Did you know that according to the World Health Organization, there are 1.6 billion overweight people in the world and at the same time, according to Bread for the World in 2007 there were 862 million people in the world that were underfed?
On September 7, Weight Watchers will launch Lose for Good , a campaign created to empower people to get healthier while also giving back to others in need. The program addresses two global epidemics – obesity and chronic hunger and malnutrition.
For every pound lost with Weight Watchers during a six-week period, beginning September 7 and ending October 18, Weight Watchers will donate the cost of one pound of food — up to one million dollars. The funds will go to two hunger-fighting organizations: Share Our Strength, which works to make sure no child in America grows up hungry, and Action Against Hunger, which provides immediate and long-term solutions for hunger to people around the world.
“Lose For Good is designed to further inspire Weight Watchers members as they take the first step on a journey towards a healthier lifestyle,” said David Kirchhoff, President and CEO Weight Watchers International, Inc. “In doing so, they will help others, as hunger relief organizations in our communities and around the world are being stretched like never before.”
Weight Watchers members learn that even a small change, like losing as little as five percent of body weight, can help bring real rewards such as lower cholesterol levels and reduced blood pressure. Similarly, helping provide nutritious food to a family dealing with hunger can make a big difference in their lives.
Weight Watchers is also rallying its vast community by encouraging the thousands of meeting leaders, receptionists, other employees and loyal Members to participate in local food drives.
To learn more about the Lose for Good campaign, view exclusive content including a video by the visionary iO Tillett Wright and Overspray, and to add a widget to your MySpace page, visit the following sites. The Lose for Good campaign will also have a group page on Facebook.
Weight Watchers International, Inc. is the world’s leading provider of weight management services, operating globally through a network of Company-owned and franchise operations. Weight Watchers holds over 50,000 weekly meetings where members receive group support and learn about healthy eating patterns, behavior modification and physical activity. WeightWatchers.com provides innovative, subscription weight management products over the Internet and is the leading Internet-based weight management provider in the world. In addition, Weight Watchers offers a wide range of products, publications and programs for those interested in weight loss and weight control.
Question by Monster Brain: How exactly does mandating every American or person living in America have Health Insurance “reform” it? Part 2: How does cutting Medicare improve health care for the elderly the very people the Dems claim will not be put out of the misery and counseled at the end of their lives?Will Illegals be forced to buy health insurance or face deportation?
Best answer:
Answer by Willow The Democratic “heath care” plan was actually the Democratic “government takeover + taxation” plan
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
Ava Cowan is Cooking! Eat more often, lose more weight with some simple recipes and cooking tips from Ms. Figure America 2007. The food is hot! mybodysite.com
President Obama Releases New Health Care Proposal in Time for Health Summit: On Monday February 22, 2010, White House officials unveiled a new reform overhaul that builds on the Senate version passed last Christmas Eve, with some changes aimed at pleasing House Democrats who had concerns with the Senate bill. The President’s proposal does not include the public option, despite the hopes of Senate Democrats, due to White House concerns that the provision will hinder passage in the Senate. President Obama ignored requests by Republicans to scratch the Democratic plan and start over. As such, Republican leaders questioned Democratic motives and labeled the bill as a massive government takeover of America’s health care system.
Republicans Insist House Democrats Don’t Have the Votes to Pass Legislation: Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) announced on Wednesday that Democrats don’t have the necessary votes to pass the President’s proposal in the House because of three new House vacancies and lagging support among some moderate Democrats. At issue for some Democrats are weaker abortion provisions in the President’s proposal as well as the ongoing controversy over passing a bill by a simple majority, a process known as reconciliation.
Health Care Summit Preview
On Thursday, the President’s Health Care Summit began at 10:00 a.m. with opening comments from the President, followed by remarks from both Republicans and Democrats. The discussion centered on four themes: controlling health care costs, overhauling the insurance market, reducing the deficit and expanding insurance coverage. Prior to Thursday, several top Republicans and some Democrats stated that expectations were extremely low for the Summit’s success.
House Republicans arrived armed with their own version of a health care bill that encourages small businesses to join together to buy insurance, gives federal money to states to run high-risk pools for those unable to obtain private insurance and limits damages in medical malpractice lawsuits. The Republican plan would cost $61 billion and cover three million people over ten years. In contrast, President Obama contends his plan would cost $950 billion and cover 30 million people over the same time period. However, officials at the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) indicated they would not be able to officially score the President’s proposal with just a summary – that legislative language is needed.
Note: A full summary of the results from the Health Care Summit will be included in next week’s newsletter
Additional Activities
WellPoint Executives Defend Premium Increases: On Wednesday, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing to examine the proposed health insurance premium increases by Anthem Blue Cross in California. Anthem, a WellPoint subsidiary, recently informed subscribers in California that premiums for individual insurance policies would be raised an average of 25 percent, with some rates going up as much as 39 percent. Angela Braly, president of WellPoint , said the premium increases were justified by soaring medical costs, and that pending legislation could make the problem worse, driving up costs further for young, healthy people.
“Raising our premiums was not something we wanted to do,” Ms. Braly said . “But we believe this was the most prudent choice, given the rising cost of care and the problems caused by many younger and healthier policyholders dropping or reducing their coverage during tough economic times. By law, premiums must be reasonable in relationship to benefits provided, which means they need to reflect the known and anticipated costs they will cover.”
In Sacramento , Leslie Margolin, president of Anthem Blue Cross in California, also testified before lawmakers, joined by vice president and general manager James Oatman. The focus of that hearing was also the proposed premium increase for California members in the individual market, with company executives pointing to the current economic climate and rising health care costs as reasons for the rate hikes.
