Oh how I love my pet, A.J. (alias Alan Jackson). He is such a big part of our family.  He loves me so much, he "talks" to me, of course in cat language.  I just can tell how he rubs his head on my chin how much he loves me and he is so very well behaved.  I would be so heartbroken if and when I ever loose him.  Isn't he beautiful!!

The Therapeutic Benefits of Pets

How Caring for a Pet can Make You Happier and Healthier

  

Professionally trained helper animals—such as guide dogs for the blind—offer obvious benefits to humans. However, the average domestic pet, such as a dog, cat—even a goldfish—can also provide us with many therapeutic benefits. Pets can ease loneliness, reduce stress, promote social interaction, encourage exercise and playfulness, and provide us with unconditional love and affection.

How pets can affect mood and health

While most pet owners are clear about the immediate joys that come with sharing their lives with companion animals, many remain unaware of the physical and mental health benefits that can also accompany the pleasure of playing with or snuggling up to a furry friend. It’s only recently that studies have begun to scientifically explore the benefits of the human-animal bond. Studies have found that:

• Pet owners are less likely to suffer from depression than those without pets.
• People with pets have lower blood pressure in stressful situations than those without pets.
• Playing with a pet can elevate levels of serotonin and dopamine, which calm and relax.
• Pet owners have lower triglyceride and cholesterol levels (indicators of heart disease) than those without pets.
• Heart attack patients with pets survive longer than those without.
• Pet owners over age 65 make 30 percent fewer visits to their doctors than those without pets.
• A pet doesn’t have to be a dog or a cat. Even watching fish in an aquarium can help reduce muscle tension and pulse rate.

One of the reasons for these therapeutic effects is that most pets fulfill the basic human need to touch. Even hardened criminals in prison have shown long-term changes in their behavior after interacting with pets, many of them experiencing mutual affection for the first time. Stroking, holding, cuddling, or otherwise touching a loving animal can rapidly calm and soothe us when we’re stressed. The companionship of a pet can also ease loneliness, and some pets are a great stimulus for healthy exercise, which can substantially boost mood.

How pets can help to make healthy lifestyle changes

Adopting healthy lifestyle changes can play an important role in easing symptoms of depression, stress, bipolar disorder, PTSD, and anxiety. Caring for a pet can help with those healthy lifestyle changes by:

• Increasing exercise. Exercise doesn’t have to involve boring repetition at a gym. Taking a dog for a walk, riding a horse, or simply chasing a kitten around are fun ways to fit healthy daily exercise into your schedule.
• Providing companionship. Isolation and loneliness can make disorders such as depression even worse. Caring for a living animal can help make you feel needed and wanted, and take the focus away from your problems. Most pet owners talk to their pets, some even use them to work through their troubles.
• Helping meet new people. Pets can be a great social lubricant for their owners. Dog owners frequently stop and talk to each other on walks or in a dog park. Pet owners also meet new people in pet stores, clubs, and training classes.
• Reducing anxiety. The companionship of a dog can offer comfort, help ease anxiety, and build self-confidence for people anxious about going out into the world.
• Adding structure and routine to your day. Many pets, especially dogs, require a regular feeding and exercise schedule. No matter your mood—depressed, anxious, or stressed—you’ll always have to get out of bed to feed, exercise, and care for your pet.
• Providing sensory stress relief. Touch and movement are two healthy ways to quickly manage stress. This could involve petting a cat or taking a dog for a walk
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Curb Anxiety, Stress and Physical Pain, and Increase Resistance to Infections

Did you know that Laminine stimulates production of regulatory hormones (including serotonin) and reduces excess cortisol—and hence, curbs anxiety, stress and physical pain, and increases resistance to infections. #Laminine 

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  The Laminin Molecule Feeds Your Body's Stem Cells

  Your Body Really Can Repair Itself. Your Own Stem Cells Will Begin to Repair your Body Exactly Where Repair is Needed.

    90% of folks come home tired after a long day's work, and that's normal. Waking up in the morning after sleep worn out and fatigued is a problem. Chronic fatigue, gaining weight, anxiety and not getting good restful sleep at night are symptoms of Adrenal Exhaustion resulting from chronically elevated levels of stress. Symptoms of stress like these often leave long term damage our health, if allowed to continue; but what can be done to eliminate stress? We live in it. Your adrenal glands can save your life in life-threatening situations, flooding the system with adrenaline, the so-called "fight or flight" mechanism. But after the emergency or threat passes, your body should return to normal. But in this hectic modern world, our bodies often see what we call "Normal Stress" as a never ending emergency; resulting in the "stress response" of elevated cortisol continuing indefinitely. Thankfully, Laminine is clinically proven to reduce the stress hormone, cortisol, helping your body to manage this stress. You'll notice the difference. You'll feel calmer and more in control. 

