The BioTech Queen

A biotech queen in college staying during the day, researching at night all the biotechnologies we use on the daily with or without our consent. So you know, just a typical day for woman. 

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I wouldn’t be able to do all this without that one special item, my eyeglasses

If it weren’t for them, none of this would be possible. 

My body, or more specifically my face, interacts with my glasses multiple times a day. I usually always carry them in my purse or backpack, and I put them on during class and take them off right after my lecture. I am nearsighted, which means I can’t see too well from a far, needing to squint in order to read texts, see an image, or even trying to recognize someone from a far. 

The life of wearing glasses is not easy, my friends. Want to know how? Take a look at this funny Buzzfeed article, “22 Things Literally Only People Who Wear Glasses Have To Deal With” just to get some understanding.

(My 4 year old glasses)

Glasses are now seen as an accessory over a necessity. You can even find articles about the best glasses that will fit you based face shape and personality like this one on Refinery29! How great (*sarcasm*).

It is important to note however, how many people are needing glasses, and how expensive they can be. Depending on you healthcare insurance, getting classes can cost to hundreds of dollars. So imagine for someone who needs the glasses badly, but can’t pay that much money, this necessity is out of reach for a lot of people. Which can lead to someone eyesight getting worse if they are not getting the prescription they need.

This can lead into the gender and class power dynamics when it comes to the glasses industry, as we see in Judy Wajcman’s article “Feminist theories of technology”. Men probably are designing, producing, and running the glasses and other technologies industry. They are suppose to help the people they think need the aid, which can lead to issues within the combative class relations and lack of accessibility to those who need the product. Which we can clearly see when it comes to the glasses industry, and the cost it has on people who just want to see the world as clear as everyone else.

You can take a look at how much glasses can cost people in this Buzzfeed article, ranking “The Best Places To Buy Prescription Glasses Online”. Some of the prices are ridiculous, while other are more reasonable. However, an individual still needs to visit an optometrist in order to get their prescription, which adds to the cost.

The final piece I wanted to focus on this post is the fact that there are a growing number of people who need glasses because they are near sighted, especially my generation and the younger ones as well. In a case study on the platform GB Times, journalist Weida Li talks with optometrists in China who are trying to get a grasp of the near-sightedness epidemic going on in the country in the 10-15 age group. While most people point to the screen time that could be the main culprit since everyone is addicted to their phones, Dr. Xie Zilan points to another reason that goes unnoticed which could be why China has an epidemic of eyesight issues. He blames the academic pressure and tons of homework kids have to do that it strains their eyes, plus the screen time is causing a lot of damage to China’s youth.

Honestly, that’s probably why I needed glasses too.

Credit:

Li, W. (2018, May 30). China opening its eyes to the near-sightedness epidemic. Retrieved from https://gbtimes.com/china-opening-its-eyes-to-near-sightedness-epidemic

Wajcman, J. (2010). Feminist theories of technology. Cambridge journal of economics, 34(1), 143-152.

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Do I smell good part 2! Deodorant is a life saver for a Queen like me

We can’t get away for the smell status quo!

I always use the Degree Dry Protection Antiperspirant deodorant, which I interact with daily. Before I leave my home, I always put it on my armpits before I spray on perfume. Whenever I forget to put it on, since it happens to the best of us, I will feel superconscious the whole day, thinking that people must think I stink. Because I sweat very quickly, and I sweat even more when I know I’ve messed up with a crucial step of my morning routine.

I also will put on deodorant a second time before I go to the gym, just because I know I’m going to be sweating profoundly there, and I don’t want to be smelling too bad at the gym since I already stick out like a sore thumb since I’m a big body taking space up at the gym. 

(My everyday deodorant)

Deodorants are used by everyone, so it’s hard to avoid using the product when the natural smell of your armpits is such a taboo. It’s so ingrained into out personal care routine that sometimes we don’t think about the contents of that stick/bottle.

Again, we can see the act of owning and putting on deodorant every morning as a way to normalize ourselves. Since we are hiding out body odor for something that is more please to the human nose, we again try to fit in society so we don’t become a social pariah due to out smell.

However, people are opting for more natural deodorants that actually leave you scent free. This list from Refinery29 gives its readers several options thats are natural and don’t give a smell. It just neutralizes their own scent. 

But why are natural deodorants becoming more popular? 

Two words: aluminum and parabens.

The article “How Bad Is Deodorant For Your Health, Really?” that was published on the Huffington Post, explains that one of the main reason people are turning to natural deodorants with no scent is because there deodorants are known to be aluminum and paraben free. But why is everyone afraid of these two ingredients? Aluminum chlorine is an active ingredient that block sweat ducts and stopping secretions coming out of the sweat gland. While research and studies are still ongoing on whether of not these ingredients are harmful, ingredients like aluminum could affect women’s hormone balance and could led to daunting cases of breast cancer in the worst-case scenario. 

Maybe we should do more research and regulation on that product huh? FDA where you at?

Credit:

Beck, J. (2016, June 14). Ignoring People for Phones Is the New Normal. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2016/06/ignoring-people-for-phones-is-the-new-normal-phubbing-study/486845/

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The thing I put in my mouth every night, a nightguard

This is probably the worst biotechnology I have to interact with.

My body interacts with the nightguard every night, since my dentist told me I had to because I grind my teeth. I was surprised when she told me this, and I didn’t really believe her either, even to this day. However she managed to convince my mom I needed it, and my mom shelled out $350 to pay for the molds of my teeth and the nightguard.

Nevertheless, I still have the nightguard next to my bedside every night. I usually put it on right before I go to sleep, and take it off immediately in the morning and put it in its tray. When I go to the bathroom, I will put it in a cup of water with a little dish soap since that is the only way to clean it according to the dentist. I don’t have to clean it everyday, but I hate the smell it gives when I take it out my mouth. I hate wearing the nightguard at night, since I don’t like the feeling of having something in my mouth before I doze off to sleep.

