Why Do We Refuse To Give Up The Smoking Ghost?
Smokers are finding it increasingly difficult to partake of the habit, due to the widespread adoption of smoking bans around the world. In America, the federal government has yet to enact a nationwide ban on smoking, and has left the future of smoking to state or county legislation. Twenty-seven states have passed legislation against smoking and enacted their own policies designed to limit the use of tobacco products in one form or another. New York will pass a statewide smoking ban in public places, which will take effect on May 23, 2011. This trend has garnered a lot of momentum over the years, due to the increased awareness of the dangers of smoking and secondhand smoke, yet it’s not having the desired affect, since statistics on smoking habits have remained stagnant.
Smoking is a systemic problem and an addiction afflicting millions of people worldwide. It’s many negative affects on the body, both short and long-term, have been exhaustively researched and presented to the public. Yet even after diligence towards education on the dangers and risks of smoking, the problem persists. Overall numbers have decreased over the years from the success of conclusive health studies, statistics, and successful stop-smoking campaigns, but it hasn’t had the desired affect. The issue is pandemic and implies that some users find smoking has an acceptable level of health risk over not smoking. The UK banned smoking in some areas, beginning in 2004. Since then, the UK has continued passing restrictions on the practice, but the country is finding the public has been incredibly resilient to continue these measures.
The simple fact is people are still choosing to smoke. This can be due, in some part, to aggressive product campaigns from tobacco companies to promote their product and other smokeless alternatives, such as Snus and the electronic cigarette. Though some of these tobacco alternatives have been successful, it’s been relatively moderate, which suggests consumers prefer to smoke. The longevity of this market, in the midst of worldwide bans, is surprising and speaks to how ingrained the product is in our social identity and consciousness. People associate many products and identities with smoking.
It’s still not completely clear why people continue to partake of such a harmful habit. Is it because people find the risk attractive? Is it the sex appeal? Is it the addictive properties? Is it the associative and communal practice that makes it so enticing? Or is it because human beings are self-destructive in nature? Maybe it’s a culmination of all these factors, but it’s definitely not due to lack of education or option. There are myriad approaches, governmental organizations, and groups with the sole purpose of getting users to quit smoking. Only a continued commitment and diligence will turn the tide against this struggle to wean people off this harmful practice.
How to Get Fit and Healthy Through Exercise
I know, this is a message that we’ve all heard in various guises over the years, but the fact of the matter is that people are getting fatter and unhealthier every year. There are a great number of reasons for this, such as the abundance of cheap, greasy but very tasty fast foods, and a universal ignorance of the real sugar and fat contents of so-called ‘convenience foods’. In fact, it would take me days to fully list all the reasons that human beings are becoming more obese, but I don’t have the time or the energy to that, and one thing I’ve realised is that overweight and unhealthy people are very good at making excuses for their expanding waistlines. So it’s time to stop making these excuses, because there are ways and means for anyone to give up bad eating habits and start exercising.
If you want to lose some weight, tone up, or even just get a bit healthier, the best thing to do is set yourself achievable goals. Don’t decide that you’re going to lose 100lbs in three months, because this is nigh on impossible, and most of all isn’t healthy. While you will want to dive in at the deep end and start seeing results straight away, this isn’t going to happen, so you must take it slowly, aim to join a gym, or do just ten minutes a day on an exercise bike. Going in too fast will only make it harder for your body to lose the weight, and it could put an extra strain on your heart and muscles, and any injuries you pick up could last longer.
So once you’ve set yourself some achievable goals, and gently eased yourself into doing some exercise, you shouldn’t forget to look at your diet. Fizzy drinks, fried foods, ready meals and chocolate are all full of unhealthy ingredients, most of which make you gain weight, so cut these out of your diet. If you need to snack, go for a piece of fruit or a yogurt, and remember to drink water often, as this will not only hydrate you, but also help to flush out toxins from your body.
Gaining weight is very easy but losing it isn’t, but it’s never too late to change your life for the better, so make sure you eat sensibly and do a few days of exercise a week, even if it’s just cycling on your Tesco One Body Exercise Bike.
