The flu pandemic has left many concerned especially with talk of a vaccine shortage.  But that doesn’t mean there is a shortage on ways to prevent you from getting sick.  Here are three simple steps that will protect your health not just now but all year long.

Step 1  Be sure you regularly disinfect the kitchen sink, the trash can, the bathroom faucet and the tub. These places harbor a lot of germs. The champion of the contamination? The kitchen sponge. Clean it in the dishwasher weekly.

Step 2  Lace up your sneakers and take a brisk walk five times a week. Regular exercise can help reduce chances of catching a cold.

Step 3  Include probiotics in your daily diet to help your immune system ward off bad bacteria. Try yogurt, fortified drinks, or a tasty treat like the 90-calorie Attune Milk Chocolate Crip Probiotic Bar.

There is more proof to convince smokers that if they want to kick their habit they need to hit the gym. A new study uses images to show how getting your blood moving by exercising for even 15 minutes minimizes your cravings to smoke. Here is a look at how the study was performed.

• The study – published in the journal Addiction, looked at 20 moderately heavy smokers. The smokers abstained from smoking for 15 hours before the trial.
• All participants were shown smoking-related as well as neutral images before either 15 minutes of sitting or exercising at a moderate intensity on a stationary bike.
• Afterwards, they were again shown the images. The research team used the latest eye tracking technology to measure and record their precise eye movements. They were able to show not only the length of time people looked at smoking-related images but also how quickly pictures of cigarettes could grab their attention, compared with non-smoking matched images.
• The study showed an 11% difference in how long the exercises vs. non-exercisers looked at the smoking related images.
• Also, after exercise, participants took longer to look at smoking-related images.
• Exercise, therefore, appears to reduce the power of the smoking-related images to grab visual attention.

Lenneice A. Drew is an experienced journalist currently focused on healthcare reform. She is working to help others achieve better lives by finding affordable health insurance alternatives and reporting stories related to the healthcare industry. She lives in Miami, Florida.

Kellogg’s was doing its part to keep kids healthy during the flu season or at least that’s what they led consumers to believe. A bright yellow label displayed over the cereal box said their Cocoa Krispies cereal were now offering immunity support. With the flu season in full swing parents were grabbing it off the grocery store shelves to help keep their kids healthy. It turns out the labeling may have been a trick.

Marion Nestle, author of Food Politics, said “The idea that eating Cocoa Krispies will keep a kid from getting swine flu, or from catching a cold, doesn’t make sense.”She points out that all nutrients bolster immunity, and not just the Cocoa Krispies. Marion sent a letter to the FDA about this, months ago.  Other skeptics are also convinced the cereal company was just trying to make additional revenue in the wake of the swine flu hysteria.

The cereal giants have agreed to pull the label.  But Kellogg’s, is still standing behind their claims and have plead not guilty.

You can’t believe everything you read no matter how good it sounds or how good it tastes for that matter.

Lenneice A. Drew is an experienced journalist currently focused on healthcare reform. She is working to help others achieve better lives by finding affordable health insurance alternatives and reporting stories related to the healthcare industry. She lives in Miami, Florida.

With all the concerns over seasonal flu and swine flu (H1N1) vaccinations and whether the vaccinations will be delivered in time…you may be wondering if there is anything you can do on your own to protect yourself from the pandemic. Here are some home remedies that could save you from being infected.

1. Wash your hands with soap in warm to hot water. The amount of infection that could be transferred to other parts of the body can be reduced. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.

2. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.

3. Try to avoid close contact with sick people. If you must have close contact with a sick person (for example, hold a sick infant), try to wear a facemask or N95 disposable respirator

4. Clean your nose.  Dip a cotton swab in warm salt water and clean out your nostrils. Right before bedtime is a great time to do this. The salty water will cleanse your nostrils and prevent anything that may have settled in your nose from germinating further.

5. Bring on the Vitamin C. Vitamin C supplements and eating lots of foods that are high in Vitamin C can give your immune system just the boost it needs to ward off the flu and other virus’ that may be lurking around.

Lenneice A. Drew is an experienced journalist currently focused on healthcare reform. She is working to help others achieve better lives by finding affordable health insurance alternatives and reporting stories related to the healthcare industry. She lives in Miami, Florida.