I STILL FEEL LIKE I GOT SCAMMED. 

My experience with the nightguard reminds me of embodies knowing, since the action of putting it in my mouth seems to send a message to my mind about a foreign thing in my mouth that will make it harder for me to sleep. It’s as if my mind was telling my body to take it out before I would go to sleep.

(The horrid nightguard I wear every night)

Well let me give you some advice right now, that if you are told to you need a nightguard, check out this Buzzfeed article where you can customize a night guard yourself at home, for less than half the price I paid.

Going back to the nightguard, which is primarily recommended to patients who grind their teeth. As reported on the New York Times, the purchase for custom nightguards increased by 20 to 25 percent in 2009. The culprit for so many people needing night guards? STRESS. Be cause whether the stress is temporary or a constant thing, it needs some for of physical movement to release the built up energy that stress has created. The prime target is your teeth as you sleep.

It seems however that the nightguard just isn’t for people who grind their teeth. Study from Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology, Oral Radiology And Endodontology, nightguards can also help individuals who suffer from nocturnal xerostomia. Which is nocturnal dryness of the mouth. So it seems like the nightguard might be a versatile invention after all.

Credit:

Yamamoto, K., Nagashima, H., Yamachika, S., Hoshiba, D., Yamaguchi, K., Yamada, H., & ... Nakagawa, Y. (2008). Oral medicine: The application of a night guard for sleep-related xerostomia. Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology, Oral Radiology And Endodontology, 106e11-e14. doi:10.1016/j.tripleo.2008.05.015

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I still used pads, so what?

To each girl they’re own okay? The patriarchy is already regulating my body as much as they can, I don’t need your judgment on my period preference.

The main reason I use pads is because that’s all my mom taught me how to use. When my time came at 14, my mom only had pads to offer and one of her clients also went and bought me two Safeway bags full of pads so I would have enough for at least a year and a half. So, I never really questioned the other options I had since at that time, I didn’t have to deal with the burden of buying pads or anything else for my period.

I still get asked and badgered by my friends on why I don’t have or use tampons, and I always have the same comeback which is 1) It’s my preferred choice and 2) I’m avoiding Toxic Shock Syndrome. While TSS doesn’t happen a lot, the consequences and risks are still there. Just take for example, model Lauren Wasser who almost died from TSS and lost her left leg in the whole ordeal. You can read more about her story on Vice.

(The two sizes of pads that I use.)

Pads and other period products do connect back to the capitalist society Fritsch discussed in her paper, and how I connected it to the pink tax. Because obviously men don’t pay for period product because they don’t need them, however women pay a lot of money for a natural occurrence that happens in their body. Meanwhile, men always get condoms basically thrown at them for free, even though sex isn’t as important or bothersome as a period.

I will admit though, there are struggles when it comes to using pads. Like it took me a long time to find the perfect pad that I didn’t feel uncomfortable. The post “19 Things You'll Only Understand If You Wear Pads Instead Of Tampons” from Buzzfeed resonates with me so much.

Also, please enjoy this hilarious video of the men of Buzzfeed reacting to pads. 

There is an important detail I need to mention since I am a Latina who refuses to use tampons. While my mother never imposed this idea on me, many other Latinas discourage their daughters from using tampons because they say “don’t use it until you need it” hinting that a tampon will make somehow make you lose your virginity, which will cast doubt for your future husband on whether you are pure or not. 

Furthermore, looking at the article by authors Romo and Berenson who researched tampon use among different ethnicity group, their findings on the Latina study group goes on to prove my point. Many Latina women were more likely to reported that in their teen years, they believed that tampons were unsafe and inappropriate for virgins. They were terrified that tampons could get lost or stuck.

To any woman who has a vagina who bleeds, YOU CHOOSE HOW YOU DEAL WITH YOU FLOW HONEY.

Credit:

Romo, L. F., & Berenson, A. B. (n.d). Tampon Use in Adolescence: Differences among European American, African American and Latina Women in Practices, Concerns, and Barriers. Journal Of Pediatric And Adolescent Gynecology, 25(5), 328-333. 

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Cut negative people from you life like a razor that cuts your unwanted hair

Summer time is coming and I hate the fact that I have to shave so often now.

My body interacts with a razor a lot, in order to shave my legs, stomach, armpits, and other parts of my body where I don’t like to see hair. Or it would be better to say what society doesn’t like to see my hair. I usually use my razor every other day, since I have the hairy Latinx genes of my father side of the family.

I’m actually annoyed by the whole process of shaving in general since my hair grows back rather quickly, meaning I have to shave more often as well as switching the razor heads. 

Additionally, as we all know, “female” razors are much more expensive that “male” which is called the pink tax. As author K. Fritsch talked about in her paper “The neoliberal circulation of affects: Happiness, accessibility and the capacitation of disability as wheelchair” our capitalist society like to take advantage when they can. Women and other female products have longed been commercialized, marketed, and consumed due to the higher-powered organizations producing it as a static thing that needs the capitalist market to find solutions for. As well as charge more just because it is marketed as a female product that comes in either pink or purple.

Honest to whatever God is up there, this Buzzfeed article of “49 Thoughts Every Woman Has While Shaving Their Legs” is so real and relatable, you can’t continue reading this post without seeing that first.

(My razor from the Dollar Shave Club, a great way to avoid the pink tax.)

While society keeps pressuring women to shave and have almost hairless bodies in order to feel beautiful, we are still led to believe that we have a “choice” when it comes to following the status quo. However, in an article by Lux Alptraum on the platform Racked, that choice is just a myth. “The Myth of Choice When It Comes to Female Beauty” argues that no matter what path women take, it will always lead to the same one in which they’re hair is removed. Whether that’s through shaving, waxing, pressure from mothers, etc. the choice does not really exist.

