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If you’re hunting for a good freelance copywriter and have never done it before, or if you have but find yourself needing another for the first time in a while, I don’t envy you. This “brave new” e-world has turned your once straightforward search of a neatly stacked file of brochures and introductory letters into a bothersome wade through a mucky world of half-baked online listings and search results which only seem to list those freelance copywriters who are experts in SEO, or at least know what the heck it means (search engine optimization).

You: “I just need a good freelance copywriter to write this product launch brochure who’s not going leave me hanging or make me ask for another round of financing.”

Google: “Results 1-10 of 44,700 for brochure copywriter (0.17 seconds).”

And that’s not even a very popular search term. Yet, with 44,700 doors (or thousands more depending on your search) to choose from, what are the chances you’ll click the one that leads to:

•A freelance copywriter who plays nice with designers and doesn’t charge a first-born child

•A freelance copywriter who knows when and where to offer their expertise on how to communicate a message

•Creative, cliché-free, differentiating, success-enabling copy that is turned in clean and on deadline

It’s probably better than a 1-in-44,700 chance, but you’re still more likely to fall short than be wildly ecstatic about your freelance copywriter decision unless you add a few points of structure to guide you through the online chaos:

1.Look at freelance copywriters further down the list. Unless you’re specifically looking for an SEO copywriter, how high a freelance copywriter or a link to a freelance copywriter ranks in search results is not indicative of how good that copywriter may be. Search engines rank web sites according to formulas of keyword saturation in site copy, meta tags, links and other places. Not how well a freelance copywriter’s work achieved his client’s objectives. Spend some time at this. There is more to the marketing, branding and advertising worlds than the Internet, and there are many worthy and successful freelance copywriters who work in the offline world, but have only a token presence on the Net. Go ahead and look at the top-ranked freelance copywriters, but investigate the others as well. Look at who their clients are, the work they do, the brands they’ve worked on, what their site is like and testimonials from past and current clients. That should give you a good gauge. Or if you like the advertising a specific company do a search for “CompanyX AND copywriter.”

2.If you want quality, steer clear of “bidding” sites. There’s too many of them already, and more seem to be popping up all the time. The online auction is a great concept for your old fishing equipment or clunker on cinder blocks, but not for a good freelance copywriter, designer, photographer or any other “creative service” professional. Sites like Elance.com, Guru.com and their many cousins allow service providers to whore themselves out for projects in a reverse auction where the lowest bid wins. Unfortunately, there really is no winner. The freelance copywriter (or whoever) gets a fraction of the fair market value for their work and the client, unless they’re extremely lucky, will be stuck with a student, green amateur or someone who might not even speak English well—to say nothing about the copy they’ll write.

3.Seek out freelance copywriters with online portfolios. Find freelance copywriters who have some kind of online portfolio. Go through it in detail. Try to get an idea of the communications problem the freelance copywriter had to solve and get a grasp on the talent and thinking that went into creating the finished copy. Then ask yourself, “If I was in the market for something like this, would this make me more interested in learning about this product or want to buy it?” The work of a good copywriter will be obvious.

4.Judge by the work, not the product. You may have a great new product that everyone’s going to want, or an old product that everyone already has, but with a new feature or something. Now, your first instinct in finding someone who’s going to write copy to sell this product is to find someone who, if you’re selling underwater titanium door hinges, has written copy for underwater steel or plastic door hinges. Yes, too many marketers think if a freelance copywriter has only written for X and not Y, that they can’t write for Y. This kind of thinking is misguided. Again, go back to No. 3 and look at the portfolio. Gauge the talent. If they did a great job communicating something about X, you can bet they’ll be able to do the same for Y. A freelance copywriter isn’t defined by the product. He is defined by how he writes about that product.

These guidelines, along with a little “buyer beware” mentality, will help you wield the Internet as the powerful information tool it’s purported to be. You will find a good freelance copywriter.

Adam Barone is a freelance copywriter from the Boston area, who writes copy for such clients as The Timberland Company, Bank One, TJ Maxx, and other clients and ad agencies. Visit him at http://www.adambarone.com. Subscribe his e-newsletter, CopyTHINK at http://adambarone.com/mailinglist/?p=subscribe. ©Adam Barone 2005. All rights reserved. Online-only reprint rights granted as long as the article is published in its entirety, including links.

At least 85% of people looking for goods and services on the Internet find websites through search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and MSN. The idea of optimizing your pages for high search engine rankings is to attract targeted customers to your site who will be more than likely to make a purchase. The higher your page comes up in search engine results, the greater the traffic that is directed to your website. That’s what search engine optimization is about.

You can immerse yourself in all the technical information available online to figure out how to optimize your web pages to achieve higher rankings. Or you can look at a few simple items on your pages, make some small adjustments, and most likely see improved rankings quite rapidly. The first item you should examine is the title bar on your homepage.

