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Amatoxin
Injected With A Poison


Registered: 03/27/05
Posts: 1,934
Loc: Not So Great Britain
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Fat Americans
#5911420 - 07/29/06 08:49 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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Quote:
Americans too fat for X-rays, scans
By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent
http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArti...C1-ArticlePage3
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More and more obese people are unable to get full medical care because they are either too big to fit into scanners, or their fat is too dense for X-rays or sound waves to penetrate, radiologists reported on Tuesday.
With 64 percent of the U.S. population either overweight or obese, the problem is worsening, but it represents a business opportunity for equipment makers and hospitals, said Dr. Raul Uppot, a radiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital.
"We noticed over the past couple of years that obesity was playing a role in our ability to see these images clearly," Uppot said in a telephone interview.
Radiologists have their own term for it when writing up reports: "These images are limited due to body habitus."
Uppot's team looked for this phrase in radiology reports from 1989 to 2003. These included standard X-rays, computer assisted X-rays known as CT scans, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET).
These scans are used to look for tumors, blood clots, broken limbs and other injuries and diseased organs.
"Overall, 7,778 or 0.15 percent of 5,253,014 reports were habitus limited," they wrote in the August issue of the journal Radiology.
"It essentially doubled over the last 15 years," Uppot said.
The researchers looked more closely at the records of 200 of the patients, who weighed, on average, 239 pounds (108 kg).
"It is a major issue because ... the patient may still have a tumor, the patient may have appendicitis, the patient may have other inflammatory processes," Uppot said.
"This is affecting radiologists all over the country."
NOTHING BUT STATIC
Ultrasounds are most affected, Uppot said.
"In an obese person because the ultrasound beam does not get to the organs or get to them adequately enough we cannot get a picture. It looks like a snowstorm -- I don't know if you have seen those televisions where it is just whiteout? It looks like that."
An MRI can get a good picture if the patient can fit into the tube or get onto the table, Uppot said. Some manufacturers have started to make MRI machines with larger bore holes, but with the cost in the millions of dollars per machine, only large groups or institutions can afford them.
Siemens Medical Solutions of Siemens AG has seen the market potential. "Increase Your Physician Referral Base with 1.5 Tesla MRI for Obese and Claustrophobic Patients" the company says on its Internet website http://www.medical.siemens.com.
"It is a market out there. People who are taking advantage of it are making money," Uppot said. "We are in the process of buying and installing three of these machines."
One problem is with gastric bypass surgery, where the patients are by definition obese, Uppot said.
"If there is some complication -- abdominal pain or and infection or fever -- they are invariably at higher risk of not being able to be imaged with a CT or MRI," Uppot said.
"For the surgeon, he doesn't want to take the patient back to surgery to explore to see what the problem is," he added.
"For the patient, not knowing what is going on is a big issue. If you tell a patient 'I am sorry -- we just can't sit you on our CAT scanner', that is devastating to hear."
LOL
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Sectioned Under The Mental Health Act Sat 20-10-07 to Thurs 01-11-07 for playing TECHNO music
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Trav
Stranger

Registered: 06/09/05
Posts: 1,826
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Re: Fat Americans [Re: Amatoxin]
#5911422 - 07/29/06 08:51 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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"..their fat is too dense for X-rays or sound waves to penetrate"
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RandalFlagg
Stranger
Registered: 06/15/02
Posts: 15,608
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Re: Fat Americans [Re: Amatoxin]
#5911424 - 07/29/06 08:53 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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Wow.
I just ordered two steak gyros slathered in tartar sauce. They should be here in 5 minutes.
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Capless
Student


Registered: 06/25/06
Posts: 365
Last seen: 14 years, 10 months
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I forsee oneday that when people order fast food it will come with a warning lable much like cigs.
Oh well, I'm not fat, nor do I eat that shit. :P
Wonder if fat protects against that meth gun?
-------------------- http://www.toolband.com/ "... This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality. Embrace this moment. Remember, We are eternal. all this pain is an illusion...."
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Organic
Lloyd

Registered: 04/14/02
Posts: 5,774
Loc: Overlook
Last seen: 14 years, 7 months
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Re: Fat Americans [Re: Amatoxin]
#5911431 - 07/29/06 08:58 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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Does this mean that the meek will indeed not inherit the earth, but the fattest because they will have a protective sheath against the impending nuclear fallout?
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Asante
Mage