Reducing cortisol will get you able to relax again and getting a good night's sleep

Cortisol, which is a primary stress hormone, is produced in the adrenal cortex. Though it helps in management of stress, excessive secretion of cortisol can have an adverse impact on health. The secretion of cortisol is stimulated by Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), which in turn is synthesized by the pituitary gland. Stress or anxiety is the most important factor that stimulates the release of cortisol. Release of this hormone can be termed as a response of the body to physical and mental stress. High cortisol levels are therefore often attributed to prolonged stress. An occasional increase in the level of cortisol may not result in any major problem. However, when the levels are elevated for a prolonged period, it can produce adverse effects on the immune functions, and fertility and eventually lead to the condition known as Cushing's syndrome. - 

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Thoughts For Today*******: Stress is the Single Greatest Cause of Emergency Ro...: Stress is the Single Greatest Cause of Emergency Room Visits The greatest cause of that stress is job and income related stress, but ...

Stress is the Single Greatest Cause of Emergency Room Visits

The greatest cause of that stress is job and income related stress, but stress levels have also escalated in children and teens for other reasons, including: increased crime, violence and other threats to personal safety; pernicious peer pressures that lead to substance abuse and other unhealthy life style habits; social isolation and loneliness; the erosion of family and religious values and ties; the loss of other strong sources of social support.

In our research, we’ve found that the regular use of three or four capsules of Laminine goes further than simply promoting a feeling of relaxation and well being, insofar as laboratory results demonstrate that the protocol actually lowers levels of the stress hormone cortisol, and increases the levels of serotonin in the blood stream.

This is significant, because elevated levels of cortisol not only contribute to the emotional and physical sensations of stress, but simultaneously predispose us to a number of stress-related diseases, such as hypertension, stroke, cardiovascular disease, irritable bowel syndrome, eczema, autoimmune disease and fibromyalgia.

But What About the Cause of the Stress:

While Laminine provides the body with what it needs to correct the physiological damage caused by stress, and addresses the chemical imbalances that put the body at risk of serious disease, it’s also important to seek out counseling and solutions to the physical conditions, relationships and other issues that trigger that stress response.

If the problem is a relationship problem, counseling can often help. If the issue is a fear arising from living in a dangerous environment, or high-crime neighborhood, then working on a plan to get you out of that situation is essential.

And for those whose principle cause of stress is their job or finances, we make our services available to help those folks explore their options for immediately cutting $200 or more out of their monthly expenses, without sacrificing the things they love and need, while simultaneously helping them to plug into a remarkable grassroots program, that’s helping people get out of the economic stranglehold that a mismanaged government and bailout mentality has created.

“We’re literally helping people turn their health around with Laminine, while introducing them to an unrelated approach that’s empowering them with the tools and resources to increase their household income by $500 to $700/month, through the grassroots economic empowerment program,” nurse practitioner and M.B.A., Debra Brown Cannon, R.N.C., N.P., M.B.A., tells us.

“Laminine combines the two ingredients Lucien and Isoleucine (known as branched chain amino acids) with an added dose from the vegetable protein extract, giving the body what it needs for the manufacturing of other essential biochemical components in the body, some of which are utilized for the production of energy, stimulants to the upper brain and helping you to be more alert,” she added, “And that more alert and responsible ability to function allows people to begin working on lifestyle solutions that literally transforms their lives.”

Watch America Grow Fatter, In One Scary GIF

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You can literally watch America's obesity epidemic spread. 

This GIF, courtesy of the Center for Disease Control, displays the rapid progression of obesity rates nationwide through the a quarter century. 

The map shows a progression between 1985 and 2010. The images begin to display cool colors which represent states having upwards of 20% of their population overweight. There is an overall trend for warmer colors to disperse all across the map, which indicate obese populations ranging from 20% to over 30%.

One interesting trend: There's a distinct presence of prominent and high obesity rates in Southern states.

The GIF ends at 2010, when the highest obesity levels have begun to stretch into the Midwest and Southwest.

The CDC defines clinical obesity as an adult having a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or greater. The BMI is calculated by using a person’s weight and dividing it by the square of their height.

According to the CDC, childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 30 years. The percentage of children aged 6–11 years in the United States who were obese jumped from 7% in 1980 to nearly 18% in 2010. The percentage of adolescents aged 12–19 years who were obese increased from 5% to 18% over the same period.

Obesity increases the likelihood of you dying young, including a higher risk for heart disease and diabetes.

Yeah, we get it right? Eat better and exercise, blahblahblah. 

Beyond the health impact, there is also a real economic impact. The Trust for America's Health (TFAH) released its annual look at obesity rates in September. TFAH researchers estimate that the projected increase in obesity rates will cost the United States $550 billion between now and 2030.

Heck, it's even considered a national security threat, including the strength of America's military.

Here, via TFAH, is a projection of what 2030 will look like: