HAPPY FATHER’S DAY!

Grab Bag Daddy Health:

Statistics are showing that men are 24% less likely to book a check up with their doc than women. So many preventable conditions are surging in men that a new TV campaign is launching to slap some awareness into the more rugged sex. Below is one of the powerful messages. Encourage the men in your life to be more mindful of their health…

Grab Bag Fab Foods:

Here is a link to the list of, arguably, the 130 healthiest foods in the world. How many on that list find their way into your diet? I can’t find a lot to disagree with here. The authoring website, WHFOODS.com, supplies their establishing criteria, as well as linking the title of each food with :

• Health Benefits
• Description
• History
• How to Select and Store
• How to Enjoy
• Individual Concerns
• Nutritional Profile
• Reference

SPOILER….. it’s no good if you take a superstar food and FRY it. I don’t THINK I needed to say that, but you can never be too careful.

The website is a bit underwhelming visually, but founder George Mateljan studied cooking all over the world and founded (then eventually sold) Health Valley Foods. The sale must have set him up well, as WHFOODS.com is not-for-profit, with “no commercial interests”.

Fabulous. Good job, George.

Grab Bag Pit Stop Part 1:

Society has long convinced us that:

1. Sweating is bad

2. We must eliminate it at all costs

3. Odor is worse

On #3, I have to give it to them. On #1 and #2, we need to think in different terms.

“Don’t sweat it“? Maybe we should KNOW what we are thwarting. Here are the Cliff ‘s notes:

Sweat glands make the body’s coolant system and we have two types:

* Apocrine: Mainly found in armpits and anal/genital area, typically in hair follicles. Produces sweat that contains proteins and fatty acids, thereby giving it a yellow or milky appearance.

Now let’s deal with how to live at peace with out pits…

Grab Bag Pit Stop Part 2:

The need/want for an anti-perspirant is one of the biggest hurdles to cross in choosing healthier personal care products. The advent of aluminum compounds to combat perspiration has, for most, virtually solved the problem.

SWEAT GLAND

BUT… at what cost?? Did you know that the FDA is showing concern with aluminum compounds in anti-perspirant? I refer you to this information I shared 18 months ago:

The subject of a healthy deodorant has been tossed about for years. A few readers here have asked for some direction, but we should ALL sit up and take note: the concern we heard way back when about aluminum compounds in deodorants and anti-perspirants was NOT URBAN LEGEND. The FDA has issued an opinion:

As mandated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), all antiperspirants containing aluminum and aluminum compounds are now required to carry warning labels.

According to the FDA, people with reduced kidney function “have impairment in normal renal excretion of aluminum.” In addition, the FDA encourages kidney patients to consult a physician before using aluminum-based products on a regular basis.

Because of this development, many companies are now providing aluminum-free alternatives to products in an effort to serve the needs of its consumers.

So…. if we have REGULAR kidney function, should we feel great about asking our hopefully-healthy kidneys to clear this stuff? How long will my kidneys be happy doing that? And, much like putting on sunblock to go to the movies, do we REALLY need anti-perspirant all the time?

Check CosmeticsDatabase.com under deodorant to get well-rated products. Deodorants aren’t such a problem, but effective anti-perspirants without aluminum compunds… that’s a another story. I would appreciate any and all feedback on this issue… it’s a big problem. You can also try this :

Put about an eighth of a teaspoonful of baking soda in your palm (you’ll need more in certain types of water – up to a teaspoon). Add about a quarter teaspoonful of water, enough to get it wet (or more, if you had to use more for your type of water). Dissolve the baking soda into the water – the liquid should feel slippery.  Apply directly to skin. Then go have a normal active day. Adjust quantities as necessary – you may need less, you may need more.

Adding this recent (June 2010) information, Dr. Andrew Weil just sent out these tips:

1. Splash rubbing alcohol under your arms to reduce bacteria.
2. Stimulant drugs, including caffeine, contribute to body odor by increasing the activity of apocrine sweat glands. Try eliminating caffeine if body odor continues to be a problem.
3. Most commercial underarm products contain irritating or harmful ingredients, including aluminum salts and dyes. Avoid the antiperspirant varieties – you can find better deodorant only products in health-food stores, such as those containing extracts of green tea, which is antibacterial.
4. If you buy “natural crystals,” make sure they do not contain aluminum in any form.

Grab Bag Miracle Moment:

Daniel and Tevyn East were driving at night along Interstate 80 near the Nevada-Utah border when they noticed a pack of coyotes near the roadside on October 12, 2009.

When one of the animals ran in front of the car, the impact sounded fatal so the siblings thought there was no point in stopping.
‘Right off the bat, we knew it was bad,’ Daniel explained. ‘We thought the story was over.‘

After the incident around 1:00 AM, they continued their 600 mile drive to North San Juan, a northern California town about 100 miles northwest of Lake Tahoe – even stopping for fuel at least twice.
But it was only when they finally reached their destination at 9am did they take time to examine what damage they may have sustained.

At first it looked as though it was going to be quite gruesome. ‘Daniel saw fur and the body inside the grill,’ Tevyn East said.  ‘I was trying to keep some distance. Our assumption was that it was part of the coyote – it didn’t register it was the whole animal.’

Daniel East got a broom to try and pry the remains out of the bumper and got the shock of his life.  ‘It flinched,’ Tevyn East said.  ‘It was a huge surprise – he got a little freaked out.’

Grab Bag Brain Game:

Try to remember the order of the pictures when quizzed. This forces you to look for specific visual cues, making you more detail oriented.

MASTERPIECES

Grab Bag Funny Stuff:

Puns for the Higher IQ:

• Dijon vu – the same mustard as before.
• Practice safe eating – always use condiments.
• Shotgun wedding – A case of wife or death.
• A man needs a mistress just to break the monogamy.
• A hangover is the wrath of grapes.
• Dancing cheek-to-cheek is really a form of floor play.
• Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?
• Condoms should be used on every conceivable occasion.
• Reading while sunbathing makes you well red.
• When two egotists meet, it’s an I for an I.
• A bicycle can’t stand on its own because it is two tired.
• What’s the definition of a will? (It’s a dead give away.)
• Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
• In democracy your vote counts. In feudalism your count votes.
• She was engaged to a boyfriend with a wooden leg but broke it off.
• A chicken crossing the road is poultry in motion.
• If you don’t pay your exorcist, you get repossessed
• With her marriage, she got a new name and a dress.
• The man who fell into an upholstery machine is fully recovered.
• You feel stuck with your debt if you can’t budge it.
• Local Area Network in Australia – the LAN down  under.
• Every calendar’s days are numbered.
• A lot of money is tainted –  Taint yours and taint mine.
• A boiled egg in the morning is hard to beat.
• He had a photographic memory that was never developed.
• A midget fortune-teller who escapes from prison is a small medium at large.
• Once you’ve seen one shopping center, you’ve seen a mall.
• Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead-to-know basis.
• Santa’s helpers are subordinate clauses.
• Those who jump off a bridge in Paris are in Seine .
• A man’s home is his castle, in a manor of speaking.
• Acupuncture is a jab well done.