Miscellaneous | Understanding Diseases and Health

Knowing When to Look for Senior/Elder Care

December 30, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image by augieray via Flickr

As parents get older, one of the most difficult decisions many families have to make is about long term care. Should you try to care for them yourself? What about medical or nursing care? Will they be happier in a retirement community of some kind? How do you make decisions if parents are no longer competent to decide for themselves? What if siblings also disagree? There are many factors to consider. Fortunately, there are also many options available on the market, and with the right information, you can very likely find one that’s right for your situation.

The degree of care required will depend a lot on the specific details of the situation. Maybe your parents just need someone to come in and take care of certain household chores, and perhaps aid in meal preparation. Maybe they simply need to move to a home that’s all on one level. Some medical conditions can be adequately cared for by an in-home nurse who only stops by a few times a week. All of these options are available through a variety of in-home service providers, independent living retirement communities, and so forth.

Generally, there are five types of nursing-home care; each is treated differently by insurance coverage, veteran’s benefits, and so forth. There’s skilled-plus care, skilled nursing care, intermediate care, custodial care, and terminal care. The names are more or less self-descriptive; skilled-plus care involved intensive medical case management, and skilled nursing care is less involved, but still includes highly trained medical professionals. Intermediate care helps someone transition from an acute care situation, such as a hospitalization, back to normal life. Custodial care is for long term cases, such as a parent who can’t be safely cared for at home. Terminal care is, as described, for those with terminal illnesses. Senior/elder care decisions are difficult, but many solutions are out there.

Filed Under: General, Health Care, Miscellaneous Tagged With: Assisted living, Home care, Long-term care, Nursing care

Campbell Soup Gets On Board With Voluntary Program

November 19, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image via Wikipedia

Recently, the Food Marketing Institute and the Grocery Manufacturer’s Association have been working together to encourage food manufacturing companies to improve the nutritional labels featured on food packaging. The initiative calls for companies to volunteer to place nutrition labels on the front of the packaging to better help consumers locate the information they need to know about the food choices they are making.

Campbell Soup Company issued a statement in response to the program and has stepped up to become one of the first food manufacturers to get on board with the program. Campbell is a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and the Standard & Poor’s 500. It manufacturers high-quality foods for a global market, and its products include baked snacks, soups, beverages, and sauces.

The company, which began in 1869, has some of today’s top name brands in its portfolio. These include Campbell’s, Arnott’s, V8, and Pepperidge Farm. As a company, Campbell strives to provide social responsibility at the corporate level, which is it doesn’t surprise experts in the industry that the company will take on the new program. Not only will the company be incorporating new labels, it will also work with staff, retailers, and distributors to educate them on the nutritional aspects of the foods they work with every day.

During the announcement, the executive vice president and COO of the company, Denise Morrison, expressed her company’s belief on the issue. Campbell thinks that people should be able to make healthy choices while shopping, and they should be able to understand the choices they make when they are shopping. The food manufacturing company plans to have the new labels in place beginning in 2011.

The new labels will work off a fact-based system and will provide information similar to what consumers can find on current nutrition labels. With the new design, the organizations behind the initiative hope consumers will better be able to understand the food choices they make.

Filed Under: Health Care, Miscellaneous Tagged With: Campbell Soup Company, Chief operating officer, Dow Jones Sustainability Index, Food, Food Marketing Institute, Nutrition, Pepperidge Farm, S&P 500

The Benefits of Green tea

October 21, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

Infomercials selling exercise equipment, juicers, and diet plans; doctors’ offices with waiting rooms full of patients; gyms selling memberships…..what do they all have in common? They are just a few of the evidences that people want to be healthy. Do you know of anyone who wants to be sick and loves feeling terrible? Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is something that is important to all of us, whether we realize it or not. Yet most of us find it hard to take those difficult steps that are involved in replacing our bad habits with good ones. The result is the unfortunate increase in disease and, as a result, in our spending on medical intervention for healthcare. Take for example the way most of us start our day. Most of us begin our day with a cup of tea or coffee. If you opt for coffee, caffeine can cause problems. If you add cream and real sugar, it is worse. But the beginning of the day is the perfect starting place for making our health a priority. We love our early morning brew, so why not switch to something that will benefit our health and still give us that hot morning wake up? Nothing meets that criteria like green tea.