The title bar is the colored bar at the top of the page. Look at the words that appear there when you access your home page. To increase search engine rankings, the words on your homepage’s title bar should include the most important keywords or phrases, one of which would include your company name.

Then click on all your links and examine the title bars on the pages you access. Each title bar on every single page of your site should contain the most important keywords and phrases taken from the page itself. However, avoid very long strings of keywords, keeping them to six words or less. Avoid repeating keywords more than once in the title bars, and make sure that identical words are not next to each other.

The next item to put under your microscope is your website content. Search engines generally list sites that contain quality content rather than scintillating graphics. The text on your site must contain the most important keywords – the words that potential customers will be typing into search engines to find your site.

Aim to have around 250 words on each page, but if this is not desirable due to your design, aim for at least 100 carefully chosen words. If you want to achieve a high ranking on search engines, this text is essential. However, the search engines must be able to read the text, meaning that the text must be in HTML and not graphic format.

Lastly, we come to the issue of link popularity. This is a factor that is extremely important in terms of search engine rankings. Almost all search engines use link popularity to rank your website. 21:59 08.06.2005is based on the quality of the sites you have linked to from your links page.

If you visit Google and type in “link:” (without the quotations) followed by your site address (no space after the colon), you will be shown the sites that are linked to your site as per Google. Example link:www.yoursite.com. Note that searching link:yoursite.com will return different results than searching link:www.yoursite.com . To find your site’s link popularity on other search engines search the phrase “free link popularity check” and try one of the many link popularity tools available on the Web.

If you find that there aren’t many sites linked to yours, or that the sites that are linked have low search engine rankings, you need to start promotion campaign. Filling blogs / wwwboards / message boards with your articles and link is one of the best ways. It directs more quality traffic to your website.

We automated this process – filling hundreds of blogs is like a one button click with our product – Blogs Auto Filler. Use Blogs Auto Filler and save your time and money!

Search engine rankings are extremely important for a successful Internet marketing campaign. Before you go out and hire a search engine optimization company, try taking some of the simple steps listed above, and see if you can’t boost your rankings yourself. Don’t ever ignore this all-important factor in Internet marketing. Remember, the higher your search engine ranking, the more quality customers will be directed your way.

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Meeting famous people is often a surreal experience for both parties. In 1956 when Elvis Presley arrived in Hollywood he and his entourage stayed at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. One day he got into the elevator. “What floor?” asked the operator. “Tenth please.” The operator looked at him with disdain. “You can’t go up to the tenth floor. Elvis is staying there. No one is allowed there.” A bemused Presley said,” I know. I’m Elvis.” The hotel employee stared at him for a long moment then said,” Well I don’t care who you are, you can’t go to the tenth floor.” The amiable singer agreed to go to the eleventh floor and walked down the stairs to the tenth.

Some entertainment organizations are so vast that employees don’t always recognize the people at the top. Walt Disney who often was harsh with those who worked for him, had no patience for anyone at Disneyland who was rude to the customers or as he put it, the guests. One time when an unfriendly security guard prevented he and his wife Lillian from getting on a ride, Walt fired him reasoning the man would be unpleasant with others. But if someone was doing their job they had nothing to fear from the boss. Once, when Walt was on hand for a demonstration of a new ride a young girl working there chided him for lighting up a cigarette, it wasn’t allowed. Disney, who eventually died of lung cancer, asked, “Whose idea was that?” “Walt Disney’s.” Walt stubbed out the cigarette. “That’s good enough for me.”

Sometimes the famous have a difficult time not being the center of attention. Once at a party at Louis B. Mayer’s house, the mogul was expressing his admiration for a female,” The red hair, the legs, I have never seen such beauty. She walks so regally like a queen”. Greer Garson the new queen of the MGM lot was standing nearby. She walked up to Mayer’s circle and said,” Why thank you Mr. Mayer.” It turned out LB was talking about his new horse.

It’s hard sometimes for stars to remember that not everyone cares about who they are or what they are doing. One time Laurel and Hardy were filming a strange scene in Venice Beach that required the boys to run down a narrow alleyway with their wives chasing them. The women would shoot at them causing innocent men to run out of their nearby apartment buildings in their undergarments and run away, with Stan and Ollie doing double takes. Before shooting the scene Laurel gathered the extras around,” Listen fellas, it’s costing us a fortune to rent out these apartments so I want to get it right the first time. Now when you hear the shots and run out into the alley, don’t linger. We only want you in the scene for about ten seconds.” After the director shouted “ACTION!” the boys ran down the alley, their wives fired their guns, the men in their undergarments ran out and disappeared quickly following Stan’s instructions to the letter. All except one guy who was about thirty seconds late, ran the wrong way, and bumped into Laurel, ruining his close-up.”You bloody fool. You ruined the shot!” shouted Laurel. “I’m not in the movie,” replied the runner.”

