Low Testosterone Linked to Later Arthritis in Study

Hormonal changes could influence disease severity, researchers say

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, April 3 (HealthDay News) -- Men with low levels of the hormone testosterone may be at greater risk for rheumatoid arthritis, according to a new study.

Both men and women with rheumatoid arthritis have lower levels of testosterone in their blood than people without the disease. But it has not been known whether low testosterone levels are a cause or effect of rheumatoid arthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis causes pain, swelling, stiffness and loss of joint function. Severe cases can last a lifetime.

In this study, Swedish researchers analyzed blood samples collected from 104 men who were later diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and 174 men of the same age who did not develop the disease. The average time between collection of the blood sample and a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis was just less than 13 years, but ranged from 1 to 28 years.

After taking into account known rheumatoid arthritis risk factors such as smoking and weight, the researchers found that men with lower testosterone levels were more likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis. They did not, however, prove a cause-and-effect link between the two.

These men also had significantly higher levels of follicle stimulating hormone -- a chemical involved in sexual maturity and reproduction -- before they were diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, according to the study, which was published online April 3 in the journal Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.

The findings suggest that hormonal changes occur before rheumatoid arthritis develops and could influence disease severity, the researchers said in a journal news release.

Rheumatoid arthritis results from the immune system attacking the body's own tissues. Previous research suggests that testosterone may dampen the immune system, the researchers said.

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paddle boarding!?!?!

So I really want to try paddle boarding as a form of exercise! Is it easy enough for an overweight person to get the hang of? Is there any weight restrictions? Thanks for the info!

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The First-Ever Quantified Self Notes (Plus: LSD as Cognitive Enhancer?)

The very first Quantified Self meetup, held at Kevin Kelly’s home. Here, Dr. Seth Roberts is speaking, and I’m seated third from the right. (Photo: Kevin Kelly)

Below are the notes I took at the very first Quantified Self meet-up on 9/10/08.

It was held in the picturesque home of Kevin Kelly, the founding editor of WIRED magazine. Surrounded by books, wood paneling, and white boards, we had one hell of a jam session.

From that small, 28-person gathering, “QS” has since grown into a pop-culture term and international phenomenon, with organizations in more than 20 countries. Forbes has even called 2013 “The Year of the Quantified Self.”

Here’s where it started…

Next, just for fun: a term paper (and some random notes) from my sophomore year in college. It’s far from perfect, but it explores some worthwhile questions.

The late Professor Hoebel, a pioneer in food addiction research, was a fascinating man and incredible teacher. This paper was written when I was interested in later joining the lab of Dr. Barry Jacobs, which was focused on brain monoamine neurotransmitters. Alas, I couldn’t hack the requisite animal testing and later switched from neuroscience to East Asian Studies with a focus on language acquisition.

And now to the question: could LSD function as a cognitive enhancer? Hmmm…

For posts on my own self-experimentation, click here and scroll through.

A huge styrofoam robot — one of many wonders in Kevin Kelly’s home. (Photo: Telstar Logistics)

Posted on April 3rd, 2013

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Tweaking Dietary Fat Mix Might Boost Prostate Cancer Survival

Men who subbed vegetable oils, avocados, nuts for animal fats fared better in study

By Denise Mann

HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, June 10 (HealthDay News) -- Men with prostate cancer may boost their survival chances if they replace animal fats and carbohydrates in their diet with healthy fats such as olive oils, nuts and avocados, new research suggests.

Men who substituted 10 percent of their daily calories from animal fats and carbs with such healthy fats as olive oil, canola oil, nuts, seeds and avocados were 29 percent less likely to die from spreading prostate cancer and 26 percent less likely to die from any other disease when compared to men who did not make this healthy swap, the study found.

And a little bit seems to go a long way. Specifically, adding just one daily tablespoon of an oil-based salad dressing resulted in a 29 percent lower risk of dying from prostate cancer and a 13 percent lower risk of dying from any other cause, the study contended.

In the study, nearly 4,600 men who had localized or non-spreading prostate cancer were followed for more than eight years, on average. During the study, 1,064 men died. Of these, 31 percent died from heart disease, slightly more than 21 percent died as a result of prostate cancer and slightly less than 21 percent died as a result of another type of cancer.

The findings appeared online June 10 in JAMA Internal Medicine.

