Sensa Weight Loss System

http://start.trysensa.com/dms1538/
Hmmmmm........

The Biggest "Biggest Loser" Misconceptions

http://blogs.discovery.com/jonathan_ross/2010/02/the-biggest-biggest-loser-misconceptions.html
Check it out.

No Health Insurance?

http://findahealthcenter.hrsa.gov/
Federally-funded health centers care for you, even if you have no health insurance. You pay what you can afford, based on your income.

Many moons ago, before being blessed with full-time employment & benefits, I used a health center & had no issue. All you need to do is provide proof of income...or the lack thereof & you can see health professionals & get prescriptions at a price that won't have you skipping meals.

SYTYCD - Powerful Breast Cancer Tribute

This is a very powerful & emotional dance piece dedicated to breast cancer.

I cried. I haven't been effected personally (thank God), but I surely felt the pain.

BEST WORKOUT FOR YOUR BODY TYPE | Women's Health Magazine

http://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/best-workout-for-your-body-type?cm_mmc=Newsletter-_-2009_Jul_13-_-Dose-_-readon

Health Talk - Allergies

Let's talk about something that effects almost all of us, either directly or indirectly - Allergies!

As happy as I am when winter is finally over, I dread what the summer holds in store for me.  Other than my allergy to pregnancy (yes I am allergic to it - my belly swells up & my face breaks out! *lol*), I have no other known allergies.

We found out my mother's other daughter was allergic to penicillin after we had a fight with a German Shepard & the dog won.  That girl was looking like the Elephant Man within a matter of moments.  It didn't effect me.

My BFF found out she was allergic to sulfur after she was given the drug during some course of treatment.  Her throat closed up & she had to be rushed to the ER.  Luckily she was only 10 blocks from the hospital.

What, if anything, are you allergic to & how did you find out?

Stylish Heels that Won't Kill Your Feet

http://www.womenshealthmag.com/beauty-and-style/comfortable-high-heels?cm_mmc=Newsletter-_-2009_Feb_26-_-Beauty-_-16StylishHeelsThatWontKillYourFeetTop2

My Health Check

Rating:	★★★★★
Category:	Other

No diabetes, no cholesterol issues and no HIV! I still need to drop some weight so the 1st two don't become an issue. *Doing my happy dance*

Truvia™ - Nature's Perfect Sweetness™

http://truvia.com/
Has anybody tried this?

She Has Lupus...

but it doesn't have her!

Although, not widely recognized like breast cancer, October is also Lupus Awareness Month. Unlike breast cancer, this affliction hits home.

The woman you see in the wedding gown has been one of my best friends since high school. Shortly after her wedding in 2006, she was diagnosed with Lupus.

When she told me, she was in tears & I was certainly taken aback. I had no clue of what to say. I had heard of Lupus but really had no idea what it was. She explained what she had gone thru & all I could do was cry.

I'm happy to report my friend is doing well & enjoying her life. She has a great husband who knows what those vows meant.

I pray for my friend's healing & I know, with God, all things are possible.

She will be celebrating her 38th birthday in a few weeks & God willing, I'll be right there celebrating with her.

Free Flu Shots to the St. Louis Community / Barnes-Jewish Hospital

http://news.barnesjewish.org/pr/bjh/flu-shots-2008.aspx
Last year, I went & took my sister's kids. They even have treats & such for the youngins.

Popacookie.com -- Cookie & Diet Products. Simple and Effective Weight Loss Program. Medical Diet for fast weight loss.

http://www.popacookie.com/
Of course they are expensive as all get out & they probably taste like all to be damned too.

I started Water Aerobics today!

Rating:	★★★★★
Category:	Other

Yay me! Along with 3 other co-workers, I signed up for Aquacise - 2 days a week for 8 weeks. It was fun & a good workout.

After all the stuff I've been dealing with this week, I haven't been sleeping to well, but I bet I will tonite!

We will be going every Monday & Wednesday after work, until the session is complete.

What Are You Smokin'? Racist Menthols

Posted Jun 26th 2008 9:00AM by Carmen Dixon

A bill before Congress would give control of tobacco products to the Food and Drug Administration.

The bill would ban flavor additives such as mint, clove and vanilla, which appeal to young people. But menthol flavored cigarettes would still be available. Since 75% of black people who smoke choose menthol, you might say that this bill excludes blacks from a protective benefit.

And for that reason, some say it's racist . On the other hand, supporters of keeping menthol available ask what could possibly be racist about giving grown black folks access to the flavor of poison they prefer?