Sometimes legends don’t recognize each other. After twenty years in Hollywood Alfred Hitchcock finally became super rich after producing the low budget Psycho (1960). His agent Lew Wasserman convinced him to trade the movie rights for shares of stock in Universal, making the director the third biggest owner of the studio. From then on Hitchcock loved picking up the Wall Street Journal to see if he was wealthier. While directing his last film Family Plot (1975) Hitchcock would arrive at Universal early, sit in his chair and joyfully read about Jaws (1975) which was adding millions to his stock’s value. One day his morning routine was upset by an uninvited young man hovering around the movie set. Hitchcock, who seemed to have eyes in the back of his head called a crew member to have the intruder removed. It turned out to be Jaws Director Steven Spielberg who wanted to meet his idol.

Just because you’re recognized once doesn’t mean you will continue to be. After losing his driving privileges because of drunkenness Sean Penn was forced to ride the city bus. One day another passenger came up to him. “Hey you look like Sean Penn. But I know he wouldn’t be riding a bus.” Penn replied,” How do you know? Do you know Sean Penn?” “Yeah I worked on a film he starred in.” “Oh yeah? Well, what do you think of him?”. “Oh God, he was a total $%#%!”

Stephen Schochet is the author and narrator of the audiobooks Fascinating Walt Disney and Tales Of Hollywood. The Saint Louis Post Dispatch says,” these two elaborate productions are exceptionally entertaining.” Hear realaudio samples of these great, unique gifts at www.hollywoodstories.com.

Your Guide To Preventive Healthcare

Medical experts all agree that good health depends on
improved access to and increased use of preventive
services. With health insurance premiums being what they
are and skyrocketing even further year after year, the
first part (affordable access to quality healthcare) can
serve as a worthy subject for a whole book. Notwithstanding
the significance of the problem, it is beyond the scope of
this article. More information on getting affordable access
to quality healthcare is available from
http://www.megaone.com/hbb/savemoney/affordable.html

If you already have access to preventive services, you are
responsible, in large part, for managing your own care.
Your primary-care practitioner is your partner, but
numerous decisions of paramount importance are up to you.
The following should help to decide if you need any of the
tests listed below. You should, if possible, have a copy of
your test results and records.

These are the major screening tests (that is, routine tests
for people without symptoms) and adult immunizations. The
advice is based largely on the recommendations of the U.S.
Preventive Services Task Force. Most HMOs and Medicare
cover these services; fewer traditional insurers pay for
them. Infants, children, and pregnant women need other
kinds of preventive care not described here.

- Blood pressure measurement (to detect hypertension)
Who needs: All adults.
How often: Once every 2 years for those with normal blood
pressure.
Comments: More frequent monitoring for those with readings
of 130/85 or higher.

- Cholesterol measurement
Who needs: All adults.
How often: Once every 5 years. More often if total or LDL
(“bad”) cholesterol is high, HDL (“good”) is low, and/or
you have risk factors.
Comments: Those at high risk for heart disease need medical
advice about life-style changes and possibly drug therapy.

- Diabetes screening (fasting blood glucose test)
Who needs: Everyone 45 and older; earlier for those at high
risk.
How often: Every 3 years.
Comments: Blacks, Hispanics, Asians, Native Americans,
obese people, and those with a strong family history need
more frequent screening, starting at age 30.

- Dental checkup
Who needs: All adults.
How often: Every 6 months, or on professional advice.
Comments: Should include cleaning and exam for oral cancer.

- Tetanus/diphtheria booster
Who needs: All adults.
How often: Every 10 years.
Comments: People over 50 are least likely to be adequately
immunized.

- Hepatitis B vaccine
Who needs: All young adults, as well as adults at high
risk.
How often: On professional advice.
Comments: All newborns should be vaccinated.

- Chickenpox vaccine
Who needs: Anyone who has never had chickenpox.
How often: Once. But above age 13 it requires two shots.
Comments: Not recommended for pregnant women or those with
compromised immunity.

- Pap smear (for early detection of cervical cancer)
Who needs: All women with a cervix, starting at age 18, or
earlier if sexually active.
How often: If 3 annual tests are normal, then once every 3
years. More often if you smoke, have multiple sex partners
or other risk factors.
Comments: Some experts advise that women who have never had
an abnormal result can stop being screened after age 65.

- Breast cancer screening (mammography)
Who needs: All women 50 and over; those 40-49 should
discuss riskfactors with a doctor.
How often: Annually. Medicare reimburses for it.
Comments: Clinical breast exams are also important-consult
your doctor.

- Colorectal cancer screening (fecal occult blood test,
sigmoidoscopy, colonoscopy)
Who needs: Everyone 50 and over; earlier for those at high
risk.
How often: Occult blood test annually; sigmoidoscopy every
5 years or colonoscopy every 10 years.
Comments: Digital rectal exam and X-ray with barium enema
may also be done. Medicare now pays for colonoscopy.

