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Wildlife Bytes 18/5/11

2011-05-17T13:53:00.000-07:00

Leading Story
Pet Reptiles
Salmonella poisoning from reptiles is increasing in Australia, as families take a shine to snakes, turtles and lizards as household pets. Reptile expert Robert Johnson said many pet owners were unaware of the risks posed by reptiles and needed to practice good hygiene to eliminate their chances of infection. Symptoms of salmonellosis from reptiles include fever, vomiting and diarrhoea and many cases go undiagnosed or are dismissed as food poisoning. Salmonella carried by reptiles is transmitted to humans through handling the animal or coming into contact with its faeces. "'The guidelines are simple wash your hands after touching reptiles; don't allow reptiles to roam free; don't eat, drink or smoke after touching reptiles; [and] don't clean reptile equipment in kitchen sink,'' Dr Johnson said. He said children under five should avoid contact with reptiles because they were prone to contracting infections and were likely to touch their mouths. Elderly people and people with poor immune systems, such as cancer sufferers, should also avoid contact with the animals.
In 2009, a four-month-old baby girl was taken to an ACT hospital emergency department after contracting salmonella through indirect contact with an eastern bearded dragon. Testing revealed the girl had been infected with a type of salmonella known as rubislaw. A subsequent article published in the Medical Journal of Australia revealed that between nine and 19 cases of rubislaw had been detected in Australians between 2000 and 2009. Dr Johnson said the risk of salmonella poisoning should not deter people from owning reptiles. ''They are great little pets. They don't create a noise and you can keep them in reasonably small areas. But you have to maintain good hygiene.'' He said owners can reduce their risk by regularly cleaning out their pet's enclosures. ''It is a bacteria that is shared during times of stress, so a reptile is more likely to have it if it's not being kept in adequate conditions, [if it] is too cold.'' An estimated 50,000 people own reptiles in Australia and Dr Johnson expects this number to increase as more families move into apartments and smaller homes. He will speak about salmonellosis at the Australian Veterinary Association's annual conference in Adelaide this week. *Canberra Times
Seals
Advertisers often tell us how life-changing hair loss can be, but it actually is a matter of life and death for the Australian fur seal. These seals depend on a thick coat of fur to maintain their body temperature. Seals in the Bass Strait off southern Australia are losing clumps of their fur. Damage to this insulation means that the animals must spend more energy maintaining a core body temperature, negatively affecting their health and survival. The current issue of the Journal of Mammalogy reports on the two-and-a-half year study of an Australian fur seal colony at Lady Julia Percy Island. Since 1989 a hair loss syndrome, or alopecia, has been particularly prevalent among this population of about 30,000 seals. *Underwater Times. Read more ... http://www.underwatertimes.com/news.php?article_id=28390415106
Californa Parks Closed
In an attempt to reduce California's severe budget problems, officials will be closing 70 state parks across California, eliminating 220 jobs and closing redwood forests, historic sites and coastal woodlands. This move will save California $33 million, as part of a larger plan to close a deficit of roughly $15 billion. All together, the parks that are scheduled to be closed attract 5.6 million visitors a year. Environmental activists are understandably upset about the decision. "This is a pretty devastating list," said Elizabeth Goldstein, executive director of the California State Parks Foundation. "It represents 25 percent of the park system and, for the Bay Area, it's a big hit." * Read More http://www.care2.com/causes/environment/blog/california-will-close-up-to-70-state-parks-to-save-money/
Wildlife Pets
Millions of live animals have been imported into the United States for commercial purposes since 2004, with more than 3.1 million collected in the wild coming through Miami alone. Some imported animals, such as iguanas, have established populations in South Florida. Search our database to see where the animals originated, how may were brought in and who brought them here.
Keppel Island Treeclearing
Resort developer Tower Holdings says it will work with contractors to ensure there are no future breaches of tree clearing restrictions on Great Keppel Island off Yeppoon in central Queensland. The company and a water sampling contractor were warned by the Department of Environment and Resource Management for clearing tracks in about 2,000 square metres of bush in Lot 21. In a statement, Tower Holdings says it has reaffirmed expectations and requirements with its contractors. Michael McCabe from the Capricorn Conservation Council says the breach is a concern despite the small scale. "There were a number of what we call push tracks put in by people doing some water core sampling we believe," he said. And I think there's several hundred metres by bulldozer width of trees knocked down, some mature trees and remnant vegetation damaged or destroyed. "In the grand scale it's not a huge area but in the context of Keppel Island and what we're hoping to see there with improved environmental management by resort developers it does concern us that these things can happen. *ABC
Panda Dies
The oldest panda in the world, 34-year-old Ming Ming, has died, Chinese state media reported overnight. Ming Ming was rescued in Pingwu county in the southwest province of Sichuan in 1977 and had lived in Xiangjiang Wild Animal World, a safari park in the southern province of Guangdong, since 1998, the Global Times reported. Experts found that her kidney had failed due to old age. The China Panda Protection Center in Sichuan confirmed that Ming Ming died May 7, but the death was only reported by media overnight. The life expectancy of pandas is around 15 years for wild pandas and 22 years for those in captivity, according to experts. Ming Ming was sent to live in the UK in 1991, but after fighting with male Berlin panda Bao Bao and failing to mate, she was shipped back to China in 1994. *Adelaide now
Forestry
Tasmania's forest peace talks have been rocked by the decision of a key green group, The Wilderness Society, to suspend its involvement over a lack of action. The talks agreed on a historic blueprint to end conflict over the island's wild forests eight months ago, but are yet to fully implement a logging moratorium, months after it was due. It is the first loss of a central participant from the year-old talks between industry, unions and green groups. The Environment Minister, Tony Burke, warned last night that federal government help would only be possible if these groups kept working together. 'The only reason that we have an opportunity for an outcome that works for jobs and conservation is because of the goodwill that's been shown in the community-led agreement,'' Mr Burke said. The peace talks have identified 570,000 hectares of high conservation value forests in Tasmania up for protection as the biggest timber company, Gunns Limited, ends native forest logging. The Premier, Lara Giddings, said the state government had protected 98 per cent of high conservation value forests, with just 2 per cent remaining to fill legally binding contracts and to keep forest workers employed. But TWS's Tasmanian campaigns manager, Vica Bayley, yesterday showed reporters a logging access road into public old growth forests in the Esperance Valley. He said the road was built this year, while the moratorium was supposed to be in place. *Mercury
Slow Loris
Quarantine officials have euthanised two tiny primates smuggled into Brisbane on an international flight this morning. The slow lorises were found running free in the cabin of a plane that had left Dubai. A number of passengers are being questioned. Australian Quarantine Inspection Service (AQIS) spokesman Colin Hunter says although the South-East Asian primates are endangered, they had to be put down. "Our standard operating procedures require us to contain any potential biosecurity or human health risk," he said. "The animals arrived without documentation so therefore under standard operating procedures; unfortunately we're required to euthanise." *ABC
Wildlife Smuggling
A Pilbara mine worker has been fined $3700 after he was convicted of illegally possessing four native snakes and a skink. James El-Saj, 29, was arrested at Perth Domestic Airport on September 8 last year after two Stimson's pythons and a broad banded sand swimmer skink were discovered when he arrived on a flight from Newman. Department of Environment and Conservation wildlife officers found a third Stimson's python and a pygmy python at El-Saj's Welshpool home later that day. The fly-in fly-out mine worker was charged with unlawful possession of the pygmy python and skink under the Wildlife Conservation Act. He was also charged with illegally keeping three Stimson's pythons in captivity. DEC wildlife officer Matthew Swan said El-Saj claimed to have taken the skink from his workplace and purchased the four pythons from a man who advertised online. "These animals are protected species in WA and it is illegal to take protected fauna from the wild without a licence," he said. "It is also illegal to purchase reptiles from anyone other than a licensed reptile dealer." The matter was heard in the Perth Central Law Courts last week. In addition to the fine, El-Saj was ordered to pay $119 in court costs. Mr Swan said the skink was able to be returned to its natural habitat but the Stimson's pythons could not be released because of the risk of introducing disease to the wild population. Anyone with information about the illegal removal of reptiles is asked to phone the DEC Wildcare hotline on 9474 9055. WANews
Alligators
Alligator hunter Johnny Douglas says his job is now tougher than gator hide. For more than a quarter-century, Douglas, 46, like his father before him, made a decent living in Central Florida stalking, snaring and skinning alligators that strayed into a backyard or some other place where the reptile wasn't welcome. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission called on him 170 times last year. But this week he'll stop answering their calls and will tend lawns instead. Old-school trappers such as Douglas, whose livelihood depended largely on the sale of alligator hide, are calling it quits as the price of gas has soared and the price of alligator skins has plunged on the world market. He is the fifth in the past year to resign from the Statewide Nuisance Alligator Program, which pays a stipend of $30 per gator to trappers who kill or remove alligators posing a threat to people, pets and property. Lucas, who has taken on a part-time job cutting greens for a floral company to make ends meet, traces his woes to competition from alligator and crocodile farms, the consolidation of tanneries and a changing marketplace that has seen a rise in the international supply of crocodilian hides and a fall in demand. Wild alligator hides that once commanded $60 a foot now fetch just $15 a foot — if you can sell them at all. *OrlandoSentinel
