Category: Health

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15 Doctors Share What They Wish Patients Knew About Their Bodies

When you go to the doctor, ask as many questions as possible. It’s your body, take charge of it!

In this AskReddit article, doctors share what they wish everyone knew about their bodies.

1. I did not know that!

“Ejaculating blood happens to most people at least once in their lives and in 99% of cases it resolves without taking any action within a week. It doesn’t even warrant a doctor visit.

Peeing blood (for both sexes) is a serious medical emergency and you should immediately go to the ER.

People think it’s the other way around.”

2. Good to know

“This one is more about medication:

Antibiotics only work against bacteria, they are not some kind of wonderpotion that cures anything, and they should not always be given

Please please stick to your prescription the doctor gives you. Even if you already feel better, dont just stop unless the doctor says you can stop. A lot of medication needs to be taken according to the prescription in order for it to be effective, because you build up the dosis to an effective level. Stopping or not sticking to it really decreases effectivity.”

3. Nothing to be embarrassed about

“That there is a wide range of ‘normal’. Don’t be embarrassed by your body. Having said that, if you are concerned about anything, ask your doctor. We have generally heard it all before, and trust me, we have (nearly always) seen it all before. Maybe you have something that has been bothering you for ages, but you were too scared or embarrassed to ask about it … Just ask! It might be ‘nothing’ and you have been stressing about it for no reason. And if not, then you are at least one step closer to getting it fixed. No one can help if they don’t know. There are no stupid questions, so ask away.

I’m always amazed when I have been asked about something that has been bothering a patient for years and years, but they were too embarrassed / scared to bring it up. Most of the time, it is nothing / a completely normal body function / feature. Other times, it is something that should have been discussed right away.

YOU know your body best. So speak up! Don’t wait for the doctor to “ask the right question”.”

4. No narcs

“Tell us what drugs and alcohol you’re on.

We aren’t gonna tell the cops. We aren’t gonna lecture you.

But it might change the anesthesia I give you. Some stuff I give you might kill you. If you drink a 30 pack a day, tell me.”

5. Doesn’t work that way

“Some people seem to think that if you act healthy for a bit, it’ll make up for being a wreck.

There are so many things wrong with this. Just one example – antioxidants are like gas for your car. You can store up a certain amount of vitamins, but your tank can only hold so much. If you binge and overfill your tank, it doesn’t do anything (you excrete it out as waste), and you can’t expect to go the next several months without gas just because you tried to overload it before. You’re going to still need to get gas. Same goes for your fruits and veggies.

Had someone tell me he went vegetarian for a few weeks, which meant he was done for the year. He was dead serious.

Had a patient at risk for heart failure try to insist that if she stayed away from salt entirely for x days/weeks, she should be able to have her fill of McDonald’s fries and ramen.

Had a smoker argue that if he stopped for some time, he should be able to smoke freely for a while. With some digging, “stopping” turned out to mean a couple less cigarettes a day.”

6. Get out there and move!

“You need some kind of exercise. Doesn’t matter how you feel right now, sitting for 12-16 hours a day will have negative consequences.”

7. BS

“Your kidneys and liver cheerfully do all the toxin elimination you’ll ever need. Cleanses and other “detoxifying” products are bullshit woo and a waste of money. The people who sell them are predators who only care about your money becoming theirs.”

8. Very serious

“Type 2 Diabetes is more serious than most people realize. I work as a doctor in hemodialysis and most of them are due to diabetic nephropathy. It also affects your eyes nerves immune system etc. Simple life changes can help you but noone seems to care. I even lost 9 kg myself because I had a family history of diabetes and to be healthy.”

9. Get it checked out

“How to check for skin cancer. If you see any moles or anything that are:

A – asymmetrical B – border (odd borders, like they’re jagged or something) C – Colour (different colours) D – Diameter (grows) E – Evolve (Well, evolves)

Go get it checked out. It might be skin cancer.”

10. Eat healthy

“How to eat healthy. Just because you’re skinny doesn’t mean you’re healthy. Especially the teenagers who I take care of. Sometimes I will ask them what’s a healthy food your doctor wants you to eat? Rarely do I get a right answer. I feel like the internet has so many fad diets, and family members rarely cook, so families don’t know basic nutrition facts.”

11. Some good tips

“-Antibiotics are not some magic cure for every pain in your body, nor for the flu or common cold.

