Tag: cancer

Celebrate the Life of Robert Kennedy (Fitness Publisher)

I first saw Robert Kennedy’s (the publisher) name on Clean Eating mag and as the publisher of Tosca Rena’s books. Naively, I initially thought he was part of the political Kennedy clan, and never really gave him much thought.

Then sometime last year, I heard of his death, which led me to do a little more research. I learned that he was married to Tosca Rena, and that there was no relation to “the” Kennedy family.

Yesterday, I received a newsletter email with an e-book download – a collection of photos from of his many stages Robert Kennedy’s life, put together by his photographer friend, and his family.

It made me want to learn more, so I read his wikipedia page, along with a blog post message from his cancer doctors.

Bob Kennedy passed away from lung cancer, but he was not a smoker. He was diagnosed in Feb, 2012, and he passed in April. How very sad. He was brave not to accept traditional chemo cancer treatments, and tried to battle the cancer with alternative therapy.

He had two children with his first wife, a daughter and a son. His son was in a tragic car accident which caused severe brain damage. His wife committed suicide after the accident. His son also passed in early 2011.

If you have a chance, download a copy of the e-book; it’s joyful and sorrowful, but inspiring!

Other Links:
Robert Kennedy Publishing
Robert Kennedy’s wikipedia page

Pink Fuel For the Cure From Connecticut’s Standard Oil

Okay, it’s bad enough that Yoplait has a pink ribbon campaign, but I was shocked to see a Connecticut oil company started promoting “Fuel For the Cure” with a pink oil truck.

Come on!

From Standard Oil’s web site:

Standard Oil has pledged $3 for every delivery The Pink Truck makes for the next 12 months. It is our plan to make somewhere between 6,000 and 7,000 deliveries with The Pink Truck and make a donation of approximately $20,000

Hmm, why is it that companies can’t just make a freakin’ donation if they believe in the cause so much? No, they need to drum up sales first, then make a donation. It’s sickening.

And more importantly, how do we really know for sure that the oil refineries aren’t ultimately causing breast cancer?

Yeah, it looks like it has a hand in causing certain blood cancers, along with damaging our kidneys, liver, nervous system and causing blood pressure and blood clotting issues. And if that’s not enough, it’s poisoning our environment.

So, keep up the good work, Standard Oil.

And add one more “pink ribbon” fiasco to the Susan G. Komen organization. Maybe someday you’ll actually find a CURE for cancer with all that money that floats your way! Nah, I doubt it.

Links:
http://jezebel.com/5840564/the-breast-cancer-charity-scam

Eat Onions For Good Health

Onions are such an overlooked vegetable. They’re not as glamorous as veggie as say, asparagus, broccoli, or red leaf lettuce, and I think some people take them for granted. But they are surprisingly nutritious and a very delicious addition to your daily diet.

onions

Onion Nutritional Facts & Info

Higher bioaccessibility of iron and zinc from food grains in the presence of garlic and onion – iron and zinc can be difficult to absorb from whole grains. But it looks like when you add some onion or garlic to the grain, it improves the chances of absorbing the minerals by at least 10%, and up to 150%. More info.

According to the WHFoods.org web site, “The flavonoids in onion tend to be more concentrated in the outer layers of the flesh” so over-peeling an onion can take away a lot of important nutrition.

WHFoods.org also goes on to state that “The total polyphenol content of onion is not only higher than its fellow allium vegetables, garlic and leeks, but also higher than tomatoes, carrots, and red bell pepper. In the French diet, only six vegetables (artichoke heart, parsley, Brussels sprouts, shallot, broccoli, and celery) have a higher polyphenol content than onion.” That’s incredible!

Check out all the info on the WHFoods.org page for onions. It’s fascinating.

Onions are a terrific source of Chromium, Vitamin C, Fiber and other nutrients. Onions are good for your heart, and cholesterol levels. Did you realize that onions also benefit bone density plus they have anti-inflammatory power.

Onions have been shown to lower risk of colorectal, laryngeal, and ovarian cancers. But I’m willing to bet that they are also beneficial for other cancers as well.

They also offer bacterial infection prevention. Chicken soup with onions. Yum. Beneficial for flu and cold season, along with a list of other bacterial issues, such as gum disease and tooth decay.

Soaking onions in ice water or milk will reduce the “sharpness” – but then would they be as beneficial? Is it the strong bite of the onion that makes it so powerful? It can’t be good to wash away precious fluids down the drain. Something to think about!

Biggest Loser Season 10

I might be a total sap, but this season looks to be so inspiring!

I love learning about the contestants! Very motivating for me to keep on the right healthy path!

One woman, Shanna Masten (38 years old) from Arizona really got to me. She is a breast cancer survivor, having gone through treatment a year ago. I haven’t talked about it publicly yet, but both my mother and sister were diagnosed with breast cancer within weeks of each other. And I had a little scare that required a biopsy, which thankfully turned out to be nothing.

Anyway, Shanna reminded me so much of the situation with my sister and mother. She said that getting breast cancer wasn’t her “choice”, but losing weight IS her choice. She weighed in at 242 pounds. Unfortunately, she didn’t make it to the ranch, but she’ll be working hard at home (I hope)!

I’ll be rooting for all the contestants and cheering them on. They seem like a nice group of people. I like when they seem like they’re in it for health, not necessarily for the back stabbing game play!

Here is the first episode video on NBC
http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-one/1250481/

UPDATE October 5, 2010: Not so happy with this season so far. I thought I would really like the contestants, but I don’t like how it’s turned into more of a game vs losing weight & getting healthy. I am disappointed that it’s all about losing the most weight possible, and 5 pounds is looked upon as a failure. Come on!

Also, I don’t like the new placement of the “yellow line” at all. It just doesn’t seem fair to the girls, since it’s virtually impossible for them to lose as much as the boys. The whole thing is not fair!

I am not feeling inspired by anyone and the trainers are really pissing me off too. Jillian and Bob are getting more and more commercial! yuck!

We’ll see what happens next week