HoneyBees
Soon we may face the serious conundrum of having to hang up moblie phones to save the honey. A new Swiss Federal Institute of Technology study (PDF) has concluded that cellular phone calls disrupt a vital honeybee communication signal (known as "worker piping"), causing the bees to become terminally confused and die (a condition known as Colony Collapse Disorder). The worldwide decline in the honeybee population has been closely watched and documented by scientists, and has for the most part been attributed to chemical toxins, such as the controversial hive-killing pesiticide clothiadin. This study is the first to present hard evidence of a technology-based cause for the bee-pocalypse. Scientists point out that the ever-growing disappearance of honeybees may have devastating ripple-effects for the environment and for the world's human population. Since 70% of food crops are pollinated by honeybees, the prevalence of Colony Collapse Disorder among bees could easily impact agriculture and world hunger. *Read more http://www.care2.com/causes/environment/blog/your-calls-may-be-killing-the-bees/
Whales
Attempts to free a distressed whale believed to be tangled in ropes from cray fishing pots off Rottnest Island have been hampered by an electrical storm. The Department of Environment and Conservation’s marine mammal team has been forced to change its plans to cut 10m of rope wrapped around the mammal’s pectoral fins and across its back. The crew has attached a satellite tag to the trailing rope and is returning to port. The whale, an 11m humpback, will be monitored overnight and the crew will return to sea tomorrow, if it is safe, to try and free it. DEC was alerted by Water Police following a report from a recreational boater about midday. This is the first report of an entangled whale this year. Whales – predominately humpbacks – began their northern migration from the Antarctic earlier this year with confirmed sightings off Rottnest in March, which is earlier than normal. Usually, whales migrating north are seen off the metropolitan coast from May onwards and generally are further out to sea. *WA News
Climate Change
Scientific evidence linking climate change to the intensity and frequency of natural disasters such as bushfires, floods and drought is mounting, the head of the world's peak climate science body says. Dr Rajendra Pachauri, the chairman of the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), said a new report on extreme weather events to be released later this year will support previous findings natural disasters are increasing in frequency and intensity around the world. Dr Pachauri said Australia was one of the countries more vulnerable to an increase in natural disasters, but its wealth and knowledge means it was better prepared to adapt than other countries which would be significantly impacted, such as Bangladesh and Burma. *SMHRead more: http://www.theage.com.au/environment/climate-change/australia-more-vulnerable-but-prepared-says-un-climate-chief-20110516-1epzx.html#ixzz1MYQ3ZyX3
Meanwhile, Nobel Peace Prize winner and leading climate scientist Dr Terry Callaghan says the climate is changing faster than previously thought as he explains the 2011 SWIPA (snow, water, ice, permafrost in the Arctic) report. *
Crows Killed
A murder of crows has died in mysterious circumstances in a suburban neighbourhood in Hervey Bay. Lynn Nayda and Peter Ryan are neighbours in Bruce St, Torquay, and they believe three of the native birds have been poisoned by baits left out by an unknown person for unwelcome cats. Two of the crows died on Monday and a third died yesterday, with Ms Nayda describing the drawn-out death of one of the birds as “terrible”. “It was just slowly flapping around next to the mail box until it finally died,” said an upset Ms Nayda, who works as an RSPCA ambulance driver. “It’s obvious it was baited.” Mr Ryan agreed with Ms Nayda, and said that he had seen plenty of crows dissecting and eating cane toads. So, he believes a poisoned bait must be a factor. According to Ms Nayda and Mr Ryan, people on Bruce St were having some issues with stray cats roaming the surrounding backyards and they believe someone decided to take matters into their own hands. The crows, say Ms Nayda and Mr Ryan, must have been collateral damage in someone’s clandestine war against the cats. Colin Zemek from the Fraser Coast Regional Council said it was illegal to put poisoned bait anywhere within five kilometres of town. Mr Zemek said if it was shown the birds had died from a bait, there was certainly no council authorisation to do so, although he made it clear that only an autopsy on the crows could prove they were poisoned. He said if anyone was having trouble with stray animals such as cats, they should always contact the council to trap the animals, rather than take personal action which could create other dangers. *FraserCoast Chronicle
Kangaroos
The unlawful shootings of two kangaroos in Bathurst and Cowra have been condemned by the Game Council NSW and the Orange and Districts Bowhunters club. Earlier this month a kangaroo in Bathurst had to be put down after it had an arrow lodged in its head for two days. That incident was followed last week when a female kangaroo at Wyangala Dam near Cowra, which was carrying a joey, was shot with two target point arrows, through its ears and right leg. The kangaroo died mid-week despite the best efforts of Cowra rangers and WIRES. They managed to save the joey. The two attacks have outraged a government industry and members involved in legal hunting such as bowhunting clubs. Former captain at Orange and Districts Bowhunters club Gary Collins was livid about the attacks. “It’s a couple of clowns giving us and archers a bad name,” Mr Collins said. “We don’t endorse people running around and doing this illegal act.”
It is illegal to hunt and kill native animals such as kangaroos. But like many who have expressed their anger over these senseless attacks Mr Collins said the person or persons who did this had no experience in shooting legally. “Nobody connected with the Australian Bowhunting Association would ever do this,” he said. “They have done more damage to the sport of archery and bowhunting.” People wishing to hunt must have a game hunting licence and can only shoot feral animals like rabbits, hares, foxes and wild pigs at designated areas. Game Council NSW communications manager Greg McFarland also believes anyone with a hunting licence would not have done it. He said the Game Council was appalled at the attacks and have asked anyone who knows about it to tell the authorities. “They should be dobbed in,” Mr McFarland said. “We work very closely with police, and the national parks and wildlife. “It’s difficult to track these sort of attacks because they [the culprit] are probably not in the system [have a hunting licence].” Anyone found guilty of hunting illegally could face a fine of up to $5500 and face a 10-year ban. *Central Western Daily
Flying Foxes
The 22,000-strong colony of bats at Sydney's Royal Botanic Gardens have been given a reprieve. A plan to chase them out of the park has been postponed for a year. The Domain Trust was scheduled to drive the grey-headed flying foxes out of the gardens this month, using speakers mounted on buggies that were to blast out recorded sounds of engines starting and metal being banged. But the trust's acting executive director, Brett Summerell, said staff wanted to collect more information about the bats before they were pushed to resettle in other flying fox camps in Cabramatta, Ku-ring-gai and Parramatta. "It's important we collect more information on fitting radio and satellite collars so we can reduce any potential impact on the flying foxes," he said in a statement released by the trust today. Dr Summerell said the additional monitoring would help researchers get baseline data on the movements of the bats during May and July - the period when the relocation is due to be carried out. May and July are when the colony at the gardens is believed to be at its lowest.
The monitoring would include calculating the monthly population of Sydney's bats and tracking their movements using radios and satellites. The bats were blamed for killing 27 trees and jeopardising another 300 since moving in two decades ago. Dr Summerell said gardens staff would "do everything we can to limit damage" to the affected trees, which include the red cedar and kauri, in the meantime. "We're working for a balanced approach to address the welfare of the flying fox population and preserve our much-valued trees," he added. The grey-headed flying foxes are listed as a threatened species under NSW and federal laws. As such, the mating spell during March and April, the pregnancy term after July, and the birth and growth of the bat pups from mid-October to February are all no-go periods for the noise project. Groups such as Bat Advocacy opposed the eviction, saying it would be unsuccessful. *SMH
Meanwhile, flying foxes in the Adelaide Botanic Gardens have been moved on using loud noise. The Environment Department said the colony had grown to about 150, having flown in from eastern Australia in search of food. While a small number can live happily in the city gardens, officials said the colony had grown too large. Department staff banged on metal to drive some of the flying foxes to another location. Regional ecologist Jason van Weenen said they did not need to move far. "This all we wanted, we wanted to see them moved just a short distance," he said. "They can actually start defoliating some of the trees and certainly species in the garden can be quite sensitive to that." Officials will keep monitoring the flying foxes' habits over the next few months. *ABC
But an advocacy group says using loud noise to move flying foxes from their roost in Adelaide's Botanic Gardens is inhumane. Environment Department staff have been banging metal to disturb a colony of about 150 grey-headed flying foxes because they are stripping foliage and damaging rare plants. But Nick Edards from the group Bat Advocacy says the technique is depriving the tiny animals of sleep. "The females especially, they're going to be in the first trimester of pregnancy now so stressing animals that are part of a species that's in decline and possibly causing any problems with the breeding cycle is a concern for us," he said. "The longer these sort of stressful techniques are applied, the more risk they present to the animals, so if the project doesn't achieve the objectives quickly we would hope that the ecologists would step back and reassess how the project is going." *ABC
Scallops Killed
