December 21, 2007

Double Random Friday

[Written by Crabby and Mary]


(Image courtesy of Flikr)


So this week, we have Crabby Randomness and Mary Randomness combined into what might be called one big ol' Random Mess! And as usual, don't worry about accidentally learning anything tremendously important--we try to avoid that sort of thing here.

First Up: Crabby Decides to Report Only Good Health News:

(Leaving Mary to deliver all the bad news this week--whoops, sorry Mary!)

So you already know that they're good for you, but according to this study avocados may help prevent oral cancer. (And does anyone else think it's weird that they're actually a really good source of fiber? There are 5 grams in half a medium avocado! How can that be when they're all soft and creamy? It's sort of like if chocolate milkshakes turned out to have lots fiber. Um, they don't, do they?)

No more excuses: forward this article to your couch-potato relatives, especially the middle-aged overweight ones. It turns out that even moderate exercise (brisk walking for 30 minutes 6 days a week) can result in weight loss and a greatly reduced risk of metabolic syndrome. And that's even without dietary changes. Is more exercise better? Sure--but since the thought of all that huffin' and puffin' seems to be a big reason Uncle Elmer won't even try to put on his tennis shoes and head out the door in the first place, just don't tell him that part.

Got any troubling addictions? (Hellooo, cupcakes...) There's a dietary supplement, N-acetyl cysteine, that seems to be effective at curbing gambling addictions. (One headline even called it "willpower in a pill.") The guy who led the study said: "this research could be encouraging for a lot of addictions," and animal research already indicates it may be helpful fighting drug addictions as well.

So Mary Gets Stuck Being The Party Pooper:

Forget 'sweets for the sweet' -- too much sugar can affect your sex life. Dr. Mercola says that "High levels of sugar in your bloodstream can turn off the gene that controls your sex hormones."

And not only that--sugar does really rotten things to your liver as well. Apparently it takes about 20 years for the full effects to show up.

And love really is blind, especially when it comes to your own children. According to this national poll, only 7% of parents of obese children are concerned about their kid's weight. The rest think their child "looks about the right size." Is this the reverse of the anorexia syndrome? Do the parents not have their child have checkups? Are the doctors also hard of seeing?

Mary Wanders Aimlessly Away from "Health" onto Other Topics...

So not only are lemons chock-full of vitamin C, they're also handy around the house! You can even clean your microwave with them. This has very little to do with fitness, but I love the idea of sitting back with my feet up while the produce takes care of the chores. Presumably the orange will do the dusting and the banana take care of vacuuming?

And Crabby Strays Even Further Afield!

With a Belated Christmas present idea. So yeah, it's a little late for mail-order presents to make it by the 25th, but a package of these might come in very handy for when you're heading back out to the malls for those after Christmas sales. (Note: ideal for passive-aggressive sorts. Definitely on the Crab wish list for next year!)

What's not on the Crab wishlist? Why, gosh, no thanks, it's a sweet idea and all, but I don't think I really need vulva purse. (Via Fitness Fixation).

Stuck on public transportation and tired of the usual announcements? Try these instead--apparently this smooth-voiced announcer for the London Underground got fired because she recorded these spoofs. (Try "A reminder for American Tourists").

Want to see Mary's new home? Or something very like it. Actually, it's a pretty nifty optical illusion if you've got a spare 30 seconds.

Is it Time for The Animals Yet?
It sure is! First up, for a video featuring some very clever animals and a very lame voice-over: click here.

And lastly, our gratuitous Lolcat holiday greeting, swiped, as usual, from icanhazcheezburger:

funny pictures
moar funny pictures

Have a great Friday!

20 comments:

  1. Great links as always. Lemony water is mic-ing as I type. Fruit that does the cleaning for me has such a-peel! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Plus, you get that fresh lemony smell!

    (Except now my brain has scampered down a tangent about Lemony Snickett...)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hilary, you aren't supposed to use lemon gin....

