Balanced Living

May 2007

Why go smoke-free?

May 31st, 2007 is World
"No Tobacco" Day

Tobacco is the second major cause of death in the world. It is well known that half the people who smoke regularly today - about 650 million people - will eventually be killed by tobacco. Equally alarming is the fact that hundreds of thousands of people who have never smoked die each year from diseases caused by breathing second-hand tobacco smoke.

Reasons to go 100% smoke-free:

• Second-hand tobacco smoke kills and causes serious illnesses.
• 100% smoke-free environments fully protect workers and the public from the serious harmful effects of tobacco smoke.
• The right to clean air, free from tobacco smoke, is a human right.
• Most people in the world are non-smokers and have a right not to be exposed to other people's smoke.
• Surveys show that smoking bans are widely supported by both smokers and non-smokers.
• Smoke-free environments are good for business, as families with children, most non-smokers and even smokers often prefer to go to smoke-free places.
• Smoke-free environments provide the many smokers who want to quit with a strong incentive to cut down or stop smoking altogether.
• Smoke-free environments help prevent people - especially the young - from starting to smoke.
• Smoke-free environments cost little and they work!

For more information:
https://fhahelps.personaladvantage.com/logon?target=smoking
http://www.who.int/tobacco/en/

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You Can Stave Off Osteoporosis

May is National Osteoporosis
Awareness and Prevention Month

Like the trunk and branches of a tree that decide its size and shape, your bones give form to your body.

They also protect your organs and support your muscles, helping you move through life. Take care of your bones with proper diet and exercise, as well as with the right vitamin and mineral supplements. When you do, you keep your skeleton strong and healthy, heading off osteoporosis and fractures.

Day in and day out, your body exchanges calcium between your bones and your blood stream. However, by your late 20s, you've reached the peak of your bone mass, which begins to ebb slowly in your 30s as more bone tissue is lost than restored. In time, this could lead to osteoporosis, a condition marked by weak bone and caused by a loss of bone mass, as well as by a change in bone structure, according to the American College of Rheumatology (ACR).

About 10 million Americans have osteoporosis, and 80 percent of them are women, the National Osteoporosis Foundation says. About 34 million more have below-normal bone density that has not reached the level of osteoporosis. Women are more likely than men to develop osteoporosis, in part because men have larger, stronger bones.

Both men and women older than 50 are at the greatest risk for developing osteoporosis, the ACR says. One in two women and one in six men in this age group will fracture a bone because of osteoporosis. Ethnic group also plays a role: People who are white or Asian are more likely to develop osteoporosis than people who are Hispanic or African American.

Besides older age and ethnic background, these are risks factors that increase your chances for developing osteoporosis, according to the ACR:

• Small bone structure
• Family history of osteoporosis
• Previous fracture, especially after age 50
• Being postmenopausal
• Anorexia nervosa
• Cigarette smoking
• Alcohol abuse
• Not getting adequate amount of calcium and vitamin D
• Sedentary lifestyle
• Certain medications, including glucocorticoids, thyroid hormone replacement and epilepsy drugs

Diagnosing osteoporosis
If your health care provider suspects that you have osteoporosis, a simple, painless test to measure bone mineral density can confirm it. The test is called dual energy X-ray absorptiometry, or DEXA. If you are diagnosed with osteoporosis, a number of medications are available to treat it, including bisphosphonates and calcitonin. Talk to your provider about the type of treatment that's best for you.

Preventing osteoporosis
You can take steps to help prevent osteoporosis:

• Get 1,000 to 1,500 mg of calcium each day.
• Get 400 to 800 international units of vitamin D each day.
• Quit smoking.
• Don't overindulge in alcohol.
• Talk to your health care provider about medical conditions or medications you take that could put you at risk for osteoporosis.

Exercises to build your bones
Any weight-bearing activity helps build bones. But weightlifting does the most to prevent osteoporosis over time "because it increases your strength and muscle mass, as well as bone density," says Timothy G. Lohman, Ph.D., exercise physiology core director at Arizona Health Sciences Center. He recommends that you:

• Talk with your doctor. Do this before you start any exercise program. Ask about consulting a physical therapist or trainer to help you make the most of your workout.
• Schedule 30 minutes a day, two to three times a week. Anything less won't work your bones hard enough. But don't overdo it: Ask your doctor about your workout's intensity.
• Warm up. Do light aerobic exercises and easy stretches for seven to 10 minutes before your workout to avoid injury.
• Focus on the hip, spine, and lower back. These are the main fracture sites. "The leg press, squats and lunges are all good."
• Do fewer reps at heavier weights. "If you can barely do two sets of six to eight reps, you're at the right weight," says Dr. Lohman. He suggests 20 to 25 minutes of weight training.
• Gradually add to that weight. Determine the highest number of reps you can do or the most weight you can lift. Then shoot for 70 to 80 percent of that maximum capability.
• Do cardio weight-bearing exercises. To head off osteoporosis, row, bike, hike or dance for at least seven to 10 minutes of your workout. Double that if you want an aerobic workout.
• Cool down. Repeat your warm-up routine for about five minutes, to shift your body back to relative inactivity.