-Never ever boil breast milk (in my country there is a popular belief that breast milk jaundice in newborns can be treated by boiling one’s breast milk – but by doing this you destroy all the nutrients and it basically becomes as nutritious as water is).

-Do not give honey to children below the age of 1.

-Do not rub your child with rubbing alcohol as to lower his fewer.

-Baby wipes don’t substitute daily baths/showers.

Yes, I am a pediatrician.”

12. Know your meds

“This is going to sound really basic, but i wish my patients would know what meds they are on when they come to the hospital. At least once a day comes somebody in who goes ” yeah i take 8 pills in the morning, 3 in the evening, and 4 at lunch but dont ask me which, youre a doctor, you should know”.

I beg of you, before going to a doctor that has never seen you before, write your meds, dosis and all on a piece of paper.”

13. Still might feel normal

“You often will feel normal even with high blood pressure. It’s often found incidentally. So don’t wait until it gives you symptoms you don’t want to go through.”

14. Very complex

“That the immune system is an incredibly complex and nuanced organization of cells that communicates readily to destroy anything deemed hostile within the body. It helps explain why vaccines are supposed to work, why allergies come and go, and why transfusions/transplants are hard to successfully pull off.”

15. The final word

“You only get one body. The way you treat it has a significantly higher impact in how your health will end up in a decade than what sort of interventions we can give you. You really should treat your body like a temple.”

The post 15 Doctors Share What They Wish Patients Knew About Their Bodies appeared first on UberFacts.

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Social Media Influencers Have Been Taking Pics with a Toxic Lake in Russia

So is “social media influencer” like, a job?

It is, unfortunately. And apparently finding the perfect background is an important part of being the best in your field.

Which is why so many influencers have taken a liking to the picturesque lake in the city of Novosibirsk, in Russia.

The waters are as turquoise as a tropical sea, and contrasted against the surrounding Siberian forest, well…there’s really no arguing that the scenery is Instagram-worthy.

Except for one this: It’s not actually a lake, but the containment pond a power plant uses as an ash dump. The Siberian Generating Company, who runs the plant, has put out a warning against swimming in the lake, which gets its beautiful color from  calcium salts and other metal oxides being pumped into the fairly shallow (3-6 feet deep) body of water.

Now, the lake isn’t radioactive or deadly – at least according to the power plant – but the cocktail of substances definitely certainly isn’t something you’d want in your bath water. It could lead to allergic reactions, among other unknown outcomes.

Not only that, but the bottom of the lake is muddy with ash deposits, meaning anyone walking in it could get stuck and require professional help to get out.

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OBSESE RUSKÝCH INSTAGRAMERŮ? #NovosibirskéMaledivy působí na první pohled jako místo, které je ideální pro návštěvu během letní dovolené. Pohádkově modrá voda přímo vybízí ke koupání a ruští instagrameři se u tohoto jezera rádi zvěčňují takovým způsobem, jako kdyby se právě nacházeli na luxusní dovolené. Realita je pak o něco horší. Příčinou azurově modré vody jsou totiž chemikálie a popel, které do vody proudí z nedaleké uhelné továrny. Jakkoliv může místo vybízet ke koupání, lidé by se k němu podle vydaných varování nejlépe neměli vůbec přibližovat, natož v něm plavat, protože tamní voda je zdraví škodlivá. Navzdory tomu místo denně navštěvují houfy lidí, aby si pořídily stylovou fotku… A kam letos pojedete na dovolenou vy? 🏝#russia #novosibirsk #novosibirskmaldives #lake #instagram #summer #blog #factory #trend #blogger #influencer #photo #blue #water

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Just something to think about before you go wading into random bodies of water, pretty or not.

The post Social Media Influencers Have Been Taking Pics with a Toxic Lake in Russia appeared first on UberFacts.

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Social Media Influencers Have Been Taking Pics with a Toxic Lake in Russia

So is “social media influencer” like, a job?

It is, unfortunately. And apparently finding the perfect background is an important part of being the best in your field.

Which is why so many influencers have taken a liking to the picturesque lake in the city of Novosibirsk, in Russia.

The waters are as turquoise as a tropical sea, and contrasted against the surrounding Siberian forest, well…there’s really no arguing that the scenery is Instagram-worthy.

Except for one this: It’s not actually a lake, but the containment pond a power plant uses as an ash dump. The Siberian Generating Company, who runs the plant, has put out a warning against swimming in the lake, which gets its beautiful color from  calcium salts and other metal oxides being pumped into the fairly shallow (3-6 feet deep) body of water.

