recipient of a kind act, but also every single person who in some way witnesses the event.

So you see, your performing RAKs will have measurable health benefits of global magnitude!  To help you do your part, put a sticky note on your bathroom mirror with just the initials RAK on it as a reminder at the beginning of the day to be on the lookout for opportunities to be kind.  Then, at the end of the day, you can look at the same note and hit the sack with that warm emotional feeling and “Helpers High“.

God Bless

PLEASE “SHARE” THIS WITH YOUR FRIENDS ON FACEBOOK , TWITTER AND LINKEDIN.  THANKS!

A doctor told the Federal Oversight Board the engineer driving the train suffered from serious vision problems.

The doctor said the man was colorblind, he couldn’t tell the difference between the red and green signals.

That engineer and two railroad workers were killed when two freight trains collided and caused about $15 million in damages.

The NTSB Safety Board voted 5-0 that the operator’s failing vision was the probable cause of that collision.

The Federal Railroad Administration does not require comprehensive medical screening. 

Instead, they rely on operators to self-report medical conditions to the company. 

No matter what is happening in your life there is always something good to be grateful for.  Every moment is a gift from your Divine so why are you wasting it with griping and complaining?  If you shift your thinking you will shift your life!  According to the Law of Attraction it’s guaranteed so what’s holding you back?  If you are afraid that you’ll never get any better than what you have now then why not just accept your “what is” and BE happy?  Isn’t that better than wasting your time wondering “what if”?  If accepting your “what is” isn’t what you want to do then it’s up to you to do whatever it takes to create the “what is” that you really want.  Acceptance does not equal complacency, no one ever said you have to like it to accept it.  It’s like that saying “Let’s agree to disagree”.  All you are doing is accepting your “what is” in that moment so that you can no longer let your “what is” affect you to the point of creating feelings of want, lack, sadness, anger and/or frustration.  When you accept your “what is” all those lower vibrational feelings will dissipate because you remove the need to feel them and all that is left for you to do is raise your vibrations into a higher realm of gratitude, abundance, happiness, peaceful and/or satisfaction and isn’t this where you always want to live anyway?  Acceptance is the key to your happiness.

Think about it . . .

Love and Sunshine,
Tracy

My health took a ‘turn for the worse’ and I know in the grand scheme of things it wasn’t drastic, but knocked me for six So I’ve been spending some time focusing on me (well, when I’ve not had the family to sort out !) and it was needed.

So now, although I would not say that I am by any means ‘well’, I feel so much better than I did a month ago, and long may this improvement last!!!

So much has happened since I last blogged too: Cruise, another funeral, and loads of trips out to see friends and family. And thrown in the mix there have been a few ‘challenges’ to deal with aswell.

Yet one thing I have learnt over the past few weeks is that if you focus on your health and importantly your wellbeing, the world does seem a much brighter place. That you can deal with the challenges that are thrown at you in a much calmer and positive light. And indeed you learn to ‘not sweat the small stuff’!!

So, I am back on here and happy to be. So watch this space for more blogs and insights into how you can help yourself live and great life and be happy !!

Have a great week!!

Researchers from the Department of Genetics and Morphology and the Institute of Biological Sciencesat the University of Brasilia learned this after feeding test mice various doses of Cry proteins, or Cry toxins, which are insect-killing agents purposely engineered into many GM crops. After administering just one dose of these toxins, the team observed the development of a number of different blood abnormalities, many of which became progressively worse in the week following the single dose.

Even at the lowest dose tested, Cry toxins were observed to induce damage to bone marrow cells and cause anemia, the latter of which is marked by a lack of red blood cells and hemoglobin in the system. And this was in vertebrate mammals, a species that Monsanto and the rest of the biotechnology cabal has long claimed is not affected by Bt toxin and its resultant toxic byproducts. In the end, damage caused by Cry toxin exposure was found to result in severe hematological malignancies such as leukemia, a deadly type of blood cancer.

“[O]ur study demonstrated that Bt spore-crystals genetically modified to express individually Cry1Aa, Cry1Ab, Cry1Ac or Cry2A induced hematotoxicity, particularly to the erythroid lineage,” wrote the authors. “This finding corroborates literature that demonstrated that alkali-solubilized Bt spore-crystals caused in vitro hemolysis in cell lines of rat, mouse, sheep, horse, and human erythrocytes and suggested that the plasma membrane of susceptible cells (erythrocytes, in this case) may be the primary target for these toxins.”

