Numerous studies in recent years have demonstrated that DIET soda DO NOT helps shed weight. On the contrary, it seems to HELP add weight. Now comes the audacious part from the Soda industry. The soda industry (American Beverage Association) has released a new industry-backed study to show that diet soda drinkers lose weight faster than those who don’t drink any soda.
Tells you, “Beware of what you read. Ask the basic question, What is motivating the study and who is funding them.”
Toys are enjoyable and fun thing for the children. Whether kids are playing with toys or building a Lego car or using his brains to put forward a puzzle, safety should be there in all these toys.
Everyday 500 kids are injured with these toys. 181,500 children were treated in emergency room in 2010, for toy-related injuries. Half of them were under 4 years. Every 101 minutes a child dies in United States from an unintentional injury.
Injuries are a big concern. Besides hefty emergency department bills, missed schools, disabilities and caring for these sick kids all cause a big problem.
Tips to be safe with toys.
• Buying safe toys for young children means it need to match their stages of development and emerging activities.
• When buying the toy consider the age. Spend some time to read the instructions and buy the toy appropriate for the child.
• Always check for any small parts or choking hazards before settling for the toy.
• Games which have smaller pieces are a great game for older kids. But they are all choking hazards younger ones. You should keep extra vigil when your child is dealing with such toys.
• When the playtime is over, all the toys should go inside a big basket or bin type of containers. There should not be any holes or hinges to hurt the kids.
• Bike, skateboards, scooter and other riding equipment need a helmet to keep the child safe.
• Check for damaged toys. Repair them in time.
• Electrical toys are a potential burn hazard. Children under 8 should not use toys with electrical plugs and batteries.
• Riding toys, galloping horses, bouncing balls all should be supervised. There are chances of kids falling from those and getting hurt.
• Magnets and toy boats on water also should be supervised.
• Toys need to be washable and non-toxic ones because all toys eventually end up in baby’s mouth.
• Children love to play with toys and pull them apart. So shop for only sturdy toys.
• Stay away from loose strings or cords because they can become tangled around baby’s neck.
• You should need to look for sharp parts and splinters when buying toys.
• You want your children to follow Einstein’s footsteps. So avoid non-age appropriate, inflammable and toxic and which include dangerous chemicals.
Above all, enjoy the time with your child by playing with them and their toys.
In 1990, about 35,000 children under the age of five were dying every day. Over the last twenty years, childhood mortality has almost been cut in half. The decrease can be attributed to a range of factors including better nutrition and an increase in immunization rates for measles.
HURRAY TO DALLAS. IT MOVED DOWN THE LIST OF CRAZY DRIVERS.
| Least Courteous | |
| 2014 | 2013 |
| Houston | New York City |
| Atlanta | Dallas |
| Baltimore | Detroit |
| Washington DC | Atlanta |
| Boston | Minneapolis |
| Most Courteous | |
| 2014 | 2013 |
| Portland | Portland |
| Pittsburgh | Cleveland |
| St. Louis | Baltimore |
| San Francisco | Sacramento |
| Charlotte | Pittsburgh |
Source: AutoVantage
Eating lots of meat is a modern day phenomenon. In ancient cultures vegetarianism was much more common, except in nomadic populations.
A French research team figured out that by looking at the carbon atoms in mummies that had lived in Egypt between 3500 B.C. and 600 A.D. you could find out what they ate.
What they found was startling. Egyptians of the past were primarily vegetarians.
Many expected the ancient Egyptians living along the Nile to have eaten fish. However, despite considerable cultural evidence, there seems to have been little fish in their diet.
Now look at the way we live today: Meat Consumption WW
Source: NIH
WHAT DID THE ESTEEMED NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF HEALTH (NIH) CONCLUDE?
Meat in the diet provides an important source of protein and micronutrients, such as iron, zinc, and B-vitamins. However, energy-dense diets, purported to be high in meat, fats and sugars, and further compounded by sedentary lifestyle, have been implicated in the growing epidemics of obesity and diet-related chronic diseases. Evidence suggests vegetarians may be at lower risk for CVD, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, obesity, and cancer.
