Top 5 Natural Hairstyles for Black Short Hair 2016

Short hair has always been a favorite choice for black natural hairstyles because of the comfort and style it brings. Short black hairstyles are also very convenient and unique; donning one would surely make heads turn! Are you planning to try some black short hairstyles? If so, this list below is perfect for you.

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This Viral Body-Positive Campaign Is Actually a Spoof

It's been a banner year for body positivity, so we weren’t the least bit surprised when Aerie, American Eagle’s lingerie brand, announced #AerieMAN, a campaign with ordinary guys (OK, one has a six-pack, but real men can have abs too!) modeling underwear. The unretouched photos have the tagline “the real you is sexy” emblazoned on them. Aerie is already known for not retouching photos of women in their skivvies, so this seemed like a natural next step.

Then we started to notice little hints that #AerieMAN might not be a genuine campaign but rather an elaborate spoof. The company’s spokesperson won’t confirm that it’s a parody, but we found a mountain of evidence:

• Aerie is technically a women’s lingerie brand and does not sell any men's items. Instead all men’s underwear is sold under the American Eagle Outfitters label.
• The #AerieMan campaign includes four men, but the product pages on American Eagle’s website include only photos of Matt, the career model with the six-pack.
• When The Huffington Post requested hi-res images, the photos they received were labeled “ae_spoof.”

Photo: The Huffington Post

And then there are the videos. Let’s dive into each one individually.

Meet Kelvin:

We first meet Kelvin, the style blogger behind Notoriously Dapper, taking a bubble bath while wearing a wide-brim fedora. That’s something even Pharrell wouldn’t do. And then he starts snapping butt selfies while saying, “It’s about sharing yourself, all of yourself.” We get it, Kelvin: We take too many selfies.

Meet Doug:

Doug is a health nut. We know this because he rolls around in his underwear while reading The Meat Free Monday Cookbook (as you do). Oh, yeah, and he does yoga wearing underwear with “flexy” written on his derriere. (Get it, flex + sexy = flexy. Portmanteaus, they’re all the rage today.) The nail in the coffin on this one: The description on his YouTube video says, "Doug is a free spirit who lives by the motto 'pants off, zen on.'"

Meet Devon:

Devon is your stereotypical stoner surfer bro. We know this because he sports shoulder-length hair, a full beard, and wears boxer briefs with marijuana leaves on them. And he spews platitudes like: “It’s how you choose to wear the underwear. It goes beyond the pattern that's on the trunks. It’s about how you choose to put that pattern out there.” How does Devon put that pattern out there? By suggestively thrusting his manhood while eating grapes.

Meet Matt:

Matt is a model, but he says that doesn’t make him comfortable in his underwear (as the camera follows him taking out the trash in his briefs). Then he’s back back in a chair wearing glasses and reading a book because models are smart. And the cherry on top: He hangs up a photo of himself in a flannel top and boxer briefs and gives it the finger guns. He’s just too cool for school.

With all this evidence, we kind of can’t believe we first watched the videos so naively. Plus the company has a long history of pulling April Fools' Day pranks: One year it was spray-on denim, and another year it was a dog clothing line called American Beagle Outfitters. (We’ll admit we laughed at that last one.)

Still, it all feels a little too soon—and we’re not just saying that because the company released the campaign a full week before April 1. Body positivity and body diversity are cropping up all over the place, but the movement is still in its infancy, which is why we get so genuinely thrilled every time a new company jumps on board. We’re not sure whom American Eagle was trying to spoof (the media? the consumer?), but here’s the thing: Satire can be nuanced, but it should obviously poke fun. And as the headlines show ("Aerie Gives Plus-Size Men the Underwear Campaign We’ve All Been Waiting For," "Aerie’s New Campaign That Dad Bods Can Really Get Behind"), most missed the memo that this was supposed to be a joke.

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Five Secrets For Weight Loss and Dieting

These are some general tips to use when you are trying to lose weight. It will tell you how to set goals and how long it could take to reach those goals.

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The Health of the Immune and Lymphatic System

While we often talk about the immune system, it can be hard to visualise exactly what it is and how it works in practice. The immune system is one of the most incredible and complex systems in the body, able to spring into action in defence against harmful 'invaders' (like bacteria and viruses) within minutes by releasing antibodies. As one of our most important health assets, it therefore makes sense to do all we can to support and even boost our immunity

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10 Tips That Can Help You Achieve Your Weight Loss Goal Faster

Are you a man losing weight who wants to see results quickly? Well, you should know that attaining a dream physique requires a lot of sweat and discipline. In terms of discipline, there are actually little things that you can do every day, aside powering through a treadmill and lifting, which can help you see those pounds drop on the scale.

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4 Reasons That May Be Causing Your Gut Bloating

There are some fundamental reasons why so many people suffer with the uncomfortable condition of bloating. Here I outline four of the top contenders. 1. A diet high in carbohydrates and sugars that is feeding pathogenic organisms in your gut. Unbeneficial bacteria and yeast in your gut, who love to feed of carbohydrates and sugars, may well be causing you to feel bloated.

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How to Stay in Shape While Working Crazy Hours in Real Estate

It's been said that once you hit the magical number of 30, your metabolism rate will start to go downhill. But for others who have a desk job like I do, noticing a decrease in their bathroom visits as early as 21 isn't really unusual. The catch is: it is neither your age nor your body to blame for this misfortune.

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Drinking Wine Isn’t As Good for You As You Think

Whenever anyone questions our penchant for starting happy hour at 4 p.m., we throw them a little side eye and say, “You know wine can help you live longer!” Well, it looks like we’re going to have to retire that factoid: A new meta-analysis (science speak for a study that looks at dozens of other studies) found that moderate drinkers don’t actually live longer than those who stay sober.

“This study challenges a most uncomfortable finding of alcohol research over the past decade—that moderate alcohol consumption reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease,” says Marion Nestle, Ph.D., a nutrition professor at NYU. “What surprises me is that it has taken this long to dig deeply into the methods of those studies.”

The problems with the existing research stems from their definition of drinkers and nondrinkers. Moderate drinking is usually defined as an average of two drinks per night for men and one drink for women. (Females get the short end of the stick because they tend to weigh less and alcohol has been connected to an increased risk of breast cancer.) But many of the 87 peer-reviewed studies classified people who stopped drinking for medical reasons as nondrinkers, making the drinkers look artificially healthier. When researchers adjusted for this bias, the studies no longer showed that drinking added years onto lushes’ lives.

But there's no need to pack up your wine glasses for good. “Because drinking does not occur in isolation, many individual, social, and cultural factors contribute to the way that alcohol consumption relates to health consequences,” says Eun-Young Mun, Ph.D., a psychology professor at the Center for Alcohol Studies at Rutgers University. Translation: More research needs to be done before we even get close to saying moderate drinking is something to avoid. So pour yourself a glass—just don’t feel so high and mighty about it.

