Sunday, May 16, 2010

Small business insurance and healthcare reform

Well, for better or worse, the healthcare bill has been signed into law. There is no immediate benefit in being angry. There are a number of legal actions started by various Attorneys General alleging that the reforms are unconstitutional. Even if some of these cases succeed on the issue of mandatory insurance for private individuals, this will not necessarily strike down the whole bill. The likelihood is we will be left with all the provisions dealing with small businesses. Keeping it real, we have to start planning for the future on the law as it is. The good news is that the main raft of provisions will not become active until 2014. This gives the lawmakers plenty of time to have second thoughts. Just as important, there are sets of regulations to be written clarifying the detail of how some of the new features are to work at state level. However, this is an outline of what we can expect.

The states are to establish SHOP exchanges where small businesses can group together and buy insurance. For these purposes, until 2016, a business is considered small when it has no more than 50 employees, with states having the option of increasing the limit to 100 employees. To calculate numbers, you pro-rate the full- and part-time employees. Independent analysts predict group premiums will drop no more than 4%, while the value of the cover will rise by up to 3%. To bridge until the exchanges are operating, a tax credit system will come into force. If your business has less than ten employees with an average annual pay of less than $25,000, the credit is 35% of the health plan cost. There are partial credits where the number of employees is less than 25 and their average annual pay is less than $50,000. When the exchanges start, the credit increases to 50% for the first two years.

With immediate effect, there are a ban on terms designed to cap the value of claims, and limits on the right of insurers to cancel policies except in cases where actual fraud can be proved. As from 2014, the insurers must accept all employees without regard to pre-existing conditions. Their calculation of premium rates can only be based on location, age and whether an individual smokes. As from 2014, small businesses with more than 50 employees will be required to provide a health plan or pay an annual penalty of $750 for every full-time employee denied cover. This can rise to $2,000 if coverage is still denied.

So, tomorrow, you will be going out into the same market as before the reform bill became law. Finding cost-effective small business insurance will continue to be a struggle. Indeed, many insurers may increase premiums now so that, when the SHOP exchanges do come into force, they have a margin to play with to deal with the competition. However, when you buy, check that the new terms on the total value claimable and restrictions on the right to cancel have been introduced. If you buy your small business insurance through an agent, ask direct questions. It saves time fighting over whether wording is unlawful later on.

Propecia keeps your hair thick and plentiful

When you are young, it's easy to walk around as if nothing can ever go wrong in your life. Although you had acne for a few months as a teen, you got through that. Now the rest of your life is going to be smooth sailing. So what if there are a few extra hairs in your comb or caught in the drain after you finish your shower. This is nothing to worry about. Except the sad reality is that anyone, no matter what their age or gender, can lose their hair. It can be heredity, caused by some underlying medical condition, a side effect of a drug you are taking. The list goes on. Unless you are taking preventative measures to reduce the risk of hair loss, you need guidance on when to seek a formal diagnosis. Too early and you wasted your money because your doctor could find nothing wrong. Too late and there's little chance of any treatment helping the hair to regrow. For the record, male pattern baldness can begin during your teens and this is permanent hair loss. Why permanent? Because the growth cycle shortens and every time you shed your hair, it grows back thinner and more likely to fall out. As this speeds up, your hair stops regrowing and there's no cure.


This is what to think about. At some point, you will notice more hair than usual is falling out. Make a note of the date. If possible, get someone in the family or a friend to take pictures of your head so you can monitor any changes to the shape of the hair. Then watch what happens. Is the loss only occasional or is it continuous? If you have good days and bad days, think about what you eat and what you did. Is there a cause and effect at work? In particular, look for anything that might make the loss worse. Now look around the family. If you are cut off from most of your relatives, ask if there is any history of hair loss on either side of the family.

This gives you enough information about the emerging physical pattern and the rate of loss to share with your doctor. There will be a physical examination of your scalp to judge the appearance of your hair, e.g. whether any hairs are broken off. There is usually a pull test to see how many come out, and skin samples taken to eliminate the possibility of an infection. There will also be a review of your medical history and general wellness to identify any underlying problems such as thyroid disease that may be causing the loss. If this is simple male pattern baldness, the standard treatment is generic propecia. This is taken once-daily and, over time, slows loss and encourages some regrowth. The benefits are lost and hair loss will resume if you stop taking generic propecia. Some commitment to continuing treatment is necessary. More generally, there are preventative measures in changing the way you handle your hair and modifying your diet. Your doctor or dermatologist will advise on how to minimize the effects of hair loss.

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Finding cheap health insurance is now easier

Well, after all the excitement and the best efforts of the GOP to say "No" loud and long enough to make a difference, the President signed the healthcare reform into law. The partisans are now into the equally exciting game of trying to decide whether this is the greatest victory since Abraham Lincoln, with a little help from General Ulysses S. Grant, won the Civil War or the greatest disaster since Hurricane Katrina reminded us Nature can be devastating. Allowing for the fact this is a complicated piece of legislation, this is a little difficult to predict because so much of it is not designed to take effect for years. Calling for immediate repeal does not seem helpful when no one can say how the future will turn out. As time passes and we dig ourselves out of the recession, it is entirely possible this may turn out to have been a good "thing" on balance. If "things" do not look quite as good, a little tinkering may set matters to right. History has a way of judging "things" rather differently than we expect. This leaves us with the next twelve months during which there are elections and an opportunity for voters to have their say. What is due to happen and will this make the reform look good enough to keep?

1. There will be a payment of $250 to people in Medicare. This is designed to close the Part D donut hole. In 2011, there will be a 50% discount on the branded drugs in the hole with the hole closing by 2020.
2. Starting on January 1, 2011 there will be no co-payments for preventative medical care. This care will also be exempted when calculating the deductible.

3. Starting in three months, there will be a temporary re-insurance program for employers to cover retirees in the age range 55 to 64.

4. Starting in six months, insurers shall not cancel a policy if a claim is made nor discriminate against children with a pre-existing condition. There are also to be new controls to prevent insurers from imposing caps on coverage.5. Before the reform, the majority of people were insured by their employers. Starting immediately, small businesses can claim, tax credits of 35% of premiums if they decide to buy a health plan. This rises to 50% in 2014. Up to now, small businesses have always claimed they were the victims of discrimination, priced out of the market by the insurance industry. With a government subsidy, this argument looks less real.

Whether this will be enough to sway public opinion is anyone's guess. Health insurance has provoked some seriously extreme reactions and it will take time for people to take a more calm view of what the reforms offer. The reaction of the insurance companies is also difficult to predict. Some may react to the new controls by increasing their premiums. Insurers are, after all, for-profit organizations and they have never shown themselves slow in coming forward with premium hikes. This makes it even more important to get the maximum possible number of health insurance quotes before deciding on which policy or plan to buy. When midterm elections come in November 2012, 36 seats in the Senate and all the seats in the House are up for grabs. Experts predict the Democrats will lose seats. But, with President Obama in the White House, no repeal will be signed into law.

Ambien should be replaced by talk therapy

Looking around the journals published so far in 2010, it's clear the research community is finally beginning to challenge the assumption that America should be medicated. If you listen to the pharmaceutical industry and the doctors who are paid to stand up and promote drugs as the best treatment for any disorder, you will hear a consistent pattern of propaganda. All our products have the FDA seal of approval. The clinical trials show our products are safe and effective. The health insurance industry pays most of the price for our products. Take our pills and get better. Indeed, when it comes to the top-selling sleeping pills, there are record numbers of prescriptions being written by doctors. The reason? Well, its not hard to suspect stress levels are increasing thanks to the recession. Unemployment is high. Credit levels have been reduced, There are foreclosures in every neighborhood. That's bound to make sleep more difficult. What's curious about the new records being set in the number of prescriptions is the additional financial burden this places on families when they can least afford it, and the implied assumption that sleeping pills can cure the underlying social and economic problems causing the stress.

