hysicians agree that mammograms, along with breast exams, are the best defense in the breast cancer battle.

Breast cancer is the second most common form of cancer in women, after skin cancers. Experts estimate that this year nearly 216,000 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed. It is the leading cause of cancer death among women

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aged 40 to 55.

But there's good news: Breast cancer mortality rates are declining, while the five-year survival rate is climbing. The decline in breast cancer deaths can be attributed to a number of factors, including better treatment, medicines that help prevent breast cancer in high-risk women, and an increase in early detection of problems through breast exams and mammograms.

Early detection of cancer is often the key to successfully diagnosing and treating breast cancer. For good breast health and early detection of problems, the American Cancer Society (ACS) recommends:

• Beginning in their early 20s, women should be told about the benefits and limitations of breast self-examination (BSE). The importance of prompt reporting of any new breast symptoms to a health professional should be emphasized. Women who choose to do BSE should receive instruction and have their technique reviewed on the occasion of a periodic health examination (PHE).

• For women in their 20s and 30s, it is recommended that clinical breast examination (CBE) be part of a PHE, preferably at least every three years. Asymptomatic women aged 40 and over should continue to receive a clinical breast examination as part of a PHE, preferably annually.

• Begin annual mammography at age 40 prior to each annual PHE.

• Practice a healthy lifestyle that includes eating a low-fat diet, decreasing your alcohol intake, and getting regular exercise.

The ACS reports that mammography can reduce a woman's risk of dying from breast cancer by as much as 30 to 50 percent. Mammography, an X-ray picture of the breast, can reveal breast lumps smaller than the size of a pea. Often, mammography detects malignant tumors (or cancer) two years before they can be felt by a physical exam.

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Using Your Best Defenses Against Breast CancerOctober is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

For more breast cancer information visit:http://www.nbcam.org/

Cell Phones and Driving: The Law in Your StateNational Drive Safely to Work Week is October 4-11 According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), at any given time more than ten million drivers in the United States are talking on cell phones. Whether this poses a danger on our streets and highways is a topic of much debate.

In response to safety concerns, some states, municipalities, and foreign countries have banned certain types of cell phone use while driving -- such as handheld cell phone use, use of wireless phones by novice or juvenile drivers, or texting. Even if your state does not restrict a driver's use of cell phones, you should take precautions if using a wireless phone while driving.

Cell Phones and Driving: The Debate Over SafetyDriver inattention is a primary or contributing factor in 25% of all accidents, but are cell phones a distraction? Some studies have found that the act of dialing or answering cell phones distracts drivers and contributes to increased accident rates. Others have found that the actual act of conversing is the main culprit, especially if the conversations are emotionally charged. Still others allege that driving while talking is no more distracting than other common activities conducted in the car, like talking to passengers, eating, or changing the radio station.

What about hands-free devices? Researchers have found that using a hands-free device is not necessarily safer than using a handheld phone. Many drivers spend more time fiddling with the earpieces or headphones of their hands-free device than they would dialing a handheld cell phone, and volume problems with hands-free phones have been cited as creating distractions for the driver.

Some believe that devices such as Bluetooth and similar products in which cell phone calls are transmitted through the car's built-in microphone may be the safest way to go. However, if the mere act of having a conversation, rather than holding a phone to your ear, is the most dangerous distraction, then these devices may not be any safer than a handheld phone.

Laws Banning Cell Phone Use While DrivingThe debate over the safety of driving while talking has spurred some countries, states, and even local municipalities to ban certain types of cell phone use while driving.

Here's the rundown of those laws:

State Bans A number of states have outlawed handheld cell phone use while driving, or have banned cell phone use for certain types of drivers. Most make an exception for emergency calls to police, the fire department, medical personnel, and the like.

Handheld Phones Five states have enacted laws banning the use of handheld cell phones while driving: California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Washington. With the exception of Washington, all

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of these states allow "primary enforcement of an offense." That means that police officers can pull you over for using a handheld cell phone without any other reason for the traffic stop.

Novice or Juvenile Drivers Seventeen states and the District of Columbia have enacted special cell phone driving laws for novice drivers (for example, those with a learner's permit) or young drivers (such as those under the age of 18). For example, in California, drivers under the age of 18 cannot use any type of communication device while driving.

These types of restrictions are present in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington D.C., and West Virginia. (For more information on the laws in your state, visit the Governors Highway Safety Association website, at http://www.ghsa.org, and click on "State Laws and Funding.")

School Bus Drivers Fifteen states plus the District of Columbia have banned school bus drivers from using cell phones while passengers are present.

Texting Two states, Washington and New Jersey, have banned text messaging for all drivers.

Distracted Driving Some states, including Utah and New Hampshire, lump cell phone use into a larger ban on distracted driving. For example, in Utah, speaking on a cell phone may be a violation if the driver has committed another moving offense.

