Month: April 2023

2023-04-25T07:01:00

(BPT) – Did you know that the younger someone is when they start drinking alcohol or using other drugs, the more likely they are to develop a substance use disorder as an adult? And with more than 140,000 people dying from excessive alcohol use in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it’s crucial for all the important people in young people’s lives — parents and caregivers, educators, and community members — to talk with them regularly about the harms of alcohol and other drug use and to look for signs that may signal they need additional support.

You can help kids understand the risks of substance use, provide them with a supportive and nurturing environment, and help prepare and empower them to make good choices — and it all starts with talking. In fact, the sooner you talk with kids about alcohol and other drugs, the greater chance you have of influencing their decisions about substance use. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) “Talk. They Hear You.”^® campaign provides resources and tools that will help you get informed, be prepared and take action by starting meaningful conversations with kids at an early age and continuing to talk as they get older.

Get Informed

Before you start talking with youth about substance use, it’s important to get informed about the dangers of underage drinking and other drug use. The adolescent brain is still developing, which is why drinking alcohol or using other drugs has especially negative consequences for young people. Consequences can include impaired judgment and increased risk for injuries, violence, behavioral and academic problems, and even death due to events such as motor vehicle crashes, accidents, suicide and homicide. In addition, the 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and Health from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration found that adolescent overdose deaths increased by 109% from 2019 to 2021, largely due to opioids (90%) and illicitly manufactured fentanyl, counterfeit pills, and stimulants.

You can learn more about the effects of underage drinking and other drug use by listening to the campaign’s “What Parents Are Saying — Prevention Wisdom, Authenticity, and Empowerment” podcast. It features parents, caregivers, and experts lending their knowledge, unique perspectives, and experiences to discussions about youth substance use and mental health. Additional “Talk. They Hear You.” materials, including videos, fact sheets, and brochures, provide information about the risks of drinking alcohol and using other drugs, as well as discussion starter ideas and suggestions on what to say and how to say it.

Be Prepared

To make sure you’re prepared for these important conversations, download the “Talk. They Hear You.”^® mobile app on the App Store, Google Play, and Microsoft Store. The app’s resources and tools will show you how to turn everyday situations into opportunities to talk with kids about underage drinking and other drug use — equipping you with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to start and continue conversations on these difficult topics as they get older.

The app can also help communities promote and implement the “Talk. They Hear You.” campaign locally and assist student assistance professionals, school leaders, and families in working together to support the needs of students who may be struggling with substance use, mental health, or school-related issues.

Take Action

Having short, frequent conversations with youth can have a real impact on their decisions about substance use. And lots of little talks are more effective than one “big talk.” Sitting down for the “big talk” about alcohol and other drugs can be intimidating for everyone involved. Try using everyday opportunities to start and continue the conversation — in the car, on the bus or subway, during dinner or while watching TV or playing video games. Having many little talks takes the pressure off trying to get all the information out in one lengthy discussion, and kids will be less likely to tune you out. During these conversations, kids may ask you some tough questions — and “Talk. They Hear You.” has tips to help you be ready to answer them. The campaign’s fact sheets and discussion starter videos show you different ways to talk about substance use and have open, honest conversations.

If you’re an educator or part of a community organization, you can use the “Parents’ Night Out” materials and discussion starter video series to host interactive, facilitator-led educational sessions on substance use prevention. User-friendly toolkits are available for download and include all the materials needed for a single hour-long “Parents’ Night Out” session, or a series of three one-hour program sessions. These toolkits contain everything you’ll need to plan, prepare and host in-person and virtual “Parents’ Night Out” events in your community. Visit the “Talk. They Hear You.” campaign website to learn more.

What if a child needs more support?

The campaign’s Screen4Success tool, available via the “Talk. They Hear You.”^® mobile app, can help parents and caregivers better understand the health, wellness and wellbeing of their children and find resources to address their needs. Screen4Success asks questions about substance use, mental and physical health, general wellbeing and family life. This provides an easy way to identify areas where children may benefit from additional support. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to fill out the screener with their kids, as it provides opportunities for discussion at the moment. If that’s not possible, they can send it to their kids to complete on their own.

This May, in observance of National Prevention Week, pledge to start — and keep — talking with kids about underage drinking and other drug use prevention: because when you talk, they hear you!

