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Showing posts with label north america. Show all posts
Showing posts with label north america. Show all posts

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Man Admitted to Hospital for Kidney Stone, Discovers He's a Woman

man discovers he is a woman
Man >> Woman
A Colorado man who was admitted to the hospital for a kidney stone received surprising news when the nurse came back with test results revealing he was actually a woman.

Denver photographer Steve Crecelius said he's felt a little different all his life.

"When I was about 6 years old, I started having these feminine feelings, but that was in the '60s. Wearing my mom's makeup, I thought I looked pretty," Crecelius told ABC News.

So when he went to the emergency room five years ago, he wasn't too shocked when the nurse told him she found traits of both genders in his ultrasound results.

He was intersex, meaning he had both male genitalia and internal female sex organs.

"The nurse is reading the ultrasound and says, 'Huh, this says you're a female,' Crecelius said. "It was very liberating. I had spent so much energy after the age of 13 constantly evaluating how people looked at me and acted towards me."

Steve, who now goes by "Stevie," said his wife and their six children accepted his new identity right away.

"We told them individually. Some were in person and some weren't," Crecelius said. "Every one of them said, 'We don't care one way or the other. We love you for who you are and you're still my dad.'"

Crecelius and his wife, Debbie, have been together for 25 years and she's supported him every step of the way, including taking him to buy his first bra.

She told Crecelius, "You know, when I first saw you, I said to myself,  'He runs like a girl.'"

"I think we were pretty good when she began to mourn the loss of her husband," Crecelius said. "We worked through what we needed to. The concept of unconditional love is a larger story."

Intersex is a term used to describe people who bear both external genitals and internal organs, such as testes and ovaries.

A person with the condition may have male genitals along with fallopian tubes and ovaries.

"The condition used to be called hermaphroditism, meaning that person can't be identified as male or female," Crecelius said.

According to the Intersex Society of North America, more than 1,500 children a year are born intersex.

For Crecelius, he hopes he can be an advocate for those born intersex and same-sex couples.

"I think of bullying, because I haven't heard anyone talk about this. It's important to talk about," Crecelius said. "People need to be accepting and understand. I was born this way, and loving each other and supporting each other will always be the main factor in our household."


News by Yahoo

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Saturday, January 21, 2012

The giraffe hunters who pay £10,000 to shoot the gentle giants with guns and bows for sport

Giraffe
Dead Giraffe
Tourist trophy hunters are paying thousands of pounds to go and shoot giraffes with high-powered guns and bows.

The gentle giants are loved around the world for their comical appearance and gentle nature.

Just like character 'Melman' played by Friend's-star David Schwimmer in Disney's Madagascar, they are a hit with kids who love their long necks and eyelashes.

But shocking images show how scores of big-spending men and women - and even families - travel from across the globe, some even from Britain, to kill them for sport.

Hunters pay up to a whopping £10,000 for the the chance to slay them - preferring bulls because they are the biggest.

Safari clubs and game reserves ask for a £1,500 trophy fee, and then add on rates for guides and trackers costing around £1,000 per day.

The hunts typically last three-to-five days and see tourists using .458 Winchester Magnum rifles to kill the animals.

With most hunters flying to Africa from their homes in Europe or America, the costs stretch into five figures.

The hunting continues even though numbers of the animals are plummeting.

But the world's leading giraffe expert said populations in the countries where it is legal - South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe - can cope with the killings.

The latest statistic show the number of giraffes in the world have nearly halved since 1988 from over 140,000 to less than 80,000.

Dr. Julian Fennessy produced the report for the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

Another recent IUCN report suggests the giraffe may already need to be listed as a threatened species - because some populations are being decimated in places like West Africa and DR Congo.

They are already thought to be extinct in Angola, Mali and Nigeria.

Dr. Fennessy also founded Giraffe Conservation Foundation - the only dedicated giraffe conservation group in the world.

He said: 'I'm not interested in hunting giraffe, but hunters obviously get a kick out of it like others enjoy a game of squash or cooking. It's a complicated argument. There are lots of factors.

'The loss of habitat and breaking up of populations by man-made constructions are the main factors threatening their numbers.

'In the countries where you can hunt legally, the populations are increasing but across Africa the overall numbers are dropping alarmingly.

'It shows that if properly managed with proper policy and controls, the hunting can be sustainable.'

In some African countries legal hunting can actually help local communities by bringing in money and making meat available to them.

'Many hunting staff like guides, trackers and skinners who assist the tourists are paid in meat from the kills,' added Dr. Fennessy.

