Swobidu Health

Posts Tagged ‘money’

Environmental Commentary by Kim Coble, executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation Spend our money more wisely. I think that

If you have a few kids at home, then you are probably all too familiar with the pricey trip to salon. Just a couple of kids’ haircuts can set you back big time. if you arm yourself with the know-how and the right equipment, you will be set to save time and money. of course, you will need to first invest in a high quality hair scissors and if you have boys, an electric razor or hair cutting kit. Don’t try this without the right tools. A dull kitchen knife will leave you hating yourself and your kids will never let you touch their hair again.

It’s best to start this process when your kids are still young. this is not only because it’s an acceptable age for them to have a less than perfect cut, but it gives you a chance to hone your skills before they face a class full of critics. you will not only have to get the hang of it, but slowly teach your child the importance of holding still. With a little practice, you both can work together and achieve great styles at home at a fraction of the cost.

There are a variety of hair scissors available and they will vary based on your needs. the major types are thinning shears, styling shears, tempered shears and left-handed shears. They are designed to perform different tasks and be held in different ways. Short blades are designed for close touchups around the ear. Long blades are ideal for cutting thick hair.

If you are cutting boys’ hair, you will probably make use of an electric razor in addition to the hair scissors. you can pick one up at most major stores packaged with a variety of blade sizes. this will help you easily customize the length of the hair.

Braces toothbrushes have some very important work to accomplish while you are wearing your braces. That is why your orthodontist will be giving you new toothbrushes at every visit. Keeping your teeth and gums clean is a way of protecting your investment in your orthodontics.

The last thing you want is to spend time and money on straightening your teeth only to find dental cavities and gum disease when the braces are removed. Yet, this is exactly what happens if you do not maintain meticulous oral hygiene with brackets and wires on your teeth.

The culprit is dental plaque. Plaque is a thin film of bacteria trying to attach to a smooth surface such as a tooth, orthodontic wires, and brackets. These bacteria will break down sugars and produce acids. The acids produced are what causes tooth decay and gum disease.

As you might imagine, fighting plaque is especially troublesome when you have a mouth full of orthodontic hardware to keep clean. Some people think the best way to fight plaque during this time is with fluoride or anti-plaque mouth rinses. These can be helpful but must only be used as adjuncts.

The reason is that plaque must be mechanically removed. That’s why orthodontic offices are full of braces toothbrushes. of course these are your basic old-fashioned and not very expensive manual toothbrushes. But if you use them properly and frequently they can get the job done.

It will take longer than normal to brush your teeth while you are wearing braces. you will need to give special attention to all the brackets and wires. you will also need to take care not to damage the wires by brushing too hard. another consideration is that the toothbrush bristles will wear out much more quickly. Once this occurs it is very important to change toothbrushes. you should also ask your dentist about the best braces toothbrushes and which one is most recommended.

Brushing, however, is only half the battle when it comes to maintaining your oral hygiene. Flossing is the other half and it is essential. This is especially true while wearing braces. Nobody likes flossing and it is even more troublesome when you have a wire on your teeth.

You will need to use one of the floss threading devices in order to place the floss beneath the wire and in between your teeth. As you can imagine it does take some time to accomplish this. But flossing is critical to the success of your oral hygiene program. No amount of brushing or rinsing will remove all of the dental plaque between your teeth.

One of the hindrances to fighting dental plaque while wearing braces is that your teeth and gums are more sensitive. you will also find that your gums bleed more. Tenderness and bleeding are to be expected in the first several days after the wires are adjusted each time. you will still need to brush and floss even though it will be slightly more uncomfortable. if you ignore oral hygiene during this time your gums will become more inflamed and remain tender for a longer period of time.

It will take great patience and determination to keep your teeth and gums clean while you are wearing braces. Brushing and flossing will definitely pay off when your braces are finally removed.

Something which all men growing up discover is that you will need to start shaving on a regular basis. for some they start early and need a good shave each day to help maintain a nice clean look. This means they will need the proper tools to ensure they get a close shave. for today’s generation the 3 or 4 blade razors from Gillette are among the most popular. However, there is another option which is considered old school but can provide one of the best close shaves you can get, it’s called a Safety Razor.

A popular model is the Parker Safety Razor, with these razors you simply buy the handle (which is designed to last your lifetime) and some razor blades. the great thing is these razor blades are far cheaper, sharper and more durable than the blade cartridges you buy for modern razors. Think about the amount of money you spend on cartridges for your Mach 3 and how many shaves each cartridge will give you. It’s not something you tend to think about but over the course of a year you will spend quite a sum of money.