Registered: 02/06/02
Posts: 86,795
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Re: Fat Americans *DELETED* [Re: Amatoxin]
#5911438 - 07/29/06 09:01 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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Post deleted by Wiccan_SeekerReason for deletion: -
-------------------- Omnicyclion.org higher knowledge starts here
Edited by Asante (07/29/06 09:17 AM)
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Dark_Star
train driver pervading a desktop


Registered: 08/20/04
Posts: 31,859
Loc: Uranus
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Re: Fat Americans [Re: Amatoxin]
#5911458 - 07/29/06 09:14 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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Damn......all I have to say is damn.....that's really sad. A large group of people that are more in need of medical attention, treatment and testing than most & they can't get tested....that sucks. With all the money in the world you'd think we'd be able accommodate these people somehow. We can vaporise cities, but we can't give obese folks proper medical care....sad.
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Edited by Dark_Star (07/29/06 09:22 AM)
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Amatoxin
Injected With A Poison


Registered: 03/27/05
Posts: 1,934
Loc: Not So Great Britain
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Re: Fat Americans [Re: Asante]
#5911462 - 07/29/06 09:15 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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Quote:
Wiccan_Seeker said: How people can find pleasure in the chronic illness of others is beyond me.
I didn't say I find pleasure in the chronic illness of other people funny, I just find it crazy that people would put themselves in that situation in the first place through sheer gluttony
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Sectioned Under The Mental Health Act Sat 20-10-07 to Thurs 01-11-07 for playing TECHNO music
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Asante
Mage


Registered: 02/06/02
Posts: 86,795
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Re: Fat Americans *DELETED* [Re: Amatoxin]
#5911468 - 07/29/06 09:18 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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Post deleted by Wiccan_SeekerReason for deletion: -
-------------------- Omnicyclion.org higher knowledge starts here
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Dreamer987
The VerbalHerman Munster


Registered: 04/15/03
Posts: 5,326
Loc: Texas
Last seen: 16 years, 1 month
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Re: Fat Americans [Re: Asante]
#5911476 - 07/29/06 09:27 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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I don't want to be mean, and i know what its like to have a weight problem. But its your own damb fault. Don't want to be fat anymore? Put down the fork. Excersise. Diets don't do SHIT without excersise. Walk around the block today. Do it again tommarow. Mabey walk alittle bit farther the next day. Its not hard. Don't be a victim. Again, no disrespect, but you'v got to take responsibility for your own life.
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Vvellum
Stranger

Registered: 05/24/04
Posts: 10,920
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Quote:
Dreamer987 said: I don't want to be mean, and i know what its like to have a weight problem. But its your own damb fault. Don't want to be fat anymore? Put down the fork. Excersise. Diets don't do SHIT without excersise. Walk around the block today. Do it again tommarow. Mabey walk alittle bit farther the next day. Its not hard. Don't be a victim. Again, no disrespect, but you'v got to take responsibility for your own life.
exactly.
obese people are not victims - they are responsible for the condition they are in - not their genes. genetic disposition to be fat only means you have to a duty to exercise and eat healthy that much more. And if you cant hold that duty, dont complain.
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RandalFlagg
Stranger
Registered: 06/15/02
Posts: 15,608
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Re: Fat Americans [Re: Asante]
#5911502 - 07/29/06 09:46 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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There are some people who are fat and it isn't their fault. Some examples would be people who are on medication or who have screwed up glands and shit like that.
But, when it comes to 95% of the people in America who are fat...it's their own damn fault.
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supercollider
superconducting


Registered: 10/13/00
Posts: 1,234
Loc: Waxahachie
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Re: Fat Americans [Re: Asante]
#5911506 - 07/29/06 09:47 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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The dietary and exercise habits of Americans are the problem here, and that's a fact. No amount of genetic predisposition can make up for it, and it's misguided to have a victim mentality. People aren't overweight in the rest of the world like they are in the U.S., so they're obviously doing something different. They walk and ride bikes a hell of a lot more, whereas Americans drive everywhere. They eat three meals a day of generally healthier food, while Americans snack throughout the day on artificial fatty and sugary crap.
-------------------- Supercollider? I just met her!
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Mushouse
Mycomancer

