Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Friday, July 13, 2007
Getting to the bottom of cloth diaper debate
By ADRIA VASIL
Q I recently heard cloth diapers are just as bad as disposables. Is this true?
A Get your rattles out – the battle of the nappies is heating up again. You heard right, a four-year-long British study has just concluded that cloth diapers are as damaging to the environment as the plastic type. While the media is jumping on the story with glee, the whole thing is giving environmentalists a bad case of diaper rash – and with good reason.
Yes, the government-funded report did look at the life-cycle costs of three options: home-laundered cloth, commercially laundered cloth and disposables. And yes, the hefty 200-page paper weighed everything from the dirty oil extraction process involved in making plastic diapers and the water and pesticides used in growing cotton to the electricity needed to iron fold 'n' pin types.
In the end, the study concluded that all three are neck and neck. The electricity used to wash and dry cloth diapers is just as damaging to the environment as burying disposable diapers in landfills. The results actually landed the British government in hot water for spending $30 million on its Real Nappy promotional campaign. But is the study right?
Environmentalists don't think so. They're freaked because they say the report is hinged on some old-fashioned assumptions about cloth diapers that only looked at the habits of 200 washable diaper users (versus the 2,000 surveyed on disposable diapers). The UK's Women's Environment Network says warm water washes in A-rated (i.e., Energy Star) machines, for example, reduce climate-changing pollutants by 17 per cent (not to mention all the water savings).
The report also factors in a good chunk of tumble-drying when parents should be air-drying their nappies, not just to save a lot of power but also to make them last longer. If you're one of the 10 per cent the study says irons your cloth bum wraps, all I have to say is you gotta chill out. You're wasting hydro, and your babe doesn't need a smartly pressed bottom!
Investing in diapers made with unbleached, pesticide-free fibres like hemp, bamboo or organic cotton puts you even further ahead, especially if they are stitched locally and used on more than one kid.
Thanks to the outcry, the British government has supposedly promised to reassess the cloth diaper thing. Keep your eyes peeled for yet another report at some point in the future.
Need another reason to stick with cloth? A German study linked use of plastic diapers to male infertility. The plastic keeps their boy parts hotter than cloth, which ain't good for long-term sperm health.
Keeping cloth nappies green
• wash in cold or warm water
• skip the dryer and hang to dry
• pass on chemical detergents
• only flush poop-filled liners
• buy more diapers so you wash full loads
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Perspective: The Invisible Woman
It started to happen gradually. One day I was walking my son Jake to school. I was holding his hand and we were about to cross the street when the crossing guard said to him, "Who is that with you, young fella?"
"Nobody," he shrugged.
Nobody? The crossing guard and I laughed. My son is only 5, but as we crossed the street I thought, "Oh my goodness, nobody?"
I would walk into a room and no one would notice. I would say something to my family - like "Turn the TV down, please" - and nothing would happen. Nobody would get up, or even make a move for the remote. I would stand there for a minute, and then I would say again, a little louder, "Would someone turn the TV down?" Nothing.
Just the other night my husband and I were out at a party. We'd been there for about three hours and I was ready to leave. I noticed he was talking to a friend from work. So I walked over, and when there was a break in the conversation, I whispered, "I'm ready to go when you are." He just kept right on talking.
That's when I started to put all the pieces together. I don't think he can see me. I don't think anyone can see me. I'm invisible.
It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, "Can't you see I'm on the phone?" Obviously not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all.
I'm invisible. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this? Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, "What time is it?" I'm a satellite guide to answer, "What number is the Disney Channel?" I'm a car to order, "Right around 5:30, please."
I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again.
She's going, she's going, she's gone!
One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip,
> and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a banana clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, "I brought you this."
It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: "To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees." In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names.
These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything. A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, "Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it."
And the workman replied, "Because God sees."
I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place.. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, "I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become."
At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.
When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, "My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table." That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, "You're gonna love it there."
As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.
