A new gym in Springfield, Ohio may be on the cutting edge of what women are needing. A gym of their own.

Premier Fitness opened on December 26, 2011 in a former gym’s location. The gym re-branded, went under new ownership, all previous members kept their membership and most things stayed the same. However one major change has been making news. The club contains a new women-only section.

“We really target ladies who wouldn’t go to a fitness environment due to the stigma of what it means to be fit,” said new owner, Wade Gates. “Over the years a lot has been done to make the environment friendly to women who would be intimidated.”

The women’s room is a fitness center within a fitness center. The room has equipment designed for smaller frames and different types of weights, but “The main thing is it’s just an area (women) can go where they aren’t sweating next to guys,” Gates said.

Some may think Wade’s comments are unfounded or demeaning to women, but a lot of women really do care about working out next to men. “It’s really nice to be separate from the men’s, it’s not so embarrassing,” said Christina Butts, who has been a member for a month.

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California has been the trend setting state for decades. Hollywood, California alone is responsible for most of the trends set around the world. Aside from the glitz and glam influences, California may be the top health trendsetter, too.

California was first to do many things. They were first to require smog checks, pass anti-tobacco laws, even to require bike helmets. They were pioneers in 1998 when they banned smoking in workplaces, bars and restaurants. The state passes many laws on a yearly basis, and many are positive for public health.

“There have been progressive legislation in tobacco, environment and obesity prevention,” said Mark Horton, a lecturer at the University of California Berkeley School of Public Health. “In some respect, the rest of the country looks to California as a laboratory for moving forward with those various types of initiatives.”

While some are excited about the 151,002 health and safety laws the state currently has, others feel the government is barging into their lives. “It never ends,” said Laer Pearce, who works in public affairs in Orange County. “Every year, several hundred bills come through and dozens of them tell us how to live our lives.”

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Stacey Irvine takes fast food addiction to a whole new level. The British teenager has lived on a diet of practically nothing but chicken nuggets since the age of two.

“McDonald’s chicken nuggets are my favorite,” she said. “I share 20 with my boyfriend with chips. But I also like KFC and supermarket brands. My main meal is always chicken nuggets every day,” she said.

Irvine, who has claimed to have never eaten a fruit or vegetable, was diagnosed by doctors to have anemia, an iron deficiency, and swollen veins in her tongue. The 17-year old was rushed to the hospital after she collapsed and began struggling to breathe. Irvine received nutrient injections and was put on a course of vitamins before being released home.

Even after doctors urged her to change her diet, she says she will continue to eat her favorite food. “I first tasted chicken nuggets when my mum took me to McDonald’s when I was two. I loved them so much they were all I would eat. I just couldn’t face even trying other foods. Mom gave up giving me anything else years ago,” she added.

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Every parent knows that come Saturday morning, their kids will be asking for the hottest new toy, the fun new cereal, and to go to the drive thru for the kid’s meal that comes with the must-have collectible action figure. And parents know this because Saturday morning cartoons are littered with company advertisements aimed at their target audience, their captive audience: children.

Research points in many directions when it comes to the effectiveness of these ad strategies, especially when it comes to the sway the fast food and junk food companies have over our purchases. Many don’t believe that unhealthy food should be promoted to children. Others don’t think it has any effect.

Recently a Canadian study was revisited to see what kind of effect advertising has on our purchases.

There was a complete ban on junk food advertising in the Canadian province of Quebec from 1984 to 1992. Evidence found that the ban reduced fast food expenses by 13 percent per week. That equaled up to 11 million to 22 million fewer fast food meals eaten per year. All that further added up to 2.2 billion to 4.4 billion fewer calories consumed by children. Those are significant numbers. Those from the University of Illinois who researched this study believe that if the U.S. as a whole banned such advertising, the results would be similar.

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What do a gym and the Holocaust have in common? According to at the Circuit Factory, a gym in Dubai, they are both a great place to burn calories.

Whoa, wait a second! That’s incredibly insensitive and not funny. However, that did not stop the company’s marketing team from posting pictures of Auschwitz, a famous Nazi death camp in Poland, with the words “Kiss your calories goodbye” on their Facebook page. Around 3,000,000 people died at Auschwitz during World War II.

Obviously, many people were offended and upset when these images appeared on Facebook on Tuesday morning. One user said he was “shocked [at] the level of ignorance.” The company quickly took the images down and then made a statement on Twitter: “Apologies for the insane poster campaign that was put up this morning… The creative guy has been told where to go.”

It seems that the Circuit Factory really does regret the campaign. It appears that they have fired the creative guy who posted the pictures and have released the following statement from Phil Parkinson, who runs the company.

“I am mortified and extremely sorry and it was wrong,” Parkinson said. “I should not have put that campaign up. I am very sorry about that.”

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