I'm not really a germophobe. I mean I carry hand sanitizer and I make sure to scrub my bathroom and kitchen once a week, but I also bite my fingernails at a near constant rate, often after I've touched a communal keyboard or handrail. Gross, I know, but it's a nervous habit and I don't see it going away anytime soon. Still, with all the swine flu buzz lately I can't say I haven't been more careful.
Then yesterday, Slate once again caught my attention with a tweet that simply read, "Death by airplane bathroom," followed by a link. As I'm scheduled to board a plane to Texas in less than 48 hours, I naturally clicked. And for once Slate wasn't jumping to the worst conclusion:
"'We take in humongous amounts of live organisms every day, and we are all routinely covered in fecal organisms," says Michael Bell, associate director for infection control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion. 'It's a testament to our body's own defenses—if they routinely made us ill, none of us would have a chance.'"
Okay, gross, but good to know people shouldn't be freaking out.
As for dramatic airplane tweet, they offered this advice to avoid such disaster:
"Some studies have shown that flushing sends a spray of water containing bacteria that settles on people and surrounding surfaces. In general, fecal particles are only worrisome if they've come from someone with intestinal illness or diarrhea, but the best advice I ever heard was to treat all airplane bathroom surfaces as if they are radioactive; keep the lid closed when flushing, use a paper towel to handle lid, faucets and door handles after washing hands, then use hand sanitizer once back at the seat as an extra precaution."
Done and done.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
This post is rated GF
Two things happened today to remind me that fall is coming, despite what midday Gainesville temperatures may say. First, the temperature as I walked to my car around 7:30 a.m. was a glorious 65 degrees. I closed my eyes for a second and pretended I was taking a walk through autumn-colored leaves in some northern state. Then my friend Laura sent me a link to an article she knew I'd be interested in: Happy (gluten-free) Halloween!
Well it didn't start out so happy..."Gluten lurks unnoticed in most common candies," the article said.
Most common candies?
I consider myself to be a pretty avid label reader, and a bit of a candy fiend, so I hope the author was making an overstatement for the sake of safety, otherwise I may need to re-evaluate my latest trip down the Walgreens candy aisle. (I have read elsewhere, though, that the plants in which the candies are made are the real g-monster culprits a lot of the time, not the ingredients themselves. But that's another post.)
Anyway, the article mostly focuses on how to be a considerate candy-giver-outer on the big night for children with Celiac or gluten intolerance, and also gives a list of "all-natural" GF candy (not for me, but thanks) and Celiac-safe ingredients for those who prefer to homemake their treats. A non-health-centric news instructing the public on how to be a good neighbor to the GF kid down the street? Happy Halloween indeed!
Well it didn't start out so happy..."Gluten lurks unnoticed in most common candies," the article said.
Most common candies?
I consider myself to be a pretty avid label reader, and a bit of a candy fiend, so I hope the author was making an overstatement for the sake of safety, otherwise I may need to re-evaluate my latest trip down the Walgreens candy aisle. (I have read elsewhere, though, that the plants in which the candies are made are the real g-monster culprits a lot of the time, not the ingredients themselves. But that's another post.)
Anyway, the article mostly focuses on how to be a considerate candy-giver-outer on the big night for children with Celiac or gluten intolerance, and also gives a list of "all-natural" GF candy (not for me, but thanks) and Celiac-safe ingredients for those who prefer to homemake their treats. A non-health-centric news instructing the public on how to be a good neighbor to the GF kid down the street? Happy Halloween indeed!
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Put down the Airborne and go take a nap
If you find yourself more prone to colds during the school year than the average bear, your crappy college-life sleeping habits might be partly to blame.
I'm fortunate enough to only catch a cold about once a year--usually around the end of fall semester, when projects and finals are all piling on top of each other, as is the case with most people I'm sure. Well, according to recent study, all those late nights out, or, um, studying, hinder our immune systems' abilities to fight off colds and other illnesses.