The study can't say for sure that including healthy fats in the diet was responsible for the survival edge seen among men. "The main take-home message is that consuming healthy fats and nuts may have a protective role," said study author Erin Richman, a postdoctoral scholar in the department of epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco.

In 2013, there will be nearly 239,000 men diagnosed with prostate cancer and nearly 30,000 men will die from the disease, according to estimates from the U.S. National Cancer Institute.

"The next step is to plan a randomized controlled trial of these healthier fats and see whether and how they affect the prostate," Richman said. "The novel finding in this study seems to be a benefit on prostate cancer survival." She noted that there is already a large body of evidence suggesting that healthy fats help reduce heart disease risks.

An editorial by Dr. Stephen Freedland of Duke University Medical Center accompanied the new study.

"We can say for sure that being obese increases the risk of dying of prostate cancer," Freedland said. "The new study gives us some more clues. It suggests that cutting out saturated fats and carbohydrates and replacing them with healthy fats can also lower the risk of dying from prostate cancer."

Another expert praised the new study while noting that the findings aren't conclusive.

"This study is well-designed and offers some evidence that a diet higher in vegetable fat and lower in carbohydrates might reduce risk of premature death from prostate cancer in men with prostate cancer that has not spread to other parts of the body," said Eric Jacobs, an epidemiologist at the American Cancer Society. "While these results are exciting, there have been few other studies in this area and more are needed before conclusions can be made about the effect of vegetable fat or other dietary factors on prostate cancer progression."

Moreover, Jacobs said, "there is stronger evidence that smoking and obesity increase risk of prostate cancer recurrence and death from prostate cancer, giving prostate cancer survivors one more reason to avoid smoking and maintain a healthy weight."

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Get Scarlett Johansson's Superhero Bod in One Move

Scarlett Johansson rocks that magic combo of curves, confidence and fitness that somehow inspires a we-can't-help-it obsession in us all. I mean, girl is gorgeous. As femme fatale Black Widow in The Avengers -- which is in the running for an MTV Movie Award this weekend! -- she looks so damn comfortable in that skintight body suit (not to mention this to-die-for burgundy gown), she got us jonesing get a bodacious superhero body, too.

To the rescue: L.A.-based trainers Bobby and Alicia Strom, who worked with Johansson while she was prepping for the role. "She really puts 100% into getting ready for whatever role she needs to play," says Bobby. "When she was going to be in The Avengers, she wanted to be more athletic and toned."

So, what's the first thing you learn in Action Star 101? You need to get a core hovering in that "rock solid" zone. "She was being shot around in a harness, doing kicks and jumps," says Bobby. "She [needed] to be strong enough not to get hurt doing stunts."

The trainer had Johansson strengthening her core with a tough super move that combines the Inchworm with knee tucks. Check out this totally homemade but insanely awesome how-to video featuring Alicia Strom (who's sporting super-chic Victoria's Secret VSX Sport Line, btw). Once we nail this move like Scarlett did -- watch out world, cat suit here we come!

Inchworm with Knee Tuck

Standing straight up, bend to touch your toes, keeping knees straight. Crawling out with your hands, keeping your knees stiff, so that you're stretching glutes and hamstrings. Walk your hands out to a plank position. Do a knee tuck by crossing your right knee toward your left shoulder. Do one knee tuck with each leg, then walk your hands back slowly, stand up and stretch toward the sky. Do the entire move 10 times for some fat-blasting results!

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Image Credit: Fairchild Archive

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Study: Low Blood Pressure May Weaken Brains of Some Heart Patients

Pressure that's too low -- or too high -- might damage brain cells, new research suggests

By Steven Reinberg

HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, June 10 (HealthDay News) -- People suffering from cardiovascular disease who have lower-than-normal blood pressure may face a higher risk of brain atrophy -- the death of brain cells or connections between brain cells, Dutch researchers report.

Such brain atrophy can lead to Alzheimer's disease or dementia in these patients. In contrast, similar patients with high blood pressure can slow brain atrophy by lowering their blood pressure, the researchers added.

Blood pressure is measured using two readings. The top number, called systolic pressure, gauges the pressure of blood moving through arteries. The bottom number, called diastolic pressure, measures the pressure in the arteries between heartbeats. Normal blood pressure for adults is less than 120/80, according to the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

For the study, 70 to 90 was considered normal diastolic blood pressure, while under 70 was considered low.

