October 1, 2014

Secret Life of Yawns

9 out of 10 Beagles prefer French roast

I have to be honest with you my friends, after many hours of extensive research (2 whole hours) I just can’t wrap my head around this topic. I’ve flipped through page after page of neurophysiology, human anatomy & physiology, and re-runs of Bill Nye the Science Guy. All the while this topic mocks me from across the room, laughing and pointing at me while I stand vulnerable with my intellectual fly open. Yes my friends, the question of why we yawn is quite the physiological puzzler. So allow me to share what I’ve learned so far.

PANDICULATION! (get your minds out of the gutter…I was here first)

Pandiculation refers to the act of yawning and stretching at the same time. It’s that moment we’ve all witnessed when a dog first wakes from his nap. They’ll stretch out onto their paws in that awkward straddle that always reminds me of yoga on stilts. They then open their jaws impossibly wide and yawn. We may not be as cute as our fury friends when we do this but all the tell tale signs are there. Also, have you ever noticed how unsatisfying a yawn without stretching is? In fact, it is suggested that this is one of the main advantages of this activity. What other involuntary responses to stress, fatigue, and boredom do you know of that simultaneously stretch your jaw, tongue, throat, and eardrums aside from dry heaving?

So what does yawning do for us?

Here’s where the theories rear their ugly, wishy-washy heads. As you know, it has always been my mission to give you the facts – raw, unfiltered, with no artificial fillers or sweeteners, but surprisingly, there are more theories on this subject than Rihanna has hairstyles. So here are my top 3 favorite explanations:

Theory #1 – Increased CO2

This charming little theory has been circulating like an urban legend for eons. It suggests that yawning is triggered by a shift in the concentration of CO2 in the blood. Remember that breathing is a kind of constant exchange of oxygen for CO2 and it is just as vital to rid the body of the CO2 generated during the daily metabolism of our cells as it is to take in oxygen. So the idea that the sudden and deep inhalation of air taken in during a yawn is the body’s way of self-regulating for these shifts makes perfect sense to me.

Upon experimental investigation with test subjects however, increasing oxygen and reducing CO2 seemed to have no measurable effect on the incidences of yawning. Sorry CO2, you can take away our polar caps but not our right to yawn.

Theory #2 – Brain Temperature

This theory suggests that yawning is a means of cooling off the brain. As a fan of Sci-fi I dig this explanation because I like to imagine the brain overheating like a high-tech super computer developed in a secret government lab. So in order to keep our test tube, android bodies from nuclear meltdown we have to yawn occasionally.

So it’s not more oxygen that our yawns are bringing in but cooler air to lower our body temperature. When you think about it, the hypothalamus of the brain regulates body temperature anyway. Yawning could just be a sign that our internal thermostat is kicking in. Since body temperature fluctuates with our sleep cycles, it is believed that cooling off the brain heightens alertness and mental efficiency. In fact Alertness ties in beautifully with our third and final explanation….

Theory #3 – Alertness

This is my favorite (my blog defies science and thus picks favorites). This theory argues that yawning is an activity evolved to promote not only alertness but a kind of group vigilance.

fun fact – I yawned approximately 17 times in the process of editing this article.

From the moment we wake our inner clock is ticking, counting down the hours until sleep. As the light changes throughout the day, adenosine (neuron inhibiting, smooth talker that gets your central nervous system into bed) accumulates in our cells like sand at the bottom of an hour glass. Your awareness to stimuli, reaction time, and perception of subtle changes in the environment becomes muffled and muddy. Staying vigilant is crucial in a prehistoric wilderness of dire wolves and sabertoothes that think of homo sapiens as walking, P.F. Chang appetizers (I like the spring rolls).

So there you are, standing guard by the cave with your hairy arms and caveman abs. Having just chowed down on grilled mastodon your eyes start to droop. Your respiration shallows and your body temperature fluctuates, but just then, you hear bushes rattle in the distance. The sudden sound makes your shoulders jump (known as a hypnic jerk), jolting you back into consciousness. You smell the distinct musk of a predator dangerously close by. Reaching for your flint tipped spear you start to…yawn? The other members of your tribe also reach for their weapons. Women gather up the little ones and they too begin to yawn (a phenomenon of contagious yawning observed primarily among relatives and close friends rather than strangers). The yawning stretches the jaw, tongue, eardrums, and throat. Arterial blood flow is increased, allowing the brain to cool, prompting arousal just in time to perceive the threat of wolves approaching…or so the theory goes.

