Green tea has been around for thousands of years and is more popular than ever. For centuries green tea has been a staple in the diets of many families around the world. And the benefits of this beverage are not just limited to a pleasant drinking taste. Numerous scientific studies have shown that green tea has numerous health benefits and that drinking it can improve your health.

The idea of health benefits related to green tea consumption has been discussed for years. Eastern medicine recognized the benefits of green tea thousands of years ago with Asian families passing down these beliefs through many generations. There are few beverages with such impressive health benefits as green tea. And now it seems the rest of the world has discovered this secret.

As discussed previously, the benefits of green tea are many and far-reaching. The potential health benefits of drinking green tea vary from preventing bad breath to protecting the heart to protecting against some forms of cancer. It is also found in weight loss products like Nuphedra.  Many of the benefits attributed to green tea are largely due to its high content of antioxidants. The health benefits of green tea are varied in large part due to its chemical makeup, which has a positive effect on so many different bodily systems. Of course the most publicized benefits revolve around anticancer activities, cardiovascular benefits and even the potential of lowering LDL cholesterol levels.

Besides substantial health claims, green tea has been said to aid in weight loss efforts. It appears that much of the fat loss benefits claimed regarding green tea lies in its thermogenic effects. Whether searching for health benefits, weight loss, or both, some studies have recommended as many as ten cups per day to see benefits. Because green tea contains caffeine, this may pose a problem for some people. Decaffeinated green tea is available but that could cancel some of the thermogenic properties if weight loss is the goal. Health food stores also offer capsules as an alternative to drinking the tea although the health benefits may differ.

As with other types of food and drink, organic teas are becoming recognized as a healthy choice with consumers. Many believe that the organic versions are healthier options while providing environmental benefits. In grocery stores everywhere, the tea aisle has become an absolute joy for organic food shoppers. In addition, it is easy to find a variety of sources on the Internet of quality organic green tea.

Of course, health decisions should not be based on this information alone. It is prudent to check with a medical practitioner on the potential benefits of including green tea in the diet. A medical professional, an herbalist, or local bookstore can provide complete information about the proven and perceived benefits of green tea. As another resource, the Internet is loaded with information and resources on green tea.

Green tea is one of the most popular herbal supplements in the world. Adopting tea drinking as a new habit can be quite challenging but the potential health benefits could prove to be phenomenal.

For thousands of years women (and men) have enjoyed adorning themselves with artful decoration in the form of jewelry. Whether it was made from wood, wool, metal or stone the purpose was the same - to enhance or create a desired appearance.

Regardless of if you are looking for jewelry to compliment a formal outfit or for daily wear you want the jewelry you choose to draw attention to your best features or possibly camouflage less desirable areas. Your choice of jewelry style will subtly affect others perceptions, so what guidelines are there to help you select the most flattering jewelry?

CHOOSING A NECKLACE

Are you tall? Average? Petite? Your choice of necklace can minimize or emphasize your size. If you want to create or emphasize a taller appearance choose longer necklaces and V shapes. A necklace that falls past the bustline but above the waist will elongate while a choker style or shorter U shaped necklace resting on the breast bone will shorten your appearance.

The size of your necklace should also be considered. Fuller figures can compliment their proportions with larger, chunkier pieces that would overwhelm an individual with a smaller frame.

CHOOSING EARRINGS

Face shape is important when selecting earrings. Face shapes are generally grouped as: oval, rectangle, round, heart and square.

Individuals with an oval face shape can wear any style while other people should look for styles that contrast their face shape. Selecting a hoop or button style for a round face would only emphasize the round shape. Square or long shapes will de-emphasize a round face.

The same is true with other face shapes; a long, rectangular face should stay away from long, dangling earrings and choose smaller studs instead. Square faces need the softness of round or hoop earrings and heart shaped faces are complimented with triangular shapes with a wide base that contrasts a narrow chin.

CHOOSING BRACELETS AND RINGS

Are you animated with your hands when talking? Then take as much consideration to the jewelry there as near your face.

Similar guidelines should be followed with bracelets and rings as with necklace choice. Women of average build and height will find a wide bracelet most complimentary. Petite women should look for more delicate pieces and tall or full figured women should layer several small or wide bracelets, avoiding very delicate pieces that can look lost.

When selecting rings make sure that the setting doesn’t cover your knuckle which not only will cause fingers to look short but can interfere with movement and comfort.

Shorter fingers benefit from oval settings while longer fingers look best with wide bands or simple, round settings.

CHOOSING WHAT YOU LOVE

While these guidelines may influence the type of jewelry you select you can be sure that there are many, many choices for all tastes and occasions regardless of your shape or size.

Above all you should select jewelry you love to wear. Don’t let these guidelines keep you from wearing your favorite heart pendant necklace, for example.  Jewelry lasts a lifetime and should always feel good to wear, so ultimately make a decision based on what makes you FEEL wonderful.

Day by day people scour the internet looking for home based businesses to set them financially free. What happens more often than not is that people end in worse shape than when they started. Why you ask? The answer is not so simple.

The key to finding a home based business starts with knowing yourself. That means knowing what you are good at and what you do not do well. You must also be honest with yourself when doing this. We would all love to be perfect in every aspect of life but the truth is we are not and we have to accept this fact. This is important because picking a business in which most of the tasks that need to be done are your strengths will increase your chances of success.For example let’s say you are not much of a talker. You do not talk much to people who you do not know and you keep to yourself usually. You are however extremely organized and love to write. It would most likely be in your best interest to be an article writer or ghost writer. They do not require you to do much talking or go to meetings all the time.

The next thing you need to know is the product or service that you will be offering. The more you believe in your product or service, the more you will sell. Now before I go on there is a handful of people in the world that could sell ice to an Eskimo or sell water to a fish but these people are the exception rather than the rule. For most of us if we do not believe in what we are doing we will not reach the level of success that we desire. People will be able to tell if you believe in your product or not. So if you are looking at a network marketing company try being their customer for a couple of months before you join the business. Once you try the product or try the service then you will know how you feel about it. On top of that you will be more prepared to answer question about it because you have become familiar with it.

Once you picked a business that relies on your strengths and a product or service you can believe in you have to choose what your budget is going to be. