The Convenient Chipmunk: Test Stress

Your hands are trembling. A slight headache is threatening your way. All your studying has been wiped blank from your mind. Oh well, here's another test day.
Okay, I exaggerated a little. (Maybe a little more than a little). But admit it, tests are a pain. And you know what's worse? Not during a test, but before a test. Just before it's being handed out, you doubt yourself and all the countless hours studying goes to waste. Well, here are some tricks to help take away that bundle of test stress.
1) Bunch up your fists tightly for 10 seconds and (yours toes too, but that's optional) slowly release. This releases endorphins. Endorphins are a brain chemical that'll release stress and will help you remember when Julius Caesar died or what dehydrogenation is.
2) This method is slightly, er, difficult. It's laughing. Laughing is like a bomb of endorphins (figuratively of course). This is probably the most effective method, but what will the teacher think when you walk in the room with a joke book and laugh during the test?
3) To start off with, this method carries some risk. Carefully bunch up your shoulders  (as if you're trying to make them touch your ears) and make sure you aren't putting in any strength to this. Now let them fall suddenly. You might feel a chill up your spine or nothing at all. That shows that this trick worked...
So, I hope the next test you take, you'll try this out! (maybe not the laughing part)...-Kyung Jin

Eating Too Many Carrots Can Make You Orange-True or False?

          Recently, there have been many rumors saying that eating too many carrots can make you orange from head to toe. Are these rumors true?
         
          My first reaction to these rumors was a straight-out “Are you serious?” expression. However, as years passed and I grew older with each passing moment, I started pondering if these rumors were actually true. Therefore, I did some research on it and found out that it was indeed true. If you eat too many carrots, you will someday turn orange or yellow. You probably will not turn orange from head to toe, but some parts of your body, such as the bottom of your feet, certainly will.

         
          Carotenoids, or fat-soluble pigments, that make carrots such a nice shade of orange are called beta carotene. Beta carotene is not only found in carrots, but also in other yellow or orange vegetables, such as pumpkin. Usually, carotenoids are beneficial to health and can act as sun protection. However, too much of a certain kind of carotenoid can result in your skin turning the shade of the pigment. (This is kind of like how green food coloring can turn your eggs green.) For instance, a cartenoid known as astaxanthin (a red pigment found in lobster, salmon, trout, and shrimp) is tremendously effective at protecting skin from UV damage. Yet, if this cartenoid is ingested in great amounts daily, part of your skin can turn pinkish-red.

          As a result, here is my advice to you. Carrots, as well as other vegetables/animals that contain carotenoids, are exceedingly good for you. They can help eye fatigue, cancer, sun burns, inflammation, etc. from occurring. Nevertheless, unless you would like your skin to change into another shade of color, should you consume great amounts of a certain type of carotenoid. However, you should “snack” on about 4mg of carotenoids each day.

          As for the conclusion of the article, it is true that eating too many carrots can make you turn orange. (I’m telling you this just in case you haven’t already figured it out yet.)

                                                                   Hope you found this article interesting. Please continue to support All Chipmunks!

~Joy

( By the way, this is my first article.)

The Tropical Cyclone- A Hurricane

   They're deadly, powerful forces of nature no technology can stop. We can pray it'll never happen, hope for the best, and cross our fingers, but it cannot be prevented. It eats up and leaves solely destruction in its path. Hurricanes.
   The most recent one was just a day ago: Hurricane Irene. It ate through several eastern states and caused many airline flights to be cancelled. The rushing herd of people desperately rode on trains, subways, cars, anything- after the warning was dispatched. Sadly, so far 41 deaths had been reported. 
    To learn about damage caused to individual states, go to:
        *    http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0811/62276.html   
                                                                                                              The terrified blogger, Kyung Jin 

The Convenient Chipmunk: White Flakes (that most chipmunks hate)

   Hi! So, many of you probably have does irritating white flakes of uckiness on/in/etc. your fur/hair.
Well instead of the human product Heads & Shoulders, find a bottle of mouthwash. Yes, mouthwash... This common product mixed with water will most likely guarantee a more eco-friendly, less-chemically way to say "bye-bye". Here it is: mouthwash to tap water ratio- 1:10 (1/10). So for every teaspoon of mouthwash, add 10 teaspoons of tap water. Best wishes! -Chipmunks (Kyung Jin and Jean)

The Convenient Chipmunk: Bruises, our Nemesis

   So, has this ever happened to you?: You fall of the top of a 7 ft. tree and miraculously are unhurt, except for some bruises, or did you run into a sharp edge of a rock? Here are some cheap 100% natural remedies for you.

