Over at Switched, I read about a gizmo that is truly bizarre -- the 'Light Girl' Toilet Seat weighs bathroom-goers before and after they do their business. Designed by artist Haikun Deng, it's designed for women -- who are naturally more weight-conscious than men -- and it allows them to check their weight "in the private time and at the private place." Because weighing yourself on the bathroom scale is obviously far too public, I guess ... ?

"As people tend to be lighter after using the toilet, it probably gives the most welcomed results to girls," says Deng. Just think -- not only can you have a constant reminder of your current weight, you'll also know the weight of each of your bowel movements. Lovely.

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When you put on a couple of pounds, it's easy to ignore it. But eventually, if you keep putting on weight, there will come a point at which you know things just have to change. Maybe it's a depressing shopping trip, or a photograph. Or, if you're Kevin Smith, it's when you break a toilet.

The director/writer/actor has been conscious of his size for some time now -- his doctor called him morbidly obese, which is sure to get anyone's mind on losing weight, but it was after breaking a toilet that he really realized that he needed to do something.

"I'm going away for a while to concentrate on myself," said Smith, "to save my life." Once he's done doing press for Zack and Miri Make a Porno, he plans to get away and focus on counting calories and losing a bunch of pounds. It sounds like he's in a bad place, but he's got a plan, and I hope he's got plenty of friends to help him through it -- we all know support makes a big difference!

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Well this is one of those subjects, that I, even with all of my degrees and such ... I just can't wrap my head around explaining it perfectly to you. I guess that's what links are for!

Let's just put it this way, a combination of: fruit, gas, fermentation, constipation, pelvic rotation and inflammation can be causing your back pain. I don't think this article will provide the answer to everyone's back pain, but for some ... maybe so!

The article even suggests that a "pooping situation" or "lack of pooping situation" might be responsible for weight gain. So! Without further a-doodoo, click here.

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I typically like to address my Stress Less installments to everyone, but this one is for parents of preschoolers who are potty training. That's because I've noticed potty training tends to cause the most stress amongst my fellow parental cohorts. I'm not going to offer magic tricks for how to get your kids to use the potty. But I will aim to ease minds about doing so in public restrooms.

I actually find it strange that parents allow their kids to romp without a care on pesticide laden grass in public parks, identified as such with those handy little flags, but freak out if their child touches anything in a public restroom. Fifty percent of American women won't sit on a seat and they teach their kids to do the same. But in an ABC News test, the toilet turned out to be the cleanest thing in the public restroom. As the subsequent report points out, you're not going to get germs from your backside. You're going to get them from your hands.

There really is little need to worry anyway. At least not about genital herpes or HIV. But you might worry about staph infections. It's possible to contract an infection from potty seats, but it's not as likely as you might think. The bottom line: as long as you wash your hands after a trip to the bathroom, you and your kids will likely never acquire anything by way of the public potty.

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Flush away the waste and everything seems fresh and lovely all over again, right? Not quite, says an article in Men's Health magazine, referencing a study published in the journal Applied Microbiology.

When a toilet is flushed, fecal-born diseases can be spread from your toilet bowl and take up residence on bathroom surfaces, which includes, but is not limited to, your body. And, if you happen to accidentally ingest some of these microscopic nasties, you can be exposed to several different strains of bacteria.

To help guard against the spread of this particularly gross form of disease, always close the lid to your toilet before flushing. And, as an added measure against the spread of bacteria, keep your toothbrush, brush, and other personal hygiene products stashed in the medicine cabinet or bathroom closet.

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I will never forget a TV special I saw several years ago about household germs. They claimed that germs could "jump" from a toilet bowl and surfaces such as doorknobs were just breeding grounds for virtual colonies of little beasties.

Now the new germ-haven is your computer keyboard. Makes sense. Most people may remember to wash their hands before eating, but who thinks to wash their hands before using the computer? And, other than a perfunctory wipe down, my guess is there aren't too many people who really clean their keyboards.

Research from Great Britain indicates that computer keyboards may have more germs than toilet seats. The study was somewhat limited -- swabs were taken from 33 keyboards, one toilet seat, and one bathroom door handle. Several keyboards were dirty enough to be health hazards and one of the keyboards had five times the germs found on the toilet seat.

But even though the findings are a bit gross, there's no reason for alarm. The solution is simple: wash your hands before starting to work and clean your keyboard regularly. You may also want to consider minimizing the amount other co-workers use your keyboard.

