August 20th, 2008 cate
From webmd:
“We’ve all found ourselves chatting with someone whose breath could easily wilt a flower. With more than 90 million people suffering from chronic bad breath (also called halitosis), that’s a lot of wilted flowers. If you (or someone you regularly smooch) has an attack of bad breath that even Altoids won’t fix, try these eight simple tips to fix the problem.
Don’t let your tongue become a dirty carpet.
Bad breath often strikes when people aren’t properly taking care of their oral health. The odor is usually caused by decaying food particles and bacteria in your mouth. That’s why brushing and flossing your teeth is so important, but don’t forget to gently brush your tongue to get rid of even more bacteria.
A clean tongue goes a long way to warding off bad breath, says Stephen Z. Wolner, a dentist in private practice in New York City. “Your tongue microscopically is like a shaggy carpet. There are millions of filaments on your tongue that trap tiny food particles and bacteria,” he says. Get in the habit of regularly cleaning your tongue using a toothbrush, the edge of a spoon, or a tongue cleaner. If you have any mouth guards or oral devices, make sure to clean them thoroughly before putting them back in your mouth.
Mouthwash isn’t a bad idea, but it’s only a temporary fix. Granted, a little mouthwash comes in handy before a romantic dinner for two, but it masks the odor instead of tackling the source of your problem.
Chew gum like it’s going out of style.
Believe it or not, saliva is your best weapon against bad breath. That’s why dry mouth, often caused by certain medications or medical conditions, leads to odor problems. By washing away food particles and bacteria, saliva helps to eliminate odor, too.
If you’re wondering why your breath stinks in the morning, it’s largely because saliva production slows while you sleep, allowing particles and odor to linger longer. That’s where sugarless gum comes in handy, as chewing it will stimulate saliva production. Mints, on the other hand, don’t usually stimulate saliva production and only temporarily mask bad odor.
“When you chew gum it makes you salivate, and the more saliva you have in your mouth the fewer bacteria you have. It not only mechanically washes bacteria out, but we have antiseptic and enzymes in our saliva that kill bacteria,” says Wolner.
While anything that makes you salivate will improve your breath, a gum that is sweetened with xylitol is your best option. Xylitol is a sugar substitute that not only increases salvation but also works to prevent bacteria from replicating in the mouth.
Choose cinnamon — it’s sweeter.
A recent study of the cinnamon-flavored gum Big Red found that cinnamon might have breath-odor fighting abilities. Unlike other flavors, cinnamon is not just a cover-up, Wolner tells WebMD. In fact, he says, an ingredient in the flavoring appears to actually decrease the bacteria in your mouth. The only problem is that sugar gums are bad for your teeth, so stick to sugarless cinnamon-flavored gum instead….” Continued
Related: How to Tell Someone Their Breath Stinks!
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August 19th, 2008 cate
From businessweek:
“Despite the many public efforts to promote physical activity and good nutrition in recent years, despite the constant warnings about the obesity crisis, Americans just keep getting fatter. According to an annual state-by-state look at the problem, adult obesity rates increased in 37 states in the past year, and only the District of Columbia saw a decrease—down a mere 0.1%. More than 25% of adults are now obese in 28 states, up from 19 states last year.
In 1991 no state had an obesity rate above 20%. Today more than 20% of adults are obese in every state except Colorado, where the number stands at 18.4%, according to the survey by two nonprofits, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Trust for America’s Health. Mississippi, the worst performer of all 51 on the list (which includes the District of Columbia), stands at 31.7%. Similarly disturbing increases were found in the percentage of adults with Type 2 diabetes, a weight-related disease. The survey found higher incidence of diabetes in 26 states. Four states are above 10%…..” Read the rest
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August 17th, 2008 cate
As a family that has abandoned the city and suburbs for the countryside, the very presence of a book like John Seymour’s “The Self-sufficient Life and How to Live It” is enough to inspire fits of joy. A perfect companion to works like Hemenway’s “Gaia’s Garden” and Mollison’s “Permaculture: A Designer’s Manual,” this book is a must for would-be urbanites fleeing the cities. Covering every topic relevant to self-sufficient, sustainable living and farm life, Seymour’s classic provides a great way to start a different life. An update from the venerable mid-Seventies edition of the book, this 2002 release is a fine improvement.
