How Healthy Is The Air You Breathe?...

Most people today try their best to maintain their health by eating healthily and getting some exercise in here and there. We all know about the dangers of eating unhealthily and lazing around too much, but there are certain, more subtle dangers facing modern people, such as substances in the air we breathe! Here are some of the most toxic chemicals that you may be exposed to.

Tobacco Smoke

From Wikimedia

There’s no debate anymore: smoking is bad for your health. Tobacco consumption has been attributed to thousands of deaths over the years, and remains one of the leading causes of cancer, coronary heart disease, and a range of other terrible conditions. Even if you’ve quit, or never smoked in your life, you don’t need to put a cigarette in your mouth to be affected by the severe toxicity in tobacco smoke. Second-hand smoke is a very real problem, and one which countless non-smokers are being affected by every day. When you passively inhale smoke, the polyps of the lung become irritated and enlarged. The larger a person’s polyps, the greater the risk is of them metastasizing into cancer. Try to cut down your exposure to secondhand smoke by asking your partner or other family members to take it outside, standing up-wind from smokers, and avoiding bars that don’t have a smoking ban in place.

Exhaust Fumes

Exhaust fumes are another major health hazard which countless people breathe in every day, and to make matters worse it’s something that you can never really cut out altogether. There are a lot of dangerous chemicals found in car exhaust, but the main chemical is carbon monoxide, which is also among the cancer-causing ingredients in tobacco smoke. As if this wasn’t enough, exhaust fumes are also brimming with nitrogen oxide, benzene, sulfur dioxide, and a range of other chemicals. Each of these substances are pathogens, and have the potential for very severe health effects, both immediately after exposure and in the long term. Benzene exposure in particular has even given rise to a lot of niche legal firms, which specialize in benzene lawsuit resolution. Unless you want to live in the woods, you can’t avoid exhaust fumes entirely. However, you can make a point of avoiding enclosed spaces with running cars, or supporting the gradual shift towards hybrid and fully electric vehicles.

Paint Fumes

From Wikimedia

At one time, it was normal for paints to contain poisonous substances such as lead and mercury. The glaring health risks associated with this have been addressed, and these substances have been banned in most of the developed world. However, modern paint formulas still contain Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) which are harmful when inhaled. Without the right protective equipment like respirators and face masks, people who work around paint for extended periods of time can experience a build-up of toxins, leading to liver damage and severe migraines. The best way to avoid exposure to these kinds of chemicals is to shop around whenever you’re buying paint, varnish, lacquer, or anything else that’s been known to contain VOCs, and find products with low or no concentrations.

Partner With Your Dog For Fitness

As the new year approaches, we all start the dreaded list of resolutions for 2017. Even if we are happy with our lives, there is always something that we want to improve, or that we’d love to change about ourselves and how we present ourselves to the world. It is not uncommon that elements such as ‘do more sport,' ‘lose some weight,' or ‘be more active’ end up on the list of resolutions, as modern society has made us very sedentary. When one thinks that we only need a few clicks to order dinner or get a home cleaner, it is not surprising that we, as a society, have become less active. If for the new year you want to inject some sport back into your life, here is our ideal guideline of how to do it and make sure you stick to it. In short, how to plan workout with your dog.

Why Team Up With The Dog?

Dogs are notoriously playful, so if you are looking for a motivated partner in an outdoor activity, you can bet that your dog will always be happy to go outside and play. This is half the battle, when at least one of you is ready for a run! You can count on your dog for not cancelling on you at the last minute, which is its way of supporting your fitness resolution for 2017. Besides, you can easily combine your daily walk outside with some fitness activities, not only does this kills two birds with one stone but more importantly, this is an excellent way of creating a deeper bond with your darling pet.

