Blogger starts war on obese bus passengers

A blogger has declared overweight passengers have become a problem for taking up too much room on Auckland buses.

In an article that has enraged many, Jon Colt launched into a tirade about “very wide” people and “pot-bellied” men who encroach on his space.

He wrote yesterday on aucklandtrains.co.nz that a number of people had contacted him about passengers who fill more than one seat.

In a post titled “Next Big Commuter Challenge” he said he initially thought the complainants were “being a little precious”, so caught the bus himself.

Mr Colt recorded his experiences and took photos of people on the bus.

He said he first sat next to “a very large woman who took up half my seat and forced me to even have to dangle my legs in the aisle as I had to sit sideways on half a seat to avoid her huge mid-girth”.

His experience the following day: “A very pot-bellied tall man was standing besides where I was sitting half way between the driver and the exit.

“When I got up to exit the bus, I couldn’t manoeuvre past him as he was stuck taking up the width of the aisle and he couldn’t move down as the bus was packed further back.”

He said it was not obese people who had been discriminated against, but thin people who “get squeezed” on bus seats.

Auckland Transport said it had not received any complaints about people who take up more than one seat.

Spokeswoman Sharon Hunter added there were no plans for charging customers extra for taking up two seats. “We and our operators do not discriminate on the basis of size.”

Auckland Council transport committee chairman Mike Lee said he had “never heard of it as an issue, ever”.

Mr Colt told the Herald his tirade had been inspired after 15 people had contacted him about the issue.

He said he had received 75 emails of support from people who believed obese people were an issue.

“The rest of the emails, from a post that has obviously gone viral, slam me using every name under the sun for being discriminatory about fat people and saying it should have never have been talked about.

“It’s obviously tapped into a secret frustration that is not politically correct to talk about.”

Less strain, more gain in lethargy battle

Winter sees a rise in those who fight the listlessness – but do too much too soon. Photo / Thinkstock

The lethargy and search for comfort often brought on by the long winter months has been named by health experts – “deconditioning”, or “inactivity syndrome”.

The Chiropractors’ Association says that people reaching for the TV remote rather than the gym membership card leads to a rise in conditions associated with winter idleness.

And they also see a rise in those who fight the listlessness – but do too much too soon.

Association spokesman Hayden Thomas said: “They get out of shape. Joints become stiff, muscles become flabby, endurance decreases and some put on excess weight.

“At this time of year we see an increase in people seeking care for conditions brought on by too little activity as well as those who have tried to do too much without enough preparation.”

The short days have forced Aucklander Norma Vaz, editor of Shore Beauty & Health, to trim back her exercise. Normally she goes for several vigorous walks during the week and longer ones at the weekend.

“In winter I leave for work in the morning, it’s dark, I get back in the dark.

So my whole walking regime, it just goes out the window.

“I find that when I get home I want a hot meal straight away and a glass of red wine seems to go down so much better on a cold winter night. It just feels like – comfort. In winter weekends when I walk, I tend to overdo it a bit because I’m trying to take advantage of the tiny break in the weather.”

That can leave her legs feeling sore.

Physiotherapist Graeme Hayhow said wet winter weekends sent many into hibernation, leading to fewer injuries.

But if a wet spell was followed by a weekend window of sunshine, a stream of patients ensued with minor sprains and strains caused by trying to catch up on outdoor exercise.

After a spell without, say, mowing the lawn, the job requires more effort for a body that has lost some conditioning.

“People have just got to realise that if they want to catch up for the last three or four weekends they have got to take things easier,” Mr Hayhow said.

Vinegar and the Yeast Infection Eliminating Diet

A common question I get regarding foods allowed or forbidden on the Candida diet concerns the use of vinegars.

Some vinegars have health promoting properties such as organic apple cider vinegar and balsamic vinegar, but still they should be eliminated from the diet in order to clear up systemic yeast infections.

I think it’s important for people to understand why vinegar shouldn’t be part of the yeast eliminating diet, so this article will hopefully help people understand why its on the do not eat list.

Vinegar is made with yeast. Now this is brewer’s yeast and is different than Candida albicans, so that’s really not an issue as long as a pure yeast source was used in making the vinegar. However, this fermentation produces ethanol and then bacteria convert this ethanol to acetic acid. Vinegar is therefore highly acidic and has an acidic effect on the body.

Candida alibicans thrives in an acidic environment so a Candida diet uses food sources that cause the body to be slightly alkaline instead of acidic in order to promote healing. If highly acidic foods such as vinegar are consumed then this can prevent this alkaline effect from happening.

Some websites say that organic apple cider vinegar is allowed, but I don’t really see how that is justified. I’ve seen some evidence that organic apple cider vinegar can be used to treat external yeast infections, however, taking the vinegar internally would have an undesirable acidic effect.

So as a general rule, distilled vinegars should be eliminated from the diet totally, however, after 60 days or when your symptoms have been eliminated, natural vinegars such as organic apple cider, balsamic, and red wine vinegars can be consumed in moderation. So you don’t have to give up natural, healthy vinegars for a lifetime, but just for a season while on the strict part of a yeast infection eliminating diet.

Candida Diet Power Foods

When starting a Candida diet many struggle with eliminating many of their favorite foods. Unfortunately most of these “comfort foods” are processed and full of sugar and refined carbs which are part of the reason for Candida overgrowth in the first place.

In time, your taste buds will change and you will actually begin craving whole, nutritious foods instead of all the garbage that is largely the western diet. I’ve put together this list of staple foods to the Candida Eliminating diet as there are many food s to choose from, but these will give you the nutrition your body needs without feeding the hungry yeast cells.

Lentils- Lentils are so versatile and tasty. When combined with long grain brown rice they become a complete protein and lentils can be used in so many different recipes.Quinoa- This grain is a complete protein and can be used in place of rice and pasta.Avocado- This fruit is a powerhouse of nutrition and rich in healthy fat.Chia seeds- These little dynamos can also be added to many dishes to up their nutritional value.Coconut Oil- This healthy fat can be used in place of other oils in recipes and has amazing anti-fungal properties.Turmeric- This spice is a must on the Candida diet and is perfect with lentils. Don’t be afraid to cook with it in all kinds of recipes.Brown Long Grain RiceGarlic- The health properties of fresh garlic are many.All natural Greek Yogurt- A great source of protein, calcium and natural probioticsOatsUnsweetened Taheebo Pau d’Arco teaGreen Leafy SaladsFresh Lemons- They are rich in vitamin C, very low in sugar, and have an alkalizing effect on the body. Lemons make a great marinade and salad dressing option.

The above foods should be a large part of your diet when you are trying to eliminate yeast infections. What’s also great about the above foods is that they are so healthy for anyone irregardless of whether the person is on a Candida eliminating diet or not.

These Candida diet power foods can be incorporated into so many recipes and they are foods your whole family will like eating.

Looking for an effective, comprehensive Candida diet program? I recommend Yeast Infection No More. This program has stood the test of time, has a very low refund rate and offers a no risk 60 day money back guarantee. Linda Allen and her staff are always standing by to answer questions and to help you be successful on the program. Click Here to try it now.

Sugar, Dairy, Artificial Sweeteners and Candida albicans Infections

It amazes me how even despite the 1000's of testimonials, people still doubt whether dietary sugar, dairy and artificial sweeteners play a role in increasing or eliminating yeast infections.

There are many doctors out there that would swear on their profession that there isn’t a connection, however, there is more than just people’s testimonies to back up the sugar, dairy, artificial sweetener connection.

PubMed U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health published the results of a 1984 controlled study that explored this relationship between sugar and Candida albicans yeast infections.

100 women participated in the study and where given diets rich in sugar, dairy products and artificial sweeteners. The women’s urine was monitored in order to see if sugars from these substances could be detected. Consuming these foods caused elevated levels of glucose, arabinose and ribose which are known to feed Candida albicans.

When the woman eliminated sugar, dairy, and artificial sweeteners the levels of sugars in the urine decreased as well as the incidence and severity of Candida albicans yeast infections.

This is solid scientific evidence that diet plays a huge role in the onset or prevention of yeast infections. Excessive, sugar, dairy, and artificial sweeteners are indeed linked to yeast infections and because these ingredients are so prevalent in western diets, it’s no wonder yeast infections are becoming an increasing epidemic.

If you have been on the fence as to whether you should start a Candida diet, especially after getting conflicting advice from a doctor, this study should help you see that there is indeed a connection between dietary sugar, dairy, artificial sweeteners, and Candida albicans infections.

Looking for an effective, comprehensive Candida diet program? I recommend Yeast Infection No More. This program has stood the test of time, has a very low refund rate and offers a no risk 60 day money back guarantee. Linda Allen and her staff are always standing by to answer questions and to help you be successful on the program. Click Here to try it now.

Do I Need A Candida Cleanse: Symptom Checklist

A Candida Cleanse seeks to eliminate Candida from the body. However, it’s important to realize that candida albicans will never totally be eliminated as these microscopic fungal cells are all around us in our environment, no matter how clean we are.

However, a Candida cleanse can greatly reduce their numbers to a point where they don’t cause problems and are manageable by the body. It’s also important to note that a Candida cleanse is a process and won’t happen overnight.

Eventually through diet and lifestyle changes Candida albicans can be cleansed from the body to manageable levels.

It is no secret that millions of people suffer from Chronic Yeast Infections, but there are many border line people that could benefit from a Candida cleanse as well. You can use this symptom checklist to see if you should begin the Candida cleanse process.

Several yeast infections a year vFatiguevFrequent headachesvSugar cravingsvDigestive issues (cramps, bloating, gas etc.)vFrequent sore throatsvDizzinessvSkin issues (itching, eczema, acne etc.)vIrritabilityvFoggy headvDepressionvSinus problemsvOral thrush outbreaksv

These are just some of the more common Systemic Candidiasis Symptoms, but they can gauge how likely you will be to benefit from a Candida cleanse.