Local Bans Some towns and cities have banned certain types of cell phone use while driving. In response, a number of states have enacted laws that prohibit local jurisdictions from implementing cell phone ordinances.

Bans in Foreign Countries The list of foreign countries that have some sort of cell phone ban for drivers is significant. Most of

these ban handheld cell phones, not hands-free devices.

Safety Tips for Cell Phone Use While Driving Whether your state imposes driving restrictions on cell phone use or not, experts agree that all drivers should take precautions when using cell phones. Here are some suggestions for making cell phone use safer in your car:

• When possible, make calls when your car is not moving.

• Don't make calls in heavy traffic or bad weather.

• Program frequently called numbers into your phone's memory. The less dialing, the better.

• Keep your phone within easy reach.• Never take notes, write messages, or look up

phone numbers while driving. If you must do any of these things, pull over.

• When pulling over to make calls or take notes, avoid dangerous areas and lock car doors.

• If possible, ask a passenger to make or take a call for you.

• Keep conversations short and don't discuss emotional topics.

• If you must dial while driving, hold the phone at eye level so you can see the road.

For more driver safety information visit:

http://trafficsafety.org/

Investment Goals and Investment Strategy Ready to start investing? How will you choose from among the thousands of investment opportunities available? The best first step is to decide what kinds of benefits you want your investments to provide. Once you've set goals for how you want your investments to perform, you can assess the features of various investments to determine whether they meet your needs.

Here are some basic investment goals. It is important to remember that these goals aren't

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mutually exclusive; you may put together an investment portfolio that combines a number of these benefits.

• Growth and income. Investments can make money for you in two basic ways. They may pay you regular income in the form of interest payments or dividends. They may also grow in value, permitting you to sell them for more than you paid for them. Attempting to maximize the income from investments is an income strategy. Trying to maximize the growth in value, or capital appreciation, of investments is called a growth strategy. Some investments offer only one benefit or the other. Bonds, for instance, provide interest income but don't typically grow in underlying value. Some stocks pay no dividend income; their companies reinvest their earnings for future growth. Other stocks provide both income and growth potential. It is possible to blend both growth and income goals in one portfolio.

• Inflation protection. Even in good economic times, inflation rolls on, eating away the value of assets. One investment goal is to look for investments that are likely to outperform the inflation rate. Of course, the higher the potential rate of return, the more risky the particular investment is apt to be.

• Liquidity. Liquidity refers to how easy it is to convert an investment into cash, or to

withdraw funds from it, usually with little or no loss in value. Generally speaking, the more liquid and stable an investment, the lower its rate of return. If you cannot afford to do without the use of your principal, your portfolio may need to trade rate of return for greater liquidity.

• Preservation of principal. It is possible for an investment to be very liquid, yet subject to market value decline. A good example of this is a stock mutual fund. When your desire is to maintain the original value of your investment with little or no risk of loss, you then have a goal of preservation of principal.

• Loan security. Even if you won't need to spend your principal, you may need it to use as collateral, i.e., security for a loan. Some investments can be used as collateral, and some—options and futures, for instance—cannot.

Since your investment goals will determine the objectives of the investments in your portfolio, it pays to think carefully about exactly what you want your investments to achieve.

Ten Tips for Combating Stress

1.Believe in your ability to cope. Embrace your strengths. Remind yourself that you can influence the outcome of events in your life. Create action plans to address problems at work and at home.

2.Learn relaxation exercises. Try deep breathing, visualization, and meditation. A hot bath, a walk in the park, and stretching exercises are also good stress relievers.

3.Get a grip on guilt. Guilt robs you of your energy and motivation. Be realistic about your expectations of yourself at home and on the job. It's neither possible nor desirable to try to be a perfect parent or employee.

4.Talk to a friend. Talking about problems can help you blow off steam and give you the

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perspective you need to solve problems more easily.

5.Develop leisure activities. Practice a craft, learn to play a musical instrument, or join a community choir or a book club.

6.Establish a regular exercise routine. Stress produces chemicals that make you feel tense. Exercise helps to remove these chemicals from your body. Try to get at least 20 minutes of aerobic exercise three times a week. Choose a fun exercise you'll enjoy and stick with.

7.Get plenty of rest. Most people need seven or eight hours of sleep a night to feel renewed and refreshed. If you have trouble sleeping, increase the duration or frequency of your exercise sessions. Take a warm shower before bed.

8.Eat a balanced diet. Include lots of fruits and vegetables in your diet. Add calcium, in the form of milk, yogurt, and cheese and two to three servings per day of protein from meat, poultry, fish, dry beans, eggs, or nuts. Use fats, oils, and sweets sparingly.