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Making Perfume an Affordable Hobby

When I first started my hobby for collecting perfume, I envisioned a cabinet full of all the newest fragrances. I quickly discovered that although I had listed perfume under the non-essential category on my budget list, I was still able to stay on budget and still keep my family responsibilities in check.

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Weight Loss - Successfully Planning Your Cheat Meal!

Are cravings starting to creep up? If you've been eating healthily for quite some time now, it will only be a matter of time before you begin to have thoughts about less-than-healthy foods. It happens to even the best of dieters - cravings creep in, and if you aren't careful, it can lead you to fall off your diet completely. The best way around this is to plan for your cheat meal.

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A Cardio Workout That Strengthens Your Core

If you crave the rush of heart-pumping cardio but can’t stand the treadmill, you’ll love this no-equipment-required home workout.

You’ll spend the first two minutes doing a low-impact warm-up then transition into 18 minutes of fast footwork and basic boxing moves that engage your abs. Even without weights, you’ll break a sweat and exhaust multiple muscle groups. Finally, the instructor includes an active cool-down that engages your back body to balance your core and ends the workout with a soothing stretch.

The best part: You don’t even have to step foot in the gym. Squeeze this 25-minute routine into your day for twice the benefits in half the time.

To recap, you'll do a 2-minute warm-up, followed by the workout below, and then a 6-minute cool-down.

• Front Jab
• Pull Down With Knee Drive
• Jumping Jack With Punch
• Sumo Squat With Hook
• Squat With Front Kick
• Basic Punch
• Punch With Leg Cross
• Squat Punch
• High-Knee Pull With Side Crunch

​Looking for more short and effective at-home workouts? Grokker has thousands of routines, so you’ll never get bored. Bonus: For a limited time, Greatist readers get 40 percent off Grokker Premium (just $9 per month) and their first 14 days free. Sign up now!

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Apple's New Platform Is a Game Changer for Depression Treatment

Finding the right treatment for anxiety and depression is exhausting—and it can leave you feeling defeated. Maybe you try talk therapy or an SSRI (or both), and then you continue to adjust and try new remedies until you find your literal happy medium, a process that takes most people at least six months. Part of the reason it takes so long is we’re not great at tracking whether the medication is actually helping. (When you can’t remember what you had for lunch yesterday, recalling how a drug made you feel over the last few weeks is no easy task.)

But that’s all about to change with CareKit, a game-changing software platform from Apple that will be released on iOS devices in April. CareKit includes four modules:

• Care Card: Monitors medication or progress on treatment, like physical therapy.
• Symptom and Measurement Tracker: Records physical signs, such as pain, fatigue, or infection, that suggest treatment should be changed.
• Insight Dashboard: Analyzes data into graphs.
• Connect: Shares medical data with doctors and family.

The platform will function much like Apple’s HealthKit, which is designed for health and fitness apps. Developers are already stepping up to the plate to take advantage of the new framework with apps to track depression, diabetes, and post-surgical care. Sharing such personal data about yourself worries many, but Apple is quick to point out that you are in control here, deciding who gets to see what information.

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Patient-Centered Medical Home and Population Health Management

The recently passed Medicare Access and CHIPS Reauthorization Act will move reimbursement towards value based services rather than fee for service for physicians who treat Medicare patients. One alternative payment method in this program that will reward physician groups for care is being a patient-centered medical home.

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How To Choose The Perfect Nail Design

Professionally done nails are simply stunning and they will complete your elegant look. You definitely will love pampering yourself with a manicure and you will have the final look of the nails. French manicures have been and remain popular and acrylic nail designs are even more popular today. There are so many options when it comes to nail art and you will find designs that appeal to you the most. But how do you select the perfect one for you?

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Understanding Family PACT

Family PACT is a medical service provided in California in the United States and is a family planning service which is offered completely free of charge to reduce the risk of unwanted pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.There are certain criteria which must be met in order to qualify for family PACT, not everyone can quality.

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Identifying A Medical Emergency And What To Do

Having emergency medical services training of some kind can be useful as you never know when you are going to need it. A basic first aid course from work or a more detailed medical training through an online college can give you the knowledge and skills you need to deal with an emergency and ensure the person gets the right care as quickly as possible.

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Benefits Of Botox Treatment You May Not Know

Botox treatment has been around for many years, in fact there are those that hold Botox parties, where those attending get their injections in the comfort of their own or their friend or family's home. This is due to the fact that this beauty treatment is considered safe, yet what many people don't realize is that these injections provide so much more than just a beauty treatment.

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4 Unbelievable Ways To Make Stomach Slim And Flat

You have everything you need to reach your goal to make your stomach slim and flat. Decide right now that this is going to be a priority for you.

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How To Get The "Perfect Body"?

As a woman, you want to be comfortable in your skin before you flaunt it to others and that comes with having the right body shape. However, this so called "Perfect body" has taken on several shades of meaning over the years. There was a time that celebrated a woman's curves. A voluptuous figure with a heavy bust and wide hips was considered attractive. It was also considered a sign of good health and fertility. With the sexual revolution, the concept of the "perfect body" has been inverted on its head. Thin and androgynous is the idealized body shape. And, when thin is in, who would fall for the full-figured hourglass look? That's one of the main reasons we take to dieting. Popular diets and weight loss pills owe their popularity to the changing notion of the ideal body shape. Had the fashion industry not perpetuated the "tall and skinny", I bet they would have all been out of business.

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Inflammation - What Does It Mean and Why Is Everyone Talking About It?

Inflammation is a word that is thrown around a lot these days. It continues to be understood as a major factor in health versus illness.

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Why My Hectic Morning Routine Rules (and I'm Not Changing It)

I'm an entrepreneur. And a writer. And a creative. I do a lot of different things, a lot of different kinds of work. I know what the cliché says—I should be a hugely focused and productive person who lives like a super human and breathes pure and untainted inspiration.

But here's the truth. I'm a total f*cking mess. A hot mess. I run my life and my business and my writing career and my speaking engagements with a sense of organized chaos. Do you know why?

Because I'm a human. And humans are disorganized, chaotic, emotionally up and down, totally inconsistent, and gloriously weird. We are. Even when we try to impose a sense of order, and we look like hyper-scheduled automatons, we're still flying by the seat of our pants.

When all of life is completely unpredictable, it'd be impossible to do anything else.

With that in mind, I want to talk about my rituals and my way of greeting the day. It might not be inspiring, and you're not about to learn any life hacks, but I think it's going to resonate with one or two of you.

I wake up at 6 a.m. and hate myself and my life.

There is no way around this. Almost every morning, almost every day of the week, the first thing that drifts into my mind when my alarm goes off is how much I hate everything. How much I hate being awake, and hate work, and hate getting up, and hate showering, and hate writing, and hate building things.

