Using drugs that fight cocaine addiction for weight loss?

Happy blustery cold morning my lovely blog readers,

I was outside today for a whopping 3 minutes between getting into my car and walking from the car to the shuttle and let me tell you.. That was quite enough time. If you arent reading from the Pittsburgh area, let it be known that as I was getting ready for work this morning I was watching the local news and 370 schools have already been closed or delayed today due to extreme snow and cold temperatures. We have a windchill of -7 and its supposed to reach a high of 20 degrees today.. a HIGH of 20 degrees? Gross.

Disgusting!

but anyway, onto the topic of todays blog post. I know that I have blogged before about the dangers of diet pills and some supplements. I believe that it was one of my older blogs on the Http://www/networkpittsburgh.com site. Diet pills have back in the news lately because the FDA just recently approved a diet drug for the morbidly obese. It had rejected two earlier in the year by the names of lorcaserin and QNexa.. the reason? The side effects of these drugs can be heart attacks, heart weakening and major links to cancer! I'm sorry but isn't the point of a diet drug to aid in making you healthier not give you more health problems to worry about?

So what makes this new FDA approved drug so different? The new drug that has been approved is called Contrave and it is actually a combination of two drugs that were already on the market. Now for the crazy part.. the two drugs that are mixed to create this new "miracle diet pill" are nalterxone and bupropion which are used to treat what? Naltrexone is used to treat those with COCAINE addiction and bupropion is used as an anti depressant. Why? because they are assuming that everyone that is obese is addicted to food and depressed. Also, weight loss pills have a high risk of increasing suicidal thoughts. So basically the pills help to make you happy and motivated while blocking the pleasure receptors in the brain that are associated with food.

Now, call me a realist or maybe just a romantic dreamer but why are we wasting money even researching these things? I understand that people who are morbidly obese may have to take off weight quickly to save their health and may not even be able to move to exercise because it may cause serious physical harm.. but how about being proactive instead of reactive? How about giving people the tools to naturally lead a healthy lifestyle that will prevent them from becoming obese instead of treating the problem afterwards? How about fining companies and restaurants that use preservatives and addictive additives in their food (McDonalds.. cough cough.. Burger King..cough cough) ? How about supporting the youth nutrition bills currently in the Senate? (which Obama signed this morning by the way!! yay!) What about giving tax breaks or incentives to companies that offer mid day exercise breaks? or healthy vending machines?

We are already in a major deficit and an economy that is struggling every day to rebuild itself. Why are we spending money researching drugs like this when there are diseases that arent preventable that need the attention of top scientists? Cancer, MS, and other major diseases deserve the funding.

We need to teach America not to be lazy and think of the amount of money we would save? I am not saying that I dont take my weekends sometimes to just relax but if you're spending your life "just relaxing" than thats an issue. People need to stop waiting for the next miracle drug or surgery to come out, put down the cheeseburger and get outside.

Cant Believe Im saying it.. but lay off McDonalds!!

Alright everyone.. so I was taking a quick lunch break today to have some hot soup on this cold and windy winter day in Pittsburgh and I ran across something that really made me shake my head. I always surf the health sections of websites like CNN, Yahoo, NY Times, etc.. (usually disappointed because they are rarely updated) but today I stumbled upon the following article about a former McDonalds employee who sued the company and won.. Now normally I am not an advocate of the dollar menu toting fast food chain.. or any fast food chain for that matter. Yes it can be delicious and I am not saying I dont partake a few times a year if I am on the road.. but not the point.

This Article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101028/ap_on_he_me/lt_brazil_mcdonald_s_obese_manager

Is the story of a man in Brazil who sued McDonalds Corp for a small amount of money because the company "Made" him become obese. Just reading that sentence .. does anyone buy that?? I pray to the good Lord above that no one thinks that makes sense.

The former manager claimed that he was "forced" to try the food regularly in order to make sure that the standards for quality were met. I dont believe that for one second.. as a matter of fact I am pretty sure that it is against health codes to eat any of the food youre handling while working. McDonalds is a chain corporation meaning that the parent company leaves no room for change within the branches. The same food is shipped to every restaurant, frozen and only needing to be cooked, The food is cooked to specific temperatures for a specific amount of time which is all controlled by machinery so there is no room for human error. That means that every big mac will taste exactly the same.. its designed that way. So if thats the case.. why would the manager need to taste anything?

Also, he claims that the company offered their food for free lunches for employees. How dare they!? How dare a company offer their employees a free lunch. Note: Just because the lunch is free.. doesnt mean you have to eat it.. and if you had a choice between a chicken sandwhich and a super sized big mac and fries.. if you choose the fattier option.. than thats your problem for your bad decision making.. not the companies.


