Latest news with #MarkMahoney
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
How we get through the pain with humor when we lose a loved one
My brother Paul passed away two days after having an aortic dissection. He was pretty good guy … The longer one lives, the more experience one has with death and dying – and the better one gets at dealing with repetition, it gets a little easier. It's not anything anyone wants to get good at, but with practice emotions can better be kept in check, words can better be expressed – and the occasional use of humor (unintentional, usually) can help cut through the seriousness of the situation. Well-being: Take a path to community health, personal well-being with a garden | Mark Mahoney After the oldest brother of six siblings passed away in Daytona Beach, the living family members – two brothers and three sisters – were told of the deceased's daughter's arrangement to have the body transported to the family's hometown. The plan was for the brother's viewing and cremation to be held in Western New York. Shortly thereafter, the daughter reported that she had arranged for the deceased's pickup truck to be towed from Florida to Western New York. 'Are they going to tow the body in the truck?' said the youngest brother, eliciting laughter while not meaning to be funny. The deceased brother had many good qualities. He was honest and intelligent. He was very generous. A good father. A great grandfather. But he also had a reputation for sometimes being stubborn and difficult. He could be a challenge at times for the parents. The siblings were still not over their parents. They had lost both in recent years, the father losing his battle with kidney disease at 87 years old in 2017. For the mother, it was idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. She passed away at 88 in 2022. The mother, in her final days, was sharp mentally and keenly aware of her declining health. She had joked about her age with hospital nurses, pointing out that her children were all senior citizens. The siblings agreed that it was best that their mother had passed before her oldest son. 'She would have been so upset,' said one of the sisters. 'He could be a troublemaker, but I think he was her favorite.' 'I just hope he doesn't give them a hard time,' added a sister-in-law. 'What do you mean?' asked one of the brothers. 'Your parents in heaven, I mean …,' said the sister-in-law, eliciting laughter while not meaning to be funny. The mother came from a large Irish-Catholic family. One of 11 children, she outlived all but one. So over the years, the siblings had paid their respects to many aunts and uncles. Several years ago, when one of the uncles died, all the living uncles were gathered in an adjoining room at the funeral home. The uncles were drinking and chain smoking – and crying. Tears were flowing, really flowing – right up until the time one of the uncles (Uncle Larry, known for his dramatic flair) leaned back in his chair and flipped over backwards in it onto the floor. And then the tears stopped, suddenly, and turned to laughter. Roaring laughter. Wild, roaring laughter. If you're lucky enough to still be around when a family member, friend, or co-worker has passed – find something to laugh about. Mark Ryan is an RN who lives in Tallahassee. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: How humor and family can ease the pain of losing a loved one
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Chiefs' 2025 undrafted free agent tracker
The Kansas City Chiefs — like the rest of the league's teams — are going straight from the end of the NFL Draft to negotiating with undrafted free agents (UDFAs). They're trying to sign players who weren't chosen during the just-completed draft. One of the NFL's worst-kept secrets is that teams have been speaking with potential undrafted prospects since early on Saturday — even as the draft's third day unfolded. Advertisement Every team can have up to 90 players on its offseason roster. Heading into draft weekend, the Chiefs' roster stood at 75. After adding seven drafted players, there could be as few as eight open roster spots available for these undrafted signees — although some existing players could be waived (or released) in the coming days. Under the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the NFL and the players' association, all UDFAs sign three-year contracts worth slightly less than $3 million — the combined minimum salaries for the 2025, 2026 and 2027 seasons. Unless they make a team's active roster, most UDFAs will get very little (if any) of this money. But if they're lucky enough to be in demand, they might be paid a small signing bonus. In 2025, each team has a total pool of $206,144 available for these UDFA bonuses. Teams may also offer to guarantee some of a UDFA's salary — although that only rarely signifies roster security; contracts can include offsetting salary rules if the player joins another team (or practice squad) after being cut. Note that these reported signings should not be considered official until the Chiefs actually announce the players they have signed. This is typically done just before the team's rookie minicamp, which will take place next weekend. In addition, some players (or their agents) will announce (or imply) they've been signed to a contract when they've only been invited to try out for a team during its minicamp. Advertisement With that, let's get to the tracker. Chiefs' undrafted free agency signings and rumors Sunday, April 27 11:50 p.m. Brown tight end Mark Mahoney invited to rookie camp, per report. 