This is largely unavoidable. I know because I've tried everything. Setting myself motivational messages, getting more sleep, modifying my diet, doing yoga, etc. Doesn't help. The version of me that wakes up is just a real, grumpy as*hole. There's not a lot I can do about that except hold it in and wait for the fog to clear and the feeling to drift away.

To pass the time, I like to think through a list of things I'm grateful for. It's not a total antidote, but it does help. My partner, my comfortable bed, my breakfast, my family, Fugazi's debut album, whatever book I'm reading. It's not an easy list to make when hateful me has control, but it's a positive move nonetheless.

I battle with my early morning phone addiction.

After I finally drag myself out of bed, I struggle with the crazed urge to check my phone. I know there are going to be tweets, emails, app updates, tech news, funny sh*t to read, and probably one or two hilarious gifs, and I want to see them all so incredibly bad.

I'll occasionally freeze with indecision, itching to grab my phone and dive in, but knowing I need to get myself in gear. Recently, I've taken to charging my phone in the living room to escape its clutches in the early hours of the morning. I know if I don't, I'll sit on the bathroom floor, delaying my shower for a good 20 minutes while I scroll, swipe, and tap away. It's wasted time; I'm rarely conscious enough to comprehend what I'm reading, and it makes me run late.

If I'm lucky, I can make myself jog.

I hate jogging. It's not something I want to do. I know I'll love the version of me that returns from a run, glowing and sweating and feeling accomplished, but I'm not fond of the version of me that actually runs. At all. Most mornings it doesn't happen. But I try and hit a target of getting out the door three times per week. Or two times. Hey, it's a moving target.

It's incredibly hard to meet that target, because I'm never motivated about working out, and I'd rather watch early morning X-Men cartoon reruns, but it's a matter of making a conscious decision to exercise at least a few times.

When I get back from my jog, I'm exhausted. Wiped out. Not in the mood to make a kale smoothie and post on Insty. Instead, I try to meditate for 10 minutes.

A couple years ago, the therapist I was seeing for my depression suggested I calm down by spending 10 minutes visualizing myself placing every thought that came into my head on a leaf and watching it float down a stream. I know it sounds like bullsh*t, but it has never failed to work for me. Any more than 10 minutes and I get way too bored. Sorry, that's the way I am.

I eat breakfast with my partner. And drink a normal, delicious coffee.

We make a point of sitting down together three or four mornings per week—no phones or tablets or laptops—and chatting while we share a bagel, muesli, or eggs. And a cup of delicious coffee. Not green tea or a superfood smoothie. Beautiful, dark, incredible coffee. It's my favorite part of every day, when we keep ourselves offline and just enjoy the moments.

She's senior management at a pretty high-growth legal start-up, so the both of us are pretty switched on most of the time. When we get a chance to just be, it's incredibly refreshing. It's hard for us to do this. Schedules are crazy, and our careers take a lot of effort and time and commitment. There are some mornings when it would be so much easier to just run out of the apartment and blow through McDonald's on the way to the office. But we don't. Most days…

I can't stress enough how important this part of my day is. I love it, and I love her.

That's most mornings for me. They're not inspiring, and my morning ritual isn't designed to turn me into a productivity machine. It's pretty normal and often a huge mess. But it works for me, and it doesn't stop me from hitting the ground running and knocking out my to-do list most days.

You don't have to try and hack your life with all the bullsh*t advice out there. You don't have to get up at 5 a.m., drink a warm glass of water, and read Chicken Soup for the Online Blogger-Slash-Start-Up Founder-Slash-Future Motivational Speaker. I know we're told that literally every successful person in the world does that, but tough sh*t.

When I was younger, I read all the blogs and decided I was going to turn myself into a Jack Dorsey-like machine. I tried being at my computer by sunrise, writing blog posts. It did not work. I was angry, unmotivated, and a real pain in the as* to be around.

My point is, you have to wake up and face your day in whatever way works best for you. For me, it's trying to make positive choices about what I do every day and fighting a battle against my worst nature. And losing that battle a couple days every week. It's probably going to be something similar for you.

Don't try and life hack your way to post-human status. Don't get too caught up in the self-help stuff out there. If it inspires you, that's great. But you need to live your own life on your own terms.

This article originally appeared on Medium and was republished with the author’s permission. Jon Westenberg founded the creative agency Creatomic. The views expressed herein are his. Follow him on Twitter.

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7 Baked Egg Dishes You Can Eat Any Time of Day

This French Press-Meets-Travel Mug Will Change Your Mornings

Presse by Bobble

You don't need to spend a small fortune on fancy machines or splurge on $3 lattes to get a decent cup of joe. The secret to great coffee is a French press (as long as you measure correctly), and the Presse by Bobble updates the tried-and-true coffeemaker for the modern era, when we're always on the go.

To get your java fix, simply measure out ground coffee (we used two rounded teaspoons, but you can adjust to your liking), add about 12 ounces hot water, and wait three minutes. Then press down the inner filter and voilà—you’ve got a large cup of coffee in a portable mug to take to the office, on a hike, or to the gym. And it works just as well for tea or any of these heavenly coffee concoctions.

Thanks to the insulated sleeves, your drink stays warm for hours (crucial for long commutes). Plus, it’s dishwasher safe and there’s no glass or flimsy filter to worry about breaking. Basically, it’s unstoppable—and you will be too.

I Want This! $29.99

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What Do You Do When the Toilet Clogs on a First Date? Tweet It

You’re on a first date, and things are going well. You head back to their place and make a beeline for the bathroom—public restrooms can be gross, so you’ve been holding it in for a while. You poop and flush the toilet, but it’s clogged. Gasp. This is the stuff of nightmares. We have plenty of advice for covering up a poop smell, but what are you supposed to do when the toilet won’t flush and there’s no plunger in sight? Call a plumber?!

Makela, a Toronto native who uses the handle @_blotty on Twitter, took matters into her own hands (literally). Here is her gripping story:

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Why Is The Use Of A Pain Clinic Becoming So Popular Today?

Over the past few years, pain clinics have become more popular. Although they have been around for years, people are looking for more alternatives in their healthcare and have found these facilities not to be what they once were.

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5 Simple Strategies for Weight Loss

Taking control of your weight doesn't mean slashing your daily calorie intake or spending hours exercising every day. There are several simple steps that can be taken to boost the metabolism and achieve a more natural approach to weight loss.

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Easy Way To Lose Weight - Sleep All The Time

Article is about the problems not getting enough sleep can cause. Many major heath problems can be avoided by sleeping 7 to 9 hours sleep each night.

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3 Holistic Nutrition Tips for Beauty

We all want to look beautiful. With good chances of selling beauty products online and offline, markets for beauty products have skyrocketed in the recent years. But using these market products alone may not help you in enhancing your beauty.

