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How French Women Stay Slim by Terry Ryan
How do French Women stay thinner than American women?
What you see on TV is a typical example of a French woman that primarily lives in Paris. Paris is the largest city in France and is the capital. It is a mere 40 square miles with a population around 2.5 million. What do French women do better than American women?
French women are taught at an early age good eating habits
French have better eating habits and are taught at an early age.They say that good eating habits that are taught between age 0-7 will stay with you for the rest of your life.Think of that the next time you serve your daughter a bowlful of sugary cereal In my house growing up, we never had a big bag of chips to munch on between meals, or soda in the refrigerator. Therefore, I never crave chips and soda.
They eat many more servings of fruits and vegetables per day
French women go grocery shopping every 2 to 3 days. Their vegetables and fruit are always fresh. Women shoot for 8 – 10 servings per day of FRESH veggies and fruit and never out of can. Local beef and poultry are at almost every meal but in small amounts.
They never eat processed foods
Everything is made from scratch at home. Most homes do not even have a microwave because there is no need to own one. They like to carefully and consciously prepare their meals.
When did gluttony become the norm?
Conscious eating
French people believe in taking in all the nuances of their food as they eat. They are careful about the quality of the food, the way it is presented, and make sure they have multiple colors on the plate. Time is taken to appreciate the essence, the aromas, and they concentrate on what they are tasting.
French women eat slowly
Each forkful is eating slowly and deliberately. What are they tasting? Is that a touch of nutmeg? French women eat slower than Americans. They believe that helps with digestion, and they fill up faster.
They never overeat
How many times do you eat until you can’t take another bite? French women stop eating before they feel stuffed! Since when did gluttony become popular? I know a lot of people who do not stop eating until—-they hate themselves. Leave a little on your plate.
French women do not snack
So snacking has become a sport in America. The snack food aisle is filled with unhealthy snacks. The whole notion of snacking between meals is not done in France. They eat 3 meals, lunch is the largest. They take time to eat at lunch, and usually will devote an hour to the meal. If a French woman is at work, she will go to a quiet space and eat the healthy meal she brought. They seldom eat out, preferring to eat the food they prepare themselves.
They do NOT drink wine everyday
Sorry to burst that bubble. They only drink wine on occasion no matter what the wine industry tries to tell you. Their preferred drink is water. They do start the day off with a cup of black coffee.
They avoid GMO’s
Anything that has GMO they will not touch. Monsanto is not doing well in France. Here in America we think to ourselves…hey, if the government says it’s okay, it must be, right? Nooooo. It’s all about $$$$$$. GMO’s are bad! Stick to pure, unadulterated foods. Go to your local organic farmer’s market.
They are however stressed out
Surprise! If you think that they are taking siestas in the afternoon, working 4 hour work days, and that is why they can linger on meals take the time to prepare. That is not true. They work 10 hour work days and have long commutes, Jobs are scarce and competitions for jobs intense. So, they are very stressed out. However, they value their health enough to take the time to eat quality food.
They walk everywhere
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While with the long work days, they do not have enough time to go to a gym, but they walk everywhere. They use stairs, (no escalators) and run to catch trains and subways. A French woman seldom takes a taxis as they are too expensive. Bikes are not used because the streets are so tight that there is no room to ride.
I can relate. As a suburbanite, I drive everywhere. However, the 2 years I lived on Michigan Ave in Chicago, I walked everywhere. It was easier to walk and cheaper than taking a taxi. We had a car that was parked in the basement in the building, and you had to plan ahead to request your car to be brought up to ground level by elevator, I kid you not. Plus, tipping the garage people was important. The less you tipped the longer it took to get your car. Yes, walking was easier.
Kitchens are not the center of the house
How many people in America watch TV within eyesight of the refrigerator? Many, right. With the open concept and family rooms actually a part of the kitchen, food is always front and center. In France, the kitchens are located away from the living rooms. . In America it is so easy to look over and open the pantry to see what snacks are in there. French women don’t have junk food in the kitchen to tempt them. Maybe if architects start designing homes where the kitchen is not the main event, there would less temptation to eat.
