The Alternative Medicine & Natural Health Newsletter is sponsored by

ALTERNATIVE HEALTH INSURANCE SERVICES (AHIS).

 May 2005 

Since 1985, AHIS has helped businesses and individuals find the best value in health insurance with an emphasis on coverage for alternative medicine and natural therapies. Please visit www.AlternativeInsurance.com to learn about options for your personal or group health insurance.

Welcome to the May 2005 edition of our newsletter.  Our goal is to provide you with information and articles that are of interest to you and may be of value to you.  Information we include is gathered from a variety of publications.  Several articles toward to end of this issue deal with the growing acceptance of natural and organic products.  As Whole Foods, the largest natural food retailer, has exceeded the billion dollar mark in quarterly sales for the first time, we included a few articles to show how mainstream food manufacturers have been influenced by the public demand for better food.

We hope the information we provide is of value to you.  If you have not read our previous newsletters, they are also posted on our website.

Vitamins E and C Confirmed Safe At High Doses

A review of available scientific literature on vitamins E and C, published in the April issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (AJCN), concludes that vitamin E is safe for the general population at intakes up to 1600 IU daily and vitamin C is safe at up to 2000 mg daily.
Internet Resources:
Press Release on NPIcenter

Gene study suggests vitamin E helps blocks Alzheimer's
Scientists have found genetic proof that vitamin E can help protect against Alzheimer's disease, said DSM yesterday... Read

Plant based foods slice away 'bad' cholesterol in low fat diet
A low-fat diet rich in vegetables and fruits has twice the cholesterol-lowering power of a conventional low-fat diet... Read

Ginkgo biloba may improve memory in MS sufferers
A study seems to suggest that ginkgo biloba may help improve attention in MS patients with cognitive impairment... Read

Herb May Alter Cell Response to Cancer Therapeutic Agents

According to an article on biocompare, researchers at Yale School of Medicine studying Breast Cancer have noted that the herb black cohosh affects the way that cells respond to cancer therapy. Specifically, the researchers noted that the use of the herb increased cell killing by two drugs, decreased the rate of cell killing in another, and had no effect on the rate of cancer cell killing of the fourth drug.
Internet Resources:
Article on Biocompare

Ice cream makes you happy, say Unilever scientists
Ice cream makers looking to boost 2005 figures will find comfort in new research that claims ice cream actually 'makes you happy'... Read

Whole Foods' quarterly sales top $1 billion, grocer reaches "tipping point"

With its quarterly sales exceeding $1 billion for the first time ever, Whole Foods Market has hit the "tipping point," CEO John Mackey said. The natural food grocery chain has a record number of new stores in the pipeline and Mackey says he expects the brand to grow even more in coming years with bigger stores. Financial Times (London) (subscription required)

Low-sugar, organic and whole-wheat label claims selling best

An ACNielsen executive says products offering health benefits without changing eating habits find the greatest marketing success. Key claims such as whole grain, organic and no-/low-sugar outpace sales from no-/low-fat, and "carb conscious" has slowed since June 2004. FoodNavigator (5/5)

Hunt's, Orville Redenbacher's to Launch Organic Products

Two of ConAgra Foods flagship brands - Hunt's(R) and Orville Redenbacher's(R) are set to introduce organic products later this year, bearing the "USDA Organic" seal.
Internet Resources:
Press Release on NPIcenter
ConAgra Foods Website

Bloomberg: Kellogg, Danone Bet High-Priced Organic Brands Are `Not a Fad'

An article on Bloomberg.com examines the price premium for organic and natural and notes business performance and strategy of companies such as Danone, Kellogg, Kraft Foods and Nestle, suggesting that this market is slated for ongoing growth and is not a fad. Other companies cited in the article include Stonyfield Farm, H. J. Heinz Co., Hain Celestial Group Inc., and Nature's Path
Internet Resources:
Article on Bloomberg.com

Majority of voters concerned about losing coverage

The rising cost of health care is on the minds of nearly three out of four registered voters, according to a poll sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as part of Cover the Uninsured Week, which started May 1 and ends Sunday.

Seventy-three percent of registered voters surveyed say they are concerned about losing their health care coverage. Among top economic issues, voters ranked access to affordable health insurance second to Social Security and Medicare solvency, but more important than "jobs and the economy."

"Poll after poll shows that American people want our leaders to make affordable and stable health coverage for all Americans a top priority," says Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

More than a million people have Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)

More than a million people receive health coverage through high deductible health insurance plans offered in conjunction with health saving accounts, twice as many as six months ago, a study by America's Health Insurance Plans shows.

According to the study, the new insurance policies eligible for HSAs now cover 1,031,000 people, up from 438,000 last September, with much of the recent growth coming from employers offering HSAs to their employees.

Advocates of HSAs promise cheaper, better-quality health care. High-deductible health plans mark just the beginning in a change to a consumer-driven health care economy, says Regina Herzlinger, a professor at Harvard Business School, speaking at the Consumer Directed Health Care Conference and Expo this week.

Herzlinger says HSAs will do for health care benefits what 401(k) plans did for pension plans in the 1980s. "People do better managing their own money than smart money managers acting on their behalf," she says.

In a consumer-driven industry, things get better and cheaper at the same time, Herzlinger says, adding that in the current environment, health care providers are punished for providing innovation, choice and knowledge. "You don't get paid for keeping people healthy," she says.

Health Savings Account plans enable you to use tax-free savings to pay for many medical expenses, including Alternative Medicine, dental, vision, etc.  For more details on Health Savings Accounts, please visit our website at http://www.alternativeinsurance.com/html/healthsavings.htm.

Alternative Health Insurance Services offers a wide selection of excellent health insurance plans that work with Health Savings Accounts.  Please ask for more information if you would like to receive free cost proposals for these plans.  You can e-mail steve@alternativeinsurance.com or call (800) 331-2713. 

Steve Gorman