Bonding with dogs through sport

How To Prepare For Outdoor Fitness With A Dog

Once you are convinced that you could happily get fitter with your dog, you need to consider all the preparation process before being ready to go out and play. First of all, a health check is essential at this stage: Book an appointment with a doctor to get yourself checked for anything that could represent a risk as you are planning your outdoor workout. This could be weak articulations, hay fever, asthma, etc. Make sure that you are well prepared for all eventualities, and that you have all you need at hand. For example, being asthmatic doesn’t mean that you can’t do any sport, but you will need to pack your inhaler with you. You will also need to book a similar checkup for your pet at your local vet. Do ask as well for flea treatments, such as frontline flea for example as your dog is likely to catch parasites when being outdoors.

What Outdoor Activities Are Best Suited?

Many think that the best outdoor activity with a dog is a workout jog, and even plan running routes in advance. However, this is an agenda that is difficult to keep if you are not a runner. There are plenty of sports that you could practice with your dog and that don’t involve jogging. If you live by the water, you could go surfing (http://surfdogevents.com/), for example. If you enjoy ball games, you could train your dog to play ball with you; many dogs love throwing back the ball with their nose, and this is guaranteed to keep you fit. Or why not going swimming? The possibilities are infinite!   

Surfing dog by Unsplash

Budget Nights Out: How to Have a Great Time Without Breaking the Bank

We all love a good night out. We love to spend time with friends and family, we love to attend parties, and we enjoy meeting new people to socialise with. It’s part of our human nature to engage with others, so it’s understandable that we spend a lot of money each week on nights out to buy alcohol, food, and even gifts.

However, it's a cost that can add up and make huge dents in our weekly budget. Drinks cost incredible amounts of money at fancy bars (or even your local pub) and the food is even more expensive. Add in the cost of entry fees or taxi fares, and you’ve got a weekly expense that’ll leave your wallet crying. Instead of splashing out all the time, take a look at these money-saving tips to help you get the most out of your money.

Image Source: Pexels

Set a Cash Limit

Instead of carrying your card with you, carry cash. When we carry around our credit or debit cards, it’s easy to lose count of how much we’re actually spending and we could easily go overboard. With cash, you have a set limit and you can’t go beyond that. Just keep in mind to save money for the journey home—you don’t want to be stranded in the middle of the city!

Split Taxi Fares or Designate a Driver

Getting to and from the venue can be expensive. The best way to avoid extortionate taxi fares is to drive there yourself or split the cost with your friends. However, just keep in mind that you should never be drinking and driving.

If you designate a driver, then make sure they don’t touch a single drop of alcohol before they drive. If you plan to stay at the venue for a long time, then the driver can have a few drinks—just make sure to let the alcohol’s effects fade before leaving. There are excellent DWI resolutions available if you ever get caught with driving with high blood alcohol content, but it’s best to make sure it never happens in the first place.

Image Source: Pexels

Have a Few Drinks Before Going Out

The most cost effective way of getting into the mood is to have a couple of drinks before you head out. The idea is that you won’t need to buy as many drinks to get tipsy (or drunk) when you’re our. Buying alcohol from a supermarket is far cheaper than the expensive venues that charge ridiculous prices You’ll be making huge savings by having a couple of pre-drinks. Just make sure you aren’t completely wasted before heading out—you might as well stay home at that point!

Stay At Home Instead

Speaking of staying home, how about not heading out at all? You could have an excellent night in with friends and family, some takeaway pizzas, and a movie or some video games. You won’t meet anyone new (unless you throw a party instead!) but you’re going to get the same fun as heading out to an expensive bar. You’ll save loads of money by providing your own entertainment, and you can buy lots of drinks at the supermarket for the same price of a cocktail in a club.

DIY Mosquito Control Methods

DIY Mosquito Control Methods

Mosquitoes can breed in just an inch of standing water, meaning that they can stay in many areas around your home. When there are many mosquitoes in your compound, you need to get rid of them. Here are several ways to do that at home:

Remove empty containers

Start by cleaning out the empty containers in your yard and storing away buckets that are not in use. If your dog must have water in the backyard, make sure that you change it at least once a day. Do you have other containers that must stay outside? Make sure that you punch holes in them to drain water.