"Our data might suggest that patients with cardiovascular disease represent a subgroup within the general population in whom low diastolic blood pressure might be harmful," said researcher Dr. Majon Muller, an epidemiologist and geriatrician at VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam.

On the other hand, lowering blood pressure in people with high blood pressure might slow brain atrophy, she said.

"Our findings could imply that blood pressure lowering is beneficial in patients with higher blood pressure levels, but one should be cautious with further blood pressure lowering in patients who already have low diastolic blood pressure," Muller added.

The report was published in the June 10 online edition of JAMA Neurology.

A U.S. expert noted the complex effects of blood pressure levels on the brain.

"High blood pressure has been shown to increase the risk of vascular brain lesions and brain atrophy. Trials of blood pressure lowering in patients with hypertension have shown reduced risk of brain lesions," said Dr. Gregg Fonarow, a professor of cardiology at the University of California, Los Angeles, and a spokesman for the American Heart Association.

However, in patients with hypertension, the relationship between the levels of systolic and diastolic blood pressure and brain atrophy has been less clear, he said.

This new study suggests that low diastolic blood pressure levels were associated with brain atrophy regardless of blood pressure levels after patients developed dementia, Fonarow said.

"These findings suggest that while treatment and control of high blood pressure is very important for brain and cardiovascular health, caution is needed in patients who have low diastolic blood pressure levels," he said.

To see what changes blood pressure would make in the progression of brain atrophy, Muller's group studied 663 patients who suffered from heart disease, cardiovascular disease, peripheral artery disease or abdominal aortic aneurysm. The average age of participants was 57 and most were men.

People whose diastolic blood pressure was below 70 had more brain atrophy over time, the study found. For people with higher-than-normal blood pressure, brain atrophy decreased when their blood pressure did. When blood pressure rose, however, atrophy increased.

Another expert, Dr. Sam Gandy, associate director of the Mount Sinai Alzheimer's Disease Research Center in New York City, said that the finding "is an important cautionary tale."

"This implies that one must adapt the approach to the individual patient. Correction of hypertension is helpful, but reducing blood pressure in patients with normal blood pressure is risky and complicated," Gandy said.

Although the study found an association between low diastolic blood pressure and the risk of developing brain atrophy for people with artery disease, it did not establish a cause-and-effect relationship.

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Melanoma Rates Rising in U.S. Children

Deadly skin cancer still rare in kids, but long-term study found 2 percent yearly increase among whites

By Denise Mann

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, April 3 (HealthDay News) -- Melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer, doesn't usually occur in kids, but a new study shows that it's happening more often.

While melanoma in children is still extremely rare, the rate increased by about 2 percent per year from 1973 to 2009 among U.S children from newborns to age 19. Melanoma accounts for up to 3 percent of all pediatric cancers, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation.

According to the study, 1,317 children were diagnosed with melanoma during the study time frame. Of these, 1,230 children were white. Because the number of melanoma cases among other racial and ethnic groups was so small, researchers focused the analysis on white children.

The biggest jump in melanoma rates was seen among adolescents aged 15 to 19, especially girls, the study showed.

The new findings were published in the May print issue of Pediatrics.

Recent studies have also shown that melanoma is on the rise among adults as well. Exactly what is driving these trends is not fully understood, but increased exposure to ultraviolet radiation from both the sun and tanning booths as well as greater awareness of melanoma may be responsible, according to study authors led by Jeannette Wong of the U.S. National Cancer Institute.

The researchers used a database to capture trends in childhood melanoma, but they did not have any information on participants' tanning habits or sun exposure history.

Boys were more likely to develop melanomas on their face and trunks, while girls were more likely to have melanoma on their lower legs and hips, the investigators found. Other risks for melanoma among children and adults include fair skin, light-colored hair and eyes, moles, family history of melanoma and a history of sunburns.

Dr. Amy Forman Taub, a dermatologist in Lincolnshire, Ill., said that tanning behaviors have a lot to do with the increasing rates of melanoma in children and adults. "It's the tanning booths and the fact that we go away on vacation where we are exposed to a lot of intense sun," she said.