It is your decision, go with the trend or BE A REBEL FOR A CAUSE.
Latest research from the University of Sydney did the world’s first analysis of ALL available studies pooled all available studies on links between autism and vaccines for diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, as well as the MMR shot for measles, mumps and rubella. The data covered more than 1.25 million children from the US, UK, Japan and Denmark.
No industry funding was taken for the study.
Their key find, “There is no evidence whatsoever linking the development of autism to childhood vaccines”.
The lead researcher Guy Eslick said that he understands that some parents whose children had developed autism would remain skeptical. “It’s an emotional topic … they want reasons for why their child is the way they are, and the unfortunate thing is they’ll cling onto misinformation and spurious studies.”
Hope the concerned parents talk to your Pediatrician before you decide not to vaccinate.
Americans are swallowing antidepressants like Zoloft and Paxil at four times the rate they used to, according to the latest statistical report on the nation’s health, released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
One main reason: Per a recent research, two-thirds of a group of 5,000 that had been diagnosed with depression did not meet the conditions for an antidepressant.
Beware of Pharma marketing!
According to Canadian researchers who studied records of more than 500,000 women for six years from 2006 to 2011, Women run a 42 % increased relative risk of being in a motor vehicle accident when they’re pregnant than when they’re not. The risk is especially acute during the first month of the second third of pregnancy. The risk was higher in the fall and winter, when the weather is worse, and in the afternoons, the study found. Car crashes are the leading cause of fetal death linked to trauma in mothers.
Polio is resurfacing worldwide.
Polio, short for poliomyelitis, is a highly contagious virus spread in feces. It has no cure. The disease primarily strikes children.
Unlike influenza or other winter viruses, polio thrives in hot weather. Cases start rising in the summer and often explode when the monsoon rains break.
The World Health Organization declared a global health emergency on Monday for only the second time.
Pakistan, Syria and Cameroon have recently allowed the Polio virus to spread — to Afghanistan, Iraq and Equatorial Guinea, respectively.
The WHO declaration imposes travel restrictions on the three countries.
Health officials recommend immunization for people traveling to or from 10 countries affected by polio.
Skip the antibacterial store cleaners
Make Your own:
9 parts water
1 part white vinegar
Mix ingredients
Store in a spray bottle
For stubborn stains – use an extra squirt of hydrogen peroxide.
5 HISTORIC FOOD SCANDALS
SWILL MILK According to an 1860 New York Times story, the date that “swill milk,” milk polluted by cows fed with distillery runoff, got introduced to the New York population was unknown. But the effect was terrible. Babies fed the milk made by malnourished cows often died, and the backlash prompted landmark food safety hearings.
LEADED WINE As Bee Wilson chronicles in her book, Swindled, wine is a term that contains multitudes: it can be infused with fruit or honey or lead. And until the 1800s, although the evils of ingesting lead were known, there was no real effort to stop pouring it into our wine glasses.
THE SEAL OF BREAD These days, one doesn’t hear much about poisonous bread, but securing standard ingredients and measurements for bread was a top priority in the Middle Ages, according to Bee Wilson. Bakers were held accountable by actually making a seal on their loaves, an early form of fraud detection, to prevent someone dumping coarse wheat into supposed refined products. The great Bread Scandal of 1757 involved alum being added and bread fraud persisted, by the the 19th century, people regularly stuffed birch bark and twigs into loaves.
NOT-SO-GREEN-TEA: In an 1851 issue of British medical journal The Lancet, a shocking report was issued about a common beverage: green tea. In what became a scandal, it was found that green tea contained colorings and adulterants that included gunpowder. This scandal had been around for a while, as a counterfeit tea ring was prosecuted in 1818 for selling fake fancy varietals. With help from scientists, new methods were developed for testing the contents of tea.
