Beyoncé - Halo -

Abbaye de Belloc

Traditional, farmhouse, unpasteurized, hard cheese made from sheep's milk. It has a shape of flat wheel with natural, crusty, brownish rind with patches of red, orange and yellow. The rind is marked with tiny craters. The cheese was founded by Benedictine monks. For centuries they have made their cheese from milk, produced in the locality. The cheese has a firm, dense, rich and creamy texture. The taste resembles burnt caramel and there is a distinctive lanolin aroma. 

across the bridge

8 Craziest health rumors

1.) Baby carrots are preserved with bleach

Not exactly... and there's no reason to stop eating them, says Randy Worobo, PhD, an associate professor of food microbiology at Cornell University. Baby carrots are rinsed (not preserved) in a chlorine wash, recommended by the FDA, to kill bacteria like salmonella and E. coli, which cause foodborne illness. Most precut produce, including frozen veggies and fruit salad, is washed with this or a similar sanitizer.

2.) Working out on an empty stomach burns more fat

It does, but don't expect any fat-melting miracles. When you exercise, your body burns calories from both fat and carbohydrates. Recent studies show that working out on an empty stomach might burn a few more fat calories since you don’t have as many carb calories to spare, but overall calorie burn is about the same. And, based on research so far, that's what really counts when it comes to fitting into a smaller size. 

3.) Eating too much sugar causes diabetes

Not in the same smoking-gun way that cigarettes cause cancer, but research shows that sugar may play a part—and it's smart to limit your intake. First and foremost, being overweight does increase your risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and consuming too much sugar can contribute to weight gain. Still, some emerging research suggests that excess sugar intake can increase diabetes risk regardless of weight. A landmark JAMA study found that women nearly doubled their diabetes risk when they increased the number of sugar-added drinks they consumed from one or fewer a week to one or more per day over a 4-year period.

4.) Does Listerine mouthwash help keep mosquitoes away?

No. Although Internet postings swear it's true, scientists beg to differ. Our research has found that people who sprayed Listerine on their arms were just as likely to be bitten as those who didn't use any repellent, says Grayson Brown, PhD, a University of Kentucky public health entomologist. The myth persists thanks to a strong placebo effect and because Listerine has eucalyptol, an ingredient found in some botanical bug sprays. But the concentration in mouthwash (less than 1%) is too low to have an impact.

5.) Spicy foods boost metabolism

I wish! Your metabolic rate is determined by your gender, height, present weight/body composition, and age. These factors determine the amount of calories the body will burn to maintain the basic functions of life that occur even when we sleep—the energy used by the heart, brain, lungs, intestines, etc. Eating spicy foods cannot significantly increase metabolic rate and help you burn more calories at rest. Although your body temperature may temporarily rise and your heart may beat a bit faster after eating "hot" foods, over the long term spices will not make any changes in the rate of metabolism.

6.) Liquid eyeliner causes sinus infections

This rumor presumes that eyeliner is able to drain into the sinuses, get trapped, and cause an infection, but that's not possible, says Richard Rosenfeld, MD, chairman of otolaryngology at Long Island College Hospital. Your natural tearing process can funnel bits of makeup into the tear ducts, but they drain into the nose and out the nostrils. If you develop eye irritation and sinus symptoms after wearing eyeliner, you probably had an allergic reaction.

7.) It’s safe to follow the 5-second rule for dropped food

It's probably not even safe to follow a 1-second rule: The transfer of bacteria from a contaminated surface to food is almost instantaneous—or, at the very least, quicker than your reflexes. In one study, Clemson University food scientist Paul Dawson, PhD, and students contaminated several surfaces (ceramic tile, wood flooring, and carpet) with salmonella. They then dropped pieces of bologna and slices of bread on the surfaces for as little as 5 seconds and as long as 60 seconds. After just 5 seconds, both food types had already picked up as many as 1,800 bacteria (more bad bugs adhered to the moisture-rich bologna than the bread); after a full minute, it was up to 10 times that amount.

8.) Can cracking your knuckles cause arthritis?

Nope. If you're suffering from osteoarthritis in your hands, it certainly has nothing to do with this nervous tic. One study at the former Mount Carmel Mercy Hospital in Detroit compared 74 people (ages 45 and older) who had been chronic knuckle crackers for decades with 226 who always left their hands alone; researchers found no difference in the incidence of osteoarthritis between the two groups. But there are reasons to stop this annoying habit: The same study found knuckle crackers to be far more likely to have weaker grip strength and greater hand swelling, both of which can limit dexterity. As for osteoarthritis, that's more likely due to genetics and increasing age.

20 Ways to Reduce Your Dependence on Oil

Recycled plastic bags that decompose!!!

Here’s what sets Green Genius trash bags apart from the landfill-clogging pack: they’re made from 40 percent recycled plastic and meet ASTM D5511 standards for biodegradability (but not compostability) so they'll be sitting in landfills for just two years ... instead of forever. The secret ingredient that promotes accelerated decomposition in landfills is called EcoPure, a nutrient-based additive that makes plastic edible to non-plastic-eating microbes. Even though plastic is still obviously involved in the manufacture of the bags, the company plans to develop just-as-strong non-plastic products in the future. And speaking of the bags’ manufacture, they’re produced in an environmentally sensitive facility outside of Dallas.