Like the NYT reported, scientists followed the sleeping habits of about 150 men and women for two weeks, then isolated them and exposed them to cold viruses. "Those who slept an average of fewer than seven hours a night," the article said, "were three times as likely to get sick as those who averaged at least eight hours."
Other than the occasional weekend (during which time most college students probably participate in other activities that hinder their immune systems), I can barely remember the last time I slept more than seven hours, and I don't know many people who can. As if cramped dorms, crowded bars and shared beer bong cups didn't make college students susceptible enough, the sleep we give up to participate in the latter activities is working against us too.
I guess I should amend the title of this post, then. We're not likely to go to bed any sooner--we're much too busy for that. Go ahead and take that Airborne, then go take a nap.
I'm fortunate enough to only catch a cold about once a year--usually around the end of fall semester, when projects and finals are all piling on top of each other, as is the case with most people I'm sure. Well, according to recent study, all those late nights out, or, um, studying, hinder our immune systems' abilities to fight off colds and other illnesses.
Like the NYT reported, scientists followed the sleeping habits of about 150 men and women for two weeks, then isolated them and exposed them to cold viruses. "Those who slept an average of fewer than seven hours a night," the article said, "were three times as likely to get sick as those who averaged at least eight hours."
Other than the occasional weekend (during which time most college students probably participate in other activities that hinder their immune systems), I can barely remember the last time I slept more than seven hours, and I don't know many people who can. As if cramped dorms, crowded bars and shared beer bong cups didn't make college students susceptible enough, the sleep we give up to participate in the latter activities is working against us too.
I guess I should amend the title of this post, then. We're not likely to go to bed any sooner--we're much too busy for that. Go ahead and take that Airborne, then go take a nap.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Harder, BETTER, Faster, Stronger
For a guy who doesn't like talking to reporters, Matt Herring, strength-and-conditioning coordinator for the University of Florida Men's basketball team, had a lot to say Thursday about functional training, his preferred method of getting the Gators in shape every season.
"It's not about bigger, faster stronger--it's about better," Herring told our Health and Fitness Writing class, as he explained how each exercise he puts the players through during training serves a specific purpose, and all of them combine to make the players better as a whole. (An example of a non-functional exercise, Herring said, would be bicep curls, which pretty much just serve the function of making biceps bigger.)
As to why the program adopted this form of training in the first place, Herring said "the facility has shaped our philosophy." With little room to work with in the "country club," the players' name for their not-quite-up-to-football-standard training facility (they have 2,000 sq. ft. while the football team has 20,000), the staff had to come up with the most efficient way to use the space. That meant not cramming it with machines, but instead incorporating drills that can be altered to target certain inconsistencies and weaknesses as needed into the team's training sessions.
This article, written by Professor Spiker himself, details how Herring and his staff took the boys to their second National Championship two years ago. It certainly makes sense not to waste time on exercises that don't result in performance enhancement, but Herring wasn't exactly willing to stamp his name on the idea (he actually got the idea of functional training from a man named Gary Gray ) and call it the next big thing in conditioning. While it's true the Gators took home two titles since Herring got here five years ago, it's also true that they missed out altogether on two NCAA tournaments. I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens this season.
"It's not about bigger, faster stronger--it's about better," Herring told our Health and Fitness Writing class, as he explained how each exercise he puts the players through during training serves a specific purpose, and all of them combine to make the players better as a whole. (An example of a non-functional exercise, Herring said, would be bicep curls, which pretty much just serve the function of making biceps bigger.)
As to why the program adopted this form of training in the first place, Herring said "the facility has shaped our philosophy." With little room to work with in the "country club," the players' name for their not-quite-up-to-football-standard training facility (they have 2,000 sq. ft. while the football team has 20,000), the staff had to come up with the most efficient way to use the space. That meant not cramming it with machines, but instead incorporating drills that can be altered to target certain inconsistencies and weaknesses as needed into the team's training sessions.