Fast Food Milkshakes Exposed
The headline of the article went like this: The 59 Ingredients in a Fast Food Strawberry Milkshake. Now, that's not a very good start. Is it? Fifty-nine ingredients. So, I looked a little further, and it turns out that in one fast food restaurant strawberry milkshake from a big fast food chain, there are two ingredients that are notably absent: Milk and Strawberries!! Does that put you off for life already? Well, let's see if I can put you off a bit further.
It turns out that the strawberry flavor they use to flavor their milkshakes is actually made from 40 different chemicals. Let me read you a couple of the names of these chemicals. This is just the strawberry flavor. Forty different chemicals.
* Amyl valerate
* Anethol
* Ethyl lactate
* Methylphenylglycidate (Oh, my word! That's a mouthful and a half!)
* Ionone
* Maltol
* Methyl benzoate
That's just to name but a few of those 40 ingredients that go into their strawberry flavoring.
Now, I don't know about you, but I've had strawberry milkshakes from fast food chains before, and some of them are very, very tasty. But after finding out that there's 59 ingredients, and that both milk and strawberries are absent from these milkshakes, I can definitely say I've been put off for life, and I hope you are as well.
So, is there a healthy alternative? Of course! And in a future video, I will be showing you how to make your own raw, very healthy, strawberry milkshake, start to finish, in only one minute. So, I hope you'll going to enjoy that recipe.
But in the meantime, now that you've got this information about fast food restaurants' strawberry milkshakes, (and I'm sure this goes for their other milkshakes as well) I hope you will want to avoid them like the plague. I know I sure will.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Judge lets off rapist of girl, 10
A JUDGE spared a man who raped a girl of ten in a park — because she wore a “provocative” frilly bra and thong.
Window cleaner Keith Fenn, 25 — who could have got life in jail — will be free in just FOUR MONTHS after admitting twice having sex with the child.
Judge Julian Hall decided to be lenient because the girl “didn’t look 10”.
He caused fury earlier this year by freeing another paedophile, telling him to buy his six-year-old victim a new bicycle.
The judge referred to the 10-year-old as a “young woman”, and called her “very disturbed, very needy and sexually precocious”.
He told Oxford Crown Court: “She liked to dress provocatively. She was 10. She’d been in care since she was four.
“Did she look 10? Certainly not. She looked 16.”
Fenn, of Oxford, got two years’ jail but will soon be free because of time spent awaiting sentence. Accomplice Darren Wright, 34, of Henley-on-Thames walked free after getting just nine months.
Last night, campaigner Dr Michele Elliott of children’s charity Kidscape called the sentences “beyond pathetic”.
The NSPCC added: “There’s no excuse.”
Many Benefits of Birth at Home
Monday, 02 July 2007
• Howick and Pakuranga Times
ONLY two per cent of Kiwi women do it, but one Bucklands Beach mother says she’d do it all again in a flash.
A little more than nine weeks ago, Rachel Springett gave birth to a healthy baby boy in the comfort of her own home.
While the vast majority of New Zealand women opt for hospital births, Ms Springett chose to have her third child at home.
The decision was an easy one for the former Howick Primary schoolteacher, who was already mum to two teenage daughters before the arrival of baby Tane.
“It’s really empowering,” she says. “You have more control to be able to be yourself and you’re more likely to trust your instincts. [Labour] has become so medicalised. It’s such a natural thing but women often don’t trust themselves.”
She describes the day as “perfect” and says she’d recommend homebirth to anyone.
“Having the familiar background made me relax so much more. It just made me feel ‘this is right’. I totally trusted the midwifes. They talked me through it the whole time. I never felt unsafe. The hospital’s just 15 minutes away so it was there as a backup.”
Ms Springett says giving birth at home was also an eye-opener for her partner Wayde and two daughters.
“Society has lost that passing down of mothering skills. My girls learnt so much,” she says.
“[My partner] thought it was a real plus — he wasn’t just hanging around going ‘oh my god’.”
Mother-of-three Lesley Hinson has been a New Zealand registered midwife since 1986 and is a strong advocate of planned homebirths.