Long-term exposure to GM toxins proven to cause systemic damage to human health

Beyond their inherent toxicity to humans, Cry toxins were also found to activate this toxicity much more easily than previously believed. Rather than have to be exposed to an alkaline pH in the digestive tract of a susceptible species in order to become active, Cry toxins were found to elicit their adverse effects after merely being exposed to distilled water. Cry toxins were also found to bioaccumulate in the body over time, causing progressively more damage in the long term.

“Taking into account the increased risk of human and animal exposures to significant levels of these toxins, especially through diet, our results suggest that further studies are required to clarify the mechanism involved in the hematotoxicity found in mice, and to establish the toxicological risks to non-target organisms, especially mammals, before concluding that these microbiological control agents are safe for mammals,” added the authors.

In other words, there is no sound scientific basis for the use of such toxins in food products consumed by humans, as they are clearly unsafe. Put another way, if independent studies such as this one had been required to be conducted prior to the approval of GM crops with Bt traits, such crops never would have been approved in the first place, as it would have been abundantly evident from the start that they are not safe for human consumption.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/new-study-links-gmo-food-leukemia

http://digitaljournal.com/article/350126

http://www.activistpost.com

Wasn’t planning on posting today, still just reeling from the weekend, but then again, I decided that is probably the best time to try and write.  So here goes……..

Laying here this morning just wore out, depressed and pissed off.  This last Weekend was a tough one.  Saturday I had to pull it together for a Family Funeral.  You know, nothing gets you madder then to spend your days, sunup to sunset worrying about death. You spend your entire time consumed by it.  Everyone around you is constantly talking about it.  Then out of nowhere, one of the 28 year olds in the Family heads out the door to work, and that’s it !  Never heard from again.  I spend all my time now just laying around asking God, ” if I’m on the list, and ready to go, then Why do you keep reaching below me and taking the young ones who still have their whole lives ahead of them?”  Of course that’s a question EVERYONE wants answered.  And one that is rarely answered.

Sunday was another day to add to the depression.  Because of Saturday’s Funeral, My Wife had to work on Sunday, which meant home on Father’s Day with the Kids.   Sure, it was fun…..but wasn’t quite the same.  I was still in that dark place emotionally, as well as physically with Saturday being the first day in about a year that I was out ALL DAY.  Then there was that anticipation of hearing from a few of the Children that I hadn’t heard from in awhile.  Obviously, those calls never came.  One of them I completely expected since it has been about 18 years anyway.  But one can hope.  The other, the ” problem child”, it has been 6 weeks.  And that’s with living a mile away with having to drive by the house 2 times a day to go to work and go home.  And that’s without a fight or argument to start the whole ” stand off” attitude. 

This entire thing is one big Mind Screw to begin with.  But when Children stop coming and stop bringing the Grand Children for no apparent reason, well , it makes you wonder what ever happened to that ” Leave it to Beaver” Family Mentality.  What happened to ” standing by your Family no matter what?”  Well, it’s always been difficult with this particular one, but lately things had been better, so needless to say , once again, just a bit beside myself.  And that brought on the next emotional battle.  The big one.  Daughter number one, being my own personal warrior, caregiver and bodyguard decided enough was enough and the confrontation began.  Really didn’t start out that bad even though it went on and off thruout the night over text messages.  But then Monday it came to a head.  All was not too bad until that one text.  ” With everything going on with us, the stress is just too much.  It gets so hard to handle sometimes”.  Ok, I get that.  Completely, but a quick phone call to explain that would have cleared it all up.  But then came the second part of the text.  The part that would bring Family emotions from the last 8 or 9 years floating to the top.  ” Sometimes I just feel like it would be easier if Dad would just go.”  Replace go with a 3 letter word beginning with D and ending with E.   Still just cant write it. 

And that was it.  It began with Daughter number 1 exploding, which then seeped over to the Wife, resulting in an explosion of unprecedented proportions, and didn’t resolve itself or end until I finally decided that it was now the time to just go our own ways.  It had been building for many years, and frankly I had thought that we would sneak thru until the end.  But that didn’t happen.  Instead I had to make that decision that stress, tension, and depression are all part of this, for all of us, but I just couldn’t allow the ” un necessary” to continue.  So instead of holding my Child in my arms I had to tell her just to move on with Her Family since it was just too hard for things to continue this way.

