X-Symantec-TimeoutProtection: 0 Return-Path: X-Original-To: info@fathersonline.org Delivered-To: info@fathersonline.org Received: from localhost (marlin.fishinternet.com.au [127.0.0.1]) by marlin.fishinternet.com.au (Postfix) with ESMTP id D62A6BEE7 for ; Sun, 4 Mar 2007 09:44:22 +1100 (EST) Received: from marlin.fishinternet.com.au ([127.0.0.1]) by localhost (marlin.fishinternet.com.au [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10024) with ESMTP id 05126-01 for ; Sun, 4 Mar 2007 09:44:08 +1100 (EST) Received-SPF: none (fathersonline.org: No applicable sender policy available) receiver=marlin.fishinternet.com.au; identity=mfrom; envelope-from="info@fathersonline.org"; helo=ipmail01.adl2.internode.on.net; client-ip=203.16.214.140 Received: from ipmail01.adl2.internode.on.net (ipmail01.adl2.internode.on.net [203.16.214.140]) by marlin.fishinternet.com.au (Postfix) with ESMTP id D8223BEE6 for ; Sun, 4 Mar 2007 09:44:04 +1100 (EST) Received: from eth5890.nsw.adsl.internode.on.net (HELO polyglot.com.au) ([59.167.240.1]) by ipmail01.adl2.internode.on.net with ESMTP; 04 Mar 2007 09:14:00 +1030 X-IronPort-AV: i="4.14,245,1170595800"; d="scan'208,217"; a="96392501:sNHT162981721" Received: from server ([192.168.1.10]) by polyglot.com.au with Microsoft SMTPSVC(6.0.3790.1830); Sun, 4 Mar 2007 09:43:05 +1100 Thread-Topic: Super Size Me Reply-To: Message-ID: <1d47c01c75de5$4e9e7550$0a01a8c0@polyglot.local> thread-index: Acdd5U6Z5vw0ZdX8SOCMWapkI8vUAw== From: To: Subject: Super Size Me Date: Sun, 4 Mar 2007 09:43:05 +1100 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="----=_NextPart_000_1D47D_01C75E41.820EED50" X-Mailer: Microsoft CDO for Exchange 2000 Content-Class: urn:content-classes:message Importance: normal Priority: normal X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.3790.2826 X-OriginalArrivalTime: 03 Mar 2007 22:43:05.0140 (UTC) FILETIME=[4EA0BF40:01C75DE5] X-TM-AS-Product-Ver: SMEX-7.2.0.1122-3.6.1039-15030.001 X-TM-AS-Result: No--4.567700-5.000000-1 X-Virus-Scanned: amavisd-new at fishinternet.com.au X-NAS-BWL: Found match for 'info@fathersonline.org' on the allowed list (2211 addresses, 0 domains) X-NAS-Classification: 0 X-NAS-MessageID: 10291 X-NAS-Validation: {FF825B7A-B161-40BD-90F8-3582DAE91A1E} This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_1D47D_01C75E41.820EED50 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable =20 =20 Unable to read this email? Please click here =20 =20 Issue 237 - 5th March, 2007 Go to our website Here =20 =20 * Hello Alison * Grandads * Laughter * Single Dads=20 * Special Feature * Thought of the Week * All You Need is Love * News & Info * Dad's Prayer * Help Us Hello Alison 'Super Size Me' was the Academy Award-nominated 2004 documentary film, directed by and starring Morgan Spurlock, an independent American filmmaker. It follows a 30-day time period (February 2003) during which Spurlock subsists exclusively on McDonald's fast food and stops exercising regularly. The film documents this lifestyle's drastic effects on Spurlock's physical and psychological well-being and explores the fast food industry's corporate influence, including how it encourages poor nutrition for its own profit. =20 During the filming, Spurlock dined at McDonald's restaurants three times a day, sampling every item on the chain's menu at least once. He consumed an average of 5000 calories per day during the experiment. =20 Before launching this experiment, Spurlock, age 33, was healthy and slim, with a body weight of 84.1 kg. (Spurlock is 1.88 m tall.) After thirty days, he gained 11.1 kg, a 13% body mass increase, and his Body Mass Index raised from 23.2 (within the 'healthy' range of 19-25) to 27 ('overweight'). He also experienced mood swings, sexual dysfunction, and nearly catastrophic liver damage. It took Spurlock fourteen months to lose the weight he gained. =20 The driving factor for Spurlock's investigation was the increasing spread of obesity throughout U.S. society, which the Surgeon General has declared "epidemic."=20 =20 In February 2005, Super Size Me Educationally Enhanced DVD edition was released. It is an edited version of the film designed to be integrated into a high school health curriculum. =20 As the film begins, Spurlock is physically above average, as attested to by three doctors (a cardiologist, a gastroenterologist, and a general practitioner), whom he enlists to track his health during the month-long binge. All three predict the "McMonth" will have unwelcome effects on his body, but none expect anything too drastic, one citing the human body as being "extremely adaptable." =20 Spurlock starts the month with a McBreakfast near his home in Manhattan, where there is one McDonald's per =BC mi=B2 (0.6 km=B2). The month also = sees an increase in his use of taxis, as he aims to keep the distances he walks in line with the 5000 steps walked per day by the average American. Spurlock has several rules which govern his eating habits: He must fully eat three McDonald's meals a day.=20 He must sample every item on the McDonald's menu at least once over the course of the 30 days.=20 He must only ingest items on the menu. This includes bottled water.=20 He must "Super Size" his meal whenever, and only when, the option is offered to him.=20 =20 Day 2 brings Spurlock's first Super Size meal, which happens to be a Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese meal, which takes him close to an hour to eat. He experiences steadily increasing discomfort during the process, which culminates in Spurlock vomiting in the parking lot. =20 After five days Spurlock has gained almost 5 kg. It is not long before he finds himself with a feeling of depression, and not much longer until he finds his bouts of depression, lethargy, and headaches are relieved by a McDonald's meal. One doctor describes him as "addicted." He has soon gained another 5 kg, putting his weight at 92 kg. By the end of the month he weighs about 95.5 kg, an increase of almost 11 kg. Because he could only eat McDonald's food for a month, Spurlock refused to take any medication at all. Around day 20, Spurlock experiences heart palpitations. Consultation with his concerned general practitioner, Dr Daryl Isaacs, reveals that Spurlock's liver is "p=E2t=E9," and the doctor advises him to stop what = he is doing immediately to avoid any serious heart problems. =20 Spurlock makes it to day 30 and achieves his goal. In thirty days, he "Supersized" his meals nine times along the way (five of which were in Texas, the state with the highest number of "fat cities" in the US). Text at the conclusion of the movie states that it took Spurlock five months to lose 9 kg and another nine months to return to his original weight. All three doctors are surprised at the degree of deterioration in Spurlock's health. =20 One could argue that this was an extreme experiment but it definitely shows the dangers of over eating and not having a balanced diet. I must admit, I will still go to McDonalds (but maybe not as much). My habit began when my children used to order my wife and I to stop at the Golden Arches before the logo was even within sight. Funny how our children can spot the arches many kilometres down the road. =20 The fault of our obesity and ill health does not lie in McDonalds, but in our own propensity to accept a high animal protein, high fat diet as normal rather than to examine our diet and find what is really the best for us. After all it would be nice to be around to enjoy our grandchildren and great grandchildren. =20 Next week we will look at what to eat in order to live a long and healthy life. =20 Lovework =20 You are what you eat! And you are teaching your children to become what you are. Begin doing your own reasearch and look at how you can eat a more balanced and healthy diet.