    ReplyDelete
  4. I am completely brain-free today and cannot come up with a coherent post...so HAPPY HOLIDAYS will have to do!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hooray for brain-free, gin soaked, lemony-snicketty a-peeling Friday mornings!

    Thanks you guys for stopping by!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Forgot to say:
    Merry Christmas
    Happy Hannukah* (screw spell check, that's a valid spelling!)
    Joyous Kwanzaa
    Happy Emperor's Birthday (Japan)
    Good Yule
    and
    Happy Winter Solstice to any Druids out there!

    Flying home today for an extended weekend of familial frolicking.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Fabulous post, I could definitely use some of those "I park like an idiot" bumper stickers around here.

    I have embarked on a walking off the weight journey myself and I can say it is working too!! YEAH!!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. re: parents not knowing their kids are obese:

    This is partly because pediatricians aren't allowed to use "obese" and "overweight" with children. Instead they use "overweight" and "at risk for overweight". Those aren't the type of terms that most people would be inspired to take very seriously. There's also the fact that parents of obese kids are probably obese themselves and don't know what "normal" is supposed to look like.

    It's related to the phenomenon of mentally retarded kids not getting adequate "special needs" treatment because their parents don't know they're retarded, because doctors avoid using the "R" word in a misguided effort to be PC.

    ReplyDelete
  9. "Hilary, you aren't supposed to use lemon gin...."

    oh

    nevermind!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Mary - Happy familial frolicking!
    God Yule from the Swede in me.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Great post as usual ladies, I loved the last of the London Tube spoofs!

    Merry Whatever to everyone! I will be seeing Leah again today and will post later about how she is doing.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Debo, welcome and that's great about your walking success!

    Chickengirl, that's really interesting about the developmentally disabled kids parents who don't even realize it because Dr's are too afraid to use the word I'm to afraid to use too! 'Retarted' has gotten so stigmatized somehow.

    Hilary, I know white wine is supposed to be a great cleaning agent too, so hell, lemon gin sounds perfectly logical. (Plus if you swill a bit of it, all the chores get a lot less tedious).

    Reb, tell Leah hello and we're thinking about her and we MISS HER!

    ReplyDelete
  13. WTF is up with the Vulva purses?? Who in the right mind would walk around with one of those on their shoulder unless it was Halloween, or they were completely trashed and tricked into carrying it?? Not to mention that they are over $100 a pop...WTF???

    ReplyDelete
  14. Ha ha ha - the Bag Lady didn't have time to check on the links (her computer is really, really pissing her off today - it's about 10 times slower than usual...which is really, really slow anyway), so her imagination was racing over the vulva purses...wondering who in the world has THAT kind of muscle control...she knows she couldn't carry a purse with HERS...

    ReplyDelete
  15. So Sambo, guess you won't be asking for a vulva purse for Christmas either?

    And bag lady, I thought the same thing! I mean, I know people are worried about pick-pockets (almost said "purse snatchers," but Kelly at Fitness Fixation already used that joke)...

    ReplyDelete
  16. the two-headed chick is freaking me out.
    So is the cat.

    ReplyDelete
  17. I can't believe the attitude of parents toward children in our generation. When are we going to go back to simple morals? And good health?

    ReplyDelete
  18. Katieo--there's something bizarre about the chicken photo, even aside from the two heads. It/they look so happy! It is kinda creepy.

    And thanks Big Ed for stopping by! Eh-- kids today! I know they say that every generation...

    ReplyDelete
  19. So a brisk 30 min walk is considered only moderate exercise!

    Oh dear, and there I was thinking I was joining the ranks of the elite athlete as I trudge off each morning in my "down to the dam and back" marathon.

    I suppose it gives me room for a New Year resolution!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Dawn, good for you! Brisk walking is excellent exercise, and not all of us are keen to run those 26 mile type marathons like some folks do.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for commenting, Cranky Fitness readers are the BEST!

Subscribe to comments via RSS

(Note: Older Comment Threads Are Moderated)