U.S. House of Representatives Repeals Antitrust Exemption from Health Insurance Companies: On Wednesday, the House of Representatives voted 406-19 in favor of repealing a 65-year-old antitrust exemption from health insurance companies. Democrats said the repeal would lead to increased scrutiny of the industry. Yet, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office said last year that repealing the exemption would not significantly reduce premiums because states already investigate health insurance companies.
In addition, industry executives pointed out that legislation could further hinder competition and the ability to share information to improve health care quality. “Health insurance is one of the most regulated industries in America at both the federal and the state levels,” said Karen Ignani, president and chief executive of America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP). “The real focus should be on addressing the rising cost of medical care, which is putting an unsustainable burden on families, employers and the federal budget,” she said.
Public Opinion
Polling Suggest Health Care Reform is Still Key to Economic Recovery: Recent polling on health care reform shows mixed reaction among the public over the proposed legislation. According to a recent CNN poll, 48 percent of those questioned said lawmakers should work on an entirely new bill and 25 percent felt that Congress should stop work on health care reform altogether.
According to the monthly poll from the nonpartisan Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 75 percent of Americans still think it’s important that Obama include health care reform in addressing the nation’s economic crisis, while many still harbor doubts about the legislation.
When asked how health care legislation relates to their economic situation:
* Nearly 31 percent said they thought the Democratic bills would make their personal financial situation worse, compared with 10 percent who said it would improve their family budgets. * Forty-two percent said the nation’s fiscal condition would suffer because of the legislation, compared with 26 percent who said it would get better. * Americans were divided on whether the Democrats’ approach would improve overall access to health care around the country, with 35 percent saying it would and nearly that many disagreeing.
Health Insurance Coverage Varies Widely Based on Age: Coming just before the President’s Summit on Health Care Reform, a newly released Gallup Poll reinforces the wide degree of variability in health insurance coverage across U.S. population segments, especially when it comes to age. Eighty-four percent of 18-year-olds have health insurance, most likely because they are still covered under their parents’ policies. By age 22, health insurance coverage reaches its lowest point, with just 66 percent maintaining coverage. From age 22 on, the percentage of Americans with health insurance begins to climb, albeit slowly, reaching the 95 percent level at age 65 when Medicare becomes an option.
Looking Ahead
Legislators need to determine next steps for health care legislation coming out of the President’s Health Care Reform Summit. On Wednesday, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius invited executives from the top five insurance companies to meet at HHS to discuss their companies’ insurance premiums.
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Air pollution is the process by which unhealthy chemicals or biological materials are introduced into the atmosphere. The atmosphere is a gaseous system that has the necessary ingredients to sustain life. Ozone depletion as a result of air pollution has long been recognized as a threat to the existence of life on earth.
The atmosphere in specific terms is a layer of gases surrounding Mother Earth. These gases are held in place as a result of Earth’s gravity. The atmosphere is like an umbrella protecting life on Earth by absorbing ultraviolet radiation from the sun. The atmosphere is responsible for warming the surface of the Earth by retaining heat through the greenhouse effect, and preventing temperatures from becoming too hot or too cold during day and night. The gas consistency of dry air in regards to volume is 78% nitrogen, 21%, oxygen, 0.93% argon, 0.038% carbon dioxide, and a small amount of other gases. Air is also consists of water vapor, about 1%.With this said, there are cities in America where pollution is a big problem. We will discuss them later.
Air pollution can have a detrimental effect on health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 2.4 million people die each year from causes directly associated with air pollution. One point five million of these deaths are caused by indoor air pollution. Epidemiological studies revealed that well over 500,000 Americans die each year from cardiopulmonary disease linked to breathing fine particles found in air pollution, (American Chemical Society). A study by scientists at the University of Birmingham has shown strong correlations between pneumonia related deaths and air pollution from motor vehicles. Therefore, it is a good idea to stay as far away from roads and motor vehicles as possible when jogging.
Knowing which cities have the best and worst pollution is paramount, especially if one suffers from respiratory ailments. According to the 2010 American Lung Association’s State of the Air Report, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, and Bakersfield, city ranks the lowest on the list of cleanest cities to live, in regards to air pollution. The 2010 report ranks cities affected most by three type of pollution: short-term particle pollution, year-round particle pollution, ozone pollution.
The 2010 Lists:
The 10 Most Polluted American Cities by Short-Term Particle Pollution:
1) Pittsburgh, Pa. 2) Fresno/Madera, Calif. 3) Bakersfield, Calif. 4) Los Angeles, Calif. 5) Birmingham, Ala. 6) Salt Lake City, Utah7) Sacramento, Calif. Logan, Utah9) Detroit, Mich. 10) Chicago, IL.
The 10 Most Polluted American Cities by Year-Round Particle Pollution:
In order to see the rank of your city, please visit the American Lung Association website at
Glenford S Robinson, BS, CLS, MT(ASCP), is a Clinical Laboratory Scientist and staff writer for The American Chronicle, California Chronicle, Los Angeles Chronicle, World Sentinel, and affiliates, which are online magazines for national, international, state, and local news. He has received Expert Author recognition for both EzineArticles and Goarticles. Mr. Robinson is the founder, president, chief operating officer, editor-in-chief and staff writer for , a social networking website and news article site providing members and visitors with up-to-the-minute news, entertainment, and the opportunity to articles for free. He has done graduate studies leading to an MBA in Healthcare Management at the University of Phoenix, Phoenix Arizona. Please send correspondence to Mstardom.com/ranja inbox.
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