For most, modern razors provide a fast and easy approach to shaving with less chance of cutting yourself. the double edged safety razors provide just as close if not closer shave (some practice and technique goes a long way to a good shave) and is also far more economical over the years. Why not try it out for yourself, if you need more convincing why not ask a barber which razor they prefer and no doubt you will be searching for your very own Parker Safety Razor very soon.

With the Quit Smoking Today program, you will lose your desire to smoke after the first session. Subsequent sessions will reinforce the powerful message and keep you from wanting to smoke for longer periods of time. Once you begin this stop smoking regimen you will discover how the power of your mind is much stronger than the power of the addictive chemicals in cigarettes. the psychotherapy method in Quit Smoking Today uses new techniques that help to reduce your desire to smoke immediately.

1. you Know why you should Quit.

It’s no secret that there are many health benefits to quitting smoking. Quit Smoking Today includes an extensive list of those benefits, and some of them may surprise you. some of the interesting benefits are that only 8 hours after you stop smoking your body’s carbon monoxide level becomes normal again, and after not smoking for just 3 days the risk of a heart attack is reduced dramatically. this program will help you increase your health – and it will save you money because you won’t need to buy cigarettes anymore.

2. Easy To Use.

Quit Smoking Today is an audio file that is in the common mp3 format. it can be played on any standard CD player, which means you can take it with you in the car or listen in the office or at home. If you’d rather put it on your mp3 player, it can be uploaded to your computer at home. If you listen regularly, your desire to smoke will decrease steadily until you no longer find yourself wanting to smoke anymore at all.

3. Permanently Eliminates Cravings.

The method used in the Quit Smoking Today system involves a type of psychotherapy that has been proven to work as a habit-breaking program. the techniques on the recordings are effective at reducing cravings substantially, and they work after just one listening session. you don’t really need to do anything other than listen, and your brain will take care of the rest. this system allows you to stop smoking without the negative side effects that usually accompany quitting, like gaining weight and irritability.

Associated PressThe number of smokers in NYC has dropped significantly in recent years.STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — new York’s adult smoking rate fell to a record low of 14 percent last year — and Staten Islanders are leading the pack with the steepest decline in the city.

Borough smoking rates dropped from 19 to 14 percent between 2009 and 2010 with some South Shore neighborhoods experiencing a decrease of 52 percent, according to numbers released by city officials yesterday.

The Island has long been the borough with the highest smoking rates.

“There are fewer smokers, fewer deaths, fewer illnesses and more money saved,” said Adrienne Abbate, borough manager for the Staten Island Smoke-Free Partnership, an advocacy group in St. George.

“To see this kind of decline, especially on the South Shore, shows our message is really getting across.”

Citywide, smoking has dropped from 35 percent since 2002, coinciding with the city Health Department’s campaign to reduce tobacco use. That translates into 450,000 fewer adult smokers.

Among teenagers, smoking has dropped from 2001 to 2010 with the proportion of public high school students who smoke cut by more than half, from 18 percent to 7 percent.

“Smoking is the leading cause of preventable, premature death in new York City and the nation today and we’re proud that a record number of News Yorkers are saving their own lives by quitting,” said Mayor Bloomberg, who released the numbers with Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Linda I. Gibbs and Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas a. Farley.

“This decrease will prevent 50,000 premature deaths by the year 2052 and I encourage those who are still smoking to take this opportunity to get help quitting by calling 311 today.”

Bloomberg attributed the decline to a host of policy changes, including the Smoke Free Air Act, which prohibited smoking in workplaces, bars and restaurants in 2002. That was expanded to hospital grounds and entrances in 2009 and to all city parks, beaches and pedestrian plazas this may.

He also cited sales tax on cigarettes, the city’s hard-hitting anti-smoking commercials, a 2009 regulation requiring all tobacco retailers to post signs displaying graphic images of the effects of smoking, and efforts to derail the illegal bootlegging of cigarettes.

Still, smoking will claim the lives of 7,000 new Yorker this year, the numbers show.

“There’s more work to be done,” said Ms. Abbate of the Smoke-Free Partnership. “This is a victory for sure, but we haven’t won the battle. “Big Tobacco spends over a $1 million in new York State to advertise its products. They’re usually two steps ahead of us.”