Jan
06
2014

Teacher Gets Healthy On McDonald's Diet

It’s our choices that make us fat

Teacher Gets Healthy On McDonald's Diet

In a twist on the Super Size Me documentary, an Iowa-based science teacher embarked on an controlled experiment of his own: to eat a diet of McDonald's—and nothing but McDonald's—for three months straight. The results were surprising and far more worthy of exploration than that of the woman who subsisted on Starbucks food alone.

According to an article in Buzzfeed, with the help of his students, John Cisna consumed 2,000 calories a day, relying on the fast-food joint's online nutritional information.

For 90 days he followed the plan, which included 45 minutes of walking per day.

For Cisna, the 'diet' was all about balance. While he didn't deny himself quarter-pounders and sundaes, he was careful to stick to dietary guidelines for things like carbohydrates, fat, proteins, and cholesterol.

Incredibly, at the end of the experiment, the teacher had not only shed 37 pounds, but his cholesterol had plummeted from 249 to 170, with the so-called ‘bad' cholesterol falling from 173 to 113.

Moral of the story: McDonald’s isn't the devil you know.

“We all have choices," said Cisna. "It’s our choices that make us fat, not McDonald’s.” Amen.
 
What do you make of this experiment?
 

Jan
03
2014

Pregnant Nurse Fired for Refusing Vaccine

the potential risk was not worth it

Pregnant Nurse Fired for Refusing Vaccine

A pregnant nurse who refused to get the flu shot has been fired by her employer. According to an article in the Huffington Post, Pennsylvania-based Dreonna Breton was three months pregnant when she told Horizons Healthcare Services that she would not submit to their mandatory flu vaccine.

Breton cited concerns about complicating her pregnancy, as she had previously suffered several miscarriages.

"I'm a healthy person," she said. "I take care of my body. For me, the potential risk was not worth it. I'm not gonna be the one percent of people that has a problem."

However, her rationale did not prove sufficient for Horizons, whose mandate is to protect patients and the community from "getting this potentially serious infection."

Breton stressed that not enough was known about the potential risks of the flu vaccine, though health advisers claim she's subjecting herself to a much greater risk if she does contract the flu.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists describes such vaccines as an "essential element of prenatal care," and with their altered immune systems, pregnant women are especially vulnerable to the flu.

Should Breton have been exempt from Horizon's policy?

Should you get the flu vaccine? See what our Yummy doctor has to say.

Jan
03
2014

Dad's Lunch Notes To His Children Will Inspire You

From the brown bag into the mainstream

Dad's Lunch Notes To His Children Will Inspire You

Though he calls them "dorky," we prefer to call And I'm the Dad's efforts unbelievably cool after the blogger's lunch notes found their way out of the brown bag and into the mainstream.

According to an article in Mashable, as the chief lunch maker in his household, Dad started sneaking notes into his son's lunch back in 2012 to cheer him up when he was going through a bit of a rough patch. 

Of course we have no doubt that the notes—part doodle, part origami, 100% from the heart—brightened his kid's day.

Dad also makes his wife and daughter notes of their own, though they take at most five minutes, and it's not something that happens every day. 
 
"The notes are influenced by several things," he said. "Sometimes it's a topic we discussed that morning or the night before. Other times, it might be along a theme, like the alphabet series I did for my daughter, who is in kindergarten and still learning to read."

I'm partial to the notes with hidden, uplifting messages, while Daddy's girl is most taken by drawing of Hedgie, the hedgehog from Jan Brett’s books.
 
And here's to another dad who totally inspired us with his originality and cunning.

Are you a secret note-packer? Feeling inspired to drop your own lunchbox love?