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Domino's Unveils a Pizza-Delivering Robot, and It's As Ridiculous As It Sounds

Domino’s is at the forefront of pizza innovation: It's stuffed crusts with hot dogs, created an addicting tablet game where you (surprise!) make virtual pizza, and now it's unveiling a robot that’ll deliver a medium two-topping pie to your door. The Domino's Robotics Unit (DRU for short) looks like a gussied-up R2-D2 with a warming drawer. And it’s apparently the real deal: Domino's worked with a robotics company that usually develops equipment for the army.

To mark this momentous occasion of human ingenuity, the company released a three-minute video that resembles a trailer for an action movie.

Domino's is doing test runs over the next six months in Australia, but it will likely be a couple of years before we see DRU cruising the streets (er, sidewalks). Delivery has entered the space age—if only the pizza was also out of this world.

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Millennials Have the Power to Change Our Food System—Why Aren't We?

When was the last time that you found yourself chatting with your friends about a meal? Yesterday? 10 minutes ago? Now, when was the last time you had a conversation with a friend about farm subsidies or food deserts? Deserts. Not desserts. Less frequently, right? If ever?

With a spending power of about $2.45 trillion and digital savvy wherewithal, 20-and-30-somethings have brands in the palms of our hands. We've learned about the preservatives in our food and asked that what we eat be simple (follow the Pollan rules!); we discovered GMOs and said, "If we don't understand it, we don't want it"; we've put pressure on food giants, such as Panera, Chick-fil-A, and McDonald's, to change their food policies—and they have responded. It's clear we have the power to influence change.

Yet as we're clamoring for organic, local, and natural goods, I'm not sold that there really is a food movement. And here's why:

Even if we can't find a job, are freaked about climate change, and don't trust Congress, we can find serenity in a really great beet and goat cheese risotto.

I spent the last four years investigating the millennial generation and food culture. I wanted to understand why, for the first time in history, young people are spending more on food than clothing and why nearly 50 percent of us claim to be "foodies." What I came away with was a realization that we (yes, I too am a millennial) are using food as comfort; it is the antidote to our chaotic, tech-filled, unpredictable realities. We use food to connect with one another, to stimulate all our senses and feel just a bit more in control. Even if we can't find a job, are freaked about climate change, and don't trust Congress, we can find serenity in a really great beet and goat cheese risotto.

And this makes sense —after all, food is soothing! At the same time, food policy encompasses the most dire issues our generation will surely face: obesity, climate change, food access—I could go on. I began to wonder: Where are all the conversations about the SNAP program, farm subsidies, and pesticide runoff among the debates of cronuts, ramen and Franklin's BBQ? From everything I can see, us rainbow-bagel-loving, kombucha-brewing foodies are only influencing policy when it directly benefits us as individuals, not us as a nation.

We are "moving the needle faster on issues like removing artificial ingredients and antibiotics in meat production," says Naomi Starkman the founder of Civil Eats, yet not moving as quickly on things like "much-needed regulatory oversight." Why? My research indicates that eating foods with labels you can understand makes you feel safe, makes you feel empowered about your choices. Improving Fair Labor Standards for farm workers doesn't create that same, immediate satisfaction.

Plus, we're the generation of self-branding, and food is the new social currency.

You can take a picture of your GMO-free, organic kale and feel cool as you post about it. Not so much with petitioning for crop rotation.

Which begs the question: Will young food enthusiasts act with the same fervor on less accessible food issues or simply fall short once we've assured our own good eating? I'm all for cage-free eggs and nixing yellow dye #6 from mac n' cheese, but what about the kid up in the Bronx who only gets one meal a day? Or the fact that five of the eight worst paying jobs in America are in the food system? Or the dire state of our oceans due to overfishing?

Perhaps we're just not connecting the dots. "I don't think that there's a huge leap from caring about a ramen trend to caring about our food system," says Claire Benjamin DiMattina, a spokesperson for Plate of the Union. And that's because the two are inextricably tied together. If foodies go one step further, they'll realize that the flavor, price, nutrition, and accessibility of every meal is directly tied to key economic, healthcare, and agricultural issues.

Why isn't revolutionizing the food system part of Bernie's stump speech—overriding the powerful corn and soy lobbies? Because young people aren't asking for it.

For example, there's a reason why nearly all items in Whole Foods cost more than any item at McDonald's. Less than one percent of farm subsidies go toward fruits and vegetable farming. In fact, the top 10 percent of farms get 75 percent of all farm subsidies. The bottom 62 percent do not receive any subsidies. We have a system that rewards monoculture, factory farms and gives little support to family-owned, organic, small farms. But think: What if farm subsidies were a key conversation point during these 1,800 primary debates? Why isn't revolutionizing the food system part of Bernie's stump speech — overriding the powerful corn and soy lobbies? Because young people aren't asking for it.

Twenty-and-30-somethings share articles about new cookie flavors far more than articles on how to change the food system. We're eager to eat "local" but less interested in actually thinking about what eating local truly means (i.e., What's the definition of "local?" How can you support local farms by purchasing local rotational crops or "trash" fish? Do government programs at all support your local farmers?). We want the best education for our kids but don't consider the nutrition of the entire classroom—the kids who may arrive at school hungry and therefore misbehave and fall behind.

The beauty of food is that it puts us millennials in the driver's seat. "Food is the new black," says Starkman. But, "the question still remains if foodies will merely vote with their pocketbooks or if they will also vote with their vote." As a generation that wholeheartedly understands the power of food, we can be taking this passion so much further.

This could be our revolution.

Think of it this way: If we push for a greater allocation of government subsidies to sustainable and organic farms, this will promote farming mechanisms that require less pesticides; return carbon to the soil (helping reverse the effects of climate change); create a greater variety of rotational crops (new local foods to eat)—arguably foods with a higher nutritional index and better flavor; lower the price of fresh, organic foods; and raise the price of high-fructose corn syrup, sugar-laden foods. This will, in turn, make more fresh foods available (and more attractive) to low-income families. It will make that kale Caesar or quinoa bowl you like to eat even more affordable. These changes will, in turn, decrease rates of obesity and diabetes (because instances of hunger correlate with instances of diabetes and obesity in this country). And this will likely decrease your insurance costs. Wouldn't that be a foodie's ideal?

"I'm kind of counting on this generation to pull things together," Michael Pollan said to me during an interview for my book. So perhaps it's time that millennials took the reins. No, this doesn't mean young people have to give up the Buzzfeed videos on the ingenious things you can accomplish with a waffle iron, but it does mean that perhaps, in addition, young adults can start to share articles on how to mitigate food waste with delicious recipes as much as we share articles about fun ice cream flavors. And most importantly, we can think about food policy as a major criterion in our decision for president. Let the candidates know that that's what's important and your vote depends on it.

