According to UNAIDS estimates, there are now 33.2 million people living with HIV, including 2.5 million children.

During 2007 some 2.5 million people became newly infected with the virus. Around half of all people who become infected with HIV do so before they are 25 and are killed by AIDS before they are 35. Around 95% of people with HIV/AIDS live in developing nations.

But HIV/AIDS among women and girls is not just an international problem - it affects women right here in the United States. In addition, the number of U.S. women and girls living with HIV is on the rise. In the mid 1980s, less than 15 percent of new HIV infections in the United States were among women and girls ages 13 years and older; by 2006, it was about 27 percent.

By supporting Childrens and Womens AIDS Awareness Day, we can bring attention to the impact of this disease and encourage women to get tested regularly and know their status. We can also let women know that despite being infected, they can live life to the fullest.

Ergo Baby Carrier -  ERGO baby carrier design supports a natural sitting position for babies, eliminating compression of the spine and hips that can be caused by unsupported suspension. The baby carrier also balances the baby’s weight to parents’ hips and shoulders, and alleviates physical stress for the parent. Get the best cloth diapers from ThanksMama.com by calling

Breast firmness is very important for a woman to continue to feel attractive. If her breasts have lost their stamina then they begin to sag and lose their natural beauty. Many women just accept this process as an unavoidable consequence of age but others are finding that the process can not only be stopped but reversed. Breast enhancement pills provide the completely healthy and natural way to bring the breasts to their fullest and finest beauty that would make any woman proud. Self-confidence will return and a woman’s life can be changed with beauty that transforms her from inside out.

Testimonials abound from the women who have chosen to use breast enhancement pills to change the way they look. They begin to find within the first few weeks that their breasts are growing and they feel a renewed firmness. They can see that lovely shape returning and increasing. Who would not be pleased to see a new figure in the mirror after showering in the morning? When a woman feels secure with a strong self-esteem, she can’t help but feel better in every way. Knowing that her body is beautiful and her breasts are the perfect size and shape is an amazing part overall wellness.

With the all natural ingredients, the body responds positively to this product by building and restructuring tissues that have begun to lose their strength due to factors that may be beyond a person’s control. Child birth plays a significant role in the changes that take place in a woman’s breasts. They often do not return to their natural shape and size, especially if she is breastfeeding. While this is a natural process, the effects are inescapable. Taking breast enhancement pills can reverse that process and return the breasts to their early beauty that will bring tremendous results to the woman’s sense of health and life.

Many different kinds of unnatural treatments are offered for changing women’s breasts. The results of those procedures can be devastating if something goes wrong such as the body rejecting the material. Surgery is shocking to the system. An all natural and healthy process can not only affect the breasts beautifully, but will bring benefit to the rest of the body as well simply because of the organic nature of the supplements. The natural and healthy result is that the body begins to repair itself and rebuild tissues, bringing the breasts back to the beauty that at one time was only a dream. The decision to use this product can change a woman’s life forever.

Dental Implants Lancashire

Nearly one in five Americans will experience depression sometime in their lifetime, and more than 19 million Americans suffer from a depressive disorder each year. 

Types and Causes of Depression:
There are three basic types of depression: 
• Major depression is the most common type of depression. It tends to be episodic, but can persistently recur. 
• Dysthymia, which is a chronic, unremitting depression. A dysthymia diagnosis requires fewer symptoms than major depression, but must be present for at least two years.
• Bipolar Disorder, called manic depression, is depression alternating with elated or irritable moods and increased energy.

Major depression and dysthymia are twice as prevalent among women than men: 1 in 4 women and 1 in 8 men will experience these types of depression at some point in their lives. Many factors can cause depression, including biochemistry, genetics, family history, substance abuse, and an illness or other difficult life events. 

Getting Help!
Regardless of the cause, a person should be treated for depression. Two-thirds of people with depression do not seek treatment because they don’t understand their symptoms or have fear of the stigma of mental illness. Yet of those who do, 80% are treated effectively with medication, psychotherapy, or both.

It is important to seek medical help early because:
• Untreated depression is long lasting. A depressive episode, left untreated, can last six months, or chronically for years.
• Depression is likely to recur. If a person experiences a single episode of depression, there is a 50% chance of having another. The chance of recurrence is 70% after two episodes and 90% after three episodes.
• Depression can lead to suicide. Depression is the leading cause of suicide, and a suicide occurs every 17 minutes in the U.S

Depression Symptoms
If you have been experiencing several of the depression symptoms below for more than 2 weeks, contact your doctor. If you have been thinking about death or suicide, call your doctor today. 
• Feeling miserable and sad almost everyday?
• Losing interest in most activities?
• Feeling anxious or irritable?
• Having trouble concentrating or remembering?
• Feeling tired?
• Feeling guilty?
• Sleeping too much or too little?
• Eating too much or too little?
• Have medically unexplained aches and pains?
• Thinking of death or suicide?
In addition, excessive alcohol consumption and drug abuse is prevalent among those with underlying depressive disorders. 