The Journal of the American Medical Association reports talk therapy is more effective than sleeping pills. The research team gave the participants sleeping pills alongside therapy sessions and measured which had the better outcome. Because the talk asked why people were finding it difficult to sleep and discussed ways of resolving problems, people with the therapy sessions had better sleep than those on pills. This follows on research testing the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy which teaches people how to change their habit patterns to restore sleep. Therapists encourage people to avoid naps during the day, adopt a set routine for going to bed, and physically change the bedroom to minimize light and noise that might disturb sleep. When combined with techniques to address the cause of stress and relax, CBT has consistently been found to outperform sleeping pills.When you look at the statistics, there can be little doubt we use too many sleeping pills. Add in the increasing use of online pharmacies which supply drugs without the need for a prescription, and the scale of reliance on sleeping pills is almost certainly worse than we imagine. Why should we care? Because all the sleeping pills on the market can cause dependence. As people continue to take them, tolerance builds and the pills actually become less effective. Increasing the dose confirms the dependence and can lead to unwanted side effects. Yes, ambien is one of the better pills and there are fewer problems with its use, but if your insomnia has been disrupting your life for six months or more, you should consider undergoing therapy first. CBT is clearly the best. To help you focus during this learning period, your doctor may offer the use of a sleeping pill. If you decide to accept, ambien is the best but you should only take it for a few weeks at low dose. The long-term restoration of sleep is going to come from the therapy. Although this is a short-term cost to meet, your life will improve with natural sleep and your finances will be better of without having to buy sleeping pills for the rest of your life.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

All doctors know when to prescribe Xanax in case of anxiety disorders

Well, it's that time of the decade again and the American Psychiatric Association (APA) is going through it ritual of revising the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM). Let's be clear why this is important. For better of worse, the DSM is like a bible, containing words of wisdom on which clusters of symptoms represent which disorders. The idea is to do away with the zip code lottery of diagnosis. In one US state you might be diagnosed as a bit eccentric. With the same behavior in a different state, you might be considered a danger to the community and committed to care. With the DSM as a guide, you hope to get the same diagnosis no matter who the patient is, where he or she may be found and who the doctor is. Unfortunately, the APA is caught in a terrible conflict of interest. The majority of its members regularly receive gifts and incentives from the drug manufacturers. This benevolence is designed to encourage the use of the relevant drugs. When these same doctors sit down to discuss diagnoses and which drugs to recommend, they cannot forget all the past generosity. It inevitably influences their decisions. More importantly, if particular drugs receive approval in the DSM, this represents several billion dollars in revenue. The manufacturers therefore spend heavily in trying to ensure their drugs continue to be linked to the relevant disorders. The result is the DSM is full of disorders that are only poorly defined and linked to drugs often little more effective than placebos.


If we go back sixty years, psychiatry in the US was still running in parallel with the European tradition of scientific method. This produced carefully defined diagnoses for general conditions, leaving practitioners with some flexibility to take a common sense view of the individual patient. Hence, the technical term might be a "nervous breakdown" which is a catch-all definition for anyone who has a few problems. But as the pharmaceutical industry used its economic power, these broad definitions were increasingly broken down into separate classes of disorder. As each new batch of disorders was defined, the manufacturers produced drugs specifically targeting each new disorder. In reality, people are still having nervous breakdowns and, truth be told, all the major drugs are interchangeable because the separate disorders are really only one or two basic types.


What prompted this redefinition of terms? Firstly, the introduction of the benzodiazepines. The manufacturers wanted a distinction between anxiety disorders and depression for marketing purposes. Once the APA gave in, it was the slippery slope to the present confused mess. As everyone knows, all depression has elements of anxiety and panic, just as anxiety and panic are indistinguishable from elements in depression. Recent surveys have found doctors routinely prescribing benzodiazepines such as xanax regardless of the diagnosis as anxiety or depression, and finding the same excellent results. Secondly, the APA wanted to move away from Freudian analysis and to ground diagnosis in observable symptoms. This led to the introduction of "major depression" and "bipolar disorder" which lump different sets of symptoms together in either a stable or unstable form. As the SSRIs came in as treatments for major depression, the pressure to keep inventing new disorders grew. Now all the anxiety and panic disorders are multiplying. Needless to say, xanax remains the most effective treatment no matter what labels are attached to the symptoms. If you are anxious, xanax is the answer. Sadly, the APA will not sympathize with such a simple view of the world.

Monday, May 10, 2010

Life insurance types – term policies

The selection of insurance products and offers you can choose from on the market is overwhelming. And choosing a policy to insure your life with can be tricky, requiring you to both evaluate your insurance needs and spend some time on comparing the offers you get from different providers. It's not just a possibility you can think of while buying insurance, it's a firm requirement that the product you want to buy meets your exact personal needs and can be adjusted to your budget, not the other way.


In contrast with continuous policies term insurance policies are designed to provide coverage only for a certain period of time, specified in the policy. A term policy will provide the benefits specified in it only if the insured person dies within the specified period. Besides, term policies do not have cash value accumulation potentials. So in case you are alive and well and your policy term expires, you won't receive any money. Another important aspect of term policies is that the premiums can't be fixed and it is likely that they will increase with the time passing. In order to make sure your rates are constant, choose a guaranteed level premium term policy that guarantees a fixed premium over the entire duration of the policy.


Advantages of term policies


Term policies are known to have the highest value for money you pay and the lowest price among other types of life insurance. That is why they are most beneficial for those families that have limited budget they have to fall into. These are some advantages you get with term policies:


Affordability


Term policies have the lowest premiums for the largest death benefits obtainable.


Simplicity


Term policies are the least complex insurance product for insuring your life on the market.


Competitiveness


Due to the simplicity of this product, there is a fierce competition between numerous providers offer term policies, which in turn allows effective comparison shopping when looking for a policy.


Flexibility


Term policies have the possibilities of "renewal" and "conversion". Renewal means that when the policy term expires you can prolong its duration, without buying a new policy. Conversion means that when the term of the policy expires you can convert your term policy into a permanent one, without buying a separate policy.


Waiver of premium


With term policies you also get an additional feature referred to as "waiver of premium". It allows you to halt premium payments for a stipulated period of time in case you are unable due to circumstances listed in the policy. Still, it is an optional feature that has its price.


Different time options


Term policies being a cheap life insurance options provide coverage for a period of time you feel appropriate. You can insure your life for a term of anything between one to thirty years, gaining death benefits if something happens to you during this term. It's a good way to plan your finances well ahead, making sure that such crucial things as mortgage or business loan will be paid out no matter what.


Different rates


There are many companies out there on the market that offer term insurance policies. Get life insurance quotes from them and you will probably get very attractive rates by shopping around.

When getting quotes for health insurance, check for gender discrimination

The lawmakers in Colorado are debating a change in the law to correct the gender discrimination currently requiring women to pay more than men to insure their health. The facts are uncompromising. In some 90% of all private health plans, women have premium rates 60% higher than men. This is so even though the statistics show women enjoy better health than men and make fewer claims. This is so even though the men used for comparative purposes are significantly older. And, if you feel you need any more confirmation of the basic unfairness, even men who smoke pay less than female non-smokers. As one of the women promoting the bill commented: insurers often refuse coverage because the applicant has a pre-existing condition. The way the premiums are loaded, it seems being a woman is a pre-existing condition.


The people who are paid to speak on behalf of the insurance industry usually fall back on the tried and trusted defense that women have medical needs specific to their gender. The most often quoted example is maternity and prenatal care. Ignoring the fact that men also have problems specific to their gender, such as erectile dysfunction, women are still quoted premiums 60% higher on policies excluding reproductive health needs. In other words, the discrimination persists even though the scope of the medical coverage is identical. So what's going on? The answer, in this instance, is slightly complicated. If we start with auto insurance, it's common knowledge that young men are statistically more likely than any other group of drivers to crash into another vehicle or some stationary object. Thus, where the policy discriminates between different groups of drivers, young men pay significantly more than women who tend to drive more safely. Not all auto policies do discriminate. By spreading the risk among a big group of drivers, the good subsidize the bad. But, most auto insurers do set different premium rates for different groups of drivers distinguished by gender and age. In medicine, it's a fact that men fall ill and die, whereas women tend to recover from illnesses. This is one of the reasons why women have a longer life expectancy than men. But it also explains why women cost more. They survive for longer with chronic problems requiring continuing treatment. Thus, if the premium is a reflection of the likely costs of treatment over a person's lifetime, it may appear slightly more reasonable to charge women higher premiums. Except this ignores the general rule that private health insurance stops at 65 as Medicare kicks in. The major long-term costs tend to occur after 65.


Colorado looks as though it may join the one or two other states with equality provisions. There's no evidence from these other states that men now have to pay significantly more. For now, insurers simply make less profit. As a woman, it's particularly important to research exactly what the different companies offer. Because of this, searching for cheap health insurance is a greater challenge. Always refer to the websites of the companies making the best quotes to see if there are additional discounts available or special policies for women. If there seems to be no cheap health insurance available, talk directly with the insurers to see whether the difference between the male and female premium rates can be reduced. Not everyone is lucky enough to live in a state committed to equality. It is for you to protect yourself as best as possible.

What is errors and omissions (E&O) coverage?

Probably you have already heard about Errors and Omissions Insurance (E&O Insurance) from your insurance agent. Now you may think whether it's useful to your business or not. No matter how big or small your company is, whether it's a small home business or a large production facility you own, not having any insurance is a risk that you just can't afford. Moreover, if you produce products or services, your business is automatically exposed to Errors and Omissions. Even if you already have Commercial Liability Insurance policy you still aren't fully protected against liability due to personal negligence. General liability simply doesn't pay for errors and omissions you or your workers make when producing goods or delivering services.


Why should you buy E&O Insurance?


Errors and Omissions Insurance is quite simple to understand if you refer to it as "Malpractice" or "Professional Liability" Insurance. The list of professionals who should purchase E&O Insurance include lawyers, engineers, doctors, accountants and any other enterprises that work with clients, providing either services or products that may become the cause of liability if there is a professional error. As you may understand there are countless types of businesses that fall into this category, ranging from real estate to advertising agencies, financial consultants to hardware manufacturers, from appraisers to repair shops. Errors and Omissions Insurance is delivered through a separate policy and assures financial protection against any claims that are filed by third parties, who are dissatisfied or injured by your products or services that were the subject of professional negligence. Thus, this type of business insurance will pay for the court fees, attorney fees and any settlements that the court will stipulate you to pay to the third party.