Tasmania's scallop industry wants the Victorian Government to compensate it for the death of 24,000 tonnes of shellfish. The Tasmanian Scallop Fishermen's Association says the shellfish died after intensive seismic testing in Bass Strait last year. Association president Bob Lister has written to Victorian Premier Ted Bailleu seeking compensation and assurance such testing will not be done over scallop beds again. Mr Lister said the dead scallops would have been worth about $70 million and that Tasmania's 24 scallop fishermen suffered individual losses of up to $8 million last season alone. "It has now been shown that environmental conditions were not to blame for the deaths," he said. "The intense seismic testing was conducted by Geoscience Victoria over known scallop beds in the middle of Bass Strait between March and August. "Tasmanian fishermen have serious money tied up in the industry and need to be compensated for their losses." Mr Bailleu told the TSFA the Victorian Government would look into the issue.
Mr Bailleu's office did not respond to calls from the Mercury yesterday. The scallop industry feared the impact of the seismic testing may affect scallops for years to come. The State Opposition said Fisheries Minister Bryan Green should also shoulder some of the blame for the situation. Opposition fisheries spokesman Rene Hidding said Mr Green had shrugged off concerns raised by the scallop industry many months ago. But Mr Green said all research done to date had failed to show any link between scallop mortality and seismic surveying. "This included specific research by the Australian Fisheries Management Authority following the scallop harvest this year," Mr Green said. He said he asked for assurances from the Federal Government last year that an investigation would be done, and that he met the TSFA and facilitated research involving the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies. *Mercury Ed Comment; If this seismic testing killed all these scallops, what else did it kill?
Forests
Some of Australia's most popular stores are driving the destruction of native forests, according to a report by a new environmental group Markets for Change (MFC). Furniture, building materials, and paper products were found to be coming at the expense of native forests in Australia and being sold by over 30 businesses in the country, such as Freedom Furniture, Bunnings, Officeworks, Staples, Target, Coles, and Woolsworths. "Australian families do not want to buy into this destruction. They want to know that the everyday products they buy are not endangering wildlife or leading to increasing climate pollution. Well known retailers need to become part of the solution and not the problem—that means rapidly moving away from using native forests to environmentally responsible plantation timber for their products,” said Tim Birch, CEO of Markets for Change, in a press release. Markets for Change is asking these stores to commit to a procurement policy that would ban products made from native forests or from old growth forest destruction abroad. The organization encourages consumers to purchase products certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) only if products have 'full FSC certification', and to avoid products with 'FSC-controlled wood' or 'mixed source certification'.
According to the report: "This level of certification is unacceptable because it continues to be given to companies that are undertaking logging operations in native forests in Australia. These logging activities are destroying native forest ecosystems." Industrial logging is currently permitted in 76% of Australia's nearly 150 million hectares of native forests. Currently, logging is ongoing in Tasmania, Victoria, New South Wales, and Western Australia. Businesses in Australia selling products made from native forests according to Markets for Change: Australian Floor Style, Australia Post, Bedshed, Bunnings, Decorug, Dick Smith, Domayne, Embelton, Everyday Living, Freedom Furniture, Focus on Furniture, Forty Winks, Furniture Court, Furniture One, Harvey Norman, Home Trimber and Hardware, Hudson Building Supplies, IGA, Mitre 10, Office Choice, OfficeMax, Office Products Depot, Officeworks (which also stocks paper from Indonesia), OzDesign, Perfect Timber Floors, Sleep City, Snooze, Staples, Target, and Woolsworths. *MongaBay.com
Snakes Alive!
Gordon Ramsay has been labelled "offensive" by animal welfare groups after eating the still-beating heart of a snake on television. The Michelin-starred chef was filmed swallowing the raw cobra organ after watching the struggling creature being slit open at his table in a restaurant. The scene was recorded in Vietnam, where eating snake is associated with virility and enhanced male sexual performance. It will be shown on Channel 4 on Monday night as part of his new series Gordon's Great Escape. Andrew Tyler, director of charity Animal Aid, said: "Clearly Gordon Ramsay is complicit in an act of cruelty to an animal, something that would be a criminal offence if it happened in Britain. Snakes can feel pain like any other animal and there is no excuse for this. "His macho posturing, and this disgusting scene in particular, suggests he is insecure in his masculinity." Kim LeBreuilly, chairman of the education committee at the British Herpetological Society, added: "The idea of treating any animal in this way, presumably just for the shock value, is offensive." Ramsay, 44, has a five-year, £5m deal with the channel that is due to expire this summer. His F Word series average 3.5m viewers but the first episode of his current series attracted less than half that number. Last week, viewers saw him eating a raw duck foetus on a visit to Cambodia.
For the latest episode he was taken to a Ho Chi Minh eatery that serves reptiles including lizard, which according to his local guide "tastes like chicken". The six foot cobra was taken from a tank and slit open, its heart removed and suspended in liquid in a glass where the organ was seen still beating. "The thought of eating that turns my stomach," remarked Ramsay, before grimacing and downing the dish in one go. He was warned that a snake's heart is often felt moving inside the stomach because it can continue to beat for several minutes after a snake has died. The rest of the snake was then served, including a glass of bile, curried guts, chopped skin and fried bone. "I think I'm going to become vegetarian," remarked Ramsay. A spokesman for Channel 4 said: "The series is about authentic food throughout Asia and illustrates how local food is sourced as well as the local customs and rituals associated with it in each of the countries featured. "Viewers are made aware before the start of the programme that some sequences feature animal slaughter so they know what to expect and the series is appropriately scheduled after the watershed." Ramsay's business empire almost collapsed in the credit crunch, and needed an injection of several million pounds from his £40m personal fortune to stay afloat. *Telegraph UK
Turtles
A seaturtle feast for Tonga's Methodist ministers has sparked a clash with a Kiwi woman, who has made a life's work out of saving the endangered reptiles. Jo Kupu, known in Tonga as the "turtle lady", said something good might actually come out of the incident, which saw 10 turtles eaten. Originally from Mt Cook Village, Kupu has rescued around 600 turtles in the last decade, buying them at the Nuku'alofa market and releasing them. Green turtles are endangered, although there is evidence they are making a comeback in the South Pacific. But, for the fishermen of Ha'apai, when the arrival of mating turtles coincided with the Free Wesleyan Church annual conference in Nuku'alofa, it was an opportunity too good to miss. Fourteen were netted alive and shipped to Nuku'alofa, to lie in the sun on their backs awaiting their fate. "They suffocate when they are upside down, they choke and drown on their own saliva," Kupu said.
She and husband Levini heard about the turtles but, by the time they got to the market, 10 had gone to the Methodists. The remaining four were rescued, but one, thought to be about 150 years old – nearly as old as Methodism in Tonga – died soon after it was returned to the sea. "All the years I've been involved buying turtles and releasing them, we've never seen turtles that big, and so many," Kupu said. Last year, she heard of a 200-year-old turtle being caught, but the fisherman hid it from them and they could not save it. "It made me really angry because no one cared. The fisherman swore at me," she said. In the past decade, she has been funding people to go into the markets to buy the turtles. "I've bought hundreds, I've been doing it for years, since I was about four. I think they are amazing creatures and deserve to be in the sea." With breeding programmes in Tahiti, Samoa and Vanuatu, turtles are starting to return to Tonga, but the law is vague over whether they are protected. A turtle tagged in Tahiti in 1990 recently turned up in the Nuku'alofa market and was later eaten. *Underwater Times
Hunting
The NSW Primary Industries Minister, Katrina Hodgkinson, is being accused of pandering to the Shooters and Fishers Party by proposing to allow recreational hunting in more than 140 state forests for 10 years - twice the period allowed by the previous government. The Herald revealed last week that the Game Council NSW allowed hunting to take place illegally in 31 state forests after failing to notice that the period during which hunting was permitted had expired. It is understood that about 1300 permits were issued by the Game Council during this period, exposing hunters to criminal prosecution for unlawful firearms use. The same day, Ms Hodgkinson began the process of declaring 142 state forests open for hunting by publishing a proposal in the government gazette. The notice proposes that hunting would be allowed until June 2021. The previous gazetted period, signed off by the then primary industries minister, Ian Macdonald, was for five years. Ms Hodgkinson said she proposed to double the previously gazetted period to ''cut red tape''. ''The five-year period was the first time NSW forests were opened for conservation hunting,'' she said. "Given our responsibility to control feral animals that have a devastating impact … and our determination to cut red tape, we believe a 10-year period is appropriate.''
But a Greens MP, David Shoebridge, accused Ms Hodgkinson of attempting to appease the Shooters and Fishers Party, whose vote the government may need to rely upon in the upper house. ''The previous government had an unhealthy relationship with the Game Council and the Shooters Party. It is looking like the current government is going to continue this.'' Mr Shoebridge said most people who use state forests are not hunters and ''their interests are being ignored … to appease the Shooters''. The proposal coincides with delicate negotiations over the government's workplace safety reform bill with the crossbench MPs who hold the balance of power in the upper house. The workplace reforms are being opposed by Labor and the Greens. The government needs three out of the four votes of MPs from the Shooters and Fishers Party and the Christian Democratic Party to get its legislation passed. It has been forced to delay a vote for at least two weeks to shore up crossbench support. Ms Hodgkinson said permission to hunt in 31 state forests expired before the election. "'I have made it clear … to the Game Council of NSW and Forests NSW that they are to immediately review their administrative processes to ensure such errors do not occur again,'' she said. *SMH