2023-04-24T17:41:00

(BPT) – During seasonal and promotional holidays, many people make purchases online, which increases their risk of accidentally purchasing counterfeit products. How can you avoid getting scammed? You should be cautious and critical when purchasing items online, especially consumer electronics (e.g., headphones, earphones, cameras, etc.), to ensure that the website and the products are authentic.

For retail shopping in general, there’s usually a peak for scammers around holidays including Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and during back-to-school season. To help you stay safe online for any occasion, the product experts at Shure Incorporated offer red flags to watch out for while shopping online.

1. The price seems too good to be true

Price used to be an obvious sign that indicated you were buying an imitation product, but that is not always the case anymore. It’s gotten harder to identify counterfeit products from their price alone; make sure to exercise caution if you find a price on an item that’s much lower than retail stores or authorized retailers when you comparison shop, especially when it comes to electronics. It could be a sign the product is counterfeit.

2. Imitation is not the sincerest form of flattery

Unfortunately, it’s still all too easy to be fooled by a product that looks like the product you want. How can you avoid buying a lower quality product? Your safest bet is to purchase the item directly from the manufacturer or reputable authorized dealer you trust, whenever possible. Consider the safe payment options in the checkout process that offer consumer protection in the event of a return or a dispute.

3. Authenticity matters

Be smart with your online searches. While it’s easy to be directed to a legitimate-looking search result based on your search engine query, sometimes search results can include dangerous websites. The lure of deep discounts on those websites that look like an official company site can also be enticing.

Many scams include fake websites with a similar URL — company name included — designed to look like the genuine company website. This dishonest tactic is particularly common with scams targeting customers of banks, as well as retailers; this tactic is now used to mimic brands, as the technology used to mirror the look and feel of a company’s website becomes more sophisticated. Look carefully through search results and check URLs. Typically, a company’s correct URL will be simple, containing just the brand name with “.com” after it, as with Shure.com. When you’re on a website, especially for unfamiliar brands, look for small errors like spelling mistakes, odd font changes or grammar that seems peculiar. This can be a tipoff that it’s a scam. (The same is true for many phishing emails.)

4. Don’t click on links in sales emails

Fake promotional emails can hit your inbox instead of ending up in your junk or spam folder where they belong, so don’t risk clicking on links in an email offering discounts or sales. Phishing attempts are on the rise, and it’s all too easy to assume an email is legit just because it looks like others you’ve received from a legitimate company. Go straight to the company’s website instead.

5. Better to be safe than sorry when working from home

Since the pandemic began, more companies have allowed employees to work from home. Many employees today are fully remote, or work on a hybrid schedule. If this describes you, you’re probably one of the many employees who searched for the best work-from-home setup deals and prefer purchasing them online.

With sales emails and social media ads catering to your WFH needs, you may be attracted to new brands selling inexpensive products that appear to be made of good quality online, but it’s important to be safe when shopping with unfamiliar brands. It’s important to research brands you’re buying from before you make your purchase, so you don’t end up with a low-quality item. One way is to check online customer reviews on products before you head to checkout.

Keep these tips in mind as you shop online to stay safe, and always do some research on a company before entering your information to create an account or make a purchase — no matter how small. A little know-how can prevent bigger problems down the road.

2023-04-24T11:01:00

(BPT) – If you’re mindful of your impact on the environment and want to do your part to protect the planet, considering how you can use greener power options like portable power stations vs. gas generators can have an impact. Now, with new powerful options, you can put these worries to rest.

Anker’s 767 Portable Power Station is a great choice for storing energy that’s clean, renewable and free. Whether you’re an RVer, van-lifer or just want options for fun family activities like camping, tailgating or family picnics where power is not as accessible, the Anker 767 is an ideal choice. However, if you simply want peace of mind during natural disasters that you can keep your fridge, a few lights, fan and of course your cell phones charged, it’s a worthwhile investment as well.

While you can certainly recharge this Portable Power Station using a standard home outlet, Anker’s 767 can also be recharged using up to five compatible solar panels. This includes the Anker 625 100-watt solar panel or Anker 531 200-watt solar panel, providing a truly green power source that’s great when power is nowhere to be found — even on cloudy days.