Green tea has been used by the Chinese since ancient times to cure everything from depression to skin problems. Green tea is rich in antioxidants and is a great alternative to coffee when you are starting the day. Studies have shown that the benefits of green tea are numerous. Green tea helps to reduce cholesterol, reduces the chances of developing cancer, helps fight against rheumatoid arthritis and cardiovascular diseases, and the list goes on.

The Chinese have been using green tea for more than three thousand five hundred years. Green tea is rich in a compound known as epigallocatechin gallate, also known as EGCG, which is a strong anti oxidant. People who drink green tea also find it easier to use calories and even have lower incidence of heart diseases. The benefits of green tea are numerous; it even helps fight tooth decay. The only known negative aspect of green tea is that it contains caffeine; still, the amount of caffeine that is present in green tea is far less than the amount of caffeine that is present in coffee or soda.

There is even an ancient Chinese proverb that sings praise of the wonders of green tea which says, “Better to be deprived of food for three days, than tea for one.” If you have a cupboard full of coffee and are tempted to “put off until tomorrow what you can begin today,” and you are waiting for your next paycheck to come in, you can opt for a cash advance on your paycheck or even inquire about a payday loan. A cash advance can enable to you to head to the grocery store today to stock up on the more beneficial morning brew—green tea. So switch to green tea today; it’s the healthier way to start your day!

Filed Under: Miscellaneous

Sneak More Nutrition Into Your Diet

August 13, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image via Wikipedia

Diets are extremely varied throughout the world but one thing that is becoming more common is the lack of variety within the diets of the first world nations. With many people turning to prepackaged foods as well as many other processed foods, white flour, sugar, sodium, and fat have become staples, eliminating or at least drastically cutting the amount of multi-colored vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains from their diets. What fruits, vegetables, and meats that are being eaten are genetically modified and hormonally injected. Modern food is not the same today as it was many years ago. Even a common apple is much larger, and more “perfect looking” than a predecessor from 40 years ago, but many people will tell you that the modern apple probably has half the flavor as well. As such, many vital nutrients are lacking from the modern diet.

With malnourishment being an issue, especially among people who are anything but undernourished, changes are appropriate. There are plenty of ways to increase the nutrients you intake. Drastic, major changes are not the only way to supplement your diet either. Baby steps are easy ways to incorporate change without feeling like you have turned your world upside down. You may find that you won’t only enjoy some of the changes, but you will feel infinitely better physically, emotionally, and mentally as well.

Vitamins are a great place to start. A daily multivitamin can fill in a lot of nutritional holes right away. It is easy to pop one pill in the morning with your breakfast and feel the boost right away. The more nutrients in your breakfast, the better your vitamin will be absorbed as the nutrients will “piggyback” their way into your system.

Juicing is another painless way to start packing more nutrients into your system. High quality juicers can be found online and in stores starting in the one hundred dollar range. Fresh juice is not only delicious, but you will feel the pep immediately. If you don’t want to buy a juicer, many grocery stores and juice counters have great options available too.

Filed Under: Health, Health Care, Miscellaneous, Sanitation Tagged With: Multivitamin, Nutrients, Vegetable, Vitamin

Find Common Sense When You Merge With History’s Opinions

August 10, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image via Wikipedia

Listening to modern trends is natural, but what about considering the different thoughts of the past? Is there any credence to combining what different forms of “common sense” were and are? Being a larger woman was considered beautiful by many cultures but as Europe evolved, possessing an hour glass figure was considered more and more attractive and desirable. From China to the Pacific Islands to Europe, “Rubenesque” (or full figured women) represented fertility and an abundance of resources. Women who were fuller figured were most often the wives or consorts of the most powerful and wealthy men, which meant that they were representations of never having to go without.

Today, being slender represents abundance and beauty throughout most of the modern world. In some parts of the world like Africa and with many different tribes of native islanders, being fuller figured is still what is considered physically desirable in a woman. As most health professionals prescribe, gaining a bit of weight is healthy for a woman who is pregnant or who is nursing.