Weight Loss...do you need to lose weight?

2011-05-16T18:51:00.000-07:00

Weight loss is a tricky subject in America, where so many young girls (and boys) are turning to anorexia, bulimia, and other eat disorders. While weight loss can be a very good and necessary thing, it can also turn into something horrible that affects millions across the nation and can even cause death. Knowing when you need to lose weight and when you do not is important in the fight against both your personal poor health and the terrible disease that are sweeping across the United States.

You can know that losing weight is often a very personal option. However, if you are more than 20 pounds overweight, losing the pounds is important for your health. Look at the recommended weight for someone of your size as a start. However, because everyone’s bodies are different, because of fat and muscle ratio to body weight, you should really see your doctor if you feel like you need to lose weight. A doctor can confirm this or put your mind to rest by telling you that your weight is normal. This is the best way to make sure that you are being healthy.

There are also times, however, when you definitely do not need to lose weight. First, if you aren’t as thin as your favorite actor or model, that doesn’t mean you need to lose weight. Often, models and actresses are airbrushed in photos to look more toned and they have personal trainers that work with them for hours every day in order to help them stay in shape. If your body weight is normal, you do not need to lose weight, even if you are a pants size bigger than your ideal celebrity.

Your also don’t need to lose weight just because you gain it. People gain weight for a number of reasons, and this is especially common during puberty and for the few years after. If you gain weight check out the rest of your body—are you going through a growth spurt in height as well? Also, don’t worry about gaining weight when you are lifting at the gym. As you tone your muscles, you will look better, but because muscles are heavier than fat, you may actually gain weight.

Lastly, you don’t need to lose weight simply because someone else makes a rude comment about your looks. People are cruel, but everyone has a different body make up. If you are happy with your weight and it is within the normal range for someone of your age and height, than chances are that the rude comment is stemming from other issues, not because you actually do need to lose weight. Be happy with yourself and eat a healthy diet and you shouldn’t need to worry about losing weight.

2011-05-16T18:50:00.001-07:00

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Warming up befor Exercise! 17/5/11

2011-05-16T18:47:00.000-07:00

When you have to fit an exercise routine into your already busy schedule, you might be tempted to simply skip the warm up routine, even though you’ve heard horror stories about people getting injured while working out. Three words: don’t do that. When you skip your warm up, you are not only putting your body as risk for personal injury, but you are also making the workout more difficult and less effective. For the best results, it is important to warm up every time you work out.

Warming up doesn’t have to eat up the time you allotted for exercise into your day. In fact, a decent workout only has to be 5 minutes long to do its job. It doesn’t have to be boring either—you can mix up a number of great moves to make your warm up as fun as the rest of your exercising. Remember that a good warm up gets all of your muscles moving, even if you don’t think that you’ll be intensely working out a set of muscles on any particular day. Warming up is also important regardless of if you’re doing cardiovascular exercises or lifting weights.

The moves you do for a warm up shouldn’t necessarily be difficult or make you break a sweat. The main goal of the warm up isn’t to become a part of your workout, but simply to slowly move muscles that you haven’t really thought about all day to wake them up. Good moves, therefore, include things like jogging in place, doing jumping jacks, lunging, and jumping rope.

A good warm-up can also including slowly stretching your muscles in a variety of ways, although this is usually more effective for a cool-down. Also consider exercises that work on balance and form in order to prepare you for the exercises you will be doing in the workout.

If you’re really short on time, why not try warming up before you even get to the gym. Slowly jog or power walk to the gym, park as far away as possible and lunge to the door, and take the stairs instead of the elevator. That way, when you get to the gym to workout your warm up routine is already half way done.

A good workout always builds in intensity. This is the best way to shed pounds and maintain a healthy weight. Weight loss workouts are only risky if you don’t warm up, because otherwise your body will respond to prevent injuries. Although you may be tempted to skip this step, that is never a good idea.

Diet Smorgasborg 10/11/10

2010-11-09T12:31:00.000-08:00

The Diet Smorgasbord, Come Take a Pick

Obesity is one of the leading "killers" of modern society. As a counter-attack, one must need to know its root cause to be able to choose the right slimming method. Being obese could be hereditary or something that you "did to yourself". This article will be able to help with the you-did-it-to-yourself part. So let's begin. In no particular order.

Raw Foods Diet- as its name suggests, the food to be consumed should be raw. This method assures that the dieter gets the freshest nutrients. The adverse effect? Nutrient intake is restricted plus bacteria may be present on raw food.

DietWatch- an online diet program that helps you track carbohydrates, calories, fat, weight, and all other factors relevant to weight loss. This can be customized to fit the dieter’s needs. DietWatch claims that it is not a fad diet.

Sonoma diet- is a Mediterranean diet that centers its weight loss technique in cooking and planning meals. It is highly advisable to those who look forward to losing weight with only some restrictions on food. This would be scowled at by those who are not ‘into’ cooking.

Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle- this is supported mainly by men because it is focused on cardio, nutrition and training on weight. While burning fat, muscles do develop on this type of diet. It boasts of a track record that has gone a long way. Motivation is a key factor to stay in this program.

Weight Watchers- this is an online support group where members continuously get help on achieving weight loss.

Diet.com- believe it or not, a weight loss program that is based on personality traits! Diet.com believes that behavior and nutrition are inseparable.

eDiets- a more personal approach to dieting is central to this program’s continuous existence. Diet plans are customized to suit the person’s needs.

Apple Patch diet- this program believes that metabolism should be increased to be able to achieve weight loss. As its name suggests, a ‘patch’ is placed on the body to reduce food cravings. Its principle is comparable to nicotine patches that controls cravings for nicotine. The patch should stay on the skin for 3 days to ensure its effectivity.

Mayo Clinic diet plan- this centers on eating food in unlimited quantity, well, except that these foods should be fruits and veggies. The goal of this program is to reduce sugar cravings as the diet progresses.

South Beach diet- this was developed, originally, for obese patients with heart ailments by Dr. Arthur Agatston. This isn’t a low fat or low carbohydrates diet (although on the first two weeks, carbs should be shunned). It gives meal plans that are good for the heart and the weight. A vegetarian diet is also available.

SparkPeople- a holistic way of dieting. Comparable to eDiets but SparkPeople is less expensive.
Medifast- a program that can be bought online. This has long been given by physicians to their obese patients and is a surefire way to lose weight in a short span of time.

Biggest Loser Club- yup, it all began on a television show. This program focuses on exercise and meal plans.

Change One diet- this originated from the Readers’ Digest. It advises to change one aspect in your lifestyle or diet every week then weight loss can be achieved.