Stay curious, stay classy, and never stop learning my friends 🙂

July 5, 2014

Me Talk Pretty – Syndromes

Hello party people! I know it’s been many moons since I’ve posted an article but hey, let’s not dwell on the past. It’s bad for your complexion. In this episode of Me Talk Pretty I would like to introduce a topic that has wandered the deserts of obscurity for eons in need of clarity, and today we’re gonna make it rain. For many of us, the definition of a syndrome is as elusive as the lyrics to Tiny Dancer (hold me closer Tony Danza..I’m cold). Let’s clear a few things up shall we.

Syndrome versus Disease…FIGHT!

The classifications for diseases and syndromes are so closely related that they could be wearing the same underwear (like 100% cotton with no room to breath). There is a somewhat reliable consensus that a disease is classified as – having recognizable signs and symptoms which have a consistent anatomical or physiological effect on the body and are linked to a KNOWN CAUSE, a.ka etiologic agent. For example, Bacterial Meningitis is the inflammation of the protective layer of the brain in response to some nasty ole bacterial infection in the blood stream.

A) This disease has a known cause – playa hating bacterial infection by the bacteria Neisseria meningitidis (or any number of known pathogens)

B) This disease has a recognizable physiological effect on an organ/organ system – inflammatory response within the meninges of the brain and infiltration of cerebrospinal fluid leading to systemic central nervous system infection.

C) This disease has consistent, recognizable pattern of signs and symptoms – mind numbing headaches, neck stiffness, fever, altered mental state.

Here’s where it gets tricky…

I would like to tell you that a syndrome is distinguishable from a disease by – having recognizable signs and symptoms which have a consistent anatomical or physiological effect on the body but have NO KNOWN CAUSE. However, we know that Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is linked to an infection with HIV (Human immunodeficiency virus) which attacks our CD4 T-cells. AIDS is classified as a syndrome because the condition has such a broad spectrum of symptoms and complications resulting from the breakdown of the immune system that it can not be classified as a single disease process. On the other hand, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (the chronic pain and impaired functionality of the hand and wrist associated with the constriction of the medial nerve of the wrist) has a consistent pattern of symptoms and physiological effects BUT the causes of carpal tunnel are highly debatable.

So I would like to be so bold as to say that as a general rule of thumb – what makes a syndrome a syndrome is in the complicated nature of identifying a single, consistent cause for a pattern of signs and symptoms that typically appear together.

I know I know…this one is a little messy. So let’s think of it abstractly.

One afternoon I walk outside and notice that everyone is wearing bright green t-shirts, and walking in groups along the sidewalks with four leaf clovers painted on their faces, carrying mugs of bubbly green liquid. As I walk past restaurants I see lunch specials for corned beef and cabbage. Based on these signs and symptoms I immediately check the calendar (March 17th) and quickly diagnose the phenomenon as St. Patrick’s day. It has been well established that these patterns of behavior only occur together on this particular day. So based on what I’ve told you, would you classify this holiday as a disease or a syndrome?

How about this one – One afternoon I walk outside and there’s a parking ticket on my windshield. Later that day I crack the screen to my smart phone and can no longer make calls which causes me to miss a crucial text message about a party that night. Based on these signs and symptoms I immediately look at the calendar (Friday 13th) and I quickly diagnose the phenomenon as Bad luck. The association of these patterns of behavior are both poorly understood and highly debatable. If bad luck were an illness would you classify it as a disease or a syndrome? (yeah I know that’s a lousy example but humor me)

Stay curious, stay classy, and never stop learning my friends 🙂

June 2, 2014

Malaria II – Full Circle

Hello party people! So we’re back to finish up our chat about malaria. Last week I took you behind the scenes with the curious parasite (Plasmodium falciparum) that causes malaria, and its obnoxious insect carrier, with the face for radio, the Anopheles mosquito. Today I want to focus on the disease itself. Sure, having a parasite that rapidly divides in the liver and spreads through the blood stream clearly doesn’t sound as fun as dinner and a movie but how exactly does our body respond to these microscopic freeloaders?