10 or more symptoms: Yes, a Candida cleanse would be beneficial.

5 to 9 symptoms: Borderline, you still could benefit especially if frequent yeast infections and/or oral thrush was a symptom you selected.

1 to 4 symptoms: Only if frequent yeast infections and/or oral thrush was selected.

This Candida cleanse checklist should help you determine whether or not to begin the process of eliminating Candida overgrowth. This site has all the information and Candida diet program recommendations to help you get started. Just remember that cleansing Candida is a process, but eventually most people find relief and can’t believe how much different they really do feel after the cleanse.

A Candida Diet Really Does Work: A Success Story

I love getting reports from people who have finally found relief from yeast infections by following a Candida Diet.

This is just further evidence that Candida Diets work despite what many in the medical profession would say.

Here is a comment I received from a visitor to Candida Diet Foods last week.

Ted,
I’d just like to say thank you for this blog and your wealth of knowledge on this subject. I have struggled with chronic yeast infections for about 2 years. Every month and sometimes twice a month. As a woman this left me with about one good week of freedom at times and put a strain on my marriage. My OBGYN had little advice or cures. Even a 3 month. course of Diflucan didn’t work.

As soon as I started to follow this diet I have been yeast free. After one week in, I began to feel a whole lot better. In another week, I’ll have completed 60 days. I lost 15 lbs. and have lots more energy. I have my life back. Thank you!

-Jen

We often forget how yeast infections can effect a whole family and marriages as well. I’m sure her husband is extremely happy she is yeast infection free. If you’ve been debating whether or not to start a Candida diet, then this should help you decide if it’s worth some of the dietary sacrifices you will have to make.

Be sure to check out my Mini Candida alibicans Diet Reviews to find a pre-made easy to follow plan.

Yeast Sensitivity Symptoms

Another condition that relates to the fungus yeast is a yeast allergy or yeast sensitivity. This condition is different from yeast infections or candidiasis, but yeast sensitivity symptoms can overlap a bit.

Some websites lump yeast sensitivity and Candida into the same category, but they are different. A person can have yeast sensitivity, but not suffer from chronic yeast infections or systemic Candidiasis.

A person with chronic Candida who has eliminated Candida albicans yeast can eat products made with Saccharomyces yeast (baker’s yeast and brewer’s yeast) and not be effected by that harmless species.

The good news is that just as Candidiasis can be eliminated with a Candida diet so can yeast sensitivity or allergy.

A yeast allergy is the result of a person’s immune system identifying all yeast as a pathogen including harmless Saccharomyces yeast. This creates an immune response in the body causing inflammation and the release of histamine.

There can be different levels of yeast sensitivity with some people just having mild reactions to yeast products while others having severe allergic symptoms. People allergic to yeast must avoid any product containing yeast or made using yeast. Since yeast is in so many products and because of the lack of awareness of this condition, this problem can go undiagnosed for years.

If you have allergies or hay fever of any kind then you probably know how allergic reactions make you feel. Yeast sensitivity isn’t much different, but will also manifest itself with digestive problems.

Mild Allergic Reactions

FatigueIndigestionDiarrheaCrampsExcess mucus in throat when eating yeast productsItching

Severe Allergic Reactions

Nausea and vomitingSwelling of the mouth and throatHivesMalnutritionSevere diarrheaSevere Cramping

How does one know whether they have Candidiasis or yeast sensitivity (allergy)? One tell tale sign would be the frequency of yeast infections or thrush.  If you rarely get yeast infections, but feel fatigued and have digestive issues after eating lots of bread or other yeast products then you probably have a yeast allergy.

You can be tested for yeast allergies by a food allergy specialist and this will show how your immune system reacts to yeast. The good news is that yeast allergies and yeast sensitivity symptoms can be treated with a yeast eliminating diet. Most Candida diets are developed to eliminate all yeast and yeast products from the diet so they are effective in helping both those with yeast sensitivity/allergy and those with chronic systemic Candidiasis.

Looking for an effective, comprehensive Candida diet program? I recommend Yeast Infection No More. This program has stood the test of time, has a very low refund rate and offers a no risk 60 day money back guarantee. Linda Allen and her staff are always standing by to answer questions and to help you be successful on the program. This program addresses yeast sensitivity and allergy as well. Click Here to try it now.

Are Mold Infections, Athlete’s Foot and Yeast Infections the Same?

Not all fungal infections are created equally and they certainly can’t be treated the same way.

Although all three are scientifically part of the Kingdom Fungi, they are different structurally, the way the feed, and the way they reproduce. This is important to know when it comes to diagnosing which type of fungal infection you have and how it should be treated.

Molds are classified in the Phyla Zygomycota, Deuteromycota and Ascomycota. They spread thread like hyphae throughout their food source and excrete enzymes to breakdown the food source and then absorb the nutrients. They usually feed on dead organisms, but some species can occasionally infect living organisms. They reproduce by spores which can cause allergic reactions in some people and some species can infect the respiratory tract of people when the spores find there way into the sinuses or lungs of people with weakened immune systems. They’re treated with strong antifungal medication.

This fungus belongs in the Ascomycota Phylum, the Tinea Genus and is a parasitic fungus. It feeds on living skin tissue usually on the feet or groin by using hyphae which grow into the organism, killing skin cells in the process. They reproduce by transmission from person to person. They are treated with antifungal creams and naturally with tea tree oil. Up to 20% of the human population is infected with this fungus.

This type of fungus is in the Ascomycota and the Basidiomycota Phyla and are further divided into the most common Genus  Saccharomycetales (bakers and brewers yeast) and Candida (yeast that cause infections). They both reproduce by budding and feed on sugars. They both are usually are unicellular, but Candida can respond to environmental cues and start forming multicellular filaments that invade tissues. This happens more regularly when Candida alibicans is in overabundance on or in the body. Yeast infections can be treated with antifungals or by natural methods covered on this site.

So while Molds, Athlete’s foot, and Yeast infections are all fungus, they are indeed different and interact with the human body differently. When dealing with fungal infections it’s important to get the correct diagnosis and then treat the different fungal infection accordingly.

Fried Kool-Aid Recipe

Chicken Charlie’s

“You know, growing up, I was a big fan of Kool-Aid. We drank Kool-Aid growing up, so I thought, ‘why not fry it and see what happens,’” said Charlie Boghosian in an interview with ABC News. Boghosian, the inventor of fried Kool-Aid balls, unveiled his snack at the San Diego County Fair, and now, as predictably as the success of Jennifer Aniston’s next film (#fail), there’s been a wave of articles expressing disgust at them. We say, let the haters hate. Hey, we’re not advocating fried Kool-Aid balls as a substitute for a proper Monday-night dinner, but with the arrival of the first day of summer tomorrow, we say there’s nothing wrong with kicking back and rewarding yourself with a ball or two.

If this recipe gets your mouth watering, just wait: Boghosian didn’t stop at frying Kool-Aid. His 2011 menu also features fried Girl Scout cookies, FryBQ Ribs and Totally Fried Brownies. Check out our gallery of this master chef’s other delicacies.

And since we suspect all this fried deliciousness will be popping up at barbecues across America, here’s an easy-to-prepare fried Kool-Aid recipe:

Ingredients:
- Vegetable oil (for frying)
- 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup Kool-Aid (We like grape)
-  3 eggs
- 1/4 of sugar (Want it sweeter? Add more)
– 1/2 tsp. of salt
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 2 cups milk
- 3 2/3 cups of flour

Optional (variations we think are equally mouthwatering)
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. dark chocolate (melted)
- 1 tsp. honey

Make the batter by beating the eggs and sugar together. Gradually add the milk and dry ingredients, including the optional ones. Cook in hot vegetable oil until golden brown (a few minutes, depending on heat). Cool in tray for a few minutes, then dig in. 

Got a variation on the fried Kool-Aid recipe you’d like to share? Post it in the comments box below.

Toxic tide mankind’s next great threat

For most of us, trouble with plastic at sea tends to mean getting a plastic bag caught around a propeller or having one block a water intake.

However, a recent United Nations environmental programme report known as Yearbook for 2011 paints a gloomy picture on a rather larger scale. Describing plastics “lost” in the marine world as “the world’s new toxic time-bomb”, the report lists a litany of problems likely to flow from our discarded waste.

These include the reasonably well known: entangling wildlife, or being mistaken for food; and the one that has just been discovered: the fact that floating plastics accumulate and concentrate chemicals such as polychlorinated biphenols (PCBs) and the pesticide DDT (and that these then make their way in to the food chain, affecting birds, marine mammals and, of course, humans).

The problem appears to be that, while plastic doesn’t biodegrade, it does something far worse: it “photo-degrades”. This is a process by which the various plastics are broken down by sunlight into smaller and smaller pieces, all of which are still plastic polymers. These eventually become individual molecules of plastic: totally invisible and yet still too tough for anything to safely digest.

As with most forms of pollution, things have been getting worse over the last half a century or so as the world has become more industrialised and more countries that were once very poor become more affluent (think China, India, the economies of Southeast Asia).

As more and more of our world becomes made of plastic, more of it finds its way into the sea (according to the UN report, about 80 per cent of marine debris doesn’t come from the sea at all but from land).

Major contributors are tourism-related litter at the coast (including litter left by beach goers such as food and beverage packaging, cigarettes and plastic beach toys); and sewage-related debris (garbage such as street litter, condoms and syringes discharged directly into the sea or rivers during heavy rainfall or from waste water outlets).