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Do you panic about public potty seats? Many people do. I get it. Just imagining how many sets of buns have been planted on the same exact toilet seat I must use is enough to stir up a little health scare in me. Is anxiety about sharing toilet seats warranted, though?

Well, kind of.

Don't worry about genital herpes or HIV. These diseases can't survive outside the body, says D. Scott Smith, M.D., chief of infectious diseases at Kaiser Permanente Redwood City Medical Center in California. But you might worry about staph infections. There's a slight risk of picking one up -- you'll know you have one if you develop a mild skin irritation. And if your hands come in contact with germs in a filthy bathroom and you touch your eyes, nose, or mouth, the bacteria can enter our body and cause diarrhea.

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A recent study in Chicago found that an alarming number of restaurants, more than 1 out of every 5, has more bacteria and fecal matter in their ice cubes than in a random testing of toilet water.

Seriously? I don't even know what to say! But I do feel a little sick.

Apparently the bacteria found wasn't the kind that's necessarily dangerous to the average person, although the potential for illness is definitely there for the very old, the very young, and people with compromised immune systems. But still! How can that be okay with health inspection agencies?

Via Gadling

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Here's a wake-up call: your cell phone just may be dirtier than your toilet. And although I don't think many of us are surprised to hear that cold and flu viruses are commonly found on cell phones, what about staphylococcus aureus and MRSA? Catching a cold may be inconvenient, but staph and MRSA are heavy duty germs that can pose significant health risks if you become infected.

It's recommended to regularly wipe your phone down with a disinfectant wipe or cloth, and share as little as possible, to reduce the germs. I have to say that after reading this news about cell phones today, and this about water fountains before, I'm starting to wonder what's next? Maybe toilets should give up their reputation as dirtiest spot in the house!

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Here's an eye opener for your local school district. After a middle school in Oregon banned students from bringing water bottles, Kyleray Katherman decided to do a little experiment. He had a thought that the water fountains they were forced to use weren't the cleanest sources of water on campus. Kyleray's experiment was to take samples from four water fountains and a toilet and then measure the bacteria content in each one.

Turns out the water fountains were crawling with germs, and the toilet water was clean. What's amazing is that the 13-year-old used cotton to swab the entire rim of the toilet bowl! And he took samples from the water fountains by swabbing the spigots where most kids get the closest with their mouths.

Kyleray proved his point. The water fountains were in need of a robust cleaning, but the school didn't budge on their "no water bottles" policy. However, spigots and casting were replaced at a few fountains and teachers are beginning to offer water in the classroom. More districts could learn a lesson from North Bend Middle School, or even find a new alternative like water coolers.

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I know that many of you out there abhor the thought of public toilets and would prefer to hold it in to the point of personal injury rather than violate your body in a bathroom used by hundreds or even thousands of strangers. I've always considered public washrooms a necessary evil and done my best to find ones that are clean (or at least not offensively dirty). At best, they're a great exercise for your thighs if you choose to hover above the seat.

No matter how much you dislike 'going' in public, rest assured that there are commodes out there that will impress even the move devoted public toilet hater. Check out this list of stunning bathrooms, located in various spots across the world. You'll find 13 bathrooms located everywhere from London to Tokyo to New York to Milan and even Wisconsin, that range from hilariously hip -- take the Stones-inspired giant red lip urinals at a Brighton nightspot-- to downright decadant (who would balk at making a pitstop at a 14 karat gold toilet?).

So the next time you're on holiday in any of these spots, make a search for fancy toilets a part of your tour. It'll help give you hope for a cleaner and fancier toilet-future the next time you're holding your nose on your way into a festival port-o-potty.

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The U.N. reports that a lack of basic sanitation in some countries, or flush toilets, causes as many as 2 million childhood deaths each year. That breaks down to almost 5,000 preventable deaths per day, all for want of clean water.

"No access to sanitation is a polite way of saying that people draw water for drinking, cooking and washing from rivers, lakes, ditches and drains fouled with human and animal excrement," said Kevin Watkins, the main author of the U.N. Development Program's annual report. The report also cites studies in Peru and Egypt that show as much as a 60% increase in a child's chance of living to their 1st birthday just by installing a flush toilet in their home.

This story really makes me realize the little things that we all take for granted everyday, like indoor plumbing. Next time I'm scrubbing my toilet I'll try to more appreciative that I have one to clean!

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