Along with several other midwives, she recently led an information evening at Howick’s Crawford Medical Centre for those interested in homebirth.
In New Zealand, homebirths aren’t “the norm” and many women just “go with the flow”, says Ms Hinson.
“We’re all victims of the society we live in. We’re all conditioned to what we grew up with.
“Society gets the image that every baby needs to be born with all the emergency equipment around it. If we don’t promote [homebirth] they don’t think about it.”
She says homebirth is an option for a woman who’s had an uncomplicated pregnancy, has previously given birth and is in good health.
“Some people choose homebirths because they want that privacy. What most women like is that their husband doesn’t need to go anywhere. They’re more relaxed in their own place.”
Midwives are trained to deal with emergencies and don’t hesitate to refer their patients to hospital if there’s a problem during labour, adds Ms Hinson.
“We don’t hang around, but I can’t remember the last time I had to transfer a baby in.”
Although she’s an advocate of planned homebirth, Ms Hinson stresses the final decision of where to have their baby is up to the woman concerned.
“Homebirth is not the average person’s plan, depending on who you know and what you’ve been exposed to. If I meet people and they choose to go into hospital then that’s fine.
“Every woman’s different and every baby’s different. Our group is promoting planned homebirths. We give people information and they make their choices,” says Ms Hinson.
The next information evening on planned homebirths is in August.
For details, contact Joyce on 537-1808, or Clare 533-0233.
Baby Dies From Toxic Breast Milk
A lawsuit over the death of
Tariq's mother Rani was prescribed Tylenol 3 for lingering episiotomy pain. Although Tariq was initially healthy, he developed increasing lethargy after the seven-day mark, and after 11 days he was brought to a pediatrician due to concerns about his skin color and poor feeding. Two days later, Tariq died.
Tariq was found to have high blood levels of acetaminophen, and a blood concentration of morphine six times higher than would normally be considered safe in a neonate. Tylenol 3 contains both acetaminophen and codeine, which is metabolized to morphine in the body. However, not everyone metabolizes codeine at the same rate. Rani Jamieson was an ultra-rapid metabolizer of codeine to morphine, which means that the opiate built up in her breastmilk very fast.
While ultra-rapid metabolization of codeine occurs in about 1 percent of Caucasians, it occurs in as much as 30 percent of some African and Asian populations.National Review of Medicine June 15, 2007
Dr. Mercola's Comment:
| Mothers must use extreme caution when taking any drugs while breastfeeding, because those drugs could be transferred to your baby. Prescription drugs like Tylenol 3 are not the only danger. The excessive acetaminophen you can get from regular Tylenol, even without the codeine, can be extremely dangerous. Because some 5 billion over-the-counter medications are sold in the But you, or your baby, could suffer from serious side effects and possibly die unintentionally if you don't take them with the proper care. Even environmental chemicals like rocket fuel are sadly now being found in breast milk. But nonetheless, breastfeeding is without a doubt the healthiest way to feed your baby. Breastfed infants have added protection against:
So although this child died from breastfeeding, that in no way discounts its value as breastfeeding is not only incredibly good for your baby, it's good for moms, too! |
Related Articles:
Another Tragic and Unnecessary Death
The Sunscreen Myth: How Sunscreen Products Actually Promote Cancer
In fact, sunscreen actually promotes cancer by blocking your body's absorption of ultraviolet radiation, and therefore blocking the production of vitamin D in your skin.
Studies have shown that vitamin D can prevent as many as 77 of all cancers. In addition, most sunscreen lotions also contain cancer-causing chemicals.
A portion of the profits from the sale of these lotions is then donated to organizations such as the American Cancer Society, which in turn runs public service ads encouraging the use of sunscreens.
Proper nutrition is a better way to prevent sunburn then sunscreen lotion. Berries and microalgae such as spirulina, astaxanthin, and blue-green algae can make the body naturally resistant to sunburn, as well as similar radiation damage to the eyes and optic nerve.