Will E&O Insurance protect your enterprise from financial loss?


Error and Omissions Insurance won't protect you from direct financial loss due to bad sales or drop in income. However, taking into account the high costs of lawsuits and attorney fees, even if the case is absurd and you aren't guilty at all, the process itself could be a heavy financial burden for your business, making up to tens of thousands of dollars you have to pay after everything is settled down. And this amount of money could be vital for most small and medium sized businesses. In that sense, Error and Omissions insurance is a great form of business insurance that protects your most important assets and your enterprise as a whole against the financial impact of a lawsuit.


It's impossible to not make any mistakes while doing business and every smart business owner knows that very well. That's why you need Errors and Omissions Insurance to deal with respectful claims from your clients. It's always better to pay for business insurance, even if you think that the rates are high, rather than have to pay the court costs that may require you to sell your car or your house, and put you out of business for good. There's not sense in saving money on Errors and Omissions coverage, especially if you are exposed to such situations on a regular basis. What you will save today can be multiplied by thousands and be legally requested from you due to your actions or personal negligence of your employees. If you want to run your business for a long time and become prosperous, it's evident that the first option is for you.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Is taking propecia to prevent baldness a good idea?

Throughout time, whenever people start talking about baldness, they almost always focus on the threat to self-esteem. Most cultures have decided that men who lose their hair early are somehow worthy of mockery. Inevitably, this has put pressure on men to avoid or hide the problem. In reality, the poor quality of many wigs and toupées signalled the wearer's embarrassment and aggravated the social difficulties. In turn, this opened up a market to the unscrupulous to sell magic remedies. We still celebrate this time in our history by retaining the idea of "snake oil" and "elixirs" from the Traveling Medicine Shows. But the results in a recent study published in Cancer Epidemiology may be a sign that men who lose their hair early are the lucky ones. Instead of despair as their hair recedes, they should be celebrating the news their risk of prostate cancer is halving.

The study involved some two thousand men in their forties, half of whom had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. In reviewing their medical histories, the researchers noted that men whose hair began thinning in their twenties were the least likely to develop a growth in the prostate (whether cancerous or benign). In publishing these results, a clear distinction must be made between the natural thinning and loss of hair that affects all men as they age, and male pattern baldness which characteristically affects younger men. The reduction in the risk of cancer benefits those who lose their hair prematurely. The researchers speculate this is a consequence of the changing level of testosterone in those who go bald. The higher the level of hormone, the more the body produces dihydrotestosterone. With more DHT in the bloodstream, the hair follicles shrink. This thins the hair and slows the rate at which hair is replaced as it is shed. But, higher levels of testosterone seem to lower the risk of a growth.

There are two points of interest in this story. The first is the presence of contrary research evidence showing a higher risk of cancer among the prematurely bald. Unfortunately, male pattern baldness and prostate cancer have the same triggering cause and both develop as men age. There needs to be further research to distinguish the cause and effect of both conditions. Put simply, asking men to remember when they began losing their hair is not very reliable scientific evidence. Secondly, propecia, the drug now shown as effective in treating male pattern baldness because it prevents the conversion of testosterone to DHT, was originally developed as a treatment for benign growths in the prostate. It is somewhat ironic to see modern research treading the same path that led to the FDA expanding the use of propecia from prostate growths to a treatment for male pattern baldness. So where does this leave us? As it stands, this latest research is on its own and contradicted by earlier work. It has a doubtful scientific method and a relatively small number of participants. Before we can celebrate early balding, we need a better designed research program with a significantly larger number of men involved. Only if these new findings are confirmed can men with male pattern baldness feel better about their hair loss. Until then, all they have to rely on is the ever reliable propecia - so long as you start early enough, it slows hair loss and can prompt some regrowth.

Cialis, erectile dysfunction and heart disease

When you are young, it's difficult to keep everything in proportion. Emotions run fast and hot. One minute you can be feeling great, the next it's despair. In fact, it's remarkable how often you hear a teen suffering some embarrassment or humiliation voice the thought, "I wish I was dead!" Fortunately, very few act on the wish. We all come through these torrid times, hopefully calmer if not wiser. Yet, there are some humiliations men of all ages find it difficult to confront without fear. Erectile dysfunction is one of the more severe tests of calmness. For better or worse, Western culture is strongly "male". Yes, feminism assumed some importance and equality laws have followed, but the mainstream of behavior still expects the man to be dominant, not just in business but also in the bedroom. If something goes wrong with the ability to deliver erections when they are expected, this undermines a key plank in the structure holding up male self-confidence. Suddenly the man is not quite so macho. He is somehow less than a man.

For some time, the volume of evidence has been growing to prove a link between erectile dysfunction and heart disease. Indeed, the medical profession now view all men presenting with erectile dysfunction as potential heart patients until the contrary is proved. The reason is simple. Damage to the arteries causes strokes and heart attacks. The arteries leading into the penis are among the smallest and so most likely to show the first signs of damage. Treating the erectile dysfunction as the first symptom of heart disease has been saving lives. However, there's new research published this March. The team based in Ontario, Canada, has been following about 1,500 men diagnosed with heart disease. The first conclusion is the not surprising finding that the standard treatment for cardiovascular disease in general and heart conditions in particular has little or no effect on problems of erectile dysfunction. But the presence of erectile dysfunction doubles the risk of a heart attack. The news is dramatic. Men with erectile dysfunction and heart disease are twice as likely to die than men with heart disease who have good sex lives.

This research therefore reinforces the basic need for all men who begin to suffer erectile dysfunction to have a full physical check-up. Although everyone can go online and buy generic cialis from one of the pharmacies, this is only treating the symptom and ignoring the possibly dangerous underlying cause that may cause early death. For once, men have to be honest about their sexual health. There were a few years immediately following the launch of the little blue pills when men hurried to their regular doctors for a prescription. But as the online pharmacy industry has developed, men have slipped back into their old ways of secrecy. The fear of humiliation still stalks the male land. In one sense, it's actually unfortunate that cialis is so effective. Available in both an as-needed and a once-daily version, it provides relief for the vast majority of men without the need for them ever to see a doctor. If it was less effective, it would force regular consults and allow the doctors to monitor the possible development of heart disease. This would save thousands of lives every year. Let's hope the news media pick up this latest research - proof the risk of death is doubled should be a red flag to everyone suffering erectile dysfunction.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Homeowners insurance policy buying tips

Insurance policy for the house is often a single important investment most people make after actually buying a home of their own. An insurance policy is used for protecting the house, its contents and visitors from different circumstances that otherwise can be quite hard on your wallet. When you first start looking for a policy to insure your house with the number of options and providers can be overwhelming, making it hard to find exactly what you need. There are a lot of types of policies, different coverage options and amounts, special provisions and other elements that you may include in your policy. So it's evident that learning more about home insurance is crucial before you start looking for an actual policy for your house.


Consider your options


When looking for a policy to insure your home with, always keep in mind the following tips as they will be very helpful for finding the right offer for a reasonable price:



  • Take some time for comparison shopping - look for insurance quotes online, ask your agent or friends, who have purchased home insurance for their house. The more information you get from different sources - the better. Remember to get as much insurance quotes as possible before actually buying a policy. The difference between two companies can be impressive.

  • Try purchasing home and other types of insurance from the same provider - this usually lets you get about 15% discount for each type of insurance you get.

  • Increase the amount of your deductible - a higher deductible means that your premiums will be lower. However, always make sure that you can afford paying the amount of deductible you have chosen when needed.

  • Make your house more durable - anything you do to improve the durability of your house that will help it resist a disaster will be a welcome action from the part of your homeowners insurance provider. Ask the company what you can do to improve your house and receive discounts.

  • Make your house more secured - any improvement you make to your house that increases its security can give you a discount from the insurance provider. The best options are installing video systems, alarms, special locks, anti fire and smoker alarms. However, ask your provider about these improvements first because each company has its own requirements regarding security features of their customers.

  • Always try to keep a good credit score - the price you pay for home insurance is directly linked to your credit score. If you have a good score your rates will be much lower than if you have bad credit rating. Review your credit record, make everything possible to improve it and maintain a good score. This will lower your other insurance like auto and health insurance too.

  • Try staying with the same provider - if the company you get home insurance from has good rates and fair conditions, staying with the same provider for several years can qualify you for a special long-term customer discount, most insurance providers have. Ask your insurance company about that and see if you qualify.

  • Review your policy on a regular basis - always make sure that your policy is adequate to your exact insurance needs. And if needed, modify it so that your house would be properly insured.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Frequently asked questions on cheap car insurance buying

Starting with excessive rates to buying a separate policy for your teen driver, dealing with auto coverage is often confusing, complicated and it also involves a lot of money to be spent. Still, you can't go around it, as it a legal requirement in most states and a helpful tool to give you a peace of mind when dealing with traffic accidents. Sure, it may seem like a dirty job and you don't want to waste your time on it. But what if there's an easier way to get your auto insured without all the hassle you fear of dealing with? If you are interested, read the frequently asked questions below as answered by insurance experts, who know how to get the right policy no matter what's your situation.