Additionally in the article “Shaving It All Off: Examining Social Norms of Body Hair among College Men in a Women's Studies Course” by Breanne Fahs, shows just some of the struggles women face when not shaving. Women who are not part of the 91.5% who shaved their legs or 93% who shave their armpits, are considered “dirty” and “disgusting”. Furthermore, not only were they judged by men, but also by women who felt that they have a right to police their bodies.

So, where a women’s autonomy when it comes to our bodies?

Credit:

Fahs, B. (2013). Shaving It All Off: Examining Social Norms of Body Hair among College Men in a Women's Studies Course. WOMENS STUDIES -NEW YORK AND LONDON- GORDON AND BREACH THEN TAYLOR AND FRANCIS-, (5). 559.

Fritsch, K. (2013). The neoliberal circulation of affects: Happiness, accessibility and the capacitation of disability as wheelchair. Health, Culture and Society, 5(1), 135.

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Work sis! Those high heels might be killing your feet, but you are slaying!

I love how my feel look in heels, but jeez are they a pain.

Women and now men, are rocking heels in everyday life and on the runway. These are super stylish, but the higher the heel the worst your pain. Heels elevate and temporarily modify your feet in order to increase an individuals height and overall appeal.

I have a love-hate relationship with heels, but they will probably never be eliminated from my closet. I love the way I look in heels, but I hate the pain that comes with them. I feel powerful during those hours when I wear heels because I’m taller, standing straight with my head up high, and looking I’m slaying my outfit. My confidence is at an all time high, even if I feel some minor pain at my feet. If the heels are too high and I know I will be standing them for a long time, I bring another pair of shoes such as flats or my Vans so I can switch into them later. 

A Queen goes prepared everywhere she goes.

(My black stilettos and black heeled sandals)

Of course, if we look back at the history of heels, there are patriarchal reasons why women suffer to the pain. It makes women be seen as an object for the male gaze to have pleasure in looking because a woman’s body must always look desirable. High heels also push a narrative that the woman wearing them is hyper-sexualized and can be perceived as “easy” because she decides to showcase her body. 

Well we are in the modern age people, and that narrative needs to go out the window along with the patriarchy.

Because heels are more than just shoes that make us look good. Women all over the world are rocking their heels and using them as a defense tool, literally. In a New York Times article, “Using High Heels for Self-Defense" we meet      Ms. Zeisler who is teaching self-defense classes to women, so they can use those spiky heel to defend themselves in the streets. Ms. Zeisler wants to help women to learn how to defend themselves, especially when wearing heels which can make it harder to run away. Being a victim of sexual assault, she wants to teach women to not only be empowered by her heels, but to also stand your ground and be ready to attack.

How badass is that?

It is so important that women not only feel powerful in their heels, but also know that their heels are weapons literally and figuratively.

Furthermore, in the article “The 2016 HIGh Heels: Health effects And psychosexual BenefITS (HIGH HABITS) study”, the authors show the health risks and psychosexual benefits that come with wearing heels. According to the study, women who wore heels were likely to develop foot, ankle, and calfs issues such as osteoarthritis, musculoskeletal pain and first-party injury. However, the benefits for women is that they have control of their sexual prowness and freedom. So even though those heels might cause you to have issues in the future, you may still be lucky.

Like my cousins always said, pain is beauty.

Heels can be seen as an actant, especially when they are used as weapons. Because women who just interact when for fashion purposes already display an identity of power. However, when women interact with them as weapons, they discoursing from the narrative of being a victim to being a defender.

Credit:

Barnish, M., Morgan, H. M., & Barnish, J. (2017). The 2016 HIGh Heels: Health effects And psychosexual BenefITS (HIGH HABITS) study: systematic review of reviews and additional primary studies. BMC Public Health, 181-13. doi:10.1186/s12889-017-4573-4

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Cheers honey! Alcohol is a must have for brunch, or any reason

Let’s not lie and say we don’t want a glass of sangria in our hands right now.

Alcohol is... complicated. If drunk responsibly, people can enjoy a drink with friends and family to relax or have fun. However, if drunk irresponsibly it can turn into a addiction. So alcohol can be your best friend or your worst enemy. 

Personally, I like do like to have a drink of two just to relax on the weekends or maybe after a long day at school/work or post workout reward. Hey, I need to treat myself once in a while. My favorite is a spiked apple cider like Angry Orchard or Stella Artois Cidre. I also like to have a glass of wine, and only have strong alcohol and mixed drink when I go out with friends to a bar or a club.

(What’s usually in my fridge, lightweight stuff)

I control my drinking limit, because after a few hangovers I’ve decided that I’m too old to be putting my body through that on a Sunday morning. That’s why I like fruity drinks but with a low percentage of alcohol, just to sip as I talk with friends and enjoy the night. Because hangover aren’t cute an pretty, and no matter what you think will fix it, you’ll still have to go through. 

As a woman who drinks and enjoys to drink, there are still dangerous and misconceptions. Woman who drink are considered easy, and unfeminine because we have know how to drink and don’t need anyone to take care of us at the bar or in any other situation where we are drinking. 

Below, Buzzfeed made an amazingly funny video for women who love to drink, and who don’t need to make excuses or care about how others perceive them. Why? Because we can handle ourselves perfectly fine.

There still other reasons why women choose to drink or not to drink based on gender or social norms. In a study about drinking habits of college women, the article “The association between multidimensional feminine norms, binge drinking and alcohol-related problems among young adult college women” found some interesting but also disturbing drinking practices women do when drinking. They found that women who stuck to more “sweet, kind” characteristics and followed feminine norms were less likely to binge-drink or report drinking problems. Meanwhile, women who believed in casual sex and hanging with other boys casually were more likely to binge-drink since they now “have” sexual freedom. 

The findings that article had honestly seem sexist and slut shaming. Let’s just call it what it is. Women should be able to drink whatever they want, and it’s should be no one’s business. But sadly, as the article that was published in 2018 shows, women cannot be left alone.