Fun fact – Mosquitos do not depend on blood as their primary food
source. Most of the time they eat like vegan, yoga instructors,
feeding on sap and flower nectar for carbohydrate fuel to power their
airborne lifestyle. Blood becomes a necessary source of protein for
developing eggs. So it is actually the female Anopheles that goes buzz
in the night.

Act I – Incubation stage

I don’t know about you, but if I just moved into a new apartment I need a few days to get settled in, unpack some boxes, and tape my Marley posters to the wall before I throw a party. Plasmodium falciparum is no different. At this point the Plasmodium is still hanging out in the liver cells. It can take up to 30 days after the
initial infection before the first symptoms appear, and those range in severity.

Act II – Blood stage

a closer look at the hemoglobin protein. P. falciparum converts the heme subunit to hemozoin.

The chaos ensues once the Plasmodium disperses from the liver and begins circulating in the blood stream. It’s the hemoglobin protein in our blood that they’re after. I don’t want to wander too deep into biochemistry, but if you recall from my earlier article on blood, each hemoglobin protein contains a vital compartment called a heme group. This contains a tiny molecule of iron at its core. This is what binds

the oxygen in our blood. Heme is also toxic when it is released from the hemoglobin. To get around this toxicity the Plasmodium can store heme molecules in their single-celled body in an insoluble, crystallized form called hemozoin. Inevitably the red cells lyse,
releasing the plasmodium along with all the waste products leftover from their hemoglobin feeding frenzy, to include hemozoin. This becomes bad news for us.

When it comes to our immune system our blood stream is a small town
and our white cells hate strangers with a passion. Eventually,
wandering T-cells with the right receptors will encounter Plasmodium
merozoites in the bloodstream (by detecting dsDNA on their membrane
surface) which triggers the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. However the hemozoin that is released when the red cell ruptures seems to trigger an immune response on its own.

Unfortunately, our immune response is not always strong enough to
completely clear the infection. This is partly due to the many changes
the plasmodium goes through in its life cycle that allows it to dodge
the immune response. It goes through 7 stages, altering its
biochemistry a little each time.

One of the classic presentations of this disease is intermittent
fevers. Typically when your fever stops you start to feel better, but
with a malarial infection fevers often occur in waves every 48-72
hours. This is the result of the rupturing of blood cells as the
parasites continue to multiply and invade new cells.

Signs and Symptoms

That’s right, I know what you really really want…

Think back to the last time you or someone you’re close to had the
flu. When you get hit with the flu you typically look awful, drunk, and exhausted like you haven’t slept since the Spice Girls were last on tour. During classic cases of P. falciparum infections, patients will present with “flu-like” symptoms of high, persistent fever, headaches, chills, sweats, anemia, and vomiting. Remember that during the blood stage of the infection blood cells are being destroyed. So the patient is weak and essentially poorly oxygenated. It is basically a parasite-linked anemia.

Malaria can become deadly if left untreated when infected cells begin to clock capillaries of the brain (cerebral malaria). This can ultimately lead to brain damage, coma, or death.

Testing Methods

We can identify malaria directly from a peripheral blood smear where a
giemsa stain is added to a drop of infected blood on a glass slide and
examined under the microscope. This kind of testing is wonderfully
direct. The problem with poorly developed countries is that proper
testing facilities, microscopic equipment, and trained professionals
who know what to look for are in short supply. So there are RDT’s
(rapid diagnostic tests) available that can identify specific malarial
antigens in patient blood samples. Much like a Strep or flu test, the
patient’s sample is combined with a reagent in a tube or cassette
where a qualitative reaction (positive or negative) can be observed.
However, depending on the concentration of Plasmodium in the blood a
patient may have a false negative. So there is still a need for
confirmatory testing, especially in areas of the world (I’m looking at
you Africa) where drug resistant cases are high.

Treatment

Good Ole Chloroquine…

So we know the plasmodium needs to break down the hemoglobin in order to use those lip-smacking amino-acids while not poisoning themselves with the heme that gets released. So they form hemozoin crystals of the heme to disarm its toxicity.
Welcome to the wonderfully clever world of chloroquine. This drug diffuses into the Plasmodium, halting their ability to form hemozoin crystals. This allows the heme to build up in their nasty little bodies, shutting down their metabolism. Sadly, chloroquine resistant malaria is common place in malarial hot zones. In these cases patients require drug combinations like quinine sulfate and tetracycline.

