Disasters: 5 Items That May Save Your Life

Things can change drastically in a minute and with times changing, it is expected of us to be vigilant as well as prepared when disasters have called on you to do so. Today, it’s not enough to know  basic precautions; we need to be ready with items that will also help us stay alive.

One  thing we can easily do ahead of time to prep for the unexpected is have a supply kit on hand. Here are some of the tools that you need to prioritize in acquiring to be better equipped for an impending disaster.

1. Self-powered Flashlights

• Have enough self-powered flashlights with you. In any disasters that may happen, this tool will prove itself to be very useful especially when all electrical outlets are down and batteries are running low. You will need these flashlights to help you get across any dark spaces. You wouldn’t need batteries to be able to use them, some of these flashlights are powered by sunlight, and some are charged manually which are called mechanically powered flashlight which you can then charge by muscle power.

2. Updated Set of Maps

• Even though you’ve been living in an area for God know how long, it would be safe to pack a set of maps other than your area. This will be essentially helpful if you have to evacuate your current area and it is easier to take note of all the routes and detours you need to take in case of emergencies.

3. First Aid Kit

• First Aid Kits are a must for many types of disasters and don’t you forget it! In dire situations, this will be the most necessary tool kit to have with you. Having this is a matter of life and death and who know the outcome if you do not have one of these with you when a disaster strikes. This kit will improve your chances in survival and staying alive.Your first aid kit should have the following items: Gauze pads, cleaning agent or antiseptic, at least three (3) pairs of gloves, Towelettes, sterile dressings and bandages, Pain relievers, ointment for burns, Tweezers and Scissors, Medical Tape, Hydrogen Peroxide (this is quite useful and it is also effective in carpet cleaning), Prescription Medications and over the counter medications.

4. Self-powered Radio

• Assuming that you all have your phones charged to the fullest capacity, another advantage to have with you is a self-powered radio. This is something that you will need to have since it can give you information on the current events happening during the disaster and an emergency event. Most times, your phones will fail especially in a storm since it requires communication lines depending on your location. Radios are a good tool to have at home to relay information as it will act as an emergency communication services. Usually in a calamity or disastrous event, most people rely on their radios instead of their phone for updates and news.

5. Multi-tool

• Your multi-tool has the same importance as your first aid kit and most multi-tool kits include a folding knife, matches and lighters, small saw and wood saw, hole punch, Philips and flat head screwdriver, pliers, wire cutter, sturdy scissors, and duct tape.

• Batteries? Check.
• Phones charged and ready? Check.
• Clothes? Check.
• Whistle? Check.
• Copies of your personal documents and enough cash? Check.

Aside from the extra set of non-perishable food and a gallon of water stored as rations, these five things will also be very helpful in preparation for a disaster.

3 Critical Survival Skills in the Winter

According to the American Red Cross, dozens of Americans die each year from cold exposure in the winter. Other deaths can be contributed to frostbite, hypothermia and the damage done to the liver, kidneys and pancreas that these conditions cause. Fires and carbon monoxide from improper attempts at heating add even more lives to the toll. In short, it’s important for you to understand how to survive in winter weather. Here are three crucial skills you should know and practice.

Understand How to Avoid Hypothermia

Hypothermia occurs when your body cannot maintain its heat and suffers damage. If your temperature goes too low, organ damage and death can occur. Understanding how to properly maintain your body heat and avoid heat loss are crucial skills for surviving severe weather. Some factors to consider include:

• Dress yourself properly. You want to wear layers that trap body heat and allow your perspiration to wick away from your skin. Avoid cotton, as it is a poor insulator and holds moisture. Select man-made materials like polyester or natural materials like leather, fur or wool. Pay special attention to your extremities, as your head, hands and feet are usually the first areas affected by the cold.

• Learn to notice when you’re sweating. If at all possible, you don’t want to sweat. The perspiration will moisten your clothes and sap body heat. Pace yourself while working outside to avoid sweating as much as possible.

• Maintain your body from the inside out. Dehydration and poor nutrition both make you more susceptible to hypothermia. Drink plenty of water and follow a balanced, healthy diet. Definitely avoid alcohol and caffeine, as these will both dehydrate you further.

