How far are we willing to go for entertainment? It’s bad enough that most of us have been relegated to couch potato status a majority of the time, but we always want more. Thanks to such “pioneers” as James Cameron, the latest trend of 3D movies and television has taken the world by storm. Since its popularity began to rise in theatres and people were happy to shell out a few extra bucks to watch things pop out at them again, some electronics companies began to mass produce home TVs with 3D capability. Thousands of dollars more expensive than even the current high end HD TVs, and requiring the viewers to wear special glasses which are not cheap either, people are still flocking to it because it’s the new big thing.

News comes now though that there may be some more risks involved than you might think of with this new technology. Samsung issued a notice about their 3D TVs that warns of potential seizure risk, but not just for the normal people you might expect that warning to apply to. We all know that any sort of television can cause problems with those who suffer from epilepsy, but Samsungs warning spreads to a much wider audience.

Here is a small section of their release:

“Some viewers may experience an epileptic seizure or stroke when exposed to certain flashing images or lights contained in certain television pictures or video games. If you or any of your family has a history of epilepsy or stroke, please consult with a medical specialist before using the 3D function.

If you experience any of the following symptoms, immediately stop watching 3D pictures and consult a medical specialist: (1) altered vision; (2) lightheadedness; (3) dizziness; (4) involuntary movements such as eye or muscle twitching; (5) confusion; (6) nausea; (7) loss of awareness; (8) convulsions; (9) cramps; and/or (10) disorientation. Parents should monitor and ask their children about the above symptoms as children and teenagers may be more likely to experience these symptoms than adults.

Viewing in 3D mode may also cause motion sickness, perceptual after effects, disorientation, eye strain, and decreased postural stability. It is recommended that users take frequent breaks to lessen the likelihood of these effects. If you have any of the above symptoms, immediately discontinue use of this device and do not resume until the symptoms have subsided.”

We all know the risk of seizure for those susceptible to it, but stroke? Oh wait, there’s more:

“Watching TV while wearing 3D Active Glasses for an extended period of time may cause headaches or fatigue. If you experience a headache, fatigue or dizziness, stop watching TV and rest.”

“Viewing in 3D mode may cause disorientation for some viewers. DO NOT place your television near open stairwells, cables, balconies or other objects that may cause you to injure yourself.”

No risk, no reward I know, but this seems to be a pretty high price to pay for entertainment. For the full statement by Samsung, here’s the link:

http://www.samsung.com/au/tv/warning.html

Stay lean
One of the most important ways to lower breast cancer risk is to avoid gaining weight. If you’re already overweight, trimming down before age 45 will lower the chance of developing breast cancer post menopause. Exercise can help to lower the levels of hormones which are related to breast cancer. Studies involving more than 100,000 women showed that those who exercised regularly were at less risk for breast cancer.

Moderation
Even though the correlation between diet and breast cancer prevention has been inconclusive, there has been a lot of hard evidence relating it to alcohol consumption. There has been much information about the positive benefits of moderate alcohol intake and heart disease- which kills far more women than breast cancer. However, if you are have other risk factors for breast cancer or a family history of it you may want to avoid it altogether.

Forget supplements
Soy foods are very common in eastern countries like China and Japan, and those countries also have some of the lowest breast cancer rates in the entire world. Soy foods like tofu have been shown to slightly lower risk for breast cancer, but soy supplements can have the exact opposite reaction. There are agents present in these supplements that can act like estrogen in the body, and cause cell changes that increase risk for cancer.

Fruits and Veggies
There hasn’t been much solid evidence linking diet to cancer risk, but there are facts that support the fact that maintaining a healthy weight (which can be achieved by eating a diet that is lower in calories) can. Studies from UC San Diego reveal that women who eat at least 5 servings of vegetables or fruits daily have cut their risk of breast cancer related death by half.

Sunburn
Not only your skin, but your entire body can be dried by a sunburn, so be sure to drink plenty of water to stay hydrated. There are some great remedies in your kitchen for dealing with the pain. If your eyelids are burned, soak tea bags in cool water and apply them to decrease pain and swelling. Wrap some dry oatmeal in gauze and run water through it for a few minutes. Remove the oatmeal and soak a cloth in the liquid leftover and apply every few hours.

Heat exhaustion
Unlike the winter months, summer weather predictions are usually pretty accurate. Keep this in mind, and plan ahead for extreme temperatures. Limit consumption of both caffeine and alcohol, as they both speed up the dehydration process. If someone is already suffering from heat exhaustion, either splash them with cool water or apply cool towels rather than submerging them in water. This will allow the water to evaporate and absorb more quickly and have a better cooling effect.

Mosquito bites
Mosquitoes can spread a number of diseases, so the first thing you should do once you’ve been bitten is to clean and disinfect the area where it appears with soap and hot water. To help prevent or reduce the inflammation caused by a bite, wet the affected area and rub an aspirin over the bite as soon as you can after it appears. Dissolve baking soda or Epsom salts in water, dip a cloth into that water and place it on the skin of the affected area for 15-20 minutes to help alleviate the itching.

Bee stings
The most important thing to do in order to avoid pain and swelling from a bee or wasp sting is to act fast, no matter what treatment you choose. Just like mosquitoes and flies, bees often are carriers for some nasty bacteria. Clean the area first, and then scrape the stinger away so that it doesn’t continue to pump venom into your skin. Apply a paste made of powdered activated charcoal to draw the poison out. Mud is an acceptable substitute, as not everyone keeps activated charcoal lying around.