Here are five great use cases for how a Portable Power Station can work for you.

Emergency back-up power: Knowing you can power the essentials in your home if the power goes out provides peace of mind, especially during snow, hurricanes and storm season. You can power lights, appliances, mobile phones, entertainment devices and more. And with restrictions for apartment dwellers that can’t use gas generators, portable power stations are ideal.

Outdoor escapes: If you’re an outdoor or mobile living enthusiast who loves to camp, a power station keeps your devices charged no matter where you go. RV owners and van-lifers will also appreciate not being restricted to campsites with outlets, meaning more adventures with fewer limitations.

Movie nights in the backyard: Do you want to be the envy of the neighborhood and have the perfect party option on-hand wherever? The 767 is ideal for powering everything from an outdoor projector to a popcorn machine and some mood-setting string lights.

Tailgating and team celebrations: For people who start cheering their favorite team to victory well before the game starts, a portable power station is a tailgating MVP. You can power grills, Bluetooth speakers, TVs, phones and more, from kickoff through overtime.

Working outside: Whether you want to move your office to a local park for the day or have a backyard construction project planned and must figure out how to keep your laptop, phone, portable hotspot or tools powered up, there is a simple solution. Grab your gear and roll the 767 to your destination, which will solve your power needs for the day. Now get to work!

With the Anker 767 and solar panel(s), you’re doing more than utilizing a renewable energy source; you are supporting a company that keeps Mother Nature top of mind. In 2022, Anker started bringing environmental thinking into every dimension of its product design process, including materials, structure and technological innovation.

Learn more at Anker.com.

2023-04-23T06:01:00

(BPT) – May is National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month — aimed at raising awareness around asthma and helping improve the lives of those living with this condition.

Did you know that if you are an adult 19 or older with asthma, you are at increased risk for pneumococcal pneumonia? Pneumococcal pneumonia is a potentially serious bacterial lung disease that can disrupt your life for weeks and, in severe cases, put you in the hospital and even be life-threatening.

To reduce the burden of this disease, the American Lung Association and Pfizer are partnering to share important information about pneumococcal pneumonia vaccination.

“Understanding pneumococcal pneumonia risk is especially important for adults 19 or older with certain underlying medical conditions, like asthma, because they are at increased risk,” said Albert Rizzo, M.D., Chief Medical Officer for the American Lung Association. “Fortunately, pneumococcal pneumonia vaccination is available year-round to help prevent it.”

Adults 19 or older with other underlying medical conditions like diabetes, chronic heart disease, and COPD, as well as all adults 65 or older, are also at increased risk for pneumococcal pneumonia — and getting vaccinated is one of the ways to help prevent it.

For the 25 million Americans living with asthma, May brings awareness to the peak season for common triggers including pollen, grass, pollution, and other airborne irritants. However, there are ways to take care of your lung health if you have asthma. Here are some tips you can follow this spring to keep your lung health in check:

• Keep windows closed to prevent airborne triggers from getting inside your home.
• Use central air conditioning to stay cool.
• Take a shower and shampoo your hair before bed.
• Change and wash your clothes after being outdoors.
• Follow your asthma action plan.
• And get vaccinated against pneumococcal pneumonia if you are 19 or older.

You can get vaccinated against pneumococcal pneumonia any time of year and, even if you’ve already had a previous pneumococcal pneumonia vaccine, your healthcare provider may recommend additional vaccination to help prevent the disease.

This May, help protect your lung health for National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month. Don’t wait to ask your doctor or pharmacist about pneumococcal pneumonia vaccination and visit knowpneumonia.com to learn more.

Brought to you by Pfizer and the American Lung Association.

2023-04-21T18:51:35

(BPT) – It’s an experience shared by many: You make an ambitious health goal and a few months — or weeks — later, you lose steam and throw in the towel. Break the cycle by focusing on simple, yet effective ways you can impact your wellness long term. The key? Small daily habits.

Nicholas Frye, MS, LCPC, CHES, behavioral counseling manager at OPTAVIA and an expert on psychological factors that influence health, shares how you can create lasting healthy habits, break those unhealthy ones and create positive changes to your wellbeing:

Forming new habits

Habits are a fundamental part of the health and wellbeing program, OPTAVIA. Its approach is built around four key components: a supportive community, an independent coach, a blueprint for learning and mastering healthy habits, and easy nutrition.