Q: Am I obliged to carry insurance coverage when driving my car?

A: Nearly all states have it as a legal requirement for drivers to carry liability auto coverage as a guarantee that the damages you deliver in a car accidents are paid for. Each state has a minimum amount of liability coverage that a driver must carry with his policy. And even the states that don't have vehicle insurance as a legal requirement oblige the driver to show proof that he has enough financial resources to pay for the caused damage. Any other types of insurance coverage, outside liability coverage are purely optional and can be purchased with respect to your personal insurance needs.

Q: Is insurance required before buying a new vehicle?

A: If that's your first vehicle, you will be required to have insurance coverage before even taking it from the dealer. Moreover, if you're using an auto loan to finance the purchase, you may be required to buy additional types of coverage besides liability. If you already have a car and are changing it to a new one or buying an additional vehicle, you have 14-30 days to report the changes to your insurance company.

Q: How can I get cheap car insurance?

A: Compare insurance quotes in order to see what other providers are offering, and if it turns out that you're overpaying - switch the provider. If your current rates are quite competitive, compared to other companies, see if you're taking advantage of all the discounts you can opt for.

When looking for a new car, always make sure that the make and model you are interested in provides cheap car insurance options. Some cars are a lot cheaper to insure than the others, ask your insurance agent to learn what cars are the most cost-effective from the insurance perspective.

Another way to get cheap car insurance, although a bit risky one, is to increase your deductibles. By raising the amount of out-of-pocket expenses you can afford before the policy kicks in you get lower premiums. And if you're driving an older vehicle that has a low market value, you may want to drop collision and comprehensive coverage as it takes depreciation of the car value into account.

You can also adjust the amounts of coverage your policy carries, although experts do not recommend decreasing them to the level of state minimums as it is usually not enough to pay for a serious accident.

Skelaxin for relieving pain in sports

Going in for sports is a good way of keeping yourself in shape. In order to keep themselves fit, sportsmen train a lot. But playing sports is not as innocent as it seems. Sport brings people injuries. The injuries that we pick up while playing sports fall into two major categories. There are contact sports - sport games that people play in pairs, in a team or against each other. This can give you broken bones, torn tendons or ligament if you are unlucky. There are also sport games that leave sportsmen to hurt themselves by repeating some of the muscle moves one after another. Tennis players, badminton players and squash players fall into this category of people. Runners always hurt their knees as they are the main element in the sports. This is how it all begins... Players, runners or whoever feels the pain, it goes on and on, tears from the eyes, you can only focus on your pain. The pain you experience brings the inflammation. You are unable to go on as usual. This is the typical story of a sportsman. It is not unusual that we hear injuries terminating careers of some excellent players or sportsmen.

As we spoke about inflammation, it is fair to mention the fact that the recovery process usually starts with inflammation. The doctors interfere in this process and simply help this recovery to take some extra turns so the injury timing doesn't take too long. The inflammation usually lasts about 5 days but this totally depends on the seriousness of the injury. You can hire the best doctor in town, pay him as much money as you have but this won't make the inflammation disappear faster than it will do. This is a natural cycle. Your doctor will probably prescribe you some medication from muscle pain, to ease it and make it less hurtful.

It is important to know how these drugs work. They are not miracle makers. What takes time will take time to heal. These painkillers will not treat the injury. They will make your experiences more comfortable. Of course, there are certain stages, when patients need the intervention of surgeries, but if this isn't the case with you, you have to just give it some time. You don't have to start your trainings a soon as you start to take medication. But it is important to move a little. There is a good medication, called Skelaxin, which most doctors prescribe from muscle pain or different sport injuries. This drug is very affordable and effective. With the help of it, you can return to your trainings faster than you think you can. The sportsman can start doing stretching exercises, which will help him to accumulate the strengths back. Of course, if you can survive without Skelaxin, the better this is for you. If you are a good player that experiences pain every now and then, you have to take it as a warning. Maybe you are pushing yourself to the limit, maybe you are trying too hard or maybe you are even doing something wrong. Either way, you have to take a professional advice as you can't figure this out alone. And remember not to let yourself wait too long to get the treatment needed. It can even be too late to fix at some point. Don't let this ruin your life for good.

Thursday, April 29, 2010

When Skelaxin should be used?

Most of us have seen other people who couldn't stand upright for extended periods of time or had difficulty of climbing stairs or walking on extended ranges. This is usually the result of lower back conditions that manifest in severe pain while performing such simple everyday physical activities as walking or standing still. Such conditions are quite common with older people due to age, but recently quite often this may be observed in much younger people too.

Muscle relaxant medications were created for namely such cases, helping people ease their muscle tension and relieve pain. Muscle relaxants are useful in a range of conditions such as muscle pain, muscle spasm, convulsions, injuries and even gastrointestinal problems. These medications can also be used when there's a direct impact to the muscle, resulted in injury or tear, relieving the pain associated with involuntary muscle tension that only aggravates pain. And the best part of it is that muscle relaxants can be used continuously while you are using other medications to cure the underlying condition, which causes pain and muscle tension.

Sometimes, those who have acute muscle or joint pain can suffer these conditions due to extensive wear of muscle tissue and over-activeness. Exercising yourself beyond reason while working out or doing sports, or minor injuries you don't notice at first and that become aggravated later - this all contributes to painful sensations that will turn even the simplest everyday activities into a challenge. And if there are other medical conditions like infections or diseases the combined effects can be quite severe for your body, making it even harder to overcome discomfort and pain.

Professional doctors see a lot of different conditions in their practice at the hospitals and clinics, such as paralysis, seizures and sever chronic pain. And they use muscle relaxants such as Skelaxin on a regular basis, because they need effective treatment, and they need it fast. Muscle relaxants are also used during surgeries and intensive care for conditions such as strokes or and paralysis. Drugs like Skelaxin are often used to help people regain control over their limbs after serious injuries and operations.

People with chronic pain conditions in their limbs and joints can also benefit from using muscle relaxants like Skelaxin or other drugs. Muscle relaxant medications help easing the tension in joints, relaxing the muscles in the area and making it possible to move and pass through treatment.

Muscle relaxants are often delivered intravenously during surgeries, ensuring that the patient won't sustain any nerve damage caused by involuntary muscle tension or seizure. Moreover, certain nervous conditions can be relieved by employing muscle relaxant medications because they help ease muscle tension and can have long term beneficial effects for the patient. This way the patients can relieve stress caused by their diseases and that alone can be very helpful for treating them. Just imagine how stressful it is to not be able to control own body, and such stress can only aggravate nervous conditions.However, keep in mind that like with any other type of medications, muscle relaxants require proper dosage and professional doctor supervision in order to assure the safety of their consumption. Ask your doctor for a prescription and see if he or she has any special indications regarding the use of muscle relaxants in your particular case.

Auto insurance buying mistakes to avoid

Insurance is not the most pleasant thing to deal with as it always tends to be quite complex and full of hidden stones you'll break your neck with. And by breaking your neck we mean paying more of your money than you would want to. Many people tend to make the very same mistakes when purchasing insurance just because they aren't quite aware of the hidden catches behind it. To make things a bit easier for you here is a list of 10 most common mistake people make when shopping for insurance coverage on their vehicles. Keep them in mind next time you quote online or contact an insurance company. It will save your time and money!

1. Don't get only a single quote from a single insurance company bothering that multiple requests may damage your credit rating. They won't! So get as much auto insurance quotes from different companies as you can!

2. In most cases a standard insurance policy does not include rental car insurance coverage. So if it's crucial for you to have a ride every day make sure you get one.

3. Getting the lowest rates doesn't mean you'll get the best value with your policy. Get quotes for same amounts of insurance coverage from different companies.
4. Call the toll free number every insurance company has if you want to learn more about the services provided by this carrier.

5. Most people forget about modifying their coverage amounts after paying off their car loan or when its value has decreased. If you have an older car always make sure that the amount of collision coverage is adequate to the car's real value with respect to depreciation.

6. Most car owners do not have enough liability coverage with their auto insurance that would cover the cost of repairing a luxury car or a fancy convertible you see quite often these days after an accident. Get enough liability coverage if you do not want to pay from your pocket for that Bentley you hit.

7. Most car owners do not search for cheap car insurance by opting for discounts. Read your policy carefully or ask your agent to explain the terminology in your policy. Sometimes you won't even know about possible discounts because they aren't clearly spoken of so it's better to ask about them.

8. Regular payments quite often include additional hidden fees.

9. A large part of insurance providers use credit rating for calculating your rates. So if your credit rating has dropped it would be better that you change or purchase insurance coverage later, when your score improves.

10. Car owners who drive without any insurance coverage for a long time before getting a policy usually get quite expensive policies, because insurance providers tend to consider such drivers as a high risk.

Hopefully, you won't make these mistakes when purchasing your policy or switching insurance providers. It's not that hard to follow these tips so make sure you get the most competitive and cost-friendly policy out there. You will be surprised by how easy it may be.