The other 20 per cent consists mainly of fishing-related debris (including fishing lines and nets, fishing pots and strapping bands from bait boxes that are lost accidentally by commercial fishing boats or are deliberately dumped into the ocean); and wastes from ships and boats (including garbage accidentally or deliberately dumped overboard).

In many places, all this harmful waste remains scattered and diverse. However, in our part of the world, the Pacific, the various currents conspire to attract vast amounts of this discarded plastic debris in an area known as the central Pacific gyre. Also commonly referred to as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch or the Pacific Trash Vortex, it lies in the central North Pacific Ocean, roughly between 135°-155°W and 35°-42°N.

Estimates of its size vary but, according to Curtis Ebbesmeyer, one of the world’s leading flotsam experts, it is the size of a continent.

It is here that much of our knowledge on the dangers of discarded plastics originates as, as the size of the problem has become apparent, scientists have flocked to the area to study its effects. Unfortunately, they appear to be far worse than anyone first imagined. One of those who frequently ventures into the area aboard the oceanographic research vessel Alguita is Captain Charles Moore. He is one of those warning about what he calls “the darker side” of our plastic pollution.

“As these fragments float around, they accumulate the various non water-soluble poisons we manufacture,” he says. “It turns out that these plastic polymers are sponges for DDT, PCBs and nonylphenols – oily toxics that don’t dissolve in seawater. They can accumulate at up to one million times the level of these poisons floating in the water.

“These are not like heavy metal poisons, which affect the animal that ingests them directly. Rather, they are what might be called ‘second generation’ toxic waste.”

Moore says this is because animals, including we humans, have evolved receptors for elaborate organic molecules called hormones. These regulate brain activity and reproduction.

“Hormone receptors cannot distinguish these toxics from the natural estrogenic hormone, estradiol and, when the pollutants dock at these receptors instead of the natural hormone, they have been shown to have a number of negative effects in everything from birds and fish to humans.”

Moore, who believes the issue of hormone disruption is becoming one of the biggest environmental issues of the 21st century, points out that hormone disruption has been implicated in lower sperm counts and higher ratios of females to males in both humans and animals.

“Unchecked, this trend is a dead end for any species.”

Perhaps the most disturbing issue is that problem appears virtually, if not actually, unfixable.

Moore says it would be easier to vacuum every square inch of the entire United States than to clean up the “Garbage Patch”.

“The plastic patch is larger than the US and the fragments are mixed below the surface to a depth of at least 30 metres.”

Protein Supplements and The Candida Diet

In theory protein supplements might seem like a good idea to use while on a Candida diet.

They could be a great way of increasing your protein and caloric intake while not feeding the Candida yeast cells living in your body.

However, most protein supplements on the market are full of sugar, starch, artificial flavors, and the sugar free varieties are loaded with artificial sweeteners. I’ve searched and found some that are all natural and have no sugar nor artificial sweeteners, but it was like finding a needle in a hay stack.

It amazes me how everything has to taste sweet before people will buy it. The same is true with protein supplements. They come in a wide variety of flavors that make them seem more like a dessert than something that is supposed to lead to better health.

Anyway, I think using a high quality all natural protein supplement as part of a Candida diet is a good idea for those that need to boost their protein intake as well as their caloric intake. The protein powder can be added to green smoothies, oatmeal, soups, curries, and so much more especially if there aren’t any crazy flavors involved. No one wants to eat a vegetable soup with a splash of berry banana anyway!

If your interested in using protein supplements as part of a Candida diet just read the labels carefully and make sure they are sugar free or very low in sugar as well as free from artificial ingredients and sweeteners.

Here’s two possibilities online that I have researched. The first is just plain and the second is sweetened with stevia if you just have to have your protein sweet and flavored.

Using Stevia with the Candida Diet

Stevia can be a useful sweetener when fighting Candida overgrowth, but it does have some limitations that those on the Candida diet should be aware of.

First of all, Stevia comes from the leaves of a plant that grows in South America and Stevioside is the main ingredient in Stevia that makes it taste sweet. It tastes a bit like artificial sweetener to me, but overall it’s pleasant.

People in South America have been using Stevia for years for its sweet taste and in Japan they have been using it for some time to pickle things like ginger. Stevia has virtually no calories so it won’t feed Candida, however, that doesn’t mean Stevia should be used to sweeten everything.

The FDA was slow to approve Stevia for use as a food product because there wasn’t much evidence for its safety in large quantities. No one would argue that it’s harmless if only a few drops are used a day, but when it comes to consuming large quantities it could have some side effects. In a couple of studies performed on rats, large doses of Stevioside caused fertility problems in male rats and in another study it interfered with the way rat’s cells converted food into energy and how carbohydrates were absorbed.

A couple of years ago the FDA did approve it and now there are several commercial Stevia based products on the market. However, these products are often refined stevia and full of additives like maltodextrin to make them seem more like sugar. Maltodextrin is a starch that is quickly broken down to glucose so it could potentially feed Candida. Some are also combined with sugar alcohols which also aren’t beneficial in eliminating Candida yeast.

I think using a few drops of natural stevia extract from time to time is fine for people on a Candida diet. However, using large quantities of stevia probably isn’t a good idea. Stevia shouldn’t be used as an excuse to eat things like muffins, cakes, cookies, etc. just because the sugar has been replaced with Stevia.

When shopping for Stevia, the liquid variety is probably the best bet and check the ingredients to make sure it’s all natural and as pure as possible.

Candida Diet: Giving Up Sugar

 

Perhaps the hardest aspect of the Candida diet is giving up sugar. My god, sugar is in almost everything at the supermarket these days!

In the western world and ever spreading eastward, we are so addicted to sugar, so it’s no wonder yeast infections are prevalent and that our bodies are overgrown with Candida. We’ve turned our bodies into large yeast breeding grounds because of the sugar we eat. Did you know that the average American consumes an estimated 180 pounds of sugar a year?

When starting a Candida albicans Diet some people find out they have to give up sugar and they run for the hills or the pharmacy for more antifungal cream. However, sugar addiction can be broken and when you finally do break it, you have just jumped a major hurdle in curing/preventing not only yeast infections but a whole range of health problems.

I want to stress that I’m a “practice what you preach” type of person and I have given up sugar. Now I only have sugar on occasion and it is no longer part of my everyday life. Boy was it tough at first, but it was so worth it and much easier as time goes on.

I want to stress that a Candida diet doesn’t mean that you can never have anything sweet or sugary again. During the first 2 to 3 months, yes, all refined sugar should be eliminated, but after the Candida overgrowth has been taken care of, you can have a piece of cake or some candy as a treat a couple times a month. No one wants to eat celery sticks at every birthday party and holiday, right?

Therefore, sugar becomes an occasional treat instead of a 1/2 pound a day necessity. Now that I’ve been off sugar for sometime, I find that my sweet tooth has changed a lot. Now I can eat a small piece of cake and feel completely satisfied where as before I thought the larger the better! My sweet tooth gets satisfied with a lot less because many of the old foods I loved now seem sickening sweet.

My purpose for writing this article was to just encourage you as you begin or as you continue your Candida albicans diet. Giving up sugar is tough, but I know you can do it, just as I and many others have. I’m proud to be one that’s no longer eating my 180 pounds of sugar a year.

I would love to hear from you in regards to how much better you feel after you’ve been off sugar. Could you leave a brief comment below? I’m sure it will be very helpful and encouraging to others who are on or wanting to start the Candida diet.

Study: New Drug Bardoxolone Improves Kidney Function

In Phase II Trial, New Kidney Drug Improved Kidney Function About 30%

June 24, 2011 -- A new drug appears to improve kidney function in people with type 2 diabetes who have chronic kidney disease, new research suggests.

The drug, known as bardoxolone methyl, works in a new way, says researcher David Warnock, MD, the Hilda B. Anderson professor of medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He is slated to present the results of the phase II trial of the drug today at the European Renal Association-European Dialysis and Transplant Association Congress in Prague.

"This is a promising new treatment that may change the course, the whole way we approach severe kidney disease in diabetics," Warnock tells WebMD.

The results are also published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Diabetes is a major cause of kidney disease, which boosts the risk of kidney failure and the need for dialysis.

"There are 26 million Americans who have chronic kidney disease," Warnock says. "There are 500,000 on dialysis."

The hope, Warnock says, is to improve kidney function with the drug enough to delay or prevent the need for dialysis, which costs about $75,000 a year per patient.

Lynda Szczech, MD, president of the National Kidney Foundation, who reviewed the findings for WebMD, said the results look impressive, but she awaits results from the final clinical trial (phase III), now under way.

In the study, Warnock and his colleagues looked at three doses of the drug -- 25, 75, and 150 milligrams daily. They compared the drug treatment to placebo. The patients remained on other medications, such as blood pressure-lowering drugs, with the bardoxolone added on.

The new drug is an antioxidant that reduces inflammation, working in a new way. The reduction in inflammation leads to improved kidney function, Warnock says.

In all, they evaluated 227 patients, average age 67. The patients were equally divided into the placebo group and the three drug groups.

The researchers followed them for 52 weeks, evaluating the effect at 24 weeks and at 52 weeks.

Compared to placebo, people on the drug had an increase in their average GFR, a measure of kidney function.

Normal GFR is about 90 to 120 milliliters per minute; below 15 is considered late-stage kidney disease.

At the start of the study, all four groups had similar average GFRs, ranging from about 31 to 33.

At 24 weeks, those on the drug had increases in their kidney function, but no substantial differences occurred in the placebo group. At the 52-week mark, those on the drug still had improvement, but there was no substantial improvement in those on placebo.