Be Able to Identify Hypothermia

You also need to understand the signs of hypothermia. In the beginning, you’ll note shivering and some mental confusion. As your condition worsens, the shivering will become more violent and eventually stop. You will find it impossible to focus on a task or think clearly. Your breathing will become shallow and your pulse will weaken. When the hypothermia progresses to the severe state, you will lose consciousness and be unable to help yourself at all.

Recognizing the early warning signs will help you make good choices and take appropriate actions. If you’re shivering and feeling a bit fuzzy-headed, march in place out of the wind, eat some of your survival emergency food and drink water. If you’re working outside and are sweating a little, you may want to remove a layer or two to keep your temperature stable. Understanding your body and its cues are essential to surviving foul winter weather.

How to Build a Warm Shelter

If you reside in an area where coniferous trees are plentiful, a pile of branches and a tarp can make a cozy lean-to. If you live in a more inhospitable area that gets a lot of snow, you may need to know how to make a properly ventilated snow cave. While tents are great, you should know how to build and heat a natural shelter using minimal tools. Carefully research the options for the area in which you live and practice these skills until you are comfortable building a shelter and heating it. In milder climates, body heat may be enough. In colder areas, learn how to build a fire with found materials. These skills can save your life.

Surviving winter weather is largely a matter of staying warm, dry and protected from the elements. For these reasons, learning how to dress properly and listen to your body’s cues are imperative. Learning to build a warm shelter is also important, as you may not always be able to move constantly to maintain your body temperature.

Calm Before the Storm

Calm Before the Storm

Everyone is always calm before the storm hits, but when there’s a storm on the way, most people freak out. They load up on water, batteries, flashlight, and canned foods. But, what about the home? If you’re the type of person who likes to be fully prepared, here’s what you need to know about protecting your fortress.

Clean Out Your Gutters and Downspouts

Clean out your gutters and downspouts, because this is where water will back up and cause flooding right at the foundation of your home. Once you’ve had a thorough cleaning, it might be time to consider shielded gutters, which will resist leaves and other debris. They will keep your gutters clean, while also allowing rainwater to safely drain away.

Inspect Your Roof and Skylights

Ferguson Roofing Company contractors can inspect your roof and skylights. And, you should probably have it done every year or at least every other year. Skylights are notorious for leaking, so pay extra special attention to them. Gravity often forces the seal on internal glass packs to fail.

Because these glass packs use metal spacer systems, and because heat is constantly rising out of the home, it’s also not uncommon for skylights to fail in the fall, winter, and spring, when the outdoor temperatures may be significantly warmer than the indoor temperatures. The heat coming from the attic will cause the metal and glass to shift and expand, while the cold air coming from above will cause the glass and spacer to want to contract. The result is seal failure of the glass pack.

Replacing skylights with newer systems using “warm edge spacer” technology might help reduce the risk or incidence of failure, but there are usually no guarantees. So, all other things being equal, buy the most expensive skylight you can afford, and make sure the company backs the product with a warranty – lifetime, if possible.

Roofing materials wear out, so you should have them periodically inspected, especially after a storm, which can reduce the roof shingles’ useful lifespan. Butterflying, torn, or missing shingles should be replaced immediately.

Moisture that works its way under the shingles, and is allowed to sit, will rot out the decking underneath, which will then need to be replaced.

Test Smoke Detectors At Least Once Every 6 Months

Test your smoke alarm at least once every 6 months. As long as the batteries are working, you should be fine. However, you may want to test it with a little smoke. If you don’t smoke, buy a pack of cigarettes or some incense.

Light up, and wave the smoke in front of the detector. If it goes off, it’s working. If it doesn’t, it’s time to replace the device or check the batteries.

Prune Back Trees and Shrubs

Prune back trees and shrubs so that they are not blocking windows or hanging over your roof – especially large trees with branches that could break off and crash through your roof, damaging it.

Check Weather Stripping

Check weather stripping on all doors and windows. Weather stripping is usually not something that will fail quickly and catastrophically. It usually fails over time, wearing down from years of use. Rubber on the seals may rot or dry out, become moldy, or develop micro-tears. Replace any damaged weather stripping, and seal all doors and windows as needed.

