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The paranoia of a few shouldn’t prevent refugees settling here, says Mary Moody.
The way we have treated refugees in the past is heartless. I spend a lot of time travelling around the world and it’s sometimes embarrassing to be an Australian.
With the Tampa incident, we more or less turned away a boat full of people who were in desperate need of shelter. It seemed to me that we weren’t being good Samaritans. There must be a different way.
For a country and government that professes to be Christian, a lot of these policy solutions are too pragmatic and too much with an eye on the economy.
There’s also too much fear and paranoia. Terrorists are very well organised — they’re likely to be the last people who are going to be floating around in the ocean for three months.
The reality is many other countries take a lot more refugees per capita than we would ever contemplate taking. Yes, we’re a country with limited resources in that we have a finite amount of water. We have all those things to consider, but in that situation you accept people, look after them really well, and then work out what to do with them.
I’d welcome refugees in my own home, and have joined an organisation called Rural Families for Refugees. A lot of people have done so. It’s a wonderful indication that there are thousands of Australians who feel the way I do, in spite of the government’s policy.
Do you agree with Mary? Have your say on the Woman’s Day discussion board.
Biggest Loser contestant P’eta Phelan talks to Woman’s Day about her time on the show.
**Starting weight: 131.6kg
Elimination weight: 126.3kg**
How did you feel about being a replacement contestant?
When I was told I wasn’t in, I’d said to myself, “Thank God I didn’t get in”. There was a part of me that wanted to get in and a part that didn’t want to go, leave my family and friends. I didn’t know whether I wanted to be a part of a reality TV show and lose my anonymity.
Why do you think you were eliminated?
The person who voted me out [Munnalita] probably saw my strength and dedication and focus and thought I was probably the one who could cope the best on the outside. I also think that she might have thought I was some competition as well. I had a dream the night before that I was eliminated. I went downstairs in the morning and said it to Jules and she said, ‘Don’t be stupid’. I said to her, ‘My dreams come true a lot of the time’. Before we went into the elimination room we didn’t have time to shower, only change. But in that lockdown time, I just packed my bags as I knew it would be me.
Looking back on it, how do you feel about your time in the Whitehouse and your fellow contestants?
I loved it, it was very emotionally difficult. You feel like these people are here for one reason and you can’t 100% trust anyone. Mel and Jules were ones I could trust, everyone else is there to win. I was there to learn things, if I won, it was a bonus. One person who was there for the money is Michael. Michael left because he wasn’t doing the work he was set and he wasn’t working as part of a team as he should have been. Courtney’s shifty but great. He’s there to play games and stir the pot. He’s not fooling anyone and he knows that.
Did your openness about your homosexuality affect your time in the house?
Greg was so interested in it. He’d say, “So you’re a lesbian? Oh, what’s that like?” He did the same thing to Courtney, asking him every question under the sun. No one treated me any differently in the house. The only person that I heard speak negatively about my sexuality was Kelly.
You’ve been with your partner Carley for five years. Are you excited about seeing her again?
Being in the house made me realise she’s just the best. We love going out with our friends. We’re pretty inseparable. I just want to get back home to her and our two dogs Lily and Coshi.
You lost your job by being in The Biggest Loser. What happened?
I can’t talk about it because it’s going to legal proceedings but I’d been terminated from a private college in Melbourne. When my dad told me, it gave me so much more determination to stay in the house.
One of the complaints I often hear from people trying to lose weight is that while there’s diversity in a diet, with interesting and different meals each day, it’s just too hard to organise. When we examine the majority of people’s eating habits, it’s typical to eat the same or similar meals many days a week.
In our meal plan for March, we provide a structure which caters to the busy working person who just doesn’t have the time to cook morning, noon and night.
Variety is found in fresh fruit and vegetables, a choice of bread and fillings in sandwiches at lunchtime and a different easy meal to make at night.
Day one | Day two | Day three | Day four | Day five | Day six | Day seven
By Judy Davie
“Can you please provide me some information on how diet can affect children suffering concentration and learning problems and with ADD? What foods should be avoided and what foods added to assist?”
Research has shown that a diet free of processed foods with additives can have a significant effect on children with ADD.