=20 =20 The answer to the childhood obesity epidemic starts with us as fathers. Next week I am going to hit you with a bombshell, so get ready, examine your eating habits now. =20 Yours for healthy children Warwick Marsh =20 ___________________________________________________________ Warwick Marsh has been married to Alison for 31 years. He is the father of five children, four boys and one girl, ranging in age from 26 years to 14 years. Warwick is a musician, songwriter, producer and public speaker who likes to think he can still laugh at himself. back to top=20 =20 Grandads =20 =20 =20 Children are our most valuable natural resource =20 Herbert Hoover back to top=20 =20 Laughter =20 =20 =20 =20 The latest in fashion accessories =20 =20 =20 A new hands free mobile phone that acts as an earing and saves you holding your phone for all those important and long calls to your friends. Sold in three sizes, subject to having an earlob to put it in.=20 Haven't got an earlob! We can sell those to you too.=20 Now a phone that never leaves your ear. (Shower versions are under development.) =20 back to top=20 =20 Single Dads=20 =20 It is strange how things happen. If you had told me 7 years ago that I would be sitting here in an internet cafe in Bournemouth UK I would of thought you were crazy but here I am, thinking maybe I am a little crazy. I have been to the bottom of the barrel, risen up again and taken many dives over the past 7 years. Here I am on the last leg of a journey, a quest if you like, to connect with my son. When I first decided to do this trip I had absolutely no desire to see Europe whatsoever, my only reason was to reconnect somehow with my now 21 year old son. I was originally to come over for his birthday but as many of you know my daughter fell ill and I couldn't make it. We have just finished the trip and are now in Bournemouth where he lives with some Aussie mates. =20 I guess the question many of you will be asking if you have read the previous articles, is did I succeed? Yesterday I felt I could just jump on the first plane home. It would be so easy. But what would I be leaving behind? As a dad what would I be teaching him? I have found many quiet places on this trip to have a cry. I could have given up 3 weeks ago to be honest. That would have been easy, so easy, but I am determined somehow to reach into this heart of his and give him something of myself. =20 When we arrived here his friends all came over for a party. They have set up a bar called the 'Ginger Abo Hotel' up in the attic where my son sleeps. The place is decked out like a real bar and the walls and ceiling are covered with the photos of him, his friends and visitors obviously having one hell of a time. It really is something to see. But most important to me was to meet his friends. You know, my father always said to me 'if you can count your friends on one hand you are doin well'. My son has many friends and it was obvious to me that he is so loved. He may not like me saying it that way but the truth is that he is. And I am very proud of him. His friends have made me feel very welcome, have taken me sightseeing and I have to say we have had more than a few drinks together. They say 5 beers is a meal, well I can tell you we are all eating 5 square meals a day. They even introduced me to a drink called 'snakebite', as the name suggests, it packs a wallop. But it's all fun and it has enabled me to see into each of these beautiful young people's hearts. And as I said previously, I am proud of my young bloke and the friends he has made. =20 But I have to say, it totally amazes me with young people these days. They get ready to go out at the time I would normally be going to bed. And then like some strange breed of vampires they party all night and once the sun starts to come up they withdraw back into their rooms not resurfacing again until night. Amazing! =20 In the movie 'Click' which I saw prior to making this trip I saw a reflection of myself. I guess that's why in many scenes I was reduced to a blubbering mess. It cemented in my mind why I was making this trip. It's not easy looking at yourself. I mean really looking at yourself. Years ago I looked in the mirror and I didn't like what I saw. I have set about on a journey to try and make up for that person I used to be. Sometimes I feel I have succeeded in some small way, other times I feel I have made little headway. But that's what it is all about isn't it? One step forward, ten back, but you keep moving forward, you keep going, you keep pushing the limits. The trick is while you are focussing on your destination to not forget the journey, the ones you love and who love you, your family, your friends and to see the goodness in the people you meet along the way. =20 =20 Back to, have I succeeded? Well I guess you need to make your own mind up on that. I didn't think I had to be honest until one of his friends told me to go look in his room. I did and there on the wall was a picture of me from a national newspaper story I did some time ago. And straight underneath it was a copy of my award nomination for Australian of the Year last year. His friend said, 'He is very proud of you. Do you know he proudly read out that newspaper story to everyone one night'. He is really proud of you. He kept on saying that's my dad, that's my dad. I have to tell you I got a lump in my throat and shed a few more tears on hearing that. =20 And how's things going? Well few words are spoken but I'm his dad and I guess that's just how things are sometimes. Maybe we need as dads to just step back a little and allow them the space to come to us rather then us taking it to them. I'm just kinda standing in the background at the moment. He knows I am there and I guess that's enough at the moment, just to know you're there. =20 Tony Miller dids=20 www.dadsindistress.asn.au =20 back to top=20 =20 Special Feature =20 PARENTS SUFFER=20 WHEN CHILDREN DIVORCE =20 =20 The Baltimore Sun, The Middle Ages By Linell Smith - February 25, 2007 =20 Parents suffer when children divorce. A son or daughter's marital split can trigger feelings of guilt, anger and betrayal. =20 Researching the effects of divorce, author Marsha Temlock talked to many baby boomers about betrayal, financial turmoil and the sting of gossip. She heard tales of hostility, resentment -- even guilt. Before long, the writer knew she had the foundation of a self-help book for an overlooked audience: The parents of divorcing couples. =20 If roughly a million people get divorced each year in the United States, as many as four million parents may also feel pain, anger and bewilderment when their cherished family vision explodes. =20 "Even those parents who were pleased their child had escaped a bad situation felt their lives had been changed by their divorce," Temlock says. "Often, they were suddenly struggling to support two families, or their children were returning to their home, or they were reassuming the caretaking role. If they were divorced themselves, they might be thinking, 'If I had stuck it out, maybe my kids would have been better off.'" =20 Your Child's Divorce: What to Expect -What You Can Do (Impact Publishers) walks parents through five stages of divorce: Accepting the news; rescuing your child; responding to change; stabilizing the family, and finally, refocusing and rebuilding the family, often with a new in-law. =20 "I know many parents think of their child's divorce in terms of loss. Others ... call it a new beginning," Temlock writes. "I see it as a continuum, another one of life's challenges with new parental tasks, new obstacles and new rewards. It's playing different roles at different stages in their child's divorce journey, knowing when to move to the foreground and when to step back." =20 You might consider this book another course in the lifelong curriculum of parenting. =20 Should you let your son or daughter move back home? For how long? How do you construct boundaries to keep from being consumed by your child's problems? How do you keep in touch with your ex-in-law without being disloyal to your child? How do you adjust to the role of step-grandparent when your son or daughter remarries? How do you change and broaden your view of your family? =20 A vocational counsellor and freelance writer in Westport, Conn., Temlock grappled with some of these questions after her own two children got a divorce. =20 "I felt as if our family had fallen off a cliff," Temlock, 62, says. "My husband and I have been married for 42 years. We both come from a long line of solid marriages." =20 When she couldn't find a book to help, she decided to write one - but not about her own experience. Instead, she interviewed dozens of other parents who also felt they were trailblazing new emotional ground. =20 "If my book were available for my parents' generation, I don't think they would have consulted it," she says. "They'd have been too engaged in denial. If divorce wasn't quite swept under the carpet, it wasn't something that parents wanted to get involved in. Having gone through the whole marital revolution of the '50s and '60s, today's parents are more understanding of the fact their children are more likely to get divorced." =20 Different expectations Although national divorce statistics are difficult to come by -- such large states as California and Georgia have not supplied divorce figures in recent years -- Maryland had 17,111 divorces in 2005, according to the state's vital statistics. (There were 37,572 marriages.) =20 A little more than half of the state's divorces consisted of marriages of fewer than nine years. =20 Attorney Sally B. Gold, who practices family law in Baltimore, says some clients in their 20s and 30s view divorce through the filter of their own parents' broken marriages. =20 "Some may be determined to stay married. But others may not have the same degree of angst," she says. "They may think 'It's OK. We've tried this and we're moving on.' Letting go may be a little bit easier." =20 Over the past 40 years, she notes, the women's movement has brought women closer to equality in the workplace, giving them more courage, and ability, to end bad marriages. =20 It has also made parents more tolerant of such decisions. back to top=20 =20 Thought of the Week =20 =20 One-third of our children are overweight in this country=20 or at risk of becoming overweight.=20 Our kids are increasingly fall prey to a=20 form of diabetes=20 that used to be seen only in adults,=20 and children nowtake more prescription drugs=20 than ever before . . . =20 These issues all come down to three things:=20 breakfast, lunch and dinner. =20 Dr Colin Campbell =20 back to top=20 =20 All You Need is Love =20 SEXLESS IS NOT A MARRIAGE =20 =20 Expert: A Sexless Marriage Is Not A Marriage WCCO: Minneapolis, MN Jeanette Trompeter =20 Society is preoccupied with sex, but the reality is many people who ought to be enjoying it the most often are actually doing it the least, according to experts. =20 "A couple's sex life is the number one best barometer of how well their marriage is going," said Dr. John Friel, psychologist and bestselling author. =20 Marriage, he says, is by definition a sexual relationship, and if sex has gone by the wayside, so too has the marriage. If you are in a sexless marriage, "you can't call it a marriage. You can call it a friendship. You can call it a working, parenting relationship." =20 Couples with two jobs, two cars and two kids say they're often too tired, too stressed and too bored when they do manage to find one-on-one time. =20 "They're really good business partners in the business of shuttling their kids from one hockey game to the next, going to band practices, making sure homework gets done," said Friel, who stressed letting a marriage's sex life die shouldn't be an option for those who want to stay happily married, "because it isn't about sex. It's about being connected and about nurturing each other." =20 Intimacy, said Friel, is not just found between the sheets but in the day to day details of life. If a couple does not nurture each other in that process, the connection in the bedroom will eventually suffer. =20 "The research all shows that a good sex life is the glue that holds a couple together," said Friel. =20 Another barometer of how intimate we are is how we argue ... or, for that matter, how we don't argue, according to Friel. Every relationship has its share of conflict, and expressing it is key to building a healthy relationship. =20 From http://www.smartmarriages.com .=20 back to top=20 =20 News & Info =20 What is prostate cancer? =20 Prostate cancer develops when the cells in the prostate gland grow more quickly than in a normal prostate, forming a malignant lump or tumour. Most prostate cancers grow slower than other types of cancer.