Zone diet- ever heard of the 40-30-30 program? This is it and Dr. Sears developed it.
Slim Fast- drinks and power bars that are used to substitute a meal. They became famous with their ‘shakes’ that promote weight loss.

Beach Body- exercise routines and cardio workout that will trim the body in 6 weeks.

Jenny Craig- this is actually a brand on weight loss programs. Meals are delivered or shipped to the dieter (low-calorie meals), these being planned and based on the USDA.

Subway diet- this may sound absurd but this diet advises a dieter to eat ‘only’ subway meals. Wow.

Grapefruit diet- the name tells it all. A dieter thrives only on grapefruit that is believed to contain something that makes a person lose weight.

Hollywood 48 Hour Miracle diet- do you want to lose 10 pounds in as little as 48 hours? Then this is meant for you, or so as they claim. It’s a juice diet that cleanses the system and promotes weight loss.

Well, there are a lot more of diets out there. This is but a short list. Review each one thoroughly before engaging in any of their programs. Stick only with the one that promotes health and well-being.

Please note I do not endorse any or all of these diets. Just remember, you are what you eat,
Cheers, Patrick

Drink Water and Lose Weight!

2010-08-23T21:31:00.000-07:00

Close the diet books and skip the pills. The latest weight-loss trick may be as simple as gulping a couple of glasses of water before you eat.
A new study found that middle-aged and older adults who drank two cups of water before each meal consumed fewer calories and lost more weight than those who skipped drinking water.

Researchers divided two groups of overweight and obese men and women aged 55 to 75 into two groups: one group was told to follow a low-fat, low-calorie diet; the other group was told to follow the same diet and to drink two cups of water before breakfast, lunch and dinner.

After 12 weeks, those who drank water before meals had lost 15.5 pounds, compared to 11 pounds for the non-water drinkers, a nearly 30 percent difference.
The researchers got the idea for the weight-loss program from their prior research, which found that when middle-aged and older adults drank water before meals, they ate between 75 and 90 fewer calories at the meal.

What they weren't sure about, however, was if water drinkers would compensate by eating more throughout the rest of the day, said senior study author Brenda Davy, an associate professor in the department of human nutrition, foods and exercise at Virginia Tech. But after 12 weeks of dieting, that didn't happen.

"Drinking more water is a pretty simple strategy that may be helpful to people trying to lose weight," Davy said. "We're not saying, 'Drink more water and the body fat will melt away'. But for people who are trying to lose weight and trying to follow a low-cal diet, it's something they can do as part of that."

The research was to be presented Monday at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society in Boston.
One of the most vexing issues with dieting is how difficult it is to keep the weight off long-term, Davy said. After the 12 weeks were up, Davy and her colleagues have continued to follow the participants.

one year, preliminary data shows that those who continued to drink water before meals not only kept those pounds off, but have even continued to lose a bit more -- about 1.5 pounds on average.
Yet pre-meal water chugging comes with one caveat: it may only work if you're middle-aged or older, Davy said.

Prior research has shown that in those aged 18 to 35, drinking water before the meal did not cause them to eat fewer calories at the meal, Davy said.
In older people, it takes longer for the stomach to empty, which may be why the water helps them feel fuller and less hungry, while in younger people, water begins leaving the stomach almost immediately, Davy said.

Barry Popkin, director of the University of North Carolina Nutrition Obesity Research Center, called the findings "promising." His research has shown people who drinks lots of water drink fewer sugary beverages, eat more fruits and vegetables and overall consume fewer calories throughout the day.

One culprit in the obesity epidemic is that Americans consume some 300 calories more a day in sugary beverages than they did 30 years ago, Popkin added. That includes soda, punch and fruit juices with added sugar, sports drinks and sweetened tea.

"If you drink some more water right before a meal and fill up a little bit right before, there is the potential you may reduce your food intake," Popkin said. "But what we're concerned with is encouraging people to drink water to replace all the caloric beverages we're drinking."
Another challenge to the water-before-meals weight-loss strategy is getting people to do it, said Carla Wolper, an assistant professor in the Eating Disorders Center at Columbia University and a research faculty member at the New York Obesity Research Center at St. Luke's Hospital in New York City.

"The question is, do people continue to drink the water in a non-study situation?" Wolper said. "We know there are a lot of simple things people could do to lose weight. Clinical trials have shown if people write down what they eat, they lost twice as much weight. Yet it's very hard to get people to write down what they eat. Or, if people would reduce portions just a little bit, they would lose weight. But people don't do it."

The same goes for drinking more water. Even seemingly small changes require commitment. "Changing a pattern of behavior is complicated, and requires time and energy," Wolper said.
Still, it could be worth a try, she added. "Unless people overload on water, it's harmless, inexpensive. And if over the course of the entire day, it reduces the amount of food people take in, then of course it's a good idea," Wolper said.

Dieticians often will suggest a non-caloric drink such as club soda with lemon, diet soda or tea to help resist the urge to snack after dinner, Wolper said.

*Source, Business Week

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Wieght loss helps avoid heart attacks!

2010-03-02T22:51:00.000-08:00

Eating the wrong food and gaining too much weight can clog arteries with fatty deposits, potentially leading to life-threatening heart attacks and strokes.
A new study suggests this process works both ways: Eating healthy and losing weight may actually reverse -- rather than simply slow down -- the accumulation of these fatty deposits, a condition known as atherosclerosis.
In the study, middle-aged people with heart disease or diabetes who lost more than 12 pounds over a two-year period successfully reduced the size of the deposits (or plaques) clogging their arteries, rather than merely halting their growth.
What's more, the type of diet the study participants followed didn't seem to make a difference, as long as they lost weight.

A low-carb, low-fat, or Mediterranean-style diet all had positive effects on artery health, according to the study, which was published in the journal "Circulation."
Most studies that have examined the effect of weight loss on atherosclerosis have also involved putting people on powerful drugs like cholesterol-lowering statins, says James O'Keefe, M.D., the director of preventive cardiology at the Mid-America Heart Institute, in Kansas City, Missouri.
"This [study] is just relying on diet alone and got very impressive results, as good as you see with drugs," says O'Keefe, who was not involved in the current research.
The study looked at 140 people in Israel between the ages of 40 and 65 who were at least moderately overweight and had heart disease or type 2 diabetes. In addition to following one of the three diets, 20 percent of the participants took a statin, and roughly 30 percent took blood-pressure medication.

After two years on a diet, roughly two-thirds of the study participants had less clogging in their neck arteries than when the study began. (Although the carotid artery in the neck is not responsible for heart attacks, its condition would likely be similar to that of the coronary arteries, which are more difficult to image, the researchers say.)
Health.com: 10 best foods for your heart
The volume of the plaques in their neck arteries declined by about 5 percent, on average, or slightly more than the average annual increase in people with atherosclerosis, as other studies have shown.

People who had greater weight loss and reduction in blood pressure tended to have healthier arteries, the researchers found. The people whose arteries became less clogged lost about 12 pounds, on average, while their systolic blood pressure (the top number) fell by around 7 points.
By contrast, the people whose atherosclerosis worsened lost just 7 pounds, on average, and reduced their systolic blood pressure by just 1 point. (The use of statins did not seem to be a significant factor, the researchers reported.)
"Long-term adherence to weight-loss diets are effective for reversing carotid atherosclerosis as long as we stick to one of the current options of healthy diet strategy, [and] even if we experience some partial weight re-gain over time," says the study's lead author, Iris Shai, Ph.D., a registered dietitian and researcher in cardiovascular epidemiology at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, in Beer-Sheva, Israel.

Health.com: A sample menu for a low-fat diet
In a previous paper, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2008, the same team of researchers reported that the three diets used in the study were equally likely to lead to weight loss.
Both the low-fat and Mediterranean diets limited daily calorie intake to 1,500 for women and 1,800 for men. In addition, both emphasized grains, vegetables, fruits, and legumes, and cutting down on high-fat snacks and sweets. The people on the Mediterranean diet were also instructed to consume 30 to 45 grams of olive oil and a handful of nuts every day.
Men and women on the low-carb, Atkins-style diet didn't have to restrict their calorie intake, but they were limited to 20 grams of carbs per day for the first two months of the study, gradually increasing their intake to 120 grams daily. Alice Lichtenstein, Ph.D., a professor of nutrition science and policy at Tufts University, in Boston, Massachusetts, says that the new findings confirm what experts have been saying for years.