"We need to mobilize that foodie momentum on more global issues—not just the personalization of food, but food in a larger context," Danielle Nierenberg, founder and president of Food Tank: The Food Think Tank expressed over the phone. Social justice, poverty, hunger. As a generation with an intense passion for food, a desire to change the status quo, this is our chance to make significant change on a topic that we already love.

Here's what we need our presidential candidates talking about:

• How to ensure that all Americans have access to healthy and affordable food.
• How to stop companies from marketing junk food to kids.
• How to re-align agricultural subsidies to match the government's recommendations around fruits and vegetables and invest in sustainable farming practices.
• Banning antibiotic use with farm animals.
• Ending Fair Labor Standards exemptions for farmworkers, raising the minimum wage for all food workers, and eliminating the sub-minimum wage for restaurant workers.
• Humane livestock farming methods.
• Food waste management—on the farm, in the home and by businesses.

I'll see you at the polls.

This article originally appeared on Medium and was republished with the author's permission. Eve Turow Paul is the author of A Taste of Generation Yum. The views expressed herein are hers. Follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

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Should Companies Offer Women Paid Period Leave?

There's been a lot of talk about menstruation in the mainstream media, especially after British company Coexist announced its plans for a "period policy." The specific details haven't been hammered out yet, but Coexist says it's meant to help women who experience severe PMS symptoms, such as painful cramps and migraines, take time off during their periods without judgment. Some argue that policies like this could be seen as special treatment and may end up being harmful to women in the workplace.

Coexist isn't the first company to offer a period policy. Many East Asian countries, such as Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia, and South Korea, have government-mandated paid menstrual leave. Robert Berg, M.D., an OB/GYN at NYU Langone, says the way we talk about and treat menstrual symptoms varies among cultures. So while many Americans are taught to take an Advil and carry on, it can be customary for women in other countries to stop working during that time of the month.

Supporters of this policy say it opens the door for conversation about menstruation. "Knowing your workplace is sensitive to your uncontrollable female medical condition will make women more productive and certainly appreciative of their work environment," says Sheryl Ross, M.D., an OB/GYN in Santa Monica, CA. Ross also points out that menstrual symptoms vary widely. For nearly one in five women, the pain is severe, whether it's debilitating cramps, uncontrollable migraine headaches, or premenstrual dysphoric disorder (an extreme form of PMS).

These symptoms can interfere with work, social activities, and relationships, says Draion Burch, M.D., an OB/GYN in Pittsburgh, PA. Medical professionals can offer treatments ranging from painkillers to birth control pills, which can help to some extent.

My hope is that period leave will be understood as something that is used to manage physical pain.

Berg says he believes paid menstrual leave is a slippery slope because it's human nature to take advantage of such a policy, whether your symptoms are severe or not. Others who oppose the policy have called it patronizing and believe it reaffirms the stereotype that women are weak and controlled by their hormones.

Naama Bloom, founder and CEO of HelloFlo, a women's health company that helps girls and women through transitional times in their lives, calls the period policy a double-edged sword. "In our culture, women on their period are often treated as though they're psychologically unstable," she writes on Motto. "My hope is that period leave will be understood as something that is used to manage physical pain and that the actions of women who choose to use the leave won't be subjected to heightened criticism."

In an ideal world, anyone—regardless of gender—would be able to leave the office when they are in pain, and those who do suffer from severe menstrual symptoms would be able to openly discuss it with their employer.

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Life After Weight Loss Surgery - A Post Op Patient's Perspective

I am a post-op vertical sleeve gastrectomy patient. For those who don't know, that is a weight loss surgery procedure that is becoming very popular as of late. This article is about helping to determine if weight loss surgery is for you.

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The Paleo Way - A Unique Diet in the Modern World

Our Ancestors ate a very specific diet which is genetically unique to our species, no other animal eats the same foods as the human animal. The Paleo Way - fresh fruits, vegetables, meats and seafood are high in the beneficial nutrients, antioxidant vitamins, phytochemicals, omega-3 and monounsaturated fats. Unlike today's diet of Processed foods with high sugars and trans fats The Paleo Way mimics the type of foods beneficial to good health and nutrition recommended by all leading nutritionists.

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The Revitalizing and Healing Experience With Pure Rose Oil and Rose Absolute Oil

People are reluctant to use rose oil (Rosa damacena) as it is pricey. However, the benefit is worth the cost.

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How The Healthcare Sector Is Benefitted Through Survey Plugins

Sustainable and high-quality healthcare depends on IT-oriented services and a digital platform, but healthcare organizations are still confused on where to focus investment, what technologies provide the important benefits for patients and employees, and the return on investment. The answer to this, is a complete online surveying tool with a CRM backend which helps them understand the likes, needs and preferences of particular offerings and thereafter to evaluate or measure the satisfaction ratio and move further to the next phase.

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A New Feel With The Obagi Blue Peel Radiance

A brand new offering in the well-known Obagi range of medical products, the Blue Peel Radiance has a special blend of acids that give your skin a very effective chemical peel that is gentle and salicylic acid-based. Salicylic acid-based peels are often used for patients who have suffered from different kinds of skin concerns like acne scarring, photo damage or melisma. This product exfoliates the damaged skin cells and give you a smoother and brighter texture. Even after a single treatment, you will find that your skin looks brighter and feels younger. The Blue Peel Radiance is effective on all kinds of skin types and will even benefit patients who have a 4 to 6 skin type with pigmentation.

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The Best Thing to Drink When Your Stomach Hurts

Drinking ginger ale to soothe an upset stomach seems like it has to be an old wives' tale. After all, carbonated beverages can make you feel gassy and uncomfortable. Not to mention ginger ale is acidic, which could make you even more queasy. Our friends over at STAT are here to set the record straight in this video. Turns out we should reach for ginger ale, but it needs to be warm and flat.

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Why Your Face Turns Red When You're Angry or Embarrassed

Someone cuts you in line for coffee, and you feel the redness coming on. You tell yourself you're not really that angry, but by now your face looks like a tomato. It’s curious that the same thing happens when you're embarrassed or nervous, which seem like they’d be on the other end of the emotional spectrum. But as this video from SciShow explains, you're reacting to an immediate stress in all three instances. And your response is totally involuntary: Your pupils get bigger, your heart beats faster, and your blood vessels widen so you can get more blood to your muscles for fight or flight (thanks, ancestors!). And lucky for you, the blood vessels in your face are close to the surface, so when they dilate, your cheeks get that pinkish hue.

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Shedding Extra Weight? A Few Tips That Can Help

So many people have said that losing weight is so difficult. Save yourself many years of struggling by putting into application the compilation of ideas contained in this article. Eating breakfast is one of the most important parts of losing weight.