=20 Early (or localised) prostate cancer is growth that has not spread beyond the prostate. Some prostate cancers may spread to other parts of the body, such as the bones and lymph nodes. This is called advanced prostate cancer. =20 How common is it? Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in Australian men. Based on 2002 figures, one in 11 men in NSW will develop prostate cancer by the age of 75 years.=20 It occurs mainly in men aged over 65 and is uncommon in men under 50. If you have a father or brother who has had prostate cancer, your chance of developing the disease may be higher and it may begin at a younger age. =20 For further information: http://www.cancercouncil.com.au/editorial.asp?pageid=3D85 =20 =20 * * * * * * * =20 Daddy's Pride 18 March, 07, Rome =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 Armata Dei Padri, Batalhao Dos Pap=E0s,=20 Armada De Los Padres, Dad's Army - It All Spells Love - The 'Fathers Movement' or 'Dad's Army? is not comprised of dangerous, hateful men, as some organized feminist groups and female victims of abuse would like you to believe. They are men who love their children, want more time with them, in some cases any time with them, and/or who are concerned for their safety. When they fight for sole custody they truly believe, and usually have proof, their children are in danger. From my close association with members around the world for the last four years, I can tell you almost all of the fathers I?ve met just want equal time and responsibility for their children. These men are to be commended, not feared. T. Stoddard 1/07 =20 If you are a dad, you cannot miss this international dad's conference March 18, 2007 in Rome, and online. The pacifist movement 'Dad's Army' is organizing this first-time annual event. Every person and association from everywhere in the world can join in this meeting by sending a simple email message. Include a link to your website and send to: info@figlinegati.it =20 =20 * * *=20 =20 The Father's Rights documentary will be shown in Rome on Saturday, March 17th in the evening and on Monday, March 19th in the evening. As you know, the 18th of March is the international Dad's Pride March, people from all over the world including journalists from USA given this is the first time such an event is taking place.=20 =20 The documentary will also go on air on ROMA UNO on March 19th.=20 =20 Try and notify as many as possible. The person who is organizing this is also a political candidate. One can also visit http://www.daddyspride.it/ where you can find by scrolling down, information translated in several languages. =20 * * * * * * * * * * * * * Mens Health and Wellbeing Assoc (QLD)=20 In these busy, often stressful times, a simple sense of wellbeing can be as elusive as a good soaking rain in a drought-stricken farm. For many men, joining in the company of other men to do a good deed, or to explore our masculinity in a safe and supportive way, or to simply hang-out without fear of judgement or competition, can bring in the welcome clouds and momentarily drench our worlds.=20 The Men's Health and Wellbeing Association invites you to grab your diary and give yourself the gift of a few hours or a few days in the company of other men, and perhaps in the process enjoy a good long soak of wellbeing in these otherwise dry times.=20 Manshine Men's Gathering - 4-7th May at Sunshine Coast Common Ground Facilitator Training - 8-11th March in Maleny Blokes Day Out - 24th March in Noosa ?The Rock' Bush Retreat Working Bee - 25-26th March Pathways to Manhood Camp - 24-28th April at The Rock Pathways Facilitator Training - 21-24th June=20 For more details: www.mhwaq.org.au =20 =20 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * =20 =20 Australia's Drought A Call to Pray and Fast Forty Days of Prayer & Preparation=20 beginning Australia Day - 26 Jan 07 =20 The current drought, which is affecting most parts of southern and eastern Australia, is currently reaching crisis proportions. Chris Davis, CEO of the Australian Water Association, says the drought has surpassed the Federation drought of 1895-1902. As the worst drought on record, Blair Trewin, one of the authors of the enclosed 12 month drought report from the Bureau of Meteorology, is more cautious than Chris Davis and his assessment is that some parts of South Eastern Australia and Southern and South Western Australia are not as bad as the Federation drought but some areas are much worse. The final Annual Climate Statement 2006 from the Bureau of Meteorology is also attached or follow the link:=20 http://www.bom.gov.au/announcements/media_releases/climate/change/200701 03.shtml =20 =20 =20 Dam levels for capital cities:=20 BRISBANE: 21.72%=20 SYDNEY: 37.10%=20 CANBERRA: 34.81%=20 MELBOURNE: 34.2%=20 HOBART: 94.00%=20 ADELAIDE: 55.00 %=20 PERTH: 25.00%=20 DARWIN: 81%=20 =20 Source: ActewAGL, Melbourne Water, Sydney Catchment Authority, SA Water, SEQ Water and Water Corporation =20 Come and Pray for the Drought=20 at the National Solemn Assembly =20 =20 .=20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 =20 back to top=20 =20 Dad's Prayer =20 Dear God =20 How come, every where I look these days, All I can see is fast food restaurants? When I turn on the TV All they advertise is food, food, food. Tell me, why are my children getting fat? Maybe it's because I can't stop myself eating. =20 Help me not to become super-sized in my body fat,=20 but I would love your help to be super-sized in my heart. back to top=20 =20 Help Us Click here for more information about us =20 Help Us! The Fatherhood Foundation is a Harm Prevention Charity.=20 Fatherlessness and inadequate fathering has been proven to be a source of harm.=20 The Fatherhood Foundation helps children by promoting excellence in fathering. Excellent fathers are in word and deed: responsible, involved, protective, loving and committed to the well-being of their children and their children's mother. If you would like to give financially to the Fatherhood Foundation Public Fund and receive tax deductibility: Fatherhood Foundation Public Fund=20 (Name, address and amount details must be emailed for a receipt for tax deductibility) Westpac Branch Wollongong BSB: 032 695 A/C: 25-5558=20 Or mail cheque and address details to: PO Box 440 WOLLONGONG NSW 2520 AUSTRALIA The Fatherhood Foundation Public Fund is a public fund listed on the Register of Harm Prevention Charities under Subdivision 30_EA of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997. You have received the fathersonline.org newsletter because you have subscribed, or you have been subscribed by a friend. 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Issue 237 - 5th March, 2007 Go to our website Here