They DON’T eat a lot of sweets
I know, I know. Every time you see a tourism commercial for Paris there is a delicious looking bakery with loads of pastries. Or candy counters with OMG yummy handmade chocolates. Be still my heart. Yet another bubble to burst here. French women do not eat a lot of sweets. No, they are smarter than that. I know, you thought they had a free-pass on sweets just because they are French. Sorry, that is not how it is. Those pastries must only be for the tourists.
They eat on a table
How many times of you come home from a hard day of work…an exhausting day of work…when you nuke a frozen food in the microwave and sit down in on the couch to watch the TV. No…NO! Take some time to unwind,and turn off the TV; grill a little chicken, salad on the side, and sit down at a table where you slowly savor your delicious meal. French women will not give up their peaceful and slowly eaten meals. It’s a must. Put yourself and your family first. As I was writing this blog, my hubby was discussing a stressful subject with me, and I stopped him as my stomach started to knot up. I said. “Can we discuss this later?”
If you and your family are too busy with a hectic schedule, you are too busy. Take off some items on the schedule. Place food shopping, preparing, and dining a priority. Have your children participate in this. They need to learn the basics of choosing healthy foods, how to prepare a meal, and proper dining conversation. Turn off the TV and phones.
They eat small portions
French women and men eat small portions. You will not see large plates overloaded with food as if it was Thanksgiving Day. It is all about quality and not quantity.
They love their homemade vegetable soup
That’s a fact. They like to eat homemade vegetable soup. They will eat it everyday. With lunch being the largest meal, dinner is a bowl of vegetable soup with some homemade bread. Yes, they eat bread but it is not like American bread. Less chemicals and GMO in France.
Summary
- Don’t eat processed foods
- Savor what you are eating
- Eat at a table
- Stay out of the kitchen
- Don’t eat until you are stuffed
- Smell, look, taste
- Stay away from GMOs
- Limit alcohol and sweets
- Teach your children healthy eating habits
- Small portions
Remember, you deserve the best!
Thank you for reading,
Terry Ryan
Terry Ryan
Researcher, blogger, pickleball addict, owned by 2 chihuahuas, hero in my husband’s eyes.
Love And Rheumatoid Arthritis
This story is true
This story is absolutely true. Annie is one of my best friends. I have known her since she was 20 years old. We met when her then boyfriend brought Annie over to my apartment for dinner. She was a shy and a quiet woman, but I have a way of bringing people out of their shells. Soon we were chatting, and found out that I had worked with Annie’s mom years before at a clothing store. It was funny to remember that her mom, a single mom, always complained about her 4 children who were driving her crazy. Now, here I was face to face with one of her children. Small world.
Annie broke up with that boyfirend she was with that night, and I too went through a few boyfriends as the years went by until I met my husband. Annie and I stayed friends through all our romances, financial woes, and jobs. I even reacquainted myself with Annie’s mother, Mary Ann. By now, she and Annie and her other 3 children, now adults, were all getting along. Mary Ann had remarried for the 3rd time, and Annie liked her new stepfather. All was going well until Annie met Charlie.
Annie meets Charlie
Annie was tending bar at a local pub and going to college when Charlie sat in a stool in front of her. Charlie was about 10 years older, married with 2 children, and a well-established contractor in the area. He flirted and swept Annie off her feet. He told her that he was separated from his wife and had rented a small apartment in town. It wasn’t long before Charlie asked Annie to move in with him.
If you are wondering what this has to do with rheumatoid arthritis this story takes a dramatic turn soon, sadly.
Happy times
Annie was the happiest I had ever seen her, and juggling her college classes and bartending job, well. Plus her new romance was blossoming. One day, Annie called me to tell me that she had a sore throat and fever. “Go to the doctor,” I said.
The sore throat and fever went on for a few days, and Annie was calling off work and missing classes. Charlie was coming home and bringing her soup and magazines to keep her occupied. She finally broke down and went to the local health clinic where she found out she had strep throat. An antibiotic was prescribed, and after a few days Annie was feeling much better again. Soon Annie was going back to classes and working her shifts at the pub. But then a mysterious new health issue happened. Annie told me that the bottom of her feet hurt when she walked on them. “Hmmmm,” I said. “I never heard of that.”