That was definitely bad enough.  But that wasn’t the only bomb to drop on Monday.  You see, Monday are ” check in ” days here.  One week it’s testing with the docs to see where we stand, and the following week is results day.  Of course, this would be the latter.  And the results weren’t good.  Finally found out the one thing worse than cancer.  If you are lucky enough to ” out live” your diagnosis, well, there is the all issue of your Body out living it as well.  Problem with that is, when it starts to get tired, things just start shutting down.  Plain and simple.  Which is where we are now.  Kidney function is ” starting to slow”.  ok.  no prob.  New Medications that I cant even pronounce to help slow the inevitable.  But then more issues with that.  You need the meds to slow the oncoming failure, but by doing that you take yourself out of ” Hospice Eligibility”.  Yup….one Conundrum right after the next.  At least in my case, HHC or VA Home Health Care isn’t just about Comfort Care.  So for me, no problem.  But it brought to mind all those others that would have ended their care with the swallowing of a little green pill.

So, There ya have it.  Why I haven’t blogged, why I haven’t really been on.  I am in such a deep , dark, devastating place right now, I don’t think a thousand Naked Jennifer Love Hewitt’s could pull me out right now.  Then again.  Maybe today will be different ?

So, how do you know if your relationship is heading for or is already on the rocks? Start by examining your relationships habits.  What are the good habits in your relationship? Which would you say are the bad? Reflect on the list below to help you in your evaluation.

Good Relationship Habits

• Showing Your Love
• Settling Disputes Calmly
• Keeping Your Relationship Details Private
• Spending Time Together
• Spending Time Apart Once in Awhile
• Thinking of Your Partner When Making Decisions
• Remembering that Every Person, Couple, & Marriage Is Different
• Open and Honest Communication

Bad Relationship Habits

• Overanalyzing
• Playing the Silent Game Or Avoiding Your Partner
• Screaming At Each Other
• Keeping Secrets
• Lack of Affection
• Teasing Your Partner
• Smothering
• Constantly on the Cell Phone or iPad

Hopefully, at this point you both are ready to stop fighting and start actively expressing your love.  If you want your relationship to start running smoothly again then you need to learn how to control your anger and/ or aggressiveness and accept each other’s imperfections and indifferences.

Want to be “Rock Solid”? Then start implementing these changes today!

• Support Each Other: We all experience our share of daily stressors but knowing you have an encouraging and compassionate partner makes life’s difficulties easier to handle.

• Start Talking: Take time out weekly to share what’s going on in your lives. This is a great opportunity to reconnect and have a deep conversation. We so often become easily distracted by our work, social, and family life.

• Stop Playing the Comparison Game: It’s important to remember that every relationship is different. Each consists of its own rules and agreements. So start focusing on what is best for the two of you.

• For Every Negative say Something Positive: Instead of starting the conversation with attacking your partner, start by first saying how much you love them.  They will be less defensive when listening to your frustrations.

• Stop Screaming at Each Other: Nothing good ever comes out of a screaming match. If you truly want your voice heard and needs met, then control your anger and express your feelings calmly. Just because you’re the loudest doesn’t mean anyone is listening.

• Challenge Yourselves: If you want to maintain a long, healthy, and loving relationship then you need to work hard at it. It could be something as simple as agreeing to give each other one positive compliment daily.

I hope you all found this post helpful! Once again, I look forward to hearing from all of you and responding to any relationship questions.  You can find me on twitter at @biancamachin.  Please feel free to drop me a line on here, at Co-op Closet or on twitter.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013 by: Sarka-Jonae Miller

(NaturalNews) Walking is one the most preferred ways to lose weight and stay in shape. It’s natural, it’s free, and it’s effective. Some people try to enhance their walking workouts with exercise accessories and following certain guidelines. There are ways to boost your walking workouts so that you burn more calories, but there are definitely tricks you shouldn’t try. Learn safe methods to get the most of your workouts with this list of dos and don’ts.

Don’t use dumbbells

Back in the 80s everyone had crazy clothes and insane ideas about exercise. A common thing to see in an aerobics class or on the streets were people swinging dumbbells around or wearing ankle weights in hopes to burn more calories. It didn’t matter how uncomfortable or silly they looked, uncomfortable and silly were the status quo in the 80s. Music and movies from the 80s thankfully survived the test of time, but unfortunately so did some exercise ideas.

Research shows that walking with one-pound dumbbells in your hands does nothing for the overall calories burned in a workout. A study published in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness in 2002 found that women swinging around three-pound dumbbells and 1.5-pound ankle weights during an aerobic workout burned no more calories than the women doing the same workout without the extras. You might think that the solution is to hold heavier weights while engaging in cardio. Although you may see a miniscule increase in overall calories used, the potential damage to your shoulders and elbows from the strain of holding 5-pound or heavier weights makes it not worth it. Your knees and hips are strained when you walk with ankle weights.

