Clipmarks | merrie's HEALTH collection

Need A Specialist Fast? Too Bad You're Not A Dog

Tue, 13 May 2008 10:44:19 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: And where care for our dogs, cats and horses puts our own system to the greatest shame is in the domain of wait times and access to specialists. Our pets may not be able to talk, but they can get an appointment with a primary care vet within 24 hours and a specialist within the week. "I have a friend who had a dog with cancer and it got treatment within two weeks," says Tina Kelly, an IT buyer in Waterloo, Ont. "For something like that in a human, I bet the response would've been 10 times as long."

There are just 10,800 vets in this country compared to over 62,000 human doctors. But try, as a human, to get an appointment with a specialist. Try, for that matter, getting a GP — five million Canadians, about 15 per cent of the population, don't have one, while 15 per cent of those who do still report trouble receiving routine care. And a referral from your family doctor to a specialist puts you in store for a new ordeal. According to the most recent edition of "Waiting Your Turn...

Clip Source: www.macleans.ca

Rover will see an oncologist within days; you'll wait five weeks for a consultation. Bum hip? You could wait over a year. Cataracts? Three months. Whiskers could get both fixed tomorrow.

No horsing around
Inside one of Canada’s most sophisticated operating rooms—for horses

"Our oncologist can offer intricate chemotherapy protocols and our surgeons can do very extreme and elaborate surgeries, including mass removals, amputations and bone transplants from cadaver dogs."

This fall, when Canada's fifth vet school opens at the University of Calgary and C.A.R.E. becomes part of its teaching hospital, its referrals are likely to grow even more.

That's where millions of Bootses and Buddies and even Dobbinses have a decided advantage over their human owners in this country. If you are going to be sick in Canada, you are much further ahead being a beloved dog or cat. Even pet horses have far better prospects for healthier lives now than they ever had before.

Tags: canada, veterinarian, medical physician, oncologist, chemotherapy

Grab A Bunch For Your Kidneys

Tue, 13 May 2008 02:11:29 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: Bananas Everywhere
A fresh, whole banana makes a great snack. But why stop there with this versatile fruit?
For a healthy (and satisfying) snack, top rice cakes with bananas and natural peanut butter. Here's how it looks.

Clip Source: www.realage.com

Grab a Bunch for Your Kidneys

Eating four of these a week can cut your kidney-cancer risk in half.

Yep, we're talking bananas. They're bursting with phenolic compounds that appear to thwart renal-cancer cells. And that's not all the monkey's favorite fruit brings to your body

Phenols, Potassium, and More

Phenols -- plant-based substances linked to all sorts of health benefits, from cancer prevention to heart health -- aren't the only goodies that bananas have to offer. No doubt you already know about the super potassium stores in the yellow-skinned fruit (450 milligrams in one banana!). But they're also a good source of B vitamins like B6 and folate, plus calcium, magnesium, and vitamin C. (Learn how the B vitamins in bananas could help you get happy.)

Skip the Frappuccino. Make this EatingWell smoothie instead: Blueberry-Banana Batido.

Add flavor to fish or pork with a Banana-Orange Relish.

Go ahead: Enjoy this delicious, guilt-free dessert: Cocoa-Nut Bananas.

Find healthy recipes.

Tags: bananas, potassium, phenols, b6, folate, calcium, magnesium, vitamin c, banana recipes

Straight Talk About Universal Healthcare

Sun, 11 May 2008 05:35:01 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: I'm all about personal freedom and the rights of individuals. Universal healthcare is not only impractical, but costly - and not just for your pocketbook. It's handing over yet another right to the government, and allowing the government to decide and rule your fate.

I'm not compassionless-I'm just sensible. And universal healthcare as it's being proposed by both Clinton and Obama still doesn't make much sense to me.

The disaster of the Massachusetts universal healthcare system should give you a preview of what life under a universal healthcare scheme could be like.

Even more shocking is the manner in which Massachusetts state officials have decided to deal with the out-of-control costs of their broken system: they've ordered the insurance companies to cut payments to doctors and hospitals, reduce choices for payments, and possibly increase how much patients will have to pay.

Clip Source: www.douglassreport.com

A better way to describe the program would be to call it "universal heath insurance." The idea is that by compelling everyone in the nation to participate in the insurance market, you'd cut down on what's known as the "free rider" syndrome. As the term suggests, this would be people getting a "free ride" from the healthcare system by deciding not to get their own health insurance because they've been assured that in the case of an emergency or personal health catastrophe, inexpensive care will be guaranteed to them by the government. The theory is that mandated participation would help to drive down insurance costs.

But any mandate requires an enforcement component. My fear is that a government branch with the kind of power to actually identify and penalize those seeking to avoid the insurance mandates of universal healthcare would be vast and all-powerful. The new healthcare arm of the government would likely have the same kind of power (and loathsome reputation) as the IRS.

Tags: clinton, obama, government, healthcare, mandate