Health insurance companies are constantly in search of ways to save money.  Some of their methods, such as refusing to cover those with pre-existing conditions that their underwriters deem too high risk, have drawn fire from consumers and politicians. Now, some insurers are promoting alternative medicine. With some exceptions, consumers pick up the majority of the costs of services like acupuncture and chiropractic, as well as herbal supplements. While most of these remedies are unproven, they have become increasingly popular with consumers. Therefore, promoting it seems to be a win-win situation for insurers.

Kaiser Permanente and Aetna are among the HMOs that offer dietary supplements and herbs to their patients. However, these supplements aren’t covered in most of their health insurance plans. If someone takes a conventional medication, the cost of their prescription will mostly be covered by their insurer, less a small co-payment. If they use a non-prescription herbal supplement instead, the patient must cover the entire cost out-of-pocket. The same applies when someone visits an alternative practitioner as opposed to a physician.  In that respect, it is financially advantageous for insurance companies to encourage the usage of alternative medicine–although they surely won’t admit it.

Some people want Congress to include alternative medicine coverage in the healthcare reform bill. Do you wish alternative medicine was covered in your health insurance plan?

There is yet another food scare to warn you about and it could affect your health.

Some people are refusing to eat canned foods from their pantry. A new consumer report says a potentially dangerous chemical called bisophenal A is being used in the production of hard plastics including plastic water and baby bottles.

The chemical has also been found in certain name-brand canned foods, according to a study. In its December issue, Consumer Reports tested soups, juice, tuna and green beans, and found that 19 name-brand foods contain some amount of BPA.

And organic foods were not exempt — they didn’t always have lower levels of BPA than non-organic foods. Some labels also declared their cans BPA-free, but this claim wasn’t always true either.

Consumer Reports found that the highest levels of bisphenol-A were found in Del Monte Fresh Cut Green Beans Blue Lake, Progresso Vegetable Soup and Campbell’s Condensed Chicken Soup.

The study also found much-maligned BPA in Similac Advance Infant Formula and Nestle Juicy Juice in a can.

Both the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention maintain that low levels of BPA exposure are safe for people and will not affect your health.

What to do
You can and avoid putting plastics the microwave (where they can release dangerous chemicals when heated) or the dishwasher (where they can degrade in the heat and excessive moisture). You can also choose smart plastics that use polyethylene (#1, #2, and #4) and polypropylene (#5), which require the use of less toxic additives. They also are non-chlorinated.

You can also select freezer bags or fresh produce which is also healthier than canned goods.

Lenneice A. Drew is an experienced journalist currently focused on healthcare reform. She is working to help others achieve better lives by finding affordable health insurance alternatives and reporting stories related to the healthcare industry. She lives in Miami, Florida.

If you chug back a couple of diet sodas a day, you may want to reconsider your choice of beverage.

One study examined more than 3,000 women for 11 years, and found those who drank two or more diet sodas a day were at double the risk for kidney damage.

The researchers did not learn whether it was the soda or the artificial sweetener in the drink that caused the damage.

“You can’t conclude that the sodas caused this problem conclusively but it suggests that there’s an affect on kidney function so people have to be aware that there’s a possible issue in doing anything in excess,” said Dr. David Goldfarb, kidney specialist with NYU Langone Medical Center.

Goldfarb said this is one of the first studies on the effects of diet soda and a lot more needs to be done before people make drastic changes.

Moderating your diet soda intake is the best thing to do for now.

Lenneice A. Drew is an experienced journalist currently focused on healthcare reform. She is working to help others achieve better lives by finding affordable health insurance alternatives and reporting stories related to the healthcare industry. She lives in Miami, Florida.

All of the usual suspects have spoken on healthcare reform: the uninsured, the already insured, politicians, doctors…but McDonald’s? Their CEO, Jim Skinner, recently spoke about affordable health insurance during a meeting in Boston. Like many people, Skinner believes that the current system needs an overhaul as soon as possible. However, he didn’t reveal whether or not McDonald’s supports the public option, preferring to take a cautious approach on the issue.

Skinner’s remarks, as reported in the Boston Globe, mainly focused on the need to protect small businesses in any healthcare reform bill. You may wonder why a massive multinational corporation such as McDonald’s cares about the plight of small business owners. Well, the vast majority of McDonald’s restaurants (85%) are owned by franchisees who operate independently, albeit with support from the corporation. He believes that while increased access to a health insurance plan is important, it shouldn’t come at the expense of small business. There is a possibility that reform might come with an undue burden on companies and franchise owners buying small group health insurance for their employees. If their savings were jeopardized, millions of Americans could lose their coverage. Clearly, this would defeat the purpose of Congress’ health care reform efforts, and would be opposed by McDonald’s.