Get a Soil Study Done, and Have Your Foundation Checked

Bring in a soil engineer and have the soil tested for porosity. Then, check your foundation. This will help you better understand the risks of flooding in your foundation. Flooding can cause foundation and structural damage, which is expensive to repair. The engineer will be able to give you guidelines to prevent damage and fix any problems you’re having now with flooding.

Stock Up On Survival Food

Canned food is OK, but dehydrated survival food is real food, and it won’t make you feel like you’re eating out of a can. Plus, not all canned foods are “balanced” in the sense that you’re not always getting balanced nutrition.

Most people don’t worry about this because they don’t expect to be out of power for more than a day or two. But, even if power is restored within 24 hours, that doesn’t mean you’ll be able to go to the store during that time.

If roads are blocked off, or if there is some other reason that supplies can’t be brought in to your area, then you will want to have food that only needs to be re-hydrated and constitutes a full, balanced meal.

It might be a step or two more complex than canned foods, but you’ll probably enjoy it more and be better prepared if you go this route.

Of course, you will also need to buy a water filter capable of filtering non-potable water – water that may contain viruses, bacteria, and other critters you wouldn’t want to ingest.

These filters aren’t sold in your average grocery store. They are, however, available in camping and sporting goods stores, online, and through various “prepper” and survivalist-themed stores.

3 Considerations to Build an In-House Safe Room

Oklahoma is considered one of the most notorious states for tornado activity, yet basements are rare in the Sooner State.

NPR reported in 2013 that less than one percent of homes in the southern part of the state have basements. Freeze lines, water tables and higher construction costs impede builders from including basements regardless of obvious need. Most Arizona, Florida and Louisiana homes also lack basements, as do newer constructions in California.

Whether it’s a violent act of nature, government manipulation or nuclear disaster, a safe room is essential to protect your family. You neither need to dig a deep hole on your property nor add a room to your existing home to make this happen. There’s already an area in your home that you can use for this purpose.

Location

• The primary advantage of retrofitting your current home with a safe room is that it gives all occupants immediate access to it when disaster strikes. It’s also less expensive than building an external, above-ground room.
• Pre-fab shelters (typically 5×10 for three people) run upward of $8,000 installed. But if you’re willing to spend that much, it’s best to just fortify an existing room in your home. A safe room cannot have windows. Once windows break out of a house during tornadoes or hurricanes, it’s a matter of minutes before the air pressure destroys everything inside and out. It’s also preferable to build a safe room somewhere that does not touch outside walls.
• Large walk-in closets and bathrooms on ground levels are the best places to build when basements aren’t available. The door to enter the room should be graded for exteriors and have a deadbolt.

Construction Requirements

• There is no such thing as a 100 percent “safe” room, unless it’s a fortress-type dwelling that can withstand missiles. But FEMA publishes step-by-step, detailed, up-to-date instructions on how to build International Code Council (ICC) 500-compliant safe rooms that anyone can download for free.
• Building a safe room in your home comes down to feasibility and need. Those living in areas prone to tornadoes, wildfires, hurricanes and the like are good safe room candidates. There’s also the potential of martial law, wartime regulations or some other SHTF scenario that makes safe rooms a necessity. But these latter types of safe rooms are more like in-house bunkers.
• Survivalists and so-called preppers stock safe rooms with non-perishable foods, water, weapons and everything else needed to survive societal breakdown. Some even install multi-camera surveillance systems to see exactly what’s going on outside the room and around the perimeter. Construction of your safe room comes down to personal needs and preferences.

Funding

• Costs will ultimately dictate whether a safe room is realistic for most families. There are several federal grant options you may qualify for depending on locale and risk assessments. Alabama and Minnesota have their own hazard mitigation grant programs for both individual families and communities. Check with your state’s hazard mitigation officer for details on local programs and to determine eligibility.

