Three Americans head to China to lose weight
Three American men have taken the unusual step of moving to China in an extreme attempt to shed huge amounts of weight at a fat reduction clinic — and have become surprise local celebrities.
Alonzo Bland, 33, and brothers Walt and David Anderson, 56 and 50, have lived in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin since the middle of this year as part of an effort to break away from their unhealthy lifestyles back home.
Together, they have lost a combined 192 kilogrammes (427 pounds) and are aiming to shed over 100 more.
“The reason why I think it works here is that China is away from everything, all the stuff that I’m familiar with,” said Alonzo, who has lost 103 kilogrammes from the 291 kilos he weighed when he first arrived in Tianjin.
He decided to come after winning a contest organised by China Connection, a US firm promoting traditional Chinese medicine, and was being treated free of charge for as long as it took to lose his target weight — like Walt and David.
Alonzo, who had a tracheotomy in 2000 because the fat in his face was pressing down on his windpipe, left a fiancee and two children behind in Wisconsin.
For David, an unmarried dishwasher in a casino in Iowa who sold his car and ditched his job to come to China, the move was a life-saver.
“Before I came over, it got to the point that I couldn’t walk 20 feet without gasping for breath,” said David, who is down to 104 kilogrammes after losing 41 kilos.
“I don’t think I would have made my 51st birthday.”
Every morning, the three lie down in their spartan bedrooms at the Aimin Fat Reduction Hospital for acupuncture, which doctors say increases the metabolism rate and reduces appetite.
“When I sent an email to my friends from here, I think I scared them when I told them how deep those needles go,” said Walt, who has shed 48 kilogrammes off his original 179 kilogrammes.
But the rest of the weight-loss treatment is similar to the West — exercise twice a day and good nutrition, albeit Chinese-style with rice, fried vegetables, tofu, meat and soup the staples of their diet.
Read Full Story from AFP
|
|
|
|
|
 |
AmeriCares Opens Second Field Hospital in China
August 14, 2008 by Stil7 · Leave a Comment
Children in Sichuan Province after the earthquake. americares staff photo
Continuing its efforts to provide critically needed medical relief for earthquake survivors, AmeriCares has opened a second field hospital in the Sichuan Province. The second field hospital is located in Wenchuan County, which was the epicenter of the 7.9-magnitude earthquake that killed more than 69,000 people and left approximately 5 million homeless. The new hospital is located on the site of the former Xuankou Township Hospital, which received severe structural damage during the quake. Currently, medical personnel at the hospital are seeing anywhere between 60-70 outpatients a day.
“While international attention turns to the Olympic Games in Beijing, AmeriCares staff and partners on the ground remain fully committed to supporting the recovery efforts and ongoing health care needs in the most affected regions throughout Sichuan province,” said Curt Welling, president and CEO of AmeriCares.
The new hospital will provide both inpatient and outpatient services and include operating and emergency rooms as well as maternity and immunization facilities. The Xuankou field hospital follows the construction of a similar field hospital in Qingchuan, an area where 250,000 residents lost their only medical clinic after the initial earthquake and subsequent aftershocks. The field hospital in Qingchuan is fully operational, and medical personnel there are treating about 130 outpatients daily. AmeriCares also recently purchased an ambulance for the Qingchuan facility to aid in the ongoing treatment of families in the devastated area.
AmeriCares was one of the first private relief organizations to deliver aid to Chengdu, the capital of the hard-hit Sichuan Province, delivering an initial supply of medicines on May 22 and providing a shipment of their critically needed medical supplies, including anesthetics and nutritionals for diabetics to the Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital in Chengdu.
To learn more about AmeriCares and to find out how to support the relief effort in China, visit americares.org.
Source: CSR Wire
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cisco to Provide $45M for China Earthquake Relief
July 2, 2008 by markhopper · Leave a Comment
Contribution Focused on Helping to Rebuild Education and Healthcare Through 21st Century Technology Infrastructure and Public-Private Partnerships
Read more
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
One Thousand Tents
June 29, 2008 by tom5436 · Leave a Comment
One Thousand Tents is an effort to provide shelter to some of the 5 million people left homeless in the aftermath of the May 12th earthquake in China.
To put this tragedy in prespective, five million people is the equivalent to 7 times the population of San Francisco suddenly becoming homeless.
China has used its supply of two million tents and is in urgent need of additional tents. Millions of earthquake survivors are currently living in unsheltered camps.
The cost of one tent is $135. You can help by making an online donation of any amount. We also welcome and appreciate entrepreneurial efforts to support this important relief work. Family and neighborhood projects, co-worker support and corporate donations are powerful ways to come together in a time of need. Thank you!
Donate using your credit card at our secure site where you will make an online contribution (Online Giving) for China Earthquake Relief. To donate you will need to set up an account, if you don\’t already have one. Setting up an account is easy, just your name and e-mail address is needed. Donate here
Corporate Donation Note:
For corporations who wish to contribute to a non-profit charitable organization rather than a religious organization, contributions can be made to :
POP\’s Foundation* (Please designate for 1,000 TENTS.)
3536 Arden Road,
Hayward, CA 94545
Tel: 510-887-1899
*POPF is a 501(c) non-profit charitable organization. (Tax ID: 94-3218648). As all workers are volunteers, 100% of your donation goes to the relief.
For credit card donations via POPS, please call: 1 (510) 887-1899 or 1(800) PEACE2U during regular office hours (PST.) and refer to the 1,000 Tents Campaign
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