NewsTarget.com June 15, 2007Dr. Mercola's Comment:
| How many people know that not getting enough sun KILLS 50,000 people from cancer deaths every year in the US alone? The myth that the sun is detrimental to your health, and that sunscreen is a necessity to guard against cancer is one of the most pervasive hoaxes in our society today. Not only do sunscreens promote cancer by blocking your vitamin D production, they are also likely carcinogens all by themselves. A study in the April 2004 Journal of Chromatography found that there is significant penetration of all sunscreen agents they studied into the skin. So when you use most sunscreens, your body is absorbing synthetic chemicals, and with experts' recommendations to apply generous amounts of the product every few hours, you will likely be absorbing a fair amount. Some of these chemicals are quite dangerous. Octyl methoxycinnamate (OMC), which is present in 90 percent of sunscreen brands, was found to kill mouse cells even at low doses. Sunburn should always be avoided, but there are many all-natural ways to protect yourself from sunburn that you can use instead of resorting to the toxic infusions of commercial sunscreens. Boosting your skin's "internal sunscreen" from within with effective antoxidants from whole fresh vegetables and fruits like goji berries (not the juice), raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, are far healthier options. Additionally, slathering on some aloe vera gel can also be helpful. I recommend testing your vitamin D levels to make sure you're not deficient before resorting to sunscreen of any kind. For more information about the vital importance of vitamin D from sunlight, please review my article Reduce Your Risk of Cancer With Sunlight Exposure, if you haven't already seen it. You might also want to keep an eye out for my forthcoming book, Dark Deception, which is due to be published in 2008. It will take an in-depth look at all of the various issues relating to sunscreen, cancer, vitamin D, and sunlight. |
Related Articles:
Slathering on Sunscreen Does Not Prevent Cancer
Three Girls Died, Others Hospitalized, After HPV Vaccine
1,637 adverse reactions have been reported by Judicial Watch, a public interest watchdog, including three girls who died shortly after receiving the immunization. Judicial Watch obtained the reports from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration using the Freedom of Information Act.
In
British Medical Journal June 9, 2007;334:1182-1183
Dr. Mercola's Comment:
| Should young girls be required to take Gardasil by the government when possible side effects include hospitalization and death? There have also been reports from the These are steep risks for a vaccine that only sometimes protects against HPV, which is virtually 100 percent avoidable without an expensive and potentially fatal vaccine. Please realize that Merck has manipulated the medical and political system to FORCE children to get this dangerous vaccine for their own bottom line profit. The potential promised reduction of cervical cancer is the bait they use. Remember Merck, the manufacturer of this vaccine, is the same company that made Vioxx that killed over 60,000 people. It is also important to understand that this year, some 11,000 women will be diagnosed with cervical cancer, which can be caused by HPV, and about 3,700 will die from it. In comparison, 16 times more American women will be diagnosed with breast cancer (178,480), and 11 times more will die from it (40,460). Remember, it is NOT the infection that is the issue as much as it is the person's immune system. You can be exposed to these bacteria and viruses and if you are living a healthy lifestyle your body's immune system will typically know how to address the infection. |
Related Articles:
Merck's HPV Lobbying May be Coming to Your State
Indian Teen Performs C-Sec for the Record Books
DesiGirl
The Hippocratic Oath, according to Wikipedia, "...is an oath traditionally taken by physicians pertaining to the ethical practice of medicine." As even us non-medical professionals know, thanks to a decade of ER and such, upholding the Oath is of vital importance to a physician. Though segments of the original Greek words have been modified to suit the modern times, the essence of it remains the same:
To do no harm to those who come in search of a cure.
I guess this is where the good doctors K Murugesan and his wife, M Gandhimathay slipped. In their eagerness to be the proud parents of a Guinness Book of Records certified 'World's Youngest Surgeon', they veered off their Oath-sworn path and well into the path of controversy.