What does Jim Skinner think about the charge that his company and other fast food restaurants are part of the problem of soaring healthcare costs by promoting obesity? He pointed out the offering of milk and fruit in some children’s Happy Meals, as well as the expansion of the menu to include healthier selections. Above all, it’s a choice to eat at McDonald’s. Although they could certainly do more to support health (i.e. post calorie counts prominently on the menu everywhere, as they are legally required to do by New York City), there is merit to Skinner’s perspective. As a franchise, McDonald’s has a unique perspective on health insurance from both the small business and large corporation side.

(Image: Official McDonald’s Corporate Website)

There has been panic over the H1N1 (a.k.a. swine flu) vaccine shortage. Unfortunately, the pharmaceutical companies responsible for producing the vaccine have had various production problems. These corporations, including GlaxoSmithKline and AztraZeneca, have been working with the U.S. government to get the vaccine out as soon as possible. In addition, as Health & Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius explained to the New York Times, the actual reproduction of the vaccine in eggs chicken eggs has grown slower than expected. While the goal is to get all Americans vaccinated, only 30 million doses of the vaccine will be available by the end of this month.

Still, the situation’s not as scary as it sounds–even though it’s Halloween! Supplies are steadily growing, and H1N1, while serious, is not yet a nationwide pandemic. There’s still time for the vaccine to roll out, which it has been doing. Moreover, it’s only a subset of the population that is at higher risk:

• Children
• Pregnant women
• Teenagers & young adults
• and those with existing health problems.

Those groups need the vaccine as soon as possible, and most clinics have been rationing the vaccine for the moment. High-priority populations are moved ahead of the line, and others will receive any leftover vaccines. Some regions are seeing higher demand than others–and live vaccines for the H1N1 virus eventually expire. The worst scenario is for the vaccine to be thrown away; therefore, it should be then be offered to lower-priority populations, e.g. senior citizens (unlike the seasonal flu, senior citizens aren’t at high risk for the swine flu). Remember also that you only need a single shot of the vaccine for it to be effective.

Does your health insurance plan cover the H1N1 vaccine? It most likely does, if your primary care physician has it. If he or she doesn’t have a supply on hand, there are free and low-cost clinics available from county and state governments, as well as pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS.

(Image: Ben Chau under CC 2.0)

Obesity has become an epidemic in America, and has been blamed for a significant percentage of rising healthcare costs. In the past, ambulances have had to improvise when transporting morbidly obese patients over 500 pounds to the hospital, and companies have eaten the cost. Now, with an increasingly obese population, ambulance providers are starting to pass the increased cost onto insurers, either public or private. This may be necessary, but it will probably reduce the availability of affordable health insurance policies. As for the uninsured, patients will also have to cover the cost of an ambulance ride themselves.

It’s two-and-a-half times more expensive to transfer an extremely obese patient than one at normal weight, according to the Associated Press. Reasons for this include the need for new vehicles and helicopters with larger doors and lifts, extra-large stretchers, as well as the need to hire more emergency crew members (and have them work longer hours) to lift obese patients. Insurance companies operating in Washington and Oregon already pay increased rates to cover those extra costs, despite fat-acceptance groups considering it to be another example of weight discrimination in medical care. Other advocates of the obese, however, are appreciative of the improvements that allow them to be transported with dignity.

The cost of specialized ambulances will certainly be passed on. Increased regulation in the healthcare reform bill may prevent people from charging extremely obese patients more for a health insurance plan. Therefore, everyone’s plan will cost a little bit more.  Medicare and Medicaid are resisting increased reimbursements, but the industry is fighting for fair compensation for their services. Without it, they claim that they will be unable to provide quality care that serves the needs of a significant percentage of the nation’s people.  Promoting public health (e.g. reaching a healthy weight and not smoking) would do a lot to reduce healthcare costs, and should be part of any healthcare reform. Otherwise, the population of morbidly obese will rise from its current 5%, requiring more specialized, costly care.

(Image: NIOSH – National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health under CC 2.0)