9.Improve your communication skills. Learn to ask for help when you need it. Defuse misunderstandings before they occur by talking things over with your coworkers, spouse, and children.

10.Learn to accept and adapt to change. Change is a fact of life. Major work and life changes are common. Whether you welcome or dread these changes, they can all be extremely stressful unless you learn to adjust to them. Take time to recover, refocus, and regenerate during a major change such as promotion, relocation, parenthood, or divorce.

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hat happens at home affects the employee at work, which is why domestic violence can and does impact

the working environment. Employees who are victims of domestic violence typically have higher stress levels, need to take more time off work, have reduced productivity, and may even be fearful for their lives or their family’s lives while at work. Because of this, it’s important for all employees and employers to be aware of the reality of domestic violence and how to prevent it from negatively impacting the workplace.

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Recognizing Domestic Violence

Domestic violence is behavior someone uses to control a spouse, partner, date, or elderly relative through fear and intimidation. It can involve emotional, sexual, and physical abuse, as well as threats and isolation. In most cases, men are the abusers.

According to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, abuse can show itself in the following ways:

• Physical battering. The attacks can range from bruising to punching to life-threatening choking or use of weapons. A problem often

begins with threats, name-calling, and/or harm to objects or pets, but escalates into more serious attacks.

• Sexual abuse. A person is forced to have sexual intercourse with the abuser or take part in unwanted sexual activity.

• Psychological battering. Psychological violence can include constant verbal abuse, harassment, excessive possessiveness, isolating the victim from friends and family, withholding money, destruction of personal property, and stalking. The person may accuse the victim of being stupid, ugly, unfaithful, or having another fault, the American Bar Association (ABA) says.

(This section was excerpted from Krames Staywell.)

Using a Workplace Safety Plan to Prevent Domestic Violence

If domestic violence has touched you or one of your coworkers, the following tips will help you create a safety plan to protect your workplace from potential harm done by an abuser:

• Talk to supervisors about the situation. Make sure that security, reception, and management know of and have pictures of the abuser.

• Make sure the victim knows not to walk to the car alone, work alone, or go to lunch alone. Changes to the victim’s work schedule may be appropriate.

• Have the victim inform coworkers and supervisors of the name and number of an emergency contact person.

• If there are legal restrictions against the abuser, there should be copies of the legal records at work (and given to security, management, and reception).

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How Domestic Violence Impacts the WorkplaceOctober is domestic violence awareness month

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• Have security or management screen calls to the victim. Make sure the victim knows to save and document any threatening e-mails, phone calls, faxes, etc., that appear at work.

• Talk to the employer about any other resources available that may help the abused and ways to make the workplace safer for the victim and his or her coworkers.

Why Victims Stay in Abusive Relationships

It may be difficult to understand why a victim would stay with the abuser. Here are some of the reasons why an abused individual would continue to stay with a batterer:

• Fear. Victims of abuse may fear additional violence to themselves, families, or friends if they leave the relationship.

• Children. Some victims may not want to leave because they want to keep the family intact. They may believe it is better for children to have both parents present in the household, regardless of the abuse.

• Desire to stay in a long-term relationship. Victims may not believe in divorce or separation because of cultural, religious, or personal reasons.

• Love. A victim may not want to leave a relationship out of love for the abuser. The abused individual may want to be in the relationship, but wish that the abuse would stop.

• Self-esteem. When a victim is repeatedly abused, whether verbally, physically, or emotionally, his or her self-esteem can be whittled away. The victim may start to think that he or she deserves the abuse or doesn’t think that he or she could find another partner.

• Support. The batterer may provide financial or emotional support for the victim and his or her family. The battered may fear that he or she wouldn’t be able to make an adequate income or be able to support his or her family.

• Belief that the abuser will change. Oftentimes, abusers promise that the abuse won’t happen again so the victim will stay. But typically, the violence does happen again.

• Doesn’t know where to go or what to do. The abused may not know where to go. Family and friends may be too scared to let the abused individual stay with them, or the abused may not know about victims’ shelters or different community programs that help victims and their families.

It’s not easy to end any relationship, whether abuse is involved or not. However, there is support available when and if the abused choose to leave. If you or someone you know is being abused, connect with the domestic violence shelters and prevention programs in your community. Your EAP may also have additional resources to help.

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The Wellness News

Issue 36, October 2010

October hosts both Breast Cancer Awareness

Month and the Great American Smokeout. Both

of these events remind us of the impact of a very

serious disease. Cancer impacts the lives of many

Americans; however, great strides have been made

in treating those afflicted. We also know that

making healthy lifestyle choices can drastically cut

back on the risk of developing cancer. Here are

some of the most effective prevention strategies:

Avoid Tobacco Use: It is no secret that using

tobacco is one of the worst things we can do for

our health. Not only can it contribute to a range of

illnesses, including heart disease and emphysema, it is also strongly linked to many types of cancers:

Nearly one third of cancers occurring in

the U.S. are attributed to tobacco use.