By allowing their 15-year-old son, Dileepan Raj, to perform a c-section on one of their patients, they have caused moral and ethical outrage within the medical community and across the general populace. As doctors, their duty is towards the welfare of their patient - in this case, a pregnant mother and her unborn infant. How can they put that aside and entertain thoughts of world records and such at this stage?
Not stopping at operating on that poor woman, 27-year-old Neela, the doctors parents decided to go further and let the whole world and its wife know what a pistol they have for a son. They filmed the operation (oh the ignominy of it!) and premiered it at the Indian Medical Association's meeting on May 6. When the assembled brethren didn't gasp in wonder but in dismay at this, Dr Murugesan quipped, and I quote, “If a 10-year-old can drive a car and a 15-year-old can become a doctor in the US, what is wrong if my son, though not qualified, performs a surgery?”
Let's see if we can tell the good doctor what is wrong. Googling for the Hippocratic Oath netted me the gems the doctors have forgotten:
1. To keep the good of the patient as the highest priority - Strike one - having an unskilled boy perform a complex operation such as a caesarean-section, thereby risking not one but two lives is a big no no. I cannot imagine anyone feeling better at the thought of having the proud parents hovering over their son's hands and guiding them.
2. Never to do deliberate harm to anyone for anyone else's interest - it wasn't in anyone else's interest but their own, so that they could see their son's name in the Guinness Book of World Records. That they didn't cause GBH to the mother or the baby is a blessing. So, strike two!
3. To practice and prescribe to the best of my ability for the good of my patients, and to try to avoid harming them - The mother of them all, 'for the good of my patients', has been wiped off the memory banks of the culprits. Strike three!
Three strikes, doc - you're out!
The IMA's less than enthusiastic response and the resulting fallout possibly triggered a late reaction in his brain and Doc Murugesan backpedalled furiously to keep self and wife from disbarment and further negative publicity. He has denied that the offspring actually took the scalpel in his own bare hands and cut open a woman's belly. Apparently, the boy just watched, while his dad did the deed.
Maybe. But what about his claim to the Kumudam Reporter that his boy has been performing such operations from the time he was 12?
With the IMA urging disbarment and the local Health Minister promising 'tough action' if the whole incident could be proven, the future seems a bit sticky for the doctors. But no one can get their hands on a copy of the offending video - maybe the doctors came to their senses and burned the evidence. I, for one, hope that someone locks these offending individuals up and throws away the key. What sort of a doctor, what sort of a person does such a thing?
Growing ear hair to get your name on the record books is one thing; wilfully endangering a person's lives is a different kettle of fish. I say, punish these idiots and make an example out of them. Maybe that will deter other idiots from trying to create such vile records, like the nut who tried to make waves by performing 50 hernia operations in 24 hours.
Another benefit of breastfeeding...
Comparable use of oral contraceptives or hormone replacement therapy showed no significant effect on the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis, said Dr. Mitra Keshavarz, of Malmo Hospital University, Sweden.
The findings add to the "growing body of evidence in favor of breastfeeding and its positive health implications -- this time demonstrating its protective benefits for the mother," Keshavarz said.
The study compared information from the Swedish National Hospital Discharge and the National Cause of Death Register from 1991 to 1996.
The findings were presented at the Annual European Congress of rheumatology in Barcelona.
Palestinian State No Longer Practical or Relevant
Israelnationalnews.com
“We have to replace the conception of a two-state solution it is not relevant anymore,” former Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. (res.) Moshe Yaalon told Army Radio Thursday morning. “This is not pessimism, but realism. It is not practical to keep assuming it is the answer.”
“We are trying to find answers for the situation in Gaza without diagnosing the problem,” the previous IDF chief said. “What we are witnessing in Gaza is the establishment of a Jihadist Islamic society.”
Yaalon says that any talk of negotiations and withdrawing to the 1967 borders pushes peace farther away. “These are movements that are not interested in territorial issues between us and the Palestinians, but in other issues altogether. This was proven with the Disengagement and now is our opportunity to look and learn. It was a victory in their eyes for the global Jihad and gave strength to Hizbullah, Hamas and all the other Islamist groups.”