You also have to manage the mosquito side of the disease. Spraying for mosquitos to control the population has been effective in many urban settings. We also have to understand the behavior of the mosquito. Anopheles prefers to feed at night until the wee hours of the morning. So distributing sleeping nets in malarial hot zones can literally save lives.

The CDC has mapped out malarial zones around the globe. So travelers are encouraged to seek malarial prophylaxis to prevent infections.

Here’s the bad news you already know..

– Children are the most at risk from malaria. In fact it kills more children globally than anything else.

– Diseases thrive in areas where the population is dense and the
availability of adequate healthcare is scarce. This creates a scenario
where the mosquitos are more likely to bite infected individuals. An
infected population left untreated inevitably leads to a more
resistant disease.

Luckily we don’t live in a vacuum and we can contribute. There are a number of organizations out there committed to finding solutions for this global problem. Here’s one organization I happen to like (no, I’m not affiliated with them)

http://www.malarianomore.org/pages/the-challenge

Hopefully I cleared a few things up about this topic. If you have questions please leave me a comment.

As always, stay curious, stay classy, and never stop learning my friends 🙂

May 12, 2014

Malaria – The Viscious Cycle

definitely not a mosquito

Anopheles would make a beautiful name for a daughter wouldn’t it? I mean if my friends set me up on a blind date and they told me that her name was Anopheles I would envision this mind-numbingly gorgeous, Greek goddess of a woman. However, 5 seconds into a google search you would very quickly realize that the name Anopheles has another meaning entirely, a dark, strangely complex story that has shaped human civilization over the eons. (I get so dramatic after I’ve watched “Game of Thrones.”)

This is the story of humans, mosquitoes, and a curiously well adapted parasite responsible for causing a disease known far and wide as “malaria.”
I’ve said it before; we are not alone, and I don’t just mean in the universe. Hell, we aren’t even alone sitting in the bathroom with a Vanity Fair magazine. There are microbes on the sink faucet, and in between the fibers in the carpet. There are viral particles, and fungal spores floating in the air, and no matter how thoroughly you wash your hands with cucumber melon scented soap the bacteria in your gut and the staph bacteria in your mouth could not be happier. Yes my friends, each of us is our own zip code.

So once upon a time our ancient ancestors were dropping like flies from a mysterious disease with no name…well, it had names like “curse from the Gods” and “bad air,” as in Mala = bad + aria = air, but none of those were terribly scientific. Of course, we eventually caught on to the fact that it was mosquitoes that were spreading the disease to humans. Mosquitoes don’t just feed on humans but anything with blood coursing through its veins, also known as “everything.” This makes them the perfect vectors for blood borne diseases. We recognize Anopheles as the genus of mosquitoes that commonly infects humans with malaria, but what exactly is the mosquito carrying?
One of the most ancient and devastating infectious agents to plague humankind is not a bacteria or a virus but a protozoa called Plasmodium falciparum. That’s right a protozoan, one of those curious creatures you read about in biology class and never mentioned again. The chapter on protozoa is like a TV show that only lasted for one season, but they’ve always been here, lurking in the shadows.

Plasmodium gametocyte shown here dead center. At this stage it can be taken up by a mosquito to begin the cycle again.

Plasmodium falciparum (the deadliest form of malaria) is a single, eukaryotic cell that’s life cycle is completely dependent on two hosts. The life cycle of the Plasmodium is pretty freaky stuff. It reads like the plot of a B-rated, 80’s Sci-fi movie starring Matthew Broderick. Its success as a species is completely dependent on the fact that mosquitoes feed on human blood. At one stage male and female gametes of the plasmodium develop in the gut of a mosquito where they have a little, kinky get together to produce fertilized versions of plasmodium. These will form cysts along the walls of the gut like time bombs that eventually rupture to release a demon horde of sporozoites inside the mosquito. These juveniles move into the salivary glands where they can be passed easily into the bloodstream of an unsuspecting human the next time the mosquito feeds.

Once the Plasmodium sporozoites reach the human blood stream they make a mad dash to the liver. They develop in the hepatocytes, dividing until their massive numbers rupture the liver cells, releasing them back into the blood stream where they now invade red cells. Some of these will differentiate yet again into male and female gametocytes. Yes, this is one of those déjà vu moments. If another mosquito drinks the blood of this infected human the cycle will begin again.