The next week, her finger and hands started aching. The pain was becoming so bad that she was taking ibuprofen several times a day. More joints were beginning to ache, and then she had wide spread pain throughout her body. It became so unbearable that she went to the doctor’s again. This time they ran some blood tests and found out that her Rheumatoid Factor and SED rate was high. Therefore Annie was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). Annie was confused. After all, wasn’t this an old person’s disease? She was just 27 years old.
Rheumatoid arthritis
Her doctor sent her to a rheumatologist about an hour away (we lived in a small town), and he looked at her lab tests at her appointment, did a thorough physical examination, and then broke the dismal news that Annie’s future was grim. “You’ll eventually end up in a wheelchair,” he told her.
Annie was shocked. She was almost finished with college, and was in love with Charlie. She had just met his children the weekend before.
He gave her a prescription for methotrexate and told her to make an appointment at the front desk for next month. Annie slowly got up. Her joints were so stiff and the ibuprofen she took that morning was wearing off. Her head was spinning as she walked through the waiting room on the way out when she tripped on a chair leg and landed hard on the floor.
METHOTREXATE is a chemotherapy drug used to treat cancer including leukemia. This medicine can also be used to treat certain kinds of arthritis.
Waiting patients ran over to her to help her up. Now embarrassed she accepted the helping hands, got up, and limped through the office door to outside where she burst into tears. After a few minutes she composed herself and sat in her car and made a vow. I WILL BEAT THIS!
Love and heartbreak
I lived just a couple of blocks from Annie’s apartment that she shared with Charlie, so she dropped in regularly. Annie told me a week after the rheumatologist’s appointment, Charlie had gone away for a weekend trip to a hunting camp with the guys, which seemed harmless. Annie had started the methotrexate and was still taking ibuprofen to control the pain. Her fingers were already crooked from the disease, and she hobbled now instead of her normal smooth stride. We talked about the coincident that she just had gotten over strep throat when she came down with the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis. We wondered if the strep had triggered her RA.
What is RA? It is an autoimmune disease. If you have been following my blog, you know that I too have an autoimmune disease called Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. My autoimmune disease attacks my thyroid. Annie’s attacks her joints.
Charlie came back from his weekend with the guys, and Annie confided in me that something was different about the way Charlie was acting. He wasn’t as affectionate as he used to be, and he was going out at nights with the boys instead of staying home with Annie. She was worried. She not only was facing a debilitating disease, trying to keep her job and her studies; she now felt that Charlie’s support was slipping away just when she needed it most.
Weeks went by, and Charlie spent less and less time with Annie. He snapped at her when she questioned where he was spending his time or who was he with. Rumors started spreading around that Charlie was seeing another woman, and someone told Annie that a woman was showing up daily at Charlie’s construction site to have lunch with him. That was the last straw for Annie. Right when she needed Charlie the most, he was slipping away. Annie decided to give Charlie an ultimatum. “Either you stay with me in the evenings, or I’m moving out!”
“Goodbye,” said Charlie.
Annie decided to call his bluff and move in with her older sister, believing that he would miss her so much he would beg her to come back. After all, they had shared so many tender moments together, and he had told her that he loved her many times. Annie tried to go on with her normal life as much as she could. She didn’t have an appetite, and was losing a lot of weight. Money was always tight and now that she was calling off work so much, money was even tighter. The only thing she could eat was oatmeal. She ate it for breakfast and again for dinner. Just oatmeal plain with nothing on it. At night, she would soak in a hot tub trying to soothe her aching joints, and then she would cry quietly in bed so her sister wouldn’t hear her.
Panic time
Annie started to grow more concerned. Her plan of moving out was backfiring. Charlie didn’t come to her sister’s door with flowers in his hands begging Annie to come back. In fact, he never even bothered to call her to see how she was. Annie started to panic. Was she going to lose Charlie forever?
She was in a very vulnerable place in her mind. She had a chronic disease, could barely work, and was no longer going to classes. She was just too ill. When she was diagnosed, she found comfort knowing that she had Charlie to lean on for moral support and financial. Now both were being taken away from her.
She began to stalk Charlie. Knowing his favorite haunts, she would ride through the parking lots looking for him. I could go into more details here, and it got a lot worse and includes death, suicide, a clown named Pippy, more betrayal, but that is in the book coming out soon called, Annie. If you are interested in receiving an email when it is available on Amazon, please sign up below. Unfortunately for Annie, this is a true story. Annie’s name has been changed to protect her identity.