Hello Alison

'Super Size Me' was the Academy Award-nominated 2004 documentary film, directed by and starring Morgan Spurlock, an independent American filmmaker. It follows a 30-day time period (February 2003) during which Spurlock subsists exclusively on McDonald's fast food and stops exercising regularly. The film documents this lifestyle's drastic effects on Spurlock's physical and psychological well-being and explores the fast food industry's corporate influence, including how it encourages poor nutrition for its own profit.

 

During the filming, Spurlock dined at McDonald's restaurants three times a day, sampling every item on the chain's menu at least once. He consumed an average of 5000 calories per day during the experiment.

 

Before launching this experiment, Spurlock, age 33, was healthy and slim, with a body weight of 84.1 kg. (Spurlock is 1.88 m tall.) After thirty days, he gained 11.1 kg, a 13% body mass increase, and his Body Mass Index raised from 23.2 (within the 'healthy' range of 19-25) to 27 ('overweight'). He also experienced mood swings, sexual dysfunction, and nearly catastrophic liver damage. It took Spurlock fourteen months to lose the weight he gained.

 

The driving factor for Spurlock's investigation was the increasing spread of obesity throughout U.S. society, which the Surgeon General has declared "epidemic."

 

In February 2005, Super Size Me Educationally Enhanced DVD edition was released. It is an edited version of the film designed to be integrated into a high school health curriculum.

 

As the film begins, Spurlock is physically above average, as attested to by three doctors (a cardiologist, a gastroenterologist, and a general practitioner), whom he enlists to track his health during the month-long binge. All three predict the "McMonth" will have unwelcome effects on his body, but none expect anything too drastic, one citing the human body as being "extremely adaptable."

 

Spurlock starts the month with a McBreakfast near his home in Manhattan, where there is one McDonald's per ¼ mi² (0.6 km²). The month also sees an increase in his use of taxis, as he aims to keep the distances he walks in line with the 5000 steps walked per day by the average American. Spurlock has several rules which govern his eating habits:

  He must fully eat three McDonald's meals a day.

  He must sample every item on the McDonald's menu at least once over the course of the 30 days.

  He must only ingest items on the menu. This includes bottled water.

  He must "Super Size" his meal whenever, and only when, the option is offered to him.

 

Day 2 brings Spurlock's first Super Size meal, which happens to be a Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese meal, which takes him close to an hour to eat. He experiences steadily increasing discomfort during the process, which culminates in Spurlock vomiting in the parking lot.

 

After five days Spurlock has gained almost 5 kg. It is not long before he finds himself with a feeling of depression, and not much longer until he finds his bouts of depression, lethargy, and headaches are relieved by a McDonald's meal. One doctor describes him as "addicted." He has soon gained another 5 kg, putting his weight at 92 kg. By the end of the month he weighs about 95.5 kg, an increase of almost 11 kg. Because he could only eat McDonald's food for a month, Spurlock refused to take any medication at all.

Around day 20, Spurlock experiences heart palpitations. Consultation with his concerned general practitioner, Dr Daryl Isaacs, reveals that Spurlock's liver is "pâté," and the doctor advises him to stop what he is doing immediately to avoid any serious heart problems.

 

Spurlock makes it to day 30 and achieves his goal. In thirty days, he "Supersized" his meals nine times along the way (five of which were in Texas, the state with the highest number of "fat cities" in the US). Text at the conclusion of the movie states that it took Spurlock five months to lose 9 kg and another nine months to return to his original weight.  All three doctors are surprised at the degree of deterioration in Spurlock's health.