- Prostate cancer screening (prostate specific antigen, or
PSA, test; and digital rectal exam, or DRE)
Who needs: Blacks and men with family history, DRE and PSA
starting at age 40. For others, DRE, and possibly PSA,
starting at 50.
How often: DRE annually; PSA on professional advice.
Comments: Usefulness of PSA screening for all men remains
controversial.

- Thyroid disease screening
Who needs: Women 50 and over; those with high cholesterol
or family history of thyroid disease.
How often: On professional advice.
Comments: Routine screening remains controversial. Talk to
your doctor about risk factors.

- Chlamydia screening
Who needs: Women 25 and younger, if sexually active.
How often: Annually, or more often.
Comments: Men and women of any age who are at risk for STDs
(chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and HIV) should be tested.

- Glaucoma screening
Who needs: People at high risk: those over 65, very
nearsighted, or diabetic; blacks over 40; those with sleep
apnea or family history of glaucoma.
How often: On professional advice of eye specialist.
Comments: Many eye specialists advise screening all adults
every 3-5 years, starting at age 39.

- Influenza vaccine
Who needs: Everyone 50 and over, people with lung or heart
disease or cancer, and others at high risk.
How often: Annually, in autumn.
Comments: Even healthy younger adults can benefit and
should consider getting the shot.

- Pneumococcal vaccine
Who needs: Everyone 65 and over, and others at high risk
for complications.
How often: At least once.
Comments: Effective against most strains of pneumococcal
pneumonia; lasts at least 5-10 years.

- Rubella vaccine
Who needs: All women of childbearing age.
How often: Once.
Comments: Avoid during pregnancy.

There are other important preventive measures not listed
above-the kind of commonsense steps that could save
millions of medical dollars and prevent injury, illness,
disability, and premature death. Here’s a checklist:

- Don’t smoke, and avoid secondhand smoke.

- Maintain a healthy weight.

- Get regular exercise. Brisk walking for just half an
hour every day can be a big factor in weight control and
in staying healthy.

- Choose a diet low in animal fat and sodium, and rich in
fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and low-fat or nonfat
dairy products. Eat at least two servings of fish a
week.

- Keep alcohol consumption moderate: no more than one
drink daily for a woman, two drinks for a man. If you
are a heavy drinker, seek counseling, and cut back or
quit.

- Do self-exams of your breasts or testes, as well as
skin.

- Fasten seat belts, see that kids ride in proper
restraints, and obey the law. Drive sober and
defensively.

- Brush and floss to prevent dental disease.

Someday there may be one magic test that will accurately
detect anything and everything. Until then, this guide may
be useful in making the right healthcare decision for
yourself and your family.

(C) by Irina 2003.

==========================================================
About the Author:
Irina helps people save money on healthcare and create
steady stream of residual income working from home
http://www.megaone.com/hbb/savemoney/

Irina helps people save money on healthcare and create
steady stream of residual income working from home

http://www.megaone.com/hbb/savemoney/

Although cancer treatments have improved significantly over recent years, the search for the holy grail –a really effective cure — remains elusive. Even the much improved treatments in common use today carry risks. As Dr Claus Jacob of the University of Exeter explains, ‘cancer therapy has long been based on highly toxic substances that randomly kill healthy and sick cells alike.’

Now, however, Dr Jacob and Dr Gutowski of the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, with support from the Peninsula Medical School, are working on a new approach that causes cancer cells to self-destroy: effectively to commit suicide. In a project that started in 2000 (first with funding from the UK Research Council funding, then from the Leverhulme Trust and involvement of Exeter Antioxidant Therapeutics Ltd) the research has led to the discovery of catalysts that mimic the activity of a certain human enzyme (glutathione peroxidase). They work by setting off reactions in the cancer cells causing them to kill themselves. A crucial benefit of this approach is that the drugs target only diseased cells, leaving healthy ones intact. This means that any therapy based on this approach should avoid many of the risks and side effects associated with chemotherapy and radiotherapy. The treatment is also highly efficient because, as Dr Jacob says, ‘catalysts are not consumed during their activity but are recycled over and over again. This means that only minute quantities of biocatalyst are needed to kill cancer cells.’

Dr Jacob goes on to explain that the principle to make cancer cells kill themselves ‘is based on the fact that catalysts are not only effective, but also highly selective:
‘We knew from previous research (by us and others) that cancer cells have their own “biochemical signature” and that we could design catalysts that recognise this signature and use it to kill cells. We have also looked at natural human defence systems – and they use a similar catalytic chemistry.’

Of course many different types of cancers exist and the crucial question many will ask is what kinds of cancers could be treated by this method in the future? At this stage in the research the catalysts have been shown to work with cancer cells containing elevated concentrations of so-called ‘reactive species’. Cancers that are known to have these species are human prostate and kidney cancer and certain lung carcinomas. The content of reactive species in several other kinds of cancer cells is still not fully determined.