You can literally drive yourself mad thinking about where the original Plasmodium came from. It’s a tragically elegant case of chicken and egg. Sure, the cycle starts with the gametocytes in the gut of the mosquito but the gametocytes can ONLY be produced in the human host cells. Where and how did this all begin?

Stay tuned for a part 2 where we will describe how Malaria affects the human body and how we combat it.

As always stay curious, stay classy, and never stop learning my friends 🙂

map depicting the tropical regions with the highest prevalence of malaria.

April 4, 2014

Me Talk Pretty – Pyrexia

Maybe you should lie down…

That’s right, it’s time for another super sexy physiology term. Pyrexia (known on the streets as a fever) is one of the most well known signs that “something ain’t right.” Here’s an obnoxiously obvious statement to start your day; the human body is all about balance. For example, our body is only really happy if it’s core temperature is maintained within roughly 36.5-37.5 C or 97.7-99.5 F. That’s a pretty tight range for a lot of metabolic processes to take place. You’ll find more leg room flying coach. We have a temperature set point that our body is practically calibrated to. When we are experiencing hypothermia or hyperthermia the temperature of the environment we are in has affected our core temperature and pushed us beyond our cozy little set point. HOWEVER, a fever occurs when something triggers the body to temporarily raise it’s set point. That “something” is typically an infection (bacterial, viral, etc.). When this happens our immune system is making a declaration of war on the offending pathogen, turning up the heat.

Fevers happen when a pyrogen (thing that triggers a fever) causes the release of potent chemical messengers (produced by our cells) called prostaglandins that work on our hypothalamus. If you recall, our hypothalamus is our brain’s team captain of homeostasis with such popular hits as hunger, thirst, hormonal control, and temperature regulation. We love the guy but probably wouldn’t invite him to hang out very often because he would want to control EVERY little thing.
On the one hand, a fever creates a less cozy temperature range for the pathogen to thrive and reproduce. It has also been shown that the activity of immune cells like neutrophils (your marines on the ground) and T-cells (CIA operatives providing intelligence on the enemy) is greatly enhanced. This is basically the fight they’ve been training for their entire, short little lives. On the other hand, raising the body’s set point takes a lot of energy. When our temperature rises the small vessels at the surface of our skin constrict to conserve heat for the sake of our core. We start to shiver, which generates heat by our muscles while demanding more energy from our already weakened body. As we begin to adjust to our new set point we get warm and sweat to cool back down, losing water and salts. It’s no suprise that you feel so wiped out after you’ve recovered from a fever. So is a fever worth all that trouble or is it simply an evolutionary relic, a souvenir of our adaptive immunity’s epic saga of trial and error? It’s interesting that such a metabolically demanding process that can often spiral out of control (reaching temps of 105 F in cases of severe infection or autoimmune response) would stay with us. Despite it’s cost or contribution to our body’s war on bio-terror, we are not the only chosen ones on this planet to get the shakes and the sweats. Many other vertebrates and invertebrates from Rottweilers to Iguanas have been shown to exhibit fever-like responses to infection. Oh yeah, pyrexia gets around and it looks like she’s here to stay.

Stay curious, stay classy, and never stop learning my friends.

March 29, 2014

Mosquito Profiling?

Observe, the enemy!

So I feel a little awkward asking you this but…do you often have this feeling you just can’t shake that someone, somewhere is out to get you? Does it seem like trouble follows you wherever you go? I know your friends and family think you’re paranoid (I’ve heard them talking) but listen, I believe you. There is an ancient evil lurking in the shadows that is out to get all of us and it is a fraction of a centimeter in size. That’s right, I am talking about mosquitoes, the phantom buzz in your ear that wakes you on summer nights, those bite-sized bio-terrorists that have spread disease over the millennia. I know what you’re saying, “what does this have to do with physiology? Have you been drinking?” No, but thank you for asking. The truth is some of us DO get singled out by these tiny demons more than others. What is it about us that draws them to us like…little old ladies to a yard sale…no wait, like a wrestling team to half-priced burger night? Let’s talk some physiology!

