bites-related stories
Slim down by savoring your food
Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements
We always tell 5-year-old Danny to slow down and chew his food -- he's a pro at stuffing loads of grub in his mouth and then struggling to swallow it down. Our only real goal for this young boy is that he doesn't choke or heave his hearty helpings back onto his dinner plate. It seems we might also be teaching him how to to stay slim and trim.
Longer meal times and thorough chewing tend to decrease the amount of food eaten and lead to greater fullness and satisfaction for the older-than-Danny healthy female population. This, from a first-ever study on the topic of slower eating, concluding that smaller bites, pausing between bites, and chewing thoroughly is a key slim-down strategy.
So, what qualifies as slow? While I don't have a definite time frame to share, I do know that the meals during study were 21 minutes longer than quick meals. I also know that the female participants ate about 67 fewer calories and reported feeling much more satiated after eating slowly. Great news, which hopefully will transfer to other populations, like men and obese folks.
Daily Fit Tip: Quit picking
Are you the person who does most of the cooking in your house? If so, you're at risk for a very serious condition: Food picking syndrome.
Bedbugs go collegiate
Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements
Several of my nieces and nephews are in college now. This summer, while getting things ready for their kids' apartments, my sisters went out and purchased new mattresses and furniture. I thought they were a little nuts for spending that money. When I think back to my first college apartment, my roommate and I had a couch we bought for $10, an entertainment center we found on the side of the road, and a chair we found abandoned at the apartment complex. After reading this article about bedbugs, however, I think my sisters did the right thing by not letting their kids go garbage picking for furniture.College campuses and dormitories are like a luxury resort for these blood-sucking little critters. Students frequently visit each other's rooms (possibly transporting little friends as they do so). Universities like Texas A&M, Ohio State, Stanford, and the University of Florida have had to deal with outbreaks of bedbugs.
Bedbugs are hard to spot. Waking up with small, red welts is one tell-tale sign. You may also spot tiny black or reddish-brown spots on your sheets.
Mosquitos bite!
Healthy Habits, Diet & Weight Loss
I'm a magnet for mosquitos. They always find me, always bite me, always leave swollen mounds of skin that itch like crazy. I swear, my whole family can be gathered in the back yard on a beautiful evening -- we're having beautiful evenings here in Florida right now -- and no one will even know the mosquitos are out. Except me. I'll know because it will take only moments for them to seek, target, and strike me. I have several bites on my legs right now, most of them on my lower legs and ankles -- not ideal for my morning runs. My socks rub the ankle bites and in addition to trying to simply power myself forward for three miles, I've now got to manage a fair amount of itching.
Here's one opinion on what I should do to alleviate my mosquito madness.
- Numb the area with a topical anti-itch remedy containing ammonium solution or menthol (brand names: After Bite, Sarna) or a topical analgesic.
- Apply a cool compress to calm itching and reduce swelling.
- Use a topical hydrocortisone cream for allergic reactions with a lot of swelling.
- Try oral Benadryl (if safe for you) to reduce the histamine reaction that causes itching and swelling. Avoid topical Benadryl, which can cause an allergic reaction.
Mother Nature's worst bites and stings
Boy Scouts, nature lovers and other outdoor enthusiasts alike have something in common: we all come into contact with nasty critters that sting and bite. You don't even really have to be outside all the time to feel the burn from such a bug. Regardless, here are some of the worst stingers in mother nature. The first that jumps out at you is the bullet ant. This sucker ranks with the highest on the Schmidt Sting Pain Index -- a scale of pain for insects created by an entomologist. Thankfully the ants hail from South America, so I wouldn't worry about stepping on one in your backyard. Either way, I wouldn't want to experience something described as "like fire-walking over a flaming charcoal with a tree-inch rusty nail in your heel."
How about the Tarantula Hawk Wasp. That's three animal names in one! It usually doesn't go after humans, but instead uses its terrible sting to paralyze the infamously terrifying spider. After that, it's all over. The wasp lags narrowly behind the bullet ant in sting-power according to Schmidt's scale. Still hungry for more? Check out the complete list here, if you dare.
Cat hair covered lip found on the floor
Healthy Relationships, Celebs & Entertainment, Motivation
One more reason to be careful who you kiss! A Seattle man, Thomas J. Brummel, was making out with his ex-girlfriend, Laura Roberta Cutler, yesterday when out of the blue, she bit off his entire lower lip and spit it out! Ack! Can you believe anyone would do something so disgusting? I almost died while reading the article in my local newspaper today. Ewwwww.
Deputies found the man on his front porch as a gory mess, and one of the rescuers found his lower lip covered in cat hair on the floor inside the home. Gross. I remember refusing to kiss anyone at Mardi Gras when I was in college, because I feared contracting herpes. With weirdos like this woman out there...we apparently have greater reasons to choose our close company wisely.
Neighbors believed Ms. Cutler was drunk during the incident, and she was being held on $75,000 bail for second-degree domestic-violence assault. Doctors could not reattach the lip, and believe the man will be disfigured permanently.
Avoiding bug bites
- Don't provoke insects
- Avoid rapid movement
- Don't wear lots of perfume or floral prints
- Cover up and apply insect repellent
Fit Links: Stings and bites
As fabulous as we at That's Fit think this blog is, the truth is there are hundreds of wonderful blogs on healthy living to be seen all over the blogosphere. So in this feature, Fit Links, we'll introduce you to some that have caught our eye.Today just happens to be National Don't Step on a Bee Day. (Don't worry, I had never heard of it before now either.) Really, every day is a good day not to step on a bee, and also a good day not to get bit by a mosquito or tick. Fight back against bugs with these informative blogs:
Did you know Vicks Vaporub can help relieve the itching caused by mosquito bites? Skinverse.com can tell you why.
Dr. Green can help you differentiate between a normal reaction to a bee sting in your child and an allergic reaction which requires immediate medical attention.
Families.com has home remedy ideas for dealing with the pain and itching of insect bites once you've determined that no professional medical care is needed.