As existing cancer treatments are associated with risks to healthy cells as well as the cancerous ones, recent research worldwide has been concentrating on the design of drugs that specifically target cancer cells and leave healthy cells alone. Such treatments lower the side effects of the drugs significantly, but unfortunately not completely. ‘Our approach,’ says Dr Jacob, ‘uses catalysts to achieve this goal. Catalysts are very different from “one shot” conventional drugs since they facilitate reactions of species already present within the cancer cell and themselves are therefore recycled. This means they are active in very small
concentrations. Since they “need” the cancer cell’s reactive species for activity, they are only active in cancer cells but not in normal cells.’

The compounds have been developed and synthesised at Exeter University”s School of Biological and Chemical Sciences and tested in cancer cells at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital and the research is now entering its critical phase. The team has just started with animal tests and hopes to proceed to clinical trials once the compounds have shown activity in the animal models. They have teamed up with Exeter Antioxidant Therapeutics Ltd. and this company is providing patent protection and is negotiating with larger pharmaceutical companies to develop and test these catalysts further. Since this approach is based on a new method rather than a single new compound, it has considerable potential for the development of a range of new catalysts with anticancer potential.

Although the research team stresses that treatment based on this approach is still many years off, their findings open up valuable new directions in the field of anti-cancer research.

For further information, please contact:
Claus Jacob
University of Exeter
C.Jacob@exeter.ac.uk

Note about Dr Jacob:
Dr Claus Jacob moved to Exeter from Harvard Medical School in 1999 and has worked for several years at the Chemistry/Medicine interface. He has published numerous research papers on the importance of oxidative stress
in health and disease.

Brenda is a British writer and editor living in France. Find out more about her work at her web site: www.worldsapartreview.com.

By now, most people are well aware that smoking causes lung
cancer. Cigarettes, pipes, cigars, and chewing tobacco kill more
than 434,000 Americans each year accounting for one out of five
premature deaths in this country. Lung cancer is just the first
in a long list of tobacco related illnesses:

Bladder Cancer – Smoking causes 40% of all cases of bladder
cancer.

Breast Cancer – Women who smoke are 75% more likely to develop
breast cancer.

Cervical Cancer – Up to one third of all cases of cervical cancer
are directly attributable to smoking.

Childhood Respiratory Ailments – Children exposed to parents
tobacco smoke have six times as many respiratory infections as
kids of nonsmoking parents.

Diabetes – Smoking decreases the body’s absorption of insulin.

Emphysema – Smoking accounts for up to 85% of all deaths
attributable to emphysema.

Esophageal Cancer – Smoking accounts for 80% of all cases of
esophageal cancer.

Gastrointestinal Cancer – Smoking at least doubles the risk of
cancer of the stomach and duodenum.

Heart Disease – Smokers are up to four times more likely to
develop cardiovascular disease than nonsmokers.

Infertility – Couples in which at least one member smokes are
more than three times more likely to have trouble conceiving.

Kidney Cancer – Smoking causes 40% of all cases of kidney cancer.

Mouth Cancer – Tobacco causes the vast majority of all cancers of
the mouth

Premature Aging – Constant exposure to tobacco smoke prematurely
wrinkles the facial skin and yellows the teeth and fingernails.

Stroke – Smoking doubles the risk of stroke among men and women.

Throat Cancer – The vast majority of cases of pharyngeal cancer
are directly related to smoking.

While smoking has officially been recognized as a cause of lung
cancer, scientists have also confirmed another tobacco danger,
that breathing the air containing someone else’s smoke (second
hand smoke) poses many of the same risk as smoking yourself .

Doctors and Scientists have been reporting on the dangers of
tobacco and smoking for nearly four decades. Many serious
illnesses are directly attributed to smoking. If you want to
live a longer, healthier life ­ quit smoking today!

Dr. Osgoodby was a finalist in the “EAS Body for Life” Contest.
Stop by his web page at http://bestbodyever.com to see his before
and after pictures and subscribe to his monthly newsletter.

The Lawsuit Matrix
by Lady Camelot

According to an article written by Michael Weissentstein, A New York Jury awarded $20 Million in punitive damages to a smoker’s widow last week (after a jury deliberation of over two days).

Per Mr. Weissenstein’s report, Ms. Gladys Frankson sued Brown & Williamson (Lucky Strike Manufacturers) when her husband passed away in 1999. Ms. Frankson’s husband had begun smoking around 1954 at the age of 13.

Let’s take a long and very deep perspective of the grand effects this ruling may have on corporate America:

To any other, this may simply be an everyday case in the National court system, but contrary to what one’s opinion may be of cigarettes and cigarette smoking, the phenomenal repercussion of this landmark decision may create extreme, adverse effects. Not to be misconstrued that we do not sympathize with Ms. Frankson’s loss, as any loss of human life is a sorrowful hardship.

