Expressing Opinions

13 Major League Baseball teams are offering all you can eat seats this 2008 season. The Los Angeles Dodgers have 3,300 of these $35 seats (the most of any team), which includes Dodger dogs, nachos, peanuts, popcorn, soft drinks, and water. While the Pittsburgh Pirates only provide 164 seats to the over indulging fans.

CNN reports in their article All-you-can-eat baseball seats a nightmare for dieticians:

Nearly half of the 30 major league baseball teams have added the all-inclusive seats, and others are looking into it. The NHL has nine teams offering the deal; the NBA has six. The idea has not caught on with the NFL, but NASCAR has put it in overdrive, selling the tickets at multiple racetracks.

Don’t get me wrong, I am all about getting my money’s worth, but somethings are just too much. The United States is a country where the incidences of obesity, heart disease, and diabetes are growing each year. These health issues are not just growing in an aging population, but are also showing up at an alarming rate in the children of this country. Do Americans need to be over consuming pigs? Is this the example and message we want to send to our children?

If you want a more complete listing of Major League Baseball teams which provide fat ass fan seats you can go to the USA Today article All-you-can-eat seats for 2008.

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Do you have a teenage daughter or know someone who does? The BBC News is running a story about STD’s and teenage American girls.

This story opens by stating:

One in four teenage girls in the United States has a sexually-transmitted disease, a study has indicated.

How many of you are saying to yourselves, “That is not my little girl.” This is one of the BBC News’ most emailed and read articles in the U.S. today, so I bet many of you are thinking about it.

Here is a link to the BBC story STDs rife among US teenage girls. You can also go to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Tracking the Hidden Epidemic, which details sexually transmitted diseases by age, race, and region in the United States.

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An Associated Press probe find drugs in the drinking water of 41 million Americans. I came across this article which opens by stating:

A vast array of pharmaceuticals — including antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers and sex hormones — have been found in the drinking water supplies of at least 41 million Americans, an Associated Press investigation shows.

Of the 62 major water providers contacted only 28 tested the quality of their water, all due to the fact the federal government does not require testing and has not set safety limits for drugs in water. This is happening as scientists are finding the natural sources of most of the nation’s water supply, also are contaminated. Contamination by pharmaceuticals in the water supply is not only being found in the United States, but in most other regions of the world too. Japanese health officials have called for health impact studies after detecting drugs in drinking water at seven different sites.

The study closes by stating:

“We know we are being exposed to other people’s drugs through our drinking water, and that can’t be good,” says Dr. David Carpenter, who directs the Institute for Health and the Environment of the State University of New York at Albany.

This is nice to know but it does surprise me. Thank you for visiting Expressing Opinions.

The New York Times and Washington Post are running news stories on obese children and the time they spend on the computer and watching television. Researchers studied overweight children who watched TV or played computer games for at least 14 hours a week. They found 16 percent of children ages 6 to 19 years old are overweight, a 45 percent increase in one decade. Don’t blame kids for being fat or their lifestyle choices. If you are looking for a place to find cause you need not look any further than the parents.

On of the statements in the New York Times’ article struck a sour note with me:

“Using technology to modify television viewing eliminates parental vigilance needed to enforce family rules and reduces the disciplinary action needed if a child exceeds his or her sedentary behavior limits,” the authors concluded.

What ever happened to a parent being a parent and making the mature choices? Is it too hard or too time consuming for today’s self centered parent to put their children first instead of themselves?

How can you expect children to not be fat when their parents are obese TV remote control wielding couch potatoes. This study only leaves me with questions. Why don’t we hear about the doctors studying the parents behavior in these studies of obese children? Have you ever noticed if the parents are obese the majority of the time the children are obese? Are these parents using the television and computer as baby sitting devices? I think if you want healthy children you need to have responsible parents living healthy lifestyles and by doing so the parents are healthy role models for their children.

There is always someone or something to blame. Don’t blame technology for obesity. Let’s try being accountable. Hold the parent responsible for providing the poor food choices, poor living environment (too much TV and computer time), and failing to live an active healthy lifestyle as a role model for children to follow. Parents need to get of their fat asses and take responsibility for the weight issues they are putting on their children. Maybe then America’s waistline will shrink.

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I have a great medical insurance plan through my employer. But over the years I have seen the way the insurance “manages” the people it insures. Doctor referrals, prescription approvals and disapprovals, and second guessing or outright disagreeing with my physician over treatment. What gives them the right to dictate what is good for me when they do not know who I am or the circumstances around my health issue?