8:24 p.m. Washington State defensive end Nusi Malani invited to rookie camp, per school. 7:55 p.m. Wake Forest tackle DeVonte Gordon invited to rookie camp, per agent. 6:30 p.m. Central Florida defensive back Sheldon Arnold invited to rookie camp, per report. 5:44 p.m. Pittsburgh edge rusher Nate Matlack invited to rookie camp, per report. 4:03 p.m. Mississippi cornerback Brandon Turnage invited to rookie camp, per school. 3:08 p.m. Notre Dame defensive end RJ Oben invited to rookie camp, per school. 2:45 p.m. Houston tackle Jake Wiley invited to rookie camp, per school. 2:43 p.m. Kansas safety Marvin Grant Jr. invited to rookie camp, per report. 2:23 p.m. Alabama-Birmingham linebacker Michael Moore invited to rookie camp, per school. 12:49 p.m. Missouri long snapper Trey Flint invited to rookie camp, per report. 12:21 p.m. Oklahoma tight end Jake Roberts invited to rookie camp, per report. 11:55 a.m. Rice cornerback Sean Fresch Jr. invited to rookie camp, per school. 11:32 a.m. Georgia State safety Kenyatta Watson invited to rookie camp, per school. 10:59 a.m. North Dakota cornerback Devin Hembry invited to rookie camp, per report. 9:29 a.m. Utah wide receiver Damien Alford invited to rookie camp, per report. 8:32 a.m. Stanford linebacker Tristan Sinclair invited to rookie camp, per report. 8:06 a.m. Southeast Missouri quarterback Paxton DeLaurent invited to rookie camp, per school. 7:49 a.m. Temple wide receiver Dante Wright invited to rookie camp, per school. 7:17 a.m. Akron defensive lineman Nathan Kapongo invited to rookie camp, per report. 12:39 a.m. Utah State quarterback Spencer Petras invited to rookie camp, per report. Saturday, April 26 11:17 p.m. Kansas State placekicker Chris Tennant invited to rookie camp, per report. 10:16 p.m. Bowling Green defensive lineman Chace Davis invited to rookie camp, per school. 10:03 p.m. Pittsburgh guard Jason Collier Jr. invited to rookie camp, per report. 10:00 p.m. Florida State cornerback Kevin Knowles signed , per report. 9:55 p.m. South Carolina center Vershon Lee invited to rookie camp, per agent. 9:35 p.m. Carson-Newman safety Major Williams invited to rookie camp, per school. 9:07 p.m. Oklahoma State tackle Dalton Cooper signed , per report. 9:05 p.m. Kansas tight end Jared Casey signed , per report. 8:57 p.m. Tennessee safety Will Brooks signed , per school. 8:37 p.m. Stephen F. Austin running back Qualan Jones signed , per school. 8:36 p.m. Villanova tight end Jaaron Hayek invited to rookie camp, per report. 8:29 p.m. Kansas State linebacker Austin Moore invited to rookie camp, per agent. 8:12 p.m. Western Kentucky running back Elijah Young signed , per report. 8:00 p.m. Florida wide receiver Elijhah Badger signed , per report. 7:56 p.m. Washington State tackle Esa Pole signed , per report. 7:54 p.m. Central Missouri quarterback Zach Zebrowski invited to rookie camp, per school. 7:50 p.m. Delaware tackle Blaise Sparks invited to rookie camp, per report. 7:49 p.m. Purdue edge rusher Jireh Ojata invited to rookie camp, per report. 7:37 p.m. Penn State defensive tackle Coziah Izzard signed , per report. 7:29 p.m. North Carolina defensive lineman Kevin Hester Jr. invited to rookie camp, per report. 7:25 p.m. USC cornerback Jacobe Covington signed , per report. 7:18 p.m. Southern Arkansas cornerback Melvin Smith Jr. signed , per school. 7:12 p.m. Villanova defensive lineman Chuck Smith invited to rookie camp, per school. 7:10 p.m. USC punter Eddie Czaplicki signed , per report. 6:48 p.m. Texas A&M tight end Tre Watson signed , per report. 6:40 p.m. Clemson tight end Jake Briningstool signed , per report. 6:32 p.m. Pittsburgh linebacker Brandon George signed , per report. 6:32 p.m. Fresno State wide receiver Mac Dalena signed , per report. 6:28 p.m. Howard cornerback Robert Jones II invited to rookie camp, per report. 6:18 p.m. Maryland safety Glendon Miller signed , per agent. 6:16 p.m. Louisiana Tech quarterback Jimmy Holiday invited to rookie camp, per report. Signings of interest by other teams More from
USA Today
11-02-2025
- Health
- USA Today
Cheap, legal and everywhere: High-sugar cereals are marketed to kids