1. The Valuable Vegetable- That's right, the onion. A slice of yellow onion placed a fresh bruise for 15 minutes, it'll help stimulate lymphatic flow.

2. Bruise Juice- Chill. Then scavenge your fridge for some pineapple juice or pineapple. It contains bromelain, an enzyme to reduce swelling and redness.


3. Sprig Cleaning- Next time you see a purple/blue bruise, crush and chop some sprigs of parsley and apply. Within 24 hours, it'll drain out that color.

Now these remedies aren't immediate. But, they're much better than those "Bruise Away!" products, which are full of chemicals that'll ruin your skin and make it age faster. So go the natural way the convenient chipmunk is bringing you natural remedies for today! -Kyung Jin

The Convenient Chipmunk: DIY Sunscreen

So, chipmunks mainly love the sun, but the after affects are terrible: sunburn. And that's why effective, natural, sunscreens are listed below with: SPF, face/body, UVA/UVB/both, and price!

Recommendation 1:  Burt's Bee's 100% Natural Sunscreen
          Details:  SPF 30, UVA & UVB, 100% chemical-free, Non-whitening,
                        For faces, No fragrance, $15 at available stores, Reapply every 2 hours.

Recommendation 2:  California Baby No Fragrance SPF 30+ Sunscreen
          Details:  SPF 30+, No fragrance, UVA & UVB, For delicate skin,
                        Face & body,  Very water resistant, Non- chemical, No paba,
                        $19.99 at available stores, Reapply every 80 minutes when in water.

Recommendation 3:  Baby Natural Protection Mineral Block Sunblock Lotion SPF 30
         Details:  SPF 30, Natural Protection, 100% naturally sourced sunscreen ingredients,
                       UVA & UVB, gentle formula for skin, $10.99 at available stores

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GMO or Organic? The Debate

            There is much debate on the value of GMO plants. While GMO plants usually use less resources, such as water, than their organic varieties, and require fewer sprays, opponents of GMO plants say that the genetic structure of food is varied and complex and that importing foreign genetic material will have unknown effects on the human consumers.

Pro-Organic: Organic food is generally healthier.

Studies comparing organic and conventional food generally say that the organic variety is healthier. For example, two British universities studied milk from 36 farms over a three-year period. After this period of constant researching, they discovered that organic milk has 68% more omega 3 fatty acids than conventional milk. On some level, humans have always known that. Cows eating green grass and clover will produce higher-quality milk than cows eating bakery waste and Doritos. The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences conducted a study in 2002 comparing children who ate organic food to children who ate conventional food. The children who ate organic food had "significantly lower" levels of organophosphorous pesticides. Organophosphorus pesticides cause thousands of deaths in the developing world. However, the USDA and the FDA say that no conclusive evidence shows that organic food is healthier.

Pro-GMO: GMO plants are generally more disease-resistant and need fewer resources.
            While proponents of GMO plants say that GMO crops need fewer pesticides, that is not true. GMO crops grow resistant to pesticides over time and require more pesticides. However, GMO crops are hardier because they can withstand pesticides that would normally kill non-GMO plants.

            Although GMO plants require more pesticides, they are stronger than non-GMO crops, as shown above. Some GMO varieties of wheat and barley are resistant to blight. GMO crops are also superior because they can resist drought or soil with high salt content. One particularly profound example of how GMO crops are superior in one way is with India’s food crisis. Older wheat varieties were not capable of feeding enough of India’s large population. GMO varieties helped increase India’s wheat production by more than 70,000,000 measurement tons from 1960 to 2010.

Non-GMO, non-organic plants

These crops are like a transition plant from fully organic to GMO. However, there are few benefits. These crops may have more nutrients than GMO plants, but they are often sprayed heavily.

Conclusion

This article only describes a few issues concerning this debate. Other articles will soon follow, detailing some other conflicts surrounding GMO plants.