Registered: 06/26/06
Posts: 500
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I once read a news article where a woman was too fat to fit into a human-sized CAT scan machine, so they actually hauled her to a zoo and they used a machine designed for an elephant (or other such large animal).
If I could find that article I would post it, but you will have to take my word for it.
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RandalFlagg
Stranger
Registered: 06/15/02
Posts: 15,608
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Quote:
supercollider said: The dietary and exercise habits of Americans are the problem here, and that's a fact. No amount of genetic predisposition can make up for it, and it's misguided to have a victim mentality. People aren't overweight in the rest of the world like they are in the U.S., so they're obviously doing something different. They walk and ride bikes a hell of a lot more, whereas Americans drive everywhere. They eat three meals a day of generally healthier food, while Americans snack throughout the day on artificial fatty and sugary crap.
i.e. it's their own damn fault.
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DrunkenCowgirl
Don't Fear theReaper

Registered: 08/05/04
Posts: 177
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Wow, this thread is incredible. Dreamer is really not as simple as your making it sound. There are a lot of different factors to weight gain and weight loss. Simply saying put down the fork is neither helpful or insightful. In fact its offensive and the type of attitude that breeds eating disorder.
Stress and anxiety are also causes of weight gain. What would your simplistic answer to that one be? Quit your job? Unfortunately that isn't really an option for many people.
So many heavy men and women are stuck in a rut of eating healthy, feeling bad about it because simpletons say "put down the fork", and then comes the onset of depression and anxiety.
That isn't even the short of it, but I'm not a doctor and I can't give you every other factor involved. Can you do me a favor though? Think before you speak and it will do the rest of the world a lot of good.
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Dreamer987
The VerbalHerman Munster


Registered: 04/15/03
Posts: 5,326
Loc: Texas
Last seen: 16 years, 1 month
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Whatever dude. "Oh, i'm stressed out, so i'll eat fast food all day. Why don't i become addicted to Heroine too. Its not my fault, i'm sensitive."
I'm fat, but i'm not going to blame it on somebody else.
Personal Responsibility. Try it sometime.
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RandalFlagg
Stranger
Registered: 06/15/02
Posts: 15,608
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It's pretty simple; if you want to be at a healthy weight you need to eat healthy food and exercise. Note that this takes work and a lot of Americans don't want to put the work into it. Could you imagine how the obesity rates would go down if people cut their fast food intake and took a 30 minute walk everyday? We're a lazy nation. 
I have the exact opposite problem as most Americans; I'm underweight. In order to get any muscle on me I need to eat like a pig and lift weights constantly. The second I stop doing either of those things I become scrawny again. I am currently scrawny because I stopped my regimen of eating a lot and working out. Who's fault is it? Mine. I'm not going to blame my metabolism or society in general. It's my own damn fault.
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Asante
Mage


Registered: 02/06/02
Posts: 86,795
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Re: Fat Americans [Re: Asante]
#5911553 - 07/29/06 10:07 AM (17 years, 6 months ago) |
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Sorry for jacking this thread, and making a thread that was about making fun of obese people turn into abrasively blaming obese people.
-------------------- Omnicyclion.org higher knowledge starts here
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DrunkenCowgirl
Don't Fear theReaper

Registered: 08/05/04
Posts: 177
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("Oh, I'm stressed out, so I'll eat fast food all day. Why don't i become addicted to Heroine too. Its not my fault, I'm sensitive.")
Stress alone causes weight gain. Its a medical fact that if your stressed all the time and still eating healthy and exercising that you will not lose weight as well as if you aren't stressed.
I'm not trying to say that its anyone else's fault and not laying blame on anything else. But I think you guys are really simplifying an issue that isn't as simple as seems.
Randal- Your metabolism is one of the reasons your "scrawny" whether you acknowledge that or not it is a reason. Your body is a machine and it works the way it does for a reason. Say you were to examine your diet you would find that you don't have to eat ever thing in site to bulk up you only need to find out what certain types of foods your body is burning the fastest. Some people need more carbs, some people need more protein, more calcium, more iron etc etc.
Its all in the way your body works.
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