This article, written by Professor Spiker himself, details how Herring and his staff took the boys to their second National Championship two years ago. It certainly makes sense not to waste time on exercises that don't result in performance enhancement, but Herring wasn't exactly willing to stamp his name on the idea (he actually got the idea of functional training from a man named Gary Gray ) and call it the next big thing in conditioning. While it's true the Gators took home two titles since Herring got here five years ago, it's also true that they missed out altogether on two NCAA tournaments. I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens this season.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Your shower head is killing you
...or at least that's what a tweet from Slate told me last night while I was watching Gossip Girl. It linked to this article from BBC, which talks about how dirty shower heads might house dangerous bacteria that can get into your lungs and cause infection.
A similar article appeared in today's Gainesville Sun, for which the lede was, "In what may be the scariest shower news since Alfred Hitchcock's 'Psycho,' a study says shower heads can harbor tiny bacteria that come spraying into your face when you wash."
In your face!
Go ahead and laugh (I did), but it's no laughing matter for people with weak immune systems, like the elderly, AIDS patients and pregnant women. Studies and stories like this are good for the health industry, I guess, because they're attention-getters and they force people to think about their health and well-being. But at the same I wonder where we draw the line at what the public needs to know versus what's going to cause them unnecessary worry. Do I or anyone else really need to think about tiny microbes flying into my lungs every time I use my brand new ec0-friendly shower head?
Researchers from the University of Colorado who conducted the study suggested that people buy all-metal shower heads or replace filters (if you have a shower head with filters) often to prevent bacteria, but there's really nothing more people can do. Seems like the easiest thing would just be to not put your face directly into the oncoming water as soon as you turn your shower on, but maybe that's just me.
A similar article appeared in today's Gainesville Sun, for which the lede was, "In what may be the scariest shower news since Alfred Hitchcock's 'Psycho,' a study says shower heads can harbor tiny bacteria that come spraying into your face when you wash."
In your face!
Go ahead and laugh (I did), but it's no laughing matter for people with weak immune systems, like the elderly, AIDS patients and pregnant women. Studies and stories like this are good for the health industry, I guess, because they're attention-getters and they force people to think about their health and well-being. But at the same I wonder where we draw the line at what the public needs to know versus what's going to cause them unnecessary worry. Do I or anyone else really need to think about tiny microbes flying into my lungs every time I use my brand new ec0-friendly shower head?
Researchers from the University of Colorado who conducted the study suggested that people buy all-metal shower heads or replace filters (if you have a shower head with filters) often to prevent bacteria, but there's really nothing more people can do. Seems like the easiest thing would just be to not put your face directly into the oncoming water as soon as you turn your shower on, but maybe that's just me.
Monday, September 14, 2009
A crossword a day...
I just got back from a whirlwind weekend trip to my old hometown of Virginia Beach to be in the wedding of a dear friend. This is relevant information only because it was one of the least healthiest weekends I can remember in a long time. I mean, weddings are historically not the healthiest events to begin with: brides and bridesmaids starve themselves in the weeks leading up to the wedding just to gorge themselves on a feast of appetizers, prime rib, booze and, of course, cake. Add to that the fact that I hadn't been to VB in over a year and thus was using the wedding weekend as the platform for a mass reunion of high school friends and you've got the setup for three days of absolute bliss in the form of Mexican food and homemade gluten free cake. So, avoid sounding like an utter hypocrite, I'm not going to talk about eating healthy on vacation.
Flashback to my flight back from Virginia, where I was fortunate to sit by a woman and her daughter, a UNF Advertising student. As I tried to get some shut-eye on the packed plane, I couldn't help but overhear the pair reading crossword clues to each other as they attempted to complete what I soon learned was the "Easy" crossword in the in-flight magazine. I'm not great at crosswords, but I do consider myself to be better than average, and found myself half-way done with the puzzle in my head before these two figured out a 4-letter-word for "Shredded" that started with "T". Noticing I was awake and having seen me attempt the New York Times Sunday puzzle before dozing off, they asked for my help and together we finished the puzzle just as the plane touched the ground.