80% of lung cancer cases are associated

with tobacco use or exposure.

Tobacco use can cause cancers of the

lungs, throat, mouth, esophagus, kidneys

and pancreas.

Even second and third hand smoke

exposure can put people at risk for certain types of cancer.

Quitting is not easy, but it is one of the best ways

to preserve your own health and the health of

those around you.

Avoid Overexposure to Sun: Sun can be healthy in

small doses, as it helps our bodies make the Vitamin D

necessary for our overall health. However, too much sun

exposure can put us at risk for skin cancer, one of the

most common and preventable forms of cancer.

Wear Sunscreen: Make sure to choose a broad spectrum

sunscreen that protects against both UVA and UVB

rays, with an SPF of at least 15.

Limit Exposed Skin: Cover up with broad brimmed

hats, long sleeves, pants and sunglasses. Be aware that

most skin cancers occur on the head and neck because of

constant sun exposure; pay careful attention to cover

these areas.

Avoid Peak Radiation Hours: The sun rays are

strongest between 10am and 4pm. Avoid direct sun

during these hours; try to stay in shady areas instead.

Pass Up Tanning Beds: There is no such thing as a safe

tan. Tanning beds cause direct and speedy damage to

skin, greatly increasing the risk of skin cancer.

H&H Health Associates, Inc.•11132 South Towne Square, Ste. 107•St. Louis•MO•63123•www.hhhealthassociates.com•(314-) 845-8302

Cancer prevention: 5 strategies to reduce your risk

According to recent studies, only 5% of

cancers are hereditary. That means

lifestyle choices can drastically affect our

risk of developing certain types of

cancer. What can you do to make your

day a little healthier?

.

The Wellness News

More...

Exercise Regularly: Being active can decrease the

risk of developing some forms of cancer. Engaging

in activity also contributes to maintaining a healthy

weight, another important factor in reducing cancer

risk. Being obese or overweight can increase the risk

of developing cancers of the breast, stomach,

kidneys, and esophagus.

Get Started: Create exercise appointments for

yourself a few times a week, engaging in any

enjoyable activity that increases your heart rate.

Recruit Activity Partners: Whether it is a family

member, friend, neighbor, coworker, or even the

family dog, people who exercise with others are

more likely to stick with their exercise program.

Keep Challenging Yourself: As your endurance

and stamina improve, you will need to increase the

days and time that you spend exercising. Aim to get

up to at least 30 minutes, 5 days each week of

moderately intense exercise.

Stay Motivated: Keep yourself interested by setting

goals or introducing variety. Sign up for a 5K, try a

new dance class, find a new route to bike to work,

have an indoor exercise plan for poor weather. Just

keep moving!

Maintain a Healthy Diet: Studies have shown a link

between a healthy diet and a reduced rate of

developing cancer. In addition, replacing highly caloric

foods with nutrient dense, low calorie foods can

significantly help with weight management, something

that we already know is important for reducing cancer

risk. Here are some tips for healthy eating:

Eat More Produce: The more fruits and vegetables we

can fit into our diets, the better. Aim for a variety of

colors to increase the variety of nutrients.

Increase Whole Foods: In addition to fruits and

vegetables, there is a variety of nutrition rich plant

sources that can boost overall health. Some examples

are whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds.

Limit Alcohol: Excessive alcohol consumption is linked

to cancers of the mouth, esophagus, breast, and liver.

Limit alcohol intake to 2 drinks per day if you are a man

and 1 drink per day if you are a woman.

Start Small: Eating habits do not change overnight.

Make small changes: include a piece of fruit at

breakfast, have a side of beans rather than a biscuit,

munch on carrots or a small handful of nuts rather than

chips.

Although getting screened may not protect against cancer,

early detection is the best way to increase the success of cancer treatments and decrease mortality rates.

Know Your Family History: A family history of certain

types of cancers may put you at a higher risk of

developing those cancers. Let your physician know, so he or she can determine when your screenings should start.

Get Immunized: Some cancers can be prevented through virus immunization shots. Talk to your doctor about

vaccines for Hepatitis B and HPV and find out if they are right for you.

Screenings: Make sure you are regularly screened for

cancers of the skin, mouth, colon and rectum. Women

should also have regular pelvic exams, along with mammograms after the age of 40. Men should have

testicular exams, as well as prostate exams after the age of 50.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/cancer-prevention/CA00024

http://www.preventcancer.org/ http://www.webmd.com/cancer/understanding-cancer-prevention

More Cancer Prevention Strategies…

Call Your Health Coach for More Information 1-888-493-5522

Get Screened