July 2012

A while back I told you about the health hazards of carrying a heavy purse. Now I want to warn you that you may be carrying a toxic purse.  It turns out that some of those trendy brightly colored wallets & purses you see in the stores and in all the style magazines may contain high levels of lead.  I know what you are thinking – that I’m probably talking about cheap faux leather, Chinese knock offs.  Actually some of the high priced Tori Burch and Ralph Lauren “must-have” accessories of the season sold in Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom tested positive for lead levels ranging from 3 times to nearly 200 higher than agreed upon lead levels.  Of course there are also plenty of lead-filled bags at the other end of the spectrum too.  According to a recent compliance testing project, 15% of all the bags tested had high lead levels.  That’s a huge problem since lead exposure has been linked to all kinds of health problems including decreased fertility and impaired mental development and is for obvious reasons a real threat to young women and mothers of small children.  So how do you protect yourself?  Avoid brightly colored purses and accessories.  Yellow is a big culprit but you need to wary of red, orange and green faux leather products as well.  Protect yourself by buying accessories made from natural materials and wash your hands after touching any purse or accessory you suspect may contain lead. 

A British woman by the name of Hazel Jones recently appeared on TV to discuss a rare condition called uterus didlphys.  Uterus didlphys is a condition in which a woman has two vaginas and two uteruses.  Ms. Jones found out she had uterus didlphys only after her boyfriend suggested that there was something “different” about her. It’s estimated that one in one million women has uterus didlphys. As if having one uterus and vagina isn’t enough just imagine having two along with their accompanying monthly cycles.  Ms. Jones isn’t embarrassed by her condition.  In fact she has been quoted as saying that “If women want to have a look I’m quite happy to show them.”  And while you might think she would try and profit from her unique physical anatomy she had the good sense to decline a $1 million dollar offer from the porn industry.

It’s cherry season and produce shelves around the country are bursting with ripe, red cherries. The cherry is a nutritional powerhouse because it’s a great source of antioxidants, vitamin A, fiber and lots of other great stuff.  At only 87 calories in a one-cup serving they are a really smart sweet treat. Make time to be good to you and enjoy some cherries today.

Good Health!

Terry

“Always be nice to your children because they are the ones who will choose your rest home.”

~Phyllis Diller