Bottom line: Ditch the dumbbells during cardio

Do use walking poles

Although hand weights are a bad idea, holding walking poles does make walking more effective for burning calories. Walking poles work your upper body, improve your balance, and cause you to burn between 20 and 45 percent more calories.

Bottom line: Walking poles look a little silly, but the short time you use them during workouts will improve how you look the rest of the time.

Do ditch the sidewalk and hit the trails

Free yourself from the concrete jungle and hit the trails, hiking trails that is. Walking on a trail challenges your balance, which ups your overall calories by up to 82 percent.

Bottom line: Trail walking burns almost double the amount of calories as walking on pavement.

Don’t walk slowly thinking you’ll burn more fat

People still believe that walking slower leads to fat loss because the body uses more calories from fat when at rest. The problem is that pounds of fat are made up of calories, so losing weight is really a numbers game. The more calories you burn, the more fat you lose. Therefore, pick up the pace. Brisk walking at 3 to 4 mph gets you into a moderate intensity workout zone, which is the minimum for a decent workout not only to lose weight but to increase cardiovascular fitness. Walking at 4.7 mph burns as many calories as jogging.

Bottom line: Walking as quickly as you can gets you to your weight loss goal faster than strolling at a pleasant pace.

Soul Deceiver. The world adores him, but secretly, he is luring their souls on a one-way ticket to hell. If you like action, suspense, and mystery, check out newly released novel by Lyn Leahz, Soul Deceiver, BOOK ONE in the fast-paced Eternal Soul Series. Recommended by Walid Shoebat & Joel Richardson .. It’s a page turner! CLICK BOOK PHOTO to find out more!

Cow’s milk was so “healthy for us” that not only did our parents encourage us to drink it, but our family doctors also raved about how “great” it was.

Fast forward to today, and research, scientific studies, and data all paint a different story. For starters, cow’s milk is the number one allergy in children in our country. In truth, cow’s milk is extremely difficult for humans to digest. Moreover, human beings are the only species on the planet that continues to drink milk throughout their lives.

Furthermore, research suggests that drinking cow’s milk contributes to obesity, has been linked to developing cancer, and may actually cause osteoporosis, rather than prevent it.

5 Worrisome Facts About Dairy

1. Because humans consume so much dairy, female cows are forced to suffer at dairy farms and produce milk at rates that leave their body weak, drained, and make them prone to infection and disease. Female cows are artificially inseminated every year to keep their milk supply active. Through hormone supplements, each cow will produce around 20,000 pounds of milk per year. These hormones remain in cow’s milk even after it’s pasteurized. The hormones found in dairy have been linked to early puberty, cancer, and acne.

2. Baby calves never drink their mothers milk. Instead, all of her milk is saved for human consumption. Additionally, baby calves are taken from their mothers within one to two days of birth. This causes immense suffering in both mother and baby.

3. Once pasteurized, milk loses most, if not all of its nutritional value. However, studies have shown that drinking almond or soy milk provides adequate amounts of calcium and protein, and contains less saturated fat, sugar, calories and sodium.

4. Factory farming is bad for the environment. Together, animals who reside on factory farms and dairy farms account for 1.65 billion tons of manure per year. Most of this waste ends up contaminating our water supply.

5. Because of the high demand placed on female cows to produce large quantities of milk each year, many of them suffer through painful infections such as Mastitis. Knowing this, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allows  750 million pus cells per liter of milk — the highest in the world.

A mother’s milk is the best milk for her baby, however cow’s milk was simply not meant for human consumption — and yet, most humans eat a diet incredibly reliant on dairy. It’s quite plausible that our nations dairy dependence will one day be the death of us.

-QC Writer, CBS Radio

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/06/19/children-death-causes.aspx?e_cid=20130619_DNL_art_2&utm_source=dnl&utm_medium=email&utm_content=art2&utm_campaign=20130619

Yesterday’s Meal

Breakfast

Ham and Cheese Omelette • Coffee

Mid-morning Snack

None

Lunch

Lentil Soup

Mid-afternoon Snack

None

Dinner

Protein Shake

Exercise

Circuit Training • Elliptical

Cow’s milk was so “healthy for us” that not only did our parents encourage us to drink it, but our family doctors also raved about how “great” it was.

Fast forward to today, and research, scientific studies, and data all paint a different story. For starters, cow’s milk is the number one allergy in children in our country. In truth, cow’s milk is extremely difficult for humans to digest. Moreover, human beings are the only species on the planet that continues to drink milk throughout their lives.

Furthermore, research suggests that drinking cow’s milk contributes to obesity, has been linked to developing cancer, and may actually cause osteoporosis, rather than prevent it.

