Parents of young athletes always have to be aware of the warning signs of heat illnesses that could affect their child. Heat illnesses that have the opportunity to come on when your child is exercising vigorously in unusually high temperatures and high humidity, which can result in heat cramps, heat exhaustion, or heatstroke. To make sure you know what to be on the lookout for–and for the chance to ask an expert in the field any questions that may be on your mind about heat illnesses–Mom Central has teamed up with Leslie Bonci to host a Beat the Heat Twitter Party.
Gatorade’s Beat the Heat campaign is an ongoing effort to raise awareness and building communication about heat illness prevention. Leslie Bonci is an expert on sports nutrition, a consultant to numerous professional, collegiate and high school athletic programs and a registered dietitian.
Use hashtag #beattheheat tomorrow, August 18th from 3PM to 4PM EST and make sure to follow @MomCentral and @LeslieBonci. There is no RSVP required, just search Twitter for the #beattheheat hashtag and start participating in the discussion. By participating, you will not only learn a lot about heat safety, but you will also have the chance to win a pretty awesome gift pack, including Gatorade coolers, powder and $50 AMEX gift cards.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has recently released a statement alerting people everywhere that the world is no longer in phase six of the influenza pandemic alert and that WHO is moving into the post-pandemic period.
WHO states that the H1N1 virus has largely run its course, but that does not mean that it is gone completely. There is a pattern of past pandemics that leads researchers to believe that H1N1 will took on the behavior of a seasonal influenza virus and will “continue to circulate for some years to come.” Also noting past pandemics, it is hypothesized that the virus will “continue to cause serious disease in younger age groups, at least in the immediate post-pandemic period.”
While we are not completely out of the woods when it comes to H1N1, there have been far less reports of people being diagnosed with the illness and far less reports of deaths because of it. It is okay to experience a mild sigh of relief. The Centers for Disease Control are gearing up for the upcoming 2010/2011 flu season, which will contain three vaccine viruses recommended by the World Health Organization and the FDA:
“This recommended composition of the seasonal vaccine for the Northern Hemisphere, including the United States, is the same composition that was recommended for the Southern Hemisphere’s 2010 influenza vaccines.”
One in five people in the United States is affected by a disability of some sort. That is an astounding number of people who every day, attempt to put their best foot forward and who are working every day to gain greater independence and create new possibilities for themselves.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has worked to eliminate the barriers and discrimination that those who live with a disability can face, including in the workplace. While the ADA has made great strides in it being unlawful for an employer of any kind of refuse to hire someone with a disability, about three quarters of people with a disability are unemployed and it isn’t by their own admission. Also, internet access for people with disabilities is only about half of what it is for those who are not living with a disability.
There is still a lot of work to be done in this country to ensure that those who live their lives with a disability are granted the same opportunities as those who are not and can still live happy and full lives.
Bloggers Unite is raising awareness and supporting people with disabilities and the people and groups who empower them by raising awareness. Bloggers Unite is asking that all bloggers, young and old, novice bloggers and veterans, band together on July 24th to empower people with disabilities.
It takes very little time to write a blog post and participate in Bloggers Unite’s People First: Empowering People with Disabilities blogging event. By all bloggers coming together on one day, you can really raise awareness and make a difference.
Join the event and publish your post on Saturday, July 24th letting people know that despite major gains, more needs to be done to ensure that people with disabilities enjoy the same access to resources and opportunities as those who do not live with a disability. There are currently 295 bloggers registered at Bloggers Unite for this event, so it is sure to be an amazingly resourceful and empowering day.
I recently mentioned that I started going to a gym. I’ve been going to Planet Fitness, which I’ve been enjoying very much. I like that it’s a gym that caters to people (like me!) who have always believed that they were not fit enough to walk into a gym.
I used to work as a barista at a very pretentious coffee shop that just so happened to be located downstairs from a gym. I made health drinks, smoothies and teas more than anything else and I became very familiar with Whey protein. I also figured out very quickly how much I hate the smell of Whey protein, never mind even considering putting it in my mouth. The people I served these so-called healthy drinks that really weren’t all that healthy, but people ordered them because of the geniuses behind the marketing of said drinks, were very snobby. They were snobby and they were built! From the looks of these people, there was no way I was going to walk into a gym like that. I’d get the weird looks and the people wondering what Fat Planet I was just warped from.
