Sitting has its perks, of course, but there are downsides to too much sitting. Studies have found that sitting more than several hours a day can make us more prone to certain health risks. Enter the standing desks and even those absurd treadmill desks that have garnered quite a bit of revelry. But what about no desk?
That’s right, folks, the future is apparently going to be deskless.
Rietveld Architecture-Art-Affordances (RAAAF) and Barbara Visser are proposing a seatless future in a video and model they’ve built in Amsterdam called “The End of Sitting,” which they say is “an installation at the crossroads of visual art, architecture, philosophy and empirical science.”
From the RAAAF website: “In our society almost the entirety of our surroundings have been designed for sitting, while evidence from medical research suggests that too much sitting has adverse health effects,” the group notes, that it has “developed a concept wherein the chair and desk are no longer unquestionable starting points. Instead, the installation’s various affordances solicit visitors to explore different standing positions in an experimental work landscape. The End of Sitting marks the beginning of an experimental trial phase, exploring the possibilities of radical change for the working environment.”
It looks quite Sci-fi; modular panel like pieces that you lean, stand at and yes, do a little sitting on as well. But there are no carpeted cubby cubes or bulky uncomfortable office chairs that never seem to feel right.
What do we need desks for anyway? It’s not like most office workers are writing or stapling their days away, right? A laptop and a nice place to lean might not be a bad idea. Plus, you have the freedom to move around the modules as your body sees fit, which feels not only more ergonomic but better for your mental space too. Sometimes just being “stuck” at a desk can really feel claustrophobic and bulky, which as everyone knows, is not how the future is going to look. Seems like we’re finally catching up to Sci-fi and the minimalist future long predicted. Now, all we need are the shiny metallic jumpsuits and robot maids.
The USDA has announced plans to provide more than $5 million in funding to the Farm to School Program in order to connect schools with local farmers.
The funding will go to support more than 4,800 schools and 2.8 million children in 42 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands. More than half of the students impacted by this program live in rural areas.
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A recent round of investigations conducted by the FDA found several shocking safety violations of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act in animal products sold for human consumption.
In Ohio, a veal calf was found to contain sulfamethoxazole, “which has no acceptable level in calves sold for veal,” reports Food Safety News. Another Ohio seller was sent a warning letter over selling misbranded and potentially dangerous cheeses. A violation occurred In Iowa where a cattle rancher reportedly sold a steer with excessive levels of another regulated drug called florfenicol. In Connecticut, serious violations of seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulations were found to pose human health risks. And there have been numerous warnings sent to dairy producers for a number of safety violations including the discovery of illegal drug residue in milk products.
Now, the Center for Science in the Public Interest has filed a Freedom of Information Act request for FDA data on the illegal drug residues found in the U.S. milk supply, with hopes of getting some answers and resolutions.
“[C]onsumers have a right to know what’s in their milk, and if there are dangerous drugs in it, they need to know what the FDA is doing about that,” CSPI senior food safety attorney David Plunkett said in a statement. “Why are those dairies that either can’t or won’t follow the rules allowed to continue to market milk?”
These findings make the case for buying products with the certified organic seal on all the more important for your health, and especially if you’re feeding these food products to children. Not to mention the health of the animals throughout the production cycle.
Not only are certified organic products free from illegal and legal drugs (like antibiotics), but they’re also guaranteed to be free from genetically modified organisms, which are common in conventional animal feed. Most certified organic farms are considerably smaller than conventional farms and are invested in the health and happiness of the animals as well.
Transparency in our food system should start with the manufacturer, but that’s not always the case. Organic foods are now widely available across the country, and in order for them to continue to be available, consumers must vote with their dollars and let manufacturers know what they value and why spending more on clean food is a worthwhile investment.
Image: mdalmud
In America, we live in a world of abundance. Even for those of us who have much less than others, we still have so much to be grateful for—and so much that we also often take for granted. The best example of this scenario is happening later this week: Black Friday, the day when we toss aside what we’re thankful for so we can rudely elbow past our fellow humans for the best holiday deals.
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to buy gifts for your friends and family to show them how much you care. Giving is an important part of being human, and bargain prices can help us stay on budget. But our consumptive habits have become so taxing on our planet, our resources and our human decency, that here at The Organic Whey, we are choosing not to participate this year. You will not see a blow-out sale on our whey or new greens products.
Read MoreHere at The Organic Whey, we’ve been really busy! As you may have noticed, we’ve been hard at work on a new product launch, a name change and a website redesign.
As Americans who are trying hard to stay healthy and enjoy the benefits of the latest in scientific findings, but at the same time stay away from fad foods, we struggle with what supplements or health food products we should be regularly consuming. So, for our own products we have decided to name them so that everyone knows what we think are “mustHaves” and which products are “nicetoHaves”.
Read MoreThe Organic Whey is giving away a free 3-month supply of pure organic goodness. We love our Facebook fans we want to thank them by giving three lucky winners a free 12-ounce pouch of The Organic Whey protein powder!