The book has quite a bit going for it:
1. Beautifully made, illustrated and laid-out, this book is meant to last and be used readily and often. Typical Dorling Kindersley quality.
2. An eye-friendly typeface and bright, semi-gloss pages make this easy reading.
3. The shear breadth of the information here is outstanding. Packed into 306 letter-sized pages are the following chapters:
*The Meaning of Self-Sufficiency
*Food from the Garden
*Food from Animals
*Food from the Fields
*Food from the Wild
*In the Dairy
*In the Kitchen
*Brewing & Wine-making
*Energy & Waste
*Crafts & Skills
*Things You Need to Know
4. Good specifics on all the categories of info listed above. You should be able to get started on your way to being people of the soil. Need to know how to kill, gut, and prepare your cattle? It’s in here. Got a hankering to get off the electrical grid altogether? Helpful windmill buying advice is here. Can’t tell rye from barley? You will after reading this book.
5. A helpful list of contacts and companies that can get you started on your dream are included.
This is a fine primer on self-sufficiency. Anyone looking to escape the rat race could hardly do better than to pick up a copy of “The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It.”
[source: amazon]
Get it now
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August 14th, 2008 cate
Educate yourself on environmental subjects. You can do so by starting or joining an environmental group. This will keep you informed and sociable at the same time. You will surely meet like-minded, caring people and make new friends. Also watch DVDs and read up on books related to the environment and eco-living.
Compost your kitchen scraps and other waste. Even if you live in an apartment you can compost material and use the end product as soil for flower pots or herb planters. Take a look at these awesome composters that you can keep inside your home.
Reduce your water consumption. Instead of taking a bath, take a shower and limit yourself. Don’t linger in the shower or you’ll end up using more water than if you’d taken a bath! If you absolutely MUST take a bath, take them only once in a while, and don’t fill the tub as much.
Use energy-efficient appliances. Don’t go out and replace all of your appliances at the same time. Let them run their course and then properly dispose of them. Then, purchase energy efficient ones (graded A, B). If you feel you have to replace your appliances and they are still functioning properly, donate them to an organization that helps needy families. (i.e., Salvation Army, St. Vincent’s, Goodwill, or better yet, a very local group helping out others.)
Use environmentally friendly cleaning products. Using poison-free products at home is not only good for the environment, but it’s also good for you and your family’s health. Chemical cleaning products may clean your counters, floors, windows, tables, etc, like crazy, but they can harm you and damage the planet. Eco-friendly cleaning products can equally clean yet not harm anyone or anything.
Use phosphate-free laundry detergent. This is easy to do. Just replace your big-name-brand detergents that you’ve been loyal to forever, but cost a fortune, and replace them with environmentally sound detergents. Many people are now opting to use soap nuts.
Reduce energy consumption. These are so obvious but you do forget them more often than you should or like. Turn off lights in rooms no one is using. If you have a large home, only provide heat or cool to rooms that are actually being utilized. Use energy-efficient lightbulbs and solar power when possible.
Donate old items instead of trashing them. Some people go through items like they’re going out of style. Oh. Maybe they ARE going out of style but put those things to good use and donate old clothes, furniture and other items to people who need them. Another note: if you’d rather sell these items, go ahead and make a little cash on the side from e-bay or whereever. This is a great way to earn some money while getting rid of stuff.
Harvest your own rainwater if possible. Use the power of Mother Nature to water your yard, lawn, plants and vegetable garden if you have one. They are so easy to set up and the water will have no chemicals. Put up gutters on your house and/or garage with a large receptacle to harvest the water. This will lower your water bill, help you use less city water and have pure rainwater for the garden. These wooden rain barrels are pretty cool.
Properly dispose of toxic materials. These products should not be in your house. Period. Go through your house, garage, attic, basement and discard of leftover paints, paint removers, floor finishes, cleaners that are toxic to you, your house, your family AND people who come to your house.
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August 13th, 2008 cate
When you drink a coke, this is what happens…
From healthbot:
- In The First 10 minutes: 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. (100% of your recommended daily intake.) You don’t immediately vomit from the overwhelming sweetness because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor allowing you to keep it down.
- 20 minutes: Your blood sugar spikes, causing an insulin burst. Your liver responds to this by turning any sugar it can get its hands on into fat. (There’s plenty of that at this particular moment)
- 40 minutes………Read the rest
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