Overall, I would connect alcohol to being an item of embodied knowing. Even though alcohol will affect our motor skills, our bodies and mind both experience the feelings of alcohol. It is a complicated, but connection is there because our mind tries to help us navigate our intoxicated bodies and what decisions we make.

Credit:

Iwamoto, D. d., Corbin, W., Takamatsu, S., & Castellanos, J. (2018). The association between multidimensional feminine norms, binge drinking and alcohol-related problems among young adult college women. Addictive Behaviors, 76243-249.

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My jackets that slay, and all the black clothes that the BT Queen owns

A unique jacket speaks volume about your character.

Clothes are a biotechnology that we all need to use, and we might learn to love and style over time. Clothes can be a basic thing we use, our worse enemy, or something we love to have.

I own several jackets that I love to wear, from stylish denim jackets to bomber jackets with flower prints. From there, most of my clothes are basic black clothing with some stylish aspect such as black distressed jeans or a black top with a cut out back. Jackets and black clothes are essential to me, and I interact with them on a daily basis, even during the summer which is the season I hate the most.

(Some part of my clothes, which consist of mostly black clothes)

(One of my favorite bomber jackets, with red flowers on the sleeves)

(One of my many denim jackets)

While I love to wear stylish clothes, there’s a method to the madness of how I wear and purchase my clothes. I like to wear mostly black clothing in order to hide the size of my body, and I always like to wear loose fitting jackets so it will hide my back fat and wide shoulders. Even though I feel really stylish in these clothes, I sometimes feel bad because reason why I buy most of my clothes this way is to hide the “imperfection” that I think my body is. 

Learning to love my body is a process, but as I’m learning I still slay in all my clothes.

It’s important to note however that the clothing industry hasn’t alway been kind to plus-size women. There is still lack of size inclusion in many stores, even though the average size for an American woman is now a size 16.

Plus-size woman are fighting back. They are trying to change the industry to be more inclusive, and are deciding to stop hiding their bodies behind ugly clothes. For example, this Buzzfeed post has three plus-size women break all the rules of clothes they supposedly can’t wear. They throw all that out that window in this body positive post where the women realize how much they hold back when it comes to dressing their body in the way they want to. Not by what society says.

It should be said that women like the females in the Buzzfeed video and me are misfits in the fashion industry. We literally do not fit in the community, and instead are told to lose weight and try to fit in like everyone else. Yet, like the true misfits we are, we instead that the industry should change not us.

In an interview with NPR show All Things Considered, Tim Gunn, host of the famous fashion competition “Project Runway” also addresses the fashion industry for not catering to plus size women. Gunn called it a disgrace, and that the fashion market are not only underserving plus-size women but also missing an opportunity to branch and gain new clientele. The marginalized and insulting to over 100 million bigger women who are now spending more money than straight sized women.

While it is great to see such an important fashion icon stand up and criticize the fashion industry, there is still long ways to go before we are going to see more size availability in stores.

Credit:

Tim Gunn: The Fashion Industry Is Not Making It Work For Plus-Size Women. (2016). All Things Considered,

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Gym equipment is my mental health savior, since stabbing is illegal

You can’t win them all folks, but at least you can bust it out at the gym.

Even though I’m fat, I’ve accepted my body and I’m still learning to love it everyday. 

So to answer your question, no I don’t go to the gym to lose gym. The main reason I go to the gym is for my mental health so I can keep my stress and anxiety under control. The gym is the only place where I will go hard on my body and even though I feel sore, I feel so good and better overall. If I lose weight in the process, it’s not intentional. The gym equipment is a biotechnology meant to modify and tone your body, but it is also a technology that relieves all your pain and stress from your body.

(My 10lbs weight when I do Russian Twists)

(Two arm weights I use, one of 35lbs, the other of 37.5lbs. I use these for tricep lifting).

My workout consists of 15 minutes of cardio, which is when I use the elliptical machine. I then move on to 30 minutes of weightlifting in order to build muscle on my arms and thighs. I do more weight for my arms than my thighs because I’m very self-conscious of my big arms. Then I finish off with 15 minutes of core where I rotate from sit-ups, reverse sit ups, to Russian twists with a 10lbs. weight in my hands. By the end of my workout I usually go straight to my room, shower, and go to bed since I’m exhausted. 

However, gym therapy doesn’t work for everyone. As an article by Cory Stieg on Refinery29, working out doesn’t work for everyone and is not a substitute for actual therapy. Going to therapy for mental health is no sign a weakness, its the first step to heal and to understand exactly what you are going through. The gym and all the equipment are like a medication, part of the healing process that could or could not work.

For anyone who want to start going to the gym to see if it could work to improve their mental health, this Buzzfeed article explains 23 small steps someone can take to see if working out will help them out.

Still, this is a trial and error situation, just like any other medication to help with mental illness. In a case study in Australia, the authors of the article “Effects of exercise on mental health outcomes in adolescents: Findings from the CrossFit™ teens randomized controlled trial” where 96 teens were put in CrossFit, an intense workout class, to see how their mental health changed. At the end of the trial, the researchers discovered that their mental health didn’t improve significantly. However, it did improve teens self-esteem and physical self-perception for individuals who were considered “at-risk” of mental health issues. 

Going to the gym and seeing if it works for you and your mental health is all about trial an error. 

Seeing the connection the gym has on our minds, we can say that there is an embodied knowing aspect to it. Dr. Ellingson explains how looking at the body and mind as a whole works better in producing and understanding knowledge. The combo experiences, feels, thinks, etc. The relationship between the body and the brain needs be further complicated than erased, while not giving all the center credit to the mind for production and skills.

Embodies knowing can be see in the gym equipment because we there is a connection of the body being worked out, and the mind seeming to be more at pease and understanding that it needs to relieve stress and anxiety.