5 Worrisome Facts About Dairy

1. Because humans consume so much dairy, female cows are forced to suffer at dairy farms and produce milk at rates that leave their body weak, drained, and make them prone to infection and disease. Female cows are artificially inseminated every year to keep their milk supply active. Through hormone supplements, each cow will produce around 20,000 pounds of milk per year. These hormones remain in cow’s milk even after it’s pasteurized. The hormones found in dairy have been linked to early puberty, cancer, and acne.

2. Baby calves never drink their mothers milk. Instead, all of her milk is saved for human consumption. Additionally, baby calves are taken from their mothers within one to two days of birth. This causes immense suffering in both mother and baby.

3. Once pasteurized, milk loses most, if not all of its nutritional value. However, studies have shown that drinking almond or soy milk provides adequate amounts of calcium and protein, and contains less saturated fat, sugar, calories and sodium.

4. Factory farming is bad for the environment. Together, animals who reside on factory farms and dairy farms account for 1.65 billion tons of manure per year. Most of this waste ends up contaminating our water supply.

5. Because of the high demand placed on female cows to produce large quantities of milk each year, many of them suffer through painful infections such as Mastitis. Knowing this, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allows  750 million pus cells per liter of milk — the highest in the world.

A mother’s milk is the best milk for her baby, however cow’s milk was simply not meant for human consumption — and yet, most humans eat a diet incredibly reliant on dairy. It’s quite plausible that our nations dairy dependency will one day be the death of us.

-QC Writer, CBS Radio

“The good news is, you’re not going to die,” he told me after looking over my test results. “You’ll never be a runner, but you should be able to live a fairly normal life.”

And I was like no shit I’ll never be a runner, I weigh 175 pounds and my idea of athletics is spraying Cheez Whiz on crackers while watching half-naked men swim at the Olympics. Instead of taking it as a challenge, I looked at it as a get-out-of-exercise-free card. And for the next year or so, my weight continued to balloon to the point where I glanced at a photo on Facebook from a friend’s wedding and thought to myself, “Who is that fat girl wearing the same dress as me?” When I looked closer, I realized I was the fat girl. So that kind of sucked.

And in case you think I’m exaggerating:

Fat girl wearing my dress.

Giant me in front of a giant sequoia tree (along with my super-fit siblings).

Obviously I knew I had weight to lose, but was too self-conscious to go to the gym since I could barely use the elliptical machine for more than 10 minutes without becoming drenched in sweat. So instead I counted calories. I had friends try and convince me to do all kinds of gimmicky diets (even one that involved drinking hormones from pregnant ladies’ pee!) but instead of “dieting,” I decided to create new eating habits that I could sustain my entire life. Instead of depriving myself, I left myself eat a cheeseburger for lunch if I felt like it. I’d just eat veggies for dinner instead of a huge helping of pasta and half a loaf of bread, like the old Heather would have. Slowly but steadily the weight came off, until I felt comfortable enough being seen in public wearing gym shorts. There was a lot of self-tanner and internal pep talks involved.

My first day at the gym I thought about what that doctor said about me never being a runner, and out of curiosity I hopped on the treadmill just to see what I could manage. The answer was: Not much. Like, I could barely run for a minute straight at a 12-minute pace. So I lifted weights occasionally and stuck to the elliptical for my cardio, and managed to shed close to 40 pounds.

My fitness/diet routine stayed pretty much the same until January of this year. I was going through a bunch of life changes that at the time felt pretty shitty. I needed a goal; something to work toward and feel good about. And for some reason that damn heart doctor popped back into my mind.

“You’ll never be a runner.”

That night I texted my mom and told her, “I want to run a half marathon this year.”

So I did.

Via Instagram

Suck on that, Mr. Cardiologist.

Gallup’s ongoing “State of the American Workforce” survey reveals that America is largely a nation of working automatons, with most people not feeling emotional ties to what they do and sizeable numbers actively seeking to sabotage their colleagues and managers.  

via 70 Percent of Americans ‘Emotionally Disconnected’ at Work: Shocking Poll Reveals Workforce Zombieland | Alternet.

Related articles

• Everything Americans Think They Know About Drugs Is Wrong: A Scientist Explodes the Myths | Alternet (habariganiamerica.com)
• Amazon Cancels ZOMBIELAND Series – “Hated out of Existence” (geektyrant.com)
• Vermont has less-than-enthusiastic workforce, according to Gallup (vtdigger.org)

Sex in Ancient Rome

“I’ll never forget,” Michael says. “All he did was put a tongue depressor on my tongue. I just looked—I saw the look in his eye. He pulled back, and he looked at me, and said, ‘Well, I guess we’re going to need a little biopsy on that.’”. He is now cancer free.