The 75 mg dose was deemed best, as it produced on average about a 30% increase in kidney function at 52 weeks, Warnock says. ''The maximal effect was apparent in the first 12 to 20 weeks," he says. After that, it reached a plateau and stabilized.

Very Low-Calorie Diet May Reverse Diabetes

Study Offers Insight Into How Weight Loss Fights Type 2 Diabetes

June 24, 2011 (San Diego) -- A very low-calorie diet of 600 calories a day may be able to reverse type 2 diabetes, preliminary research suggests.

Eleven people who had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes within the past four years slashed their calories for eight weeks, sticking to a diet of liquid diet drinks and non-starchy vegetables.

Three months after going off the diet, seven were free of diabetes.

Sound too tough to follow? Don't worry, the researchers aren't recommending the low-cal diet as a treatment for diabetes.

"We used the 600-calorie diet to test a hypothesis. What I can tell you definitively is that if people lose substantial weight by normal means, they will lose their diabetes," says study head Roy Taylor,MD, director of the Newcastle Magnetic Resonance Centre at Newcastle University in England.

The findings were published online by the journal Diabetologia and presented here at the annual meeting of the American Diabetes Association (ADA).

Nearly 26 million Americans have diabetes, about 95% of whom have type 2 diabetes. It develops when the body does not produce enough insulin and/or the insulin that is produced doesn't work properly. As a result, blood sugar levels shoot up.

Taylor tells WebMD that the very low-calorie diet reduced the amount of fat in the pancreas and liver, which allowed insulin production and function to return to normal.

After one week on the diet, participants' fasting blood sugar levels were no longer elevated, he says.

MRI scans showed that the fat levels in the pancreas fell from around 8% -- considered high -- to a normal 6%.

After eight weeks on the diet, their bodies were once again making sufficient insulin, essentially reversing their diabetes, Taylor says.

"Fat in the pancreas inhibits the action of beta cells in making insulin. The low-calorie diet got rid of this excess fat," he says.

The men and the women in the study weighed an average of 220 pounds at the start of the study and lost an average of 33 pounds over eight weeks. By three months later, they had regained an average of 6.5 pounds.

David M. Kendall, MD, chief scientific and medical officer for the ADA, tells WebMD that it's been known for a while that "substantial calorie reduction can be very effective in rapidly improving diabetic control, especially in people who are obese.

"What is unique about this study is it looked at some of the mechanisms that underlie the rapid improvement," he says.

More research is needed to determine whether the low-cal diet results in a permanent reversal of diabetes, Taylor says. "We also have to figure out a more practical way for people to get these results -- that is, to get fat out of pancreas and keep it out," he says.

New Black Market Designer Drugs: Why Now?

2C-E and other illicit new drugs are a danger to users and a threat to psychedelic research, experts warn.

By now you've heard that "spice" and "bath salts" are designer drugs and not seasoning or soaks. But what about 2C-E? DOM? 2C-I? 2C-T-7? 3C-Bromo-Dragonfly? 2C-Bromo-Fly?

Those names -- and many more -- are just the tip of the iceberg of new designer drugs. Many of them are easily available online; others can be created in home laboratories from freely available recipes. Makers of these drugs, some of which are not yet illegal, have been staying a step ahead of the law.

"We are trying to keep ahead of it, but it is not always easy," David Shurtleff, PhD, acting deputy director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), tells WebMD.

The Drug Enforcement Administration has the same problem, says DEA Special Agent Gary Boggs.

"We have a whole staff of scientists whose job is to look at these different chemicals and at whether they are being abused," Boggs tells WebMD. "Some were developed only as research chemicals, not for human use. But unscrupulous individuals decided they would rather make money than be concerned for public safety."

Knowing the difference between one of these similar-sounding drugs and another can be the difference between life and death.

Earlier this year, a 19-year-old Minnesota teen died and 10 others were injured after taking large doses of 2C-E -- a drug with far more potent and dangerous effects than the 2C-I they thought they were taking at a spring break party. The 21-year-old who supplied the drug -- police found him unconscious in a snow bank -- has been charged with third-degree murder.

Last May, in Oklahoma, two young people died and six were injured when they took what they thought was 2C-E, but which seems actually to have been the extra-dangerous 3C-bromo-dragonfly.

Most of the new designer drugs have psychedelic properties, although many have mixed features of psychedelics and other drug classes such as stimulants or amphetamines. They are dangerous for users who don't know what they're getting -- or getting into. And it's casting a pall over the renaissance of scientific research into legitimate uses for psychedelic drugs.

Both of these dangers worry Purdue University pharmacologist David E. Nichols, PhD, a leading figure in psychedelic research.

"These newer so-called 'legal' highs, we really don't know anything about them. They have never been tested. People are playing a game of Russian roulette with these things," Nichols tells WebMD. "These are proliferating now. A lot of them came from my lab. We may have done one or two rat studies, but we know nothing about what these compounds do in humans."

What's new about the new drugs? In one sense they are not terribly new.

"A lot of these drugs have been around for a while, and many of them are derivatives of existing compounds," Shurtleff tells WebMD. "Take this 2C-E that resulted in the death in Minnesota, for example. That is the third, or fourth, or fifth of a line of compounds coming from ecstasy or MDMA."

Combination Therapy Needed to Fight Chronic Pain

Researchers Say Effective Pain Relief Must Combine Drugs, Physical Therapy, and Lifestyle Change

 

June 23, 2011 -- The last decade brought advances in our understanding of chronic pain, but this has not translated into better treatments yet, an analysis shows.

The analysis was published in The Lancet.

It found that treatments for chronic, non-cancer pain such as low back pain, arthritis, headache, and fibromyalgia don't do enough to alleviate pain or restore functioning in the majority of people.

And don't expect any one pill to do the trick, says the report's author, Dennis C. Turk, PhD, an anesthesiologist and pain specialist at the University of Washington in Seattle. "There is this expectation that you will wave a wand and there will be a new pill or new surgery to alleviate your pain, and that is not likely to happen."

"Chronic pain is a complex problem, and the only way to treat it is with a combination of treatments because no one treatment is sufficient," he says. Combination therapy may mean multiple medications or medications plus lifestyle changes, psychological treatments, and/or rehabilitation and physical therapy.

Likening chronic pain to diabetes, Turk says "there are a lot of things to do in addition to medication, as in diabetes, where you also watch your weight and test your urine and blood."

It will involve a more holistic approach, he says. "We have a tendency to try to diagnose people in silos and treat everyone with knee osteoarthritis (OA) the same way," he says. But "we need to treat people as a whole and not just knees." Social, emotional, and environmental factors all play a role in how we experience pain and painful conditions.

Roger Fillingim, PhD, associate professor in the College of Dentistry at the University of Florida in Gainesville, says that there have been advances in understanding the biology of pain and in awareness of pain as a pressing public health issue in recent years.

But "this hasn't translated into terribly effective treatments of chronic pain, and we will need more multidisciplinary treatments in order to provide more optimal clinical outcome for patients in pain," he says.

The truth is "for many forms of chronic pain, a single treatment is not sufficient to improve quality of life to the point where a patient will be satisfied," he says.

"That pill doesn't exist," he says. "There may be medication that helps alleviate some of the pain, but that needs to be accompanied by other treatments including physical rehabilitation and behavioral or psychological intervention to help people cope with their pain in a more effective manner."

Lesley Arnold MD, a psychiatrist at the University of Cincinnati, takes a more "glass is half-full" view of our accomplishments in treating chronic pain.

"We do have more options today," she says, citing several FDA approvals in recent years for new drugs to treat fibromyalgia and OA.  But "we do need more studies of combinations of medications to see what works well together and most importantly, we need studies looking at nondrug therapies."

"We don't have a good way of accessing the central nervous system to tell us why people are in pain," she says.

City Life Affects Brain's Response to Stress

Study May Help Explain Why City Residents Have Higher Rates of Depression and AnxietyBy Brenda Goodman
WebMD Health News

June 23, 2011 -- The brains of people who live in cities react more strongly to stress than those who live in small towns and rural areas, a new study shows.

The study is published in the journal Nature. It may help explain why mood disorders like depression and mental illnesses like schizophrenia are more common in city dwellers than in those living in less densely populated areas.

Researchers in Germany and Canada recruited healthy adults who lived in large cities, moderately sized towns, or smaller, rural communities. Scientists recorded their brain activity as they tried to solve difficult math problems while being criticized for their poor skills. It's a test that creates social stress as people struggle, but fail, to prove their mental abilities.  

As they were stressed, people who were currently living in cities had more activity in an almond-shaped area of the brain called the amygdala than those who lived in towns or rural areas.

The amygdala plays important roles in fear, emotional processing, and self-protection. It has been linked to scores of mental illnesses including posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, autism, and phobias.

People who grew up in cities also had an interesting response to the stress. Even if they were no longer living in an urban area, their brains showed higher activity in a region called the anterior cingulate cortex, which helps to regulate the amygdala, suggesting that the early-life environment helps to shape the brain's stress response in important ways.

"It's a stronger response of those areas that typically regulate fear and emotion," says study researcher Jens C. Pruessner, PhD, director of the Douglas Mental Health Institute at McGill University in Montreal. And he says it suggests "that living in big cities with many, many people surrounding you sensitizes you to respond more strongly to stress."

Both the researchers and independent experts point out that the study can't prove that city living is causing these brain regions to light up under stress.

But the association remained after researchers tried to account for the influences of other things that could be related to living in a rural or urban area, like socioeconomic status, the size of study participants' social networks, or how anxious they were to begin with.

"I think there's a lot to the story that our environment is important to how we function and also what our mental health is like," says study researcher Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg, MD, PhD, director of the Central Institute of Mental Health in Mannheim and professor of psychiatry at Heidelberg University, in Germany.