 

One could argue that this was an extreme experiment but it definitely shows the dangers of over eating and not having a balanced diet. I must admit, I will still go to McDonalds (but maybe not as much). My habit began when my children used to order my wife and I to stop at the Golden Arches before the logo was even within sight. Funny how our children can spot the arches many kilometres down the road.

 

The fault of our obesity and ill health does not lie in McDonalds, but in our own propensity to accept a high animal protein, high fat diet as normal rather than to examine our diet and find what is really the best for us. After all it would be nice to be around to enjoy our grandchildren and great grandchildren.

 

Next week we will look at what to eat in order to live a long and healthy life.

 

Lovework

 

You are what you eat! And you are teaching your children to become what you are. Begin doing your own reasearch and look at how you can eat a more balanced and healthy diet.

 

The answer to the childhood obesity epidemic starts with us as fathers. Next week I am going to hit you with a bombshell, so get ready, examine your eating habits now.

 

Yours for healthy children

Warwick Marsh

 

 ___________________________________________________________


Warwick Marsh  has been married to Alison for 31 years. He is the father of five children, four boys and one girl, ranging in age from 26 years to 14 years.  Warwick is a musician, songwriter, producer and public speaker who likes to think he can still laugh at himself.

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Grandads

 

Children are our most valuable natural resource

 

Herbert Hoover

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Laughter

 

 

The latest in fashion accessories

 

 

 

A new hands free mobile phone that acts as an earing and saves you holding your phone for all those important and long calls to your friends.

Sold in three sizes, subject to having an earlob to put it in.

Haven't got an earlob! We can sell those to you too.

Now a phone that never leaves your ear.

(Shower versions are under development.)

 

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Single Dads

It is strange how things happen. If you had told me 7 years ago that I would be sitting here in an internet cafe in Bournemouth UK I would of thought you were crazy but here I am, thinking maybe I am a little crazy. I have been to the bottom of the barrel, risen up again and taken many dives over the past 7 years. Here I am on the last leg of a journey, a quest if you like, to connect with my son. When I first decided to do this trip I had absolutely no desire to see Europe whatsoever, my only reason was to reconnect somehow with my now 21 year old son. I was originally to come over for his birthday but as many of you know my daughter fell ill and I couldn't make it. We have just finished the trip and are now in Bournemouth where he lives with some Aussie mates.

 

I guess the question many of you will be asking if you have read the previous articles, is did I succeed? Yesterday I felt I could just jump on the first plane home. It would be so easy. But what would I be leaving behind? As a dad what would I be teaching him? I have found many quiet places on this trip to have a cry. I could have given up 3 weeks ago to be honest. That would have been easy, so easy, but I am determined somehow to reach into this heart of his and give him something of myself.

 

When we arrived here his friends all came over for a party. They have set up a bar called the 'Ginger Abo Hotel' up in the attic where my son sleeps. The place is decked out like a real bar and the walls and ceiling are covered with the photos of him, his friends and visitors obviously having one hell of a time. It really is something to see. But most important to me was to meet his friends. You know, my father always said to me 'if you can count your friends on one hand you are doin well'. My son has many friends and it was obvious to me that he is so loved. He may not like me saying it that way but the truth is that he is. And I am very proud of him. His friends have made me feel very welcome, have taken me sightseeing and I have to say we have had more than a few drinks together. They say 5 beers is a meal, well I can tell you we are all eating 5 square meals a day. They even introduced me to a drink called 'snakebite', as the name suggests, it packs a wallop. But it's all fun and it has enabled me to see into each of these beautiful young people's hearts. And as I said previously, I am proud of my young bloke and the friends he has made.

 

But I have to say, it totally amazes me with young people these days. They get ready to go out at the time I would normally be going to bed. And then like some strange breed of vampires they party all night and once the sun starts to come up they withdraw back into their rooms not resurfacing again until night. Amazing!

 

In the movie 'Click' which I saw prior to making this trip I saw a reflection of myself. I guess that's why in many scenes I was reduced to a blubbering mess. It cemented in my mind why I was making this trip. It's not easy looking at yourself. I mean really looking at yourself. Years ago I looked in the mirror and I didn't like what I saw. I have set about on a journey to try and make up for that person I used to be. Sometimes I feel I have succeeded in some small way, other times I feel I have made little headway. But that's what it is all about isn't it? One step forward, ten back, but you keep moving forward, you keep going, you keep pushing the limits. The trick is while you are focussing on your destination to not forget the journey, the ones you love and who love yo u, your family, your friends and to see the goodness in the people you meet along the way.

 

 

Back to, have I succeeded? Well I guess you need to make your own mind up on that. I didn't think I had to be honest until one of his friends told me to go look in his room. I did and there on the wall was a picture of me from a national newspaper story I did some time ago. And straight underneath it was a copy of my award nomination for Australian of the Year last year. His friend said, 'He is very proud of you. Do you know he proudly read out that newspaper story to everyone one night'. He is really proud of you. He kept on saying that's my dad, that's my dad. I have to tell you I got a lump in my throat and shed a few more tears on hearing that.

 

And how's things going? Well few words are spoken but I'm his dad and I guess that's just how things are sometimes. Maybe we need as dads to just step back a little and allow them the space to come to us rather then us taking it to them. I'm just kinda standing in the background at the moment. He knows I am there and I guess that's enough at the moment, just to know you're there.

 

Tony Miller

dids

www.dadsindistress.asn.au 

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Special Feature

 

PARENTS SUFFER

WHEN CHILDREN DIVORCE

 

The Baltimore Sun, The Middle Ages

By Linell Smith - February 25, 2007

 

Parents suffer when children divorce.