Secondhand Smoke Dangerous to Fetus
I want to file this one under “obvious” but apparently not enough people are aware that secondhand smoke can harm an unborn baby. I would expect that a responsible expectant mother would be avoiding anything dangerous when it comes to the baby but sometimes you can’t be so sure. Apparently it is well known that smoking, as well as drinking alcohol, is dangerous to an unborn baby but so too is second hand smoke from being around smokers.
Researchers found exposure to secondhand smoke increased a non-smoking pregnant woman’s changes of having a stillborn by 23 percent, and increased the risk of delivering a baby with birth defects by 13 percent.
It’s surprising that researchers still aren’t sure at what level it’s dangerous but suffice it to say, try to avoid it!
Improving the Quality and Longevity of Your Life Through Good Health Practices
As our technology and focus of studies improve, subsequently so does our ability to recognize the long-term effects of our social and personal habits on our lifespan. Though there is always a contradiction as to what is truth and what is conjecture, we are now realizing, on an increasing level, that there is a natural cause and effect to our behavior. Human beings have a direct effect on our environment and ourselves in ways that we have yet to fully realize. The long-term affect of a poor diet on the body goes far beyond the waste line and into the realm of future quality of living.
According to the National Cancer Institute, cancer cannot be explained by heredity alone. Though tobacco consumption and other behavioral factors are included, studies have consistently shown the ingestion of highly processed foods and bad diet can result in various forms of cancer growth and body defects. Unhealthy diet and exercise practices over a person’s lifespan can potentially increase their risks of developing cancer. It is important to take both short and long-term steps in order to ensure a more healthy productive life. Recognizing these various warning signs is key.
Some of the short-term effects of poor diet are more obvious, such as a lack of energy, weight gain/loss, lethargy, and fatigue. These examples are substantial warning signs that you need to take further steps to improve the quality of diet and exercise. Listen to what your body is telling you. Paying attention to your body and its reactions is essential to recognizing the harmful signs that you need to take more productive steps to improve your long-term health.
The drive to improve more short-term external results can often prove a powerful motivator yet, realizing that vanity should play a lesser role in your diet is paramount. It’s easy to take quick steps, like crash-diets or other harmful craze diets that produce temporary results, but it can cause harm to the body in the long run. These long-term effects can result in a poor immune system, malnutrition, hair loss, obesity, heart failure, and even organs to shut down.
Consult dietary charts and other helpful materials to work toward a well-balanced diet and research information on exercise regiments and practices that will improve your long-term quality of life. Take your health seriously, and recognize that your actions will affect you down the road.
Good Health Practices for You and Your Pet
A regiment of a healthy diet and exercise is just as important for you as it is for your pet. Most people don’t apply the necessary activities to ensure that they can really enjoy a healthy life. Often times a pet’s health mirrors their owner. You don’t have to let an inactive lifestyle and poor diet become chronic behavior. Make it a goal for the New Year to get you and your pup into shape.
Everyone needs regular exercise. Sit down and plan a schedule for the week of at least three to four times that you’re doing something physical and stick to it. If you’ve been inactive for a while you should start small. Plan on taking morning or evening walks with your dog around the neighborhood, and eventually work your way up towards running in the park. There’s also many dog parks you can go to in order to grab some much-needed outdoor activity, while socializing you and your pet with others.
Improve your diet and cut down on all the junk food that you’re consuming. We live in a society of fast food that is really harmful to your health. Try switching it up and attending some of the local farmers markets in the area. They often have some amazing selections from local farmers and growers that add some much needed quality compared to the poor selections that you can often find at your local grocer.
You should also consider switching up your dog’s diet and be more selective on the kind of dog food that they’re eating. Research what kind of food is right for your dog’s breed instead of buying whatever they prefer. Likely, if your dog was given the choice, it would probably eat bacon all day, but as we all know, the food we prefer isn’t always the best for you.
Studies have consistently shown that a steady diet of exercise and good food can extend the life of anyone. Take some time out and make you and your pet’s health a priority. It doesn’t have to be all work and no play. Look at it as a fun activity for both you and your pet, while getting some quality time.
What is a Virtual Colonoscopy?
There’s no way around it, a colonoscopy is unpleasant but a necessary part of maintaining your health. It’s an endoscopic exam of your colon and the distal part (the end) of the intestines using a CCD or fiber optic camera passed through the anus. It’s not fun, for obvious reasons, which is why the popularity of “virtual colonoscopies” have increased in recent years.