Why does this particular ruling have such profound consequences?
Think about it. Since Ms. Frankson was awarded a sum for her husband’s loss, would it not only be right and justifiable that ALL persons who have died from lung cancer due to smoking should be awarded equal amounts as well? Should this not mean that government should become the main source of intervention and stop all production of tobacco products? What about the people who have suffered from certain types of oral cancer, should not chewing tobacco manufacturers be called upon to halt ALL production of their chew products as well?

Furthermore, what about the recent McDonald’s case? Why not hold ALL fast-food restaurants and restaurants in general liable for persons suffering from type II Diabetes, for persons suffering unimaginable weight-gain related, health problems associated with their eating at these restaurants?

In addition to tobacco companies and local & National Food chains, I naturally would assume that we should also hold alcohol manufacturers, and distributors liable for liver disease, the thousands of D.U.I.-related deaths, and even kidney dialysis. But we can’t just stop there. Eventually, this ruling may even lead to the auto and small engine manufacturing industries as well. After all, aren’t automobiles, motorcycles, and lawnmowers leading culprits for smog and oxygen depletion; thus an indirect cause of ozone layer reduction?

We mustn’t forget the beef & cattle industry. God forbid one should get botchulism or salmonella poisoning for digesting undercooked beef — or worse yet — mad cow disease? Greater concerns are for the cattle themselves, as they emit methane gases. Perhaps we should eradicate cattle too, because there are definitely some major counter-effects of even raising and herding these gentle giants for human consumption.

We must not forget to include certain food manufacturers that produce potato chips, candies, chocolates, and other “junk foods,” categorized as “high fat” content products. Apparently, these items, too have and are wreaking havoc on human bodies everywhere. Plaque from fatty acids is continually building up in our heart arteries and capillaries as we munch away on these delectable treats. Eventually, we end up with Heart disease, and myocardial infarctions — the cause — your friendly “junk food” industry. Perhaps these unsuspecting businesses must too bare responsibility for the products that we (as individuals) CHOOSE to consume or ingest.

Another probability in the lawsuit assembly lines, is the produce industry. Chemical solutions that are used to repel fungi, disease and other parasites are traditionally utilized on many of our fruits, vegetables and beans. So, you forgot to wash that apple and decided to eat it anyway — now you’ve been placed in a complex situation. You may just have ingested chemical compounds that will eventually cause and lead to some form of cancer — and ultimately — your own demise. Do we now bring a case against the apple grower or the chemical producer? Hmmm… tough decision. Why not sue both?

Less we not forget the notorious cocaine manufacturers and distributors. Countless persons die of cocaine, crack and other substance abuse on a daily basis. But ah — we don’t have the information to sue them. We can only prevent the use of it. In essence — prevention is key.

The fact is, we live in a society where numerous unhealthy products are created, manufactured, distributed and sold to consumers. The point being that we CANNOT hold every company responsible for OUR OWN ACTIONS. The nice thing about America, is that we have a distinct CHOICE whether or not to use certain products. When our overuse, misuse or general use of a product comes with repercussions, we must choose to accept our own fate and learn from it.

Regretfully, not all persons learn from their addictions, or effects of product usage. To those who are left behind, or to the survivors, I leave you with one piece of advice: Live. Learn. Prevent. Suing industries for our own choices, is a travesty to America and will ultimately lead to irrevocable circumstances. A good film to watch that will enlighten one’s perspective on “too many laws,” is “Demolition Man,” starring Sylvester Stallone.

I welcome your comments.

(c) 2004 Lady Camelot All Rights Reserved.

LadyCamelot currently serves as the Public Relations’ Director for www.holisticjunction.com – Your Pathway to Discovery – A community of people interested in all things holistic. Here, you will find what you need; share what you know; discuss what you’re not sure about. Create your own web site, participate in online forums (over 80 categories), peruse the Business Directory, publish your original articles, opinions, artwork, and so much more.

Healthy Questions to Help Make you Healthy…
How to Organize the Health Area of Your Life
by: Janet L. Hall
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Many people make New Year’s resolutions, only to break
them within a week or a month afterwards.

Many people either do or do not set goals for themselves.
Some people have no idea how to set goals.

So, let’s look at the difference between resolutions and goals.

“Webster’s New World Compact School and
Office Dictionary” copyright 1994, offers these definitions:

~~ Resolution-1 the act or result of resolving something
2 a thing determined upon; decision as to future action
3 a resolute quality of mind
4 a formal statement of opinion or determination by an
assembly, etc.

~~ Goal-1 the place at which a race, trip, etc. is ended
2 an end that one strives to attain
3 in some games, a) the line or net over or into which
the ball or puck must go to score b) the score made.

Notice # 2 in each definition and let’s use ‘losing weight’ as
our example. (I use this as an example because it is the
number one New Years resolution).

The statement. “I’m going to lose weight this year” doesn’t
really have any meaning, focus, or structure.