A son or daughter's marital split can trigger feelings of guilt, anger and betrayal.

 

Researching the effects of divorce, author Marsha Temlock talked to many baby boomers about betrayal, financial turmoil and the sting of gossip. She heard tales of hostility, resentment -- even guilt. Before long, the writer knew she had the foundation of a self-help book for an overlooked audience: The parents of divorcing couples.

 

If roughly a million people get divorced each year in the United States, as many as four million parents may also feel pain, anger and bewilderment when their cherished family vision explodes.

 

"Even those parents who were pleased their child had escaped a bad situation felt their lives had been changed by their divorce," Temlock says. "Often, they were suddenly struggling to support two families, or their children were returning to their home, or they were reassuming the caretaking role. If they were divorced themselves, they might be thinking, 'If I had stuck it out, maybe my kids would have been better off.'"

 

Your Child's Divorce: What to Expect -What You Can Do (Impact Publishers) walks parents through five stages of divorce: Accepting the news; rescuing your child; responding to change; stabilizing the family, and finally, refocusing and rebuilding the family, often with a new in-law.

 

"I know many parents think of their child's divorce in terms of loss. Others ... call it a new beginning," Temlock writes. "I see it as a continuum, another one of life's challenges with new parental tasks, new obstacles and new rewards. It's playing different roles at different stages in their child's divorce journey, knowing when to move to the foreground and when to step back."

 

You might consider this book another course in the lifelong curriculum of parenting.

 

Should you let your son or daughter move back home? For how long? How do you construct boundaries to keep from being consumed by your child's problems? How do you keep in touch with your ex-in-law without being disloyal to your child? How do you adjust to the role of step-grandparent when your son or daughter remarries? How do you change and broaden your view of your family?

 

A vocational counsellor and freelance writer in Westport, Conn., Temlock grappled with some of these questions after her own two children got a divorce.

 

"I felt as if our family had fallen off a cliff," Temlock, 62, says. "My husband and I have been married for 42 years. We both come from a long line of solid marriages."

 

When she couldn't find a book to help, she decided to write one - but not about her own experience. Instead, she interviewed dozens of other parents who also felt they were trailblazing new emotional ground.

 

"If my book were available for my parents' generation, I don't think they would have consulted it," she says. "They'd have been too engaged in denial. If divorce wasn't quite swept under the carpet, it wasn't something that parents wanted to get involved in. Having gone through the whole marital revolution of the '50s and '60s, today's parents are more understanding of the fact their children are more likely to get divorced."

 

Different expectations Although national divorce statistics are difficult to come by -- such large states as California and Georgia have not supplied divorce figures in recent

years -- Maryland had 17,111 divorces in 2005, according to the state's vital statistics. (There were 37,572 marriages.)

 

A little more than half of the state's divorces consisted of marriages of fewer than nine years.

 

Attorney Sally B. Gold, who practices family law in Baltimore, says some clients in their 20s and 30s view divorce through the filter of their own parents' broken marriages.

 

"Some may be determined to stay married. But others may not have the same degree of angst," she says. "They may think 'It's OK. We've tried this and we're moving on.' Letting go may be a little bit easier."

 

Over the past 40 years, she notes, the women's movement has brought women closer to equality in the workplace, giving them more courage, and ability, to end bad marriages.

 

It has also made parents more tolerant of such decisions.

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Thought of the Week

 

One-third of our children are overweight in this country

or at risk of becoming overweight.

Our kids are increasingly fall prey to a

form of diabetes

that used to be seen only in adults,

and children nowtake more prescription drugs

than ever before . . .

 

These issues all come down to three things:

breakfast, lunch and dinner.

 

Dr Colin Campbell

 

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All You Need is Love

 

SEXLESS IS NOT A MARRIAGE

 

Expert: A Sexless Marriage Is Not A Marriage

WCCO: Minneapolis, MN

Jeanette Trompeter

 

Society is preoccupied with sex, but the reality is many people who ought to be enjoying it the most often are actually doing it the least, according to experts.

 

"A couple's sex life is the number one best barometer of how well their marriage is going," said Dr. John Friel, psychologist and bestselling author.

 

Marriage, he says, is by definition a sexual relationship, and if sex has gone by the wayside, so too has the marriage. If you are in a sexless marriage, "you can't call it a marriage. You can call it a friendship. You can call it a working, parenting relationship."

 

Couples with two jobs, two cars and two kids say they're often too tired, too stressed and too bored when they do manage to find one-on-one time.

 

"They're really good business partners in the business of shuttling their kids from one hockey game to the next, going to band practices, making sure homework gets done," said Friel, who stressed letting a marriage's sex life die shouldn't be an option for those who want to stay happily married, "because it isn't about sex. It's about being connected and about nurturing each other."

 

Intimacy, said Friel, is not just found between the sheets but in the day to day details of life. If a couple does not nurture each other in that process, the connection in the bedroom will eventually suffer.

 

"The research all shows that a good sex life is the glue that holds a couple together," said Friel.

 

Another barometer of how intimate we are is how we argue ... or, for that matter, how we don't argue, according to Friel. Every relationship has its share of conflict, and expressing it is key to building a healthy relationship.

 

From http://www.smartmarriages.com.

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News & Info

 

What is prostate cancer?

Prostate cancer develops when the cells in the prostate gland grow more quickly than in a normal prostate, forming a malignant lump or tumour.

Most prostate cancers grow slower than other types of cancer.