“Maybe we should therefore strengthen the moderates?” Army Radio’s Yael Dann asked Yaalon.
“I am not saying to sit and do nothing…but in the face of the wave of Jihad, any discussions of agreements are not relevant. Any talk like this distances us further from peace rather than bringing us closer…It is a kind of blindness to continue to pursue these policies.”
“How do you explain our ‘blindness’ during Oslo and now during the era of ‘Hamastan,’” Dann asked.
“We are always looking for a solution - we want peace now and it blinds us. We blame ourselves, changing the government and the prime minister.”
Asked if he would be joining Binyamin Netanyahu on the eve of elections, Yaalon said: “Right now I am not entering politics.”
Related Article: Changing the Paradigm by Moshe Arens (Ha'aretz)
What's Really in a McDonald's Chicken McNugget?
Deep-fried foods in general are also dangerous in many ways, which is why French fries remain one of the worst foods anyone could eat.
Also, about one-third of the ingredients necessary to make the average McNugget (13 out of a lengthy list of 38) include some derivatives of corn, which may explain one reason why industrial agriculture produces so much of it -- in addition to the lucrative subsidies.
The Omnivore's DilemmaDr. Mercola's Comment:
I can honestly say I have never tasted a Chicken McNugget, but I am sure that is not true for most people. If you fall into that group then I would encourage you to review The Omnivore's Dilemma, a brilliant book by New York Times author Michael Pollan, who has also written about all the health problems associated with cattle raised conventionally.
You can use the information he has researched to lovingly share with your children the next time they beg you to take them to the nearest McDonald's. (Most likely one is close to your home as there are over 30,000 McDonald's restaurants worldwide.)
Pollan found that not only do the french fries contain acrylamide but the nuggets also contain TBHQ, which in high doses has caused precursors to stomach tumors and DNA damage in lab animals. A number of studies have also shown that TBHQ can be carcinogenic with prolonged exposure.
Other McNuggets ingredients include sodium acid pyrophosphate, sodium aluminum phosphate, monocalcium phosphate, calcium lactate, hydrogenated vegetable oils (that is to say, trans fats), and dimethylpolysiloxane.
Sounds like exactly what you want in your food, doesn't it?
I know it is not the easiest thing in the world but it is VITAL to understand that you are not going to achieve optimal health unless you make a conscious commitment to eat healthy unprocessed food made by someone in your kitchen.
Yes, this is not always convenient, but it is important to think long term. Wouldn't you much prefer to invest a few minutes to do some cooking and enjoy the increased energy, vitality and freedom from acute illnesses like coughs, colds and flus?
Believe me, once you start eating healthy you will be shocked at how good you feel in the short term. And the great thing is that 10 to 20 years from now when your friends and relatives are dropping like flies because they chose "convenience" foods you will not be following their quick path to the grave.
Wise up, stop the McDonald's and start Taking Control of Your Health today.Imported toothpastes from China
Imported toothpastes from China contain highly toxic levels of a sweet-tasting chemical called di-ethylene glycol (DEG) that's commonly used in antifreezes, brake fluids, and as a commercial solvent.
WHY should this be so alarming (aside from the obvious). It's because DEG has been pinpointed as the major cause of an astounding number of deaths and poisonings in the last century. Here's a summary of just a few of the most egregious examples:
* 1937: 107 Americans perished after taking sulfanilamide (anti-bacterial agents) dissolved in diethylene glycol. This tragedy was the driving force behind 1938s Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of Congress.
* 1990: 339 Bangladeshi children suffered kidney failure, again at the hands of an analgesic syrup laced with DEG. Most of them died as a result.
* 1996: 85 children died in Haiti from a glycerin-based analgesic syrup contaminated with DEG - the suspect glycerin was supplied by a company that obtained it from a manufacturer in China. Similar deaths have been reported in South Africa, India, Nigeria, Argentina, and Panama.
