If nobody thinks it's broken...how we gonna fix it?

This is a post from a health blogger Tony Findlay at Human E.C.O. System. It's a bit long, but I well worth your time...

Ok so over the last week I have seen quite a few news articles on various health stories, ranging from complaints in a lot of countries about their health care systems and a lack of possible solutions, to young school age children eating badly with poor food options from their school canteens, to the availability of "stimulant drinks" now becoming the basic form of low quality nutrient intake in mornings and-- of course-- obesity numbers rising.

It got me to thinking. Do people really care about their own lives?

Contrary to the best intentions of fitness and health professionals, who are trying to restore the health of their populations, it would appear that no, they don't care. You see, to make positive health changes means taking action which would then require people to take personal responsibility.

This seems to be an unlikely result-- and more importantly, a sad reality for the future. The number of overweight / obese members of the global population continues to increase, and this is not exclusive to adults. The number of children around the world has not decreased, meaning a future of overweight adults filled with preventable diseases.

 These "weight" situations brought about by too much body fat lead to other health conditions which, sadly, can be fatal. So I guess there is no disputing from the research that is currently available, that the root cause of a lot of "preventable deaths" could be changed if only the majority didn't have an "over-eating disorder".

Why would someone willingly choose a life that is fraught with pain through disease to then further exacerbate that discomfort by indulging in supposed "comfort food?" Now that is a roller coaster ride that only has one outcome-- bad. Talk about food being a short term "fix" with long term consequences.


In reply to an article in TIME magazine on another professional networking site, one of the groups I am a member of, there was debate about the pros and cons of exercise being used as a way to get thin. I think that a lot of people believe this to be possible.

  This was part of my response: "For the record, exercise doesn't make you thin-- nor should we care. Rather let's learn how to show exercise as a human benefit then we can stop worrying about how we look, and focus on how we better perform in the human race called life."

If we take time to focus on the exercise aspect, then we should equally also address how food plays a role in our lives. It began as a source of nourishment while we avoided dinosaurs-- or so I hear. Then over time and through "marketing," it seems to have evolved through the ages to the point we're at now. Multi-billion dollar weight loss companies overlook the nutrient value and only stress calories to validate using weight values from standing on scales as the net sum of who we are as people. And don't even get me started about TV shows that use "edited emotional footage" to supposedly inspire others.
 

Compounding this is the marketing by food and drink companies who only "push the good times" in adverts in these shows, but, while it is true they provide low quality versions that appeal to the masses, there is no one pushing each of us to purchase these products.

So we have now come full circle in this blog-- back to personal responsibility.
If no one believes that they are at risk, as being fat isn't an issue until the Doctor says that it is and with Diabetes II on the increase (oh yeah, that is the preventable and if caught early, the reversible one), how we can stimulate people to focus on this simple fact:

Eat less and Move more.

 We the fitness industry members seem to have been unsuccessful in our efforts so far, but if we don't begin to have more luck then it seems that there is nothing but pain on the way for the health systems of every country all over the world. It certainly has inspired medical options as the alternative source of creating a healthy change, but sadly none of these have been proven to beat the original concept of using calories through movement and only eating what we need to survive.
Start today -- be responsible for your own "weight" and lower your fat levels.

Cake for my baby

This weekend my neighbor had an outdoor party-- a festive affair with white tents, people milling about, and lots of yummy looking food.

My 4-year old spent most of the afternoon with his nose pressed against the windowpane-- yes, the one that looks over at the neighbor's house. (If he was older he'd run the risk of being arrested as a Peeping Tom.)

He was being so good, wanting to go to the party SO bad, and being the most graceful 4 year old I've ever seen about not being invited (it was a 60th wedding anniversary-- not exactly his demographic). When he asked if he could run over and say hi to the neighbor he adores, I told him yes. I admonished him to stay on our side of the lawn and wait until he saw her, then wave and say hi and come running right back.

AND HE DID IT.

The neighbor said he stood there as serious as a little sentinel, hands behind his back, until he saw her and waved her over.

My little guy came back with the biggest, most luscious piece of carrot cake I've ever seen.

We wolfed that baby down in about 15 seconds flat.

And then?

I didn't.

Oh yes, I did.

I sent him back for seconds.

Rehearsed with him to ask for a piece of cake for his baby sister.

If you'd tasted that cake, you'd have done the same thing!

Where's the beef....from?

Oh, dear. 

Yes, I've seen Food Inc, and King Corn, and Fresh....

And still, there's something inherently horrifying when I see the way modern meat is "grown."

I'm not going to climb onto my soapbox...for now. Summarized here in a few quotes are the BEST reason why we should be eating locally grown, pasture fed beef (from farmers we know by name):

"Sick dairy cows are given medications to help them recover, but if it appears an animal will die, it's often sold to a slaughterhouse as quickly as possible, in time to kill it before it dies.”

"In 2008, Mexico refused a shipment of U.S. beef. The meat exceeded Mexico's regulatory upper limit for copper. The meat was returned to the United States -- where it was sold and eaten." 

"Based on our [FDA] review, we found that the national residue program is not accomplishing its mission of monitoring the food supply for harmful residues. Together, Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), FDA, and EPA have not established thresholds for many dangerous substances (e.g., copper or dioxin3), which has resulted in meat with these substances being distributed in commerce."

 (The reason these photos are so small and grainy is because they are take from the air, which is about as close as you can get to being let into an industrial beef lot these days.)