"Weight loss improves cardiovascular health," says Lichtenstein. "The way you lose the weight isn't the critical factor; the critical factor is actually that you lose the weight."
The three diets featured in the study aren't the only way to lose weight, Lichtenstein adds.
"Different people will adhere to different types of approaches to restrict calories," she says. "Some will do well if they cut fat out of the diet; some will do well if they have a higher fat content and eat lots of fruits and vegetables."

The one type of diet Lichtenstein doesn't recommend is fad diets.
"You don't want people to go off on these really wild or extreme diets because history suggests people don't stick to them," she says.
Losing weight is easier said than done, of course. The study participants had access to resources that most dieters do not. They met regularly with dietitians, and they chose their lunches from a selection of foods labeled with their calorie, carb, and fat content.
Following a similar regimen on your own would be difficult, says Shai. In fact, she says, most people would need a dietitian's help to stick to any of the three weight-loss approaches.
O'Keefe agrees. While some people can achieve lasting weight loss on their own, he says, they will be more likely to succeed if they get some professional help.
"People tend to sort of fall off the diet with time," he says. "If it's continually reinforced, if they have a lot of feedback, they tend to do better."

health.com

Wieght Loss 30/11/09

2009-11-29T21:28:00.000-08:00

Standing in line at the grocery store is always amusing. Magazine cover after magazine cover plastered with promises to end your weight gain woes: “Lose 5 pounds in Five Days, The Last Diet You’ll Ever Need, The Stomach Flattening Weight Loss Plan, etc., etc., infiniteness.”
It’s an absolute wonder that 64 percent of Americans remain overweight with such cures sitting right in front of our noses — absolute wonder. The long, short, and sarcastic-free reality, however, is that these aren’t offers of weight loss cures, but rather they’re enticements to sell magazines.

This time of year so many people are thinking about weight-loss goals to kick off on Jan. 1, but which one offers solutions and which one offers crap. Am I allowed to say that in a newspaper article? Hopefully, because that’s exactly what they’re offering — crap!
Let’s back up for a moment and consider why diets don’t work. They are flawed at their very core because they encourage you to temporarily adjust eating habits to achieve a particular weight goal.

Unfortunately, once that goal is achieved, old dietary habits resume, allowing all the lost weight to eventually creep back up. Conversely, permanent lifestyle changes that incorporate healthy eating and regular exercise have proven to result in permanent, sustainable weight loss.
It’s an approach that may not be as easy and exciting and the hottest new diet craze, but it’s tried, true and most importantly healthy.

Most of the popular diets that make best seller lists can result in weight loss, but they fail when it comes to practicality and sustainability. So how do you know if your New Year weight-loss choice is the best choice? The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) offers the following criteria when evaluating a weight-loss program:

The calorie intake is not lower than 1,200 calories per day for normal adults and includes a blend of foods to meet your daily nutritional requirements. (Blending is an important concept. It means combining a variety of all kinds of foods to keep you palate interested and your nutritional needs satisfied.)

Includes foods acceptable to the dieter in terms of social/cultural background, usual habits, taste, costs, and ease in acquisition and preparation.

Provides a negative caloric balance (meaning a reduction in calorie consumption of 200-300 calories), resulting in gradual weight loss without metabolic derangements, such as ketosis.

Results in a maximal weight loss of 2.5 pounds a week. (That means those “30 pounds in 30 days” diets are out. That rate of weight loss is unsafe and generally impossible to maintain.)

Includes the use of behavior modification techniques to identify and eliminate diet habits that contribute to overeating. (Identify the habits that got you here and adopt lifestyle and behavioral changes that will enable you to keep your weight within a healthy range.)

Includes an exercise program that promotes a daily caloric expenditure of 300 or more. For many participants, this may be best accomplished with low intensity, long duration, exercise, such as walking.

Provides eating and physical activity habits that can be continued for life in order to maintain the achieved lower body weight.

Over the next few weeks you’re sure to be bombarded with weight-loss options. These guidelines will help you make the best choice for reaching your healthy body weight and making 2010 a Happy and Healthy New Year. Now go be great!

Eugenie Jones, M.B.A., ACE, is a workplace performance and lifestyle training expert. Find her fitness column, in its 17th year of running, here each Saturday. Visit her Web site at www.eugeniejones.com or e-mail her at eugeniek@comcast.net.Read more: http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/nov/28/eugenie-jones-how-you-can-weigh-weight-loss/#ixzz0YJkdjWVP

Vitamin D may Help!

2009-08-07T00:12:00.000-07:00

New research suggests those who have higher levels of vitamin D while embarking on a low-calorie diet may be more successful in losing weight.
The study was conducted at the University of Minnesota and measured blood levels of vitamin D in 38 overweight people before and after they followed a diet for 11 weeks that had 750 calories a day fewer than their estimated needs.

The researchers found that for every increase of 1 nanogram per milliliter in level of a vitamin D precursor, the participants lost about a half pound more. For each 1 ng/mL increase in the active form of the vitamin, they lost almost one-quarter pound more.
In addition, those with higher baseline vitamin D levels tended to experience a greater loss of abdominal fat.

"Vitamin D deficiency is associated with obesity, but it is not clear if inadequate vitamin D causes obesity or the other way around," says Dr Shalamar Sibley, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota.
However, she adds the results of the study support the theory that vitamin D supplementation while on a low-calorie diet can contribute to greater weight loss.

2009-07-30T14:49:00.000-07:00

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Which of These Popular Weight Loss Failure Reasons Belongs To You?

2009-07-30T14:47:00.000-07:00

We all fail from time to time at things that have meaning to us such as failing at marriage, failing to earn a college degree, or failing to lose weight. We usually sit around and commiserate about why we failed blaming a host of other people, or circumstances for our failure. We even sometimes blame ourselves for our failure. Which of the following weight loss failure reasons can you claim as your own?

Did you know that an overwhelming amount of people trying to lose weight fail to do so, or succeed only to gain it all back within 5 years of deciding to lose the weight? Why do you suppose so many people fail at something that seems to be a common topic of TV, radio, magazines, books, movies, and conversations?

One reason that people commonly fail when trying to lose weight is that they fail to understand what it takes to lose weight. There is a physical dynamic that goes on inside our bodies that determine what we weigh and if we lose weight or gain weight.

Being successful at losing weight can also be traced to our motivation to lose weight in the first place. Those individuals who desire to lose weight for personal reasons that have nothing to do with being pushed to do so by a doctor or significant other are more likely to succeed.

Individuals are also more likely to succeed if they have a personal experience with the connection with being overweight and the increased risk for certain diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and osteoarthritis.

One contributing factor to death is being overweight. Those who are obese run a risk of straining the heart and arteries that supply blood to vital organs and our brain. This deficiency in blood leads to heart attacks and strokes.

Another popular reason for failing to lose weight is the lack of commitment to make lifestyle changes that will benefit your weight loss goal. It is difficult to change a long-term eating habit that has been contributing to your weight problem such as binge eating, overeating, or eating for reasons other than hunger. Sometimes the active social life of a person who is politically active or someone who is a Hollywood celebrity is expected to attend multiple parties and public events in which food is the main attraction. The presence of so much rich, great tasting food is a lifestyle habit that is difficult to overcome when one is trying to lose weight.

Sometimes we fail because of weight loss myths or because of diet programs or fad diets that are thrust into the limelight and promoted by celebrities as diets or programs that are good ways to lose weight when in fact they are unhealthy for us. Knowing the true facts concerning how our bodies naturally lose weight is what will allow us to succeed. Being given untrue facts about weight loss is a common reason why people fail to achieve their weight loss goal.

Losing weight and staying healthy!

2009-07-16T02:44:00.000-07:00

People always have the feeling that if they try out a diet plan they would have to stop eating and not live a healthy life until they lose the weight they want, and this way they never begin any diets. People always have the feeling that if they try out a diet plan they would have to stop eating and not live a healthy life until they lose the weight they want, and this way they never begin any diets.

By not trying and not having the body they wish people become unhappy maybe depressive. Be smarter! The first step you have to do is to start trying and find out what kind of diet works best for you. There are several foods that can help boost up metabolism and start burning fat. Never forget healthy animals provide healthy meat. That is why bison meat can help you get healthy fat called linoleic acid (CLA). CLA is proven to be an excellent fat burner and helps you build muscle. It contains some of the highest quality proteins. Another healthy food item is avocado. It is considered to be “fatty food” still it has natural fat that help your digestion. It is also full of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

It is also an important satiating fruit. It helps you reduce your appetite. Let us not forget eggs, but not just egg whites! Eggs are a one of the major sources of protein but the yolk of the egg contains loads of vitamins and minerals. More than 90% of the calcium, iron, zinc b6 and b12 are in the yolk of the egg. It contains fat soluble vitamins like A, D, E and K, as well as essential fatty acids. Nuts are good source of fiber and protein, which help aid in weight loss. They also help maintain a good level of fat burning hormones and can control your appetite. Do you like berries, blueberries, strawberries or maybe raspberries?