Cheap, legal and everywhere: High-sugar cereals are marketed to kids | Mark Mahoney As a long-time health specialist and father of a premature infant, I have experienced the issue of educating my son as to the benefits of avoiding many of the highly processed foods which are so prevalent in American society. I also worked on countering the plethora of advertising the 'supposed' benefits of consuming these types of 'foods.' I can say the results have been very positive. The numbers of overweight and obese children continue to rise across the country. The latest National Survey of Children's Health data noted that 17.0% of youth aged 6 to 17 had obesity (almost one in five). Recent reports note the increasing inability of finding sufficient numbers of young men to join the armed forces with many unable to meet weight and physical fitness requirements. Past research notes a link with young children being overweight continuing on in life. Some recent research One of the top sources of added sugar in children's diets is in their breakfast cereal. A new study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine shows that advertising drives sales of high-sugar cereals when it's aimed directly at kids under 12 — but not when it targets adults. "Cereal companies do have healthy products, but the high-sugar ones are the ones that they actually advertise to kids," says Jennifer Harris, a senior research adviser at the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Health at the University of Connecticut. In the study noted above Harris and her colleagues looked at all cereals purchased by 77,000 U.S. households over a nine-year period, between 2008 and 2017. They also looked at Nielsen ratings data, which closely monitored all the ads that people in a household saw — both children and adults. What they found was a strong relationship between how much advertising was targeted to kids and how much sugary cereal that households with children bought. In fact, just nine advertised cereals dominated purchases by these households, and all of them were high in sugar: They had between 9 and 12 grams of sugar — about a tablespoon — per serving. Brands including Lucky Charms, Honey Nut Cheerios and Froot Loops made up 41% of total household cereal purchases. About one-third of households with kids bought at least one of the nine brands in a given month. By contrast, Harris says, there was no link to increased purchases when ads targeted adults. "This study shows that it's really important for these companies with high-sugar cereals to actually reach kids — that parents probably wouldn't buy them if their kids weren't asking them for them," Harris says. Lindsey Smith Taillie, a food policy researcher at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, says these voluntary efforts aren't making a difference. "For a long time, we've known that junk food marketing to kids was very prevalent in the United States, and it continues to be prevalent despite companies pledging to do better," she says. The study is the first to directly link food advertising exposure by children versus adults with subsequent purchases of these foods. Taillie, who was not involved in the research, says the findings offer novel evidence of how food marketing influences what children ask their parents to buy — a concept known as "pester power." Counter viewpoint by the Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative Public health officials have long been concerned about the marketing of unhealthy foods to kids. As a response nearly two decades ago, the food industry launched the Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative (CFBAI), a voluntary effort to police itself. The 21 participating food companies pledged to cut back on marketing unhealthy foods to children under 12 — later revised to under 13. In a written statement to National Public Radio about their broadcast, Daniel Range, vice president of the Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative, defended the industry's efforts. He notes that the past study looked only at ads through 2017. He points to a 2024 study showing children's exposure to cereal ads on TV programming aimed at kids has dropped dramatically. Harris was one of the authors of that 2024 study. She says most of that drop in advertising to kids is due to a decline in TV viewing. Advertisements, like kids' eyeballs, are moving online, where hyperpersonalization can make it even harder to know what marketing children are being exposed to, Taillie notes. Thanks to NPR for much of the content provided. Additional Resources Check out the UConn Center for Food Policy and Health for some in-depth discussions on food marketing including targeted marketing, fast food and sugary drinks and other important areas at:Food Marketing | UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy and Health Read the following piece titled, 'Kid YouTube stars make sugary junk food look good — to millions of young viewers' at: Soda, candy and other junk food stars in kid-oriented YouTube videos : Shots - Health News: NPR Mark A. Mahoney, Ph.D. has been a Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist for over 35 years and completed graduate studies in Nutrition & Public Health at Columbia University. He can be reached at marqos69@