Meyer-Lindenberg says that to tease out what parts of city life might be responsible for the stress response, he is now comparing the brains of migrants and non-migrants who live in the same city. "They have a different social environment, but same city environment," he tells WebMD.

Can HPV Vaccine Stop Throat Cancer?

Explosive Rise in HPV Throat Cancer; Panel Mulls Vaccinating Boys

June 23, 2011 -- Can HPV vaccines stop the explosive rise of HPV-related head and neck cancer?

HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccines protect against the sexually transmitted strains of HPV that cause cervical cancer. The same HPV strains -- spread by kissing and by oral sex -- cause oropharyngeal (OP) cancer, the form of head and neck cancer that affects the back and sides of the throat, the base of the tongue, and the tonsils.

There's strong evidence that HPV vaccines prevent cervical cancer. There's no direct proof that these vaccines prevent throat cancer, but the rapid rise in cases among young people has some experts wanting to vaccinate first and get proof later.

"We don't need to wait until all these molecular events are understood," Dong Moon Shin, MD, of Emory University's Winship Cancer Center, tells WebMD. "The time is now. For the HPV vaccine, cost is the only issue as side effects are minimal. Routine HPV vaccination has to be implemented very soon, for both boys and girls."

In the U.S., that recommendation is made by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). The ACIP now recommends routine HPV vaccination only for girls and young women in order to prevent cervical cancer. It permits vaccination of boys who want protection against HPV-caused genital warts.

For two years, the ACIP has been mulling whether to recommend the HPV vaccine for boys. This would help prevent cervical cancer in unvaccinated women. It also would prevent HPV-related anal cancer and genital warts in both men and women, as well as HPV-related cancer of the penis.

But HPV causes anal cancer and penile cancer far less often than it causes cervical cancer, and if enough girls were to get the HPV vaccine -- about 50% -- it wouldn't be cost-effective to vaccinate boys.

Throat cancer is rapidly changing this scenario.

At yesterday's meeting, the ACIP heard a disturbing report from Aimee Kreimer, PhD, an expert in head and neck cancer at the National Cancer Institute.

"At some point ... it is projected that there will be the same incidence of OP cancer in men as cervical cancer in women," Kreimer said. "If current trends continue, OP cancer in men will pass cervical cancer in 2025."

And HPV is to blame. Only a few decades ago, the major risk factors for throat cancer were smoking and alcohol. Not any more. In the five-year period of 1984-1989, only 16% of OP cancers were linked to HPV. By 2000-2004, HPV was behind 75% of OP cancers.

What are the risk factors? Not all are known, but HPV-related throat cancer risk goes up with increased oral sex and kissing, Kreimer said. Current tobacco use and HIV infection also are risks.

Fortunately, oral HPV infection appears to be much less common than genital HPV infection. Among healthy individuals infected with HPV, fewer than one in 20 has detectable HPV in the oral cavity.

Unhealthy Eating Habits Start Early

Binge Eating and Other Unhealthy Habits Often Start in Childhood and Linger

June 24, 2011 -- Girls and boys who develop unhealthy eating or extreme dieting habits as adolescents are likely to carry those potentially dangerous weight control practices into adulthood.

A new study shows that more than half of teenage girls and one-third of teenage boys used unhealthy eating habits like fasting, skipping meals, or smoking more cigarettes to control their weight, and many continued these habits through young adulthood.

Researchers also found the number of young adolescents who used extreme weight control measures like taking diet pills, making themselves vomit, and using diuretics or laxatives increased as they entered adulthood from 8% to 20% among girls. These extreme measures increased from 2% to 7% from middle adolescence to middle young adulthood among boys.

"Given the growing concern about obesity, it is important to let young people know that dieting and disordered eating behaviors can be counterproductive to weight management," researcher Dianne Neumark-Sztainer, PhD, MPH, RD, a professor in the School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota, says in a news release. "Young people concerned about their weight should be provided support for healthful eating and physical activity behaviors that can be implemented on a long-term basis, and should be steered away from the use of unhealthy weight control practices."

In the study, published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, researchers looked at the prevalence and persistence of unhealthy and extreme weight control practices and binge eating in a group of 2,287 adolescents who were followed for about 10 years. The participants included a younger group that started the study at age 12 and an older group that started at about age 16.

The study showed about half of the girls and a fourth of the boys reported dieting in the past year, and this number remained consistent from adolescence through young adulthood among girls. The number of boys dieting significantly increased from middle adolescence to middle young adulthood.

The prevalence of unhealthy weight control behaviors, such as fasting, eating very little food, using a food substitute (powder or special drink), skipping meals, and smoking more cigarettes, remained consistent among approximately one-third of males from adolescence to adulthood.

Among girls, these unhealthy eating habits increased slightly among the youngest from 48% to 51% as they entered early adulthood and decreased slightly from 61% to 54% among the older group as they approached middle adulthood.

The study showed that the use of extreme weight control measures increased significantly in both age groups of girls and among the older boys as they entered adulthood.

For example, researchers say they use of diet pills more than tripled in most of the age and sex groups during the 10-year study period, and one-fifth of young female adults reported the use of extreme weight control measures.

Researchers say participants who engaged in unhealthy diet and eating habits during adolescence were more likely to engage in those same behaviors 10 years later, which suggests a need for early and ongoing prevention efforts.

Common Guilty Feelings of New Mothers and How to Overcome Them

These guilt trips aren't taking you anywhere helpful. Here's how to get back on track.

Here’s something few people will tell you when you’re pregnant and about to become a new mom. Among the many new emotions you’ll experience as a parent, guilt is likely to be right up there at the top.

The stakes for parents these days are higher than ever. “We live in an age of high expectations that everything is a Kodak, or nowadays a Facebook, moment,” says Alan Manevitz, MD, a psychiatrist with Lenox Hill Hospital in New York. “It’s very easy for mothers of newborns out of love and concern to feel traumatized quickly over all sorts of things.”

Here are five of the most common reasons why new moms feel guilty and even more reasons why they should learn to cut themselves a break.

“One of the more shameful feelings women come to see me for is they don’t feel the instantaneous unconditional mother’s love they were expecting. They feel like that’s what they are supposed to have and feel shame about it,” Manevitz says.

Although most women do feel an immediate bond upon giving birth to their baby, many don’t. Contrary to popular belief, it’s quite understandable, Manevitz says. “Pregnancy and giving birth is a great trauma to the body.”

Think about it: In most cases after surgery or other physical challenges or injuries, we rest, care for ourselves, and perhaps have others tend to our needs until we’re back on our feet. Not the case upon becoming a new mom. Giving birth to a baby sometimes comes with many uncomfortable and even downright painful side effects -- an episiotomy, perhaps a C-section delivery, and the pain and soreness that can come with breastfeeding. 

But instead of resting, you face sleepless nights and the physical and emotional demands that come with caring for a newborn baby.

“Many families don’t have the financial means to pay for baby nurses or nannies and may not have extended family support to help care for the newborn. So after going through this unbelievable thing with your body and mind you’re then supposed to be super happy and performing things when you’re exhausted and tired. Not everybody has the means to do this and all of this adds to the stress,” Manevitz says.

To relieve some of the pressure, take a clue from dads. “Sometimes it’s more common that a father doesn’t become emotionally connected until the baby becomes more interactive, but they don’t have the same expectations that women have for themselves,” Manevitz says. For that reason, many don’t struggle with the same level of guilt that new moms often feel.

The American Academy of Pediatrics highly recommends that healthy women breastfeed their babies for the first six to 12 months of life. There is ample evidence that breastfeeding has health benefits both for babies and mothers.

Many in U.S. Skip Follow-up Colon Cancer Screening

Survey Shows About One-Third of Americans Aren't Following Guidelines for Repeat Screenings

June 24, 2011 -- One in three adults who have been screened for colon cancer fail to follow up with repeat screenings as recommended, according to a new survey.

Researchers found 33% of U.S. adults between the ages of 60 and 70 years old have only been screened once for colon cancer; 31% of adults over age 50 have never been screened at all.

"The survey suggests that people are not being screened at a rate of frequency that reflects adherence to medical guidelines for colon cancer testing," says Andrew Spiegel, CEO of the Colon Cancer Alliance, which co-sponsored the survey with Quest Diagnostics, in a news release. "It is possible that many patients, after being screened once, are lulled into a false sense of security and fail to undergo additional testing."

Colon cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. The CDC says 60% of colon cancer deaths could be prevented if people followed guidelines for regular screening.

The American Cancer Society guidelines recommend men and women at average risk for colon cancer begin colon cancer screening at age 50 and repeat screening on a regular basis. Some of the types of recommended screening tests available, and their frequency, include:

Colonoscopy: every 10 yearsFlexible sigmoidoscopy or virtual colonoscopy: every five yearsFecal occult blood (FOBT) and fecal immunochemical (FIT) tests: annually

The telephone survey of 1,304 adults suggests that gaps in colon cancer screening persist despite public education campaigns.

The results show nearly one in three adults over age 50 have never been screened for colon cancer by any method. More than a quarter (28%) of these said their health care provider did not recommend colon cancer screening to them.

Other frequently cited reasons for not undergoing colon cancer screening include:

Time constraints or being "too busy": 18%Fear: 16%Didn't know screening was necessary: 16%Can't afford health insurance co-payment: 15%No health insurance: 10%Modesty or embarrassment: 9%

Among those who had been screened, 87% said they had been screened by colonoscopy, which is the preferred screening method. But researchers say fears about unpleasant bowel preparation (laxatives and fasting) were cited by 61% of those who said fear was a reason they had never been screened for colon cancer.