The experience got me thinking about my own mother, and then her mother, my grandmother, who has dementia. Neither of them have ever done a crossword, to my knowledge. But studies like this one have found that people who regularly engage in mentally challenging activities, like crossword puzzles, have a decreased risk for dementia later in life. Having seen my grandmother's decline in recent years, I believe mental health to be equally as important as physical health, and if a crossword a day keeps dementia at bay, then I'm happy I've become hooked early. I hope that that mother and daughter on the plane make a habit of doing crosswords together now that they've had the satisfaction of completing one. And I hope even more that one of these days I can convince my own mother to try one out; if not for her sake, then for the sake of her concerned daughter.
Flashback to my flight back from Virginia, where I was fortunate to sit by a woman and her daughter, a UNF Advertising student. As I tried to get some shut-eye on the packed plane, I couldn't help but overhear the pair reading crossword clues to each other as they attempted to complete what I soon learned was the "Easy" crossword in the in-flight magazine. I'm not great at crosswords, but I do consider myself to be better than average, and found myself half-way done with the puzzle in my head before these two figured out a 4-letter-word for "Shredded" that started with "T". Noticing I was awake and having seen me attempt the New York Times Sunday puzzle before dozing off, they asked for my help and together we finished the puzzle just as the plane touched the ground.
The experience got me thinking about my own mother, and then her mother, my grandmother, who has dementia. Neither of them have ever done a crossword, to my knowledge. But studies like this one have found that people who regularly engage in mentally challenging activities, like crossword puzzles, have a decreased risk for dementia later in life. Having seen my grandmother's decline in recent years, I believe mental health to be equally as important as physical health, and if a crossword a day keeps dementia at bay, then I'm happy I've become hooked early. I hope that that mother and daughter on the plane make a habit of doing crosswords together now that they've had the satisfaction of completing one. And I hope even more that one of these days I can convince my own mother to try one out; if not for her sake, then for the sake of her concerned daughter.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
In which Taylor tries to make a southern favorite G-free
I took advantage of the extended holiday weekend by cooking something I've been meaning to try since I found gluten-free bread crumbs (Corn Flake crumbs) in an Atlanta grocery store: fried okra.
I know, I know, frying things isn't exactly the healthiest option but okra is a vegetable, and an underrated one at that. Not only is it tasty fried or otherwise, everynutrient.com says it's "a good source of many nutrients including vitamin B6, vitamin C, fiber, calcium, and folic acid."
I found fresh okra at Ward's supermarket and immediately thought of the southern favorite I used to order every chance I got before I went gluten-free. I'd never made it before, but okra+breading? How hard could it be?
Turns out, not really hard at all. All I did was cut the okra in bite-sized pieces,
Then I made a little bowl of milk and a little bowl of bread crumbs and started an assembly line: okra in milk, okra in crumbs (mixed with a dash of salt and pepper), okra in hot pan of vegetable oil ...
If I were to do it all over again (and I will), I would probably boil the okra in water for just a little bit so that they softened up faster. If I left them to cook too long the outside burned. Obviously. And I'd probably use whole milk or buttermilk instead of 1 percent, but, you know, this is a health blog.
All in all, it ended up a pretty good GF substitute for anyone who loves fried okra as much as I do, which is, I'm learning, not as many Floridians as I would have expected.
Oh well, more for me!
I know, I know, frying things isn't exactly the healthiest option but okra is a vegetable, and an underrated one at that. Not only is it tasty fried or otherwise, everynutrient.com says it's "a good source of many nutrients including vitamin B6, vitamin C, fiber, calcium, and folic acid."
I found fresh okra at Ward's supermarket and immediately thought of the southern favorite I used to order every chance I got before I went gluten-free. I'd never made it before, but okra+breading? How hard could it be?
Turns out, not really hard at all. All I did was cut the okra in bite-sized pieces,
Then I made a little bowl of milk and a little bowl of bread crumbs and started an assembly line: okra in milk, okra in crumbs (mixed with a dash of salt and pepper), okra in hot pan of vegetable oil ...
If I were to do it all over again (and I will), I would probably boil the okra in water for just a little bit so that they softened up faster. If I left them to cook too long the outside burned. Obviously. And I'd probably use whole milk or buttermilk instead of 1 percent, but, you know, this is a health blog.
