Lauri Ann's New Life

Everyone's all astir over the new "Obamacare" health plan, and it's really no wonder. Anytime big government gets involved, it always seems to lead to a disaster. What is really scary is this bill is supposedly over 1000 pages long, and when questioned on more than one occasion about something specific in the bill, President Obama says he "wasn't aware" it was part of the bill. I would think reading this thing and possibly taking a few notes would be a major priority since he wants to get it passed so bad. Of course, what do I know? I'm just one of the millions of Americans that has to live with the outcome, just like you.

I've never understood how insurance companies could complain about the high cost of healthcare (being the reason behind raising premiums) but never want to pay for preventative care.

About that Swine flu shot...

I'm seeing signs all over the drug stores to get your flu shot (with them of course). The flu shot the government is after everyone to get which is supposed to protect against the Swine Flu isn't even out yet. I guess the good news is instead of having to get 4 flu shots as it was when I first started reading about the new vaccine, now we're down to 2. I personally am not a fan of any flu shot, least of all one that has never been tested for safety in humans.

If that doesn't scare you, this should. Not only do they have no idea how it will react in children,
but the 2006 Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act (the PREP Act) allows the DHHS Secretary to invoke almost complete immunity from liability for manufacturers of vaccines and drugs used to combat a declared public health emergency. This law removes your right to a trial jury unless you can provide clear evidence of willful misconduct that resulted in death or serious physical injury. But that's not all. First you must apply for and be granted permission to sue by the DHHS Secretary. Isn't that a bit like putting the fox in the hen house?

What it boils down to is we, the public at large are nothing more than "lab rats". The government and drug makers will worry about the side effects when they start getting reports, until then they'll just keep inoculating. In 1976 more people died from the vaccine (25) than from the flu (1). They ended up pulling the vaccine after only 10 weeks. Now, in a secret letter to neurologists because it seems to be linked to some killer nerve disease, there seems to be the same problem with this vaccine as there was then, plus one. They are using an ingredient they have no studies on at all to fall back on, to predict how humans will react. You can read the whole article about the secret letter here. I think I'll take my chances with the flu. In our county, they aren't even going to try to give it to everyone. They announced it would be too big an undertaking.

And then, last but not least...

Has anyone noticed how they are using pharmacists, nurses, doctors girlfriends to advertise Alli these days. Ever since they came out with the news that it seems to be linked to liver damage, I don't see much of Wynonna Judd as spokesperson. Feel free to read "I Knew Alli Was Too Good To Be True" here.

Anyone who has followed me for any length of time, knows I love these little sales letters that come in the design of a magazine trying to sell you something, usually a book. I just got my new copy of "Healing Gazette" and thought I would share some of it's newest bizarre "health secrets".

The fact that the flu season is coming is known to anyone over the age of 6. These are a couple of things you may not know to help fight it.

1. This one's my favorite. You'll see why in a second. Over and over again I have expounded on how wonderful I believe echinacea is. Well it seems all this time I could have been getting it to work even better if I mix 1 1/2 oz. of echinacea root, 3/4 cup of water and 3/4 cup of vodka. Now the book warns not to take echinacea for prolonged use or it will lose some of it's effectiveness. It doesn't mention anything about turning into an alchoholic with the vodka. LOL
2. Some of these can be pretty stinky, but if they work, hey... Also for fighting the flu, it says to coat the soles of your feet with olive oil, then rub a sliced garlic clove on them. Put on a pair of socks and you wake up the next day feeling like a new person!
3. For stuffed sinuses it says to use fried salt. I've never really heard of fried salt like you would fry and egg, but here you go. After you fry it, spread it out on a clean towel. Fold it up and lay it on the bridge of your nose. (I wouldn't use to big a towel).
4. Also for stuffy noses it says to apply a thin layer of olive oil to the bony part of your nose, and then follow with a couple drops of eucalyptus oil in the same place. Then place a hot washcloth on your face for 15 min. and the congestion will clear.
   