The statement “I have determined that I need to lose weight
and will walk one mile three times a week so that I can wear
the new dress/suit that is too tight.”

See the difference? See how the second statement has more
clarity and structure?

We have determined the problem, decided on the action
we want or need to take, and what end we are striving to attain.

This is the way to focus on a problem, make a resolution,
and set a goal.

I call this “Goal-Resolve”.

“Goal-Resolve! What is this woman talking about?”

Goal-Resolve: a statement that determines a problem, what action
you need to take, and to what end you want to attain.

Below is a list of the recommended traditional health tests
and exams you should have, listed with age and frequency
of exams. The frequency suggested is for those of you
that have no symptoms or any history of risk. Please
consult with your doctor to find out if you need to be tested
more frequently.

Print out the list and place an X next to the tests or
exams that you NEED to GET PERFORMED.

By the way, when was the last time you had a physical?

___Physical
21-39: every 3 years
40-49: every 2 years
50-74: Yearly
___Blood Pressure
21-74: every 2 years, more often if high or low
___Blood Cholesterol
21-74: every 5 years, more often if high
___Bone-density scan (DEXA or pDEXA)
40-59: Postmenopausal women with one or more
osteoporosis risk factors or who have had a bone
fracture and men should consult with doctor.
After 65: every 2 years
___Breast self-exam
15 + : Monthly
___Cancer checkup and health counseling
21-39: every 3 years
40-74: Yearly
___Chest X-ray and lung function test
Yearly for smokers; baseline check at 40 for
nonsmokers
___Clinical Breast Examination
21-39: every 3 years
40-74: Yearly
___Dental Checkup
21 + : every 6 months
___Digital Rectal Exam
21-49: not necessary if no symptoms
50-74: every 5-10 years
___Electrocardiogram
40-74: Baseline at 40 and as recommended by
your doctor thereafter
___Fecal Occult Blood Test
21-50: not necessary if no symptoms and no
family history of colon cancer
50-74: Yearly
___Hearing
21-39: not necessary if no symptoms
40-74: as necessary, every 5-10 years
___Influenza Vaccine
21-49: optional
50-74: Yearly
___Mammogram
21-39: Baseline at 35, then every 1-2 years
40-74: Yearly
___Pelvic Exam/Pap Smear
21 + : yearly
___Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA)
50 + : Yearly
___Sigmoidoscopy (colon examination)
21-49: not necessary if no symptoms and no
family history of colon cancer
50-74: every 5 years
___Skin Exam (for signs of cancer)
21-39: self-exam every month
40-74: yearly by dermatologist
___Testicular Self-Exam
21 + : monthly
___Tetanus-diphtheria (Td) Booster
21 + : every 10 years
___Thyroid-stimulating Hormone Test
65 + : every 3-5 years
___Triglycerides
21-59: every 5 years
60-74: at doctors recommendation
___Urinalysis
50-59: every 10 years
60-74: every 5 years
___Vision
21-39: yearly if you wear glasses; once before age 40
40-59: every 2-4 years
60-74: Yearly

(The above list was compiled from *Family Circle*-
Your Personal Planner, Wellness Guide, Vol. 25, No. 15)
If you are 74 +, please check with your doctor for their
recommendations of frequency.

Some other vaccinations that you might need to add to your
list are:
~~Pneumonia shot at age 60 and again at 67
~~Hepatitis B for those of you that are health workers
or living with a carrier
~~Hepatitis A if you plan to visit Third World countries
~~Cholera, Typhoid Fever, Yellow Fever, and other
diseases endemic to areas where you plan to travel
~~Lyme Disease if you live, work or vacation in high-risk
areas or are exposed to ticks for any length of time.
(The highest-risk states in the US are those in the
northeast, plus Minnesota and Wisconsin)

If you have children or grandchildren, please make sure
that they are getting their necessary and required shots.

Call your doctor, dentist, vision and hearing doctors today
and set up your appointments for yourself (and any loved
ones) for the year.

Schedule a date with a nutritionist and make sure you
are eating properly and getting the proper amount of
vitamin supplements. Nutritionist in my area charge
about $60 for the first visit. It was money well spent and
an amazing experience.

Talk with your doctor about exercise and what type is best
for you. It might be as simple as taking a daily walk.

If you’re a business or SOHO owner, you MUST be
healthy to meet the demands that confront you on a
daily basis.

OverHalling your problem areas might be harder for you
if you are already tired, dragging your feet, achy, sore and
don’t know what’s wrong. OverHalling is not easy! It will
take time, commitment, energy, and strength.

Don’t let getting healthy become a resolution that you
break or a goal that you never accomplish.
Make it a *Goal-Resolve*!