Car insurance friendly vehicles to buy

How many times have you thought about dropping insurance coverage on your vehicle altogether after receiving the payable premium? We know how it feels. Insurance rates are constantly on the rise and if you have a costly car to insure it may be a heavy burden for your family budget. But do not despair, there are better solutions than dropping insurance services. Moreover, driving without an insurance policy is illegal in the majority of states and you can face a substantial fine for not having coverage on your vehicle. Not to mention that it will be quite expensive for you to cover the costs if an accident takes place and you don't have any insurance.

You have probably read many articles with tips on how to reduce insurance costs in an effective way. While they all offer helpful solutions to different extent, most of them do not mention the most important element of vehicle coverage - the car itself. The auto you drive pays a very important role when it comes to determining the premiums you will pay for insuring it. People often drive insurance-costly cars and don't even realize why their rates are so high.
n order to change this situation here are some tips you can use when buying a new or used car with respect to auto insurance costs. They should be a guide for those who are looking for really cheap car insurance and want to minimize their costs in an effective manner.

First of all, forget about sports and muscle cars. In many cases such cars are cheaper than mid-class sedans and are very hot looking. But the faster and more powerful the car is, the greater is the risk that it will end up in a car accident. Sports cars provoke aggressive driving style and that's definitely a cause for concern in insurance companies. That's why in most cases sports cars are costlier to insure than other types of vehicles.

Luxury or rare cars should also be out of your list. Of course, if you can afford a Bentley then you probably don't need cheap auto insurance tips at all. Still, if you are cost-conscious and want to spend less on coverage then you should think about other car types. Luxury, classic and rare cars usually have high repair costs and are more likely to be stolen than ordinary vehicles. And this will eventually push your insurance costs too high to be convenient.
Small cars. Wait, what? Small cars are usually quite cheap and don't have high repair costs, right? Yes, of course. But you also have to understand that the safety of passengers is another factor that strongly influences car insurance quotes the car will receive. And here the basic laws of physics are very important. Smaller cars tend to be totaled or damaged badly with severe injuries to the people inside far more often than bigger cars.

Big SUVs. Now you are really confused, right? SUVs are large and quite safe for the people driving it, what's the problem? The problem is that SUV's have high damage costs they usually deliver during the accident. Other cars and the infrastructure tend to be damaged worse than with smaller cars and it is your insurance company who's paying for the repair.

So what should I buy?

The best type of vehicle for having reasonable insurance rates is mid-sized family sedan. These cars usually have competitive repair costs, low theft rates and perform well during crash tests. So if insurance costs are more important for you than your image this is the perfect option to go with.

Monday, April 26, 2010

Health insurance must now deliver coverage in a reformed system

To encourage the Democrats to vote through his healthcare reform bill, Obama framed the moment as one of morality. He argued everyone should have a right to basic health care. This was the chance for politicians to stand up for what was right, even though they might lose their elected jobs as a result. Yet, if you look at the numbers, this law is not going to deliver universal coverage. In socialized countries, everyone has a right to care. What is now branded as Obamacare will only add about 32 million people to the insurance market.

That was said about 10% of the US population. This makes for an interesting possible result. A small percentage of the population gets access to care and the costs for everyone else go up. It is that fear driving a general loss of support for the law. Whether it will turn out that way is anyone's guess. It is incredibly difficult to predict the future with any certainty. All that can be said with any certainty is that the majority of the Democrats feel good about themselves for voting the bill into law. They walked the walk along the moral high ground while the GOP was the party of "No" that wanted to sacrifice people's health for their own political advantage.


It is a tragedy for all thinking people the means of passing the law was framed in such black and white terms. If the two sides in a debate can never agree on anything because the other side is immoral scum, it gets very difficult to enact good laws. No one has a monopoly on good ideas. Indeed, the federal law bears a striking resemblance to the law in Massachusetts. When Mitt Romney pushed it through, conservatives hailed the reforms even though it imposed a mandate on Americans to buy insurance. Now Romney is leading the charge accusing Obama of an unconstitutional abuse of power. This is modern Communism he asserts, quietly forgetting his own law. When both sides are committed to disagreeing, truth is sacrificed and hypocrisy rules. So where does this leave us with the insurance companies?

Unlike the healthcare systems in other countries (such as european countries), the private insurance industry remains the key player. Americans will primarily look to the private sector for coverage. If businesses and private individuals cannot afford the premiums, the state will offer some financial support. This is wonderful news for the insurers. Millions of new people to insure with the government picking up a lot of the bill. This is a licence to print money unless the government acts to reduce the costs of treatment. If the government controls the prices of medications and forces hospitals to deliver only the forms of treatment shown to be cost-effective, this will remove the pressure on the health insurance industry to keep increasing the premium rates. Some rates will inevitably rise in the short term. But, as costs level out, they can be spread out across of wider range of people, many of whom will be healthy. This will take time and the Democrats may lose out in the midterm elections. Nevertheless, with President Obama in the White House, there will be no repeal of this law. The longer it is in force, the more difficult the GOP will find it to repeal as and when they return to power. Until things do stabilize, get the maximum number of health insurance quotes to find the most affordable policy for you and your family.

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Phentermine is never involved in controversy

It's always a joy to be able to link apparently unrelated subjects in the title to an article. This title is a real winner. Scientology was developed by a science fiction writer and has attracted some notoriety of late as various Hollywood figures have complained about its strange beliefs and homophobic practices. The idea of being able to relate dieting and weight loss to the pronouncements of the Thetans is wonderful but, unfortunately, not possible in this instance. No matter how interested the extraterrestrials may be in weight loss, they have neglected to include it in their religion. However, you will be pleased to know that it all does tie together. Kirstie Alley may be better known as an actress, but she is also a high-ranking Scientologist. Some years ago, she had a serious cocaine addiction and has credited the Church with her "cure". She is now the celebrity ambassador for the Scientology movement's drug treatment program and, probably by virtue of the size of her financial contributions to the Church, she is now a level 7 Thetan.

Those of you who follow gossip cannot fail to have noticed the constant stories about Ms Alley's fluctuating weight. As the young star of Cheers, she was relatively slim. Sadly, as the years advanced, so did signs of her spreading hips. By 2005, she had expanded to more than 200 pounds but, by virtue of an aggressive diet and exercise program, she lost 75 pounds in a year and appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show in a revealing bathing costume. With this public celebration of her weight loss success behind her, she returned to eating and put most of the weight back on again. Now she has launched a new project. Going under the name Organic Liaison LLC, it sells a diet regime based on a new organic product with USDA approval. People who sign up, pay between $10 and $149 every month. In return, they receive a diet regime also including vitamins and supplements. So far, many of the members have reported some success. Ms Alley herself has lost 20 pounds.

The reason for the controversy is that all the income generated by this company seems to be channelled straight into the Church's bank account. While there is nothing in law to prevent any private company from donating some or all of its net profit to charitable, religious or other comparable purposes, many who signed up for the weight loss program have been shocked to discover most, if not all, their money is funding the Church of Scientology. While most view the Church as harmless, there is a difference between passively ignoring it and discovering you are actively supporting it with your own money. No matter whether the company's organic product is effective or the diet regime is nutritionally sound, there is a serious issue at stake here. We give to charities when we sympathize with their aims. Failing to disclose that Organic Liaison is effectively a front for collecting funds for the Church seems almost dishonest. How much easier it is when it comes to phentermine. Here we have an FDA approved drug with decades of track record in safely helping people to lose weight. There is no question of any part of the purchase price being diverted for non-commercial purposes. Phentermine is a capitalist's dream - a safe and effective drug that can command a good price because there is no real competition in the market. It's a shame Ms Alley is not a red-blooded capitalist.

Friday, April 23, 2010

Buy Levitra online and cure your erectile dysfunction

It's strange how often accidents and mistakes lead to major scientific discoveries and the theme of this article is no exception. In 1998, a university researcher in Ohio was using mice to study the effect of aging on genes. She was surprised to see the control group of mice suffering as much cell damage as the test group which was exposed to different stimuli. After much effort, she proved the cell damage was being caused by Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical used to harden the plastic of their cages. Your reaction is probably, "So what?" Well, a cell is a cell whether it's in a mouse or a human. BPA is one of the most common chemicals in the world. It's no exaggeration to say that everything you pick up or touch with plastic in it has BPA in it. For example, it's in the fillings in your teeth and, in a transparent form, it lines cans and containers used for food and drinks. Because of this, you have BPA in your blood stream. It's almost impossible to avoid it unless you only eat organic food untouched by plastic packaging and drink water from the well sold in glass bottles. Worse, in most countries, it's in the bottles used to feed babies. The majority of scientists now believe the rising tide of behavioral problems in the young and the incidence of cancers, heart disease and reproductive problems including infertility and erectile dysfunction in adults is caused by this chemical.


Then come the phthalates. Whereas BPA strengthens and hardens plastic, the phthalates make it rubbery and bendy. You find it in furniture, shoes, etc. There's increasingly clear evidence this is affecting male hormones and, across the age range, is producing penis birth defects, low sperm counts, erectile dysfunction and prostate cancer. Put another way, throughout our lives, we are exposed to a cocktail of chemicals in what we eat and drink. How much damage is this doing? Well, animal tests suggest the long-term damage to humans could be serious. But, because of the code of ethics imposed on researchers, there are no clinical trials. It's unethical to deliberately inject large numbers of human participants with potentially harmful chemicals.

So where does this leave us? Scientists prefer to apply what's called the precautionary principle. If you have evidence suggesting the risk of harm, you stop whatever you are doing until there is evidence to show the risk is acceptably low. Politicians prefer not to upset the big vested interests and the lobbying power of the plastics industry is very influential. Here's the result. Ten years ago, Japan ordered the removal of BPA from all products used by babies and children, and limited its use in cans. Canada and France forbid the use of BPA in baby bottles. In the US, the FDA is finally assessing the scientific evidence and sale of BPA bottles has been banned in Chicago, Connecticut, Minnesota and Wisconsin. This leaves the phthalates unregulated and human beings continue to be used in a planet-wide clinical trial to determine the extent of the long-term damage caused by these chemicals. One of the first signs of damage comes as more younger men now experience erectile dysfunction and low levels of fertility. Although levitra goes some way to maintaining erectile function, it cannot solve the problem of low sperm count. As a final irony, we note levitra, along with almost every drug on the market, is usually supplied in plastic packaging.

Except Levitra, what do you need to tread ED?

Erectile dysfunction is a diagnosis that will make any man upset and depressed. Hearing these words from a doctor is something that is perceived as a death sentence to sexual activity. At least from a man's point of view. How many men have become depressed and irritated by hearing these words, how many of them had the guts to carry on with knowing that there won't be any more sex for the rest of their lives?

This may sound weird to most women reading this article, but it's a pure fact. A man's self esteem and psychological health is strongly related to how well he can perform in bed. And when there are problems with his sexual abilities this will certainly cause other psychological problems and an overall decline in the quality of life of a man. Don't haste with judging men for that, it's a part of their nature and by understanding and embracing it you will be able to help your man overcome his problems with ease.

At first, it will be very hard for a man to confess that he has erectile issues. He will most likely become irritable and unwilling to discuss intimate matters. Of course, it's not the way to resolve things but this should be a sign that something is wrong with your partner.

Men, if you have erection problems don't let your partner be the last to know about it. It won't hurt your reputation in the relationship you have if you will tell that there's something wrong with the quality of your erection. Of course, your partner will notice it and hiding these problems is very childish and unproductive. Moreover, there are many effective drugs like Levitra that help restore sexual abilities even in the most severe cases of ED. So there is no reason closing in and being defensive with your problem. By solving it together with your partner you can improve your relationship and make it even closer and warmer.

Go to your doctor together with your partner, show the person you love that their participation matters. It will be helpful for the physician to ask two people about your health than one. Sometimes you may forget important things that your partner will remember and tell the doctor. When your doctor defines the causes of erectile dysfunction in your case you will be given a choice of treatments with respect to the cause. In some cases you will have to search for Levitra online while in others you will only need cognitive therapy. It all depends.

Even if you are prescribed with ED pills such as cheap Levitra you can make it your benefit, not a routine procedure. You will have more time for foreplay which will definitely ignite your passion and contribute to better lovemaking with your partner. Especially if you were a fan of fast sex with no foreplay. There's nothing dramatic about taking pills for sex, so don't make a problem out of it. You don't get frustrated from cold medicine, right? So when you will manage to change your perception of the situation you will realize that it's not that awful after all. And erectile dysfunction is not a final verdict to your sexual activity. For some it's actually a crucial moment for improving their relationships. And maybe your case is just another one from that line.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Propecia is proved effective to stop male pattern baldness

For reasons no-one has ever been able to explain, the rest of the world plays football, but not as we know it. So we don't get confused, we simply desided to call this game "soccer". As an interesting aside, no American men are very good at the game and the US team usually gets knocked out of international competitions early. But the US Women's Team is ranked number 1 in the world. So men play the real football and only women play soccer. Anyway, in England, they have this star player. He's called Wayne Rooney - no relation to the old movie star - and he plays up front and generally kicks the ball or hits it with his head. It seems the ball usually goes where he wants it to which makes him something of a hero. The point of all this is that he has hair coming out of his chest like a rug. The beard is spectacular and his head is bald.

These world soccer types count the number of goals scored by each player, recording whether they last make contact with the ball with their foot, their head or some other part of the body other than the hand. Only Argentinean and French players like Maradona and Thierry Henry are allowed to swat the ball into the net with their hands - it's a special World Cup Rule brought in to allow the rest of the world to score goals against the British and Irish who are lumped together for these sporting purposes. Sorry, back to Rooney. Since he started losing his hair, he has started to score more goals using his head. This sudden improvement in his playing abilities is due to the absence of hair. As in pool combination shots work because both balls are hairless. So with Rooney, his bald head makes a good clean contact with the ball. There's no grease or dandruff to knock the ball off its trajectory. He has turned his baldness into his power. He is now proud to be photographed, pausing only to wipe away the marks left by the ball.

In this, it has to be admitted Rooney is probably making a virtue out of necessity. Using your head is a vital part of the game and it would be rather obvious if any player was wearing a wig. In PR terms, it's rather like someone carrying too much body weight saying they have big bones. Rooney's, "I score more goals now I have lost my hair. . ." Well, that's doubtful - a mere quirk of the statistics that's likely to disappear as the years pass by. What is equally interesting is this young man's decision not to buy propecia. Here he is, a star of the game of soccer and earning quite large sums of money. He has people who groom him and offer advice. We wonder why he never tried to prevent the baldness. It must have been tempting. There are no drug rules that would lead to him being banned. Propecia has an excellent record and almost all men with male pattern baldness who begin treatment early enough find the hair loss stops and often regrows. It's refreshing to find a young man who literally seems not to care. He's bald now and feels good about it. For everyone else, there's propecia.

Car insurance for young drivers

Most of you are probably well aware of the fact that different age groups of drivers get different insurance rates, and the difference can be quite significant. Why the discrimination, you might ask? Well, don't haste with accusing insurance company with unfair pricing, as there is a set of reasons behind such practices. When speaking about age groups and pricing, you have to understand how the insurance companies assess risk and set the rates you get when quoting.

The primary factors determining the price you will pay for insurance are risk and claim history within your demographic group. Insurance companies analyze the costs of insuring each age group and set their rates respectively. And due to a set of reasons, young adults are considered to be the most risky car owners, thus the high rates a young driver will receive when getting insurance quotes. That's because young drivers have a larger claims history as a group, and the accidents they end up in tend to be more devastating and costly. Of course, it doesn't mean that all teenagers and young adults get crazy on the road and have serious accidents. But that's the situation when one has to pay for other's mistakes, and unfortunately there's little you can do about it.

But little doesn't mean nothing. If you are a young driver looking for good auto insurance, you still have chances of getting better rates if your follow some of the following advices. Of course, they won't drop your rates instantly and dramatically but by combining them you will be able to get quite reasonable car insurance rates.

Be a good driver

Being a good driver with a clean driving record with no accidents or traffic violations always pays of no matter how old are you. But you can go beyond that. Enroll in special driving schools and employ a defensive driving style - having proof of your good safe driving abilities will definitely give your significant discounts from the insurance company.

Buy a safe car

When you are young, you want to be fast and furious. That's your right, but if you buy a fast sports car don't expect to get advantageous auto insurance quotes for it. Sports and muscle cars are considered to be risky and have high insurance costs, so insurance companies will always charge more for owning a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo than for a VW Golf. That's why you should think about the car you want to drive before actually buying it.

Do some comparison shopping

Shopping around has never hurt anyone. In fact, getting more auto insurance quotes from different companies will help you find a really competitive policy. Some companies give young drivers lower rates than others, so why not spending a bit of your time on comparing auto insurance quotes if you can save quite well on it? Besides there are so many free quote sites out there that it would be simply a crime to leave such a great opportunity for saving some money on car insurance unnoticed.

Can Tramadol treat period pain?

There is a real problem. It is called medicalization, i.e. the process of taking something entirely natural and converting it into a disease or disorder that can then be cured by doctors (usually men). We have now reached the point where every part of the female reproductive cycle has been redefined so as to require treatment (how very caring and patriarchal of the men). It starts in puberty, goes through menstruation, infects the processes of fertility, conception and birth, and pursues aging women into the menopause. The most obvious continuing "problem" is premenstrual tension (sometimes referred to as a "syndrome" to make it sound more like a deadly disease). This affects all women to some degree with a small percentage being so badly affected they must take time off work. We have now reached the point where PMS is socially constructed as a disorder, i.e. doctors have brainwashed women into believing most of the symptoms associated with menstruation constitute a disorder. The approaches to treatment begin with reassurance and what is politely called counseling. It seems women need to be taught coping strategies so they can get on with their lives. Diet and nutrition are changed. Calcium and other substances are added. Hormones are administered in the desire to re-establish the right balance, and diuretics reduce the water retention. If all this dramatic cycle of medical effort fails, we are then into classifying this as the more serious Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder and the treatments begin with the more powerful antidepressants, reflecting the fact that the mind as well as the body are obviously disordered.