Among adults over age 50 who said they had been screened in the past:

40% had been screened once22% had been screened twice12% had been screened three times18% had been screened four or more times by any colon cancer screening method

The survey also looked at how people who were aware of colon cancer screening guidelines had learned about them. Eighty percent said their health care provider had told them about the guidelines. Other sources included friends (23%) and family (31%). The Internet was the source of information for 12% of the respondents.

"Clearly, family and friends as well as health care providers can influence public understanding of the value of colon cancer testing," Spiegel says.

Researchers said the survey also suggests that health care providers have the opportunity to educate their patients about the variety of screening options available for colon cancer and their recommended frequency.

Weight Loss Surgery Fights Diabetes in Multiple Ways

Researchers Say Changes in Gut Hormones, Along With Weight Loss, May Improve Type 2 Diabetes

June 24, 2011 (San Diego) -- Gastric bypass surgery often helps to improve type 2 diabetes -- even before patients lose a substantial number of pounds, doctors say.

"We used to think bariatric surgery worked for purely mechanical reasons. That is, caloric restriction and decreased nutrient intake were responsible for the improvements in diabetes control," says Lee M. Kaplan, MD, PhD, director of the obesity research center at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

New research shows that physiological changes associated with weight loss surgery, such as changes in gut hormones, may also help to drive diabetes into remission, he tells WebMD.

At a briefing that was sponsored by Ethicon Endo-Surgery, a maker of bariatric surgery products, Kaplan and other leading experts discussed how they are working to understand the mechanisms of weight loss surgical procedures at the tissue, cellular, molecular, and genetic levels.

The goal is to develop less invasive, less risky, and less costly approaches to fighting diabetes, says Philip Schauer, MD,professor of surgery at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine.

Extreme obesity, which affects nearly 24 million adults, or 5.7% of Americans, is associated with more than 30 medical conditions, including type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension sleep apnea, joint disease, and cancer.

"Bariatric surgery works and works well -- for both obesity and diabetes," Schauer says.

In a recent study, 89% of people with type 2 diabetes who underwent gastric bypass surgery went into remission and 57% were still in remission after five years.

People who were at an early disease stage when they had the surgery were more likely to go into remission, Schauer says. "The first five or 10 years is when you have the best chance of recovery."

Although weight loss surgery is effective, there has been very little adoption of its use, Kaplan says.

Only one in 400 people with severe obesity in the U.S. undergoes bariatric surgery, he says.

The cost of treating diabetes is enormous, Schauer says. A person diagnosed at age 50 can expect to spend $172,000, the equivalent of seven gastric bypass procedures, on the condition.

The researchers don't know when new treatments aimed at the hormonal and genetic roots of diabetes will become available. But at least 12 studies are under way, Schauer says.

Lupus, Sex, and Relationships: How to Keep Intimacy Alive

How lupus can affect your sex life, and what to do about it.

The chronic pain and fatigue associated with lupus can affect more than your health; many patients find that their condition interferes with their sexual relationships, as well.

Reasons for that include lupus flare-ups, pain, fatigue, side effects from medication, and self-image issues. And that's on top of the day-to-day responsibilities that come with having a chronic illness, as well as the routine tasks of life.

WebMD 5: Our Expert's A's to Your Top Lupus Q's

About 1.5 million Americans have lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus, or SLE), the most common form), according to the Lupus Foundation of America. The majority, 90%, are women, who usually develop the disease between ages 15 and 44. African-American, Hispanic, and Asian women have a higher risk. Eliza Chakravarty, MD, assistant professor of medicine in the division of immunology and rheumatology at Stanford University School of Medicine, sheds light on a disease you might not know much about.

Read the WebMD 5: Our Expert's A's to Your Top Lupus Q's article > >

But don't give up on your sex life. There are things you can do to make it more satisfying and keep that part of your relationship alive.

For many people with lupus, fatigue is the biggest roadblock to a healthy sexual relationship.

More than one-third of lupus patients have reported a decrease in desire for sexual intimacy, according to recent research conducted by Meenakshi Jolly, MD, medical adviser to the Lupus Foundation of America and director of the Rush Lupus Clinic at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.

Nearly half of the women in Jolly's study avoided sex because of lupus-related flares and up to 40% felt that their relationships were negatively affected by their disease.

“Patients with more active disease had more decline in their sexual drive,” Jolly says.

"It's not like the desire isn't there, but the energy isn't. They want to do it, but physically, they can't bring themselves to," says social worker Jillian Rose, program manager of the Lupus Line/Charla de Lupus (Lupus Chat) programs at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.

Of course, many people with lupus are also dealing with the same responsibilities as people who don't have chronic condition. And that can put their sex life on the back burner.

“Most fatigued women with lupus try to figure out how they'll do everything they need to do - especially if they have children - and sex goes to the bottom of the list,” says licensed marriage and family therapist René Jones of Amherst, N.Y., who counsels many lupus patients and their partners.

Lupus-related pain and sensitivity can be an issue in the bedroom. For instance, having sex in the missionary position gives some women with lupus hip pain. Others have vaginal dryness or very sensitive skin.

“If sex is painful from joint pain or dryness, it can feel more like a chore rather than a gift," Jones says.

If that's the case, it's time to get creative. "Redefine what sex looks like for you as a couple,” Rose says. “Some women tell me they take two Tylenol half an hour before sex, or they have intercourse in the tub or on their sides. When they're having a flare and can't stand penetration, they can do more foreplay or oral sex.”

For specific logistical problems, there are often simple fixes, Jolly says. “If it's hip pain,” she says, “different positions can help, like having the woman on top or side by side.”

Are Flashy Spenders Looking for a Fling?

Study Suggests Men Who Buy Flashy Cars and Other Products Are Seeking Short-Term Relationships

June 23, 2011 -- Flashy spending is one way that men signal they want to mate -- but not that they want to mate for life, a study shows.

"This research suggests that conspicuous products, such as Porsches, can serve the same function for some men that large and brilliant feathers serve for peacocks," study researcher Jill Sundie, PhD, assistant professor of marketing at the University of Texas, San Antonio, says in a news release.

The study is published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

The researchers surveyed nearly a thousand university students. Those students read romantic stories, spent fictional cash on a variety of flashy and not so flashy items, and judged people's attractiveness based in part on the possessions they owned.

The study found that men who are interested in short-term mating -- think one-night stands -- are more likely to spend money on flashy products meant to broadcast their desire. And it apparently works. Such men are seen as more attractive, but only by women who are likewise only looking for a short-term sexual relationship.

"Although showy spending is often perceived as wasteful, frivolous, and even narcissistic, an evolutionary perspective suggests that blatant displays of resources may serve an important function, namely, as a communication strategy designed to gain reproductive rewards," the researchers write in the study.

Of course, not all women are drawn to conspicuous consumption.

"People may feel that owning flashy things makes them more attractive as a relationship partner, but in truth, many men might be sending women the wrong message," co-researcher David Beal, PhD, an assistant professor of psychology at Rice University in Houston, says in the news release.

Not all men choose to send the same message. According to the study, those who were looking for long-term relationships with a woman were not likely to spend money on showy products. Instead, they spent their money on things like toaster ovens and budget-priced jeans rather than on designer sunglasses and expensive stereos.

But there will always be men willing to fork over real money to impress the ladies.

"Just as peacocks have evolved to flaunt their wasteful tails before potential mates," the researchers write, "men might similarly woo with wasteful expenditures to charm potential mates."

How to Fight Trend of Preschool Obesity

Institute of Medicine Calls for New Policies to Promote Exercise and Healthier Eating

 

June 23, 2011 -- A growing number of preschool-age children in the U.S. are overweight or obese and greater efforts are needed to address the problem, the health policy group Institute of Medicine (IOM) says.

In a new report, an IOM committee outlined policies designed to reduce obesity by promoting healthy eating, exercise, and sleep habits among infants, toddlers, and preschoolers.

But instead of focusing solely on what parents can do, the report highlighted ways federal and state regulators, doctors, and child-care workers can help prevent obesity in very young children.

One in 10 infants and toddlers in the U.S. and one in five children between the ages of 2 and 5 are overweight.

"Contrary to the notion that chubby babies are healthy babies and that young children grow out of their baby fat, it is looking like children who are overweight early may be more likely to be overweight and obese later on," committee chair Leann L. Birch, PhD, tells WebMD.

Birch, who directs the Pennsylvania State University Center for Childhood Obesity Research, says addressing the problem in very young children is critical because obesity-related conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure are occurring with greater frequency among older children, teens, and young adults.

The IOM report included these recommendations for state and federal regulators:

Requiring day care centers and preschools to provide the opportunity for at least 15 minutes of physical activity per hour to toddlers and older children, while allowing infants to move freely at times with appropriate supervision.Limit TV and other screen time to no more than 30 minutes for half-day day care programs and one hour for full-day programs.Day care centers and other child-care providers should be required to promote healthy sleep times during the day.

Birch says just like their parents, very young children appear to be sleeping less overall these days. Studies show that insufficient sleep time is a risk factor for obesity.

It is recommended that children age 2 and under get 12 hours or more of sleep each day and children between the ages of 2 and 5 get at least 11 hours of sleep.

Keeping TVs out of bedrooms, creating environments that promote naps and nighttime sleep, and establishing sleep routines are all important to promoting healthy sleep habits, IOM committee member Debra Haire-Joshu, PhD, MPH, of Washington University in St. Louis tells WebMD.

The report stressed the importance of giving young children plenty of opportunity to be active during the day.

"We know that children in many day care settings are not getting enough physical activity during the day," Birch says.

She says several states now require day care centers to provide the opportunity for at least two hours of physical activity during an eight-hour day.

"Children tend to be active in short bursts, so if they have the opportunity for activity throughout the day they are likely to expend more energy," she adds.