'If the tourist has paid the fee for the trophy, the carcass is theirs. Some just like to have photo taken next to the dead giraffe, but others pay taxidermists to mount the head a neck so they can take them home as a souvenir.

'Or they might want to take the skin home.'

He added: 'Some hunters come from Britain but the big majority are from North America, Germany, Russia and Scandinavia.

'The worst part of trophy hunting is the fact that the hunters can miss their target and fail to kill the giraffe quickly.

'If they don't hit the right spot then it can lead to suffering for the animal.

'They might have a 'second gun' in the party whose job it is to take the animal down quickly if the tourist misses.

'But hunting guides need to asses the ability of the hunter and stop the hunt if they do not have the skills to do it humanely.'

Another factors decimating the giraffe population is poaching.

'Poaching is illegal and is not licensed,' said Dr. Fennessy.

'They set wire snares at giraffe-height in the trees to snare their necks, or to trap their feet and kill them when they return.

'It leads to huge suffering for the animals, sometimes for days.'

News by Dailymail






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Monday, January 02, 2012

Breast Cancer Facts and Figures

Breast Cancer
  • Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women
  • The risk of breast cancer increases with age and if you live to 90 years your risk of developing this cancer is almost 14%
  • 1.7 million breast cancers were diagnosed worldwide in 2007
  •  465,000 (approx.) women died due to breast cancer in 2007
  • North America, Australia, Europe have the highest incidence of breast cancer
  •  Large parts of Africa and Asia have the lowest rates
  • In the last 25 years it incidence has gone up by 30% in the western world
  •  Increased risk of developing breast cancer include -
  • Start of menstrual period at an early age
  •  Menopause later in life 
  • Having a first or second degree relative with breast cancer
  • Obesity
  • Consumption of alcohol
  • Never having children
  • Using contraceptives
  • Using hormone replacement therapy during post-menopausal years
  • Certain inherited genetic mutations for breast cancer (BRCA1 and/or BRCA2)
  • Decreased Breast cancer Risk -
  • Breast feeding
  • Moderate Physical activity
  • Maintaining normal weight
  • Stop smoking
  • Breast cancer can be prevented by screening
  • Early treatment can increase chances of 5 years survival to 98%
  • Women with a BRCA mutation who get their ovaries surgically removed can reduce their risk of breast cancer by over 50%.
  • A study from North Carolina State University indicated that Women who performed the act of fellatio and swallow semen regularly (one to two times a week) may reduce their risk of breast cancer by up to 40 percent !!
News By Medindia

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Thursday, December 22, 2011

Football legend Eusebio in hospital with pneumonia

eusebio
Eusebio
(CNN) -- Portuguese football legend Eusebio is in a stable condition after being admitted to hospital with bronchial pneumonia on Wednesday, his former club Benfica reported.

The 69-year-old, known affectionately as the "Black Panther" and one of the most talented players of his generation, is being kept at the Hospital da Luz in Lisbon as the illness has affected both lungs.

"He spent the night as well, and he is stable. From the clinical point of view (his condition) is stationary," the hospital's medical director Jose Roquette told reporters in quotes carried by Benfica's website.

"There was no significant improvement in inflammatory parameters, analytical or radiological findings. So we continue with appropriate therapy and we hope this is resolved quickly."

Roquette said Eusebio, who was the top scorer at the 1966 World Cup when Portugal finished third, would likely remain in hospital over the festive period after coming out of intensive care.

"This is not a situation that one can guarantee how long will it take to evolution, but admit it will take some time. We will give more information in due course. Most likely it will extend beyond Christmas, "he said.

Roquette said Eusebio's wife and daughters had come to the hospital, but other visitors had been restricted.

In 2007, he had surgery to unblock arteries which carry blood to the brain.

Eusebio played for three North American Soccer League teams in the twilight of his career, but is best known for his exploits in 15 years at Benfica where he scored 638 goals in 614 appearances up until 1975.

"We wish a speedy recovery to Eusebio and also to express that the whole Portuguese football family is behind him," the Portuguese Football Federation said in a statement.

"Eusebio is a symbol of Portuguese football. It will take a lot of strength to overcome this difficulty, but he has honored Portugal for many years with his distinguished presence, including as ambassador of the national team."

Born in Mozambique, which was then a Portuguese territory, he scored 41 goals in 64 appearances for his adopted country.

At the 1966 World Cup he scored two goals as Portugal eliminated defending champions Brazil at the group stage, then netted four times in an incredible quarterfinal comeback against North Korea as his side rallied from 3-0 down to win 5-3 in one of the tournament's most famous matches.

Eusebio scored again in the semifinal against England, but the hosts won 2-1 before beating Germany in the final.

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