Finding it difficult to swim against the cultural tide and feeling that they should "do" something, some women have been turning to alternative methods. These range from relaxation techniques, through yoga and other forms of physical exercise, to acupuncture. Acupuncture is perhaps the most interesting because it has the longest medical track record as a part of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Throughout China and South East Asia, women routinely go for acupuncture to relieve the cramps associated with menstruation. It is deeply embedded into local culture as the safe and effective way of treating the discomfort or pain. Unfortunately, women in the West are more skeptical and such formal research as exists for the use of acupuncture in the US and Europe finds no clear evidence of benefit.

All of which brings us to the simple approach. There is no need to treat menstruation as any different from all other causes of discomfort or pain. If you experience low intensity pain, you take one of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. If the pain is moderate to severe, you buy tramadol online and take that. There is no need to suffer - martyrdom should not be a part of your psychological make-up. The standard painkillers are all that is needed in the majority of cases. Should this prove ineffective, it will be evidence of a more serious underlying cause that genuinely does need investigation by your regular healthcare professional. It is possible that all you need is a different painkiller, but a check-up, if necessary by a specialist, should identify the cause of the pain and recommend treatment for the genuine disease or disorder. Otherwise, stay with the conventional painkillers or, if you want something slightly different, try tramadol apap - a combination drug that some people find easier on the stomach.

Take xanax - avoid heart disease

There's always quite a big slice of the population that's down. For them, the world revolves through shades of grey into black and back again, and there's nothing worse than meeting happy people to make them feel really bad. Somehow all the bitterness and resentment comes to the surface. It's a Scrooge, "Bah, humbug!" day everyday, including Christmas, if the crowd around them is bouncing around being all joyful. Perhaps it's a fear the happiness might somehow be infectious. They want to drive all these jolly people away unless, in a moment of weakness, they find a little joy creeps up and bites them on whichever part of the anatomy might be exposed. But, for whatever reason, unhappy people resist happiness with a real enthusiasm. Sadly, the increasing body of medical evidence is that this is shortening their lives.

Let's start with the European Heart Journal which, this month, is carrying an article suggesting that people who find peace and joy, if not excitement, in their lives are less likely to suffer from heart disease. This is not to say everyone should walk around in a state of pure contentment all the time. Everyone is entitled to periods when they feel angry, anxious or depressed. It's a balance between dark and light. It seems the people who feel positive about themselves for longer, live longer. While those who lapse into longer lasting anxiety and depressive states are more likely to suffer heart attacks. This builds on an increasing body of research findings that happy people have stronger immune systems, lower blood pressure and are less likely to contract diabetes. Just as important, people with a positive outlook are more likely to enjoy good sleep, only drink moderate amounts of alcohol and are better able to quit smoking. But, as with all science, there is a need for more research. The immediate article comes out of a ten-year study involving 1,740 participants. This is on the borderline of statistical significance. There should more more studies involving larger numbers of people to tease out all the complex strands that contribute to longer or shorter life expectancy.

For those of you interested in this issue, you will find it useful to look at http://www.springerlink.com/content/0474658172222350/fulltext.pdf. The most interesting studies involve groups of nuns who live 7 to 10 years longer than average. They live "stress-free" quite unlike the modern secular majority whose lives are blighted by worry and anxiety. As it stands, the medical profession prefers to deal with simple remedies. To keep health insurance costs to a minimum, physicians write out a prescription for xanax while signalling for the next patient to enter. Dealing with abstract notions of happiness is not in the program for time-crunched doctors. This is unfortunate because, although there is no evidence that happiness cures serious illness, it can always make the experience of illness more bearable. This does not deny that if you buy anti-anxiety drugs like xanax online, you will not find anxiety levels reduce. But there is a difference between an absence of anxiety and a positive attitude to life. The evidence is mounting that happiness improves longevity. So, if you want to avoid an early death, start looking for a little joy. You never know. It may just creep up on you and bite you when you are least expecting it. That bite could add years to your life.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Diet Pill Xanax

Xanax, Diet? Hm , sounds strange, doesn't it? This is an unbelievable combination of words as Xanax practically has absolutely nothing to do with weight loss. It is known to eliminate depression and anxiety. However, lately many people that are using Xanax have claimed it is also giving them a food effect.

Unfortunately, it is not what you are thinking. NO! On the contrary, Xanax is raising people's appetite and making food taste delicious. It is impossible to resist as people are feeling hungry all the time. Weird as it may be.

There were individuals who are reportedly craving for sweets and cakes more than ever with Xanax. It has not been confirmed that Xanax can actually help lose weight but it is be proved that it can make you gain some pounds quite unexpectedly. Therefore many people have been trying to use internet to find weight loss pills that they could take together with Xanax. But specialists have been very harsh on the combination of Xanax with weight loss medications like Phentermine, Adipex and Xenical. Together they could lead to some serious harmful consequences causing psychiatric disorder. So this can be on of the major reasons for such sudden interest towards Diet Pill Xanax.

As we can see Diet Xanax has some interesting facts behind it. Here is a little summary of what we have previously stated:

  • Xanax helps you to get rid of anxiety and depression

  • Relief from depression comes with unexpected weight gain

  • Need of diet pills to lose weight while consuming Xanax

  • Willingness to consume diet pills and Xanax together which are not recommended.

  • Search for relevant information and possible consequences cases.
Though the drug itself has been appraised by the medical servants as a quality one that saves you from anxiety, one should keep in mind that it is strictly forbidden to use various medications together. As the result of disobedience you may be end up with:
  • Severe allergy

  • Dizziness

  • Headaches and tremors

  • Upset stomach
The best possible advice for people who does buy Xanax is to consult the doctor if any weight gain problems have arisen. The specialist will provide you with some of the methods that can leave you satisfied with feeling of joy instead of anxiety and feeling of happiness from your own body shape without experiencing any unpleasant moment.

The rules about advertising erectile dysfunction products

In the good old, bad old days before television, the world was a simpler place for parents. They could more easily control the flow of information to their children and, as a result, everyone grew up more innocent. Today, it's almost impossible for parents to prevent their children from learning all about the world through the programs they watch and the adverts that appear every ten minutes. It can be quite a revelation for parents to watch some of the cartoon series offered to the young. There is a remarkably adult sensibility running through many of them, introducing some very sophisticated ideas about family relationships, life and death. But it's the ads that offer the most comprehensive window into the contemporary world, particularly those marketing the range of modern drugs. If children are watching afternoon television, they can learn about the problems of insomnia and its cure, be reassured there are cures for cancers, and have the chance to ask parents what erectile dysfunction is.

The corporations that run television exist to make a profit. Given the importance of free speech in the US, it's not for them to make judgements about the timing of adverts. That would be a form of censorship and that would never be permitted. So the pharmaceutical manufacturers hand over the money and run their ads. The sooner they establish brand awareness, the better their long-term chances of profitability. More importantly, they reinforce the message there is a drug to cure every major disease and disorder that plagues our age. If in doubt, take a pill. The government's only gesture at regulation is to empower the FDA to monitor the content of ads. The aim is to ensure the descriptions of drugs is reasonably balanced. That's why the majority of seconds in a forty-second slot is given over to a voice listing the adverse side effects that can affect those taking the drug. The images are enticing. The words can be chilling.

All this gives parents an interesting set of choices. There is no way they can prevent their children from watching tv. Trying to direct which programs they can watch is equally challenging. Indeed, denying access to some programs simply creates curiosity and invites the children to disobey. So, sooner rather than later, they can find themselves explaining what an erection is and why it might be distressing if "it" failed to function. At least the children can take away the reassurance that cialis in both forms represents a more or less guaranteed cure. The traditional form is taken as needed and has justified the nickname of the "weekend pill". Unlike the competition, the effect of this drug lasts for thirty-six hours. But there is now a once-daily version. So long as the body retains a stable level of the drug in the blood stream, the man will be able to produce an erection on demand whenever the opportunity for sex presents itself. That's why an increasing number of men around the world buy cialis and find erectile dysfunction stops being a problem. That's why this drug is now the number 1 in many of the markets around the world.

Monday, April 19, 2010

Flexeril handed out like sweets in elementary school

One of the more interesting debates that rumbles around bars from time to time (and occasionally ends up in the Supreme Court) is not just whether people should be allowed to own guns. It comes down to the practicality of whether people should be responsible for the safety of these potentially dangerous weapons. We have had an unfortunate number of incidents when young people have picked up guns lying around the house and managed to get off a round or two. Less commonly, they have taken their parents' guns to school and managed to add a few students and the odd teacher to the trophy wall. For the record, the deadliest peacetime shooting incident took place at Virginia Tech in 2007 when one man killed thirty-two people. The NRA, being the NRA, is against any forms of controls. If a householder is the victim of a house invasion, you cannot ask the invader to wait while you take the gun out of the safe. You want the freedom to offer immediate defense of self and property. But some states have enacted laws requiring varying security measures to prevent their children from becoming a danger to themselves or others. This is where the Supreme Court comes in with arguments over whether these security measures are constitutional.