Credit: 

Eather, N., Morgan, P. J., & Lubans, D. R. (2016). Effects of exercise on mental health outcomes in adolescents: Findings from the CrossFit™ teens randomized controlled trial. Psychology Of Sport & Exercise, 2614-23. doi:10.1016/j.psychsport.2016.05.008

Ellingson, L. L. (2017). Embodiment in qualitative research. Taylor & Francis.

[biotechqueen-blog]

I can’t get off my phone and I know you can’t either

Miraculously, I’m not writing this post on my phone.

Out generation is addicted to out phones, there’s no denying it. 

I will admit that I am addicted to my phone. I use my iPhone more times than I can count in one day, and it’s the first thing I look at when I wake up and the last thing I see before I go to bed. My phone is essential for me because I can do almost everything from it. I check my emails, listen to music and podcasts, place orders on Amazon, check social media, check my bank accounts, everything. It’s hard to not be on your phone at all times because then you feel disconnected. Because one of the most important aspects for me from having a smartphone is now I get to communicate with family and friends outside the U.S. through apps like Whatsapp and Facebook Messenger, especially with my family back home in El Salvador since it was so expensive to communicate with them before.

I have an iPhone 7 Plus, and don’t plan to ever switching to any other smartphone. 

Now having phones that with just a few tap of your fingers you can do almost everything you want, obviously distracts you very quickly. It’s common to see groups people, who are supposed to be “hanging out” but are all looking down at their phones. Here’s and example: 

I think of how much our phone makes us so anti-social, but yet we obsess over social media and how our lives look so great with our friends so all our followers are impressed. That’s why when I’m with people I care about, I try to put my phone away and catch-up or joke around with them because I still obsess over having human contact with someone rather than having screen contact. 

I mean how else will I throw shade and and talk about researching biotechnologies to, if I don’t have some human contact?

Looking towards Haraway’s point on machines blurring the lines between mind/body, we can also see how it also blurs the line between human/machine. Many people consider their phone as important as their hands and mouth. It as if their phone was a part of their body, that distracts its mind and interrupts the connection between the body and the mind constantly.

The act of being on you phone and ignoring those around you has been even given a term to this activity, calling it “phubbing”.

The Atlantic even made a report on a study of 276 people who were asked about their phone habits, self-control, internet addiction, etc. The majority of the participants answered that whenever they feel “phubbed” they think they have the right to phub back. This leads to a domino effect where we see everyone looking like the tech zombies in the picture above.

Our phones are not only making us anti-social, but they’re also hurting out bodies. They are affecting the way we think, sleep, and act around others. The video below gives a good explanation of some of the few ways are phones are changing us.

However they might be some hope for out phone addictions. Journalists Shara Tibken and Marguerite Reardon reported on the CNET, that Apple will release an iOS 12 software that will help track how much time you are using your phone, which apps consume the most time, and you can set a cut off time for yourself. 

So it looks like there will be some hope for all of us after all.

Credit:

Beck, J. (2016, June 14). Ignoring People for Phones Is the New Normal. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2016/06/ignoring-people-for-phones-is-the-new-normal-phubbing-study/486845/

Haraway, D. (2006). A cyborg manifesto: Science, technology, and socialist-feminism in the late 20th century. In The international handbook of virtual learning environments (pp. 117-158). Springer, Dordrecht.

Reardon, M.  Tibken, S. (2018, June 04). Kick your iPhone addiction with iOS 12 update. Retrieved from https://www.cnet.com/news/apple-helps-you-kick-iphone-addiction-with-ios-12/

[biotechqueen-blog]

My hair fresh off the runway, thanks to my hair products!

Hair flips for days.

Everyone with hair has hair products. Hell, some people who don’t even hair still probably have some hair product in they bathroom.

I only have a few hair products (surprising for a woman, right? Well we aren’t all the same. Just for your information.)

I use a special shampoo and conditioner from the brand PURA D'OR  that has ingredients in order to help my hair grow and become thicker. After I wash my hair, I usually spray my wet hair with John Frieda Styling Spray - Dream Curls in order for my natural curls to scrunch up more once my hair dries. The only other hair product I use is IGK dry shampoo, for the days when my hair seems extra oily or flat from the workout I did the previous night. I usually wash and spray my hair every other day, and use dry shampoo maybe twice a week. 

I’m not embarrassed to say I started suffering from hair loss at 16 due to stress and PCOS. That’s why I don’t use a lot of products on my hair and I don’t use any heating tools on my hair. 

I think of hair products another part of the sticky web of culture. Because women and men often buy these products to temporarily make their hair look as good as possible as the individuals they see in movies, TV shows, and on runways. Every person in the world has some type of hair product, which shows just how big the web is.

Still, I try to achieve picture perfect hair, that is shiny and full of volume. Which is a bit harder as a woman losing hair. MEANWHILE, men don’t face harsh critiques when they lose hair. I mean just look at Prince William:

He started losing hair, but faced no harsh comments or unsolicited advice. Men losing hair also have a plethora of hair loss products. While women have to deal with nasty comments about their weak scalp and try to get their hands on anything that will stop the hair loss. 

You can see it these two links, one from Cosmo and the other from Buzzfeed, how men and women hair loss are dealt with differently. In the Cosmo article, which addresses woman hair loss, they place most of the fault on the female body and give pathetic solutions to how women can deal with it, like changing their diet. By the end of the article, a woman will still feel ugly and helpless. Meanwhile in the Buzzfeed article that deals with male hair loss, they are told of many ways like techniques and medicine to cure to the problem. Additionally, they are told that it’s okay to be losing hair because you still look good!

Additionally, a lot of hair products can damage an individuals hair as well. New York Times reported about the lack of regulation and care of these products and the ingredients inside them. A prime example was with the WEN hair product controversy, which had over 200 women sue the company due to severe hair loss. The FDA, instead of making WEN stopping all production, still let the hair products be sold and claim to be safe. Even after they received a ton of complaints from former WEN users.