* 2006: 46 deaths from renal failure, paralysis and other causes are linked to DEG by Panama's Ministry of Health and the CDC. The source of the contamination was a Chinese company that sold DEG wrongly labeled as pharmaceutical grade glycerin - which the Panamanian government had used as a main ingredient in over a quarter-million bottles of cold medicine.
Of course, the Chinese government isn't copping to any culpability in these documented mass slaughters. Nor are they admitting to guilt in this latest toothpaste/DEG scandal.
In fact, quite the opposite - just days ago (June 4, 2007), their Foreign Ministry issued a press release stating that their own state-run studies indicate that as much as 15.6% DEG is perfectly safe in toothpastes.
Thankfully, FDA guidelines for Americans' safe ingestion stipulate that NO DEG be allowed in any consumable product. I know I'm a huge critic of theirs more often than not - but I have to think that even in spite of their flaws (including allowing Chinese toothpastes to be sold in the U.S.), they're looking out for us better than China's government is looking out for those poor people.
From the improper or excessive use of prescription antibiotics.
Few people realize (especially here in the U.S.), that antibiotic drugs can have negative side effects - sometimes permanent ones, and especially when overused. Among these can be varying degrees of hearing loss, up to and including total deafness.
And according to the Reuters piece, Chinese doctors routinely over-prescribe the newest and most powerful versions of antibiotic drugs for everything from a hangnail on up - largely because of kickbacks they get from "middlemen" for drug makers!
Here's how big the problem is: A Chinese newspaper that broke the story cites their official state sources for the article as claiming that 25% of antibiotic prescriptions in the People's Republic were baseless.
And in a country as populous as China, that equates to a lot of needless harm.
McDonald's Tries to Convince Moms That its Food is Nutritious
The mothers will share their experiences with the world via online journals.
McDonald's says that it will have no control over what the women write. The women are not being paid, but McDonald's is paying for their travel and they have been given laptop computers that they will be allowed to keep.
McDonald's is calling the program Mom's Quality Correspondents. The six mothers were picked from a group of 4,000 applicants.
Currently, only 48 percent of women believe that McDonald's food quality is "excellent" or "very good", according to a survey of 14,000 women.
USAToday.com June 12, 2007
Dr. Mercola's Comment:
McDonald's, of course, is banking on the fact that these moms, hand-picked from a pool of thousands of applicants, will help give them a more family-friendly, "mom-approved" reputation amid growing claims that fast-food giants are contributing to obesity and a host of other diet-related health problems across the country.
Frankly, it's shocking to me that even 48 percent of women associate McDonald's with "quality food."
Only this year did McDonald's finally start to remove trans-fat from some of their French fries (and many of their fries still contain it), and their menu is full of non-nutritional "fake foods." Just check out the movie SuperSize Me if you want to know how this food affects your body.
I am fond of telling patients that one French fry is worse for your health than one cigarette, so you may want to consider this snippet before you order your next 'Biggie' order. One of the best things that you can do for yourself and your family is to stay away from fast food restaurants, and carve out some time to prepare healthy food.
If you want to get or stay healthy, someone is just simply going to have to spend some serious time in the kitchen. The time you save by eating at fast food restaurants is not worth the future health complications it could cause.
Please avoid exchanging convenience for your health. Your health is far too precious to lose for a few moments of free time. If you think that you truly don't have the time to do this, take a look at my past article:
Six Easy Ways to Get Better Nutrition Even if You Don't Have the Time.
It will be interesting to see what the moms report. Keep in mind that their journals are being posted on a McDonald's-run Web site, and that there is a strong likelihood that they will be seeing precisely what McDonald's wants them to see. As this Slashfood post points out, this really is a pretty transparent ploy by McDonald's -- there is no doubt that the response will be rave reviews about the quality of McDonald's products, even though any teenager actually working at McDonald's could tell you otherwise.
The Slashfood post goes on to wish that McDonald's would just admit what they really are and stop trying to fool everyone into believing that, against all logic and evidence, it's a healthy place to eat. I couldn't agree more.