Health Foods Blog

Submitted by A Sizable Apple

I forgot how interesting going on vacation with your family could be. We got together this Easter in Chicago to visit my sister. Between my parents, siblings and I, there were a handful of necessary stops that were an absolute necessity for one of us, and a semi-bore for the rest. After seeing all Crate and Barrel had to offer per my sister’s request, we had to make a stop in Nike Town for my dad.

Personally, I never knew there was enough workout apparel to fill a three floor building. Seeing everything at Nike Town really got me thinking about the new obsession with workout clothes.

Admit it- when you’re at the gym, the woman with the full Adidas jumpsuit looks like she means business, while the man wearing tiny 70’s style gym shorts, a large sweatshirt and tube socks looks out of place. This isn’t just a difference in style, but the way sporting good companies are changing the way we view fitness.

What should it matter how we look while we’re working out? Workout gear has even extended past the gym as I’ve seen many fancy workout jackets and track pants around town on errands.

Stores like Nike and Adidas have taken full advantage of the national obesity awakening. Besides finding all the workout gear you could ever imagine, you can also find Nike brand polo shirts and Bermuda shorts.

Taking after my dad, I could ‘oh’ and ‘ah’ in Nike Town for awhile. I walked through the store looking at things that I would need to come back with a bigger wallet for, just to leave and realize none of that mattered. I’ve always been a classic t-shirt kind of girl, and no $80 zip-up will motivate me anymore to get out on the treadmill.

What is your normal workout wardrobe like?

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

HPV Testing- more than your regular pap smear

One of my readers sent me some great information on getting tested for HPV, as well as some more background behind the virus. If you’re not on board with the vaccination and are sexually active, consider getting tested.

This site (http://www.thehpvtest.com/) has more information. Regular Pap smears are only 50 to 85 percent effective in identifying women with precancerous or cancerous cells, said Dr. Marie Savard.

Included in the information sent from this reader was a story from a cervical cancer survivor, Micheline Fornarotto. Below are some particularly outstanding parts from her story.

When my doctor asked me if I would consent to have an HPV test as part of my routine exam, I thought, “Sure, why not. I have nothing to worry about.” I’ve been with my husband for 11 years and never had any signs or symptoms of any STD. I assumed the test would come back normal.

My results came back and oddly enough my Pap test was normal but my HPV test was positive. I was totally devastated. How did I end up with HPV? My doctor helped ease my anxiety and reassured me that about 80 percent of women get HPV, but it often goes undetected for a long time. He told me there was nothing to be ashamed of: HPV is as common as a cold.

Six months later, when I returned to his office for the follow-up Pap and HPV test, my results showed I was still positive for HPV and I now had abnormal cells.

After another Pap smear and a colonoscopy came back clear, my doctor next scheduled me for a more invasive second procedure, a deep biopsy of my cervix (also known as a cone biopsy). This is when we finally found out what was really going on - I had a type of cervical cancer called adenocarcinoma.

Both my doctor and I were shocked at the diagnosis. I was even more so when I found out that the cancer was so invasive that I needed a hysterectomy. The cancer was beyond the margins of the biopsy and possibly beyond the cervix. The only lucky part of this diagnosis was that my oncologists agreed that we caught this early enough that I didn’t need any further treatments like chemo or radiation therapy, and surgery alone would be the cure.

Not all doctors will bring up HPV testing at your regular visits. Make sure to check with your doctor and get proper tests if needed. Thank you Tracy for the very informative email, and as always if any readers come across relevant information to A Sizable Apple, or questions, please feel free to email me at asizableapple@gmail.com

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Submitted by A Sizable Apple

Media Portrayal of Women- Body Shape vs. Personality

Millions of Americans spend their weeknights around the television catching their favorite programs. Since the 1950’s when the TV craze began, we’ve grown connected to our watching our favorite actors and keeping up with the storylines of sitcoms. The widespread love of television and mass media created a struggle to appreciate personal identity outside of produced public figures.

Jennifer Aniston’s do-no-wrong character on the mid-90’s explosion, “Friends” is a vital example. The 1990’s Aniston hair craze proves the strength of public emulation of stars. Television became a place to subconsciously trend shop, picking and choosing favorite aspects from clothing, to personality traits.

The portrayal of women on screen has been a long time issue argued in many forms from feminism to media and psychology classes. Our favorite on screen personalities usually fit the 36-24-36 “perfect woman” mold. Female roles, villains or heroines alike, are rarely cast to over weight actresses in attempts for drama as viewers consider which beautiful woman to side with.

Even in television shows like “Scrubs”, the only large woman character is Nurse Laverne Roberts (played by Aloma Wright). Wright’s character is loved for her harsh attitude and despite finding pictures of Wright smiling; you would never catch her character with a grin.

Continuing the trend, in the sitcom “The King of Queens”, and even in the cartoon “Family Guy” and “The Simpson’s”, it’s made to believe that all three wives, slender in body type and kind, loving and always understanding in nature, would stand by their large husbands despite a show that thrives on their mistakes and antics.

Leah Remini’s character, Carrie Heffernan, although shown in a more powerful business position than her overweight husband Kevin James’ character Doug Heffernan, relies often on her looks as the punch line of jokes and despite arguments, accepts all of Doug’s mistakes and accidental destruction.

James’ character, alike the husband figures in “Family Guy” and “The Simpson’s” relies on his weight for humor, and no matter his faults or incompetence, always returns to the loveable teddy bear figure at the end of each show. This misconception shows the public acceptance of larger men.

Among a sea of actresses in the ‘perfect’ body type, a few have broken through. Roseanne Barr had great success with her show “Roseanne”, although she might not have had such luck if she tried portraying her character as high class.

Even America Ferrara’s character in “Ugly Betty” has been noticeably compromised on the cover of Glamour Magazine. Her slimmer arms, face and less curvaceous body have raised concern over the photo alterations of stars that have made their way to fame in larger figures.

While the average American woman wears a size 14, the average actress is a size 8 and shrinking. Television continues to portray the average woman far from what she actually is, while real women feel the wrath of these fake standards.
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