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Deciding to Lose Weight

It is not always easy to lose weight. After years of wanting to lose weight, you have to find the right diet and exercise plan to get you started. If you do not begin to lose weight quickly, it can become difficult to motivate yourself.

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How to Use Beetroot for Pink Lips

Who doesn't like to have pink luscious lips? And if it can come easily with beetroot, so much the better. One of the many home remedies for getting pink lips naturally is to drink beetroot juice.

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5 Things to Look for in an Emergency Stairlift Call-Out Service

Having a stairlift in the home can be of enormous benefit to anyone with reduced mobility, as these items can help them make full use of their full home without the need to move to a new property. There are also now many different stairlifts for sale on the market nowadays, ensuring that each and every person will find one to suit their needs and their home.

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Here’s Why the First Plus-Size Male Model Is a Big Deal

Last week IMG Models introduced Brawn, the first-ever plus-size men’s division at a major agency, and signed certified lumbersexual Zach Miko to its roster. The news made me so happy. But here’s the thing: I don’t follow the fashion world, and the only male model I can name is Lucky Blue Smith—and that’s only because BuzzFeed convinced me to follow him on Instagram. I doubt I’ll notice when Miko lands his next campaign.

Still, the announcement made me think back to middle school, when I shopped for jeans in the husky section at Sears and drank chalky SlimFast shakes for breakfast. My middle-school self would be giddy that the fashion world was sending a message (however softly) that clothes for people who look like me aren’t an afterthought.

After years of gender studies classes, I'm fully aware the word brawn has ties to masculinity and the expectations society places on men. But I’ll take it over stocky or husky any day. Brawn represents a strength and a confidence that I yearned to have about myself and my body as a teen. It’s the male equivalent of curvy, a body type that’s still idealized and idolized but slightly more realistic and closer to the average.

I know that Miko is hardly an ordinary guy. At 6 feet 6 inches, he’s a full 8 inches taller than the average American male, but his 40-inch waist is a little more familiar (and statistically closer to the average man in the U.S.). Even as a giant with high cheekbones, Miko is a guy many men can look at and think, "Hey, I look a little like him," or "So that’s how that sweater will actually look when I wear it."

And that’s a really powerful thing. Men might not admit it, but they think about their bodies a lot. One-fifth of straight men and 25 percent of gay men report being unhappy with the way they look. (That number more than doubles to 54 percent for women.) And much like women, men say they feel pressure from the media to be attractive, which is why body positivity is a much-needed movement.

One model and one division at a talent agency won’t change the way men think about themselves. (After all, talk about the dad bod fizzled after a few weeks, and we were back to six-pack abs in six weeks.) It’s a baby step—albeit one done in slightly larger jeans.

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Try Cinnamon in Your Coffee Instead of Cream and Sugar

Saving calories can often be accomplished with a little creativity. For example, swapping the cream and sugar (roughly an ounce or 2 tablespoons) with a teaspoon of cinnamon could save up to 70 calories per cup-o-Joe. Looks like this special spice may change the standard coffee routine.

Spice Up Your Life—The Takeaway

One study found just half a teaspoon of cinnamon per day can significantly reduce blood sugar levels, triglycerides, LDL cholesterol, and total cholesterol levels in people with type 2 diabetes.¹ But for those who don't have to worry so seriously about insulin levels, cinnamon has also been shown to have many other benefits:

• Cinnamon can slow the speed at which the stomach empties following a meal, which can help control sharp rises and falls in blood sugar levels.² Softening these sugar spikes can theoretically reduce cravings.²
• Cinnamon can enhance the way antioxidants from other foods help the body defend itself, strengthening the immune system.³
• Additional suggested health benefits include relieving congestion, reducing stiffness in muscles and joints, counteracting inflammation, supporting digestive health, and even boosting brain function. This super spice has also been shown to stimulate good circulation with its blood-thinning properties.⁴

Want another reason to sprinkle some cinnamon in coffee? That other coffee sweetener—sugar—has been linked to weight gain, diabetes, and may even be "toxic."⁵ Just another reason for cinnamon and coffee to band together!

Still, there are some reasons to be wary. Many of the studies on the subject were conducted on mice, not humans, so it's unclear how well their benefits carry over. And while it might be nice to try something new in that morning cup of coffee, a teaspoon of cinnamon doesn't exactly taste the same as cream and sugar. Some may like it more, and others less, but this (quite picky) Greatist taste-tester and coffee-lover actually enjoyed mixing it up a bit. With no sugar and a pinch of spice, my cup of coffee was still everything nice.

The Tip

Replace cream and sugar with a teaspoon of cinnamon in coffee to save 70+ calories per cup and add a potential metabolism boost.

Originally published December 2011. Updated March 2016.

Works Cited

1. Cinnamon improves glucose and lipids of people with type 2 diabetes. Khan A, Safdar M, Ali Khan MM. Diabetes care, 2004, Jul.;26(12):0149-5992.
2. Effects of 1 and 3 g cinnamon on gastric emptying, satiety, and postprandial blood glucose, insulin, glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide, glucagon-like peptide 1, and ghrelin concentrations in healthy subjects. Hlebowicz J, Hlebowicz A, Lindstedt S. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 2009, Jan.;89(3):1938-3207.
3. Antioxidant effects of a cinnamon extract in people with impaired fasting glucose that are overweight or obese. Roussel AM, Hininger I, Benaraba R. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 2009, Sep.;28(1):1541-1087.
4. Glycated haemoglobin and blood pressure-lowering effect of cinnamon in multi-ethnic Type 2 diabetic patients in the UK: a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trial. Akilen R, Tsiami A, Devendra D. Diabetic medicine : a journal of the British Diabetic Association, 2011, Mar.;27(10):1464-5491.
5. Sugar-sweetened beverages, weight gain, and incidence of type 2 diabetes in young and middle-aged women. Schulze MB, Manson JE, Ludwig DS. JAMA, 2004, Aug.;292(8):1538-3598.

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How to Use Tea Tree Oil for Maximum Benefits

Tea tree oil has a number of uses, especially when t comes to making your own skin, hair and beauty products. Often you don't know the benefits of natural products, until you read up about them.

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Using Argan Oil As Part of Your Beauty Routine

These days organic has more meaning than ever before. If you are looking to enjoy a healthier lifestyle and you want to eliminate the dangerous chemicals and toxins you are putting in your body each day, then you are going to want to start living an organic lifestyle.

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Telemedicine Is the Future

There can surely be no doubt about it; the easier you can connect to your customer-base, and the easier it is for you to interact and coordinate your services, the better both client and customer will be for it. It's a basic logic of commerce that has seen the rise of e-commerce, and the rise of those companies that were able to adapt to the online world most effectively.