Well then start eating them because they are a powerhouse of nutrition because they are filled with antioxidants, vitamins and fiber, which controls your blood sugar levels. These are only a few of the healthy foods. So you don’t have to stop eating. Just use an online calorie and bmi calculator to find out your situation concerning your weight and start a low carb diet! Also don’t forget these foods listed earlier! Work out and eat as much as possible just make sure it quality food, vegetables and fruits! www.weightloss-information.org

Pick a sustainable diet program, rather than a quick fix!

2009-06-23T09:37:00.000-07:00

For those who wish to lose weight the information available is often conflicting and confusing.

In spite of this, most people still go the diet route, searching for an illusive quick weightloss fix. However the fundamentals of nutrition are often overlooked in the desire to rapidly lose weight.
There are more than 25,000 diet plans available, and billions of dollars are being spent each year on diet programs and products.

If you really, really, really want to lose weight, you must recognize the difference between the temporary weight loss that can accompany some diets, and the permanent weight control that can come from a long-term commitment to changing lifestyle habits. These are the factors that that have contributed to the weight problem in the first place.

Of course some diets encourage a permanent change to eating and lifestyle habits, using the diet as a model for future eating habits. Some do not, so when considering a weight loss diet program, you should ensure that the diet is sustainable over the long term, rather than just a quick fix now.

Are You Receiving a Failing Grade When it Comes to Weight Loss?

2009-06-17T00:11:00.000-07:00

It seems like everyone is talking about how easy it is to fail at losing weight. There are more failure weight loss stories than successful ones. Why is it that so many people who try to lose weight, fail?

Off the top of your head, you can probably name a few random guesses as to why people fail when trying to lose weight such as they are lazy, they love food too much, they are terrible about sticking to a exercise program, or they are addicted to overeating and can't break the habit. Those would all be common guesses but the truth of why people fail at weight loss goals is better explained by examining the factors that contribute to failure to lose weight.

Factors that contribute to the failure to lose weight include not fully understanding the health risks they face if they fail to lose weight, not being able to commit to the permanent lifestyle changes that are necessary in order to succeed at weight loss, not knowing the true facts about how to go about losing weight, failing to realize just how much food/calories they are actually consuming everyday, and lastly, giving up too easily when they run into a snag in the weight loss road.

Not understanding the health risks involved in being overweight:

If a person is ignorant of the health risks they are taking by being overweight, they are not as likely to be in any hurry to accomplish the weight loss goal. If a person is overweight for a long period of time they are at risk for being part of the thousands of people who die each year of over-weight related diseases. There have been multiple studies proving that there is a connection and danger between being overweight and diseases that can be fatal if left uncontrolled. Losing excess body fat can reduce this terrible risk.

Not being able to commit to healthy lifestyle changes:

It is a common fallacy that losing weight is a "temporary" situation. They believe that once the weight loss goal is achieved they can go back to old habits that they were comfortable with before the desire/need to lose weight occurred. They follow methods that are restrictive and difficult to follow but may yield fast weight loss results and then once they see a weight loss what so often happens is that they immediately congratulate themselves and then reward themselves by going back to old eating and exercising/lack of exercising habits that will cause them to gain back the weight. The best way to lose weight for the long haul is to lose it gradually and by doing healthy habits such as eating the foods that our bodies need and exercising everyday. Crash, restrictive diets do not work, healthy eating and making other healthy lifestyle changes will bring about the desired weight loss that will continue to be a part of the "new and lighter you".

Not knowing the true facts about weight loss:

There unfortunately is a lot of conflicting information being circulated throughout different medias promoting unhealthy weight loss. People believe what they see on TV, or read in Hollywood magazines without checking out the safety or health risks involved in these weight loss programs and diets.

Failure to realize just how much food/calories you are actually consuming everyday:

This is a major factor that contributes to weight gain. Most of us eat when we are hungry or even when we are not hungry and pay little attention to how much of a food item we are eating. Portion sizes are out of control at fast food and sit-down restaurants and we copy that when we eat at home. We become used to overeating and after a while normal portions will not will us up or make us feel satisfied.

Giving up to easily:

It seems like nothing in life is easy, except maybe gaining weight as we age. Our modern world shoves the message into our minds that getting things the easy is to be expected. As a result most of us tend to give up at the first snag in the road on our way to weight loss. If we make a mistake and eat too much at breakfast or lunch we may tend to say, "What's the point, I've already blown it today", and overeat again at dinner. Everyone messes up from time to time; doing so, does not give you the right to toss the goal out the window! Gaining or losing weight is every bit a state of mind and attitude. You have to be positive that nothing is going to stop you from achieving your goal, not even the bumps in the road that you encounter.

Finding Resources for Weight Loss

2009-06-16T23:22:00.001-07:00

We have so many choices today for gathering information about weight loss that getting that first step on your journey to weight loss success should be an easy one. That first step of course is gathering weight loss information so that you can make informed decisions concerning your weight loss journey. You can find information about losing weight by asking your doctor, by searching the Internet, by reading weight loss books, magazines and newspaper articles or by talking to a fitness trainer or nutritionist/registered dietician.

The Internet has really been a useful information highway for all aspects of our lives from being able to bank online, to taking college classes online and now you can find information about just about any topic online. Here are a few Internet Website to get you started on your search for weight loss information:

If you visit Webmd.com you can locate many weight loss tools including all the latest news about weight loss diets.

The Website freedieting.com has many diet plans and weight loss programs that you can browse. You can also find weight loss calculators, free weight loss meal plans, diet reviews, and also some free trials and samples. Just as the title of the Website claims, everything on the site is free.

The Mayo clinic always has excellent health information and you can find plenty of reliable information about how to lose weight in a healthy manner on their Website.

Medline Plus is another health-oriented Website that provides you with various health topics including weight loss. You can find out information not only about how to eat healthy when trying to lose weight but news about alternative therapy, how to cope with the trials of losing weight and information about why our bodies gain weight.

There are many magazines that focus on health issues including weight loss including Figure, Prevention, Women's Health, Eating Well, Best Life, Men's Health, Fitness, and Women's Health just to name a few. As a word of caution, look for who is writing the articles that you read to be sure that they are an authority on healthy weight loss. Much of what is in the media are ads including articles that are promoting someone's product. If they will be gaining financially by you accepting what they are saying make sure that what they are saying is true by checking with at least 2 to 3 other medical sources for accuracy of their statements.

Many, many books have been written on the weight loss topic including 100 Days of Weight Loss: The Secret to Being Successful on Any Diet Plan by Linda Spangle and The Weight Loss Cure They Don't Want You to Know About by Kevin Trudeau, as well as Eating Well After Weight Loss Surgery: Over 140 Delicious Low-Fat High-Protein Recipes to Enjoy in the Weeks, Months and Years After Surgery by Patt Levine, Michele Bontmpo-Saray, William B. Inabnet, and Meredity Urban-Skuros. As with the magazine sources, make sure that someone who is an authority in healthy weight loss writes the book.

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Exercise and Your Weight Loss Goal

2009-06-16T22:25:00.000-07:00

Have you forgot to include exercise in your weight loss endeavor? Sometimes people who desire to lose weight can focus too much on the food aspects of weight loss and not enough on the other components of losing weight. Exercise is a big part of your ability to succeed in your weight loss effort.

Reducing body fat requires that you focus on not only the number of calories that you take into your body but also increasing the amount of physical activity (exercise) your body is experiencing everyday. Yes, you need to be active everyday, not just 2 or 3 days out of the week (unless there is a medical advice given to do so). Studies have shown the positive relationship between exercise and weight loss.

Individuals who need to lose weight but hate to change their diets can in fact look at making an change in their physical activity level first before committing to a diet program because studies have shown that unless you are obese, just increasing your activity level and maintaining your current caloric intake can achieve your weight loss goal. You can increase your physical activity just by making several changes in how you go about your day such as taking the stairs instead of using the elevator, parking further away from entrances when using parking lots, walking the dog yourself instead of making the kids do it all the time, and moving around more instead of sitting or standing while waiting for doctor or business appointments.