All in all, it ended up a pretty good GF substitute for anyone who loves fried okra as much as I do, which is, I'm learning, not as many Floridians as I would have expected.
Oh well, more for me!
Sunday, September 6, 2009
The gluten-free fad
Slate Magazine is sort of notorious for being snarky and snobby. I'm not sure what that says about me since I follow them on my Google reader, but doing so did lead me to come across this article, which talks about how the gluten-free diet is a fad akin to the Atkins Diet, both overhyped and ineffective.
Because of Slate's aforementioned characteristics, I'm not surprised that the (somewhat pointless) article included a line like, "...Diagnosed celiacs only account for a small fraction of the bloated and still-expanding market for gluten-free products. (In total, the disease affects just 0.75 percent of the population.)."
Can someone tell me how an increase in gluten-free products is a bad thing? I live for the day I don't have to visit three different grocery stores to get what I want or pay $5 for a loaf of bread.
The article focuses on how the idea of "gluten interolerance", which is different from Celiac Disease in that it causes short-term discomfort and no permanent damage, is all in people's heads as they latch on to the latest diet craze. If people are doing this just because it's the hip thing to do, they really must be crazy. A gluten-free diet is incredibly restricted, and not all that healthful in terms of getting the right amount of nutrients (many gluten-free foods are not fortified like glutentastic ones). And it's expensive. According to a recent article in the New York Times, countries like Italy and England actually prescribe gluten-free food to Celiac patients.
The writer even acknowledges that it shouldn't matter if people decide they want to go gluten-free to feel better, citing Elizabeth Hasselbeck's new book (don't even get me started on that piece of work) as the latest testament to the good a "g-free" diet can do. Why then write an article ranting about the supposed dubiousness of gluten intolerance?
The article ends wth an apparent attempt to amend the assumptions and judgmental statements that permeate it:
"The proliferation of gluten-free products has made life for a full-blown celiac easier than it's ever been, and a greater awareness of gluten-related disorders has more celiac patients getting diagnosed than ever before. (There are still thought to be millions of undiagnosed cases in the United States.) Let's hope those gains aren't erased when the conventional wisdom shifts again and we leave this diet craze behind us."
Well, that at least the author and I can agree on.
P.S. At some point this blog will live up to its title.
Because of Slate's aforementioned characteristics, I'm not surprised that the (somewhat pointless) article included a line like, "...Diagnosed celiacs only account for a small fraction of the bloated and still-expanding market for gluten-free products. (In total, the disease affects just 0.75 percent of the population.)."
Can someone tell me how an increase in gluten-free products is a bad thing? I live for the day I don't have to visit three different grocery stores to get what I want or pay $5 for a loaf of bread.
The article focuses on how the idea of "gluten interolerance", which is different from Celiac Disease in that it causes short-term discomfort and no permanent damage, is all in people's heads as they latch on to the latest diet craze. If people are doing this just because it's the hip thing to do, they really must be crazy. A gluten-free diet is incredibly restricted, and not all that healthful in terms of getting the right amount of nutrients (many gluten-free foods are not fortified like glutentastic ones). And it's expensive. According to a recent article in the New York Times, countries like Italy and England actually prescribe gluten-free food to Celiac patients.
The writer even acknowledges that it shouldn't matter if people decide they want to go gluten-free to feel better, citing Elizabeth Hasselbeck's new book (don't even get me started on that piece of work) as the latest testament to the good a "g-free" diet can do. Why then write an article ranting about the supposed dubiousness of gluten intolerance?
The article ends wth an apparent attempt to amend the assumptions and judgmental statements that permeate it:
"The proliferation of gluten-free products has made life for a full-blown celiac easier than it's ever been, and a greater awareness of gluten-related disorders has more celiac patients getting diagnosed than ever before. (There are still thought to be millions of undiagnosed cases in the United States.) Let's hope those gains aren't erased when the conventional wisdom shifts again and we leave this diet craze behind us."
Well, that at least the author and I can agree on.
P.S. At some point this blog will live up to its title.
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