Happy Thanksgiving

Disinfecting Cleaning Solutions From Scratch

Commercial disinfectant products consist of many chemicals that may cause allergic reactions, vomiting, respiratory problems, irritation of skin, and may pollute the air in your home. Moreover they are expensive. You need to take care for you and your family’s health. There is no need of unpleasant situations because of a cleaning product. So the safer method is to make a cleaning detergents by yourself. They are made by cheap products such as vinegar, baking soda, water and etc. and are strong competition to those that are bought from the shop.

You do not need to disinfect every room and every day, but disinfection is a necessity in the bathroom and the kitchen. Here are some DIY disinfecting cleaning solutions from scratch to keep it naturally.

If you want to kill the germs off the surfaces in your home, especially in the kitchen and bathroom, here is a recipe for a home-made disinfecting cleaner.

Ingredients:

• Half cup of white vinegar
• One tsp baking soda
• Ten drops of tea tree oil
• Spray bottle

Direction: Mix them in a clean spray bottle with 400-500 ml of hot water. When you spray on the surfaces, let the liquid sit for ten minutes and then wipe it off. You can say goodbye to the germs.

Here is a another recipe for disinfectant that is most commonly used for the bathroom. What do you need?

• Clean an old spray bottle
• Half cup of both white vinegar and vodka
• Ten drops of both lavender and lemon essential oils
• Half cup of hot water

You can spray any surface of the bathroom and let the DIY product sit for about ten minutes. If you want to do it the right way, use different microfibre cloth for sink, mirror, shower, tub and toilet. There will be no germs.

Another way to deal with the germs is this recipe for disinfecting. Mix in a bucket…

• Three quarters cup of chlorine bleach
• 1 tsp laundry powdered cleaner
• Gallon of hot water

Leave the liquid for a little more than five minutes. After that you can rinse and wipe off the surfaces with a sponge or a microfibre cloth. You can disinfect, deodorize and clean tubs, sinks, showers, porcelain, ceramics, chairs, diaper pails, tables, garbage cans, fridges. Do not use it on trim or aluminum surfaces.

For the next recipe you will need:

• 2 tablespoons of borax
• Three cups of hot water
• Four spoons of white vinegar
• Spray bottle

Shake the substances. Now you have a powerful disinfectant and every single germ will be eliminated. When you spray on surfaces, leave the product for 5-10 minutes. Then rinse carefully and dry it.

Another easy and natural way to disinfect the bathroom and the kitchen is by mixing equal parts of water and rubbing alcohol. Spray wherever it is required and leave it for seven-eight minutes. Then rinse and wipe off with a cloth. Notice that you need to clean the surfaces first, and then to disinfect them. It is a part of the cleaning process, not the cleaning process itself.

Using natural products is much more safer and does not cause health problems. They are as effective as the commercial ones, but less dangerous and cheaper. Keeping you and your family safe is your main purpose. Disinfection is essential and necessary, but it does not need to be chemical and toxic. Killing germs in the eco-friendly way is the better way for you and your beloved.

Ezra Taft Benson Talks About The Last Days

How Small Businesses Should be Prepared for Natural Disasters

Different geographic regions are more prone to certain types of natural disasters. For example, earthquakes are a continual threat for West Coasters, while hurricanes are a staple for East Coasters. In the Midwest and South regions, tornadoes and hurricanes are all too frequent. Drought, flooding and forest fires also wreak havoc across the country from time to time. 

As a small business owner, it is your responsibility to prepare your business, your staff and yourself for the possibility that a natural disaster could impact your company. This post identifies the key things to take care of now – before disaster strikes – and how to respond once the disaster has passed.

Maintain Appropriate and Adequate Insurance

First things first – it is critical to maintain the right type and adequate amounts of insurance. You will need insurance to protect your property and inventory. If your area is prone to specific types of natural disaster – for example, flooding, you will want to carry insurance for this as well.

And if your business is interrupted by the disaster, business interruption insurance will help your company stay afloat while it cannot operate.

Ensure Sufficient Emergency Supplies and Rations on the Premises

Sometimes natural disaster strikes so suddenly there is no time to evacuate. If this is the case, you will need to develop an emergency response plan that includes the possibility of remaining with your staff on the property until it is safe to leave. 