So, to understand the principles involved, let's substitute prescription drugs for guns. Many of the standard drugs we have in our homes are routinely abused by others. Suppose our children confuse them for candy and are hooked on painkillers or sedatives. Would we say the parents were at fault in failing to protect their children? Should the drugs have been locked away? Now let's slightly change the story. The children can be a little older and more knowing. They understand the street value of the drugs so stand on the right corners to sell off their parents "stash". The children are, of course, committing a criminal offense and this would not be possible if they could not get their hands on the drugs. The lack of security made the crime possible.

The reason for all this speculation is a story that comes out of East Tulsa. It seems a fifth grader made herself popular by standing out in the playground during recess, and giving away flexeril and painkillers to her fellow students. So far, we do not know why the parents had these drugs around the house. Flexeril is a highly effective muscle relaxant but, particularly among younger users, there are adverse side effects on the heart rate with the possibility of seizures. Ten children took the pills and four went to hospital for a check-up. There have been no adverse effects reported. But what all this comes back to is whether the parents should be liable for allowing their daughter to take medication from the house. The child could be treated as a juvenile offender for being in possession of drugs without a prescription and distributing them. Her age, between 10 and 11, will not save her. But this could not have happened without her parents' failure to keep the drugs safely locked away. As a matter of policy, do we want to make parents responsible for the dangerous "things" they keep in their homes? There are some interesting policy decisions here and we might learn something about America by watching what happens in East Tulsa over the next week or so.

Use Meridia to keep your appetite under control

In different cultures at different times, there have been radically different views of female "beauty". Some cultures have seen women as most desirable when they are voluptuous. The reason is not hard to find. When a family is rich, it can afford to buy all the best food. This shows most clearly in the children, particularly the girls and women who are less active than the boys. So when food is generally in short supply and what you can afford is not very nutritious, you almost certainly grow up thin. When you are looking to marry money, you therefore look for a well-padded son or daughter of marriageable age. At other times when even the rich cannot find good food, everyone makes a virtue of being thin, even accentuating the figure by using corsets to pinch in the waist to the disappearing point. In modern times, the one question of body size has been hijacked by big business. Magazines are full of pictures showing young women of painful thinness. This makes the ordinary person dissatisfied. The food industry therefore sells weight loss meals. The pharmaceutical industry sells pills and diet supplements. The publishing industry sells walls of books on weight loss, healthy eating, nutrition, cooking for weight loss, and so on. The world grows rich on the backs of those in search of weight loss.

So, cutting through all the hype and marketing double-speak, is there any one diet or strategy to make weight loss easier? Surely one of the books that sell in their millions, must have some value? Well, if weight loss was easy, no-one would be overweight. No matter who you are, where you live or what your lifestyle, shedding unwanted pounds is a challenge. The most interesting piece of research came out in February, 2009. It allocated a large group of people to four diets with different levels of fat, proteins and carbohydrates. Each of the four diets was nutritionally sound and offered healthy outcomes to the cardiovascular system. People were followed over two years and encouraged to keep the diet going for as long as possible. There were no significance differences in the results. Everyone lost an average of 7% of their body weight regardless of the diet followed. So here is a message from someone without a book to sell. People who follow a calorie-reduced diet lose weight regardless whether that diet is high- or low-carb, high- or low-fat, high- or low-protein.

The biology could not be easier to describe. We store fat in our bodies against the need for energy when there is no food to eat. At that time, we burn the fat to give us the energy we need. An effective diet tricks the body into burning the fat. It's the equivalent of a famine. The lower the calorie intake, the faster you burn the fat, but the more hunger you will feel. This is where a drug like meridia becomes so important. This is one of the leading appetite suppressants, sending a message to your brain that your stomach is full. If you stop feeling hungry, it's easier to keep to the diet. Over time, your stomach will naturally contract and you genuinely will be full when you eat smaller portions. Meridia helps you lose weight safely.

When you should use Cialis and why?

The lack of possibility to obtain or maintain an erection suitable for sexual activity is the most widespread sexual problem in men regardless of their age. Most men will experience problems with erection at a certain point and knowing how to act is very important in order to avoid the cycle of stress and emotional frustration, which will certainly make things even worse. And the most important aspect here is learning the exact causes of erectile dysfunction.

Most men are very sensitive when it comes to sexual performance because their image and self-perception has a direct link with how successful they are in bed. Evidently, when sexual problems occur they cause a lot of psychological problems as well, affecting the overall quality of life of a man.

In order to minimize the impact of erectile dysfunction you first have to understand what ED is in the first place. Having occasional problems with erection is not impotence. It happens to all men and you can't perform perfectly every time you have sex. Erectile dysfunction, as defined by doctors, is the condition when a suitable erection can't be achieved in more than 1 out of 4 attempts. So if you have more than 25% of unsuccessful sexual encounters this should ring a bell and make you visit a doctor.

Erection is a very complex and sensitive process that can be easily affected by outside factors. And if any of the stages of erection is affected then it is very likely that you will develop impotence. But do not worry, as in most cases eliminating these negative factors will result in improvement of your sexual abilities.

The likelihood of developing erectile dysfunction is quite different between diverse age groups. For example, men at the age of 40 are likely to experience ED in 40% of cases while those who are at the age of 70 - in 70% of cases. But do not confuse erectile dysfunction with low sexual desire. Having a low libido has nothing to do with erection and can't be treated in conventional ways. Having a high libido and being unable to perform sexual is a whole another story that we are discussing right now.

When it comes to the actual causes of erectile dysfunction doctors distinct two categories of factors that may influence this condition: psychological and physiological. Usually there is something of both world but there's often a prevalence of certain factors that can actually be the cause for other factors. For example, if a person has diabetes and is unable to obtain an erection they are likely to develop depression or stress that will make things even worse. That's why before you decide to buy Cialis, you first have to define the cause of the problem in your case.

Common physiological causes of erectile dysfunction:



  • Physical damage to the penile area (due to injury, surgery or other trauma)

  • Physically deformed penis

  • Medical conditions (diabetes, hypertension, liver disease, etc.)

  • Substance abuse (alcohol, street drugs)

  • Medication side-effects (anti-depressants, anti-anxiety drugs, beta blockers, etc.)

  • Smoking

  • Hormonal imbalance (low testosterone levels)
Most of physiologically-caused cases of ED can be treated by eliminating the factors causing it and with the help of such drugs as Cialis.

Common psychological causes of erectile dysfunction:


  • Lack of sexual drive

  • Anxiety

  • Depression

  • Stress or fatigue

  • Relationship issues

  • Loss of interest in the current partner

If these are the causes of impotence in your case then don't rush off looking for generic Cialis

online and find a psychotherapist who will be able to manage your psychological problems the right way.

Car insurance coverage minimums by state

You probably know that all US states have different minimum coverage amounts that are required to be carried within the driver's insurance policies. And depending on where your car is registered you will have to meet these requirements. What happens if your policy has coverage amounts lower than the required minimum? That depends on the state you drive in. But usually, in case of an accident if the authorities learn that you have coverage below the minimum amount you can face a penalty or even taken into custody. So, in order to avoid that, here are the minimum requirements of coverage state by state:

Alaska 50/100/25
Alabama 20/40/10
Arkansas 25/50/15
Arizona 15/30/10
California 15/30/5

Colorado 25/50/15
Connecticut 20/40/10
Delaware 15/30/5
Florida 10/20/10
Georgia 15/30/10
Hawaii 20/40/10

Idaho 20/50/15
Illinois 20/40/15
Indiana 25/50/10
Iowa 20/40/15
Kansas 25/50/10
Kentucky 25/50/10
Louisiana 10/20/10
Maine 50/100/25
Maryland 20/40/10

Massachusetts 20/40/5
Michigan 20/40/10
Minnesota 30/60/10
Mississippi 25/50/25
Missouri 25/50/10
Montana 25/50/10
Nebraska 25/50/25
New Hampshire 25/50/25
New Jersey 15/30/5

New Mexico 25/50/10
Nevada 15/30/10
New York 25/50/10
North Carolina 30/60/25
North Dakota 25/50/25
Ohio 12.5/25/7.5
Oklahoma 10/20/10
Oregon 25/50/10
Pennsylvania 15/30/5

Rhode Island 25/50/25
South Carolina 15/30/10
South Dakota 25/50/25
Tennessee 25/50/10
Texas 20/40/15
Utah 25/65/15
Virginia 25/50/20
Vermont 25/50/10
Washington 25/50/10

Wisconsin 25/50/10
West Virginia 20/40/10
Wyoming 25/50/20

The numbers refer to bodily injury and damage liability limits to be carried by the car insurance policy. The first number is the limit of injury liability per person. The second number is the injury liability limit per accident. And the third number refers to damage liability amount. And if the property damage limit is pretty evident, needed to pay for any damage to property or infrastructure delivered by your vehicle during the accident, the first two limits need a more detailed explanation. Let's take an example from Alaska - 50/100. The first number means that a person injured in the accident that gets covered can receive up to $50,000. The second number refers to the total injury car insurance coverage per single accident. If there are two persons in the car who sustained damage they will receive up to $50,000 each (a total of $100,000). But if there are 3 or 4 persons, the $100,000 will be distributed amongst them, making individual coverage limits lower. In case all the persons require maximum per capita coverage of $50,000 the first who file for it will get it, and the other ones will be covered by the policy of the car owner who was at fault during the accident.