Enter: Planet Fitness. A gym that is open, accepting and diverse. A place where I do not get the weird looks or the condescending fake-friendly smiles when I claim an elliptical machine. It’s a place of freedom! And hey, if anyone does pass judgment on you, they get thrown out and that is policy. Pretty cool, huh?
One of the policies at Planet Fitness is that you have to wipe down your machine after you use it. No matter what. No exceptions. There are little stations set up throughout the place where you can grab a paper towel and some spray solution that they put out and make sure your machine is clean before you leave. I’m paranoid though; especially when it comes to cleanliness. I won’t touch a machine until I wipe it down first and after finding some pretty scary information about gyms and workout centers and how they are being connected to MRSA, I’m so glad I have been so paranoid about this.
Late last month a hospital in Idaho voiced concern with an increasingly-spreading, antibiotic-resistant staph infection within the community. This staph infection, called MRSA, causes skin rashes or bumps that are incredibly difficult to treat.
The biggest concern the hospital has is that MRSA is now being found and transmitted in public settings like school gyms, workout centers and any public place or area where the skin transfers. While the health district will not keep track of the reported cases because it is not “evasive” beyond the outer skin layer, it is still very important to remember that when you enter a gym, wipe down the machine you are using both before you hop onto it and after you’re done.
This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of NMEDA. All opinions are 100% mine.
No two people with a disability are the same, nor do two different people living with a disability have the same needs. That point is especially true when you enter the realm of driving. A disability should not possess the power to take away one’s ability to drive a vehicle or to ride as a passenger in a vehicle, especially considering there are resources available to disabled people, their loved ones and those who care for them. That is exactly the belief system held by the people of NMEDA, a national non-profit organization that is dedicated to educating consumers who are buying mobility equipment and products.
NMEDA has certified dealers readily available at an unbelievable amount of locations to help you or the person you care about pick out the absolute perfect automotive mobility solutions that will cater to the specific and unique needs of each individual. Their purchase process is simple and meant to take the stress off of you when it comes to figuring out exactly what you need and how it will work in your vehicle. NMEDA’s Quality Assurance Program is the only nationally-recognized accreditation program for the Adaptive Mobility Equipment Industry, making them not only an amazing resource for those who need them, but they have the accolades to prove how influential and consistent their service has been through the years.
What I really love about NMEDA is that they are a non-profit. They have a refreshing mindset where they believe that they must have a systematic and documented approach to the quality of service they give to people. They are a service that brings you, the people, straight to the resources you need, by making it possible for you to locate a dealer that is closest to you and giving you a simple process in order to get you what you need, when you need it. They also have an amazingly vast hub of information meant to make sure you are able to educate yourself about what it will take to get you or your loved one back on the road and back into the driver’s seat of their own life and independence.
NMEDA ensures that you are getting the service and the solutions that you need and that are completely right for you on a personal level. Stop scouring the internet or catalogs for adapted wheelchair vehicles and locate a NMEDA dealer by simply entering your zip code to get started.
Alzheimer’s Disease is the most common form of dementia that typically affects people over 65 years old. It is an incurable, terminal disease which causes people to become confused easily, become irritable and aggressive, it brings on irrational mood swings, language breakdown, long-term memory loss and general withdrawal of the person with the disease as their senses decline over time. It is not a disease I would wish on anyone, anywhere, or on the people closest to them.
Alzheimer’s Disease affects an estimated 5.3 million people in the United States today and every 70 seconds, another person develops the disease. It is estimated that by the year 2050, 1 in 85 people will be affected by Alzheimer’s Disease globally. Numbers like that are enough to stop you in your tracks and really make you take a good, hard look at the destructiveness of this disease.