For more information:
https://fhahelps.personaladvantage.com/logon?target=content?sub=10000300
http://www.nof.org

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Blood Pressure Rising
Among Children

May is National High Blood
Pressure Education Month

The next time you hear folks talking about their blood pressure, take a look. They may be kids. Yes, children can have high blood pressure, and experts say the number of kids with the problem is on the rise. "We estimate about 10 percent of children between 2 and 18 have high blood pressure," says pediatric heart specialist Reginald Washington, M.D., co-chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Task Force on Obesity. "A lot of these kids have not even been diagnosed."

High blood pressure has joined type 2 diabetes and high cholesterol on a list of ailments that once struck only adults but now afflict children. "We believe we'll see heart disease and stroke at earlier ages if we can't get this under control," Dr. Washington warns.

The increase in children with high blood pressure is directly tied to lifestyle, though genetics plays a role. Watch children for these risk factors:

• Being overweight or obese
• Poor nutrition (too much food high in fat and sodium with little nutritional value)
• Lack of physical activity
• Smoking
• Family history of high blood pressure

"The majority of kids don't need to be put on medication," Dr. Washington notes. "Easily, 80 percent of the kids I see for high blood pressure can do well with lifestyle changes alone.

"Riding a bike is good exercise, but riding a bike across the street to your friend's house to play video games does not constitute exercise," he adds. "Kids need a total of 60 minutes of exercise daily."

You can help get your children moving by limiting time for TV watching and video games. Some kids, Dr. Washington says, go three or four days without eating any fruit or vegetable except french fries. "Kids need a minimum of five servings of fruits and vegetables daily."

For more information:
https://fhahelps.personaladvantage.com/logon?target=content?sub=10000161
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov

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Is Your Child Depressed?

Children's Mental Health Week is May
6th through 12th, 2007

Depression is more than feeling down or having a bad day. It's different from feelings of grief or sorrow that follow a major loss, such as a death in the family. It's not a personal weakness or a character flaw. Children and teens with clinical depression cannot simply “snap out of it.”

Depression is a serious health problem that affects feelings, thoughts and actions, and can appear as a physical illness. As many as one in eight teens and one in 33 children have clinical depression. Fortunately, depression in youth is treatable.

Signs of Depression

• Persistent sadness
• Withdrawal from family, friends and activities that were once enjoyed
• Increased irritability or agitation
• Changes in eating and sleeping habits (e.g., significant weight loss, insomnia, excessive sleep)
• Frequent physical complaints, such as headaches and stomachaches
• Lack of enthusiasm or motivation
• Decreased energy level and chronic fatigue
• Play that involves excessive aggression toward self or others, or that involves persistently sad themes
• Indecision, lack of concentration or forgetfulness
• Feelings of worthlessness or excessive guilt
• Recurring thoughts of death or suicide

What Can Parents and Other Adults Do if They Suspect a Child May Have Depression?

• Know the warning signs for depression, and note the duration, frequency, and severity of troubling behavior.
• Get accurate information from libraries, hotlines, the Internet, and other sources.
• Take the child to see a mental health professional or doctor for evaluation and diagnosis if he or she is exhibiting several of the warning signs. The evaluation may include psychological testing, laboratory tests, and consultation with other specialists.
• Ask questions about treatments and services. A comprehensive treatment plan may include psychotherapy, ongoing evaluation, and, in some cases, medication. Optimally, the treatment plan is developed with the family, and whenever possible, the child.
• Talk to other families in your community or find a family network organization.

For more information:
http://www.ffcmh.org

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When You Can Handle Your
Own Personal Injury Claim

With basic information about how the accident claims process works, a bit of organization, and a little patience, you may be able to handle your own personal injury claim without a lawyer -- and without your insurance company unfairly denying or reducing your compensation. If so, you can wind up with considerably more compensation for your injury because, you won't have to pay costly lawyers' fees.

Types of claims you can often handle on your own include those involving:

• Automobile, cycle, or pedestrian accidents
• Slip or trip and fall accidents
• Home accidents, and
• Accidents with defective products.

Of course, there are times when a lawyer's services can be helpful or even necessary, especially in situations involving severe or permanently disabling injuries and certain types of complicated accidents, such as those involving medical malpractice or toxic exposure. But because of the four following reasons, in many cases you can represent yourself.