So here you will want to stock up on emergency food and water, extra paper goods, first aid supplies, batteries and flashlights, blankets and other supplies to tide you over until the danger passes.

If there is time to evacuate, then you will need to have a plan in place for how to alert employees and direct them to exit the premises safely. This should include a facility map so it is clear where exits are located and the fastest route to reach them. If you have staff at multiple sites, you will need to develop and routinely practice your emergency notification system to be sure it works properly at all locations, and ensure they have accurate posted facility maps with exit directions as well.

Have a Post-Disaster Cleanup and Recovery Plan in Place

Even if you have comprehensive insurance coverage in place, it can still take some time after a natural disaster to have the insurer complete their assessment and issue your claims funds. In the interim, you will want to have your own plan to initiate post-disaster cleanup and recovery so you can get your business up and running once again.

Your first step will be to ensure the property is safe and habitable for staff and customers to return to. For example, you will need carpet cleaners to clean and disinfect water-impacted carpeting, fans and air spray to air out and freshen a damp interior, brooms and mops to clean floors, new filters to replace waterlogged ones, paper goods and cleaner sprays to disinfect surfaces and a list of local repair facilities where you can find materials to replace damaged or broken glass, wood and bricking.

You will also want to keep a file folder with warranty and insurance information for both your property itself and individual components that may need to be repaired or replaced. By knowing in advance what you will have to pay for out of pocket and what may be covered by a warranty or insurance claim, you can put aside some funds each month towards a “natural disaster emergency fund” you can use if the need ever arises.

Planning for the possibility of a natural disaster may take a bit of time away from your day-to-day business operations now, but you and your staff will appreciate your advance preparations in the event your company is affected by a natural disaster in the future.

Ted Koppel Is Buying Freeze-Dried Food For The Day When A Cyberattack Takes Out The Power Grid

Most Americans have absolutely no idea how incredibly vulnerable our electrical grid is, but Ted Koppel does.  For many years, Koppel was the level-headed host of Nightline on ABC, but now he is issuing a very chilling warning to America.  For more than a year, he investigated potential threats to our power grid, and he has detailed what he discovered in a new book entitled “Lights Out“.  He is convinced that a massive cyberattack could take down our entire electrical grid for an extended period of time, and he was horrified to learn that the Department of Homeland Security really doesn’t have a plan for how to deal with this kind of a scenario.

What Koppel found out during the course of his investigation freaked him out so much that he actually decided to buy freeze-dried food for himself, his children, and even his grandchildren.  The following comes from CBS News…

In “Lights Out,” Koppel paints a grim picture of a paralyzing power outage in the form of an all-out cyberattack on the nation’s electrical grid.

“It’s frightening,” Koppel said. “I mean, it is frightening enough that my wife and I decided we were going to buy enough freeze-dried food for all of our kids and their kids.”

Koppel believes that Russia, China and Iran already have the ability to conduct such attacks.  And actually, the truth is that many other nations such as North Korea have been rapidly developing the capability to conduct such operations as well.

It is only a matter of time until we see absolutely massive cyberattacks unleashed against national power grids, and the United States is the most likely target.  Unfortunately for us, our government has done very little to prepare for this eventuality.  Here is more from CBS News…

Koppel says the one agency that would be ready to counter a cyberattack such as this is the Department of Homeland Security. But are they ready?

“No,” he said. “I’ve talked to every former Secretary of Homeland Security, and they all acknowledge there is no plan.”

And the current Secretary, Jeh Johnson, didn’t offer much guidance to Koppel, either: “I kept asking ‘What’s the plan?’ Why wait until disaster strikes? Why not tell ’em? Do you have a plan?’ And he just sort of pointed up at a shelf filled with white binders and he said, ‘Look, I’m sure there’s something up there somewhere.'”

But we have been warned.  In fact, just recently there was a major congressional hearing about this.  At that hearing, one member of Congress explained that there is a significant attack on our power grid once every four days…

Such attacks hit the nation’s electric grid once every four days, according to estimates, Rep. Randy Weber, a Texas Republican, said at the House Subcommittee on Research and Technology hearing. The session was focused on better protecting the nation’s power grid and identifying its vulnerability to cyberattacks.

