The Fat Track II

The Fat Track II Digital Caliper – A high tech improvement on the
economical Accu Measure or more trouble than it's worth?
Okay, so here's the deal: A few years after the original Accu measure plastic
caliper came out, the Accu Fitness company decided to go high tech and create
another model of caliper for personal self testing, only this time it was a little
palm-sized electronic pincher gizmo with a microprocessor that sets you back
about $49 bucks. It was called the Fat Track (and most recently, the Fat Track II
or Fat Track Gold which comes with a tape measure called a "Myotape").
This electronic caliper has some neat benefits. You pinch yourself at three sites
instead of one, which you would presume, increases accuracy. You also get an
instant digital readout, so you don't need to look up your body fat percentage on
those cumbersome interpretation charts.
It all sounds great in theory, but in my opinion, it's not quite as easy in the real
world. In the majority of the users I've surveyed, I found that the Fat Track is
MORE difficult to use than the $20 plastic Accu Measure caliper. I have a theory
about why this is true: First, if you haven't mastered the technique, then three
skinfold sites can increase your margin for error, not decrease it. Second, the Fat
Track uses a totally different spring mechanism and caliper jaws than ANY of the
standard calipers which have been research tested for accuracy. Third, the Fat
Track requires a thigh skinfold. You'd think using a body fat formula that measures
lower body would increase accuracy, and it might if the measurement were
perfect. What most people don't realize is that the thigh skinfold can be very tricky
to pinch on many people. The skin just doesn't pull away from the thigh muscle in
a clean U-shaped fold all the time, and sometimes it clings to the muscle so tightly
you can hardly grab it at all. The abdominal and chest skinfolds sometimes present
similar problems. On the other hand, the iliac crest skinfold used with the plastic
Accu measure, is a no-brainer – it's the easiest place to pinch.
I own a Fat Track, but I don't use it. I gave up after I kept getting inconsistent
measurements. I know the same thing happened to many of my clients who tried
it. However, if you own a Fat Track II (or were thinking about getting one), I'm not
telling you not to use it, just advising you about the pros and cons. I believe it
could be accurate (and convenient for home self-testing) if you master the
pinching technique and have no problem with the required skinfold sites. There's a
learning curve associated with ANY skinfold testing device. It's possible I may have
thrown in the towel before I learned how to use the darn thing properly (never was
any good with electronic gadgets anyway... but whaddya expect, I'm just a "muscle
head" from New Jersey!)

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How Bad Is Smoking to Human Health, and Is It Associated with Cancer?

How Bad Is Smoking to Human Health, and Is It Associated
with Cancer?
Smoking is the most preventable cause of premature death for people.
In fact, one of five deaths of Americans can be directly attributed to
tobacco smoking. Almost 90 percent of all lung cancers in American men
(80 percent in women) are due to smoking, and smoking is also highly
associated with cancers of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, esophagus, pan-
creas, uterus, cervix, kidney, and bladder. When tobacco is burned and
inhaled the smoke contains thousands of chemicals with dozens of them
known cancer-causing agents or carcinogens. Clearly, the best thing a
smoker can do for himself or herself is to stop smoking as soon as
possible.
Casodex is used in the treatment of prostate cancer and hirsutism.
Nolvadex is used in the treatment of breast cancer following surgery and/or radiation. It is also effective for the prevention of breast cancer in women at high risk of developing the disease.

How Do Atoms Combine with Each Other?

How Do Atoms Combine with Each Other?
A couple of millennia ago, the Greeks believed that water was one of the
four elements of nature, along with fire, air, and earth, and that all things
were made from combinations of these elements. Today, we of course
know that there are more than a hundred elements. And, in fact, water is
not a single element but a combination of atoms of two elements, namely
hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O). When two or more atoms of the same or
different elements combine together, molecules are formed. Therefore,
water is a molecule. The chemical formula for a water molecule (H2O) is
probably the most widely quoted of all chemical formulas. A chemical
formula is merely a molecule's atomic recipe. Thus, for each molecule of
water, two hydrogen atoms (subscript 2 behind H) are bound to one
oxygen atom (no subscript, so 1 is implied).
  From our previous description of the size of atoms you can imagine
then that an ordinary glass of water must contain millions of water mol-
ecules. In fact, we can use water to tidy up our understanding of elements,
atoms, and molecules. If we have an 8 ounce (oz) glass of pure water, we
can say that the container is accommodating millions of molecules of
water, and thus millions of atoms; however, only two elements are pres-
ent, oxygen and hydrogen.

Can Certain Atoms Have a Charge?

Can Certain Atoms Have a Charge?
Atoms of certain elements naturally exist in a charged state, which means
that they have either lost or gained electrons. It really is a matter of simple
algebra. If an atom exists without an electron, it will have a single positive
charge (1+) and if it exists without two electrons it will develop a double
positive charge (2+). On the contrary, if an atom has an extra electron, it
                                                The Very Basics of Humans         5
Figure 1.1 This is a carbon atom. Protons (white) have a positive charge (+) and
            neutrons (shaded) are electrically neutral (n) are found in the nucleus.
            Electrons (black) have a negative charge (−) and orbit the nucleus at
            the speed of light!
will have a single negative charge (1−) and if an atom has two additional
electrons it will have a double negative charge (2−). It is important to keep
in mind that this isn’t random; some atoms are simply more stable in a
charged state. Charged atoms are often called electrolytes because their
charge gives them electrical properties as discussed further below.
   The processes of losing and gaining electrons are interrelated, as dis-
played in Figure 1.2. So, if one atom gains an electron, it is actually
removing the electron from another atom which wants to give it up to
become more stable. This activity is referred to as oxidation and reduc-
tion, whereby oxidation refers to the loss of an electron while reduction
refers to the gain of an electron. You might be thinking that this may have
 omething to do with antioxidant nutrients, such as vitamins C and E and
a whole host of others such as β-carotene and lycopene. If you were, then
you are right and have the mind of a scientist. Furthermore, you may have
heard the term oxidation used in reference to energy operations in our
body (for example, oxidation of fat). Again, you would be on the right
track—but we are getting ahead of ourselves.
   Oxidation refers to when an atom or molecule loses an electron.
   Many elements important to nutrition and the proper functioning of
our body exist naturally in a charged state. These elements include
sodium, chlorine, potassium, iodine, magnesium, and calcium. The
charge associated with an atom is often displayed in superscript next to
the element’s symbol from the Periodic Table of Elements. For instance,
sodium is written as Na+, potassium as K+ (both of which have given
up an electron, while calcium is written as Ca2+ and magnesium as Mg2+
as they have given up two electrons. On the contrary, chlorine is
written as Cl−, fluorine as F− and iodine as I− as they have gained an
electron and thus a negative charge. Actually, we tend to refer to chlorine,
fluorine, and iodine as chloride, fluoride, and iodide with respect to this
electrical state.