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How to Stop Feeling Like You Don’t Have Enough Time

How frequently do the words “I don’t have time” pass your lips? Quite often, I'll bet.

But here's some news for you: It’s a lie. We all have 24 hours in each day—you, me, Oprah. If you are alive, you have time. But how to allocate your time on this opportunity-rich Earth is up to you.

Every time we say “I don’t have time,” it makes us feel weak and out of control. We uy into the myth of the rush against the hourglass—the daily race we’re all losing to get it all done.

The truth is, you are in control of your hours and your life. And hate to break it to you, but you are likely wasting a lot of it! According to Nielsen, the average American watches about five hours of TV per day.

But I know it's not as easy as simply turning off the TV. Here are four concrete steps that'll help you take back control and get time on your side.

Take Back Your Time!

1. Ask yourself: What activities really, really matter to me?

Some popular responses I hear (outside of our jobs): cooking, yoga, date nights, side-hustling, watching House of Cards, Skyping family, reading, taking bubble baths, hanging out with friends, going to sporting events, and catching up on sleep on Sundays.

These are all awesome and important things—if they make you happy! And all of these can be done over the course of a week. Think about it: If you work eight hours per day and sleep eight hours per day, you have eight hours per day for everything else.

Depending on your job, it could be a little less—maybe four or five hours per day. But that's still plenty of time to whip up a nice dinner, enjoy some social time with people you love, hit the gym, kick back with a podcast, and even catch up with President Underwood for an episode or two.

These hours exist. Acknowledge them! They can add up to a solid good chunk per week, not including the jackpot of extra hours: the weekend!

2. Identify your blocks.

Be honest: Do you spend an hour or two scrolling through Facebook and Instagram every day? Are you a little too hungover on Saturday mornings to work out or run some necessary errands, which eats into your time to chill or read? Are you spending time with people that you don’t really like just to please them? Are there meetings you attend that you can politely decline?

Get real about the hours in your week that add up to a whole lot of dissatisfying nothing.

It’s time to get real about the hours in your week that add up to a whole lot of dissatisfying nothing. Think instead of how you can eliminate daily activites that are not useful and replace them with things that satisfy you. I love nothing more than saying no to a boring brunch date to sit with a book for two hours. Bliss!

3. Set an agenda.

People tell me how they have no time to read or will start their blog/yoga teacher training/closet clean-out when they “have the time.” Well, the time is now, my friend. But like planning for a nice meal or a job interview, you have to prepare a little.

The solution: Put it on your calendar! My calendar includes mani-pedi dates (a great two-in-one activity to catch up with a friend), researching books, coaching clients, writing, checking out a new eatery or two each week, meditation slots, calling my best friend in Australia, updating my software skills, walking my dog, and even going to the bank. This stuff doesn’t just happen. You’ve got to schedule it.

Plus, I have a blast planning. On Sunday nights, I love to sit down with a glass of chianti or a cup of tea, light a candle, and get excited about the week ahead. I always lock in the fun stuff first! I block off social stuff in purple, creative work in pink, workouts in turquoise, and business projects in blue. My calendar feels fun and vibrant. It’s like my trusty assistant—not my domineering boss!

4. Change your language.

Words matter. They have power. And let’s be honest: Saying “I don’t have time” is a bullsh*t excuse for not wanting to do something. Here are some awesome, empowering alternatives:

• “I choose not to start that project until next year.”
• “I’d love to read that book—I’ll get to it after my home renovations are complete!”
• “CrossFit sounds fun, but I love my current cycling and Pilates mix.”
• “I’d love to party this weekend but have a work deadline I need to prioritize.”

As Steven Covey, the late, best-selling author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, wrote, “The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.”

The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.

So for the love of all things holy—get better at saying no. Turn off all those distracting notifications on your phone. Use little pockets of time the universe gives us (friend running late, cab stuck in traffic, meeting ending 10 minutes early) to squeeze in some productive thinking or action—and meditation totally counts. All these things can add up over time more than you believe!

Yes, it might feel strange at first. You’re seizing your power. But when you don’t have a plan for your life, someone else will plan it for you. But it's your life. And your precious hours on planet Earth. They’re all you’ve got!

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3 Immune Boosting Secrets To Help Manage Your Weight and Your Health

An unstable immune system can have a significant impact both on your health and your weight. An immune system that is constantly overworked and activated, never being allowed to rest, will inevitably result in long-term inflammation and an over production of stress hormones, and if you're trying to lose weight and improve your health, these factors can hinder that process and could actually result in you gaining weight and seeing a decline in your health. Likewise, a suppressed immune system can allow bacterial and viral infections to take hold in a person's body, which will also be a major stress...

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Watching Miley Cyrus Do Yoga Is Surprisingly Awesome

If you’ve ever seen Miley Cyrus perform or follow her on social media, you might think she spends her downtime bedazzling outfits, contemplating her next tattoo, and searching for photos where she looks like Justin Bieber. Noticeably off that list? Twisting like a pretzel during a soothing yoga routine. But she proved us wrong when she shared a sped-up version of her morning flow with her 39 million Instagram followers.

The vinyasa includes many expert-level moves, and Cyrus pulls them off like a seasoned pro (which she is). Plus we love her message: “Gotta do yoga not for my body but for my mind!” Sure, not all of Cyrus’s antics make her the best role model, but sometimes the vegan yogi inspires us to be a little healthier.

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Zika Could Spread to the U.S. This Summer—Should You Be Worried?

Health officials predict the Zika virus will spread to the U.S. this summer, and the map below shows the states most at risk for an outbreak. (Red indicates high risk, orange moderate risk, and yellow low risk.) Photo: National Center for Atmospheric Research

If you spend any time watching CNN, this news is enough to make you invest in a hazmat suit. And yes, the possible linkage to microcephaly (a condition that causes babies' heads to be smaller than normal and is associated with developmental problems) is frightening. But the CDC says that unless you or your partner are pregnant or trying to get pregnant, there's no need to be on high alert.

Here's a handy cheat sheet to help you protect yourself from the virus (or simply stop freaking out!):

• If you're pregnant: The CDC recommends canceling or postponing trips to any countries with a Zika outbreak. Pregnant women aren't more likely to contract the virus, but as we've already mentioned, there is a possible link between Zika and birth defects. If a Zika outbreak occurs where you live, consult your doctor and limit your chances of being bitten by a mosquito (wear long sleeves and pants, use an EPA-registered insect repellent, and stay in places with screens or air conditioning).

• If you're trying to get pregnant: Talk to your doctor before traveling to countries impacted by the Zika virus. If you aren't planning on getting pregnant for many months, traveling to a country with Zika is less of a concern. Even if you become infected, the CDC says it shouldn't pose a risk for future pregnancies once the virus clears the blood.

• If you're traveling to an area with a Zika outbreak: Take special care to avoid mosquito bites and use condoms for oral, anal, or vaginal sex, as Zika may be transmitted through semen.

