What is it like to get a snake bite?

In a controversial move during a game of "Would you rather...?", my son asked if I'd pick being trapped in a lion den or in a cage full of snakes. We debated whether it would be better to meet your demise with a hundred snake bites or at the claws of a hungry pride. And after viewing these up-close videos of snakes attacking, I think I might actually have to choose having my face eaten by a lion.

Take a deep breath and tune in to these videos that show or explain the spooky world of snake bites. First, this sciencey bit by National Geographic on what happened physiologically and psychologically to one man who was bitten while photographing a snake.


You won't need to watch a full episode of Discovery's show "Bitten" after seeing this trailer, complete with gory pics of a man's thumb post-bite.

Too bad there wasn't intervention of any kind available for this guy.



(Oh, how I wish I could post this video. Fair warning -- it has lots of cussing. Why? Because it's a pretty wild account of a woman from snake bite to recovery.)

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Rosario Dawson: Complimented for looking emaciated

Rosario Dawson

"I remember everyone asking what did you do to get so thin? You looked great," actress Rosario Dawson said bluntly. "I looked emaciated."

Speaking to Shape Magazine, Dawson recalls the reactions she had when she lost weight to play a drug addict dying of HIV/AIDS in the 2005 movie "Rent."

"It's a form of violence in the way that we look at women and the way we expect them to look and be for what sake? Not for health, survival, not for enjoyment of life, but just so you could look pretty," she said.

Even when she's not portraying a critically ill character, Dawson says the standard is unhealthy and not real.

"I'm constantly telling girls all the time everything is airbrushed, everything is retouched to the point it's not even asked. None of us look like that."

While Dawson's criticisms are not revolutionary or even words we have never heard from a celebrity, they still stand out among a slew of magazine cover articles with seemingly innocuous tips from famous ladies on how they got or stay slim or generic commentary on being naturally thin, having fast metabolism, or simply eating a salad a day and drinking lots of water. We know the celebrities who have spoken out about the unrealistic beauty standard and impossible body expectations -- Kate Winslet, Drew Barrymore, Adele, Meryl Streep, Helen Mirren, and now Rosario Dawson -- because for each of them, there are hundreds of compliant stars who are smiling and nodding (at least publicly). Blake Lively, for example, said that she was at her healthiest while playing a woman dying of bulimia, a stark contrast to the "Rent" reactions.

Back to Dawson.

Although the interview focuses on the salads she eats during the interview, I love that Dawson told the magazine the food she'd never give up is homemade lasagna, that she hits the snooze button every morning, that she snacks on raw almonds and coconut water,  that she has a snappy sense of direction and she's working on the V-Day project to end violence against women and girls, and that she loves her own ears. Those quirky details round out a woman we might otherwise see as one-dimensional or even just as a size up or down from where she was in a red-carpet photo last month.

I think that might just be the key to getting out of this restrictive body-image space. I think seeing women, even if they are on-screen or onstage, as real will help us stop worrying about whether they are gaunt or hip-bony or have a belly or got a boob job. I think it's healthier.

I don't think I am alone in not caring if an actress chooses to work out daily to have the body she wants or if she got it from "good genes." I'd so much rather hear her explain what it takes to give her the energy and inspiration to walk tall and feel fabulous in whatever body she has at the moment.

Dawson does this, admitting she doesn't love working out but says she enjoys the side effects -- better posture, an endorphin surge, and feeling better in her body.

"It's meditative and calming to get your body in motion," she said of becoming an avid lunchtime yogi and practicing Pilates. "But getting back in the saddle can be the hardest thing."


Do Dawson's criticisms of the compliments she received when she looked emaciated stand out to you?

What other celebrities would you like to see get honest about Hollywood's impossible body standards?

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User Post: Even McDonald's is not a happy place anymore

I was a bit shocked today by the news that McDonald's has decided to change the Happy Meal. I am actually disturbed by how upsetting this change is to me. Three years ago, McDonald's began offering apples as a choice instead of fries with the Happy Meal. I tasted the apples once. I did not care for them as they had a bitter after-taste. Most people must have shared my opinion of the apples, because three years later only twelve percent of consumers regularly order the apples over the fries. This is where the story begins to get really disturbing. McDonald's has decided to include the apples in every Happy Meal with a smaller portion of fries. This is not because of great demand for the apples obviously. This was done to appease a group of people who believe that it is their right to govern what we feed our children.