Genes may also play a role, suggested Taub, who was not involved in the new study.

Melanoma in kids looks pretty similar to melanoma in adults, Taub said. They have irregular borders, are asymmetrical -- if you cut them in half, you would not get two equal sides -- have uneven colors, and a diameter that is greater than 6 millimeters (about one-fifth of an inch). "Parents should be aware of any new or changing moles in their children," she advised.

Choosing a sunscreen that blocks both ultraviolet A and ultraviolet B rays and reapplying it frequently is important, she said. Sun-smart clothing can also help protect children.

Dr. Ana Duarte, director of pediatric dermatology at Miami Children's Hospital, agreed. "Early diagnosis of melanoma is beneficial," she said, and the importance of protection can't be overstated. "Sunscreen and or sun protection are so important for children," Duarte said, and whatever you do, "don't ignore changing moles, even in children, because melanoma can occur in kids."

Dr. Michele Green, a dermatologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, said the new study puts childhood melanoma on the radar, and that's a good thing.

"It is rare, but children do get melanoma," Green said. "When in doubt, get it checked out. The good news is that we know how to prevent melanoma, and when we catch it early, we have really good cure rates."

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Drug Company Reps Don't Tell Docs Enough About Side Effects: Survey

Many U.S., Canadian and French physicians prescribed the promoted meds anyway

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, April 10 (HealthDay News) -- Drug company salespeople provide family doctors with little or no information about the harmful effects of medicines they are promoting, a new study says.

Despite this lack of knowledge, doctors are likely to start prescribing these drugs after visits from company representatives, according to the findings from questionnaires completed by American, Canadian and French doctors.

The study revealed that salespeople failed to provide any information about common or serious side effects or warn doctors about types of patients who should not use the medicine in 59 percent of the promotions.

"Laws in all three countries require sales representatives to provide information on harm as well as benefits," lead author Barbara Mintzes, of the University of British Columbia, said in a university news release. "But no one is monitoring these visits and there are next to no sanctions for misleading or inaccurate promotion."

Serious risks were mentioned in only 6 percent of the promotions, even though 57 percent of the medicines involved in these visits came with U.S. Food and Drug Administration "black box" or Health Canada boxed warnings, which are the strongest types of drug warnings in the two countries.

"We are very concerned that doctors and patients are left in the dark and patient safety may be compromised," Mintzes said.

Doctors in France were more likely to be told about the potential harmful effects of drugs during promotional visits than their counterparts in Canada and the United States. This may be due to tighter regulations for promotion of medicines in France, the researchers said.

The study was published online April 10 in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

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Overly supportive husband? How can I avoid the sabotage?

I reached my target weight of 150 lbs last September. Since then my "supportive" husband sometimes asks me: Are you still trying to lose weight? Do you still log your food? Don't you want to go down to 140 lbs? Why don't you want to try? I'm not criticizing. What you've done is great, but wouldn't you like to try more?

I feel this steals all the joy of my achievement, and make me feel like I didn't do well enough. I've told him outright that his comments are counterproductive, but he can't see it.

My only solution now is to reach out to you and see if any of you have some ideas for me. Is he right? Or how can I stop this feeling of sabotage?

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New Strategy Helps Young Lymphoma Patients Avoid Radiation Treatment

Approach resulted in high remission rates without the risks tied to radiotherapy, researchers say

By Mary Elizabeth Dallas

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, April 10 (HealthDay News) -- A new treatment approach may mean that young people with a form of lymphoma can go without radiation therapy, sparing them side effects or raised cancer risks down the road.

In a trial conducted by the U.S. National Cancer Institute, nearly all patients with a form of cancer known as primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma who received chemotherapy, but did not undergo chest radiation, achieved a full remission.

Standard treatment for this cancer typically includes radiation to the chest, the study authors pointed out, but this has been linked to significant harmful effects in the future, particularly for women.

"These results are exciting and demonstrate that, using this approach, almost all patients appear to be cured and very few patients require radiation," study co-author Dr. Kieron Dunleavy, of the U.S. National Cancer Institute, said in an agency news release.

One expert not connected to the study agreed.

"This study is a significant achievement in improving the care of a group of lymphoma patients that urgently need it: young patients with an aggressive and -- if left untreated -- rapidly lethal disease," said Dr. Joshua Brody, assistant professor of medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City.