Read more: http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Hollywood-Legend-Michael-Douglas-Tells-All/2#ixzz2WfE3Dzp3

Throat cancer can kill
Many throat cancer patients are not this fortunate; they may not be diagnosed in time to survive this quick progressing scrouge of the mouth, larynx and voice box. It kills more men than women. In recent times there has been an alarming rise in throat cancer, especially among men. There are many risk factors for throat cancer. Among them oral sex and the biological microorganism, HPV, are suspected to play an increasing role in recent years. HPV or the Human Papilloma Virus, has been shown to have an association with various cancers of the neck of both men and women, in addition to cancers of the cervix in women. During oral sex, the micro-organism, HPV might be transferred between males and females, or between males and males, or between females and females. HPV does not discriminate.  HPV is a common cause of sexually transmitted disease (STD) and is spread during unprotected sex with an infected partner. Read more.

Symptoms
Listed below are some of the general symptoms and warning signs of head and neck cancer listed by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center of New York, which treated and cured actor Michael Douglas of his throat cancer, after an attentive Canadian doctor diagnosed his “persistent sore throat” needed a biopsy.
* blood in the sputum
* persistent sore throat
* persistent hoarseness or a change in the voice
* persistent pain in the neck, throat, or ears
* difficulty chewing, swallowing, or moving the jaws or tongue
* numbness in the tongue or other areas
* a lump or swelling in the neck

Throat cancer is the cancer of the mouth, larynx, voice box, thyroid
Throat cancer is not a medical term. In hospitals it is under the term Head and Neck cancers. The medical name for the throat is the pharynx. The easiest way to think of this is as a passage that makes sure food and drink go in one direction (down the food pipe). Cancers are treated according to where they started and the type of cell they started from. The treatment for mouth cancer will not be the same as treatment for cancer of the voice box. Each year, approximately 48,000 Americans are diagnosed with a head or neck cancer (not including skin cancers that occur in the head or neck). These tumors account for up to 5 percent of all cancers in the US.

Oral Cancer
Cancer of the oral cavity (mouth) is the most common type of head and neck cancer. Nearly 30,000 new cases of oral cancer are diagnosed in the US each year. Oral cancer can begin in the lips, the gums, the area behind the molars or wisdom teeth, the inside of the lips and cheeks, the floor and roof (hard palate) of the mouth, and the front of the tongue. Most oral cancers arise in the tongue, the lip, the floor of the mouth, and the minor salivary glands. The rest are found in the gums and other sites.(Read more).
Your dentist is your first line of prevention – most oral cancers are first detected by the dentist!

Laryngeal Cancer
The cancer that arises in the voice box (larynx) — is the second most common type of head and neck cancer. An estimated 12,000 new cases of laryngeal cancer are diagnosed in the US each year. The vast majority of laryngeal cancers occur in men. People with aplastic anemia, a blood disorder associated with certain hereditary conditions, exposure to chemical inhalants like asbestos, deficiency in vitamins A and E, may have a higher risk of developing laryngeal cancer. The most common symptoms of laryngeal cancer include hoarseness, ear pain, a neck lump in the neck near the adam’s apple and difficulty swallowing. Read more.

Pharyngeal (Throat) Cancer
Prior infection with human papillomavirus (HPV) is also a particularly strong risk factor for this cancer site (Read more). The cancer of the pharynx or throat is in three areas of the throat:
- uppper part of the throat, nasopharynx
- middle part of the throat, oropharynx
- bottom part of the throat, hypopharynx
An estimated 11,800 people develop pharyngeal cancers in the US alone, but nasopharynx cancer is much more common in Asia, the Mediterranean area, and Africa than in the US. A lump in the throat is the most common symptom with nosebleeds as a frequent symptom. The living with mouth and oropharyngeal cancer pages cover coping with your diagnosis and the possible effects of cancer and treatment on your appearance, diet, breathing, speech and sex life. Read more.

Throat cancer is squamous cell cancer
Squamous cell cancer is the type of cancer which remains restricted to a specific region. Read more.

Prevention
This cancer is considered preventable. Read more. Visits to the dentist is the first line of screening for oral cancer! A poor diet, a weakened immune system and prior exposure to the Human Papilloma virus (HPV) among other exposure factors that are preventable.