While there are currently some worthwhile organizations out there working to raise awareness and Alzheimer’s Disease for good, there is not enough buzz about it and there really should be. I have seen first-hand what Alzheimer’s Disease does to someone with the disease, but also how it affects and devastates the people closest to them. My great-grandfather developed Alzheimer’s Disease when I was a child. When my great-grandmother would need to go to the store, run errands, or desperately needed to take some time out for herself away from her husband of over 50 years, she would call my grandmother to go to their house and watch him because he could not be trusted to be alone in the house by himself in fear of him hurting himself, doing something to the house, or worse. My grandmother brought me with her a few times and because I was a child, I couldn’t fully comprehend why my great-grandfather didn’t know who I was or why he was telling me a story about his time in the military for the third time that night. It was frightening and now, looking back at that time as an adult and being able to comprehend what this disease does, it is incredibly sad and still a time I can remember like it was yesterday because it affected me that much. There are a great deal of families out there feeling exactly like this while they watch their loved one’s senses decline.
Luckily, the Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS) is committed to raising awareness about Alzheimer’s Disease and are doing all they can to encourage otherwise healthy people with early complaints of memory problems to participate in the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI). This is a landmark study to find more sensitive and accurate methods to detect Alzheimer’s Disease at earlier stages and track its progress through biomarkers.
By recognizing changes in the brain, scientists hope to treat memory loss and other symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease before they appear. However, the only way to recognize what these changes are and learn more about who is at risk is through the participation of volunteers who are willing to participate in the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative Grand Opportunity (ADNI GO).
Dr. Paul Aisen, M.D., director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study says,
“We cannot end this terrible disease unless we know more about it. That is where the amazing volunteers, their friends and their families can make the difference in our success.”
ADNI GO will build on the unprecedented momentum and success of the Alzheimer’s Neuroimaging Initiative. Eminent poet, author, educator, historian and professor at Wake Forest University, Maya Angelou, is currently working with researchers to ask you and your loved ones to participate in a major brain imaging study. If you may be eligible to participate in this groundbreaking ADNI GO study, visit the study website for more information or call the Alzheimer’s Disease Education and Referral Center at 1-800-438-4380.
Help spread the word about this initiative by supporting Alzheimer’s Disease Research on Facebook.
Have you wanted to give back lately? Urban Girl Squad is thrilled to announce its first fundraising event! On Tuesday, May 18, 2010, Urban Girl Squad is hosting a yoga class at Pure Yoga to support Gilda’s Club, the organization founded by Gilda Radner that provides free support for cancer patients and their friends and family.
At the event, you’ll invigorate your mind and body in an open-level vinyasa yoga class run by Pure Yoga, the city’s most luxurious yoga studio featuring the city’s best instructors and beautifully-designed practice rooms. After the yoga class, you’ll enjoy a reception with light food and snacks where you can talk to your yoga instructor and meet the other women in the class.
At this event, you’ll receive:
The opportunity to support Gilda’s Club programs for cancer patients and their communities.
An exclusive 1 hour yoga class at Pure Yoga. You can’t take a class at Pure Yoga without being a member, so enjoy this special opportunity!
A gift bag with Pure Yoga passes and Pure Yoga gear including a tank top, tote bag and water bottle.
The opportunity to participate in a silent auction with amazing prices including spa packages, gift certificates and private yoga lessons.
The first Gilda’s Club opened its doors in New York City in 1995, which was named in honor of Saturday Night Live comedian Gilda Radner, who died of ovarian cancer in 1989. Gilda dreamed that all people affected by cancer, as well as their families and friends, would have access to the same kind of emotional and social support that she received during her illness. Completely free of charge, Gilda’s Club encourages a sense of “expertise” among members, and emphasizes community-building, collective wisdom and shared experience. Gilda’s Club has helped change the lives of tens of thousands of members, restoring a sense of control and enriching the entire family. Gilda’s spirit lves on at every Gilda’s Club.
