Women’s Independent Press

www.womenforahealthyenvironment.org

Michelle Naccarati-Chapkis
Executive Director
Women for a Healthy Environment
1405 Shady Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15217-1350

Phone: 412.420.2290
Fax: 412.420.4450
Email: michelle@womenforahealthyenvironment.org

How healthy is the air around you? Much of your overall health can be improved by simply breathing better air and there are many small things that you can do to help increase your air quality. Studies have shown that indoor air has higher levels of toxins and pollutants than outdoor air. Factors that contribute to poor indoor air quality include:

Poor ventilation – a major problem and said to cause half of all indoor air problems

Toxic fumes – emitted from products found around the home

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) states that “volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are emitted as gases from certain solids or liquids. VOCs include a variety of chemicals, some of which may have short- and long-term adverse health effects.” EPA further indicates that concentrations of many VOCs are consistently higher indoors (up to ten times higher) than outdoors. Products that contain VOCs include: paints, paint strippers, and other solvents; wood preservatives; aerosol sprays; cleansers and disinfectants; moth repellents and air fresheners; stored fuels and automotive products; hobby supplies; dry-cleaned clothing.

What You Can Do to promote a healthy home:
Open a window to help to reduce indoor toxins in the air and run exhaust fans in the bathroom and kitchen

Choose non-volatile organic compound (VOC) paints, stains and adhesives

Eliminate smoking in the home
Change your furnace/air conditioner filters every three months and vacuum carpets regularly (use a high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) vacuum for a cleaner environment

Purchase natural flooring and non-toxic wool carpets, allow newly purchased carpets to air before installation

Select natural wood furniture – particle board or pressed wood products are known to contain formaldehyde

Use natural cleaning products

Check that combustion appliances such as stoves, fireplaces, furnaces are vented to the outside

Avoid air fresheners and candles, instead opt for safer alternatives including fresh/dried flowers; spices such as cinnamon, clove, or orange; and essential oils such as lemon, eucalyptus, clary sage and rose

Test for radon, asbestos and lead and install a carbon monoxide detector

Add houseplants to decrease the amount of pollutants in the air and absorb harmful gases

For More Information
http://www.epa.gov/iaq/is-imprv.html
http://www.charityguide.org/volunteer/fewhours/indoor-air-quality.htm

Doctors for America is a national movement of doctors and medical students who are working
together to improve the health of the nation and to ensure that everyone has access to affordable,
high-­-quality health care.
www.DrsForAmerica.org

MYTH #1: It’s too complicated to understand any of it.
FACT: The basics are simple. 32 million more American will be insured.
The worst insurance company abuses will end.
We will start improving quality and controlling cost for everyone.
FACT: HealthCare.gov explains the law and how it will be rolled out.

MYTH #2: It hasn’t helped anyone.
FACT: Insurance now covers: 1) Children with pre-existing conditions,
2) 2.5 million young adults through age 26 who can
now stay on their parents’ plans, 3) Adults with pre-existing conditions who can now sign up for high-risk plans
FACT: No more insurance company caps on how much they will spend on your heath care.

MYTH #3: We can’t afford to have it.
FACT: We can’t afford not to have it. By promoting access to the right care, at the right place, at the right time, the Affordable Care Act was designed to save money while keeping people healthier.

MYTH #4: It hurts Medicare and seniors.
FACT: Seniors get help affording prescription drugs.
FACT: Seniors get annual checkups with no copays.
FACT: It invests in making Medicare work better for the long run for seniors and doctors.

MYTH #5: It’s increasing premiums and costs for families.
FACT: Private employer-based health premiums were skyrocketing before the law, and it will help change that.
FACT: Insurance companies now have to explain why they are raising rates on a public website.
FACT: If insurance companies don’t spend enough of your premium dollars on health care, they are now required to send
you a rebate at the end of the year.

MYTH #6: It’s hurting small businesses.
FACT: Many small businesses with fewer than 50 employees are now getting tax credits of up to 35% of health insurance
premiums. Beginning in 2014, many small businesses will be eligible for tax credits up to 50% of insurance premiums.

MYTH #7: It’s unconstitutional.
FACT: Most law experts have said health reform is constitutional, and most judges - even the most conservative - agree.