“Forming a new, healthy habit involves repeating a health-promoting behavior in response to some trigger that’s already a part of your day, such as a specific location like the kitchen, certain situation like making your morning coffee or particular person like your significant other, until there is a learned connection between trigger and behavior,” said Frye.

As an example, to develop a new, healthy walking habit, first select a specific health-promoting behavior such as “go for a 10-minute walk.” Then identify a stable cue which occurs daily in your life such as “after breakfast.” Then repeatedly perform the walking behavior in response to the after-breakfast cue which will, over time, result in an automatic habit.

It takes 66 days — on average — to develop a new habit, according to a 2009 study published in the European Journal of Social Psychology. However, the exact timeframe is different for everyone. As the behavior is repeated in response to the cue, the association between them becomes stronger, more efficient and automatic until the cue alone is enough to trigger the associated behavior without conscious thought.

Breaking old habits

Forming new, healthy habits through behavior and cue association is one part of a long-term approach to wellness, but how do you break an established, negative health habit?

“Breaking an old, unhealthy habit involves overwriting the old habit with a new, competing behavior,” Frye said. “Basically, you substitute the unhealthy habit with a healthy new one.”

For example, to break a habit of drinking sugary sodas while watching television, replace the soft drink with sparkling water every time you sit down to binge your favorite show. Eventually, you’ll associate watching TV with this new, healthier behavior.

Microhabits

Frye recommends instead of committing to a big, audacious goal, try incorporating small daily habits. This allows you one step closer to optimal health and wellbeing every day. These small behaviors are called microhabits and they can compound to have big results.

Some microhabit examples are parking at the back of a parking lot to get your steps in or taking a sip of water as soon as you wake up rather than hitting the snooze button.

“By developing these habits, one small step at a time, we can overcome the intention-behavior gap — in other words, when what you do doesn’t live up to your previous intentions — and it is all the less daunting,” said Frye. “This sets one up for success as opposed to overly ambitious goals that don’t guide you from point A to point B.”

Learn more at OPTAVIA.com.

2023-04-21T10:31:00

(BPT) – This Earth Month we’re sharing a few sustainable swaps for your little ones that don’t feel like sacrifices — more like earth-friendly upgrades.

SEASONLESS ORGANIC GAUZE

Crafted in the purest organic fabrics certified by the Global Organic Textile Standard, Little Planet’s signature gauze pieces are a return to simplicity. Lightweight, but ready to layer, each gender-neutral gauze overall, bubble and sun set can be worn all year round for a timeless, Insta-worthy style that spans seasons — and little ones. Earth-friendly tip: save your gauze from extra drying cycles. (It actually wrinkles when it’s overdried!)

NATURE-INSPIRED PRINTS

Skip the character tees for a moment and inspire a love of nature in your little ones. The Little Planet team strives to showcase not only the most beautiful creatures on our planet, but also some of the most endangered, teaching little ones that these animals are in need of our love, too. Peek at some of their signature print organic bodysuits and tees.

BABY & TODDLER RECYCLED SWIMWEAR

Let’s talk swim! Made of UPF 50+ recycled poly, Little Planet swimsuits are made to give new life to plastics. In signature prints, nature-inspired colors, and stylish and smart silhouettes, prepping for family beach trips has never been so satisfying. Don’t miss these shortie swim trunks with matching rash guards for him and one-piece swimsuits for her.

BEDTIMES GO ORGANIC

Before we let you in on bedtime go-tos, here’s another earth-friendly reminder: you don’t have to wash pjs every night. Here’s your pass to save energy and water and skip the spin cycle between each wear. These sibling matching PJs, crib sheets and wearable blankets are all GOTS certified organic cotton so they’re kind to your little ones and gentle on the planet, too.

RECYCLED SHOES & ACCESSORIES

Made to give a smaller footprint, Little Planet shoes are all made from recycled materials. Choose from adventure sandals or sneakers that go with everything.

With certified sustainable fabrics, recycled packaging and more thoughtful processes, these simple swaps are planting the seed this Earth Day toward a more environmentally conscious future.