Signs for family / friends
Common behaviors that family/friends often notice in people with depression (usually these are abrupt or sudden behavior changes):
• Talking very negatively
• Acting unreasonably, without concern for others
• Abusing alcohol or drugs
• Picking fights, being irritable, critical, or mean
• Withdrawing from family and friends
• Having trouble at work or school
• Talking suddenly about separation or divorce
• Complaining of aches and pains
• Eating too little or too much
• Sleeping too much or too little

Provided Courtesy of Wellness Proposals
Source:  www.familyaware.org

Nearly one in five Americans will experience depression sometime in their lifetime, and more than 19 million Americans suffer from a depressive disorder each year. 

Types and Causes of Depression:
There are three basic types of depression: 
• Major depression is the most common type of depression. It tends to be episodic, but can persistently recur. 
• Dysthymia, which is a chronic, unremitting depression. A dysthymia diagnosis requires fewer symptoms than major depression, but must be present for at least two years.
• Bipolar Disorder, called manic depression, is depression alternating with elated or irritable moods and increased energy.

Major depression and dysthymia are twice as prevalent among women than men: 1 in 4 women and 1 in 8 men will experience these types of depression at some point in their lives. Many factors can cause depression, including biochemistry, genetics, family history, substance abuse, and an illness or other difficult life events. 

Getting Help!
Regardless of the cause, a person should be treated for depression. Two-thirds of people with depression do not seek treatment because they don’t understand their symptoms or have fear of the stigma of mental illness. Yet of those who do, 80% are treated effectively with medication, psychotherapy, or both.

It is important to seek medical help early because:
• Untreated depression is long lasting. A depressive episode, left untreated, can last six months, or chronically for years.
• Depression is likely to recur. If a person experiences a single episode of depression, there is a 50% chance of having another. The chance of recurrence is 70% after two episodes and 90% after three episodes.
• Depression can lead to suicide. Depression is the leading cause of suicide, and a suicide occurs every 17 minutes in the U.S

Depression Symptoms
If you have been experiencing several of the depression symptoms below for more than 2 weeks, contact your doctor. If you have been thinking about death or suicide, call your doctor today. 
• Feeling miserable and sad almost everyday?
• Losing interest in most activities?
• Feeling anxious or irritable?
• Having trouble concentrating or remembering?
• Feeling tired?
• Feeling guilty?
• Sleeping too much or too little?
• Eating too much or too little?
• Have medically unexplained aches and pains?
• Thinking of death or suicide?
In addition, excessive alcohol consumption and drug abuse is prevalent among those with underlying depressive disorders. 

Signs for family / friends
Common behaviors that family/friends often notice in people with depression (usually these are abrupt or sudden behavior changes):
• Talking very negatively
• Acting unreasonably, without concern for others
• Abusing alcohol or drugs
• Picking fights, being irritable, critical, or mean
• Withdrawing from family and friends
• Having trouble at work or school
• Talking suddenly about separation or divorce
• Complaining of aches and pains
• Eating too little or too much
• Sleeping too much or too little

Provided Courtesy of Wellness Proposals
Source:  www.familyaware.org

If you don’t have diabetes, why do you need to think about your blood sugar levels?

It’s simple: Blood sugar problems don’t happen overnight. And, as your blood sugar rises, not only does your risk of developing diabetes increase, but so does your risk of coronary heart disease.

Here’s what everyone needs to know about blood sugar levels:

1. Blood sugar, or glucose, provides vital energy to all our cells. The hormone insulin, produced in the pancreas, helps glucose get into those cells.
2. Blood sugar levels rise and fall to balance your body’s needs: up after eating, down when you need to eat.
3. When blood sugar rises too high, it causes insulin resistance and prevents glucose from
   delivering its energy properly.
4. Insulin resistance increases when you’re overweight, especially if you carry extra weight in your mid-section.
5. Only medical tests can show if you have a healthy blood sugar level. You may be tested
   after not eating (fasting) for a specific amount of time.

• Fasting blood sugar levels:
  · Normal: 70 to 99 mg/dl
  · Prediabetic: 100 to 125 mg/dl
  · Diabetic: 126 mg/dl or above
• You might also drink a sugary drink and then be tested with an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). If your OGTT score is 140 mg/dl to 199 mg/dl you’re prediabetic; above that is diabetes.

1. To achieve or maintain a healthy blood sugar level:

• Lose weight if you are overweight.
• Take a few minutes to walk every day. Work up to 30 minutes a day.
• Eat more fiber from oatmeal, whole grains, fruits and vegetables, beans and legumes to better control blood sugar levels.
• Reduce your use of sugary foods and drinks as well as refined starches, such as white bread, white rice and white pasta.
• Cut total fat intake to less than 30 percent of your daily calorie total, with saturated fat under 10 percent.

*To learn more about how to maintain a healthy blood sugar level, go to the Blood Sugar Awareness Tool Kit from the National Women’s Health Resource Center.

How to effectively use a step counter (pedometer):   
1. Place the step counter on your waistband or belt so that it is above your knee.

2. Walk 50 steps and check that the step counter.  If the counter recorded a number below 46 or above 54, try repositioning the step counter and resetting it, then check it again.