The worse of times then the best
I saw Annie at her worse and now I see her at her best. She beat RA! How did she do it? The same way I kicked Hashimoto’s to the curb. The medical community call it remission so okay, we’ll call it that, but Annie and I have little to no more symptoms. From Annie having a hard time walking and in constant pain, to now she is pain free, working at a fantastic job, married, and living in a beautiful home that she and her husband built, is amazing. Annie’s health improved by her own research, which she is good at, and clean eating. She first eliminated the oatmeal that she thinks was adding fuel to her RA. She switched to a diet of organic fruits and vegetables, grass fed meats, and chicken with no antibiotics. She also gave up sugar, alcohol, and gluten. Just like I have. We like to compare notes.
Annie and I now live many states apart, but I still visit her when I am in town. We shared a gluten-free beer that I told her upset my stomach, and she said she didn’t like the taste. It was just another experiment.
Annie is no longer on any medication much to the surprise of her doctor. He shakes his head and says, “I don’t know how you did it?” But we know, it’s all about what you put in your mouth.
Personal Care
Sadly, we had a mutual friend who also had RA, and the last time I saw her she was using a claw-foot cane to get around. She also had a zip lock gallon sized bag full of prescription. Annie had an “intervention” with her and shared how she healed herself. It was too late. The woman passed away six months later.
Here is a video on how to cure rheumatoid arthritis with clean eating. https://youtu.be/F5eJl6Ist9A
Note: Annie’s diet is full of vegetables, fruit, small portions of meat. She will not eat sugary treats no matter how many times I have tempted her. There are a lot of farmer’s markets with homemade goodies like gluten-free peanut butter cookies but full of sugar. I was surprised to see that she eats a lot of dairy and cheese, because I thought this was off the diet. After I started the keto diet, I now eat dairy products, too, without any ill effects.
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I would also like to add, that Annie looks great. Some of her fingers are permanently crooked, but that’s okay. She is tall, slim and her skin glows. Annie has proven herself proficient enough at her job as a cancer register specialist that she is allowed to work at home 4 days a week, and goes into the office on Friday. It’s so wonderful to see how far she has come since the “Charlie” days, and amazing to see how healthy she is now. There is hope for everyone suffering from an autoimmune disease. Annie is the proof.
Thanks for reading.
Terry Ryan
Health researcher, blogger, wife, good friend, mommy to 2 chihuahuas, pickleball enthusiast
Terry Ryan
You Are Not Crazy…It’s Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis by Terry Ryan
I have Hashimoto’s thyroditis
Been there and will always be there. I have Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. It is an autoimmune disease. Plain and simple. AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE! An autoimmune disease is a syndrome where the body senses an invader and goes on immune attack. In my case, it attacked my thyroid. My autoimmune disease is named after the doctor who discovered the disease. Hashimoto’s is diagnosed by a high TSH (thyroid thyroid-stimulating) lab test and high TPO, thyroid peroxidase . Hence, I am hypothyroid. My thyroid is not producing enough of the thyroid hormone, T4. When that happened, I felt extremely fatigued, suffered with hair loss, aches and pains, DEPRESSION, just to name a few. And what do your doctors, friends and family think after your complaints about symptoms month after month and year after year? That you are crazy. You are not crazy…it’s Hashimoto’s!
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It takes years to develop
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis disease. This happened slowly. My symptoms started showing up one by one. First, I noticed my energy reducing, I started dragging myself through the day. I went to the doctor. He ran lab tests, but everything looked “fine” including my TSH. If it is high…usually over 3, it means you are hypothyroid. The TSH lab test is the standard test that endocrinologists use to determine if you are either hyperthyroid (too much thyroid hormone) or hypothyroid (not enough thyroid). Sort of goes against reasoning. If you have a high TSH reading, this means you are HYPO (I have been as high as), and if you have a zero reading, it means you have too much thyroid hormone and you are HYPER. Why is this?
How it works
The pituitary gland itself is regulated by another gland, known as the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus is part of the brain and produces TSH Releasing Hormone (TRH) which tells the pituitary gland to stimulate the thyroid gland (release TSH). The pituitary gland located in the back of your head regulates when the body needs thyroid hormone. When it needs more, it sends a message out to the thyroid that it needs more hormone. When this happens, your TSH goes up, When there is too much hormone, it will do the opposite. By the way, in the beginning I swung back and forth between hyper to hypo. I miss the hyperthyroid times when I had more energy and could lose weight easily. This happens as my thyroid gland was sputtering to a dead stop at producing hormones.