Once I went to urgency care because I fell while riding my bicycle. At the doctor’s office I listed my reason for being there as an accident due to me falling from my bicycle. About two weeks later I get a letter from the insurance company wanting to know if anyone else was involved and did they have insurance? The more I read the letter the more I realized they were trying to get someone else to pay for the office visit and prescriptions.

When I was diagnosed with diabetes my insurance company denied so many prescriptions my physician prescribed for me, I finally called the insurance company to confront them. I asked them which medication did they think I should take because they seemed to know more about my diagnosis than my doctor.The problem with insurance companies is they know they have you by the balls and they are merciless.

Today I read on Reuters about a judgment against Health Net. It seems Health Net canceled a womans policy after she had 3 of 8 chemotherapy treatments. The arbitrator awarded the woman $9.4 million and in his opinion arbitration judge Sam Cianchetti wrote,

It is difficult to imagine a policy more reprehensible than tying bonuses to encourage the recision of health insurance that helps keep the public alive and well.

Yeah that’s right! Health Net offers bonuses to employees for finding reasons to cancel insurance policy’s.

There is another case pending involving a newborn boy whose Health Net coverage was canceled after he was born blind and with cerebral palsy. I am glad to hear an insurance company being held accountable for it’s actions.

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I came across an article from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) about new research that suggests mammograms may help to predict which women are at risk for strokes. The basics are if you have breast calcifications you may be at a higher risk for stroke. You can read the full article on Mediline Plus: Mammograms Might Spot Stroke Risk.

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On Sunday the Associated Press reported the U.S. Department of Agriculture ordered the recall of 143 million pounds of frozen beef from a California meat processing plant.. Yes, 143,000,000 pounds of frozen beef was recalled and much of the meat was provided to school lunch programs.

Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer said in a statement,

“Because the cattle did not receive complete and proper inspection, Food Safety and Inspection Service has determined them to be unfit for human food and the company is conducting a recall.”

This meat is used in 150 school districts around the country, along with two fast food burger chains, Jack In The Box and In-N-Out. How much of this meat has already been eaten by unsuspecting school children and consumers in these restaurants?

Here are more links to additional information:

• Associated Press - USDA Orders Nation’s Largest Beef Recall
• BBC - US orders massive recall of beef
• CNN - USDA orders recall of 143 million pounds of beef

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Another statistic of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are in suicides and mental health issues. These are linked to long wars, repeat deployments, a stigma in the Army if you ask for help and a lack of resources to help those soldiers in need.

Washington Post reporter Dana Priest reports:

The Army was unprepared for the high number of suicides and cases of post-traumatic stress disorder among its troops, as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have continued far longer than anticipated. Many Army posts still do not offer enough individual counseling and some soldiers suffering psychological problems complain that they are stigmatized by commanders.

It is hard enough on those deployed in war zones and the families of the soldiers who are left home. But what should be a joyous time for families when their service member returns home from the war zone, often turns into a more difficult time attempting to cope with mental disorders such as depression and PTSD, of which the Army does not want to recognize and chastise soldiers who report problems.

The soldiers and their families are ill equipped to deal with these issues and the chain of command does want to. What are these families to do? They did what was asked of them and now they need help. Contact your elected officials at USA..gov and let them know these soldiers need help.

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I just finished reading articles on Boston.com and Chicagotribune.com about the increase in heart attacks during big games.

What does this say about sports fans? What is the fitness level of a sports fan? If you look at the fans in the stands and sports bars, most do not look like they live a healthy lifestyle. They appear to be spectators instead of participants in life.

Experts said the lesson for Super Bowl Sunday is clear. Spectators with a known heart condition, they warned, should make an extra effort to relax during games and not overindulge in the usual offerings of alcohol and fatty foods, which can quickly increase the risk of heart attack.

Men suffered more game-day events than women, and people with a known history of heart disease were hit especially hard. Those high-risk patients sustained heart attacks on game days at a rate four times higher than usual.

Men suffered more game-day events than women? Could it be more men watch these events than women? And why do they? Maybe it is because the “little” woman is left taking care of the business of running the family while daddy plays with his little friends.

And tell me…. who do you think taught this little guy how to do that? Is he going to be the next heart attack statistic?

It amazes me how many people live their lives vicariously through sports and other forms of entertainment. Look at some of these reality shows. What makes them so popular? Do people need to see another persons misery or dysfunction to feel better about themselves? And what is the impact on society and your children?

As you can tell I am not a fan of television and prefer to live life as a participant and not a spectator. All of this leaves me with more questions than answers.

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