• If you get infected: You may not even notice. Most people don't show any signs of the virus—only one in five who contract Zika have symptoms such as fever, joint pain, pinkeye, or a rash, which can show up anywhere from two to 12 days after the bite. Long story short: If you or your partner aren't pregnant or trying to get pregnant anytime soon, you're probably in the clear.

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How To Lose 70 Pounds In 4 And Half Months

How To Lose 70 Pounds In 4 And Half Months: the 1st thing you must do, is stop overeating. I know it sounds easy, but it is really difficult to do it. I was able to follow a diet plan for 5-6 days, but out of nowhere I could eat over 3000 calories at a meal and all the hard work I did was gone in 10 minutes. Of course I felt horrible after that, but it was already too late.

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Macronutrients: Protein Reduces Appetite More Than Carbs and Fat

Protein reduced self-rated appetite more than carbs and fat, and appears to be the most filling of the three macronutrients. Eating protein leads to a greater reduction in appetite, compared to fat or carbs. However, no previous studies have looked into the effects of specific proportions of protein, carbs and fat in a systematic, dose-response manner.

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What Foods To Eat For Maximizing Fat Loss

In this article, I will show you how to eat 1,400 calories mindfully without having to literally count calories. There are two clear-cut methods to maximize fat loss. Either you burn more food ingested through exercise or you decrease the food you eat. Let's leave the first for later discussion and deal with the second.

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Spot The Best Hair Salon

A good hair salon is an asset. Looking for a trustworthy hair salon can be quite a task because everybody wants their hair to be perfect. A good haircut that goes well with the face shape not only makes us feel good, but also boosts our confidence. And we need a good hair salon for that.

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Science Says Standing Desks Might Not Be Worth the Hype

Standing-desk devotees are quick to tell you that "sitting is the new smoking," but a recent meta-analysis shows that sit-to-stand and other active workstations might not lead to the benefits we expect. Yes, you burn more calories standing than you would parking it in a chair, but that requires standing for hours on end (and researchers found most people with sit-to-stand desks fail to do so). And yes, a sedentary lifestyle can increase your risk of heart failure and shorten your lifespan, but research has yet to show that standing at work actually changes those stats.

The analysis isn't out to end the sitting vs. standing debate, but Jos Verbeek, M.D., Ph.D., a researcher at the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health and one of the study's authors, told NPR that there are more effective ways to create a healthier work environment, such as putting the printer farther away from your desk or going to a bathroom on another floor. And if you really love your standing desk, there's no need to abandon it, especially if it makes you productive. You just shouldn't feel high and mighty when you see coworkers chilling in their chairs.

(h/t NPR)

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Top Grapefruit Diet Meal Ideas For A Week

The grapefruit diet is a popular diet which emphasizes on consuming grapefruit or its juice at every meal. The diet is also high in proteins and focuses on quick weight loss.

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Bad Mood, Bad Mood, Whatcha Gonna Do?

Knowing what is causing a bad mood can make it easier and faster to get out of it. Knowing the reason is of course only the beginning, and the next step can be easier or more challenging depending on the cause. But if you find yourself in a bad mood, it may be worth reflecting if guilt, hunger, exhaustion, or low self-esteem may be the reason, and knowing there can be some simple ways to deal with these.

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25 Healthy and Photo-Worthy Bento Box Lunch Ideas

Benefits and Aspects of Vitamin Enhanced Alkaline Water

Heard about vitamin enhanced alkaline water? Read on to find some of the essential facts and benefits in one go!

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Lose Weight For Life By Learning To Eat Healthy Food

Just because you are eating healthy, also doesn't mean you have to cut out your favorite treat. Do you see the clouds lifting? You have the abilities you need to lift up out of the clouds and dump. Just have the courage to come out on top and out into the sunshine.

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4 Easy Ways To Eliminate Body Fat

Trying to eliminate body fat does take effort and focus. With the hustle and bustle of everyday life, effort and focus on ourselves become a hot commodity.

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How To Tighten A Double Chin In 3 Steps

These steps will aid your skin and your chin to create a more youthful shape and form. Be consistent and give it a good try for at least a month.

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6 Warm-Up Moves You Can Do Before Any Workout

This Is What Happened When I Stopped Trying to Change Myself

I have tried to change how I look since my ballet teacher kicked me out of class for being too fat.

I have tried to change how much I could produce in business school. I also tried the "play hard and party hard" lifestyle—just to end up on probation and almost kicked out.

I have fallen on my face trying to change in a relationship, so I would stop coming across as too emotional.

I have promised my mother, my neighbor, and the boss I never respected that I would change.

I have written about ways to change myself with every goddamn New Year's resolution.

I have even bought programs that will help me change into a morning person, a runner, a chill-ass girlfriend every man and woman wants to marry, an on-time professional—you name it. I have read your stupid lists on Medium on what to change to be happier, more productive, more successful—more like this Medium imaginary hero that does not exist.

Guess what? I did not change.

Maybe I did change for a day or a week. But over the long term, what really happened is that I grew more frustrated with myself, with life, with humans, and even with dogs and cats. I became angry, bitter, sour.

Here is the deal:

I stopped wanting to change myself.

Instead, I began becoming more myself. I began shedding all the layers of bullsh*t that I have accumulated that are not mine. I began melting all the walls of expectations that I have constructed because I thought I was not perfect for you—teacher, boss, investor, mister.

I finally embraced the artist in me that has been yelling for attention. The wild woman that wants to speak her truth no matter what they say. The human that wants to cry about life's miseries and fall in love with life's secrets and treasures.

I accepted that I will not run marathons or have a zero-argument relationship. That I will not have my sh*t together 50 percent of the time. I let go of the need to be successful on paper; have a family and kids by a certain age; fit in America, where I live or Lebanon, where I come from.

And then magic happened.

I started working out five days a week; I even ran two legitimate miles (with hills and everything). I started saying "no" more, which meant no more overbooking myself and instead showing up on time.

I wrote like there was no tomorrow. I wrote poetry every day because I stopped working my ass off to be on a page of some stupid magazine that no one reads beyond its title. My poetry and writing were published only when I stopped caring if if they would be.

I am doing all the things that I said I wanted to do when I meet that life partner—alone. Because it does not matter. (P.S. Where the hell are you, life partner?)

Listen. You have so much potential within you—so many gifts it will blow your mind. So stop landfilling your soul. Stop overcrowding your genius. Get naked with yourself. Look in the mirror.

This is it.

Be naked. Live naked. Thrive naked. Fly naked. We all love you more when you are naked.

This post originally appeared on Medium and was republished with the author's permission. Jessica Semaan is the founder of The Passion Co. and is on a mission to help others find their passion. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and sign up for her biweekly newsletter here.

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