Cut your grass and trim your bushes

During the day, these annoying little creatures like to rest in tall blades of grass or in shrubs found in a warm, shady area. When you trim your grass, you will be depriving mosquitoes of a resting place. Moreover, you should rake up any leaves that fall down.

An overturned leaf has the ability to hold enough water for mosquito eggs, giving them a place to wait it out.

Check your rain gutters

As branches, leaves, and other debris often plug gutters, water usually accumulates in them instead of draining out. To avoid this, you should clean your gutters regularly in the summer. If you leave water standing in the gutters for more than a week, mosquitoes will end up laying eggs in them.

Look after your pool

You should keep your pool water clean and chlorinated. When not in use, make sure that you drain and cover your pool – the same should be done for collapsible and wading pools. Any decorative items such as ponds or birdbaths should be refilled with fresh water at least once a week.

You can also choose to stock your pond with fish that eat mosquito larvae.

Fill in low-lying areas

Any depressions in your yard can hold water when it rains or after you water your lawn. Without the right drainage, water will stay in these depressions and give mosquitoes a chance to breed. You should consider installing a drainage system or just add sod and dirt to the depressions.

There is no guarantee that cleaning up the breeding sites will keep mosquitoes at bay. They can always choose a different breeding ground and fly into your yard. Because mosquitoes only feed several hundred yards from their breeding ground, the above measures will certainly help.

Natural mosquito control

If the DIY mosquito control methods do not work for you, you can use biological means to get rid of them: predatory fish, bacteria, and plant repellents. Here are some of the animals that you can keep:

Mosquito fish

Fish such as The Gambusia are surface feeders that will eat larvae and mosquito eggs by the hundreds. If you have 48 surface feet of water, a dozen Gambusia will do the job of getting rid of mosquitoes. This breed of fish is hardy and can survive in stagnant water.

Dragonflies

Although dragonflies may look scary to humans, they are only dangerous to mosquitoes. Their larvae usually feed on mosquito larvae while the adults feed on adult mosquitoes. If you want to attract dragonflies to your compound, create a safe and comfortable environment for them.

You can create a small pond that is deep at one end and shallow at the other, with vegetation growing out of it and flat rocks encircling it – this will work for attracting dragonflies. However, if you do not want to get your hands dirty, contact a mosquito control New Jersey based company to get rid of the mosquitoes for you.

5K Runs and Walks in Kansas City: Westport St. Patrick's Day Run March 11, 2017 #StPatsRun

YES! A race right up our lazy homeschooling Irish alley! My family of 7 has been looking for a race we can walk together and this one might be it ... with a start time of 10 a.m. instead of the usual butt crack of dawn like other races, you just might find us there!

Here's the deal: before I was the homeschooling writer mom of 5, I used to love to walk all the time as a stress reliever and to stay in shape. Walking is something you can do as a parent anytime, but now that my youngest is 7 and my oldest is 15 (and driving!), it's a lot easier for me to fit in time for my own fitness. Over the winter I walked some at the gym on the treadmill and track. Now I can walk the neighborhood or the field at the school by my house if my danged IT band is not making me cry. For now I walk in my OOFOS sandals because they are the most comfy thing I have ever worn and work perfectly for summertime. When it's cold I walk in my Brooks that I get at Elite Feet in Leawood. Mention my name and I get a $10 credit!

Here's the info on the upcoming Westport St. Patrick's Day Run.

What: 39th Annual Kansas City Track Club's Westport St. Patrick's Day Run

When: Saturday, March 11, 2017 at 10:00 a.m.

Where: 4050 Pennsylvania in empty restaurant space, Westport in Missouri (Irish Mecca)

Check the link (above after WHAT) for more info!

P.S. I get my info from the fabulous KC Running Company website.

On a personal note, here's my walking story for National Walking Day a couple of years ago with an update.

When you're all done, you'll be hungry! Grab a copy of my Tater Tot Casserole Cookbook and whip up a batch of happiness for dinner!