What happened next to me? I said this happened slowly; my decline in health did not happen overnight. It wasn’t one day I woke up and I had all the Hashimoto’s symptoms. No, it crept up on me like a monster stealing my life force. Horrible and insidious.
I lost count of the doctor visits where I plead my case of I DON’T FEEL WELL, only to be dismissed as, I would guess. a hypochondriac, or a overworked and stress out middle-aged woman.
As the days, months and years went on, I felt worse and worse until I was not able to do normal activities, and I even became antisocial. Sound familiar? You are not crazy…it’s Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.
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Here are some symptoms associated with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis:
- Anxiety
- Panic attacks
- Weight gain
- Extreme fatigue
- Dry skin
- Headaches
- Sore throat
- Muscle aches and pains
- Temperature sensitivity
- Hair loss
The lost years…
I suffered for many years. I call them the lost years. No doctors helped me. They didn’t have the knowledge or if they couldn’t throw a pill at it, they didn’t know how to treat me. By the time I was diagnosed, my thyroid was a shriveled up gland with nodules. No worries, they weren’t cancerous. I have a ultrasound every year and they are getting smaller.
Yes, I will be on thyroid prescription for the rest of my life and I have tried them all. My greatest results are with the prescription Tirosint. It is expensive but I switched years ago when I learned that Synthroid used gluten as a filler, and I am anti-gluten. Gluten is a no-no if you have an autoimmune disease.
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The good news
The good news is that I no longer suffer with symptoms even though I still and always will have Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. I have figured out how to put my Hashimoto’s into remission. Some people call it that, but all I know is that I now have energy and no pain. How did I achieve that? By taking a lot of junk out of my diet. Clean living and eating. My entire life changed…and for the better.
Now I exercise for 3 hours per day, and then come home and run errands, clean house, make dinner, blog, write, read and all the things that go into a normal day. And I am so happy. So happy. I have my life back.
I have written one book on Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and it has a lot of medical information, and maybe too much medical mumbo jumbo. A lot of people have purchased it on Amazon, which surprises me because I do very little promoting. Right now, I am in the process of writing another book which will be available soon.
If you want to be on my mailing list, I send out healthful tips, recipes and updates on when my books will be available, you can sign up here.
I want you to know, that having a normal life is possible when you have Hashimoto’s. I am the proof.
Thanks for reading!
Terry Ryan, Health Blogger, Pickleball Competitor, Mom of 2 adorable chihuahuas, wife, good friend to many people, and Hashimoto’s recover-er.
Terry Ryan
The Fuss About Toilet Paper by Terry Ryan
Toilet paper, toilet paper! I cannot believe all the fuss about toilet paper. Growing up in our house, Mom stocked the house with the cheapest brand available. The one-ply, almost-see-through, fall-apart-in-one-wipe kind. I knew no better. I thought toilet paper was toilet paper. Ha! Was I wrong!
bain of my existence
The first commercially available toilet paper was invented by Joseph Gayetty in 1857 in the United States. But this toilet paper was made available to people in 1920.
The popularity of toilet paper is ranked third among the non-food products. Some leading brands of toilet paper include Procter & Gamble, Kimberly Clark, Georgia Pacific and Fort James. About 6 million tons of toilet paper is produced in the U.S. including face tissues as well as paper napkins.
Before people had “toilet paper,” people used leaves, corncobs, and yes it is true, pages from the Sears catalog, among other things. Principally, anything that could be used to clean the bottom parts and also act as a barrier between a hand and poop.
My first notification that there was something up with toilet paper is when a male friend complained about his roommate (a female) was using too much toilet paper. And he said this in the most angry-tinged way. What the!? Someone notices how much toilet paper someone else uses? I was stunned. (By the way, women will always use more toilet paper than men.)
On another occasion, my neighbors complained one day about one particular visiting couple that were using astonishing amounts of toilet paper. “What are they doing with it all?” they said. Again, this shocks me that someone is being judged on how much toilet paper they are using.