There were other cases of teenagers and mothers who sued McDonalds a few years ago claiming that the fast food chain made her children obese. NO LADY! McDonalds did not make your child obese.. it was your terrible parenting by taking them to eat fast food everyday instead of making them healthy food or teaching them that they should choose the milk and apples on the menu instead of the double cheeseburger.  I understand that busy parents might not have time to always make a meal but pack granola bars, string cheese, apples! Anything! it take 2 seconds and its cheaper than going out to eat every single day.

Heres one of the stories

This is similar to the women that sued McDonalds for spilling scolding hot coffee on her lap. She sued because McDonalds didnt "warn her" that the coffee was that hot. (which is why we now have the "CAUTION: Contents of this cup are extremely hot" disclaimer on all cups from McDonalds.  I'm sorry but are you really that dumb? Did you expect to go to McDonalds and get cold coffee? and if you did get coffee that was cold.. I am sure you would be the same person that would go and complain that your coffee wasnt hot enough.

Read the story HERE

I know that when I had gained weight, it was by no ones fault but my own. I was drinking, eating terrible- carb filled foods, not exercising.. and guess what? that combination of things makes you gain weight. Period. I couldnt blame Oaklands 5 dollar large pizzas for it.. because it was my choice to go out drinking and then eat 3 slices of pizza at 230am.. and its the same now. Its my decision to go to the gym or not everyday.. its my decision to pack a healthy lunch or go out and buy fast food. I have turned my health around because I made an active decision to do so every day. End of story..  nothing is forced upon anyone.

I am just getting sick of everyone taking the easy way out.. blaming everyone else for their bad decisions. STOP IT! .. Step up and be held accountable for you actions! Unless someone had a gun to your head and was forcing you to drink milkshakes.. you have no one else to blame. McDonalds isnt forcing anyone to drive thru to their windows..

Rant Over.

a 14 hour marathon thanksgiving

Good Morning everyone!!

I apologize for being absent for so long from the blogging community. I believe I havent written anything since about a week before Thanksgiving. I would like to say I was too busy but the truth of the matter is that I just didnt feel very inspired to write anything. The same things that had concerned me before are concerning me now.

For Example,
Have you seen the new and improved HFCS commercials? The one with a man walking his young daughter through a field of sunflowers telling you that your body doesnt know the difference between corn sugar and cane sugar because he has talked to scientists? The part that makes me angry about this advertising campaign is that they fail to tell you that both sugars are chemically enhanced. Yes your body cant tell the difference between the two BUT your body also doesnt recognize either compound as FOOD. All your body recognizes is that they are two foreign chemicals.

But anyway,

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  I know that mine was very busy but very worth it. My boyfriend came in to Pittsburgh and we decided that we were going to split the time between both holiday traditions. So in the morning him and his highschool buddies played in a "Turkey Bowl" while I ran to Starbucks to get coffee and brief the family on our days plans. Small Starbucks coffee with a shot of Hazelnut is delicious!!

Once I picked Dwayne up we were on the road to my hometown of Warren Pennsylvania. Its basically the smallest town in the world but its where I spent the first 18 years of my life. We went to my moms side of the family first (which was being held at my aunts) and ate our first meal of the day. It was soo good.. there were sweet potatoes, turkey, vegetables..MMmmm. I managed to keep my portions small because I knew that there would be a lot of good food that day.

Once we spent a few hours with my moms side, we left to go spend dessert and coffee with my dads side which is part of the wonder of a divorced family I guess. We got there just in time for some pumpkin pie and after dinner drinks. Dwayne thoroughly enjoyed talking sports and sipping Manhattans with my cousin. It was short lived though and we were off to Pittsburgh again.

The drive was so scary because it had been raining all day, it was dark and we were driving in areas without street lights. I was behind the wheel and I dont see very well at night to begin with. We hydroplaned once or twice on the way to the party we were heading to. I think what should have been two and a half hours ended up being closer to three and half but we were safe and thats what matters!

We ended our night with the "Whiskey and Pie" party that one of Dwaynes friends has every year. We walked in to a table filled with different kinds of desserts from pecan pie and pumpkin roll to some crazy strawberry concoction that kind of looked like stewed tomatoes in a crust. We ate dessert, drank wine and hot tubbed ending the whole day around 330am. It was a very very long day but I wouldnt have changed it because we got to see everyone that we wanted to see.

I didnt feel stuffed at any point during the day .. I probably indulged more than I should have on the different desserts but kept the portions small and didnt feel gross and tired by the end.

My gym being closed did mean that I couldnt work out for 5 days because I am not one to run outside in the rain or if its below 45 degrees. I hate the cold.. it makes my chest hurt to breath in cold air while running.. I wont do it.. I always look at the diehard runners in all their winter gear from my nice warm car and think "use a treadmill" haha

But yesterday it was back to the grind of the gym and it felt good. I am thinking about trying to be strict on my cardio between thanksgiving and christmas because the break for Christmas will be even longer with out being able to exercise. I will be traveling home and to NC after that for New Years. I want to have a little wiggle room..

Quick Routines

Good Morning Everyone!!

Normally I blog on Mondays but yesterday was just crazy!! I feel like this whole week is going to be a real stresser only because every second of every day is filled with something and if it isnt.. than its going to be filled with sleep because I dont always get enough : )

First let me start off by saying that I have the most amazing job in the world. I have truly been blessed to work with some very kind people, who really want to see young people succeed which is so refreshing! Especially refreshing to me since I had a boss through college that was a little angry jerk with a napoleon complex the size of Montana. The whole staff (especially me for some reason I have yet to figure out) was screamed at, manhandled and degraded every night by our piece of crap manager who was nothing more than a glorified host. Note to all readers: The Duquense Club = Amazing Tips but sometimes money isnt worth the piece of shit you have to work for ( I think he was jealous that we were young and just starting our lives and his had already gone to hell in a handbasket bc he was such an a** hole)... buuuut I digress hahaha That experience makes me truly appreciate the wonderful people I work for now and because they are so wonderful, they are letting me pick up some extra hours in the office to make up for money I have to pay to the University to finish my MBA.

This also means that I have to work later than usual which is screwing up my gym routine. Usually I would go to the gym at 4 when I was off of work and now I go at 5. I have class 2 nights a week at 6 which doesnt leave me much time.. I have been trying to go and at least run a few miles because I feel like a complete lump sitting in my office all day and then sitting in a classroom all night.. but hey you gotta do what you gotta do!

I would love some tips or routines that anyone has tried that are quick but an effective work out : ) Let me know if you have any thoughts on something I can complete in 30-40 minutes.

THANKS!!

Girls night, Flat Bread Pizza and a 42% Obesity Rate

Good Morning lovely blog readers! I hope this blog finds you all happy, well and free from the sniffles! I am doing well in the no sniffle department so far and I am hoping that it continues that way!

This weekend was a blast which is why I took a blogging hiatus since last week. The number one reason was that I couldn't find anything that I particularly wanted to write about but also that I had spent a good majority of my weekend in front of a computer doing homework and I just couldn't do it anymore! I am more than half way thru a Masters Degree and so sometimes I have to take "homework weekends" in which I lock myself in the Beehive in South Side or my apartment and just bust out papers and book reviews. I also spent some time with my wonderful friends which was awesome...I love them and I am hoping that I can convince many of them to come down and visit me when I move to Charlotte, NC this summer.

Friday was the wine loft and a movie with some awesome people and Saturday I got to spend time with a slew of girls that I love. There was a Kim, Marlee, Kacey and 2 Stephanie's thrown into the mix! : ) We ate some delicious veggie/red sauce pasta and drank some delicious red wine.. while talking girl talk (sorry guys) and it was great fun!

Sunday I went up to visit my mom which is always fun. I love spending time with my family and especially my parents because I feel like I can talk to my parents and my sister about absolutely anything. My mom and I made some delicious super thin crust pizza from scratch and watched movies. I want to spend as much time as possible with my family this year before I get to far away from them and visiting isn't as easy.

As I looked around in public places I encountered however, I noticed the ratio of overweight people to people with what I would assume is a normal BMI. I would say the ratio was pretty on point with the national average which is 1/3 of people being obese or overweight for their height. I started thinking about the Marie Claire article that go so much hype a few weeks ago when a writer was brutally honest about her feelings on obese and overweight people and I started to think to myself.. do I feel that way when I sit in this room?

The answer was sometimes yes but I don't think to the extent that this writer does. I will admit that the article upset me just like everyone else but at the same time I can respect her for writing 100% honestly about how she feels. A recent study done by Harvard scientists says that if the current trend in the US continues, by the year 2050, 42% of Americans will be overweight or obese. THATS ALMOST HALF OUR POPULATION!! This means time for a serious wake up call!!

So I want to know what you think! What feelings immediately come to you when you see someone who is overweight or obese? Do you think its right or wrong to empower those that are overweight to continue to be so or try to help them lose weight? I want to know what everyone thinks.. so email me or comment here, facebook or twitter please. I am seriously interested!

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