FDA: New Warning for Procrit, Epogen, Aranesp

Heart Attack, Stroke Risks Prompt Treatment Change for Chronic Kidney Disease Patients

June 24, 2011 -- New data show that the way Procrit, Epogen, and Aranesp are used in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) may put them at risk of heart attack, stroke, and death, the FDA today warned.

More than 20 million Americans age 20 and older have CKD. All CKD patients taking these drugs should contact their doctors. Those taking the drugs for other conditions should be aware of the risk.

The drugs, all made by Amgen, are known as erythropoiesis-stimulating agents or ESAs. They signal the bone marrow to make more red blood cells and reduce anemia due to CKD or cancer chemotherapy.

Patients with CKD lose some of their ability to make new red blood cells and sometimes need blood transfusions. ESAs reduce the need for these transfusions.

Doctors test patients' hemoglobin levels to adjust ESA dosing. Currently, they have shot for a goal of 10 to 12 g/dL hemoglobin in patients with CKD.

But new evidence shows that patients who achieve this goal may have a significantly increased risk of heart attack, heart failure, stroke, and death.

Beginning immediately, the FDA says doctors and patients should abandon the concept of a target hemoglobin goal. Instead they should use only the smallest ESA dose needed to reduce transfusion frequency -- and should frequently test patients' blood to make sure hemoglobin levels don't get too high.

The advice is different for CKD patients on dialysis and for CKD patients not on dialysis.

For CKD patients on dialysis:

Begin ESA treatment when the hemoglobin level is less than 10 g/dL.If the hemoglobin level approaches or reaches 11 g/dL, reduce the ESA dose or suspend treatment.

For CKD patients not on dialysis:

Consider ESA treatment only when the hemoglobin level is less than 10 g/dL, and the rate of hemoglobin level decline suggests need for a blood transfusion is likely, and a goal of treatment is to reduce the risk of immunization against non-self factors in transfused blood and/or reducing transfusion risks.If the hemoglobin level goes over 10 g/dL, reduce the ESA dose or suspend treatment.

"We now recommend that doctors and patients should weigh the possible benefits of ESAs to decrease the need for red-blood-cell transfusion against increased risk of serious cardiovascular events," Robert C. Kane, MD, FDA acting deputy director for safety of hematology products, said at a news teleconference. "For each patient, doctors should individualize dosing and use only the dose sufficient to reduce the need for transfusions."

New Genetic Clues to Cause of Parkinson's

Researchers Link 2 Genetic Variants to Parkinson's Disease

June 24, 2011 -- Researchers have identified two new genetic variants linked to Parkinson's disease and say they now know how big a role heredity plays in the neurodegenerative disorder.

About a dozen genetic associations with Parkinson's have been confirmed, and many more remain to be discovered, says researcher Nicholas Eriksson, PhD, of the California-based direct-to-consumer gene testing company 23andMe.

In their new study, published this week in the journal PLoS Genetics, Eriksson and colleagues estimated that about a quarter of the variation in susceptibility to the disease is due to genetic factors.

"Each new genetic variant we find gets us a little bit closer to being able to see the full picture of how genes impact this disease," Eriksson tells WebMD. "Roughly 10 genetic variants that contribute to Parkinson's had been found and we added another two to the list."

The exact causes of Parkinson's disease are not known, but researchers now believe that both environmental triggers and genetic influences play a role.

Genetic variants have been implicated in the small percentage of cases that occur in people under the age of 50, known as early-onset Parkinson's. But much less is known about the role of genes in late-onset disease.

In an effort to better understand genetic influences in both early- and late-onset Parkinson's, Eriksson, study researcher Chuong B. Do, PhD, and colleagues conducted a novel genome-wide study involving around 3,400 Parkinson's patients and close to 30,000 people without the disease who were 23and Me clients.

The Parkinson's patients were recruited with the help of the Michael J. Fox Foundation, the Parkinson's Institute, and the National Parkinson's Foundation. The study was funded solely by the genetic testing company, however.

Genome-wide association studies became possible following the completion of the Human Genome Project and other landmark projects around the middle of the decade, which provided tools that allow researchers to look for genetic contributions to common diseases.

These tools include computerized human genome sequence databases, human genetic variation mapping, and continuously evolving technologies that simplify the analysis of genetic variations that contribute to disease.

The newly published study included the largest Parkinson's patient group ever recruited for a genome-wide association study.

One of the newly identified genetic variants, SCARB2, is associated with a known Parkinson's disease pathway involving protein degradation.

The other, SREBF1, is not associated with any known Parkinson's pathway.

"This variant is involved in lipid metabolism," Do tells WebMD. "Its association with Parkinson's is not really clear, which is what makes it exciting because it highlights a new area to look at."

Based on their own predictive model, the researchers estimate that around 7% of the genetic variants associated with Parkinson's disease have been identified. That means that more than 90% have not.

While the genetic variants, or mutations, identified to date explain only a small percentage of Parkinson's cases, the gene studies have provided clinically relevant information, Do says.

He points out that one identified mutation is associated with a 50% lifetime risk for developing the disease.

"This one variant accounts for a very small percentage of the total disease burden, but for people who do have the variant it is quite significant," he says.

Rheumatoid Arthritis, Smoking, and Drinking Alcohol

The potential risks smoking and drinking pose to people with rheumatoid arthritis.By Stephanie Schupska
WebMD Feature

You already know that smoking is bad for you and that it's unhealthy to drink too much alcohol.

But do you know how tobacco and alcohol relate to rheumatoid arthritis -- your odds of developing RA, or, if you already have RA, your odds of making it worse?

Here's what the research shows.

Smoking may make people more likely to get RA. And, depending on their genes, it may make their RA worse. On top of that, smoking mixed with RA can lead to even greater problems, like heart disease.

“Very clear studies indicate that tobacco is highly associated [with] and probably causal in rheumatoid arthritis and is causal in the worst form of the disease,” says Susan Goodman, MD, an assistant attending rheumatologist and internist at the Hospital for Special Surgery and assistant professor of medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College.

Your genes may also matter. A Swedish study, published in December 2010, shows that the odds of developing RA was related not just to how much a person smokes, but also to their genetic makeup. People with a certain gene variation, called HLA-DRB1, who smoke are much more likely to get rheumatoid arthritis than someone who doesn’t smoke -- and to have severe RA.

“It turns out that people who smoke who bear this genetic factor are much more likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis and do develop more severe disease," Goodman says.

Smoking can also make dealing with the disease more difficult.

“In a lot of the studies on the course of rheumatoid arthritis, patients who smoke do less well, and they’re less likely to achieve remission,” Goodman says. “They’re more likely to have a worse outcome. Smoking gives them a worse prognosis.”

Smoking can increase painful rheumatoid nodules, which form in the joints, she says. It can also lead to heart disease, which -- even on its own -- is a big problem in people with RA. And smoking makes it worse.

“In the last 10 years, there have been studies that show the leading cause of death in patients with RA is cardiovascular disease,” says Walter Moore, MD, senior associate dean for graduate medical education and veteran affairs at Georgia Health Sciences University and chief of rheumatology at Charlie Norwood Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. “And smoking itself is clearly associated as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease.”

Stroke is another concern for RA patients.

“RA is an illness like diabetes. In and of itself, it’s a risk factor for heart attack and stroke,” says Andrew Ruthberg, MD, an assistant professor of medicine and an attending physician at Rush University Medical Center and director of Rush Rheumatoid Arthritis Clinic. “And those two things conspire to raise your risk for those other problems to a higher level.”

Pregnant Women to Get Pertussis Vaccine

CDC Committee: To Stop Deadly Infant Whooping Cough, Give Vaccine Late in Pregnancy

June 23, 2011 -- To halt a spike in whooping cough cases and deaths in infants, pregnant women now are advised to get a booster shot of the pertussis vaccine in their late second or third trimester.

Vaccination against whooping cough -- pertussis -- can't start before age 2 months. But the disease is particularly deadly for unprotected infants. Of the 194 U.S. pertussis deaths from 2000 to 2009, 152 were in infants ages 1 month or less. Twenty-three deaths were in infants ages 2 to 3 months.

Doctors have been fighting recent outbreaks of whooping cough by giving the Tdap booster vaccine to women as soon as they give birth -- and also vaccinating everyone else who comes into contact with an infant. The idea, called "cocooning," is a good one. But in the real world, it's been nearly impossible to vaccinate most fathers -- and even harder to find and vaccinate grandparents, siblings, and caretakers.

"Is cocooning working? No, not at the national level," CDC researcher Jennifer Liang, DVM, told the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) at yesterday's meeting. "We've had very little success vaccinating fathers and other family members."

"We need a new strategy," said ACIP working group chairman Mark Sawyer, MD, professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Diego.

The new strategy: Give the Tdap booster vaccine to women in the late stages of pregnancy.

"It's a twofer," said ACIP chairwoman Carol Baker, MD, professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston. "By vaccinating in the late second or third trimester, you protect the mother and you protect the infant."

That's because the developing fetus gets a protective dose of its mother's antibodies. This protection can help bridge the gap between birth and the infant's own vaccination.

By a 14-1 vote, the ACIP recommended this plan. Women now will be given a booster dose of Tdap after their 20th week of pregnancy.

What about cocooning?

"We would never not recommend cocooning, but it is an insufficient national strategy to prevent pertussis mortality and morbidity," Liang said.

The Tdap booster vaccine is meant for teens and adults. Those who have already had their booster shot do not need another. But for those who aren't sure, a second booster is safe.

Depression and Risky Behavior

Why self-destructive behavior may accompany depression and what to do about it.