Smiles, not Piles,
Janet L. Hall

The Organizing Wizard, Janet L. Hall, is a Professional
Organizer, Speaker, and Author of ‘Secrets of a Professional Organizer and How-To Become One.’ She is the owner of
OverHall Consulting and Organizing By Phone. Subscribe to
her FREE organizing newsletter at
http://www.overhall.com/newsletter.htm or visit
her web site at http://www.overhall.com

Copyright Ó 1999, 2000, 2001 by OverHall Consulting
P.O. Box 263, Port Republic, MD 20676
All Rights Reserved. Permission is granted to reproduce,
copy, or distribute so long as this copyright notice and full
information about contacting the author is attached.

The Organizing Wizard, Janet L. Hall, is a Professional
Organizer, Speaker, and Author of ‘Secrets of a Professional Organizer and How-To Become One.’ She is the owner of
OverHall Consulting and Organizing By Phone. Subscribe to
her FREE organizing newsletter at
http://www.overhall.com/newsletter.htm or visit
her web site at http://www.overhall.com

One of the great mysteries of life is how the three major credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax, and Trans Union) score credit. They all have secret statistical formulas for determining your credit score, but they are unwilling to divulge exactly what, exactly, constitutes your score. This can make it difficult for people with problem credit to try to improve their score in hopes of obtaining a home or car loan later. .

While the exact formula is a secret, there are a few things you can do that will undoubtedly improve your score: .

Pay off a home equity line of credit. These loans, which allow you to borrow more than once against your home’s equity, are considered revolving credit, much like a credit card. Pay it down or pay it off; either should help your score.

Check your credit report regularly; you are entitled to a free copy of your credit report once a year. By looking over your credit report, you can make sure that debts you have paid on time are shown on the report, such as student loans, or auto loans that have been paid in full. You can also make sure that your credit limits on your credit cards are reported correctly. Lenders look at the ratio of debt to available credit, and if your reported credit limit is low, it could make it appear as though you are nearly at your credit limit. .

Check for duplicate information on your credit report. If your mortgage has been sold to another firm, make sure that your report doesn’t show your mortgage twice.

Keep balances on credit cards and other revolving accounts low. You do not want to be seen owing too much money to too many different lenders.

Don’t have too many open credit accounts. Ten Visa cards will not help your credit rating. Try to keep a maximum of three revolving credit accounts.

By checking your credit report regularly, and by eliminating unusual entries, you should be able to increase your credit score. And with credit, every little bit helps.

©Copyright 2005 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including http://www.End-Your-Debt.com/

Apart from eating many of the wonderful vegetables and fruits that inhabit our planet, drinking them is equally nourishing and satisfying. Juicing vegetables and fruits can also create a dynamic taste treat, causing your taste buds to dance with undiscovered delight. If you’re new to juicing, I recommend only juicing vegetables and fruits that you enjoy eating. As time goes on, you can try out other foods as well as increased amounts of those foods.

Concentrated Nutrients

As a dedicated vegetarian, you are well aware of the benefits of eating fruits and vegetables daily. What you may not have known, is that by actually juicing these delicious foods, you are consuming the maximum concentrated benefits of their nutrients. How? Simple, when you cook food, you loose up to 97% of their nutrients. That’s quite a loss huh? There are certain precautions and methods towards picking, storing and cooking food, that will minimize the loss of nutrients, but that’s another article. Suffice to say, juicing your foods will retain almost a 100% if not all depending on certain circumstances. When you juice, you take raw vegetables and fruits to do the job. Because juicing produces no heat or any other method that causes nutritional loss, you consume high levels of nutrients.

Vital Nutrients

There are some nutrients like certain antioxidants that do an outstanding job fighting lung cancer, stroke and heart disease. By cooking away anywhere from 74% to 97% of these nutrients, you are actually doing yourself a disservice and a potentially lethal one at that. There are other numerous nutrients that also fight disease on our behalf. To consume the entire village, start juicing and drinking them on a regular basis. Nutrients like beta carotene and other carotenoids do great things such as boosting your immunity system.

No Pulp Fiction

It’s a known fact that when you juice, pulp remains in the juicer. Over the years there have been many views on what do with that pulp and why. From just discarding it to employing other culinary uses for it. In essence, that pulp contains high levels of fiber and truly should not be thrown out. Fiber has too many benefits to simply dismiss it so easily. Some experts recommend using the pulp in food and others suggest putting some of the pulp back into the juice for greater health rewards. What I can tell you is that the pulp acts as a fertilizer for the good bacteria in the colon and that’s a definite plus.

Cheers To Juicing

Well! There are many different views on juicing by many different experts, but no matter the differences, they can all agree on one thing, juicing, whatever the method use, contain far more positives than the many differences and opinionated views varying experts concede to have. Not juicing is a none option in today’s world of undernourished bodies and minds. Start juicing and gain the many nutrients that your body craves. A nutrient fortified body is able to prevent and fight off various diseases and ailments that come under attack on a daily basis.

Gabriel Foster is the editor for http://www.gabrielfoster.com, the online magazine for both vegetarians and natural health enthusiasts.