About Urban Girl Squad Amanda Hofman created Urban Girl Squad, a community-based social group for women in their 20’s and 30’s in New York City, in January 2008. Urban Girl Squad creates opportunities for these women to try new things, spend time with friends, and meet new people. Our events include food and wine tastings, beauty and fashion nights, dance and fitness classes, sports events, cocktail parties and more. We provide special, discounted access to the city–you’ll meet store owners and designers, taste gourmet food and drinks, receive personal attention from popular venues, and score some amazing gift bags. The welcoming atmosphere at our events makes it easy for members to attend on their own or with friends!
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force has recently come out advising women that they should not get regular mammograms in their 40′s, as women have been told that they should do for quite a number of years now, and that they should wait until their 50′s. They have also advised that self breast exams do not work, therefore women should not worry about giving themselves self breast exams.
As soon as I heard about this new information I was instantly skeptical. Whose best interests are in mind here, those of women or those of the medical profession working in a recession and eager to cut as many costs as possible? After delving into the research about these new guidelines, I have determined that my initial skepticism was correct and that the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force are actually now contributing to the rise of deaths due to breast cancer that will occur as soon as women start following these guidelines because they think that this “task force” has their best interests in mind and they absolutely do not. A huge amount of breast cancer survivors have been women who have noticed lumps in their breasts by doing self breast exams and women who have been lucky enough to survive breast cancer have been women who have had their cancer detected early. If these same women who are survivors of this disease were told not to worry about having frequent mammograms before the age of 50 would be dead right now and we would have even more women dying from breast cancer than ever before just by taking the advice of this so-called task force who are giving out very bad information.
For the first time in…well, probably forever, I agree completely with what Elisabeth Hasselbeck said on a recent episode of The View. Check it out below:
This contest is closed. Check out our winner here.
While there are many benefits, events, charities, organizations, businesses and people who have dedicated their time, their experiences, their inspiration and their money to helping in whatever ways they can in the fight against breast cancer, there are still very limited resources for women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer themselves or who are close to someone who has been diagnosed to receive the support they need most. A diagnosis like this, regardless of the stage is absolutely terrifying, gut-wrenching, heart-breaking and truly difficult to go through, especially if you don’t have a rock-solid support system of various people around you who understand your grief and frustration and people who will understand while you go through the emotional roller coaster a diagnosis and treatment will send you through. But luckily, Pink Together was created just for this purpose.
Pink Together is a national campaign dedicated to supporting those impacted by breast cancer. Their website, PinkTogether.com is a safe space where everyone can share hope and inspiration by sharing stories of breast cancer survivors and supporters within the community. Pink Together has already helped countless survivors and supporters of those survivors.
For the month of October, General Mills has come to the support of Pink Together and will be donating $2 million to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. They have also turned the packaging of some of their most trusted products pink for the month in an effort to continue to raise awareness about breast cancer.
Giveaway!
Thanks to Pink Together and MyBlogSpark, we have been given the opportunity to give away an Inspiring Hope gift basket that includes a sleeved travel mug, a running ribbon charm bracelet, a pink leather strap key chain, a pink cinch bag and a set of inspirational note cards.
All of the gifts in the Inspiring Hope gift basket are from Shop Komen, where 25% of the merchandise purchase price benefits Susan G Komen for the Cure in the fight against breast cancer. All of these fabulous gifts will remind you of how important the fight against breast cancer is throughout the entire year, and not just in October when we spread awareness for breast cancer awareness month. I can also personally attest that the sleeved travel mug is the absolute best quality travel mug I have ever found.
To win the Inspiring Hope gift basket, all you have to do is a leave a comment telling us what woman inspires you the most and why. [REQUIRED]
Blog about this giveaway with a link back to this post. This is worth 3 entries so leave 3 separate comments with a link to your post.
This contest ends Friday, October 30th at 11:59PM EST. The winner will be contacted by email and has 48 hours to respond with their necessary information. If no action is taken, another winner will be picked.
October is breast cancer awareness month and over the month we have been covering a great deal of initiatives that through people-powered activism have seen great strides in fighting against breast cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime–that’s 12% of all women who will be personally impacted by this disease. But because people know that with hard work, dedication and doing what they can to help fight against breast cancer, we will hopefully see an impact through research to find a cure for breast cancer and also spreading the word on how to prevent it.