Now, the lake isn’t radioactive or deadly – at least according to the power plant – but the cocktail of substances definitely certainly isn’t something you’d want in your bath water. It could lead to allergic reactions, among other unknown outcomes.

Not only that, but the bottom of the lake is muddy with ash deposits, meaning anyone walking in it could get stuck and require professional help to get out.

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OBSESE RUSKÝCH INSTAGRAMERŮ? #NovosibirskéMaledivy působí na první pohled jako místo, které je ideální pro návštěvu během letní dovolené. Pohádkově modrá voda přímo vybízí ke koupání a ruští instagrameři se u tohoto jezera rádi zvěčňují takovým způsobem, jako kdyby se právě nacházeli na luxusní dovolené. Realita je pak o něco horší. Příčinou azurově modré vody jsou totiž chemikálie a popel, které do vody proudí z nedaleké uhelné továrny. Jakkoliv může místo vybízet ke koupání, lidé by se k němu podle vydaných varování nejlépe neměli vůbec přibližovat, natož v něm plavat, protože tamní voda je zdraví škodlivá. Navzdory tomu místo denně navštěvují houfy lidí, aby si pořídily stylovou fotku… A kam letos pojedete na dovolenou vy? 🏝#russia #novosibirsk #novosibirskmaldives #lake #instagram #summer #blog #factory #trend #blogger #influencer #photo #blue #water

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Just something to think about before you go wading into random bodies of water, pretty or not.

The post Social Media Influencers Have Been Taking Pics with a Toxic Lake in Russia appeared first on UberFacts.

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A Guy Accepted a Dare to Eat a Gecko and He Lost His Life

Bet you never thought you’d see that headline, right?

We all know that games of truth or dare can get out of hand on occasion, but the family of David Dowell – a husband and father of three – never expected his taking a Christmas party dare to eat a gecko might cost him his life.

The healthy 34-year-old ingested the animal on December 1, and by December 3, he was not feeling at all well.

“It was coming out both ends,” his sister Hannah told The Sydney Morning Herald. “He was really sick and the moment he started throwing up it was green. That’s when they rang the ambulance.”

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♡ Betty ♡ She’s like a little boa sometimes 🤗 It was weigh day today and Betty is up at 52g, Penny has gone down to 66g and Archie is at 30g. 💪🏻• • I’m going away again and wont be home until friday, so there probably wont be any pictures. #leopardgecko #leopardgeckos #leopardgeckosofinstagram #leopardgeckolove #gecko #geckoleopard #geckoofinstagram #geckos #geckolove #geckoaddict #geckoaddiction #geckoadvise #geckofeeding #leopardgeckofeeding #bhfyp #bhfyp♥ #leopardgeckoshedding #geckoshedding #eublepharismacularius • Reptifam 💛🦎 @diego_the_leopardgecko @lillie_leopoard_gecko @leoo_ladies @leopardgecko.mm @tiny_the_leo @acid_the_gecko @mon.and.sienna @emile_et_une_patte @morethanagecko @sakr_the_gecko @reptiles_239

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Brisbane doctors originally believed he had a simple stomach bug, or maybe a hangover, but the family insisted it must be more and begged them not to discharge him. Dowell was admitted and eventually diagnosed with a Salmonella infection – one that began to worsen significantly during his hospital stay.

Little known fact: even though Salmonella is typically acquired by the mishandling of food, according to the CDC reptiles can also transfer the microbe to humans.

“Contact with reptiles can be a source of human Salmonella infections. Reptiles can be carrying Salmonella bacteria but appear healthy and clean and show no signs of illness.”

In fact that’s why turtles under a certain size are banned from being sold as pets – little kids kept getting salmonella.

Though it’s not clear whether David Dowell actually ate the gecko or simply handled it (stories from the party state either as having happened), there was no doubt he was in serious trouble. His mother told the newspaper that “his testicles were swollen up to grapefruits and there was fluid leaking from them. The doctors said that was normal, it was just all all of the fluid in his stomach cavity.”

Salmonella causes illness in around 1.2 million people in the US every year, and while most cases clear up on their own within a week, around 23,000 people are hospitalized and 450 don’t recover.

