Anna Watson, University of Georgia cheerleader, doesn’t allow things like being the only girl in the weight room or putting on some muscle intimidate her. She welcomes the challenge. She even claims her faith in God and wears it boldly. Even when she was denied a lucrative fitness modeling contract because she didn’t want to take the legal steroid Anavar—to put on more muscle—she stood strong in her convictions. “It was definitely something I was tempted with more than one time,” she said. “[The agent] made it sound as good as he could.”

“I don’t serve a modeling agent. I serve the Lord,” Watson said. “I’m not going to compromise my morals and my beliefs just to take pictures. I believe that my body is a temple and a beautiful creation, so I don’t want to put anything into it that can harm it.”

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February is not just all about Valentine’s Day, chocolates and hearts. It’s also focuses on awareness of a butterfly-shaped hormone gland known as the thyroid. The thyroid has the difficult task of controlling your metabolism, growth, development, and body temperature. The thyroid gland is located on the throat and wraps around the windpipe. The presence of too much or too little thyroid hormone is determined by a blood test. So how will you know if you have an over or underactive thyroid and why would it happen?

There are many ways thyroid function to be affected, including the body attacking itself or cancers. Graves disease is an autoimmune disease that causes an increase in thyroid hormone. Overactive thyroid causes symptoms like more frequent bowel movements, feeling anxious, increased body temperature and sweating, loss of hair, increased heartbeat, and weight loss even with having increased appetite. It can also affect the menstrual cycle by causing lighter, shorter periods. It also possible to develop a goiter which is an enlarged thyroid gland. This condition is usually treated with medication to block the stimulation of the thyroid, removal of the thyroid, or radioactive iodine to help shutdown overactive thyroid cells. Many of these procedures end up causing patients to have an underactive thyroid that has to be treated with medication.

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The city Health Department in New York is catching some heat for their latest ad campaign linking big soda portions and diabetes. One of the ads features an obese man who had his leg amputated due to type 2 diabetes. The ad reads “Portions have grown. So has type 2 diabetes, which can lead to amputations.”

The ads have caused a stir for their blunt messages, but the obese actor in the amputation ad is upset about the blunt appearance of his right leg.

27-year-old Cleo Berry, while living in NYC several years ago, participated in a paid photo shoot with photographer Morten Smidt. The photos were then sold to a stock photo company. The stock photo was purchased by New York City’s Department of Health, who digitally altered the photo to remove Berry’s right leg below the knee and used the photo as part of their anti-diabetes campaign.

Berry was floored.”I cried at my computer screen for, like, a minute,” he said. “I said: ‘Oh my gosh, they even gave me crutches. Come on, people.’ ”

It is common to alter purchased stock photos and Berry admits he signed a waiver before the photo shoot. The health department behind the ads dismisses the actor’s reaction, and thinks the ads are a part of something bigger.

“This issue isn’t about one actor but rather the 700,000 New Yorkers who struggle with diabetes, which kills 1,700 people a year and causes amputations in another 3,000,” said John Kelly, a spokesman for the health department, in a statement. “Advertising to warn the public about health concerns saves lives, and we will continue our efforts to warn New Yorkers about diabetes.”

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Millions of people are planning on buying, giving and eating chocolate in celebration of love on Valentine’s Day. This time of year means big sales for chocolate companies. If you are interested in buying chocolate that supports fair labor standards, as well as those that do not harm the environment or your body, make sure you are well educated as to where your chocolate comes from and how it was harvested.

Of the many types and varieties of chocolate on the market, not all adhere to certifiable fair trade standards, which means there is little concern about the environment or the people who work hard to bring your sweet treat to a store near you. Those that do however will display the words Fair Trade on their labeling, making it easy for the consumer to be aware that they have kept up with the requirements necessary to be certified fair trade.

One notable chocolate manufacturing company that does not flaunt a fair trade certification, however surpassed fair trade standards and brought their harvesting and processing techniques to a remarkably high level of ideals. Kallari, the only line of world-class, certified organic dark chocolate is operated by an indigenous cooperative of organic cocoa growers who gain 100% of the profits for which they work so hard.

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I fought joining Pinterest for a while because I didn’t want to have to keep up with one more social media platform. I barely use Google+, I can go days without reading my Facebook stream, and I’ve abandoned any themed boards years ago. My cousin kept raving about it, so I eventually took a look, truly wanting to not like it. I joined Pinterest because there were so many pretty things and simply browsing the pins was soothing. I truly believe that adding more art and beauty to our lives improves mental health.

Pinterest has been mocked as the place where women go to plan imaginary weddings, dress children that don’t exist, save recipes we’ll never prepare, and decorate homes we can’t afford. It may be true for some, but there are ways that you can use Pinterest to help you meet your goals of changing your diet and exercise habits. Pinterest can be a great source for recipes, new ideas, and motivation.

You can view a few of those ideas and examples in this slideshow:

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