Rather than directly visually inspecting the colon and intestines, a virtual colonoscopy is a CT scan (or CAT scan) of the inspection areas. It’s non invasive, requires no sedation, and uses x-rays to create a detailed picture. The non-invasive nature makes it very appealing but the downside is that you are subjected to radiation, the x-rays, so repeated exposure can increase your risk of cancer.
Why is Pepto Bismol Pink?
I’m not a fan of consuming things that have an unnatural color and the pink stomach relief drug known as Pepto Bismo certainly falls into the category of “unnatural color.” I mean, look at how pink it is… that can’t be normal right?
As it turns out, the original Pepto Bismol was pink because of its ingredients, bismuth subsalicylate. But it soon became a branding issue, “Pepto Pink,” and Pepto now has a lot of colorants that give it that uniform pink color. Bismuth subsalicylate by itself has only a slight pink color.
If you look at the list of ingredients, you’ll see certain color additives (this is for 1 mL):
- Active Ingredient: bismuth subsalicylate 17.6 mg
- Nonmedicinal ingredients: benzoic acid, D&C Red No. 22, D&C Red No. 28, flavour, magnesium aluminum silicate, methylcellulose, sodium saccharin, salicylic acid, sodium salicylate, sorbic acid and water.
D&C Red No. 22 and D&C Red No. 28 give it that pink color.
(photo: nauright)
FDA: Antibiotics in Animals Pose Risk
This topic has been in the news quite a bit lately, along with genetically modified organisms and cloned animals, but I think the use of antibiotics in food production poses a much bigger risk. The FDA has announced that they believe giving animals antibiotics for the purposes of increasing food production poses a threat to public health (link). The practice is giving rise to drug-resistant bacteria because the antibiotics are being administered to animals before they get sick.
The FDA has issued draft guidance on the matter and the guidance is based on two principles:
- Antibiotics should only be given to food animals if it’s to protect their health,
- All antibiotic use by animals should be overseen by veterinarians.
“We are seeing the emergence of multidrug-resistant pathogens,” FDA Deputy Commissioner Joshua Sharfstein, MD, said at a news conference. “FDA believes overall weight of evidence supports the conclusion that using medically important antimicrobial drugs for production purposes is not appropriate.”
This is scary stuff.
Reusable 3D Movie Glasses Are Not Disinfected (Usually)
Good Housekeeping did a study at 7 theaters in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut where they sampled 3D movie glasses for bacteria. They did not find a single sterile pair of shades.
The Good Housekeeping Research Institute tested seven pairs of movie theater 3D glasses, both wrapped in plastic and unwrapped, and found a number of germs, including those causing conjunctivitis, skin infections, food poisoning, sepsis and pneumonia.
The worst offender was contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus, which is the most common staph infection, and it’s a sign that these glasses aren’t as clean as they need to be. Doctors didn’t seem concerned but the fact that sealed and unsealed glasses could contain such microbes.
Though when you take the higher expense and the slightly better movie-going experience, this scratches 3-D movies off the list for me. I watched Avatar in 3-D and while it was a cool movie, I don’t remember thinking it was an incredible experience in 3-D… I’d certainly have hated it if I got any type of disease!
Niacin Flush Overdose with Energy Drinks
Last weekend, a friend of mine told me about his experience a new energy drink called Five Hour Energy. Five Hour Energy has been advertising a lot on Hulu.com, where I catch up a lot of television shows, and they claim they are a “no crash” energy drink. “No crash” means no “sugar” crash, which makes sense since Five Hour Energy doesn’t have sugar.
What it does have is Niacin and one of the side effects is something they call Niacin Flush. Niacin Flush is a prickly feeling on the skin that may be accompanied with redness. It’s the result of Niacin increasing blood flow near the skin. If it ends at that, you’re fine.
If the symptoms persist and/or get worse, it’s a sign of Niacin overdose. Symptoms of that include a rapid heartbeat, skin flushing combined with dizziness, itching, nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and severe liver damage (hepatoxicity).
The label warns you to drink a half a bottle to one bottle, with a max of two per day consumed several hours apart. Follow these instructions.