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Salmonella infection (salmonellosis) is a common bacterial disease that affects the intestinal tract. Salmonella bacteria typically live in animal and human intestines and are shed through feaces. Humans become infected most frequently through contaminated water or food.⠀ ⠀ Typically, people with salmonella infection have no symptoms. Others develop diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps within eight to 72 hours. Most healthy people recover within a few days without specific treatment.⠀ ⠀ In some cases, the diarrhea associated with salmonella infection can be so dehydrating as to require prompt medical attention. Life-threatening complications also may develop if the infection spreads beyond your intestines. The risk of acquiring salmonella infection is higher when travelling to countries with poor sanitation.⠀ ⠀ #DoyenMedicals #MedicalEducation #Salmonella #HealthyLiving #healthylivingjourney

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Sadly, Dowell found himself in the latter category. After spending time in a medically-induced coma, he passed away during emergency surgery 10 days after the incident with the gecko.

Though doctors never said for sure that it was the interaction that cost him his life, his partner, Allira, says “ingestion of a gecko” is what is listed on the “actual death certificate.”

The death of their loved one was sudden and unexpected, and the family is still reeling from the entire episode. Though they’ve opened an inquest into how things were handled at the hospital, they realize they may never have answers.

Allira does have some advice for anyone out there who thinks stunts like the one David pulled are all in good fun: “If you’re thinking of performing a similar stunt, don’t.”

Solid advice, if you ask me.

And one more reason to avoid the local wildlife whenever possible.

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Here Are 7 Scientific Benefits of Kissing

You’re in for a treat because these 7 scientifically proven benefits might convince you to keep puckering up far into your golden years!

7. It can boost your immunity.

Kissing is fun, sure, but it’s also a bacteria exchange. On a bad day that could give you a virus, but the upside is that the more germs your immune system is exposed to, the better your body will be at fighting bacteria and viruses in the future.

A 2014 study found that couples who kiss frequently (at least 9 times per day) are more likely to share bacteria, so get working on that.

6. It releases endorphins.

The brain’s reward system releases feel-good chemicals like oxytocin when your lips touch, which helps us bond and improves our mood. It also reduces stress hormones, freeing your body up to rest from the cumulative crap weighing on your mind.

5. It could reduce your allergy symptoms.

At least one Ig Nobel-winning study proved that habitual kissing (and the reduced cortisol that comes from it) can help people who struggle with seasonal allergies.

4. It can give you a jolt.

Kissing can also stimulate the release of adrenaline and noradrenaline, both of which increase your heart rate, make you more alert, and prepare you for action.

Heh.

Who needs coffee?

3. It could keep the dentist away.

Kissing encourages the production of saliva, which helps remove cavity-causing particles that can stick in your teeth after a meal. No dentists have weighed in, but I mean, it definitely can’t hurt!

2. It reduces stress – and cholesterol.

According to affection exchange theory, physical exchanges of affection “buffer the individual against the physiological effects of stress.”

The same study authors theorize that if affectionate behavior reduces stress, “then it is logical to predict that it will also effect improvements on physiological parameters that are exacerbated by stress” such as cholesterol. Cholesterol has a number of essential physiological functions, they write, “including maintaining membrane fluidity, producing bile, and contributing to the metabolism of fat-soluble vitamins.” It’s also “largely responsible” for the production of steroid hormones, such as cortisol, aldosterone, progesterone, the estrogens, and testosterone.

1. It’s good for the overall health of your relationship.

Romantic kissing, as well as other forms of physical contact, strengthens feelings of attachment and increases the feeling over overall satisfaction between partners.

A 2013 study found that couples who kiss more often feel happier and more satisfied in their relationship (and the same correlation was not found when people had more sex, interestingly).

Mwah!

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15 People Who Have Been in Comas Describe Their Experiences

How terrifying it must be to wake up from a coma. And what an experience to go through.

In this AskReddit articles, people who have survived comas open up and describe their incredible experiences.

1. Nothing

“I was in a coma for about two weeks following a cardiac arrest as a teen. I was technically dead for over an hour, in fact. People often ask me if I could hear my family talking to me or if I was dreaming. The answer is “No.”

There is a huge hole in my memory beginning about two weeks before the coma through a week after “waking up.” And waking up is in quotes because I would wake up, ask a bunch of semi-incoherent questions, fall back under, then wake up again and ask the exact same questions, in the exact same order. Repeat six or seven times.

The coma was not even blackness. It just does not exist. I remember having the hardest time believing it was actually mid-October when the last day I remembered was late-September.”