Know that you are not alone; millions of people every year are trying to accomplish weight loss goals. You can take some encouragement and motivation from others who are exercising as part of their weight loss goals and winning their battles against the bulge.

Studies have shown that diet programs alone do not work as most individuals on them regain the weight within five years from starting the program. Starting a healthy lifestyle of good nutrition and adequate amounts of daily exercise is a lifestyle that you can continue for the rest of your life.

You do not need expensive equipment or trainers in order to receive the weight loss benefits of exercise. Walking is one of the best exercises you can do to lose weight. Walking strengthens your bones, helps to control weight, tones your leg muscles, and helps you to maintain good posture. Walking can also help you to maintain a positive outlook on life as you observe nature all around you if you walk outside.

Studies have also shown that those who diet without exercising can put on pounds instead of taking them off. There may be an initial weight loss due to water loss but without exercise if you decrease your food intake you will lose muscle. As your body loses muscle your metabolism will decrease which means that more food calories will turn to fat.

In order to achieve your weight loss goal when using walking as your exercise, it is more important to walk for longer time periods than it is to speed walk. You will also feel less sore if you walk at a moderate pace than if you speed walk.

A healthy body needs both good nutrition and proper amounts of daily exercise. These two factors work hand in hand because without the proper food in your system that turns into energy, you won't have the ability to exercise properly. Without the exercise the food you eat will turn into fat more than if you exercised.

Could Vitamin D be the Answer to successful weight loss?

2009-06-16T22:22:00.000-07:00

Another potential piece to the weight loss puzzle was unveiled recently when researchers discovered there may be a link between vitamin D levels and shedding pounds.
A study measured vitamin D levels in 38 obese men and women before and after they went on an 11-week diet in which 750 calories were deducted each day from their total caloric consumption. The participants also had their body composition and fat distribution evaluated using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and computed tomography.

In testing vitamin D levels before and after the diet, researchers discovered a relationship between levels of a precursor form of vitamin D (frequently used as an indicator of vitamin D levels) and weight loss; for every incremental increase of the substance, subjects lost almost a half-pound more while on their diets. Those who had increases in an active form of vitamin D also lost about a quarter-pound more.

Having higher levels of both forms of vitamin D at the start of the diet also forecast more weight lost in the abdomen. Excess abdominal fat has been linked to a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and type II diabetes.

Lead author Dr. Shalamar Sibley, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota, cautioned, however, that a more controlled clinical trial is needed to see if vitamin D supplements will have any benefit in helping people lose weight via diets. The study was presented recently at the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society in Washington, D.C. *
Jeannine Stein LA Times

2009-06-16T22:19:00.000-07:00

As a reporter, I have found myself ingesting an airport food/banquet dinners/fast food combo diet for stretches of four and five days. My body just wants yogurt for a day or two after one of those trips and I understand why. It’s a complete protein source, full of calcium, easily digested and the live, active bacterial cultures make my indoor plumbing very happy.

One study revealed that dieting adults who ate three servings of fat-free yogurt a day lost 22% more weight and 61% more body fat than those who simply cut calories. The yogurt eaters lost 81% more belly fat than non-yogurt eaters, too.

The evidence points to yogurt’s calcium and protein (in low-fat dairy) helping to burn fat and promote weight loss. I adore the thicker, creamier Greek yogurt and buy it whenever it’s on sale or I have a good coupon. Get it plain, add in a dollop of honey and you can call it dessert!
Cost of an 8 oz. serving of yogurt: between 50 cents and $1.50. Jackie Runice, Examiner

Do You Need Health Reasons for Losing Weight by Losing Body Fat?

2009-06-16T22:13:00.000-07:00

There are many reasons why people start weight loss programs including to look good, have better fitting clothing or a smaller size, to please spouses or other significant people in their lives or because their doctor has ordered them to lose weight or else!

Losing weight when you are overweight will have many health benefits. Managing your weight can reduce your excess body fat and doing this will help you to maintain good health and also to fight diseases. When you are obese it can cause you to have major threats to your health and also could decrease your longevity. If you are not sure what constitutes obesity, it is when you are have more than 25% of your body consisting of body fat if you are male and 32% of body fat for women. The current figure is that approximately 20% of Americans are obese. The diseases that you may be at increased risk for if you are considered to be obese are heart disease and certain cancers.

If you are obese your body has to work harder just to perform breathing function and to pump blood. When your body has to work harder your heart increases in size to compensate which increases your blood pressure and can initiate life-threatening erratic heartbeats. Those who are obese can also have high levels of blood cholesterol, which leads to stroke and heart attacks. Your kidneys can also become deprived of blood posing further health risks. Studies show that approximately 25% of all blood vessel problems and heart problems are associated with the presence of obesity. There is also an increased risk of cancer when you carry around excess body fat on your body. Women who have a higher amount of body fat than is normal for their height and frame have a higher risk for breast or uterine cancer. Men who are obese run a higher risk for colon or prostate cancer.

Diabetes is also connected with obesity because there is a fine balancing act between blood sugar levels, body fat, and the amount of insulin produced by the body. When there are excessive amounts of blood sugar this is stored in the liver and other vital body organs. This excess sugar is then turned into fat when the level of blood sugar reaches maximum levels in the liver and other vital organs. If your body's fat cells become "full", they cannot take in as much of the blood sugar, overwhelming the system. Diabetes is a serious disease with long-term consequences for future health. Consequences such as amputation, blindness, death, heart disease and kidney failure. If you have excess body fat you can experience gall bladder disease, gastro-intestinal disease, osteoarthritis, sexual dysfunction and stroke.

If you reduce your body fat, you will reduce your risk of all of these serious diseases. Some researchers believe that reducing your amount of body fat is more beneficial to reducing your risk of these diseases than medications.

Do You Know The Role Water Plays in Weight Loss?

2009-06-16T22:10:00.000-07:00

We use water for many things including washing our clothes, dishes and our bodies, watering plants and animals, generating energy used to light our homes and power machines. Perhaps the most important use for water is to keep our bodies hydrated. A hydrated body is better able to lose weight.

If our bodies enter the state of dehydration our own waste products and other toxins that result from the process of metabolism can poison us. Water is vital to humans as they digest food and metabolize food. Water acts as a medium for enzymatic and chemical reactions that take place in our bodies. Water is an essential part of our blood and is instrumental in the process of carrying nutrients and oxygen through the bloodstream to the cells of our body. Water also helps our bodies to regulate temperature and also to lubricate our joints. Did you know that we also need water in our body in order to breathe?

Individuals who do not drink enough water every day either because they do not know the importance of water or they don't like to drink water may encounter health problems such as increased body fat, decreased digestive ability, decreased organ function, an increase in the toxicity level contained within the body and also poor muscle tone and also decreased size of muscles. All of these results of not drinking enough water can lead to health diseases stemming from the above listed problems.

Individuals who wish to lose weight should know that they would achieve their weight loss goals easier and faster if they keep the above information about water in mind. Having adequate water intake is a vital key to achieving or maintaining proper weight.

Did you know that drinking the proper amount of water each day can prevent joint and muscle soreness? This is why it is important for athletes to drink water before, during and after exercising.

A good rule of thumb regarding how much water is a proper amount to drink each day is for a normal person to adhere to drinking a total of ten 8 oz. glasses of water a day. If you are increasing your physical activity or you are living in a very warm climate you should drink more water than the normal person. It is also important to not drink that amount of water all at once; it should be spread out throughout your day.

One common complaint or reason that individuals give for not drinking adequate amounts of water is that they are afraid that if they increase their water intake to what they should normally be drinking that they will have to go to the bathroom more frequently. While it may be true that you will in the beginning have to go to the bathroom more often do to the increased sensitivity of your bladder to your new amount of water intake; you body will adjust over the period of a few weeks to the point that you won't have to go any more frequently than what is normal because your bladder will calm down.

When it is said that you need to drink water everyday, it is water and not other beverages that this applies to. Beverages that contain water may also contain other substances that can have an adverse affect on the benefits that water normally provide. Adverse affects can be caused by caffeine and sugar. Going back to one of the main reasons that a lot of people don't drink enough water each day and that being the fact that they don't like the taste (or lack of taste) of water; this discourages them from drinking water and may encourage them to drink the drinks that contain caffeine or sugar so instead of helping their body, they are taking in substances that can harm their body. The more you drink alternative beverages the more you dislike the plain taste of water which causes you to drink even less water causing a vicious and increasing cycle of not drinking enough water.