Pretty cool. Need more convincing? Check out this video from the Green Genius folks, read some FAQS about plastic trash bag biodegradability, and sign up for a free sample. Also, while we’re on the topic of plastics, check out this powerful recent post from blogger Karl about the plastic-strewn beaches of Midway Island, one of the closest bodies of land to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Via [Trend Hunter]

SoCal Kids Now Ride to School On a Plug-In Hybrid Electric School Bus

 

Ever know a school bus to be the coolest ride in town? Definitely wasn't when I was in school, but kids attending Southern California's Ventura Unified School District now get to drive around town (or just to and from school) in a hybrid electric plug-in school bus.

The national Plug-In Hybrid Electric School Bus Project rolled out the first round of these uber-efficient buses in 2007, but Ventura's is the first in Southern California, and is expected to reduce 40 percent of the emissions from the 1977 gas-guzzler that it is replacing.

WATCH VIDEO: Living with Ed: Driving Mrs. Begley

The bus, which like other PHEVs uses a lithium ion battery pack, was built by a subsidiary of Navistar, and arrived in Ventura with assistance to cover the $214,000 cost from California's Lower Emissions School Bus Program, the Ventura County Air Pollution Control District and the Community Environmental Council.

Can't wait to see where the next group of lucky and hip, efficiently-transported school kids will be.

quote for <3

“ With all of my being, I wish to consume you. Touch you. Breathe you. Kiss you. Feel you. Truly see you. Caress you. Taste you. Pleasure you. Appreciate you. Dance with you. Sing with you. Share joy with you. Cook with you. Read with you. Meditate with you. Travel with you. Explore with you. Fall for you. Love you. Simply be in the same room with you. I wish for you to touch me. To kiss me. To consume me. Fall asleep with your sweet sexy body next to me. Wake up beside me. Hold me in the protection of your arms and never let me go. Unknown

Act of kindness: Baltimore Homeless Donate $14.64 To Haiti Relief

Donations for Haiti have poured in to the American Red Cross of Central Maryland from a range of sources. Nothing, though, has stood out like the coins and crumpled dollar bills that spilled from one envelope.

That gift - $14.64 - came from the pockets of homeless people at a downtown Baltimore shelter.

Read the whole story: Baltimore Sun

Walking The Walk: 8 Healthy Reasons To Let Your Footsteps Generate Energy ( my fav exercise *

Jupiter Images

Walking...we do it everyday. It's a good thing. It's been taunted as being the health staple that can boost everything from cutting down on breast-cancer risks to helping you sleep.

What if we could harness all this goodness to power the world?

When you have worn out your shoes, the strength of the shoe leather has passed into the fiber of your body. I measure your health by the number of shoes and hats and clothes you have worn out. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

First, let's recap the not too shabby health victories of walking:

According to CNN, if each American walked for a half hour a day (the recommended minimum for good health) instead of driving, we would save the planet 64 million tons of carbon dioxide, 6.5 million gallons of gas, and incidentally lose 13 pounds a year.

WATCH VIDEO: Dr. Oz talk about how to make walking work for you and your body.

8 Reasons to Keep on Walking

1. It's great for the heart
In a recent study conducted at Duke University Medical Center, researchers found that walking briskly for 30 minutes every day lowers your odds of developing metabolic syndrome, a cluster of risk factors linked to higher risks of heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.

2. It cuts breast-cancer risks
Walking, even for a few hours a week, significantly reduces breast-cancer risk, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The thinking is that walking helps reduce levels of body fat, a source of estrogen.

3. It helps you sleep
A brisk walk in the afternoon will help you get a better night's sleep, according to the National Sleep Foundation. Experts say that walking may boost levels of the feel-good hormone serotonin, which relaxes you.

4. It makes you happy
Walking can relieve depression, anxiety, and stress. Just one 30-minute walk may make you feel better when you're down, University of Texas researchers found.

5. It keeps you slimmer
Walking for 30 minutes a day can prevent weight gain in most people who are physically inactive, according to another Duke study. And researchers from Brown University and the University of Pittsburgh showed that women who walked for an hour five days a week and consumed 1,500 calories a day lost and kept off 25 pounds over the course of a year.

6. It staves off senior moments
Several studies in older people suggest that walking -- even for as little as 45 minutes a week -- helps ward off Alzheimer's disease. Regular strolls are also linked to mental sharpness in seniors.

7. It protects your bones
Just 30 minutes of walking three times a week does wonders to prevent and treat thinning bones. This kind of exercise, which uses 95 percent of your muscles, actually pushes your bones to get stronger so they can handle the load.

8. It can generate energy
That's right. There are now sidewalk slabs that can generate energy with footstps. When Pavegen slabs are inserted among regular sidewalk sections to capture the kinetic energy people spend just walking. Read on:

Generate Energy From Walking

Ronnie Citron-Fink

When each rubber slab from UK-based Pavegen Systems (discovered on Springwise) gets depressed, each time it converts the kinetic energy used into electricity. This is then stored in the slab. Specifically, 5 percent of the energy harvested is used to make the slab's LED glow, making it clear to users that their energy has been captured. The rest can be used to power pedestrian lighting, information displays and many other applications.

Seems like a forward-thinking green idea. I wonder if walking your dog generates double or triple (6 legs) the amount of power? What do you think?