2. Zero recollection

“I was in a coma for 3 days following a serious cycling accident, medically induced. I woke up with zero recollection of why I was there or what was said while I was out. It is easily the scariest situation I’ve found myself in, but I can’t say I remember it. I woke up to my mom and dad in the hospital with me and my body in traction of some sort and that was way scarier to me.”

3. Blackness

“I had a seizure and was in a medically induced coma for 3 days when I was 17. To be honest I don’t remember anything. I remember fading in and out of the anesthesia trying to pull my breathing tube out and and that my hands were restrained to the bed so I couldn’t.

When I woke up and was coherent I couldn’t recall anything from actually being in the coma. They had even moved me to a hospital over 100 miles away. It was really just nothing but black. No dreams, no lights, no voices, just nothing.”

4. Different personality

“Dunno. I was in a coma for 11 days, severe brain injury. I don’t remember being in a coma or waking up from a coma. I lost several years of memories prior to the coma, and my brain didn’t really start to “retain” information again until ~6 weeks after I came out of the coma.

I’m told that my personality changed afterwards. I had to rebuild most areas of my life. It sucked, but it was probably a good thing.

Although I’d be lying if I said I never wondered what my life would be like if I’d never had the coma.”

5. Whoa!

“When I was a kid, my best friend got hit by a car at age 12. She was in a coma for I think a little over a year. She said she felt like she was asleep but was most freaked out when she woke up and saw that she had gone through puberty while in the coma.”

6. Car crash

“My girlfriend of 6 years and sort of fiance was in a severe car crash when she was 16. Both of her best friends died instantly. She was the only survivor but they didn’t think she would make it. She was in a coma for 9 months. She was in what is called a waking coma. She retained normal periods of sleep and open eyed wakefulness, but no higher brain functions.

Here are some things about her experience.

She doesn’t have any memories of the year prior or the year and a halfish after her coma and obviously no memories of the car crash.

She suffered a TBI and when she first got out of the coma she would get naked and sexual with people and anger very easily. These are common problems of people who suffer a TBI.

She went back to school after the coma, but her brain was still healing a lot. She was held back another year because her brain was still not retaining anything.

Today she is a wonderful, bright 30 year old with a college degree. She has a slight speech impediment, gets frustrated easier than most, and it took her a while to get driving down. Honestly, she still scares the hell out of me when she drives, but there are worse drivers out there.”

7. Positivity is important

“After being in a really bad accident that left one of my good friends (the driver) brain dead, they put me into a chemically induced coma for under a week to prevent brain damage due to swelling.

When I first woke up, my memory was much better than it was as it gradually faded in the days to come. I have a journal my mother recorded things in, and I recalled many things I shouldn’t have been able to immediately after waking up. Today, I have very little memory of it all, but I can definitely say that having positive people around you definitely helps when you’re in a situation like that.

If you have a friend in this situation, don’t disregard them. Even though your life has moved on, they may wake up one day, and in their mind, not a day has passed since the last conversation they had with you.”

8. A little humor attempt

“I was in a medically induced coma following a self-inflicted gunshot wound. I don’t remember much but my family described moments of me appearing to be awake. Most notable, an apparent attempt at humor.

Apparently they put these mits on my hands to prevent me from ripping my ventilation tubes out over and over but I pretended they were my lobster claws. I have no recollection but it’s a real me move.”

9. Bad dream

“I was put in an induced coma when I was 9 years old after a pretty bad car accident which left me with a fractured skull. All I remember is a bad dream about having a bad headache, and hearing my older sister telling everyone, including my parents, to get the f*ck out of her way because she wanted to see me. I found out later that this was on the night it happened, and they were trying to calm her down before she saw me.”

10. Kaleidoscope

“I was in a coma for three days after an emergency C-Section (thanks eclampsia). They actually lost me for a couple of minutes after they delivered my twin boys. I remember hearing the sound of my dad crying close by. I could hear people talking around me, but any time I would try to focus on what I thought I was seeing it was like looking in a kaleidoscope.”

11. Words from Dad

“About 3 years ago I overdosed on sleeping pills and it caused me to go into a coma. I remember a lot of what my family said but one thing stood out, my dad’s voice. I remember him saying “I love you and I know you miss your mom and brother but I still need you”.

I was in that damn coma for a month and I woke up five minutes after he said that. I couldn’t speak because I had tubes down my throat and I was non verbal for a while after because the pills messed up my brain, I don’t know how I remembered but I remembered the slang sign for I love you.