MYTH #8: It’s all about insurance and not about health.
FACT: It creates a national Prevention Fund - a long overdue investment in improving health and preventing chronic disease. Communities across the country are already
using grant money to help people live healthier lives.
FACT: It invests in training more doctors, nurses, and other health professionals

MYTH #9: It’s all about insurance and not about cost.
FACT: The Medicare and Medicaid Center for Innovation is promoting new models, innovations, and research across the
country to start improving care while decreasing costs.
FACT: The law invests in improving quality and coordination of care.

MYTH #10: It’s a government takeover of health care.
FACT: The Affordable Care Act is a partnership between the government and businesses, communities, hospitals, doctors, and patients. It strengthens the private insurance market while protecting people and their health.
FACT: The more we know, the more we can get to
better health and better health care for our families and our country!

By Rieva Lesonsky
www.scorepittsburgh.com
www.SmallBizDaily.com

One of the hardest lessons to learn when you’re starting a new business is how to price your products or services. With today’s still recovering economy, consumers expect lower prices, and knowing what price points will bring customers in and which will turn them away is not an easy task. So since it’s September and many
of us are in “back to school” mode, here are my ABCs of pricing.

A is for Ask. Ask your friends, peers and potential customers what they would pay for your products or services. Check competitors’ prices and make note of the highs and the lows. What do you think are their price differentiators? Test different prices, and if sales are sluggish, ask your customers why they’re not buying. Or if you bid on a project and don’t get it, ask why. Don’t automatically assume you charged too much and lower your prices. There could be a myriad of other reasons the potential client didn’t choose you.

B is for Be Not a Beggar. Don’t be so desperate for business you price yourself out of a chance to make a profit. If you want to charge an introductory price, make sure the customer knows the low prices won’t last. If you’re bidding on a service job, the same strategy applies. Offering a lower introductory price enables clients to see your quality of work, but let them know the next job will cost more. Remember: Sometimes cheap prices signify poorer quality in the customers’ minds—we are all too familiar with the phrase “you get what you pay for.”

C is for Compare to Your Competition. What makes your product or service different from your competitors’ and why would a customer buy from you instead of from someone else? These are important questions to ask yourself when you’re comparing your price structure to your competitors. Are customers buying because of your reputation, your name or your position as a community leader? Or is it a situation where the lowest price wins out? When you study your competition and see how much they charge, compare your overall qualities as a challenger in the market and base your pricing on where you fall in the industry.

Finally, the best thing about pricing is it never has to be permanent. You need be as flexible with your pricing as the economy demands. Make sure you follow current pricing trends, and you’ll find your business making top grades

By Yvonne Phillips
www.fengshuipublication.com

Feng Shui for your Bedroom

One of the primary principles of Feng Shui involves Chi flowing through all objects in a space, and through and around each item that is present in or around a space such as your home. The positioning effects whether Chi moves freely or bottlenecks— this principle applies to all rooms, including your bedroom.

Your bedroom is where you spend over 1/3 of your time, so having proper balance of yin and yang is of vital importance. Yang energy is necessary because it helps you remain motivated to get up and running with your daily responsibilities. Too much yang, on the other hand, can put you in the crazy house! It can make you feel frazzled or fatigued by over-stimulating your senses. This situation can make you feel overly zealous, which in turn prevents you from just kicking back and relaxing and restoring inner balance.

A command position http://fengshuipublications.com for your bedroom, as applies in Feng Shui, means that when you are facing the door from the far side of the room, yet you are not precisely in alignment with the door. If you go diagonally from the farthest part of your room away from the point of entry, you will arrive at the best command position for your bed. This position allows you to benefit from the Chi as it enters and flows through your room, while being far enough away from the doorway that you are protected from over-stimulation by Chi.

Another Feng Shui bed room tip is that you keep your bed in a position that has a solid wall behind you for support. Utilizing this position provides you with visual command of the space, and allows you to face life head on– both symbolically and literally.

REMEMBER!!! Sleeping in line with the door exposes you to excessive Chi, which contributes to stress, touchiness, and health issues. However, keeping your bed in command position prevents you from any negative influences and puts you in firm control of not merely your room, but within the space your very existence.
Feng Shui suggests that you not keep your bed near a window– but ideally– the window should be behind and to your right. The logic behind this is to welcome and receive positive energies from the universe as you wake and approach every new day with which you are blessed to greet.