Shows how much out government really care about the biotechnologies we use, huh?

Credits:

Brody, J. E. (2017, August 07). For Cosmetics, Let the Buyer Beware. Retrieved June 11, 2018, from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/07/well/for-cosmetics-let-the-buyer-beware.html

[biotechqueen-blog]

Metformin Pills and their relevancy to the Queen

You have no idea how much I hate these pills.

Just to give to background about this medication, metformin is a medication known for restraining hunger, controlling high blood sugar, and decreases the amount of sugar that your liver makes. Metformin is usually used to treat type 2 diabetes and prevent women with PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome) to develop diabetes in the future.

I was diagnosed with PCOS when I was 17, and have been taking the medication ever since. I take two tablets every night before I go to bed, for almost 4 years now. My doctor told me it was supposed to control my hunger, because women with PCOS are known to gain weight faster than most women and of course develop diabetes quicker.

I hate taking these pills, but its necessary in order to control the PCOS and hopefully prevent the development of diabetes.

I’m not alone when it comes to being a woman with PCOS, and who takes metformin as the first medication to treat (more like control) for the syndrome. 

If you want to learn more about PCOS, metformin, other ways PCOS is treated, and the stories of women who have the syndrome I recommend you visit this Buzzfeed article. It will tell you, the reader, what you should know about PCOS and what women who have it have to deal with. To see pictures on the effects it has to women’s bodies and life, you can click this link.

All in all, having PCOS and taking pills for it does make me feel abnormal in some way. Just like a misfit, as defined by Prof. Garland-Thomson, of individuals who don’t fit into a single box or space and instead are able to juxtapose their existence by attempting to “fit in”. Since I don’t fit into the category or typical women who get their periods naturally, who might have infertility issues, and who has to take medication probably for the rest of my like, I guess I’m proud to say I’m a misfit.

Well, it seem like this post will have some positive facts in it! Because according to an article by Raegan Linton, metformin might become not only a pill to help those afflicted with PCOS and diabetes, it might also be the first anti-aging drug! So that means that I might look young for a long time!

I’ll let you know how that goes.

Credit:

Garland-Thomson, R. (2011). Misfits: A feminist disability concept. Materialist. Hypatia, 26(3), 591-609.

Linton, R. (2017). Will Metformin Become the First Anti-Aging Drug?. Life Extension, 23(4), 60-68.

[biotechqueen-blog]

My lovely hoops and all the other earrings that pierce our ears

My earrings and hoops are always popping, okay boo?

It’s all part of my aesthetic. 

I own a wide range of earrings but my most classic pair are gold hoops. It is very rare to see me without earrings, it's usually an accessory I always have on me that can range from small studs, to sparkled out earrings, to my classic hoops. Everybody usually sees me with my hoops, and I love wearing them. I think of my gold hoop as a staple in the Latina wardrobe, an accessory that shows of your Latinaness and is loud and proud. I own several types of gold hoops that change in size and thickness. However even without my hoops, no one will ever catch me outside my home without some bling on my ears even if it’s a lazy Sunday. I enjoy to buy and wear earrings a lot, since they are my favorite type of jewelry.

(My always growing earring collection)

Being Latina (didn’t see that either, did ya reader?) I had a lot of Latina role models who influenced my love for classic hoops and other types of earrings. These include Jennifer Lopez, Ivy Queen, and the Queen herself, Selena Quintanilla:

Still there are negative characteristics when it comes to out hoops, especially when women of color wear them.

Everyone knows the classic, misogynistic saying “The bigger the hoop, the bigger the hoe”, or the negative connotation that ghetto, uneducated women of color wear hoops. By wearing my gold hoops, especially around campus, I want to think that am taking back the classic accessory and showing that these hoops don’t make me any less of a woman and that an accessory should not be a derogatory item for women.

However, when a white girl/woman wears them it’s a different story.

In the article by the ever so popular platform Vice, an anonymous author explained how hoop earrings is our latinx culture that isn’t disposable or for sale. It’s not up for white consumption, and we will never give up our favorite accessory. It represents more than people fail to recognize. 

Similarly, in an article of the New York Times, Sandra Garcia explains why she had quit hoops before she went off to college, fearing that she will look loud and ghetto. But she later writes about the on-going call out of cultural appropriation of hoops by white women, and how they get praised for starting a “trend” that is both “stylish” and “edgy”. (Garcia, 2018) This erases the women of color who wear them and the African history behind them, and perpetuated the dismissal of women of color to ugly stereotypes.

My earring and hoops act as an actant (defined in post about Yerba Mate), because they do give me a sense of pride and gratitude to my Latina roots and culture. Because not only do I feel like I identify as a proud, driven Latina but I am showing the world what being Latina represents to me.

So maybe think twice about wearing those hoops, okay hun? Especially if you identify as white.

Credit:

Garcia, S. E. (2018, January 11). Why I Can't Quit You, Hoops. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/11/style/hoop-earrings-identity.html

[biotechqueen-blog]

Don’t talk to me! Headphones in, everyone else OUT

Seriously, if you see me with my earbuds in I’m listening to music to AVOID YOU.

Headphones and earbuds have been revolutionary in the millennial generation, it’s a great device to help you ignore others and prevent any further communication than need be. 

I use headphones everyday, and several times a day in order to listen to my favorite rap albums, Latinx artists, podcasts, or watch my funny videos. I use my headphones in order to drown out the world around me and just focus on a sole thing which can either be the work in front of me or myself. 

My headphones are with me at all times, they're either in my pocket, my ears, or by my bedside. Headphones are the one thing I can never live without, I feel like they help me navigate my world from day to day as well as be a defense tool. They help me stay motivated and different environments such as when I go to the gym, I'm studying, or I need that last push when finishing a project.

