Wednesday, December 2, 2009
things I am giving up because I have too much
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Most dangerous medicine combinations
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Mary
There was a point in her life where she had to struggle not to commit suicide. Somewhere inside, the will to live was strong and she's lived today not only to become a success in the music industry but a contributor to society. She has used her fame and wealth on a cause that is very near to her heart.
Mary J. Blige was around five years old when when her father started physically abusing her mother, only before abandoning their family. When she was growing up she saw so many women beaten by their men. She heard their screaming in her apartment building. "I would walk outside and I would see them being slapped so hard, it looked like their head was gonna come off.. and it wasn't just in poverty that I seen this abuse, it was everywhere."
"As a child, I never saw a confident woman; I only saw women being abused," said Blige, a Yonkers native. "That's why I am here; that's why FFAWN exists. I want every girl and woman who walks through this door to know that she is loved, no matter who is telling her she isn't loved.
GUCCI is also a supporter of Blige's cause. Creative director of Gucci, Frida Gianni is on the board of the PPR Foundation for Women’s Dignity and Rights, said: Mary is an inspiration for us all. She is a woman who really talks from her heart and from her own experiences, and she is a living example for all women in the world. And at the same time, Gucci is a very powerful brand that can communicatre in a very strong way. I thought that together, we could make something very impressive. I think that it's important to show that fashion isn't just about clothes and accessories- it's about being involved with initiative like this one and social responsibility.
Mary has helped design a watch which retails a little under 2 thousand bucks and for every watch that is sold, Gucci donates $100 to FFAWN. If you ask me, for the price of the watch, they could afford to donate a little more than just a hundred bucks, but what do I know?
Monday, November 23, 2009
little ways to make our earth healthier
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
16 essential elements of a healthy relationship
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
transitioning
Monday, November 2, 2009
50 things women want men to know
Health Effects of Soda and Diet Soda
Soft drinks contain little to no vitamins or other essential nutrients. However, it is what they do contain that is the problem: caffeine, carbonation, simple sugars — or worse, sugar substitutes — and often food additives such as artificial coloring, flavoring, and preservatives.
A lot of research has found that consumption of soft drinks in high quantity, especially by children, is responsible for many health problems that include tooth decay, nutritional depletion, obesity, type-2 diabetes, and heart disease.
Why the sugar in soft drinks isn’t so sweet
Most soft drinks contain a high amount of simple sugars. The USDA recommendation of sugar consumption for a 2,000-calorie diet is a daily allotment of 10 teaspoons of added sugars. Many soft drinks contain more than this amount!
Just why is too much sugar so unhealthy? Well, to start, let's talk about what happens to you as sugar enters your body. When you drink sodas that are packed with simple sugars, the pancreas is called upon to produce and release insulin, a hormone that empties the sugar in your blood stream into all the tissues and cells for usage. The result of overindulging in simple sugar is raised insulin levels. Raised blood insulin levels beyond the norm can lead to depression of the immune system, which in turn weakens your ability to fight disease.
Something else to consider is that most of the excess sugar ends up being stored as fat in your body, which results in weight gain and elevates risk for heart disease and cancer. One study found that when subjects were given refined sugar, their white blood cell count decreased significantly for several hours afterwards. Another study discovered that rats fed a high-sugar diet had a substantially elevated rate of breast cancer when compared to rats on a regular diet.
Diet soda is filled with artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, sucralose, or saccharin. These artificial sweeteners pose a threat to your health. Saccharin, for instance, has been found to be carcinogenic, and studies have found that it produced bladder cancer in rats.
Aspartame, commonly known as nutrasweet, is a chemical that stimulates the brain to think the food is sweet. It breaks down into acpartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol at a temperature of 86 degrees. (Remember, your stomach is somewhere around 98 degrees.) An article put out by the University of Texas found that aspartame has been linked to obesity. The process of stimulating the brain causes more cravings for sweets and leads to carbohydrate loading.
Carbonation depletes calcium
Beverages with bubbles contain phosphoric acid, which can severely deplete the blood calcium levels; calcium is a key component of the bone matrix. With less concentration of calcium over a long time, it can lower deposition rates so that bone mass and density suffer. This means that drinking sodas and carbonated water increases your risk of osteoporosis.
Add in the caffeine usually present in soft drinks, and you are in for even more trouble. Caffeine can deplete the body’s calcium, in addition to stimulating your central nervous system and contributing to stress, a racing mind, and insomnia.
Skip the soda and go for:
• Fresh water
Water is a vital beverage for good health. Each and every cell needs water to perform its essential functions. Since studies show that tap water is filled with contaminants, antibiotics, and a number of other unhealthy substances, consider investing in a quality carbon-based filter for your tap water.
On the go? Try using a stainless steel thermos or glass bottle, filled with filtered water. Enhance the flavor of your water with a refreshing infusion of basil, mint leaves, and a drop of honey.
• Fruit Juice
If you are a juice drinker, try watering down your juice to cut back on the sugar content. Buy a jar of organic 100% juice, especially cranberry, acai, pomegranate, and then dilute three parts filtered water to one part juice. You will get a subtle sweet taste and the benefit of antioxidants. After a couple of weeks, you will no longer miss the sweetness of sugary concentrated juices.
• Tea
Tea gently lifts your energy and has numerous health benefits. Black, green, white, and oolong teas all contain antioxidant polyphenols. In fact, tea ranks as high or higher than many fruits and vegetables on the ORAC scale, the score that measures antioxidant potential of plant-based foods.
Herbal tea does not have the same antioxidant properties, though it is still a great beverage choice with other health benefits, such as inducing calming and relaxing effects.
If tea doesn’t satisfy your sweet tooth, try adding cinnamon or a little honey, which has important health benefits that refined sugar lacks.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
boys and high heels
Monday, October 5, 2009
HO FO SHO
Thursday, October 1, 2009
sex and the City quote #2
Friday, September 25, 2009
Being in Love
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Excerpts from the book I'm currently reading
Things I like to do because "it's freeeeeee"
- Practice Guitar
- Read
- Lay Out
- Practice my cannonball
- Climb Trees
- Ride Bikes
- Go to the gym
- blog!
- Watch my favorite TV shows
- Make videos and send them to people online
- Take stupid/funny pictures with amanda on my computer