AliveAndKickN

Like Getting a Vacuum for Valentine's Day?

My wife picked up a $25 Sportline pedometer for me the other day when she was at Campmoor's getting stuff for the kids.  I'm not sure if it was out of love or if it's a hint (actually I requested it, but she didn't say anything like "oh Dave, you're so buff already).  Anyway, it comes with a little booklet indicating the benefits of walking.  According to the booklet, walking burns almost as many calories as jogging (especially some of joggers I've seen), eases back pain, lowers blood pressure, reduces risk of heart attack, lessens anxiety, reduces appetite, slows down osteoporosis, and is easy on your joints.  I think it also makes teeth whiter, and aids in making those diet pills actually work.  Hmmm... There were also tips on clothing, posture, stretching, etc, but let's get to the point.  10-K-A-Day is the target to attain to exceed the Surgeon General's physical fitness recommendation of 30 minutes of excercise three times a week.  Without varying my usual routine (no hiking trips), I decided to count my steps.  I puttered around doing business stuff, made phone calls, drove to a few clients, made dinner, tended the garden, etc.  Assuming my input of 24 inch strides is correct (it's not the size of the stride, it's what you do with it), I did over 11,000 steps today.  If my stride length is higher, I still think I'm ahead of the game. 

Good investment for trying to attain goals.  Mine is to get taller.  It could happen.   

I finally figured out what I was missing

Today in the NY Times, there was a full page ad "Tanning Causes Melanoma Hype."  The argument reads that exposure to all forms of untraviolet light stimulates the natural production of vitamin D.  And research has proven that vitamin D protects against heart disease and many types of cancer, in addition to providing other important health benefits (such as what?).  The message was brought to our enlightenment by The Indoor Tanning Association.  Upon going to the web site, apparently there's quite an uproar about the potential effects of overexposure to zappage.  Go figure.  Cigarette companies also say that lung cancer could have been prevented 80% of the time by using CT scans.  Good point.

This started me thinking about tanning salons and my other favorite outdoor activity taken indoors, fitness centers.  If there are a few thousand indoor tanning salons, and about 10,000 indoor fitness centers, what would happen if all of those people started doing exercise outside?  Just imagine if all of those indoorsies did it in the woods.  Instead of sucking electricity from the grid by running on treadmills and lying in UV coffins, how much could everyone benefit if they started and maintained gardens or vegetable patches?  Rake leaves in the sunlight instead of watching E! while on electric rowers.  Coach and play outside with a team instead of riding the stationary bike while staring at The Biggest Loser.  Clear brush and riverbanks or hike a trail instead of doing crunches.  What would be the shift in carbon footprints?

Anyway, according to the advertisements, apparently, all I need to do to ward off cancer is tan indoors, drink beer and wine, and eat chocolate.  So I guess Pop Tarts and Thunderbird can be a part of any nutritious breakfast.  I suppose I got cancer because I ate fruits and vegetables, and got my exercise and sunlight outside.  My mistake.    

   

Is there such thing as product discrimination?

We all know that there are age restrictions and taxes levied on alcohol and cigarettes.  Marijuana usage is illegal except in some medicinal applications.  Is it the ingredients?  Is it the effect on the consumer?  Is it the effect on the second or third-hand person?  If it is based upon ingredients, compare it to pepsi or fruit pies, both of which are readily available to my kids at the local convenience store.  I thought grapes, barley and hops were better for you than high fructose corn syrup and other stuff I can't pronounce.  If it's based upon effects on others, such as impaired driving, compare it to cell phones, eating and drinking takeout, putting on makeup, driving with pets on your lap, and more.  Is it addiction or binges?  I fondly remember guzzling my 64 ounce Mountain Dew at the 7-11 by my high school, as my buddies and I pumped quarters into the Millipede and Gorf machines.  I spent many a sleepness night peeing off the effects.

Why are certain products ostricized while others become and stay mainstream?  Societal benefit?  Anyway, it seems that some consumer groups have gotten together to make a stand.  The Global Dump Soda campaign started last fall seems to have gained some momentum.  And the concept of taxing or putting deposits on bottles and cans also seems to be gaining momentum in New Jersey.  As always, if we aren't willing to change our habits, maybe some revenue can be generated to clean up the mess.         

Are these numbers correct and does it matter?

As I watch the Presidential debates from New Hampshire on a Saturday night (I'm such a geek), I decided to try and find some statistics.  The focus was significantly around terrorism, but when I looked it up, it appears that about 14,000 people were killed in 2006, and 11,000 were killed in 2005.  Then, I tried to look up the number of "excess" casualties due to environmental issues and it appears that the estimated number is 20,000 in 2006.  Obviously there will be other extraneous issues in both cases and a nuclear detonation would change everything, but the numbers are interesting.  If they are correct, does it matter?

Lucky to discover cancer?

Can giving blood save your own life?  I found out about my own cancer when I tried to donate blood at Community Blood Services in Paramus.  My iron count was so low that they were tempted to give me a transfusion as opposed to taking from me.  According to the latest reports, blood bank levels are once again at critical levels.  Why the aversion to blood donation?  Get your cholestrol and glucose levels screened.  It's almost a mini-physical without the co-payment.  Maybe the majority of Americans are below the minimum 100 pounds or just came back from a third world nation, and couldn't qualify.  Seriously, most months they give away stuffed animals or other things to give the kids (saves a trip to the Dollar Store), and all of the donuts and coffee are free.  What a deal!

Up until May 2007, I never cared about organic or hormone-free.  I assumed that if it was sold at A&P, it was fine.  Like most people, I cared about calories.  Among other things, I drank soda, ate packaged snacks, and I ate fast food.  Now, I not only look at the nutritional content, I look to see what goes in (or doesn't go into) to the making of the product.  I look at companies that are sustainable and follow tenants of the triple bottom line.

I am not saying that any/all of these common practices are the cause of my illnesses.  I am saying that the numbers are staggering.  As many as 100 million people are directly affected by diabetes, obesity, coronary disease, and cancer.  An additional 5 million people are affected annually.  Could there be something inherently wrong with our current practices and what can be done to change?       

What I learned as a child

When you were younger and you were playing in the playground, did your teacher/mother tell you to “take all the toys and get out, but not until you pollute the sandbox first?”  No, your teacher told you to share with the others and clean up after yourself before you leave.  What changed?

Or how about the whole "Circle of Life" thing?  The grass grows, the antelope eats the grass, the lion eats the antelope.  When the lion dies, it becomes part of the grass again.  With people, it's different.  The grass grows, the lawn mower cuts the grass, the livestock eat corn and take steroids, the people eat chemicals and discard grass and food scraps into landfill.  When the people die, the people are preserved and sealed in laminated casket that will never decompose.  Huh?