(I know, sooo basic) 

But as a woman who often walks alone in the city, since my headphones are white, the contrast against my dark brown hair shows everybody that I am wearing them and that I am listening to loud music. Especially in San Francisco where the buses are always loud, the streets are always filled with people screaming or talking, and all the city noise in general, my headphones are my tool that I need in order to walk through the city. They are also my defense when it comes to men cat calling me or trying to get my attention. 

I can’t even remember all the times men have tried to get my attention or made inappropriate comments since I was 13 years old. Which is so, so disgusting, and I don’t think any woman is sparred from this. So, at least my headphones not only protect me from hearing all the crap men think they are entitled to tell me, they can also get the message that I am not listening to their irrelevant, small, ignorant comments because I have decided that my ears will listen to something that I want to hear.

That’s why I see my headphones being related to the term flux. Dr. Ellingson defines flux as how our bodies and minds can be productive and entangled in the surrounding world but also have a life of its own as it adapts and changes as a result of certain events. While this seems like it can lead to some serious chanced for embodiment, it there is never anything permanent that can happen to the body and all its other aspects. They simply are always becoming, which is something to be valued not degraded.

Our headphones interfere with how we connect with out environment, and helps us adapt differently than when we don’t have them in our ears. But its just a temporary fix that we get to choose when to listen to and how it affects our body.

I’m not the only one that thinks of headphones in this way. In an Refinery29 article, the author expresses concern fo the rise in popularity of bluetooth headphones/earbuds. Since they can either a small or no visible wire at all, this can prove a danger to women as Britni De La Cretaz explains:

“The impact that the loss of the visible white cords could have on women and other marginalized people who experience harassment on the street and use headphones much like a piece of armor, a layer of protection between us and the outside world when we’re navigating public space. That cord is a sign that we don’t want to be bothered. It sends the message that we don’t want to talk to you. And those wired earbuds drown out the unpleasantries that are often screamed at us when we’re just trying to walk to the train. (It’s much nicer to have Rihanna in our ears than lewd shouts about how nice our ass looks.)“

Yeah, it’s that serious. 

So while it may seem like this biotechnology is out knight in shining white wire, again we can’t completely trust it. 

Because this is something we are constantly putting in our ears, and using to blast sound into our ears at an extremely close proximity. 

Authors of “Study on headphone hearing loss prevention methods based on the melody structure of music on portable music player” Daiki Okabe and Yoshihisa Nakatoh, they tried to find a “safe” volume level that would not hurt or permanently damage a person’s hearing. The authors concluded that the structure of the music mattered much more than the volume. The stronger and curt the music, the more likely it would cause hearing damage. All done by the act of listening to our favorite artist by our earbuds.

Credit:

Ellingson, L. L. (2017). Embodiment in qualitative research. Taylor & Francis.

Okabe, Daiki & Nakatoh, Yoshihisa “Study on headphone hearing loss prevention methods based on the melody structure of music on portable music player.” (2018). 2018 IEEE International Conference on Consumer Electronics (ICCE), Consumer Electronics (ICCE), 2018 IEEE International Conference on, 1. doi:10.1109/ICCE.2018.8326297

[biotechqueen-blog]

Do I smell good? How perfumes help you smell like the flower everyone likes

I hope I do because perfumes are expensive.

Perfumes are an old but flourishing industry that continues to innovate with different essential oils, flowers, spices, etc.

I remember when Bath & Body Works became so popular when I was in middle school, with everyone buying and carrying a cheap perfume from the store. I cannot tell you how tired I am of their classic scent Sweet Pea. 

But alas, I still use perfume. 

I have six perfumes that I pick from every morning, some that I have bought for myself here in the U.S. or from European countries, and some that my mom has given me (there is no shame in getting free perfumes from you mother okay?). I use different perfumes everyday, before I leave my room/apartment. I usually spray it on my left and right side of my neck, and one spray on the center of my chest on top of my clothes. If the scent isn’t too strong, I’ll spray a little bit on one of my wrists and them rub both of them together.

I’m not ashamed to say that I’m self-conscious about the way I smell, so I think it’s an obligation for me to wear perfume. I think it's an obligation from society to wear perfume, especially for a fat woman in order to hide your natural scent, which might not always be pleasant to other people. I think it's really hard as a fat woman, that if you're already have the wrong body and then smell bad or become very sweaty like I do, it becomes a self-conscious thing.

But it also gets quite annoying to be expected to smell like a flower all. the. damn. TIME. Life happens okay? I sweat just like everyone else! But still, our society is obsessed with smelling good that there are even Buzzfeed quizzes to tell you what your “signature” scent should be (I dare you to take it, I got Jean Paul Gaultier Classique).

Yet, we still want to smell like flowers, spices, and all that other good stuff in order to feel normal. As described in the article “Becoming men: Gender, disability, and transitioning to adulthood”, the need to feel and looked at (or in this case smell) like a normal person reaffirms that other differences can’t marginalize you because you are sticking to a certain status quo.

This biotechnology can also demonstrate a certain status in our classist society. While everyone is expected to have some “decency” in wearing perfume in order to fit in, how much you pay for a perfume also matters. In a study conducted by Baer, Porcherot, Cayeux, Sander, and Delplanque, they gave their test subjects nine perfumes that ranged from luxury, non-luxury, or non-label. They were not told the identity of each one, just to pick which one they preferred. The majority of the participants preferred the luxurious perfumes, saying that the scents were familiar and pleasurable. 

So I guess everyone can tell the difference between Bath & Body Works or Chanel! Take notes people!

Credit:

Baer, T., Coppin, G., Porcherot, C., Cayeux, I., Sander, D., & Delplanque, S. (2018). “Dior, J’adore”: The role of contextual information of luxury on emotional responses to perfumes. Food Quality And Preference, 6936-43. doi:10.1016/j.foodqual.2017.12.003

Gibson, B. E., Mistry, B., Smith, B., Yoshida, K. K., Abbott, D., Lindsay, S., & Hamdani, Y. (2014). Becoming men: Gender, disability, and transitioning to adulthood. Health:, 18(1), 95-114.