I recognize that McDonald's food is not healthy when consumed in large quantities. A matter of fact, there is not one type of food that is good for you when consumed in large quantities. I do not see an issue with taking my four children to McDonald's on Tuesday nights. It is something that I have done since my oldest daughter could enjoy the play place. I love the fact that my three year old and my almost thirteen year old both look forward to these trips. My children are all healthy and do not suffer from any weight related issues. Commonsense dictates that one fast food meal a week will not pose significant risk to overall health. As a nurse by profession, I know that obesity is a serious issue for our youth. Obesity is complex and is caused by a multitude of genetic, internal, and external influences. Interestingly, the average school lunch has more calories than a Happy Meal.

McDonald's has removed the happiness from the Happy Meal by changing their business practices to please this fanatical group. These health nuts are not paying customers. Actual customers were presented with an option of apples or fries three years ago. This change was unnecessary as any customer is free to order whatever they may choose themselves without the interference of regulation from outsiders. I believe that this alteration is no different that some fitness crazed, food policeman standing behind you in line and forcing you to order the healthy choices only.

I am also saddened because the Happy Meal was a vestige of my childhood. I have some happy memories of enjoying the tasty burger, barely able to contain my excitement for the surprise toy. Perhaps I am a bit nostalgic, but I cherish those few childhood experiences that have seemed to survive the test of time and technology. A Happy Meal was a tradition. Take away a few fries, add some apples, pour in a heaping dose of political correctness and you get the More Healthy Meal. No matter how many times I say it, it just does not sound right.

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What Your Weight Says About Your Personality

If you're trying to lose weight, now would be a very good time for some personality adjustments. According to a new study, those of us with impulsive traits are most likely to be overweight. In fact, people who scored the highest in hasty behaviors weighed an average of 22 pounds more than their cautious counterparts.

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Researchers from the National Institute on Aging looked at data from nearly 2,000 people over the course of 50 years to determine how personality traits are associated with weight and body mass index. Their conclusions, published in theJournal of Personality and Social Psychology, found greater weight gain among impulsive people, those who enjoy taking risks and those who are cynical, competitive and aggressive.

Individuals with this constellation of traits tend to give in to temptation and lack the discipline to stay on track amid difficulties or frustration. To maintain a healthy weight, it is typically necessary to have a healthy diet and a sustained program of physical activity, both of which require commitment and restraint. Such control may be difficult for highly impulsive individuals.

A revelation that might just make sense if you're looking at a compulsive eater, but let's not confuse the issue. Not all impulsive, aggressive, risk-takers are destined to become overweight. I happen to know many people who I would consider impulsive–myself included–and none of us are at unhealthy weights. In fact, most of us are healthy, physically fit individuals. We just happen to channel our impulsive behaviors towards athletic endeavors, not food.

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Case in point: A few years ago, a friend of mine completed an awesome bike workout and felt so good afterward that he went home and immediately signed up for an Ironman (2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run). No massive amounts of training under his belt, no previous experience in triathlons and no idea what he was getting himself into. He just did it without thinking. Endorphin high or impulsive behavior? Probably both. Turns out, he became quite good at Ironman races and has since gone on to complete them in the top of his age group. Had he taken the time to think this through before signing up for the first race, he probably would have done what so many of us do–find every excuse in the book not to do it. Sometimes thinking is overrated. We can all be our own worse supporters–always finding reasons that we're not good enough to do something, not fit enough, not strong enough, not young enough, not experienced enough, whatever.

Ultimately, being impulsive has to do with two things: taking safe risks, but also knowing when to apply the brakes.

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Crush more calories with your workout

By Jen Ator, Women's Health

Preventing too many ice cream splurges and other summer treats from settling on your waistline comes down to simple calorie math: If you want to indulge in a few extra calories, you'll have to sweat off a few more than usual. Send 'em packing with these four explosive moves created by Kim Blake, a trainer at Nike World Headquarters Sports Center in Portland, Oregon. You'll push your body weight off the floor and then absorb it when you land. Translation? Your muscles will work hard, and you'll blast fat.

What to Expect: You'll do 12 to 16 reps of each move, resting for 15 seconds between each exercise. When you've finished all four, rest for a minute or two, then repeat the circuit two more times. Do this calorie-incinerating workout three times a week, or anytime you need a little damage control.

Print and Go: Get This Entire Routine as a Printable Workout

1.  RUNNER'S LUNGE TO KNEE SKIP 

Start in a pushup position, then bend your left knee and place your left foot between your hands (a). Push through your left foot, raise your torso, and drive your right knee and left arm into the air, hopping off the ground (b). Return to start, then switch legs and repeat on the other side. That's one rep.

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2.  PLIÉ JUMPING JACKS

Stand with your hands at your sides (a) and jump into the air, bringing your arms overhead and your feet wide, knees and toes turned out, then lower into a squat (b). Quickly jump back to the starting position. That's one rep.