While there are many different ways you can participate in the fight against breast cancer, but the simplest by far is Yoplait’s Save Lids to Save Lives program. It’s super simple, but you will be making a tremendous impact! Over the past 11 years Yoplait has donated more than $22 million to the breast cancer cause through Save Life to Save Lives as well as other initiatives. Last year alone, participants across the country helped Yoplait meet its $1.5 million donation goal to Susan G Komen for the Cure and this year, Yoplait needs your help too and they have also teamed up with Kristi Funk, Founder of the Pink Lotus Breast Center in Beverly Hills. She has committed herself to educating women and men about the importance of breast cancer risk reduction, early detection and ways to support the cause.
How You Can Help
When you’re in the grocery store, pick up Yoplait yogurt with the pink lids. Save your lids and mail them in (don’t forget to rinse them off!) by December 31, 2009. For every lid that is mailed in, Yoplait will donate 10 cents to Susan G Komen for the Cure up to $1.5 million, with a guaranteed donation of $500,000! That is absolutely incredible! Don’t forget to also encourage your friends and family to do the same and you can even create an online lid collection team just by visiting Your Lid Matters.
Giveaway!
Thanks to MyBlogSpark and Yoplait, I have the opportunity to help a lucky Woman Tribune reader help Yoplait’s Save Lids to Save Lives program!
When you promise to make a difference, we are giving away a Promise to Make a Difference gift which includes a coupon for a free package of any flavor Yo-Plus or Yo-Plus Light yogurt 4-pack and two other Yoplait breast cancer awareness keepsakes
To win the Promise to Make a Difference gift leave a comment on how you plan to help Yoplait in the fight against breast cancer whether it’s participating in an annual walk/run, collecting your Yoplait pink lids, donating directly to Susan G Komen for the Cure, talking to your friends and family about breast cancer or how to give yourself a self breast exam–whatever you’re doing to help the fight, what is it? [REQUIRED]
For additional entries:
Tweet about Yoplait’s Save Lids to Save Lives campaign and raise awareness about the importance of saving your Yoplait lids. Don’t forget to leave a comment with the URL of your tweet!
Feel free to copy and paste this tweet:
RT @WomanTribune Join Yoplait in the fight against breast cancer. Save your pink lids & send in by Dec 31! http://tinyurl.com/ykuanzz
Start or join a collection team on Your Lid Matters and leave a comment indicating what you have done.
Send an ecard to a friend or family member about breast cancer awareness and to raise awareness about Yoplait’s Save Lids to Save Lives. To do this go to Your Lid Matters and click all the way on the bottom ‘Share Your Passion.’ Leave a comment here saying what ecard you chose to send.
Blog about Yoplait’s Save Lids to Save Lives campaign and post Dr. Funk’s video (above). Leave a comment here with the URL of your blog post!
This contest ends TONIGHT, October 23rd at 11:59PM
Sexuality is something to be celebrated and explored and we hope to help you do just that with the articles and reviews we publish in our love and sex category.
Parents of young athletes always have to be aware of the warning signs of heat illnesses that could affect their child. Heat illnesses that have the opportunity to come on when your child is exercising vigorously in unusually high temperatures and high humidity, which can result in heat cramps, heat exhaustion, or heatstroke. To make sure you know what to be on the lookout for–and for the chance to ask an expert in the field any questions that may be on your mind about heat illnesses–Mom Central has teamed up with Leslie Bonci to host a Beat the Heat Twitter Party.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has recently 
One in five people in the United States is affected by a disability of some sort. That is an astounding number of people who every day, attempt to put their best foot forward and who are working every day to gain greater independence and create new possibilities for themselves.
I recently mentioned that I 
Alzheimer’s Disease is the 
October is breast cancer awareness month and over the month we have been covering a great deal of initiatives that through people-powered activism have seen great strides in fighting against breast cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime–that’s 12% of all women who will be personally impacted by this disease. But because people know that with hard work, dedication and doing what they can to help fight against breast cancer, we will hopefully see an impact through research to find a cure for breast cancer and also spreading the word on how to prevent it.
Thanks to 