Screening
An annual examination for such cancers of the Head and Neck is highly recommended if you suspect a risky lifestyle factor. The annual visit to the dentist is an additional recommended screening for oral cancer. The Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center of New York, hosts a free screening for this cancer every spring funded by The Yul Brynner Foundation. Do check your local hospitals. They too may host free screenings, or dental visits or group chats with people having similar symptoms and worries. Physicians have found that seeking out people who share your similar concerns about this cancer has helped in therapy.

KEEP YOUR THROAT PRETTY!

Stirling Walking Network, photo courtesy of Paths for All

Falling should not be an expected part of ageing and the good news is there are simple steps everyone can take to reduce their risk.    Here at Paths for All, we’ve been developing group Health Walks for older adults for over 10 years because we’ve long known the benefits of walking and being active.

Being active alone, improves mobility and keeps bones strong. Scotland’s Chief Medical Officer recommends we should be active for at least 150 minutes per week, that’s 30 minutes on 5 days of the week. Achieving this reduces risk of many diseases including strokes and diabetes, gives a stronger heart, reduces instance of dementia and gives stronger bones – all resulting in a longer, healthier more independent life.

The exciting news is that when walking is combined with Strength and Balance exercises – the improvements to functional fitness, bone density and reduction in falls is even greater.  We’ve just launched a toolkit of exercises ‘Walk Your Way to Better Strength and Balance’ – a programme of 10 simple exercises, such as knee bends and toe raises, to perform at least twice a week, with a daily walk.

Walkers from Stirling Walking Network who were among the first to use our Strength and Balance exercises alongside their existing weekly Health Walks felt the benefits, saying:

“My balance when walking has greatly improved. I feel much more confident, and I don’t wobble nearly so much. I can carry my cup of coffee without spilling it!”

 “I have found the “tip toe” exercises useful. I can now reach up to my high shelves, and I no longer need to ask for help.”

 “A great way to help yourself to stay independent, and improve your overall health”

Dawn Skelton, Professor in ageing and health at Glasgow Caledonian University recommends the combination of walking with strength and balance exercises to boost health and help people live independently for longer. She gives this simple advice ‘a bit of effort can bring a huge return. It’s never too late to start.’

Paths for All’s Walk Your Way to Better Strength and Balance toolkit includes a set of laminated cue cards for easy demonstration in groups and a leaflet to take home and practice. If you’re looking to organise a class or group activity, we also offer training.  Visit www.pathsforall.org.uk/strength to find out more.   Paths for All Health Walks, are short, free, safe, sociable group walks and are led by a trained Walk Leader. Walks take place all across Scotland – find one near you www.pathsforall.org.uk.

According to the latest statistics, some 10 million people and half of all tourists develop Delhi belly every year as a result of both Escherichia coli (E. coli) and salmonella, the two types of bacteria targeted by the new vaccine, as well as typhoid fever. These conditions can ultimately ruin a vacation, leaving a person stricken with cramps, diarrhea, dehydration and fever symptoms for up to two weeks or more, which is often the duration of an entire trip.

But the legal drug cartel says it has the answer to this epidemic, which is allegedly as simple as ingesting a little bit of powder in a pill prior to vacationing. Clinical trials involving humans are expected to begin towards the end of 2013, but in the meantime, researchers are pushing the new pills as some kind of breakthrough cure for what basically amounts to “getting the runs” while traveling or going on vacation.

“The vaccine we have produced is a powder so it is very stable and does not need to be kept in cold storage,” says Professor Nigel Slater from the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology at the University of Cambridge. “Nor does it carry any of the problems associated with needles. It is currently targeting two main bacteria: the E. coli that causes Delhi belly, and salmonella that causes typhoid.”

Why vaccinate when you can avoid bacterial infections by eating healthy?

As great as this all might sound in theory, many others are leery of the new vaccine, which is merely the latest in a long line of new vaccines for virtually every known condition under the sun. Rather than take a vaccine for these conditions, say some, a better option is to simply boost one’s immunity by supplementing with high doses of vitamin C, for instance, or avoiding refined sugars and processed carbohydrates.

“Since the purpose of the body’s immune system is to defend against attack and help initiate repair, the better it does it, the healthier we are,” explains natural health guru Jon Barron on his blog. “Surprisingly, not only are the natural immune boosters and pathogen destroyers safer than the drug approach (having far fewer side effects); they are also far more powerful than their pharmaceutical counterparts.”

Barron recommends eating clean, organic foods whenever possible; avoiding refined sugars like high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS); limiting intake of coffee and other sources of caffeine; reducing alcohol consumption; intaking more omega-3 fatty acids; avoiding toxic food additives like genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) and artificial sweeteners; and eating alkaline-promoting foods that naturally raise your pH levels.