Depression poses many dangers, burdening people with hopelessness and raising their risk of suicide. But in attempts to quell the pain, some turn to alcohol, drugs, and other harmful behaviors that endanger them even further, psychologists say.

“There is a strong relationship between depression and high-risk behaviors,” says Pamela Cantor, PhD, a psychologist and lecturer at Harvard Medical School.

“Excessive drinking, drug abuse, unsafe sex, and cutting are all self-injurious behaviors that individuals may use to provide temporary relief from intense emotional pain,” she says -- a pain that some experts have labeled “psychache.”

It’s a fairly common scenario in therapists’ offices across the country. Cara Gardenswartz, a clinical psychologist in private practice in Beverly Hills, Calif., and a lecturer at UCLA, estimates that roughly 30% of her depressed clients engage in some type of “self-injurious or harmful behavior,” she says.

Often, there’s more than one problem. “Someone with one self-injurious behavior is more likely to have two or three,” Gardenswartz says.

At Fordham University in New York, assistant psychology professor and researcher Peggy Andover, PhD, studies young people who engage in “nonsuicidal self-injury.” In other words, when they’re distressed, they cut, burn, carve, or scratch their skin in an attempt to make themselves feel better.

There’s not much data on how often depressed people will engage in nonsuicidal self-injury, Andover says. But researchers have studied those with self-injury for symptoms of depression. “What we know is that people who engage in nonsuicidal self-injury generally have higher levels of depressive [symptoms],” she says. Furthermore, newer research suggests that depression comes first and the self-injury follows, not vice versa, she says.

Depression can unearth unbearable feelings that many people try to escape. For example, a depressed man who grew up in a violent and neglectful home may turn to drinking to bury the feelings of rage and poor self-esteem.

“For all of these high-risk behaviors, there’s a part of them that’s trying to numb themselves ... from really difficult and significant feelings of loss, anger, shame, or anxiety,” Gardenswartz says.

But there are secondary reasons, too: Self-destructive behaviors can communicate one’s misery, experts say.

“If they’re depressed and feel that nobody cares -- ‘Nobody loves me and I’m not important to anybody’ -- those behaviors can be a way of saying to themselves and others that ‘I deserve nothing. I don’t deserve to be healthy or happy or whole,’” says Mary Carole Curran, PhD, a psychologist in St. Louis. “Or sometimes, they say, ‘Pay attention to me.’ It’s a cry for help.”

Some turn to harmful coping methods because their families modeled such behavior, Gardenswartz says. For example, if one’s parents dealt with problems through drinking, an adult child might do the same.

U.S. Is Becoming a Nation of Snackers

Experts Debate Whether Snacks Are Healthy or a Cause of Weight Gain

June 23, 2011 -- When is a snack not really a snack, but a mini-meal or even a full-on meal? And can snacking -- even serial snacking -- result in weight gain?

The answers depend on both the snacker and his or her chosen snack, according to experts speaking recently at the Institute of Food Technologists 2011 Annual Meeting and Food Expo in New Orleans.

But one thing is clear: Snacking is on its way to becoming a national pastime. Snacks, including calorie-laden beverages, comprise more than one-quarter of our daily caloric intake. Beverages, whether sugary sodas or frothy, flavored coffee drinks, make up 50% of our daily snacking calories.

We also spend a lot more time noshing on snacks today than ever before. In 2008, we snacked for about 30 minutes a day, up from 15 minutes in 2006, and we spend about 85 minutes a day drinking our snacks.

Snacks are more of an eating event or fourth meal for some, says Richard D. Mattes, PhD, a professor of food and nutrition at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind.

“There is a lot of controversy as to whether or not snacking contributes to weight gain and how important it is as a source of useful nutrients,” Mattes says.

Part of the problem is that there is not a good definition of what constitutes a snack, he says. For example, if the first thing you put in your mouth is a granola bar at 10 a.m., is it a snack or a meal?

Mary Ellen Camire, PhD, a fellow of the Institute of Food Technologists and a professor of food science and human nutrition at the University of Maine in Orono, agrees: “One person’s snack is another person’s meal and vice versa.”

According to Mattes, snacking isn’t healthy or unhealthy.  “It is what you eat and how it fits into your daily lifestyle,” he says. “If your snacks add a lot of calories that are not offset by eating less at other times or increasing physical activity, it will cause weight gain."

Eating or drinking a high-calorie snack means that should rein in your next meal or get more physical activity to work off the extra calories, he says.

“Snacks should be a part of total diet and be healthy,” he says. This doesn’t mean you can never have a bag of chips or a chocolate bar, he says. “You can include something that is not nutrient-dense as long as one adjusts so that it is part of the total energy package.”

Sheah Rarback, RD, a nutritionist at the Miller School of Medicine of the University of Miami, says a snack is a time, not a meal, and snacking can have an important role in filling in nutritional gaps.

Tips for Reaping the Benefits of Whole Grains

Eating more whole grains is an easy way to make your diet healthier. Whole grains are packed with nutrients including protein, fiber, B vitamins, antioxidants, and trace minerals (iron, zinc, copper, and magnesium). A diet rich in whole grains has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and some forms of cancer. Whole-grain diets can also improve bowel health by helping to maintain regular bowel movements and promote growth of healthy bacteria in the colon.

Yet the average American eats less than one serving per day, and over 40% never eat whole grains at all. Young adults get less than one serving daily.

6 Reasons Why We’re Not Eating Healthier

Americans know it's important to lose weight and eat more healthfully, but misconceptions and bad choices are getting in their way, according to a survey by the International Food Information Council (IFIC) Foundation. For example, 56% of Americans surveyed said they were trying to lose weight. Yet 9 out of 10 did not know how many calories they should be consuming each day (and nearly half wouldn't even hazard a guess). For its second annual Food & Health Survey,the IFIC Foundation surveyed...

Read the 6 Reasons Why We’re Not Eating Healthier article > >

Why? For one thing, it's not always easy to tell just which foods are whole-grain. Scan the bread, cereal or snack packaging, and virtually every one promotes its whole-grain goodness. But not all of them actually are whole-grain. Terms like "multigrain," "100% wheat," "cracked wheat," "organic," "pumpernickel," "bran," and "stone ground" may sound healthy, but none actually indicates the product is whole-grain.

Also, many people have the perception that whole grains just don't taste good, or that it's difficult to work them into their daily diets.

To help you start reaping the benefits of a diet rich in whole grains, WebMD got the facts on how to tell which foods are made of whole grains, along with suggestions on how to fit the recommended servings into your healthy eating plan.

A whole grain contains all edible parts of the grain, including the bran, germ, and endosperm. The whole grain may be used intact or recombined, as long as all components are present in natural proportions. To recognize whole grains, keep this list handy when you go to the supermarket and choose any of the following grains:

    Whole-grain corn    Whole oats/oatmeal    Popcorn    Brown rice    Whole rye    Whole-grain barley    Wild rice    Buckwheat    Triticale    Bulgur (cracked wheat)    Millet    Quinoa    Sorghum    100% whole wheat flour

But what about when you're buying processed products, such as a loaf of bread? You probably know to avoid products made of "refined" wheat. But did you know that some manufacturers strip the outer layer of bran off the whole kernel of wheat, use the refined wheat flour, add in molasses to color it brown, and call it '100% wheat' bread? That's true -- but it is not a whole grain.

That's why it's important to check the ingredients list for the word "whole" preceding the grain (such as "whole wheat flour"). Ideally, the whole grain will be the first ingredient in the list, indicating that the product contains more whole grain than any other ingredient by weight.

The amount of grains you need daily varies based on your age, sex, and physical activity level, but to keep it simple, the 2010 USDA Dietary Guidelines say whole gains should make up half of your grain intake.

Are You Ready to Go Out? 4 Questions for Teens to Ask

4 questions to answer -- and how to deal with your parents if they think you're not ready to date.

You are in LOVE. Well...at least you're in really deep LIKE. You have met the most amazing person, and you totally NEED to go out with him/her.

Hold on for a second. Do your parents even allow you to go out and "date?" Are you ready to handle the pressures of hanging out -- and possibly hooking up -- with someone?

Before you ask out the object of your affection, or say, "yes" to someone who's interested in you, go through this checklist of questions to make sure you're ready to handle whatever might happen in your new relationship.

About half of 15- and 16-year-olds say they've dated, but just because you've reached a certain age doesn't really mean you're ready to date.

"I think people are ready at different times," says L. Kris Gowen, PhD, EdM, a researcher in sexual and mental health at the Portland State University School of Social Work. She's also written a book about sexuality for teens, called Sexual Decisions: The Ultimate Teen Guide.

Gowen says being ready to go out has more to do with your maturity than your age.

How do you know if you're mature enough? For one thing, could you tell the person you're dating how far you're willing to take the relationship, and what your sexual boundaries are?

"Have you had a talk with yourself to say, 'Am I comfortable with kissing somebody, holding their hand, undressing to a certain level, caressing?'" Gown says.

These are decisions you need to make ahead of time -- not when you're in the middle of a make-out session and your date is pressuring you to go further. Once you know your limits, you need to be strong and secure enough to say "no" or "stop" if things are getting too hot and heavy.

Are you also mature enough to handle the rejection that can come in a relationship? "Any time you open yourself to somebody, whether it's emotionally or physically, and then they reject you -- it's going to hurt," Gowen says.

What would happen if you got dumped? Could you handle it -- or would you fall apart? On the flip side, if you were the one having to do the breaking up, could you do it in a firm, but kind way?

Don't base your readiness to date on what your friends are doing. Even if it seems like everyone around you has paired off, you want to go out with someone for the right reason -- because you really like that person. "The motivation to be drawn to this person is based on who they are as an individual ... not because you're the only person in your group who doesn't have a special someone," Gowen says.