I remember a driving trip I took with a friend to her son’s boarding school (tuition 50k per year), and the school was forcing her son to use inferior toilet paper, so we brought him a case of his favorite. No, I am not kidding.
Another friend said she buys the kind of toilet paper that uses no cardboard tubes so her husband, who criticizes her overuse of toilet paper, won’t be able to count the tubes in the trash. Whoa!!!!
Thankfully, this has not been an issue at my house. My hubby does not comment on my use of toilet paper nor does he have a brand that must be used. We usual go with a two ply that happens to be on sale when we run out. And we tend to run out a lot. Then we resort to the facial tissue that is sitting on the back of the toilet before one of us finally breaks down and buys a case. No, I am not the kind of person who goes to Costco and stocks up on truckloads.
One time we had a windfall when another neighbor bought the wrong kind of toilet paper and we ended up with the entire case. We thought it was fine.
Follow the money
Toilet paper is definitely a money making product for the companies that sell it. Just look at the amount of TP in the aisle. My goodness, there is a huge selection so it must be inexpensive to make and very profitable.
Then you have to pick from two ply, aloe added, soft, extra soft, jumbo, strong, quilted, scented, printed…and it goes on and on. OMG!
Here are a couple of examples below.
Families with low incomes pay more for everyday household items such as toilet paper than families with higher incomes. It’s not that low-income families are unaware of how to take advantage of discounts and deals, but their ability to buy in bulk is financially limited. As a result, the shoppers who need to save money the most are forking over more of their paycheck.
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The recent study by the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business examined data on toilet paper purchases by 100,000 U.S. households during a period of seven years, reported CNN Money. Toilet paper was chosen for the study because it is used consistently by almost everyone and is an item that often gets discounted by stores.
What they found was that families who earned less were unlikely to afford the higher upfront cost of purchasing things in bulk at discount stores. Buying in bulk involves a higher upfront price, but the savings will eventually make up for it in the long-term. While a pack of 36 rolls of two-ply toilet paper may cost around $15, buying each individually will cost $1.
The shopping method of buying in bulk helps families save in the long run, so low-income households’ inability to stock up will lead them to visit stores more often. It also hurts low-income families’ budgets since they’re more likely to miss out on sales and are forced to buy more toilet paper whenever it runs out.
Materials needed to make toilet paper are:
- Trees
- Water
- Chemicals for extracting fiber
- Bleaches like chlorine dioxide
For paper recycling, companies use oxygen, ozone, sodium hydroxide, or peroxide to whiten the recycled paper. Toilet paper is often perforated, scented, embossed and colored. There are several differences in manufacturing process depending on what materials are used to make toilet paper.
If toilet paper is made of recycled paper, process starts by many different kinds of paper being mixed together. Next step is choosing a solution to remove ink. Recycled paper needs to be washed and is often deinked prior to being pulped. Toilet paper is then pulverized and reformed into very thin and soft paper. At the end of process toilet paper is bleached and scented.
Making toilet paper from the trees
Toilet paper is generally made from “virgin” paper, using a combination of softwood and hardwood trees (a combination of approximately 70% hardwood and 30% softwood). Other materials for final product of toilet paper include water, chemicals and bleaches.
Steps:
1. Preparing trees (a combination of softwood and hardwood trees). Trees are stripped of their bark.
3. The logs pass through machines that chip them into small pieces.
4. The wood chips are separated into batches.
5. A massive pressure cooker (a digester) cooks the wood chips with other chemicals for approximately 3 hours. The moisture in the wood is evaporated and the mass is reduces to cellulose fibers, lignin and other substances. Result is usable fiber, called pulp. The pulp is what paper is made from.
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6. The pulp is then washed clean of the lignin and the cooking chemicals
7. The washed pulp is bleached until all the color is removed. The adhesive that binds fibers together (lignin) must be removed from the pulp or the paper will become yellow over time.
8. The pulp is mixed with a lot of water to produce paper stock (99.5% water and 0.5% fiber). The paper stock is sprayed onto screens of mesh that drain the water.
9. The paper is then pressed and dried to final moisture (content about 5%).
10. The paper is scraped off with metal blades and wound on jumbo reels. Then the paper is moved to machines that cut it into long strips and perforate it into squares. Finally, the paper logs are cut into rolls and wrapped packages.