The Claims Process Is Simple
Despite what the insurance industry and some lawyers would like you to think, settling an injury claim with an insurance company is usually quite simple. Most claims involve no more than a few short letters and phone calls with an insurance adjuster who has no legal training, so you don't need to know technical language or complex legal rules. In fact, your right to be compensated often depends on nothing more than commonsense observations about who was careful and who wasn't, and how serious your injuries are.

The Compensation System Is Structured
The amount of fair compensation in any given case does not come out of a crystal ball that only lawyers and insurance companies know how to read. Rather, a number of simple factors -- type of accident, injuries, medical costs, etc. -- go into figuring how much any claim is worth. The amount an insurance company will be willing to pay usually falls into a fairly narrow range, whether or not a lawyer handles your claim for you.

You Know Your Claim Best
You know better than anyone else -- insurance adjuster or attorney -- how your accident happened. You were there; they weren't. And, you know best what injuries you suffered and what your physical condition and other circumstances have been since. Usually, these are the most important things to understand when settling an injury claim.

You Can Save Money On Legal Fees
Except in serious or complicated cases, a lawyer is usually able to negotiate for you only an extra 10% to 25% above what you can obtain for yourself, once you understand the claims process. But, a lawyer will take 33% to 40% of your recovery as a fee, and in addition charge you for "costs" -- charges for administrative services, such as making copies and holding conference calls, plus any fees associated with a lawsuit, which lawyers sometimes begin sooner than necessary. Subtract the lawyer's fees and costs from the extra amount of the settlement a lawyer might get, and you'll see how much better you can do on your own.

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Fighting High Energy Costs as
the Temperature Heads Upward

While fuel prices may not be as high now as they have been in recent months, most energy experts agree that the days of under-$2-a-gallon gasoline and heating bills that don't require oxygen before opening are far, far away.

The way you deal with higher costs for transportation and utilities shouldn't be an afterthought. The current energy environment is an opportunity for permanent changes in the way you manage energy spending throughout your life. Some ideas:

Start thinking about alternative energy vehicles. There's a healthy debate about whether hybrid vehicles and the coming generation of flex-fuel vehicles (those capable of running on gasoline and ethanol blends) are good investments. The answer comes down to the individual vehicle and your driving habits. Some argue that you're better off going with a sub-compact traditional fuel vehicle than a hybrid on a pure price basis, but this year, the federal government has offered some help in the form of income tax credits for hybrids placed in service in or after 2006. Some state and local governments are doing so as well. Go to www.irs.gov for more information on the federal tax credits (they vary by vehicle model) and check your state or city revenue department website for any local information. Beyond that, assess an alternative energy vehicle on the same points you would any other car you've purchased. Consult various consumer resources on service records and maintenance costs, and check to see how much the vehicle will cost to insure in your area.

Drive smart in the meantime. Even in the winter, you don't need to leave a car running for more than a minute to get it ready to drive, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. To be safe, check your owner's manual. Experts advise you to drive slower, use air conditioning only when necessary, and consider public transit or carpooling. Other ideas: Clean out the trunk (extra weight cuts gas mileage) and make sure your tire pressure is correct.

Consider a gasoline budget. Is every car trip necessary? If you typically spend $120 a month on gasoline, set a budget of $100 and see what you can cut to make it. Consider carpooling, public transportation, walking, or even the family bicycle if you get close to the budget amount.

Consider a budget plan for your utilities. Most utilities feature some sort of budget plan to help homeowners even out their monthly electric and fuel heating bills through the year. Yet know that the utility is in the driver's seat - it will estimate your usage for the next 12 months and assign you a monthly payment. Talk with a local utilities watchdog group about potential problems with that plan. Other tactics: Try and shift your dishwasher and laundry usage to the off-peak hours in the evening and wait to use them until you have a full load. Also, if you really think bills are going sky-high in the winter but you don't want to do the budget plan, overpay your heating bill during the summer months.

Turn down the wattage. If you replace four 75-watt or 100-watt standard light bulbs in your home with 23-watt compact fluorescent bulbs, the Energy Department says you'll get as much light as the higher-wattage bulbs but save 69 percent in electricity costs. Assuming the lights burn more than four hours a day, the savings can add up to roughly $200 a year.

Rethink the whole driving vacation thing. If you still believe that driving to a destination is the cheapest way to run a family vacation, you might want to consider air travel. Don't forget to consider the cost of renting a car at your destination.

Get a programmable thermostat. If you're not able to discipline yourself to keep your thermostat low in the winter and high in the summer, you might want to consider a programmable thermostat that automatically adjusts your home temperature based on time of day. It'll cost you roughly $50 if you install it yourself.

Get friendly with your water heater. Some water heaters are preset by manufacturers to about 140 degrees Fahrenheit and very few consumers ever touch that setting. However, the Energy Department considers 120 degrees enough for safe dishwashing and comfortable showers.