3. Wear the step counter during the day. 

4. For the first week that you have the step counter do your regular activities.  You should write down your daily step counts and at the end of the week you will have an idea of your average level of activity.  You can then decide on the action that you want to take. 

For example:

•  If your average activity level is less than 4,000 steps per day—you may want to choose the first action of ―taking more steps than I do now‖ with a personalized goal of 1,000 more steps per day.
• If your average activity level is between 4,000-6,000 steps per day—you could choose to increase your steps by 2,000 steps a day.  
• If your average activity level is greater than 6,000 steps per day—you may want to try to work toward 10,000 steps a day. 

Sources: Monarch Health Promotions , The University of Colorado Department of Family Medicine and Colorado on the Move.

When we clear out the clutter from our daily lives, we are in fact saying to the Universe, “Yes, I can let go of my past baggage and I am ready for new opportunities and new experiences”. Each season is a time for new beginnings, let this be the year that you begin renewed and ready for anything!

Here are some simple Feng Shui cleaning tips to get you started…

Source: Feng Shui Market & Publishing

There are many ways to keep your child safe at Halloween, when they are more prone to accidents and injuries. The excitement of children and adults at this time of year sometimes makes them forget to be careful. Simple common sense can do a lot to stop any tragedies from happening.

Pumpkin Safety Tips
Pumpkins and jack-O-lanterns are a fun part of the holiday festivities. In order to keep this activity a safe part of every Halloween celebration, consider the following tips:

• When it comes to carving pumpkins, have your children draw the face and scoop the seeds. Leave the actual cutting and candle lighting to the adults.
• Have the children use markers to delineate the face they want carved out of their pumpkin.
• Once the seeds are scooped, rinse and spread them out on a cookie sheet, sprinkle with salt, and roast at about 325 degree Fahrenheit for about 15 to 20 minutes. Munching the seeds while the pumpkin is being carved will help to keep your child involved and occupied while the actual carving is taking place.
• Once the pumpkin is carved, if you’re using a candle to light up your jack-O-lantern, have an adult do the lighting.

Halloween Safety Tips
With witches, goblins, and super-heroes descending on neighborhoods across America, the American Red Cross offers parents some safety tips to help prepare their children for a safe and enjoyable trick-or-treat holiday. Halloween should be filled with surprise and enjoyment, and following some common sense practices can keep events safer and more fun.
• Walk, slither, and sneak on sidewalks, not in the street.
• Look both ways before crossing the street to check for cars, trucks, and low-flying brooms.
• Cross the street only at corners.
• Don’t hide or cross the street between parked cars.
• Wear light-colored or reflective-type clothing so you are more visible. (And remember to put reflective tape on bikes, skateboards, and brooms, too!)
• Plan your route and share it with your family. If possible, have an adult go with you.
• Carry a flashlight to light your way.
• Keep away from open fires and candles. (Costumes can be extremely flammable.)
• Visit homes that have the porch light on.
• Accept your treats at the door and never go into a stranger’s house.
• Use face paint rather than masks or things that will cover your eyes.
• Be cautious of animals and strangers.

Have a grown-up inspect your treats before eating. And don’t eat candy if the package is already opened. Small, hard pieces of candy are a choking hazard for young children.

Source: www.familyeducation.com, the American Red Cross and www.wellnessproposals.com

The symptoms are confusing, but here’s a simple test: high fevers, body aches, extreme fatigue and a constant dry cough are likely to be flu, according to experts at eMedicineHealth. The common cold generally consists of; a runny or stuffy nose, a mild fever, and coughing.

In either case, antibiotics are not the cure for these virus caused illnesses, because antibiotics cannot fight viruses. In fact, taking prescription medications weakens their effectiveness for when you really need them; so reserve them for only bacterial infections.

Often, what you need to ease the symptoms of colds and flu can be found right at home.

For chest congestion:
•Drink plenty of fluids (8 to 10 cups a day) such as water, sports drinks, herbal teas, fruit drinks, or ginger-ale. Fluids help break up congestion, prevent dehydration and keep your throat moist.
•Inhaled steam can ease congestion too. Create steam with a humidifier, or steam up the bathroom by running a hot shower.

For nasal congestion:
• Relieve clogged nasal and sinus passages caused by excessive mucus with either decongestant pills or with a nasal spray. These are best taken (for a limited time) following a hot shower and lots of nose blowing to clear out the mucus as much as possible.

For fever and pain, body aches and tiredness:
• Rest in bed.
• Over-the-counter medications such as acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil or Motrin) can help decrease fever and ease sore throat pain and body aches.

For cough:
• For a dry hacking cough, you may choose a medication that contains a cough suppressant –Look for over-the-counter medications that contain dextromethorphan.
• For a cough that produces excessive mucus, or phlegm, you may want to use an expectorant that loosens phlegm. Guaifenesin the most common active ingredient.

For sore throat:
• A warm salt-water gargle can relieve a scratchy throat.
• Lozenges, mouthwashes, and sprays that contain a numbing ingredient can ease the pain.

Source: Consumer Health News