And why do black folks smoke menthols anyway? There's no certain answer, but Radar magazine took an entertaining stab at tackling the question:

By the 1960s, magazines like Ebony and Jet were packed with cigarette advertisements that featured African-American models and referenced black culture, like Lorillard's "Newport is a whole new bag of menthol smoking" (after James Brown's "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag") and R.J. Reynold's "Different Smokes for Different Folks" (a nod to a Sly Stone hit) campaign for Salem Extra. Some of the ads seemed almost progressive, encouraging the era's burgeoning black middle class to "Come Up to the Kool Taste," and promising them that smoking a Kool was "Like riding a Rolls Royce."

To make further inroads, the tobacco companies loudly supported the Civil Rights Movement and later made regular and significant contributions to organizations like the NAACP, the United Negro College Fund, and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights. By the early '80s, when a young Kool G Rap (neé Nathaniel Wilson) was growing up in Queens, mentholated cigarettes had become so ingrained in the black community they were widely considered the Official Cigarettes of Black Folks.

Chalk this up as another win for big tobacco; and another big disaster for the health and well being of black folk. More from Radar:

But the black people-menthols metric has had some particularly nasty results: According to the CDC, African Americans are at least 50 percent more likely to develop lung cancer than white smokers, which is partly because African Americans metabolize nicotine more slowly. Recent research from Harvard also suggests that this has something to do with the mint sticks-the cooling, anesthetic effect once seen as medicinally beneficial may actually just be numbing the throat enough to facilitate deeper inhalation.

So back to the original question: Is it racist to ban all cigarette flavors except menthol? Or should black folks have the freedom to pick their own poison?

Black Doctor - Complete resource for African American health, fitness, nutrition and weight loss

http://www.blackdoctor.org/index.aspx
A website geared towards OUR health and OUR risk factors.

SUMMER SALADS | Women's Health Magazine

http://www.womenshealthmag.com/nutrition/summer-salads?cm_mmc=Newsletter-_-2008_Jun_13-_-Nutrition-_-42.Super.Healthy.Salads.Top.1
For you salad lovers.

Non Surgical Permanent Birth Control Option for Women

http://www.essure.com/

How a Panic Attack Affects Your Body | Women's Health

http://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/how-a-panic-attack-affects-your-body?cm_mmc=Newsletter-_-2008_Feb_20-_-Health-_-How.a.Panic.Attack.Affects.Your.Body.Top

Symptom Checker — Check your medical symptoms - MayoClinic.com

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/symptom-checker/DS00671

Oh No He Di-ent!!

Approximately 12-13 years ago, I received a post card from the health dept & consequently ignored it. About a week later, I received another one & ignored that one too. I just so happened to tell one of my best friends about it & she said I should call them sooner than later because if I didn’t they’d send someone to my house. Now I’m like WTF?!?!

I called & they said I needed to come in. I asked why & they really never said, just said I needed to come in ASAP.

I go to the clinic the next morning, hoping & praying I didn’t see someone I knew or was involved with. My friend went with me.

I got there & was immediately pissed-off thinking about who & what brought me there. There were about 7-8 other people in the waiting area, some just as p.o.’d as I was.

I check in at the counter & was issued a number.  They don't call names for privacy reasons.

The 1st time my number was called, it was called with a young man who was there & we were sent to the same room.  This was because we checked the box to get an HIV test.  The nurse drew blood and we waited.

Once my # was called again, I was placed into a room similar to one at the OB/GYN office. The nurse came in & asked more questions. She told me to undress from the waist down. What she asked next puzzled the hell outta me. She said, “Let me see the palms of your hands.” I’m thinking, “Lady, what the hell does possibly having VD have to do with my hands?!” I did as she asked. Then she told me to take off my socks. Again, what the hell do my feet have to do with a VD test?! I complied. She did a Pap, wrote her notes, said someone would be in shortly & left.

I waited in that cold, tiny ass room for over an hour. When the counselor, doctor or who ever in the sam hell she was came in, I immediately asked, “Why am I here?!” She told me that a man came into the clinic, tested positive for Syphilis & gave my name as one of his sexual partners. I was nauseous. I then asked why didn’t they just call me & she said they didn't call because "he" marked unknown on the phone # field on the form.

Now I’m really pissed because the men I were involved with knew my #. I asked who in the hell is this diseased, mystery man, but she couldn’t tell me, due to medical privacy, blasé, blasé….. Yeah whatever.

She proceeded to tell me that I had not been exposed & they would only give me a precautionary penicillin injection. A shot?!?! Give me a pill! She wouldn’t. Said the pills were reserved for those needing a course of treatment.

When it was all said and done, I wasn’t exposed & I honestly believe the man who gave my name had never even held my hand, let alone hit the skins (jealous muthafucka!).

I say this because I had recently “exchanged words” with some bad elements in my neighborhood & I truly believe one of those worthless bastards gave my name & address because that’s all they knew. Being I lived in the same complex for over 20 years, everyone in the neighborhood knew that.

It’s a good thing I never knew who did it, because I can’t say what the hell I would’ve done. Talk about a Mad, Black Woman......