The study "yielded very exciting success rates with almost all patients going into complete remission even without the use of radiation therapy, which is frequently used for this disease," Brody added. All of the patients in the study maintained remission "for a long time," he noted, and "most of the patients are certainly cured of their disease."

The study is published in the April 11 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma usually affects people in their teens to early 30s. Although many people with the disease who are treated with both chemotherapy and radiation do achieve a cure, roughly 20 percent do not, according to an NCI news release.

The research team noted that radiation to the chest area could also boost a patient's risk for other types of cancer down the road, including breast cancer, as well as cause damage to the heart. Complicating matters, as young people age, their risk for heart disease and new forms of cancer also rises.

The NIH trial involved 51 patients with untreated primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma who were followed over the course of 14 years. The largest tumor diameter of any patient in the study was 11 centimeters.

Each patient received a regimen of drugs known as dose-adjusted EPOCH-R. The regimen included the following drugs: etoposide, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, vincristine, prednisone and rituximab. The dosages of these drugs were adjusted to make them as effective as possible.

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Low Blood Sugar May Raise Dementia Risk in Diabetics: Study

Overly aggressive glucose control might backfire in older patients, findings suggest

By Steven Reinberg

HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, June 10 (HealthDay News) -- Low blood sugar in older adults with type 2 diabetes may increase their risk of dementia, a new study suggests.

While it's important for diabetics to control blood sugar levels, that control "shouldn't be so aggressive that you get hypoglycemia," said study author Dr. Kristine Yaffe, a professor of psychiatry, neurology and epidemiology at the University of California, San Francisco.

The study of nearly 800 people, published online June 10 in JAMA Internal Medicine, found that people with episodes of significant hypoglycemia -- low blood sugar -- had twice the chance of developing dementia, Yaffe said. Conversely, "if you had dementia you were also at a greater risk of getting hypoglycemic, compared with people with diabetes who didn't have dementia," she said.

People with type 2 diabetes, by far the most common form of the disease, either don't make or don't properly use the hormone insulin. Without insulin, which the body needs to convert food into fuel, blood sugar rises to dangerously high levels. Over time, this leads to serious health problems, which is why diabetes treatment focuses on lowering blood sugar. But sometimes blood sugar drops to abnormally low levels, which is known as hypoglycemia.

Exactly why hypoglycemia may increase the risk for dementia isn't known, Yaffe said. Hypoglycemia may reduce the brain's supply of sugar to a point that causes some brain damage, Yaffe said. "That's the most likely explanation," she added.

Moreover, someone with diabetes who has thinking and memory problems is at particularly high risk of developing hypoglycemia, she said, possibly because they can't manage their medications well or perhaps because the brain isn't able to monitor sugar levels.

Whether preventing diabetes in the first place reduces the risk for dementia isn't clear, although it's a "very hot area" of research, Yaffe said.

But the findings do suggest that patients' mental status needs to be considered in the management of diabetes, Yaffe said.

Other experts agreed.

"This does raise concern about low blood sugar causing future problems with dementia and dementia causing problems with low blood sugar," said Dr. Stuart Weinerman, an endocrinologist at North Shore-LIJ in Great Neck, N.Y.

Weinerman isn't convinced that the association between hypoglycemia and dementia is cause-and-effect, however. "This is not a definitive study. It raises questions, but it doesn't answer them," he added.

But hypoglycemia is a serious problem for diabetics, Weinerman said. "Sooner or later, everyone is going to have some hypoglycemia," he said.

Episodes of hypoglycemia increase with age, perhaps because of changes in kidney function and drug metabolism, according to an accompanying journal commentary.

Anyone taking drugs that lower blood sugar should be aware of the signs of hypoglycemia, and be prepared to deal with it, Weinerman said. Symptoms can include confusion, jitteriness, fainting, heart palpitations and blurred vision.

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Balding Men Could Face Higher Heart Risks, Study Finds

But not those with a receding hairline, say Japanese investigators who analyzed previous research

By Alan Mozes

HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, April 3 (HealthDay News) -- New research out of Japan shows a potential link between male baldness and an increased risk for coronary heart disease.

But it only affects men who are balding on top. Those with a receding hairline are not at risk, the researchers reported.