Today’s standards and the extreme route that are taken to be or appear slim despite natural circumstances have a debilitating mental and emotional effect on women who are doing what is naturally healthy. With modern fads are aligning with being of a lesser weight, there have been many other methods that have sprung up in the last century and particularly the last few years in the quest of thinness. From no fat (totally lean proteins and free reign on carbs) to low carbs (fats being fine, just no sugars or starches no matter how natural), what’s a person to do with today’s advice? Common sense dictates that one should eat a diet with a good balance of healthy fats, proteins, and carbohydrates and include vegetables as a major dietary contributor. Having a plate full of food that is as unprocessed as possible is a good indicator of its health. Many colors in the contents (unprocessed of course) is also a good meter. Fads come and go but being balanced will keep you running happily for years.

Filed Under: Diseases, Health, Health Care, Miscellaneous Tagged With: Carbohydrate, Dieting, Weight loss

Instinctive Eating

August 6, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image by daftgirly via Flickr

If you’ve been trying to shed a few pounds, you may feel like you’ve hit a brick wall. Everyone knows that what you eat and how active you are can have a huge impact, but there are other factors in play as well. One can feel very lost when trying to find a balance and type of diet that feels appropriate. Perhaps the knowledge of what is in your personal best interest, lies within you.

Some people eat chicken wings with bleu cheese dressing and celery sticks and drop loads of weight (as long as they avoid the carbs). But as soon as they find their ideal weight, they balloon back up to their original weight or even higher. Some people monitor every calorie and keep it under a certain number, regardless of the actual food they eat, and have the pounds shed themselves that way. Others seem to eat what they want when they want to, and the pounds either come off or they maintain their weight. Those are just a few of the current standards and it is not even accounting for vegetarian and vegan diets, organic diets, macrobiotic diets, and the like. Even researching a single, supposedly healthy ingredient online will pull up many different studies that completely contradict one another. Looking around at people you know who have successfully taken some weight off can be confusing as well, as their diet plans will seem contradictory too. What is a person do to?

More people are beginning to experiment with getting more in tune with their bodies. Many are finding great success in looking and feeling the way they want to while not experiencing such struggle and emotional turmoil. What if you body is craving an item because it contains chemicals, nutrients, minerals, or complexes that your body needs to run its best? It’s easy to assume that our scientific and medical community has reached its highest pinnacle possible, but when in centuries past when demons were held responsible for physical ailments, the same was thought then. Perhaps we can’t prove scientifically what our bodies innately understand.

Filed Under: Epidemic, Health, Health Care, Miscellaneous Tagged With: Dieting, Support Groups, Vegetarianism, Weight loss

Brighten Your Mood, Boost Your Energy, Drop Some Pounds

August 1, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image via Wikipedia

There are several crazy diet fads out there, but there are also some tips that celebrities and every day people have come up with to help them get through their day. Healthy diets are important, but everyone can use extra help sometimes. Here are a few diet and exercise “cheats” that can give you an upper edge without going to extremes.

When do you feel most energetic? When does your energy drop? Do you take a coffee break at 3pm only to crash at 4pm? Perhaps you need to tweak your rhythm. Eat healthy, full meals that appeal to you. You need to be comfortably full and satiated, but not stuffed. You will move more throughout your day and your mood will be higher.

If you have a craving for sugar or are just munchy without being actually hungry, try chewing some gum if appropriate. If you have an office or private working space, bubble gum is even better. Choose a sugarless variety that is beneficial for your teeth. People who chew gum actually get higher test scores as it sharpens your mental faculties. The burst of sweetness, the fun and pep of blowing some bubbles, and the sharpness of mind will give you a pick up. If you are attending a setting where there is a lot of food being served and you don’t want to overeat, eat what you have decided to eat, and then discreetly pop a piece of chewing gum. Having the gum in your mouth will help you from inadvertently grazing and the taste sensation will help you feel like you aren’t being deprived. It will also freshen your breath, clean your teeth, improve your digestion, and burn more calories!

For your afternoon slump, pack some almonds and a banana. You will get a great energy burst from the banana’s B vitamins and natural sugars without a candy bar’s crash. If you can, take a brisk walk or do some jumping jacks. With oxygen in your system, you will be alert and alive. You could even take a quick dancing break to bring back your mojo!

Filed Under: Doctors Notes, Health Care, Miscellaneous Tagged With: Chewing gum, Food and Related Products, Pop music, Vitamin

Getting Prescriptions for Less

June 30, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image via Wikipedia

Millions of Americans rely on prescription drugs to keep their bodies healthy and well. The cost of prescription medications has gone through the roof lately, and many suspect it will continue to climb. Some manufacturers have raised medication costs to offset lost income due to the recession. While it seems a vicious cycle, there is light at the end of the tunnel. By following a few pointers, you can get the prescriptions you need for free or for a much lower price.