“In over 300 cases of significant cyber and physical attacks since 2011, suspects have never been identified,” Weber said.

And of course it isn’t just a cyberattack that we need to be concerned about.  As I wrote about just over a month ago, a giant electromagnetic pulse either from the sun or from a weapon could fry our grid at any time as well.

Perhaps this is not something that you are making preparations for personally, but the White House sure is.  According to the Houston Chronicle, the White House just released a plan that details how it would respond to an EMP event…

The White House Thursday released a contingency plan for about the most terrifying scenario possible: a massive electromagnetic pulse (EMP) that wipes out the power grid

Just imagine no more cell phones, Internet, credit cards, gas pumps, running water, electric lights or industry in a single fateful moment.

It could come from a solar flare that sends ultra-high-energy particles cascading toward the earth, frying every electrical transformer they encounter. So the White House, in conjunction with 24 other federal agencies, published a “National Space Weather Strategy” and accompany action plan, outlining a response if such a disaster were to occur.

I don’t know if any of us can really imagine how crazy things would get if the lights went out and never came back on.  We have all become so incredibly dependent on computers, cell phones, televisions, ATMs, heating and cooling systems, credit card readers, gas pumps, cash registers, refrigerators, hospital equipment etc.  What would life be like if suddenly we couldn’t use any of those things anymore?

At some point there will be a massive power grid failure.  It is just a matter of time.  And as space weather consultant John Kappenman recently told Gizmodo, when it happens power might not be restored for months or even years…

“If you take electricity away, either immediately or within a short period of time, you’ll suffer the failure of all critical infrastructure,” Kappenman said. This includes things like water, sewage treatment, gas stations, banks and hospitals. “One of the concerns that we have is that in the worst case scenarios, we could be looking at weeks, months, maybe even years before restoration of the grid.”

That’s why preppers are taking a longer view. “I have a five year supply of food for employees and family,” a source who requested anonymity told Gizmodo. This individual says he’s rigged up a 12.5 kW solar array in the “remote wilderness,” complete with “power outlets and water spigots about every 50 feet” to support a small fleet of RV trailers for the long haul. Other preppers agree that a multi-year food and water supply is crucial. Some are also stockpiling large quantities of medications (“five year supplies of meds can be obtained from Asia without prescriptions,” one source told Gizmodo).

21 Facts About The Explosive Growth Of Poverty In America That Will Blow Your Mind

What you are about to see is more evidence that the growth of poverty in the United States is wildly out of control.  It turns out that there is a tremendous amount of suffering in “the wealthiest nation on the planet”, and it is getting worse with each passing year.  During this election season, politicians of all stripes are running around telling all of us how great we are, but is that really true?  As you will see below, poverty is reaching unprecedented levels in this country, and the middle class is steadily dying.  There aren’t enough good jobs to go around, dependence on the government has never been greater, and it is our children that are being hit the hardest.  If we have this many people living on the edge of despair now, while times are “good”, what are things going to look like when our economy really starts falling apart?  The following are 21 facts about the explosive growth of poverty in America that will blow your mind…

#1 The U.S. Census Bureau says that nearly 47 million Americans are living in poverty right now.

#2 Other numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau are also very disturbing.  For example, in 2007 about one out of every eight children in America was on food stamps.  Today, that number is one out of every five.

#3 According to Kathryn J. Edin and H. Luke Shaefer, the authors of a new book entitled “$2.00 a Day: Living on Almost Nothing in America“, there are 1.5 million “ultrapoor” households in the United States that live on less than two dollars a day.  That number has doubled since 1996.

#4 46 million Americans use food banks each year, and lines start forming at some U.S. food banks as early as 6:30 in the morning because people want to get something before the food supplies run out.

#5 The number of homeless children in the U.S. has increased by 60 percentover the past six years.

#6 According to Poverty USA, 1.6 million American children slept in a homeless shelter or some other form of emergency housing last year.

#7 Police in New York City have identified 80 separate homeless encampments in the city, and the homeless crisis there has gotten so bad that it is being described as an “epidemic”.

#8 If you can believe it, more than half of all students in our public schools are poor enough to qualify for school lunch subsidies.