5. To fight fatigue with the flu, add 1 TBSP. olive oil to 3 or 4 drops of peppermint oil and massage into your feet. I wonder if Rachel Ray knows about that one for her EVOO?
   

That's about it for today. If you're like me and afraid as hell of the flu shot, maybe these will help. In the meantime, wash your hands often and don't let anyone cough in your face.

Every day there's more news about how many new cases of flu have been discovered and where. The latest numbers that I have seen:

Officials have confirmed at least 93 cases in the United States, including 51 in New York, 14 in California, 16 in Texas, three in Maine; two in Kansas, two in Massachusetts, and one each in Indiana, Ohio, Arizona and Nevada. CDC also said Michigan had two, but state officials maintained only one was confirmed. As of yesterday a 23 month old in Texas who traveled with it's mother from Mexico, is the only victim in the US that has died, and they have discovered 2 more cases in San Mateo, CA this morning.

I have to confess, until this happened I have never really understood what a "Pandemic" was. I just thought somehow it was connected to an "epidemic". I never really paid attention during SARS or the bird flu because it never seemed to get so out of hand so fast. Now it's hitting close to home so if any one else doesn't understand it here you go-

A pandemic is an epidemic that spreads around the whole world. Pandemics also often cause more severe disease than epidemics.

I think it's very important to keep the public informed and remind them of ways to prevent getting it. Unfortunately informing the public also means panic in most cases. Once again "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" and most of it is just pure common sense precautions you would take in any situation where you may catch an illness from someone else.
According to the news here, in some places there isn't a face mask or bottle of anti-bacterial soap to be had. While these are great to have on hand, according to a lot of physicians they don't really help much. The main things to remember are to wash your hands often, don't touch any of your sinus cavities (eyes, nose, mouth), and stay out of places where people are breathing on you, sneezing, or coughing. If you have symptoms yourself, take precautions not to infect others. This means no matter how guilty your boss makes you feel for calling in sick, STAY HOME. Wash your hands often, cover your mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing, and throw tissues away immediately.

The initial symptoms of this flu virus are like those of the regular, annual flu viruses: fever, muscle aches, runny nose, and sore throat. Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may be more common with this swine flu than with the regular flu, although to me those are the things that always defined a flu vs. a cold, etc. People should seek medical attention immediately if more serious symptoms develop.

For adults, teens, and kids age 3 to 12, the most worrisome symptoms are:

Shortness of breath
Persistent vomiting
Confusion
Dizziness

For children younger than 2, the most worrisome symptoms are:

Very rapid breathing
Not interacting normally, not eating or drinking normally, being unusually irritable, or appearing unusually sleepy
High fever and rash
A bluish color of the lips and skin

Adults should be considered contagious until at least 7 days after the start of symptoms; with children, it may be 10 to 14 days.

Another symptom of the panic is people are starting to order Tamiflu online without a prescription and self medicating. This is really scary. The regular yearly flu shot is ineffective for this particular strain of flu, so people are looking for other answers. I saw on one of the message boards this morning where someone was bragging about being "all stocked up without a prescription" and telling others where to get it. According to one of the health newsletters I get-

Let's not forget that Tamiflu comes with its own problems, including side effects like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, dizziness, fatigue, cough…the very symptoms you're trying to avoid. And let's not forget that Japan banned this drug for children back in 2007, after links to suicidal behavior.

They are in a dead heat to find a vaccine for this and unfortunately if they come up with one they won't have time for clinical trials to see how effective or how dangerous it is, so the best thing is to do what you can to protect your own immune system. Personally in our house, we use Nutrilite Triple Guard Echinacea. I know there were a couple of headlines that say it doesn't work, but between my kids and my customers, you'd be hard-pressed proving to them it doesn't work. My kids reach for it as soon as they feel like they're coming down with something and I don't even have to remind them. LOL.

Oh, and by the way, cooked properly it's as safe as it ever was to eat pork. LOL.