Dear Health-Conscious Friend,
Lately, the buzz in various news venues is all about the ailing U.S. economy
Many folks are nervous about their investmentsand the rising cost of daily expenses such as food and gas. You might even be worried about how these economic pressures are affecting your retirement savings.
In todays Monday Edition of Health News Weekly, Ill share some eye-opening survey results about prescription drug prices that highlight a differentand in many cases unexpectedthreat to retirement funds.
If youre serious about protecting your nest egg, lets get started!
Prescription Drug Prices Put a Serious Crack in Some Retirement Nest Eggs
One in three retirees says their medical and drug expenses pose a serious threat to their retirement funds. And many are worried about how this will impact their quality of life in their golden years.
According to new research released by Medco Health Solutions, Inc. many retirees say they are spending far more on their health care and prescription drugs than they expected. And more than half of those surveyed admit to completely overlooking health care and prescription drug needs during retirement planning!
Medco by Directive Analytics conducted a national survey of 1,000 Americans over the age of 65. Researchers found that many retirees set aside funds for food, shelter, taxes and entertainment. But they fail to budget for drugs and medical costswhich are rising far faster than the inflation rate.
Sally Greenberg, executive director for the National Consumers League, said this highlights a real need for education about how to build a healthy nest egg.
The Medco research revealed that for one in four middle-income retirees, $1 out of every $10 of their monthly retirement income goes to pay for medications alone.
Furthermore, fewer than half of retirees (48 percent) said they use all of the tools at their disposal to save money on their medications. And approximately one in four (24 percent) claim to use few or no available cost savings tools to cut their medication expenses.
The survey also revealed a surprising lack of awareness among retirees of specific cost-savings tools.
For example, 76 percent of retirees said they knew about cost savings available from getting prescriptions by mail. But only 40 percent actually use this cost-saving tool!
Medco has launched a campaign to educate retirees on ways to reduce prescription drug expenses.
They developed a free consumers guide called Prescription for a Healthy Nest Egg: Half a Dozen Ways to Lower Your Drug Costs and Stretch Your Retirement Dollar.
The free guide presents easy-to-understand information on ways to save on drug costs how to optimize prescription dosages and tips for eliminating overlapping medications from different doctors.
The free guide is available for download at .
Good health is where you can find it. It is seldom found within the sickness system or orthodox medicine. It is most likely to be found in alternatives and natural solutions.
Pharmaceutical medicine is by no definition a health system. It is in every way a commercial business based on profits. Very few doctors suspect this. So tight is the psychological control of the medical system, that no amount of persuasion or logic can dislodge it.
The professional medical class is money motivated and they lust after the pharmaceutical system, totally unconscious of the realism of human health. A drug system is incompatible with the health of man and animal.
Its disgusting to me that the state of medical affairs in America have come to this. Rather than focusing on health and preservation of health, the medical establishment solely focuses on symptom treatment with drugs, not curing the underlying health problem.
Wake up and take charge of your health! Your life depends on it.
Short-Term Hormone Therapy Increases
Breast Cancer Risk
It seems that menopausal hormone therapy can boost your risk of developing breast cancer SOONER than previously reported!
According to a Reuters Health report, as little as 3 years of using combined estrogen and progestin substantially increases the risk of developing lobular breast carcinoma.
Dr. Christopher I. Li and colleagues from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center said previous studies suggested it took at least 5 years of hormone use to increase breast cancer risk.
Lobular breast cancer affects the small sections of the breast, or lobules, which end in tiny milk-producing bulbs. Ductal breast cancers form in the thin tubes that link together the lobes, lobules, and bulbs of the breast.
As reported in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention, the researchers conducted a population-based study that included:
- 324 women with lobular cancer
- 524 women with ductal cancer, and
- 196 subjects with ductal-lobular breast cancer diagnosed between 2000 and 2004
A comparison group consisted of 469 women randomly picked from the general population.
Researchers found that women currently on combination hormone therapy had an increased risk of lobular and ductal-lobular carcinoma of 2.7- and 3.3-fold respectively.
Patients needed at least 3 years of treatment with combined hormone therapy to see an increased risk.
Li said women considering hormone use should try to use the lowest dose of hormones for the shortest time possible.
He said the team is studying the underlying biology to explain why hormones may impact the risk of certain types of breast cancer more strongly than other types.
Fast Fact
If you want to nourish healthy skin build a kick-butt metabolism or de-stress your lifeB-vitamins provide all this and more!
There are eight vitamins that work together to deliver the B-Complex of vitamins. The B-complex vitamins include:
- Vitamin B1 (Thiamine)
- Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin)
- Vitamin B3(Niacin)
- Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid)
- Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine)
- Vitamin B7 (Biotin)
- Vitamin B9 (Folic acid)
- Vitamin B12 (Cyanocobalamin)
Your body loses anywhere from 25 to 75 percent of its B vitamins in a 24-hour period. This is why you can easily develop B-vitamin deficiencies.!
>But you can boost your vitamin B intake with foods such as potatoes, bananas, lentils, chilli peppers, liver, turkey, and tuna.
You can also increase your vitamin B intake through high-quality supplements. And dont worryits very hard to overdose on these essential vitamins.
So stock up on your B-vitamins and BE HEALTHY!
Study Fingers a Surprising Predictor
Of Osteoarthritis Risk
Is your ring finger longer than your pointing, or index finger? According to a new British study, this may show youre at risk for knee osteoarthritis, especially if youre a woman.
Osteoarthritis occurs when wear and tear caused the cartilage cushioning your bone joints to thin. It commonly affects weight-bearing joints, such as your knees, hips, and spine.
As you age or gain weight, risk of osteoarthritis becomes more common. But finger length may also be a risk factor.
A British studypublished in Januarys edition of Arthritis & Rheumatismincluded more than 2,000 people with severe knee and/or hip osteoarthritis. Researchers also studied more than 1,100 people without knee or hip osteoarthritis.
The researchers, based at Englands University of Nottingham, eyeballed the length of participants ring and index fingers. They followed their visual observations with hand X-rays for precise measurements.
The research team found that people whose index finger was shorter than their ring finger were about twice as likely to have knee osteoarthritis.
This pattern was stronger for women than for men. Among women, those with an index finger shorter than their ring finger were three times more likely to have knee osteoarthritis.
The finding may also be true for hip osteoarthritis. But because most participants with hip arthritis also had knee osteoarthritisresearchers couldnt confirm this.
Rheumatology professor Michael Doherty, M.D., and colleagues arent sure how to explain their findings. They note that men are more likely than women to have index fingers that are shorter than ring fingers.
They suspect hormones may play a role, but this is not certain.
Health E-Hints
Feeling Out of Sorts? Try Magnesium for a
Total Body Boost!
Magnesium is an essential mineral to a variety of body functions. It helps your body absorb calciumwhich is critical to building strong bones and teeth. It is also vital for maintaining a healthy heart.
Dr. Mildred Seelig and Dr. Andrea Rosanoff identified several key roles of this important nutrient in their book The Magnesium Factor. Their research shows magnesium can help:
- Stabilize your heart rhythm
- Prevent abnormal blood clots
- Maintain healthy blood pressure levels
- Improve nerve and muscle function
- Regulate blood sugar levels
- Help you enjoy more restful sleep
- And much more!
You can boost your magnesium intake by eating plenty of green vegetables, nuts and whole grains. But the key is to eat a variety of foodsand possibly take a nutritional supplementto ensure youre getting total body protection!