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3.  QUARTER-TURN SQUAT JUMP 

Lower into a squat (a), then jump up, swinging your arms overhead and rotating 90 degrees to the left while in the air (b). Lower into a squat (c), then jump up and rotate to the right. That's one rep.

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4.  DONKEY KICK

Start in a pushup position, legs extended directly behind you and hands under your shoulders (a). With your legs together, brace your core and glutes, then kick both legs into the air, bending your knees to bring your feet toward your butt (b). Reverse the movement to return to start, trying to land softly on the balls of your feet. That's one rep.

Master a Classic: How to Do a Perfect Pushup

Tell us:  What's working in your fitness routine right now???

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Top 7 Reasons You're SO Tired

Don't be one of those women who accept being overly exhausted. Kids, house, work, life—I get it. It is still very unusual to have sheer exhaustion for an extended period of time. The physical complaint of being "worn out" is one of women's top five health concerns when they visit their doctor. Here is a checklist of seven biggies that cause an overwhelming desire for a spa day (and a well deserved one).

Related: Top Sex Drive Killers

Thyroid problems

That little gland in the middle of your neck is your energy guru. Either overactive or under active, it can create major fatigue. If it's underactive your energy just cannot get that boost. If it is overactive your energy stores burn out quickly. Thyroid problems are common in women, especially post pregnancy.

Heart Disease

Women manifest symptoms of heart disease differently than men. Twice as many women die of stroke or heart disease than any other form of cancer. If you have risk factors such as obesity, diabetes or high blood pressure be sure to have an annual physical.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D deficiency has been a large part of growing studies. For women, deficiency in this vitamin can lead to impaired bone strength. A simple blood test can help resolve the question. Reasons why we are deficient? Many women have milk allergies; we have decreased exposure to sun, which promotes vitamin metabolism; many women are vegan or vegetarian. The recommended amount is 600 IU daily for women under 70 and 800 IU for women over 70.

Related: Myths About Alcohol

Anemia

Iron deficiency can be a major cause of anemia and fatigue. Once again, following a strict vegan or vegetarian diet can decrease iron rich foods you intake. Folate is also important for red blood cell metabolism—and therefore energy. Also, a female can lose a lot of blood during her period and this can lead to chronic anemia. If you do follow a strict diet, it is worth seeing a nutritionist once to be sure that you have proper vitamin and mineral supplementation to keep your blood count adequate.

Sleep apnea

This is a major under diagnosed disorder in women. If you snore, please tell your doctor. Sleep apnea is a condition that halts your breathing through the night and your brain wakes you up to restart the flow of breathing. The result... you never get great deep sleep and feel very tired during the day. Treatment can really change your life.  If overweight, weight loss will also be recommended.

Also See: Preventing Summer UTIs

Depression

Depression and fatigue fuel one another, it seems. Biggest advice, talk with your doctor about how you are feeling. Treating depression, even beginning to acknowledge it, will help.  Why live with something treatable?

Lack of sleep

When juggling so very much, women over-burn the midnight oil. I know that after the kids go to bed I often put in another hour of work and then load/empty/reload the dishwasher and the list doesn't end. One night a week just go to bed and get that full eight hours... trust me, the dishes aren't going anywhere on their own.

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User Post: Can I win the war on weight?

Weight!  For the last month I have been doing great on Jenny Craig, I have even lost ten pounds.  I have kept up my motivation by filling myself with fruits & veggies.  So the other night my husband & I decided to go out to dinner alone, no baby.  I felt like going hog wild apparently because I ordered all the wrong things off the menu.  Salad for an appy which would normally be ok if you don't add tons of goat cheese and helpings of your husbands fried calamari.  Italian bread for dipping in that oh so delicious salad dressing and then Spaghetti Carbonara.  If that wasn't bad enough we decided to walk along the boardwalk strip in our hometown and came across a new ice cream shop with a zillion homemade flavors of ice cream.  Who am I to turn down the success of a local ice cream shop?  I ordered a small sugar cone with a child size portion of chocolate peanut butter ice cream.  What I got was a king size scoop which needed to be placed into a cup so it would not melt all over me.  Instead of portioning out a "normal" scoop I ate the whole damn thing.

This little outing trip lead to me eating two dinners that were not Jenny Cuisine.  Lucklily I weighed in this morning and didn't gain or loss any weight.  But why did I sabotage my weight loss this week?  Only to moan and complain to any sympathetic ear.  For attention?  For an extra boast of you can do it?  I'm not sure but I have 30 pounds to go and I really want to get there but I'm not sure if I can win this war.

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