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POPSMentally Ill Killed by Medication
The gentle, artistic boy who played the cello and bass guitar was long gone. "At 15 Daniel was being bullied at school and then started to have strange thoughts, anxiety and sleep problems. A doctor prescribed him a powerful drug called Stelazine and that was the start of a nightmare which eventually led to his death. He had bad physical reactions to the medication straight away but every symptom was seen as more evidence of schizophrenia and treated with more medication. Alternative treatments were never an option; keeping him calm was the priority. "Daniel was really passive and never complained but my mum was convinced the medication was going to kill him. She changed GPs many times, went private, bought vitamins and demanded blood tests; getting better care for Daniel became her full-time occupation but she was accused of interfering. In the months before his death, Daniel suffered from three major epileptic fits brought on by drinking too much water. Why was he so thirsty? I
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POPSPollution in the womb and obesity The researchers then assessed the link between concentrations of HCB in cord blood and weight and BMI at age 6.5 years. There were three different statistical models that took into account different factors: one that took into account child age and sex, a second that took into account sex, maternal age, height, pre-pregnancy overweight or obesity, education and number of children and a third that also took into account the weight of the child at birth.
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POPSHow much do you trust Federal regulation of food these days? Deregulation, budget gutting, and over politicized Presidential appointments has led to Bush League safety and regulation of anything that has to do with our common interests and security as citizens and consumer. GM animal products are just another scheme to get bigger profit for already obese CEOs and should be opposed until we have real leadership in Congress and the White House.
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POPSObese Alabama State Employees Will Pay Alabama's State Employees' Insurance Board has approved a plan to charge state workers starting in January if they don't have free health screenings, according to the AP. Should the screenings turn up serious blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose or weight problems the employees have a year to turn things around or start paying $25 for insurance that's otherwise free. Alabama already charges workers who smoke but obesity is an even bigger problem for the state, which is ranked second in terms of national obesity rates. To be fair, the state will offer employees access to a wellness program to help them. But you have to wonder - is an extra bill of $25 a month really going to get people to change their bad habits and/or start paying attention to their health? It'll be interesting to find out.
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POPSHalf of overweight US adults are heart-healthy We have this idea that fat=unhealthy, unhealthy=fat, thin=healthy, and healthy=thin. However, more and more research seems to indicate that this simply isn't true. It's not about your size or your shape, it's about your fitness. Can you do what you need to do on a daily basis with ease? Can you climb a flight of stairs or run a block for the bus without getting winded? Can you play tag with a couple of six-year-olds without passing out from overexertion? Can you carry your groceries home without needing to set them down several times? Get fit. Get strong. Get active. And tell anyone who still believes in "shaming the fatties into losing weight" to go jump in a lake.
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POPSDrug tries to offset 10,000 years of evolution Gene therapies, expected some time between 2015 and 2020, promise to correct this genetic problem caused by nature, but many obese people do not want to wait. They are hoping that Nastech’s new nasal spray can provide a solution now. Within 20 to 35 minutes after taking a whiff, this new drug moves quickly through the nasal lining and into the bloodstream, sending a message to the brain that our tummy is full. So far the drug has had no negative side effects. PYY is undergoing clinical trials now, and is expected to be in drug stores by 2009 or 2010. Obesity is the 2nd leading cause of preventable death in America, so this drug offers a great chance for more people to improve their health and get ready to enjoy our “magical future”.
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POPSWhy do we gain weight? we eat more. i know it sounds simplistic, but before linking obesity to viruses and other sophisticated theories, one should look straight to the facts, we eat more in quantities, more processed food. We are too reluctant to consciously restrict the availability that we face. a point to think about.
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POPSThe profit from obesity Nevertheless, there are enormous profits to be had from obesity. The foods that maximise profit just happen to be those high in sugar or fat. They are cheap to produce, easy to brand and market, and easy to stock in supermarket aisles. And there are numerous ways to encourage people who are pre-obese to buy these foods. Sedentary behaviour is also profitable, and encouraged by industry. A moped is more glamorous than a bicycle. A new computer game will re-invigorate peoples' interest, but not their bodies.
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POPS86 Percent Of Americans Could Be Overweight Or Obese By 2030 “The health care costs attributable to obesity and overweight are expected to more than double every decade. This would account for 15 to 17 percent of total health care costs spent,” Wang says. “Due to the assumptions we made and the limitations of the available data, these figures are likely an underestimation of the true financial impact.”
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