Early (or localised) prostate cancer is growth that has not spread beyond the prostate. Some prostate cancers may spread to other parts of the body, such as the bones and lymph nodes. This is called advanced prostate cancer.

 

How common is it?

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in Australian men. Based on 2002 figures, one in 11 men in NSW will develop prostate cancer by the age of 75 years.

It occurs mainly in men aged over 65 and is uncommon in men under 50. If you have a father or brother who has had prostate cancer, your chance of developing the disease may be higher and it may begin at a younger age.

 

For further information:

http://www.cancercouncil.com.au/editorial.asp?pageid=85

 

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Daddy's Pride

18 March, 07, Rome         

 

 

 

 

 

 

Armata Dei Padri, Batalhao Dos Papàs,

Armada De Los Padres, Dad's Army

- It All Spells Love -

The 'Fathers Movement' or 'Dad's Army? is not comprised of dangerous, hateful men, as some organized feminist groups and female victims of abuse would like you to believe. They are men who love their children, want more time with them, in some cases any time with them, and/or who are concerned for their safety. When they fight for sole custody they truly believe, and usually have proof, their children are in danger. From my close association with members around the world for the last four years, I can tell you almost all of the fathers I?ve met just want equal time and responsibility for their children. These men are to be commended, not feared. T. Stoddard 1/07

    

If you are a dad, you cannot miss this international dad's conference March 18, 2007 in Rome, and online.

The pacifist movement 'Dad's Army' is organizing this first-time annual event. Every person and association from everywhere in the world can join in this meeting by sending a simple email message.

Include a link to your website and send to: info@figlinegati.it

 

* * *

 

The Father's Rights documentary will be shown in Rome on Saturday, March 17th in the evening and on Monday, March 19th in the evening. As you know, the 18th of March is the international Dad's Pride March, people from all over the world including journalists from USA given this is the first time such an event is taking place.

 

The documentary will also go on air on ROMA UNO on March 19th.

 

Try and notify as many as possible. The person who is organizing this is also a political candidate. One can also visit http://www.daddyspride.it/  where you can find by scrolling down, information translated in several languages. 

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Mens Health and Wellbeing Assoc (QLD)

In these busy, often stressful times, a simple sense of wellbeing can be as elusive as a good soaking rain in a drought-stricken farm. For many men, joining in the company of other men to do a good deed, or to explore our masculinity in a safe and supportive way, or to simply hang-out without fear of judgement or competition, can bring in the welcome clouds and momentarily drench our worlds.

The Men's Health and Wellbeing Association invites you to grab your diary and give yourself the gift of a few hours or a few days in the company of other men, and perhaps in the process enjoy a good long soak of wellbeing in these otherwise dry times.

Manshine Men's Gathering - 4-7th May at Sunshine Coast

Common Ground Facilitator Training - 8-11th March in Maleny

Blokes Day Out - 24th March in Noosa

?The Rock' Bush Retreat Working Bee - 25-26th March

Pathways to Manhood Camp - 24-28th April at The Rock

Pathways Facilitator Training - 21-24th June

For more details: www.mhwaq.org.au  

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

Australia's Drought

A Call to Pray and Fast

Forty Days of Prayer & Preparation

beginning Australia Day - 26 Jan 07

 

The current drought, which is affecting most parts of southern and eastern Australia, is currently reaching crisis proportions. Chris Davis, CEO of the Australian Water Association, says the drought has surpassed the Federation drought of 1895-1902. As the worst drought on record, Blair Trewin, one of the authors of the enclosed 12 month drought report from the Bureau of Meteorology, is more cautious than Chris Davis and his assessment is that some parts of South Eastern Australia and Southern and South Western Australia are not as bad as the Federation drought but some areas are much worse. The final Annual Climate Statement 2006 from the Bureau of Meteorology is also attached or follow the link:

http://www.bom.gov.au/announcements/media_releases/climate/change/20070103.shtml  

 

 

Dam levels for capital cities:

 BRISBANE: 21.72%

SYDNEY: 37.10%

CANBERRA: 34.81%

MELBOURNE: 34.2%

HOBART: 94.00%

ADELAIDE: 55.00 %

PERTH: 25.00%

DARWIN: 81%

 

Source: ActewAGL, Melbourne Water, Sydney Catchment Authority, SA Water, SEQ Water and Water Corporation

 

Come and Pray for the Drought

at the National Solemn Assembly

 

 

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Dad's Prayer

 

Dear God

 

How come, every where I look these days,

All I can see is fast food restaurants?

When I turn on the TV

All they advertise is food, food, food.

 

Tell me, why are my children getting fat?

Maybe it's because I can't stop myself eating.

 

Help me not to become super-sized in my body fat,

but I would love your help

to be super-sized in my heart.

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Help Us

Click here for more information about us

Help Us!

The Fatherhood Foundation is a Harm Prevention Charity.
Fatherlessness and inadequate fathering has been proven to be a source of harm.

The Fatherhood Foundation helps children by promoting excellence  in fathering. Excellent fathers are in word and deed: responsible, involved, protective, loving and committed to the well-being of their children and their children's mother.

If you would like to give financially to the Fatherhood Foundation Public Fund and receive tax deductibility:

Fatherhood Foundation Public Fund
(Name, address and amount details must be emailed for a receipt for tax deductibility)
Westpac Branch Wollongong
BSB: 032 695
A/C: 25-5558

Or mail cheque and address details to:
PO Box 440
WOLLONGONG  NSW  2520
AUSTRALIA

The Fatherhood Foundation Public Fund  is a public fund listed on the Register of Harm Prevention Charities under Subdivision 30_EA of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997.

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