A study on identical twins in England found after only one week, the twin who had been put on a diet free of additives was more able to concentrate than his brother who maintained his normal eating habits. In a month the IQ of the twin on the special diet was 15 percent higher than his brother’s. (They tested the same at the start of the study).
There are over 300 additives used in food manufacturing, and while some of these are okay, many are not — particularly when you have a child suffering from behavioural problems.
Common additives believed to influence hyperactivity include preservative 220, used in the process of dried fruits, and sulphates in cured meat such as bacon, prosciutto, and cabanossi. The book Additive Alert is a must to check the additives used in foods you commonly use. You can also check them out on the website www.additivealert.com.au
There is some evidence to suggest that increasing the intake of Omega 3 fatty acid in the diet may also have a role in improving memory, concentration and behavioural problems. Omega 3 is found in fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, and sardines. You can buy Omega 3 fortified eggs and there are a number of emerging products on the market with added Omega 3. Be careful with these that you don’t buy a product with some other additives that negate the benefits of the Omega 3.
To wrap up my suggestion is simple. Cut out as much processed food as you possibly can. Reduce your child’s consumption of sugar, and eat fresh natural produce and at least three fish meals a week.
Not only did Jennifer Hudson win the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance in Dreamgirls, her boyfriend of eight years proposed to her as she was getting ready for the ceremony!
Host Ellen DeGeneres managed to squeeze in a yoga class with girlfriend Portia de Rossi just hours before the show began.
Pregnant Naomi Watts almost didn’t make it to the Oscars — she had morning sickness!
Before the ceremony, Alan Arkin said he hoped his ten-year-old costar — Best Supporting Actress nominee Abigail Breslin — would lose. He said she’s too young to receive so much attention.
Jessica Simpson let her new boyfriend John Mayer pick out her Oscar dress.
Katie Holmes had to talk Victoria Beckham out of making five dress changes throughout the night. Posh couldn’t decide which designer frock to wear to the Oscars, so she wanted to wear them all!
Beyonce paid Giorgio Armani a batch of homemade cookies to make a last minute adjustment to her Oscar gown.
Best Actress nominee Penelope Cruz spent the evening with a good luck penny taped inside her dress. The penny was a gift from her best friend Salma Hayek.
Best Actor nominee Mark Wahlberg crashed his dirt bike just hours before he was due at the Oscars. Luckily he was completely unharmed.
Kirsten Dunst was a nervous wreck before presenting the award for Best Screenplay. Backstage, she complained that she was uncomfortable in her dress and was terrified of committing “career suicide” by messing up her speech.
Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck hugged and made small talk at the Oscars. The former couple had barely spoken to each other since their 2004 break up.
After losing to Alan Arkin, Best Supporting Actor nominee Eddie Murphy stormed out of the theatre and wasn’t seen for the rest of the night.
Cameron Diaz lost an expensive diamond and emerald earring backstage, but managed to find it just before she was due to present an award.
A tipsy Madonna encouraged Penelope Cruz to down several Cosmos at an Oscars after-party. She later danced the can-can with Gyneth Paltrow!
Fresh from rehab, Lindsay Lohan was overheard saying, “Oh my God, I’ve got the shakes. It won’t stop,” at a post-Oscars party.
Lindsay perked up later in the night however — she joined Leo DiCaprio and Jessica Biel in singing a medley of Britney Spears songs while pretending to shave their heads.
For all the juicy details, plus more pics and gossip, see the next issue of Woman’s Day (on sale March 5).
The star puts Hollywood on hold as she prepares herself for motherhood.
Jennifer Aniston has proudly revealed she’s set to become a mum. “I’m so excited,” she told friends. “Watch this belly, it’s about to get a whole lot rounder!”
Jen, who celebrated her 38th birthday recently, has reportedly been undergoing IVF treatment for months, with many believing she’s already in the early stages of pregnancy.
“She’s been visiting the same fertility specialists who helped Courteney [Cox, her close friend] fall pregnant at 39,” reveals an insider, who tells how Jen hand-picked a sperm donor during one of several appointments at the Center for Fertility and Reproductive Medicine at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in LA.
“Jen resigned herself to the fact she’ll be a single mother. Her biological clock has been ticking for a while, but it dawned on her that if she kept waiting for the perfect partner she would run out of time.”
For the full story, see this week’s issue of Woman’s Day (on sale February 26).
