That's Fit

The Environmental Health Perspectives journal recently published a paper claiming that certain ingredients in sunscreen are killing coral reefs. National Geographic, among others, picked up on it, and now beach-goers the world over are worried that the sunscreen they use to protect their skin is damaging coral reefs.

The Beauty Brains were asked about this last week, and they broke the issue down into an easy-to-understand format, explaining exactly what the concern was (certain chemicals found in sunscreen can cause bleaching in the reefs). The fact is that, yes, there are chemicals found in sunscreens that are detrimental to the environment, but the quantities listed in the paper failed to take a number of factors into account, such as those same chemicals being present in pollution as well as in sunscreen.

Their final opinion was that sunscreen use is not likely as big a culprit in the death of coral reefs as the paper indicates. However, if you're concerned because you swim near reefs (or just because you don't want to use sunscreen that could be damaging to the environment), you can look for natural sunscreens, or look out for the ingredients The Beauty Brains list as problematic.

Today on The Martha Stewart Show, Martha and her healthy initiatives consultant, Dr. Brent Ridge talked cravings. They discussed the reasons for cravings:

Genetics -- an ancestor's need to get their hands on calories.

Habits -- you traditionally eat sweet cereal in the morning, so when you wake up ......you crave sweet cereal.

Emotional correlation -- It's a birthday and birthdays are happy times, so you crave cake.

Pica -- A pregnant woman's odd and dangerous desire to consume non food items like soap, soil, or starch.

Physical need -- You are low on iron, so your body craves steak. This is the craving you should give in to!

If you are craving unhealthy food and truly don't want to give in to it, Dr. Ridge suggests you distract yourself for eight to fourteen minutes. He says that's the time our bodies take to kill a craving. Go for a walk, do some laundry or chat on the phone. Fourteen minutes is survivable!

There was that whole "kitchen sponge fires in the microwave" fiasco a few months ago, and now the issue is coming back around again: just how good is the microwave at killing bacteria anyway?

Don't worry, we're not going back into the sponge thing again. Instead this time researchers looked at the ability (or lack thereof) of the microwave to kill harmful bacteria in food. Many people assume and rely on the fact that cooking food in the microwave is the same as cooking it anywhere else: the bacteria die and the food is safe. But that's not always the case. In fact, experts found that more cases of food poisoning occur after eating microwaved meals compared to food cooked in the conventional oven or on the stove top. The reason seems to be that microwaves have a tendency to leave "cold spots" where bacteria thrive.

So make sure you rotate and/or stir all food cooked in the microwave, and if it's something at all questionable maybe using the conventional oven would be better.

In case you needed an extra boost today to help you resist that trip to the vending machine or that jelly donut with your coffee, maybe a little reminder on why it's so important to lose weight will help? I personally prefer positive means of motivation, but unfortunately sometimes the cold hard truth is the most effective! The following are just a few of the ways being overweight kills you, slowly but surely:

• Fat strains your heart in more ways than one. Blood pressure rises, cholesterol starts to clog arteries, and blood loses some of its ability to clot which increases the risk for stroke.
• Fat increases male hormones, which for women can have many adverse side effects -- namely increased risk for heart disease.
  
• Fat also increases the hormone insulin, which increases the likelihood of developing diabetes, which in turn damages and stresses your heart (among other things!).
• Fat makes it harder to get a good night's sleep. The most common sleep disorder for overweight adults is sleep apnea, which strains many systems including your cardiovascular system (your heart again!) and your risk for diabetes.
• Fat strains and damages joints and bones. The simple fact that your body is carrying around more weight than it was designed for will make it "wear out" faster, plus being overweight is linked with thinner and more brittle bones.

It may not be easy to lose weight, but it's definitely worth the effort for both yourself and those who love you!

Children seem to pick up lice at school no matter what you do to keep them washed and groomed. Lice can be spread by hanging coats, scarves, and caps together or using someone else's comb, brush, etc. They live on the clothing (especially in the seams), travel to the skin once a day for a meal, then back onto the clothing. So even if you properly bath every day, you still can get lice from being exposed to clothing where is is taking refuge. Lice live about 30 days, and the female lays about ten eggs a day. The tiny eggs (nits) are laid at the base of a hair shaft. As the hair grows, the nits are carried upward and can be seen. They look like tiny black or rust-colored spots at, or near, the base of the hair. They can even be found on the chest, beard, and eyelashes.

Here are some natural ways to get rid of lice without putting harsh chemicals on their heads, hair, or bodies. Heat combs and brushes to 151o F. for 5-10 minutes and then soak them for an hour in 2% Lysol solution. Launder clothing and bedding in hot water. Things that you cannot wash like pillows, put in a plastic bag or sack for 10 days. Soak the place on the body for 30 minutes in very warm, soapy, water. Hot vinegar or a 50-50 vinegar/water mixture applied to the scalp will loosen eggs, so they can be vigorously combed out of the hair with a fine-toothed comb. Garlic compresses can be placed on the scalp for 2 hours and then thoroughly comb hair. Mayonnaise smothered on the hair and wrapped in plastic can smother the lice and then you shampoo them out. And don't forget to vacuum carpets frequently and properly dispose of the vacuum bags or dirt from the canister so that the lice and eggs do not get back into the house. Whatever method you use, keep in mind that there is a 14-day cycle for lice and their eggs so you must work intensely for a little over 2 weeks on your body, clothing, and home if you are to have success.

This is a follow-up post to an earlier article on sanitizing kitchen sponges in the microwave, and all I have to say (between fits of laughter) is wow! Researchers at the University of Florida announced earlier this week that they had successfully killed 99% of bacteria and germs on a kitchen sponge by microwaving it on high for about 2 minutes. What they apparently neglected to mention (or maybe thought they didn't need to) is that the sponge needs to be wet.

So people all over the country gave the idea a shot, sticking dry sponges into microwaves and almost immediately (well, within 2 minutes I'm assuming) realized their grievous errors as their microwaves filled with flames, and their homes filled with smoke and the nasty smell of burnt tires.

Not to make light of anyone's misfortune, but it's so funny partly because I can actually see myself spacing out and throwing a dry sponge into the microwave to try this (I didn't, for the record). I guarantee, though, that as soon as I had a lump of flaming goop instead of a clean sponge and my fire alarm started going off I'd get it...of course it has to be wet first!

Why on earth would Japanese officials want to burn over 10,000 chickens anyway? Well, the authorities started the process after the chickens were found to have the bird flu or were culled at the farm they started dying in. A broad subtype of the bird flu known as H5 is the culprit, and while not necessarily fatal to us, it is very pathogenic to the unfortunate poultry.

Want to know how serious they are about the threat? The Japanese government "has banned shipments of eggs and 330,000 chickens at 16 poultry farms within a 6.2-mile radius of the farm," according to the article. They are not taking any chances considering that over 150 people have died worldwide due to a strain of the bird flu.

Given the numbers, it seems as though trans fat poses more of a threat than this health hazard. But even so, it is still interesting to see how other countries are going to great lengths to protect themselves.