The findings stem from an analysis of six published studies on hair loss and heart health that involved approximately 37,000 men.

And although the researchers admitted the small study size was a limitation, they reported that men whose baldness affected the crown on their head faced a 32 percent to 84 percent increase in the risk of developing heart disease compared to men with a full head of hair or a receding hairline.

Study lead author Dr. Tomohide Yamada, of the department of diabetes and metabolic diseases at the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Medicine, in Japan, reported his findings in the current issue of the journal BMJ Open and called for more research on the topic. Although the research review found an association between baldness and heart disease risk, it did not prove a cause-and-effect link.

Male pattern baldness (technically referred to as "androgenetic alopecia") affects up to 40 percent of adult men and is the most common type of hair loss, the researchers reported. By age 80, about four in five men will experience this form of baldness.

To explore the link to heart disease, the researchers analyzed databases covering the period 1950 through 2012. Out of 850 related investigations, they selected six studies, all published between 1993 and 2008 in the United States, Denmark or Croatia.

In the three studies that tracked patients for a minimum of 11 years, the research showed that, overall, balding men face a 33 percent greater risk for heart disease than other men, and those between 55 and 60 years old faced an even higher risk (44 percent).

The other three studies, comparing the cardiac health of balding men to non-balding men, showed a 70 percent bump in heart disease risk among the balding group, and an 84 percent risk for younger balding men.

What's more, a balding man's heart disease risk appeared to be dependent on the severity of his hair loss, with more severe loss translating into greater risk, the studies showed.

Yamada's team said the driving mechanism behind the connection is unknown, but they theorized that baldness could be a marker for insulin resistance, chronic inflammation or an increased sensitivity to testosterone, all of which are factors in the onset of heart disease.

Regardless, Yamada said, balding men should do what all men should do when it comes to controlling heart disease risk. "I recommend adapting a heart-healthy lifestyle that includes a low-fat diet, exercise and less stress [in order to mitigate against] classical coronary risk factors," such as age, high blood pressure, blood lipid disruption and a history of smoking, he said.

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Style Your Coffee Table Like an Editor

Meet one of SELF's Editorial Assistants, Alyssa. When's she not scoping out the latest pop culture trends for our Entertainment department, Alyssa can usually be found DIYing. We tap into her craftiness to find out what she's whipping up every week.

"Styling" a home is something that I didn't really think my about until I got my own place. Apparently there are certain ways you can pull things together to make your home look profesh and, you know, Pinterest-y. And what gal doesn't want a Pinterest-worthy home, am I right? Here are a few quick tricks I've learned for styling a chic, "I'm-not-trying-too-hard" coffee table.

Start with what I like to call an "anchoring piece" -- usually, a lamp works best. We used a fun colorful chevron one, which immediately draws your eye to the table. The height adds a bit of dimension, so not everything placed on the table will be on the same level. Looking for another cool lamp option? We love this yellow one from West Elm.

Next, add a few conversation starters -- books and art are perfect for this. A fun photograph or piece of art will get guests talking-the artist-driven site Society6 has great affordable and quirky options. Stacking the books largest to smallest or arranging them by color will keep the look visually organized and interesting. Best part? You can pick one up for a quick read if you're ever bored (when you're not watching Real Housewives, that is).

Use a tray to pull it all together! This is a very common design trick -- essentially, it allows you to have a stylish catch-all for your other trinkets that don't have another home. (You can think of it as design for slackers.) Pile on a few magazines (maybe SELF, just sayin), a pretty-smelling candle (we love Anthro's Capri Blue scent) or a vase of flowers. Rest assured, your coffee table will look pulled together and perfect, just like mine does. (And yeah, I'm brushing my shoulders off!)

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Image Credit: Alyssa Longobuco

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Just something to think about..

I read this forum every day.  I see so many people, not so very unlike myself, fretting endlessly about the importance of weight loss, how to go about it properly, and all of the varied reasons why we feel we must reduce ourselves.

To all of you, especially the women in this instance, take a moment to read this little quote.

I do not mean to discourage weight loss with this post, but I do mean to redirect the attention we give to our bodies towards health, and away from being less.

Sorry if this comes across as a bit weird. I just found it very thought-provoking and something some others might not have considered.

Be good to yourselves, and take care of you for all of the right reasons.

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