I still struggle with suicide but any time I think about it I remember what my dad said and I try to do the opposite of what I was going to do.”

12. Nightmares

“I was in a medically induced coma for two weeks, about 3 months ago. I had open heart surgery, it didn’t go well, had trouble coming off the ventilator so they just put me in a come to try to give me time to heal.

I had nightmares the entire time from the medicine they were using to knock me out. I thought I had been kidnapped by a nurse and was a victim of sex trafficking. I thought my drug addict aunt had her friends rob my sister and her husband, killing my brother-in-law and one of their children, and I thought I was constantly being grabbed by people under my bed. It was not fun.

I can’t say that I knew I was in a coma or anything. I am usually one of those people that when I have a bad dream, I can tell myself it is just a dream and wake myself up in order to end it. This was not like that. I was convinced it was all really happening.”

13. In and out

“A few years ago my dad was in a medically induced coma for about 2 weeks. Everyone thought he was completely unconscious the whole time until he woke up and started mentioning conversations people had around him while he was under, this even surprised the doctors.

He said that from his perspective it was like he was asleep most the time but he would occasionally “wake up” and could hear what was going on around him without being able to move or do anything before he would eventually drift back to sleep.”

14. Confused

“My husband was in a coma for a couple weeks. He got pneumonia his freshman year of college, the coma was medically induced because he had a really bad immune system or something.

He told me all he remembered was waking up really confused and with a really full beard. Amd when he did wake up, he was still in a lot of pain so they gave him a ton of medicine and it made him kinda high and he wasn’t all there when his friends visited.”

15. Interesting

“My brother-in-law was in a coma for a month after a car accident in which he lost his eye and almost died.

He’s said that he had a vision of “God” holding him underwater three times, almost drowning him the third time, then him giving up and finally being let up into his home town.

He’s had one almost fatal accident after that, and while I’m not superstitious, I do believe sometimes reality can echo the future in ways which our minds can perceive sometimes, even if we can’t fully interpret those echoes. Well, I simply believe he’s eventually going to have a third accident. I fear for him.”

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Take a Look at These Photos of What Kids Eating Around the World

What do kids around the globe eat? I’m assuming that a lot of countries have way more balanced and healthy diets than the United States, but you just never know.

That is why this project from photographer Gregg Segal is so interesting. Segal spent three years in nine different countries documenting what kids eat around the globe on a daily basis. The information is fascinating and the photos are beautiful as well.

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Daily Bread is all set to go to press! Published by Powerhouse Books, it’ll be released in May. For the cover, I chose this portrait of Altaf, a 6 yr old from a small village on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. Altaf’s favorite food is the chicken and beef satay his father makes and sells at his own stand. It’s seasoned with ginger and herbs, roasted over charcoal and served with cold cucumber. Altaf eats any “tasteful” food (made with a lot of ingredients and flavors) and likes raw, leafy greens like Ulam-Ulam, a salad eaten with anchovies, cincalok (condiment made from fermented krill) and plenty of sambal (hot sauce). #dailybread #whatkidseat #powerhousebooks #foodculture #foodaroundtheworld #diet

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Buy Segal’s book, Daily Bread: What Kids Eat Around the World, HERE and take a look at these great photos.

1. USA

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Prince, photographed in 2016 for Daily Bread. When he was 12, Prince and his family left St. James Montego Bay for the U.S. His parents decided life in Jamaica was too dangerous after Prince’s cousin was gunned down at the little neighborhood market his family owned. Prince misses the green open space of his family farm and the animals they raised: goats, chickens, geese, rabbits, pigs and cows. They grew and harvested corn, yams, coconut, oranges, apples, pears, ackee and breadfruit – and back then his diet was much better than it is now. Prince misses his dad, too, who’s stuck in Montego Bay driving a cab. He prays he’ll get his papers and come to America. #dailybread #powerhousebooks #culture #americandream #whatkidseat #diet #foodaroundtheworld #jamaicanculture