#9 According to a Census Bureau report that was released a while back, 65 percent of all children in the U.S. are living in a home that receives some form of aid from the federal government.

#10 According to a report that was published by UNICEF, almost one-third of all children in this country “live in households with an income below 60 percent of the national median income”.

#11 When it comes to child poverty, the United States ranks 36th out of the 41 “wealthy nations” that UNICEF looked at.

#12 The number of Americans that are living in concentrated areas of high poverty has doubled since the year 2000.

#13 An astounding 45 percent of all African-American children in the United States live in areas of “concentrated poverty”.

#14 40.9 percent of all children in the United States that are being raised by a single parent are living in poverty.

#15 An astounding 48.8 percent of all 25-year-old Americans still live at home with their parents.

#16 There are simply not enough good jobs to go around anymore.  It may be hard to believe, but 51 percent of all American workers make less than $30,000 a year.

#17 There are 7.9 million working age Americans that are “officially unemployed” right now and another 94.7 million working age Americans that are considered to be “not in the labor force”.  When you add those two numbers together, you get a grand total of 102.6 million working age Americans that do not have a job right now.

#18 Owning a home has traditionally been a signal that you belong to the middle class.  That is why it is so alarming that the rate of homeownership in the United States has been falling for eight years in a row.

#19 According to a recent Pew survey, approximately 70 percent of all Americans believe that “debt is a necessity in their lives”.

#20 At this point, 25 percent of all Americans have a negative net worth.  That means that the value of what they owe is greater than the value of everything that they own.

#21 The top 0.1 percent of all American families have about as much wealthas the bottom 90 percent of all American families combined.

DIY Health Options Keep the Doctor Away

There was a time when doctors had their patients’ best interests at heart. You could count on getting an honest – and, for the most part, accurate – diagnosis based on your symptoms, as well as an effective treatment plan.

Hopefully you still have a doctor like that, but in reality, there are too many people in the medical profession these days whose jobs depend on making money for their employers. As a result, far too many expensive tests are ordered and far too many unnecessary drugs are prescribed.

Even if doctors know that natural and healthy alternatives would be better for you, you won’t necessarily hear about them. They and the pharmaceutical companies have no qualms about draining your resources while weakening your system with potentially harmful drugs.

The single most important thing we can do to combat this problem is to discover and use alternative health options. This starts with staying as healthy as possible in the first place. Make natural, common sense decisions, including…

• Eat plenty of raw fruits and vegetables every day.

• Make sure you get plenty of Vitamin D for your bones and blood vessels, and B vitamins for breathing issues including asthma and wheezing.

• Eat walnuts to help lower your cholesterol, relieve your arthritis and battle depression.

• Drink coconut water for asymptomatic infections and take iodine for your thyroid and your circulation.

• Drink a little red wine for your heart and eat blueberries to stabilize your blood sugar levels.

• Drink apple cider vinegar and honey. In a 10-ounce glass of cold water, stir in two tablespoons of raw apple cider vinegar and two tablespoons of raw wildflower honey. Drink it as is or heat it up and drink it as a tea.

Because moods can affect how we feel physically, it’s also important to use natural means to remain as upbeat as possible. For mild depression, try some of these natural remedies:

• Consume fish oil and Vitamin D. Both are directly tied to emotional health. Eat fatty, cold-water fish, such as salmon. Also, get 30 minutes of sun on your face and arms daily.
• Eat more protein and fat, and less carbs and sugar. Sugar can lead to chronic inflammation and suppress healthy proteins. Focus on organic, animal-based foods, fruits, vegetables and nuts.
• Consume herbs. Two herbs that have been shown to have beneficial effects on mood are Rhodiola (Rhodiola rosea) and St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum).
• Fast now and then. Fasting for a day or at least skipping a meal here and there helps your body digest and eliminate cellular debris. It’s a good way to clean out your system and elevate your mood.
• Exercise. Patients with depression improve as much as those treated with medication when they stick to an exercise program, according to studies.
• Laugh. Laughing lowers cortisol, the hormone associated with stress. The effect can continue hours after you’re finished laughing.