“Warren Buffett knew that he wanted to be in business with the kind of guy who would leave a black-tie party to count sheets of toilet paper.” A quote about Ben Rossner.
Things have been added to the toilet paper aisle. There is a new product in town. Wet wipes! Oh yes. When you want to make sure you are really clean. And they are flushable, but there seems to be an issue with these showing up plugging sewers, so don’t flush. Throw them in the waste basket. You know, that waste basket you have sitting by the toilet. Yes, throw it there. Let me give you a tip. Baby wipes are cheaper and thicker than Wet Wipes. Use them instead.
Next is the Poo-Pourri. Something you spray in the toilet before you go number 2 so you don’t stink up the place. I have one but have not tested it out. It always seems to be somewhere else when the occasion calls for it.
Having a “talk?”
I was visiting some friends the other day when another person who was also visiting admitted that they had a long-term guest staying with them and that guest was using too much toilet paper. She was going to have a “talk” with her about the toilet paper use. And she added, that she and her husband liked the kind with aloe. Really!? They have 5 airplanes and they are counting toilet paper sheets. Does anyone else think this is odd? Please let me know what you think of people complaining about other people using too much TP, or is it an issue for you.
By the way, I have learned and I bring my own toilet paper when I stay at someone’s house…you know when I stay a week or more. I don’t want to be judged for my toilet paper usage. I’m judged on enough things already. Amen!
Thanks for reading,
Terry Ryan, Health Blogger
Terry Ryan
Thyroid Cancer
Thyroid Cancer by Terry Ryan
Surprisingly, I have had 2 friends diagnosed with thyroid cancer this last month. Both are female and in their 50s. So, and of course, I had to research THYROID CANCER to find out what it is and what to do.
Thyroid cancer has doubled since the 70s. It is fifth in most diagnosed cancer in American women now. Yes, the word CANCER is always scary, it is a very treatable cancer when caught in the early stages.
- Lump in the neck
- Swollen lymph nodes
- Pain in the throat
- Difficulty swallowing
- Persistent cough
If you have any of the above symptoms, you should see your physician. It mostly likely NOT be thyroid cancer, but it is good to rule it out.
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One of the friends I mentioned, that recently was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, had none of the above symptoms. Her thyroid cancer was discovered with an ultrasound of her thyroid gland. Prior to the ultrasound test, she was diagnosed with a parathyroid disorder when a regular blood test showed elevated calcium levels. Parathyroid glands are located behind the thyroid gland and control the amount of calcium in our blood and bones. They are 4 small glands located by the thyroid. My friend had an ultrasound to see which parathyroid had a tumor and would be removed.
However, the ultrasound showed a large, dark looking tumor on her thyroid, and later a needle biopsy was performed. The results showed that she has papillary thyroid cancer. Her thyroid will be removed this Friday.
There are different types of thyroid cancer
Once the type of thyroid cancer is determined, surgery and a treatment plan is designed. Normally, thyroid cancers are easily treated so no need to panic. 70% of thyroid cancer is papillary cancer, which is an uncontrolled growth of follicular cells.
Other types of thyroid cancer are:
- Follicular thyroid cancer represents 10% of thyroid cancers.
- Hurthle cell thyroid is another form though very rare.
- Medullary thyroid cancer makes up a small 3%.
- Anaplastic thyroid cancer is in about 1% of thyroid cancer.
Treatments
- Surgery
- Radioactive iodine
- Radiation therapy
What to expect
After surgery, there will be a thin red scar that, overtime, be hard to notice. Because the thyroid has been removed, the patient will be on thyroid hormone replacement for the rest of their life. Blood test are ordered every 6 months to determine if the dose of thyroid replacement prescription needs to be increased or decreased.
Survival rate is 90% if caught at an early stage. Most people lead normal and long lives after being diagnosed and treated.
Why is there an increase of thyroid cancer?
Physicians are mystified about what is causing the rise in thyroid cancers. Some theories blame radiation including Chernobyl nuclear power disaster in 1986, and possibly all the nuclear testing in the 1950s. Then there are the dental X-rays and yearly mammograms. Do they contribute? No one knows for sure.
More resources:
www.thyroid.org
www.thyca.org
Thanks for reading!
Terry Ryan, Health Blogger
D5 Creation