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2. Mexico

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Jesus, photographed in 2016 for Daily Bread. Jesus was raised by his mom, who was a teenager when she left her family and home in Michoacán, Mexico and made her way to Los Angeles. Jesus, his mom and his 2 older sisters shared a one-bedroom apartment south of downtown infested with roaches and rodents. Jesus saw little of his dad whom they discovered had another family. The only meal Jesus ate most days was dinner. His 1 hour commute to school didn’t leave time for breakfast and the school lunch was so unappetizing, a piece of fruit was all he could stomach. Mom made chicken and rice most nights. On special occasions she’d make Jesus’ favorite: tamales with red chile sauce. Growing up, Jesus was aware there were people worse off than him. He joined a student organization to feed the homeless and volunteered with @peaceoverviolence a non-profit helping victims of domestic abuse. Jesus just finished his sophomore year @harvard, with a double major of applied mathematics and psychology. Jesus has had more opportunities than he could ever have imagined, though knows there are obstacles ahead. @Erin cc2la thank you. #dailybread #whatkidseat #schoollunch #mom #successstory #proud #humbling

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3. Indigenous Brazil

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One more from Brazil. Ayme has been raised on a mostly indigenous diet. Her dad is a forest engineer and nutritionist and her mom @anaboquadi researches the culinary and medicinal uses of foods from the Cerrado – and has a great little vegan restaurant, Buriti Zen in Brasilia (for all you locals). Try the walnut cassava moqueca and cauliflower soufflé with cupuaçu cream. Ayme’s earliest memory of food is her mama’s milk. Thinking of this makes her want to return to that time and nurse again. Açaí is Ayme’s favorite food and part of her heritage; her great grandmother was an açaí merchant who sold her berries at Ver-o-peso Market in Belém. From working on Daily Bread, Ayme realized that she eats many things that other kids don’t – like lots of fresh veggies. #dailybread #powerhousebooks #plantprotein #whatkidseat #culture #kids #eatyourgreens #diet #indigenous #buriti #buritizen

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4. Posh Brazil

5. Amazonian Brazil

6. Poor Brazil

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Thayla, Brasilia, 2018. Most poor kids in Brasil attend school to be able to eat, but the government has failed to provide adequate school lunches, offering little more than milk and crackers or canned beans. Thayla wishes she had more flavors in her diet and could afford to eat feijoada. If she had enough money, she’d buy clothes for the street kids who are worse off than her. Someday, she’d like to be a teacher. In Brazil, corporate food is finding ways to profit from the poorest consumers, reaching ever more remote places. Nestle hires micro-entrepreneurs, mom and pops who trundle thru villages with carts selling cheap processed snacks. A generation ago, Brazil’s poor were underfed. Today, 50% of the population is overweight. The UN should be focused not only at calorie intake but nutrient. #dailybread #powerhousebooks #whatkidseat #diet #nutrition #kids #brazil #schoollunch

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7. Junk Food USA

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Can you guess what percent of our calories come from vegetables in the US? Less than 1%! Looking at all of the kids’ food I photographed, not just in the US, but all over the world, greens were consistently absent. Parents often say, “My kid won’t eat vegetables.” They throw up their hands. “I put healthy food in front of them, but they only like pizza.” You can’t force kids to eat healthy foods, but if you give them the choice, they’ll choose salt, fat, and sugar over leafy greens because salt, fat, and sugar appeal to our deepest, primal cravings stretching back to our caveman days! If you don’t introduce whipped cream Frappuccinos, sautéed spinach with a little butter and salt isn’t bad. #dailybread #eatyourgreens #whatkidseat #parenting #primalcravings #diet #powerhousebooks

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8. Italy

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12 year old Amelia from Catania, Sicily, surrounded by her vibrantly colorful diet: the green of beans and zucchini, red of cherry tomatoes, yellow of peppers, purple of radicchio, orange of melon, etc. Outside of a single pizza box, there’s no packaging in Amelia’s week of meals. Everything’s homemade, which is as pleasing to the eye as it is easy on the environment! Daily Bread is a finalist for the 2018 Food Sustainability Media Award announced next week in Milan. All finalists have been put forward for the Best of the Web Award. The winner is chosen by the public. Check out finalists here: www.goodfoodmediaaward.com/finalists/2018/ #dailybread #goodfoodmediaaward #homemade #lesswaste #colorfulfood #regenerativeagriculture

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9. India

10. No processed foods

11. Dubai

12. Senegal and Mumbai

13. Kuala Lumpur

14. Senegal

15. The photographer’s son, Hank

What a wonderful project!

The post Take a Look at These Photos of What Kids Eating Around the World appeared first on UberFacts.

