Category: Health
How is this possible? According to a recently concluded study, denims just might help save your life in case you get bitten by a rattlesnake. Dr. Shelton S. Herbert and Dr. William K. Hayes from Loma Linda University in California did research on the effect of denim on rattlesnake bites. What they did was to use latex gloves in lieu of human legs (or arms). The gloves were filled with saline solution. They then covered some parts with denim.
The results were quite interesting. The parts that were covered with denim received less of the rattlesnake venom. In case you’re wondering just how much less, they received as much as two thirds less venom than those which were not protected with denim!
The implications are exciting, to say the least. If you decide to go out into the desert – or wherever there may be rattlesnakes lurking around – then you should throw away your nice shorts and put on some nice comfy denims instead. I can think of other reasons why denims are better – they will protect you from the sun and they will protect you from getting your legs scratched! Of course, in case you do get bitten by a rattlesnake or two, your jeans will absorb most of the venom and perhaps save your life.
Of course, the smarter course of action would be to avoid getting bitten by a rattlesnake, but if that cannot be avoided for some reason, then the jeans will be there to help out, even if just a little bit.
So who cares, right? I mean, despite the fact that he is the leader of the arguably greatest nation on Earth, he still is a private individual to a certain extent. Yes, he has made the lives of tobacco and cigarette companies hell lately, but he admits to smoking every now and then.
Barack Obama has never made it a secret that he is struggling with his smoking habit. Perhaps just like very other smoker who has been wanting to quit, the president is finding it quite hard to totally kick the habit. He says that he is about 95% cured but he finds himself slipping a lot. He goes on to say, however, that he does not do it in front of the children – just like many smoker parents that I know.
So why is this significant? I don’t think it is really – except for the President perhaps. He wants to quit smoking but is finding it hard – big deal! Of course, critics are quick to point fingers and highlight the fact that he is putting a lot of pressure on the tobacco industry while at the same time, patronizing their goods.
What does the President have to say about this?
“Once you go down this path it’s something you continually struggle with, which is precisely why the legislation we signed is so important because what we don’t want is kids going down that path in the first place.”
Yeah, I have to agree with him a hundred percent on this one. And yes, I am trying to kick the habit myself.
Are you one of the countless people wearing those facial masks when going out in public? If you work at an airport or a similar transportation hub, you just might be. Or maybe you live near the border with Mexico and you also feel the need to protect yourself.
Well, do it as much as you want to – it can only do you good anyway. However, if the World Health Organization is to be believed, the outbreak of swine flu, or H1N1 virus, may not be as serious as we all think it is. According to the Los Angeles Times, scientists are actually saying that this strain of the flu virus is actually mild; at least when compared to previous epidemics. This should be a good thing as a lot of people are panicking regarding the possibility of a widespread epidemic. After all, some people have died because of it already, so this is really understandable.
On another note, scientists are also saying that developing a swine flu vaccine could take some time. The Voice of America reports:
The World Health Organization says several laboratories around the world are developing a vaccination against swine influenza A-H1N1. The organization has raised its alert to level five, just below declaring the flu virus outbreak to be a pandemic. The process of vaccine development can take months.
By this time, this current strain could very well be gone and we might be facing a different strain in the future. In the meantime, we just need to be wary and try to keep healthy.
Everyone loves Coke, or at least a ginormous number of people do. That, however, does not exempt the company from being reprimanded for less than honest ads, at least in the eyes of the advertising watchdogs in Australia. Last year, the soda giant ran an advertising campaign dubbed Motherhood & Myth-Busting. The main idea of the campaign was to promote Coca-cola as being safe for children. The claims include the ideas that Coke will not make children fat, and that it would not cause one’s teeth to rot – common concerns for children. The company even got popular Australian actress Kerry Armstrong to be its spokesperson.
This did not sit well with the consumer watchdogs, however, and the main governing body has commanded Coke to correct its advertisement. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, which is tasked with watching over cases like these, has declared that Coke should do something about it claims. According to Chairman Graeme Samuel, “Coke’s messages were totally unacceptable, creating an impression which is likely to mislead that Coca-Cola cannot contribute to weight gain, obesity and tooth decay.” He went on to say that “They also had the potential to mislead parents about the potential consequences of consuming Coca-Cola.”
While the Commission does have a point, I dare ask this question: What kind of parent will totally believe that drinking soda all the time is good for his or her child? Interestingly enough, Coke has agreed to publish corrective statements regarding their campaign. I guess there is no excuse for any parent to rely on Coke as his or her child’s refreshment of choice!
News about the woman giving birth to octuplets made the headlines about a week ago. Since then, people have been giving their own points of view regarding the matter. There have been supportive people while there have been people who criticized the woman for choosing be artificially inseminated with so many babies at once – especially since she already has 6 children. No matter how much noise was made about the multiple births, the mother kept mum for a while.
Now, she has come out into the open and spoken her piece. Nadya Suleman, the mother of 8 newborns and 6 other children, was interviewed today by Ann Curry of NBC. In the interview, she acknowledged that she had 6 embryos implanted – more than the standard recommendations of the fertility industry. However, she said that she was aware that multiple births were a possibility and that she wanted them all.
Nadya, together with the medical professionals involved, has been severely criticized for her decision. This is taking into consideration the fact that she is a single mother and unemployed at that. She stands by her decision however, and said that it has always been her dream to have a HUGE family, being an only child. She also said that her childhood was pretty dysfunctional and that she has always wanted to become a mom.
Octuplets being born – and living this long – are very very rare. In fact, multiple births are considered a rarity and usually attract a lot of attention, including sponsorships.
Photo courtesy of www.blahmerica.com/