THE GREAT LOZENGE SCANDAL: The straw that broke the food regulatory back of Britain, according to Bee Wilson, was the Bradford sweets scandal of 1858. The candies were normally made with sugar and gum and some kind of cheap filler — usually plaster but, in this case, the candy man used arsenic. Over 200 people were poisoned — and 20 people died. In 1868, the government passed regulation to keep poisons like arsenic in the hands of chemists.
Source: Mental Floss
From Bill Gates Foundation
Mom of unvaccinated kids: Hope you are not coming in contact with someone who has traveled to Columbus Ohio area.
Read on…..
Officials have confirmed 230 cases of the contagious Mumps viral illness Ohio State Columbus area this year. This number has steadily risen from 13 cases
Officials are warning that children without mumps vaccinations might have to miss weeks of school if an outbreak of the illness hits classrooms.
Make sure you have been inoculated with two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.
Like you, I thought that there was no link between Allergies and Climate Change…..But
A long-term study conducted by Rutgers University released in 2013 reported that tree season has “been creeping up in length about a half day for the past 20 years” due to climate change. This study also referenced separate research that found a correlation between “seasonal warming and a longer ragweed season in some parts of central North America.”
Researchers are predicting that 2014 will be one of the worst allergy seasons on record.
According to data from the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI), bright, colorful flowers are unlikely culprits since their sweet scents attract insects that transfer the large waxy pollen from plant to plant via their bodies. However, the trees and plants that are “ignored” by the insects (due to their lack of smell) and rely on the wind to carry the powder-like pollen tend to cause the most allergic reactions.
TAKEAWAY
Whether you’re suffering from mild or severe allergies, make sure to wear a mask when spending time outdoors. A National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) rated N95 level filter mask can be used to reduce exposure to the dust and pollen particles.
Pollen is higher on windy and humid days and lower on rainy and cooler days.
Take Precaution.
We all know that Tobacco kills. Yet American companies paddling cancer sticks are growing profitably Year over year.
How?
But selling to more developing market….knowing fully well that their product causes unparalleled suffering, death and diseases.
Between 1960 and 2000, global cigarette consumption increased by 4% a year, reflecting the industry’s expansion into emerging markets.
More than three-quarters of the world’s smokers now live in the developing world.
How do these companies grow?
They are using their legal muscle and marketing tactics to lure young smokers in countries that are weaker in legislation.
Of late, much attention has focused on international trade and investment treaties which tobacco companies have used to limit regulation. At least four African countries – Namibia, Gabon, Togo and Uganda – have received warnings from the tobacco industry that their laws violate international treaties.
Can you believe that? A death peddler is warning countries that their laws to curb tobacco addiction and save young lives will pull them into expensive court battle in International Trade Organization.
And yet, we Americans are happy in turning a blind eye to such companies (in the name of capitalism).
Latest Flash News (MARCH-2014):
A mumps outbreak at The Ohio State University has grown to 28 cases.
Mumps is a contagious disease that causes painful swelling of the salivary glands. The number of cases reported annually in the United States has dropped 98 percent since the mumps vaccine was introduced in the 1960s, according to CDC. In 2006, a multi-state outbreak led to nearly 6,600 cases with more than 80 percent of the people saying they were attending college.
TAKEAWAY: Vaccinate or Live in a bubble without social contact.
LATEST RESEARCH FINDING from Finland and Australia: Passive smoking causes lasting damage to children’s arteries, prematurely ageing their blood vessels by more than three years, say researchers. The damage – thickening of blood vessel walls – increases the risk of heart attacks and strokes in later life, they say in the European Heart Journal. Experts say there is no "safe" level of exposure to second-hand smoke. This study goes a step further and shows that passive smoking can cause potentially irreversible damage to children’s arteries increasing their risk of heart problems in later life
· KEY FINDINGS:
· Smoke can stay in the air for up to two and a half hours even with a window open. It may be there even if you can’t see it or smell it.
· Second-hand smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals, some of which are known to cause cancer.
· Children who breathe in second-hand smoke have an increased risk of asthma and coughs and colds, as well as SIDS death, meningitis and ear infections.
Best thing that you can do for your child: Quit Smoking
Scientists detected "concerning" levels of chromium, cadmium, and manganese in popular lipsticks and glosses, raising the alarm that your go-to shade could be heightening your risk of dangerous diseases and organ damage. Lead turned up in 75 percent of products; about 30 percent of products contained levels of chromium higher than what’s considered safe when people applied them at the average daily rate. cadmium can be stored in the kidneys and could lead to renal failure. And people who apply and reapply lipstick and/or gloss several times a day could ingest excessive levels of chromium, a heavy metal linked to stomach tumors. Researchers didn’t release the brands tested for two reasons: They didn’t see a significant different between the 32 products tested and didn’t want to give the impression that products not tested were safer.
Use it sparingly.
Call, write, or email the manufacturers of your favorite lipstick shades and tell them having products free of heavy metals
Peruse Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Cosmetics Database to find how your favorite products rate and find safer alternatives.
If you’ve ever experienced a rash on your scalp, neck, and chest after dying your hair, don’t be surprised: allergens in hair dyes are more common than you think, according to research presented at the 24th Annual Meeting of the American Contact Dermatitis Society. Researchers looked at over 100 hair dyes and found that phenylenediamine (PPD), which can cause allergic contact dermatitis, was present in 89 percent of products. hair dyes have an average of six dye compounds that can cause a reaction
Check out Campaign for Safer Cosmetics
THE NUMBERS:
According to Wikipedia:
An electronic cigarette (e-cig or e-cigarette), electronic vaping device, personal vaporizer, digital vapor device or electronic nicotine delivery system is a battery or USB powered device which simulates tobacco smoking.
Electronic cigarette sales increased from 50,000 in 2008 to 3.5 million people in 2012. Among grade 6 to 12 students in the United States, those who have ever used the product increased from 3.3% in 2011 to 6.8% in 2012. Annual sales of smokeless tobacco products now exceed $2.93 billion globally.
SAFETY
A preliminary analysis of e-cigarette cartridges by the US (FDA) in 2009 identified that some contain tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs), known cancer-causing agents.
The FDA’s analysis also detected diethylene glycol, a poisonous liquid, in a cartridge and nicotine in a cartridge claimed to be nicotine-free.
CONCERN
According to WHO “consumers should be strongly advised not to use" E-Cigs. A number of organizations including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Food and Drug Administration have concerns that e-cigs might increase addiction to and use of nicotine and tobacco products in children.
Most concerning part – Tobacco companies have shifted more advertising to e-cigarettes. E-cigarette advertising is widespread on the Internet the ads were placed on websites with the highest average percentage of a youth audience.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health confirmed two cases of measles in a suburb of Boston and issued a warning for other Framingham residents: You may be exposed to the highly contagious disease.
Those who were vaccinated as children are immune from the disease. But those who weren’t could see symptoms soon. Medical experts say it doesn’t take long for the disease to set in once the person’s been exposed. Watch out for symptoms such as cough, runny nose, pink eye, high fever and a rash covering the body.
NOT CONVINCED YET?
According to the California Department of Public Health, there are 15 reported cases of measles in California. The 15 cases in California have shown up in Los Angeles, Riverside and Orange counties. North of the Central Coast, cases have been documented in Contra Costa, Alameda and San Mateo counties.
The CDC says there are 20 million cases and more than 164,000 deaths each year worldwide from measles.
MORE TO COME
A case of measles has been confirmed in an Orange County NY now.
The measles’ confirmation comes just after California health officials reported up to 25 cases of paralysis in children due to a polio-like illness with similar symptoms.
KEY QUESTION
Are you ready to take the chances with your child’s health? Check out our views:
We have two options:
a) Either raise our kids in a bubble so that they are never exposed to such deadly killers
b) Immunize and protect them.
Your Call!
Source: Multiple including WashingtonTimes