You can read Barron’s full report on immunity here:

http://www.jonbarron.org/topic/immunity

Sources for this article include:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-06-11/vaccine-for-delhi-belly/4747344

http://www.jonbarron.org/topic/immunity

That classic image of a cinema chair creaking under the pressure of an over-weight movie buff, with a XL bag of popcorn in one hand and a large cup of Coca Cola in the other, is one we’ve all seen before. But is this image now out-dated and are trips to your local movie theatre not as bad for your health as you think?

Over recent years the cinema has been labelled with a bad reputation because of all the unhealthy snacks, sweets and chocolate they sell to movie-goers. But the food on sale here is no different to the food available in local supermarkets. So are people focusing to much on the potentially unhealthy snacks and not giving cinemas enough credit for (sometimes inadvertently) trying to banish the old stereotypical image?!

Once you have gotten over the initial shock of being charged £12.80! to watch the latest Transformers or Pirates of the Caribbean movies in 3D, you usually head over to the confectionery stand – And this is the first step cinema’s have (unintentionally) made towards attempting to lower the levels of obesity in this country. Charging customers £3.30 for a half-full bag of M&Ms, over £4 for a small bag of popcorn and just under £4 for a Coke is ridiculously expensive! So with prices being so extortionately high, some movie fans are deciding not to purchase any treats at all, and thus are not cramming a large amount of fatty foods into their mouths.

Most cinemas do sell hot-dogs, pizzas, nachos and ice cream, but I for one have never seen anyone in a screening eating any of those items. These items are obviously unhealthy for the human body and a diet that regularly includes these snacks can only lead to health/weight problems. However, once again the cinema surroundings have come up trumps. When you’re actually sat watching a movie the room is so dark that it’s sometimes hard to see the person sat next to you, never mind be able to guide a big greasy slice of pizza from the box into your mouth successfully.

When leaving the screen room you will find it hard not to notice the huge amount of food that is actually on the floor instead of being in people’s stomachs. So therefore people are actually only eating half of what they ordered, because the sheer darkness of the movie theatre makes it nigh on impossible to eat all those nachos without missing your mouth.

More and more people are now striving to get the bodies of movie stars – both men and women. When you sit down to watch a film it won’t take long for your mind to start processing certain thoughts. I wished I looked like him, I bet with a bit of work I could look like her, I wonder what their fitness routine is? Whether you’ve just seen Daniel Craig in his James Bond swim trunks, Henry Cavill in his Superman outfit or Jennifer Anniston in a figure-hugging dress. People feel compelled to read magazines and articles about these people as they look to take inspiration from the silver screen and get in shape.

With more and more cinema complexes expanding, that means more steps are needed to climb. More often than not the best seats in the house are right at the back/top. And to get to those you need to climb a fair amount of steps. Climbing steps is regarded as an easy and efficient form of exercise. So if you arrive early enough you can secure the best seats and squeeze in a bit of a cardio workout!

And of course what people sometimes forget is happiness is key to your health. If you’ve spent the last two hours getting lost in the world on entertainment and fiction, you are almost certainly going to walk back out into the light with a smile on your face and be in a good more for the rest of the day!

So there you have it, the cinema’s are definitely changing. You don’t have to worry about piling on the pounds (because you can’t afford to), you can squeeze in a quick workout on the stairs and you may leave with a new found determination of looking like Bradley Cooper one day!

This is an amazing opportunity for our team to grow, learn and continue with the momentum we have built in 2013. We used the money I won from the Team Beachbody Challenge to pay for our tickets.

While there, we will have the opportunity to connect with other coaches (many of whom I have worked out with in various Challenge Groups over the last 2 1/2 years) learn from some of the best coaches in the business and workout with the trainers you know and love from programs like P90X, Insanity and TurboFire.

If you are interested in learning more about what Beachbody Coaching is all about, check out This Link and This Link.

And, you can always make me your Coach by following this link and signing up for a free Team Beachbody account (if you already have an account, switching Coaches is easy, let me know through email, the comments section, or through our Team Facebook Page.)

If you want to follow our journey, there are a number of ways to do so:

Follow Me on Twitter @CoachTerryG

Follow Me on Instagram @Terry4505

“Like” our Team Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/teamBEARfitness

The thing I am most excited about (aside from potentially running into Shaun T.) is the excusive “White Party” that we received access to. It is only because of the success of our team, meaning your commitment to your health and fitness, that I was invited to this. Without you all, none of this would be happening.

Thank you again, you guys are amazing. Your motivation and commitment pushes me to work harder for you every day.