[biotechqueen-blog]

I need my nails on fleek and you need to know about nail polish

Ahh my nails, how I love them so. Aren’t you surprise by all the beauty stuff that I am talking about on this channel? Well, thats because they’re all biotechnologies, honey. Just thought you should use a friendly reminder. 

Well let’s get into it with the nail polish! 

I interact with nail polish weekly, since I love to have my nails painted at all times. I like to naturally grow my nails to have them so long they almost look fake, and like to keep them painted with some of my favorite colors than can range from classic black, a berry plum, or a simple nude. I usually paint my own nails, since going to the salon is very expensive, and like to decorate my nails either with gemstones or some simple drawing. I have a huge collection of nail polishes, obsessing over having the latest colors as well as restocking on my favorites.

Here is just a look of my nails that look so on fleek:

While nail polish can still look like the traditional oppressive item for women, since according to the female norms of looking pretty, having a feminine manicure is part of the package. Well, in our modern age, we are making nail polish into a more versatile and and feminist product. Not only do women (and men too!) focus on getting and creating nail that look menacing, there are women out there who are creating nail polishes that will look out for women.

As reported by The Independent, the company Undercover Colors have designed a nail polish that will detect a date rape drug in a drink. So how does it work? A woman should be wearing the nail polish and with the dunk of one of her fingers, if the color of the polish changes that mean it has tested positive for a date rape drug in her drink. This invention can help prevent sexual assault for women across the world, who want to go out without having to worry about getting assaulted. Versatile nail polish for the win!

As you will read in the post above about normalization, nail polish could be considered a product women choose to buy in order to fit in. There is no denying that one of the assigned gender norms for women is to keep nails pretty, well-manicured, and painted. Or else, they might be looked down upon by men and judged by other women. 

Well folks, sadly this post about nail polish can’t be a good. 

In the article “The effect of nail polish on pulse oximetry readings” by Yönt Hakverdioğlu, Korhan Akin, and B. Dizer, nail polish can be harmful to the body that we don’t think about when we go to get that fresh manicure. Out bodies have something called pulse oximetry, which “utilise the pulsatile nature of arterial blood flow to distinguish it from venous flow and estimate oxygen saturation in arterial blood.” (Akin, Dizer, & Hakverdioğlu, 2014) Different color nail polishes could affect the oximeter, that could lead to a wrong reading of oxygen saturation levels. At the end of their research they found that out that only red nail polish would not modify the reading level. Meaning every other color could potentially have an affect in the reading. 

Worrisome isn’t it? 

Credit:

Hakverdioğlu Yönt, G., Akin Korhan, E., & Dizer, B. (2014). Original article: The effect of nail polish on pulse oximetry readings. Intensive & Critical Care Nursing, 30111-115. doi:10.1016/j.iccn.2013.08.003

[biotechqueen-blog]

I need skincare, you need skincare, EVERYONE NEEDS SKINCARE

Well not really, you should use skincare if you want to. 

But we can’t deny the booming industry that in skincare, because people are trying to achieve the perfect, glass, no-acne skin. I personally still suffer from acne at 21 years old, as well as having skin discoloration and scars. 

My bulk of my skin care routine is at night, where I start with micellar water to remove my makeup, and then a peach facial scrub for acne and to clean out impurities and blackheads. Then I put on witch hazel rose petal toner, moisturizer, face oil, and lastly acne solution for pimples. It doesn’t take me to long to do all of this, and if I go to bed without doing any of this, it will literally keep me up at night. After completing this process, I feel clean and rejuvenated, as if I washed off the day from my face.

I have a simple morning skincare routine which consists of washing my face with an expensive soap that is suppose to help with skin discoloration and scars, and the I moisturize with face cream so my face is hydrated before I do my makeup.

While there is a plethora of skin care products for every need a person could imagine, this set a standard for skin that may not achievable by everybody. Everyone has different skin needs and issues. So we all can’t look the same, honey. Still our superficial society looks down at people who don’t have perfect skin and makes those individuals think there is something wrong with them, 

Take the case of makeup artist Kadeeja Khan, who was dropped from a L’Oreal photo shoot and campaign for a new product, because the company does not associate itself with individuals with “skin issues”. Khan suffers from constant cystic acne but has learned to love her skin no matter what, as told in the article by Allure. Khan still spoke up against L’Oreal, who claimed that the makeup company only want to work with individuals with perfect skin, which “isn’t real”. Khan went so far in telling L’Oreal that they are perpetuating an image of perfect beauty that can’t be achieved. 

Kadeeja Khan is a real Queen after calling out a company as big as L’Oreal. Keep on slaying Queen Khan. 

Khan is not alone in her struggle. As the New York Times reporter Andrea Chang reported, there is an ongoing online movement in order to normalize acne-prone skin. In her article “Is Acne Cool Now?”, Cheng describes to her reader the struggles people with acne prone skin, who not only face social rejection but are more likely to develop depression, a 63% higher chance to be exact. (Khan, 2018) Even though there are upward of 40 to 50 million Americans who suffer from acne, out society still idolizes the small percentage of individuals who have perfect skin and push all the skin care products down people throat who have “imperfect” skin. That’s why an online movement like this is so necessary. 

Furthermore, skincare can be see as a part of the sticky web of culture. Why? Because of the constant status quo on having perfect skin and the pressure to use skincare products in order to modify our faces, but its all temporary. The social construct of perfect, glass skin sees our skin as discursive if we do not follow the crowd.

Whether you accept your skin or not, or chose to use skincare of not, it is up to you. 

Credit:

Cheng, A. (2018, May 28). Is Acne Cool Now? Retrieved June 11, 2018, from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/28/style/is-acne-cool-now.html?rref=collection/column/skin-deep&action=click&contentCollection=fashion®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=2&pgtype=collection