When Pleasure meets Money

At http://www.natural-health-information-centre.com/antioxidants.html natural-health-information-centre.com an article discusses the effects of antioxidants on the body, and presents some interesting and relevant information. At the start, the article describes what is well known about “free radicals.” These are compounds in the body with an unstable pairing of electrons in their outer shell. As a result of this instability they are electron hungry and will steal electrons from stable molecules, making them unstable and causing genetic, cell, and tissue damage in the process. Over time free radical damaage can increase the risk of degenerative diseases, heart disease, and cancer.

The article describes types of stresses that increase free radicals in the body. These include ionizing radiation from sun exposure, toxic chemicals found in cleaning products, cosmetics, and certain foods, dietary deficiencies, and improper diet. Foods that increase free radicals include refined sugar and flour, and foods high in nitrates such as bacon and sausage, plus virtually all processed foods. The site then goes on to list specific foods that cause an increase in free radicals in the body. These include refined sugar, refined flour and grains, food additives, prepared foods that are high in sugars and preservatives, moldy foods, foods cured in nitrates (bacon, sausage, salami, etc.), foods high in pesticides (non-organics), and hydrogenated vegetable oils, margarine, etc.

Free radicals levels in the body also increase when we neglect to eat foods that protect against free radicals, these include whole fresh organic fruits and vegetables, natural vegetable oils (olive oil, flax seed oil), dairy products (butter, cheese), limited amounts of raw cane sugar and whole grain, fresh organic grass-fed meats (beef, lamb).

Every antioxidant has its unique spectrum of metabolic actiions and free radicals it can neutralize. The website provides a valuable contribution in describing the unique qualities of each of the most well known antioxidants. Alpha lipoic acid, for example, helps to conserve vitamin C and F and helps regenerate glutathione. It supports the immune and nervous system and is active both inside and outside of cells. 600-800 bioflavanoids have been identified. They help preserve glutathione concentrations in the body, and help regenerate vitamins A and C. They also help to strengthen capillary and connective tissue strength. Carotenoids protect from free radicals formed by exposure to sunlight. They also support the cardiovascular system. Co-enzyme Q 10 supports the heart and cell membranes. Copper supports several antioxidants. N-acetyl Cysteine helps synthesize glutathione. Gulathionine helps with detoxification in the liver, and is essential for carbohydrate metabolism. Grape see extract is rich in proanthocyanidins and bioflavanoids, the proanthocyanidins neutralize types of free radicals that affect our vision and bioflavanoids promote a healthy circulatory system. Grape seed extract may also help vitamin C enter the cell. Decaffeinated Green Tea extract contain high concentrations of catechins, polyphenols that protect against oxidation of fats. Finally Inositol is a cell membrane stabilizer, a hydroxyl radical scavenger and growth supporter.

A summary of the diverse functions of the different antioxidants supports the advice which this website presents in the concluding chapter. When you want to select an antioxidant preparations, “more is better.” Since no one antioxidant does it all, it makes more sense to choose a supplement that presents a broad spectrum of antioxidants so that all together they will support oxidative balance in all of the bodily systems. BioOPC+ by eHelps, for example has fourteen antioxidants in their natural antioxidant formula and 13 of them are natural antioxidant rich botanical extracts, all known for their beneficial health effects.

As President Barack Obama prepared to take to the airwaves to defend his health care overhaul last week, Hernando school officials got a little insurance sticker shock of their own.

The district’s insurance carrier, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida, is seeking a 21.5 percent rate increase.

“We expected increases in health insurance, but you don’t really expect 21 percent increases,” said Heather Martin, the district’s executive director of business services. “It’s very disappointing in these economic times.”

The actual increase will likely come in at least a few percentage points below that, Martin said. Last year, for example, Blue Cross started with an 18 percent increase. By tweaking plans and raising deductibles and co-pays, the two sides brought that down to 12 percent.

Martin said she’s hopeful this year’s increase will be closer to 15 percent and that the district’s insurance committee — composed of staffers and members of both unions — had made progress toward that number during talks with Blue Cross on Wednesday.

Blue Cross declined to comment beyond a written statement issued through spokesman Mark Wright.
“The specifics of our negotiations with any client are confidential. However, I can say that for groups such as this, projected claims experience for the upcoming plan year is the determining factor for premium rate calculations.”

In other words, the company uses the district’s claims history and estimates for what next year’s claims will be to justify the rate increase.

The district’s history isn’t exactly pretty, Martin acknowledged.

Claims have been “relatively high” in recent years, she said. Last year, Blue Cross paid more than $14 million in claims.

“We are not an extremely healthy district,” Martin said. “We have not improved it.”
Martin noted, though, that the district is “punished” for the lack of urgent care facilities in the county. That forces employees to go to hospital emergency rooms, an expensive way to get urgent care that drives up the district’s clams, she said.

The School Board has agreed in past years to have the district absorb most or all of insurance premium increases and should try to do the same again this year, said board member Sandra Nicholson.

“If there’s any possibility of us being able to eat the increase, I think we probably will,” Nicholson said.

That could be a tall order, considering this year’s proposed budget has only $1 million in reserves that aren’t set aside for some purpose.

But it would help employees who have seen out-of-pocket costs rise, said Colin Davies, president of the Hernando United School Workers.

Davies said some employees have decided to go without insurance because they can no longer afford it, and he predicted that number could rise.

“You choose whether to eat or have insurance,” Davies said.

The unions accepted smaller pay raises last year in exchange for the district covering more insurance premium costs. Insurance will likely dominate negotiations again this year, said Joe Vitalo, president of the Hernando Classroom Teachers Association.

Vitalo expressed the kind of sentiment voiced by many Americans and that Obama says is motivating him to get health care reform done sooner rather than later.

“It’s probably the most legalized form of extortion there is,” Vitalo said.