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10 Facts About Chernobyl That Will Give You the Creeps

A devastating nuclear disaster took place at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Soviet Union on April 26, 1986. The incident is back in the public consciousness right now due to the success of the HBO show Chernobyl that dramatizes the events surrounding the accident.

Much of what happened before, during, and after the 1986 event is still the cause of much debate due to the secrecy of the Soviet Union. But one thing is for sure: the Chernobyl accident is considered the worst nuclear power plant disaster in history.

Here are 10 facts about the terrifying Chernobyl disaster and its aftermath.

1. Casualty rate: Unknown

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It’s sometimes strange how different paths in life come together and suddenly your path takes an unexpected direction. The path towards Chernobyl with @jonadbo. We have been there twice now and it remains such a special place because of its history. We ended up there to photograph abandoned locations and we got fascinated by the history. Ofcourse I have watched the HBO series and it’s made so accurate. It’s very realistic and I recognized so many places. I hope that the ghost town of Prypjat remains protected from mass tourism, that it does not deteriorate even more and that nature can still run its own way. So keep it nice. In the end we all have our reason to visit this city. First picture: @jonadbo #pripyat #chernobylzone #chernobyl #ukrain #decay #abandoned #deserted #netflix #disaster #rooftop #tsjernobyl #urbex #urbexphotography #belgiumphotography #belgiumphotographer #canonbelgium #urbexkings #abandonedafterthedark #urbextopia #urbexbelgie #forgotten #forgottenplace #chernobyltour @urbexchampions @urbex_kings @urbexeurope @urbex_3336 @abandonedafterdark @urbex_utopia @urbex_supreme @deurbex

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The number of victims that can be blamed on the accident ranges anywhere from 4,000 to 90,000. Two people died in the initial blast, 29 people died from radiation sickness in the months after the accident, and there are literally thousands that may die from radiation-related causes in the future.

2. A gruesome death

One of the first firefighters who responded to the accident scene was Vasily Ignatenko. He suffered a terrible two-week death from his exposure to radiation, including excreting blood and mucus 25 times a day and coughing up pieces of his own internal organs.

3. Other ailments

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⚠ On April 26, 1986, the fourth block was destroyed, the reactor was completely destroyed. The largest accident of this kind in the history of nuclear energy, the estimated number of dead and wounded and economic damage. ⠀ ⚠ 134 people suffered radiation sickness. More than 115 thousand people from the 30-kilometer zone were evacuated. More than 600 thousand people took part in the aftermath of the accident. During the first three months after the accident, 31 people died, another 19 deaths from 1987 to 2004 can be explained by its direct consequences. ⠀ ⚠ Unlike the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the explosion resembled a very powerful "dirty bomb" – radioactive contamination became the main striking factor.

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People in neighboring areas had to flee their homes and complained of such symptoms as “black spots,” bodies getting “fat, like a barrel,” and turning “black, like coal, and shrinking.”

4. Radiophobia

Because women were terrified of possible radiation poisoning, there were an estimated 100,000-200,000 abortions in Europe after the Chernobyl disaster.

5. Dead trees everywhere

The area around the nuclear power plant became known as The Red Forest because the trees died and turned a ginger color after the accident.

6. Lingerers

Although it’s illegal to live in the area around the plant known as the Zone of Alienation, or the Exclusion Zone, it’s estimated that 130-150 people still live there, many of them older women taking care of their family’s land.

7. Poor animals

If you’ve seen the show, you know that people were not allowed to evacuate with their pets. This actually happened and units were sent in to put the animals down.

8. But…there are still hundreds of dogs there

Descendants of the dogs who survived the aftermath of the disaster still live in the Exclusion Zone. There are an estimated 300 stray dogs here. You can help them out by donating HERE.

9. Tourist spot

Tourists can visit the Exclusion Zone, and it’s actually become pretty trendy after the success of the HBO show about the disaster.

10. Ghost town

There is an abandoned amusement park in nearby Pripyat that looks like something out of a horror film.

While it’s truly terrifying what happened at Chernobyl, the strength that the people of Russia have shown in the face of unimaginable devastation should be commended.

The post 10 Facts About Chernobyl That Will Give You the Creeps appeared first on UberFacts.

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Okinawa has some of the longest…

Okinawa has some of the longest living people on earth, and it has the highest rate of people over a hundred in the world. Two thirds of them are still living independently at the age of 97. Okinawans have also been found to have low rates of heart disease, stroke, cancer and diabetes. According to […]