Additionally, FSIS does not attempt to recall meat, even when its tests have confirmed the excessive presence of veterinary drugs.”

“We also found that FSIS does not recall meat adulterated with harmful residue, even when it is aware that the meat has failed its laboratory tests. Between July 12, 2007, and March 11, 2008, FSIS found that four carcasses were adulterated with violative levels of veterinary drugs8 and that the plants involved had released the meat into the food supply. Although the drugs involved could result in stomach, nerve, or skin problems for consumers, FSIS requested no recall."

Well, there is good news left in the world, and happy cows too! 

Numerous communities across the U.S. are riding the wave of local food movements promoting sustainability, local agriculture, natural food and farm co-ops and CSA's. Here is an excellent link of dozens of sites where you can get more information.

Promoting Sustainable Agriculture
http://www.mercola.com/article/agriculture.htm

Sources:

Why US Meats Are Horrendous: The Vulgar Truth About What You Eat with that Steak or Burger: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/05/18/american-meat-is-even-more-disgusting-than-you-thought.aspx

The Burger that Shattered Her Life: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/04/health/04meat.html?_r=2&partner=rss&emc=rss


Michael Pollan: Discover How Your Beef is Really Raised: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2002/04/17/cattle1.aspx

AlterNet May 1, 2010

FSIS National Residue Program for Cattle (PDF) 

This just made a rainy day better...

I really like this.

Maybe because I've been drinking tea all day.

Maybe because the day is gray and rainy.

Maybe because it's wistful and sweet.

Maybe I don't need a reason.

One of those weeks....

Not a lot of action last week. So many things I "should" do...so many things I didn't want to.

Really just wanted to check out of life for a while and watch all 28 episodes of DVR'd "Friends." (Don't those people ever work?)

I've got writer's block.

Blogger's block.

Work block.

Workout block. 

Housework block.  (Ok, that's not uncommon.)

If I could have mommy's block I would, but it's a little hard because my kids are too dang cute.

 (And it could also be interpreted as neglect by Social Services. No thanks!)

I'm sure it will pass quickly!

(I did find some funky-cool graphics to go along with this post, though...)

Where the Hooter Girls are Dancing

Or, "How I Managed to Lose My Child at the Beach with Ten Other Family Members Within a 20 Foot Radius, aka The Most Terrifying 30 Minutes of my Entire Life."

 Spent a fantastic, wild weekend with six of my nine siblings over the weekend when my older sister graduated in Virginina Beach.

Yeah, you read right. Nine siblings. Six this weekend. Plus the matriarch of the family, three spouses (or spouse equivalent), and five grandchildren.

{How many people is that???}

Four cars, plus my aunt, cousin, her hubby and their son were with us much of the time.

A few snapshots:

Friday evening, grocery shopping for dinner. We decided to make tacos & burritos. 5lbs of ground beef, 2 lbs. of refried beans, a lb. of tomatoes, head of lettuce, 24 oz of soure cream, and a JUG (don't know how big it was) of salsa. Oh yeah, plus torillas and taco shells.

And a gallon of sangria!

In the middle of dinner preparation, two sisters and I are doing an intense P90X plyometrics workout. My mom (a manager at Curves) is correcting our form. Madhouse. Babies underfoot, and I think Natalia got stepped on at least once or twice.

Saturday morning. AMAZING. Entire family out of the condo by 7:15am for 9:30am graduation. Loaded into the cars and on the road by 7:30am.

I am not sure there is a miracle greater than that.

There are over 1,000 graduates at the ceremony. We can't keep track of our own 15 peeps. Sergio heard rumors of cookies and juice, and off he goes with a couple of kids. I text him after a while, "Where are you and the boys?" His response, "Where the Hooter girls are dancing." (This is Regent University, after all. One of the most conservative Christian schools in the U.S., possibly the world.)

Saturday afternoon, off to the beach. It's a friggin' sandstorm. The kids are crying and getting sand in their eyes, but eventually they acclimate to the sting of sand whipping them and get to playing.

Then the worst moment of my life: my 4 year old vanishes.

Vanishes. Into thin air. surrounded by cousins, aunts, uncles, parents. He is simply gone.

One valuable thing about a big family is they make one hell of a search party-- off we go in all different directions. 10 minutes later we haven't found him, and I call 911.

What follows is the longest 10 minutes of my entire life. I stay in one place, waiting for the police to show up, while my family and some other families continue to search. Each second is torment.

And then I get the text from Sergio: "They found him at Pier 30."

We are at Pier 20. He walked ten blocks, following a little friend at first, then looking for us and wandering away. A family found him, wrapped him in a towel, gave him a lollipop and called the police.

Any distinguishing characteristics? Why yes, Officer. He's wearing a blue Batman speedo, Brasilian style. "Yep," the Officer confirms. "We got a call about the blue speedo kid."

We are all crying when we're reunited. I can't imagine how parents go through this without ever finding their children. It's the most horrible experience I've ever known, and my heart bleeds for those who have endured worse than I. When we wrap him in our arms, Little Sergio is half-sobbing and half excited, saying he was scared and yet trying to explain to us about the police car where he got a ride. It's a sweet moment.

Well, after that everything is just dandy. On Mother's Day I awake to a sumptuous breakfast in bed. We spend a couple hours at the {fenced-in} pool and then we're off, headed back home.

Wild, wild East. Yippeeeeeee!

Here's photographic evidence: