Source: Down Maine Veterinary Clinic Click photo for larger view. There’s an email that makes the rounds on the Internet about three signs for identifying a stroke: Can the person smile, raise both arms, and speak a simple sentence. “The Smile Test” was originally presented at a conference hosted by the American Stroke Association (ASA)…
Source: Psychic Medium Rare Howard Dean is not one of my favorite politicians, but he has a good point about leaving the public option out of health care reform. Dean and former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, both MDs, were interviewed last night on the Charlie Rose Show. Towards the end of the interview, Rose…
My mother was decidedly vain her whole life. She’d been exceptionally good looking in her youth, which made it especially difficult to accept the slow physical decay of aging.
Surely it must be easier in our culture to accept the wrinkles, sags and bulges that come with advancing age if one has never thought of oneself as particularly attractive. Or if one has cared little about appearances. Admittedly, this is an increasingly rare point of view in contemporary Western societies.
Source: Sigmund, Carl and Alfred You already know Denny’s doesn’t exactly serve health food, so is it worth getting worked up over how much salt is in a typical Denny’s meal? The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) thinks so. They’ve initiated a lawsuit against Denny’s over the salt content of their meals….
Source: The health care mess With health care reform reduced to a sporting event – or as Hendrik Hertzberg calls it in the latest New Yorker, a brawl — I sometimes find myself wishing I lived in a benevolent dictatorship. (Just kidding.) As President Obama pointed out in his press conference on health care last…
As a follow-up to yesterday’s post on joyful dancing, here’s the video Where the Hell is Matt? Thanks to a Rosen Method friend, Joanna, for sending it. The video includes dancing in 42 countries. I especially like the crabs on the beach on Christmas Island, Australia and the dog in Kuwait City. And that short…
When I try to explain Rosen Method Movement (RMM) to people, I like to quote Marion Rosen on the way you feel after a movement class: “Our goal is to make people feel happy and motivated to dance, rather than drag themselves around. We would like them to feel physically well when their bodies move,…
Source: Nick Brandt Click photo for larger view. My favorite conservative columnist, David Brooks, responded to Barack Obama’s press conference on health care this week with a piece that characterizes rising costs as a “stampede of big ugly rhinos. They are trampling your crops, stomping on your children’s play areas and spoiling your hunting grounds.”…
Source: Trikke Tampa Click photo for larger view. The trikke (pronounced “trike”) is essentially a scooter with two wheels at the rear instead of one. You don’t push your feet against the ground to go forward, however. You lean from side to side, similar to the way you’d propel yourself on skis. It takes a…
Mascara, eye-liner, and shadow can make the eyes stand out and look much larger than they actually are. Lipstick can make the lips look rounder and puffier. Why do we find this attractive? Properly applied, eye make-up and lipstick will emphasize facial features that make an adult look more like a baby. And we are…
Source: fotosbydesign If you want to increase the chances recovering a lost wallet, be sure to include baby photos. Researchers set up an experiment in which 240 wallets were left on the streets of Edinburgh. Some of the wallets had photos, either a baby, a cute puppy, a family snapshot, or an elderly couple. One…
Source: flickr Never underestimate a cat. Researchers in Britain have analyzed a special “meow” many cats use when they want something right now: Food, toys, an open door. It’s called a “solicitation purr” and combines a high-frequency cry within an otherwise pleasant purr. Insistent meowing might be ignored as annoying, but by embedding the high-frequency…
Source: Hogue News After a year investigating practices of the health insurance industry, a Congressional committee chaired by Representative Henry Waxman concluded that the system is “fundamentally flawed.” Regulations governing insurance are a mishmash of state and federal laws. The insurance industry takes advantage of inconsistencies to engage in “controversial practices.” According to the federal…
Source: National Public Radio Robin Beaton, a retired nurse from Waxahachie, Texas, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer in 2008. Fortunately she had health insurance. Three days before she was scheduled for double mastectomy surgery, however, Blue Cross cancelled her insurance. The company claimed she had once seen a doctor for acne…
Source: Bill Moyers Journal Wendell Potter, who was once the head of Public Relations at health insurance giant CIGNA, recently testified before Congress on the nefarious practices of the insurance industry. Last Friday he did an extended interview with Bill Moyers. In the video excerpt below, Moyers and Potter discuss the insurance industry’s comprehensive strategy…
Source: Mayo Clinic Do you research medical information on the Internet? Do you use Google as your starting point? Do you read entries on medical conditions at Wikipedia and assume what you read is accurate and complete? Kevin Pho, primary care physician and author of the popular medical blog KevinMD.com, has a column in USA…
