"Nearly all new kitchens around here have steam ovens, " says Ms. Moosbrugger, 57, who sees the appliance as a low-fat alternative to the frying pan.

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Of course, the only real alternative to being fat, sleepy and useless in the living room is to actually get out of the house and do some early holiday shopping with the masses.

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Biofuels made from algae can be produced in a way that make this energy source cost-competitive with crude oil by increasing the amount of energy algae stores as fat, according to early research from VG Energy, an alternative energy and agricultural biotech company.

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Axona contains FDA-approved food additives and a special formulation of a fat called caprylic triglyceride, which Accera says provides the brain an alternative energy source to glucose called ketones after the product is metabolized by the liver.

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Congress also needs to fix looming problems with the Alternative Minimum Tax, a complicated shadow tax system originally designed to nail fat cats.

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