At your next doctor’s visit, ask for free samples of your current and any new medications. When your doctor writes a prescription, ask him to allow for a generic medication in place of a name-brand one. Often times, generic products will cost you considerably less and work just as well. Some physicians and clinics have financial assistance programs to help you obtain the medications you need.

Many drug manufacturers offer programs to help patients who were laid off or who don’t have medical insurance with free prescriptions for up to a year. Pfizer offers some of its most commonly prescribed medications like Lipitor, Lyrica, Viagra, and Celebrex on its program. You must apply for the programs, and the company may ask for proof of employment termination, insurance availability, or income, dependent upon which business you work with. Manufacturer programs don’t usually apply to new prescriptions and are no longer in effect if you start getting health insurance coverage.

Some retailers offer a large amount of generic drugs for a very low amount. You can find prescriptions as low as $4. Check with your local pharmacies, even locally-owned, smaller pharmacies, as they may be competing with national retail programs, reducing the cost of some medications. When you do a little extra work, you can get the medications you need without breaking the bank.

Filed Under: Health, Miscellaneous Tagged With: Pharmaceutical drug, Pharmacy, Prescription drug

Clearing Your Credit Report

June 24, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

When you are getting mortgage rate quotes, one of the biggest things that will factor into the quote you get is your credit score. It doesn’t matter to banks if you are an honest hard working person. In today’s world that isn’t enough. Your credit report has to be good.

If you currently struggle with bad credit, know that you are not alone. Millions of people struggle with bad credit. Poor credit can affect your ability to purchase a home. If you need to clear up your credit quickly, there are ways to do it.

First thing you need to do is track down your credit report. This can be done through a variety of ways online. There you can see what is being reported about your credit. One of the things people don’t always realize is that there is often false information on your report. It happens a lot and people don’t do what is necessary to clear it up.

If you find that there is false information on your report, then what you need to do is write a letter to whichever of the three major credit bureaus is reporting the false information. Write the letter and include a copy of your drivers license and your social security card so they can verify your identity.

The credit bureaus will contact the places reporting the false information and those companies will have 30 days from that time to prove that the information is correct. If they cannot, it will be taken off your record.

Understand that this process is not an overnight fix. It could take a few months for it to be cleared from your record, but the result of that will be a credit report you can feel good about when heading to purchase a new home.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Credit score, Financial Services, Mortgage

Jewish Silversmiths: History and Today

June 15, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image via Wikipedia

Today, the price of silver plays is integral to Judaic law. The lowest amount that can be tried at Beth din – Jewish court – is 1/8 of a gram of silver at market price. However, silver has had a long and entwined history with Jewish culture that reaches far beyond measure.

A Pre-Historical Tradition

Many artifacts, such as utensils, ornaments and even clothing are found to have contained silver. During pre-historical times, jewelry was also predominantly made from silver goods. Religious artifacts at the time were generally made out of silver because of its malleable quality and its relative durability. Accordingly, silversmithing was a boon industry at the time.

The Middle to Dark Ages: Craftsmanship Spreads Across the Continent

During the 5th Century, Jewish slaves were brought to Europe, bringing with them their expertise as silversmiths. In fact, Jewish silversmiths are recorded to have been the original minters of currency during the 6th Century. During the Middle Ages, Jewish culture expanded their traditions out east toward Poland. During these times, Jewish silversmiths were revered. However, as the Dark Ages followed, so did oppressive laws. Jewish silversmiths were forbidden through much of these times. Despite these laws, it has been found that because the quality of Jewish made silver was so high, many of them continue to work in secret. In fact, historians have found that the Catholic Church, responsible for some of these laws itself, hired Jewish silversmiths throughout that era for their own religious artifacts.

These oppressive laws continued into the Seventeenth Century. Despite the Church using Jewish silversmiths, non-Jews constructed the majority of Jewish religious artifacts. Accordingly, many of those artifacts from that era contain mistakes in their Hebrew inscriptions. Thankfully, these laws have been long abolished today. Silversmiths continue to make Kiddush cups, Hanukkah lamps and other traditional objects out of silver; however, today, the inscriptions are accurate and legible.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Judaism, Religion and Spirituality, Silversmith