Know the Enemy

Once upon a time called 170 million years ago a family of tiny flies (Culicidae) made a bold, annoying, adaptive leap in their evolution. It discovered an inexhaustible, readily accessible food source, human blood, and they’ve been tailgating our cookouts for as long as we’ve been drawing doodles on cave walls. That’s right, they are flies, meaning that they have an additional set of modified wings along their metathorax (oh, you care). Of course, there are more species of mosquito than YouTube Harlem shake videos but one characteristic they all seem to share is that the females are the blood drinkers. They have hungry mouths to feed after all, hundreds of tiny eggs that they can lay on the surface of still, stagnant water. Their versatility is our problem. Mosquito larva are aquatic and don’t require large ponds to spawn. In fact, their breeding sites can range from ponds to plastic kiddie pools, to a neglected paint bucket left out in the rain. The point is mosquitos are opportunists who will go after the easiest meal they can get and let’s face it..we’re pretty easy.

But why me?!

Oh if you want theories I’ve got theories, but how about we stick to statistics for now. They seem to prefer pregnant women, obese individuals, and adults over children. Mosquitoes are tiny beings flying around in an enormous space. They use their sense of smell, sensitivity to movement, and Jedi mind powers (aka unknown factors) to detect our body heat, movement, and CO2 production. Adults produce more CO2 and conserve more heat than children. Of course, some people naturally have higher body temperatures and children are constantly in motion so it really depends on who is hiking with you. Pregnant women also produce more CO2, their body heat spikes, and they have an increase in the amount of circulating blood. Mosquitoes also love us after a good workout. They have a demonic sense of smell and many compounds such as lactic acid are excreted in our sweat that draw them in like a terriyaki
marinade. Our body heat also spikes when we workout but I didn’t have to tell you that.

Picky Eaters?

They also seem to have a preference for blood type. People like myself with type O blood are far more likely to get bitten (mama told me I was special). If you’ll recall, type O blood cells lack the surface antigens A or B. The absence of those antigens or “O” is how it get’s it’s name. Why don’t you meditate on that for a while.
Studies have also shown that blood cholesterol levels are a factor which is just another reason to skip that drive-thru on the way home and stick to your New Year’s resolutions…that’s right, we all heard you.

Stay curious, stay classy, and never stop learning my friends 🙂

March 19, 2014

Fun Facts – Last Call

Happy Late Patty’s Day everybody! If you’re town was anything like mine, you’ve probably seen your fair share of blissfully intoxicated co-eds in electric green t-shirts, shiny green beads, and glazed over smiles, glittering the local bar patios like grass clippings. Speaking of blissfully intoxicated…

What do yeast, fruit flies, and human beings all have in common? We can all hold our alcohol. More accurately, we each come equipped with our very own alcohol dehydrogenase enzymes that allow us to convert that toxic, nasty ole alcohol into more user-friendly byproducts that our cells can use.

In case you didn’t know, alcohol is toxic to the body. [That’s right, I’m looking at you, Ethanol…I haven’t forgotten about New Year’s!] Not only do our bodies have no real nutritional use for it (which is why you won’t find it in your Flintstone vitamins) but when set loose in the body it can sabotage our organ systems one by one.

this is how I feel trouble-shooting my high-speed internet

Luckily, we have a generous helping of miracle-working, alcohol converting enzymes in our liver and stomach to soften the blow. We actually have 3 different enzymes in our anti-alcohol arsenal but the vast majority of the damage control is carried out by that smooth talker, alcohol dehydrogenase. These 80 kilodalton molecules step in like a bomb squad to disarm the alcohol molecules by stripping away their hydrogen atoms (that’s why we call them de-hydrogenases). This converts them into acetaldehyde, but we aren’t out of the danger zone yet. The acetaldehyde (close cousin to formaldehyde) is even more toxic than the alcohol we started with. Not unlike disarming a bomb (like I’d know) just because you snipped the red wire doesn’t turn the C4 into pound cake. What is left still packs a
punch. The acetaldehyde gets converted further into acetic acid radicals (acetic acid gives us vinegar). Alcohol dehydrogenase joins those nasty radicals with Coenzyme-A molecule to form happy little Acetyl-CoA molecules that our cells can now use in their metabolism.

Yes I do love a happy ending, but just because a few fancy-pants liver enzymes allow us to convert ETOH (alcohol) into useful cellular byproducts doesn’t mean we can go out chugging margaritas like protein shakes. Be safe. Hey, look at me….I care.

Stay curious, stay classy, and never stop learning my friends 🙂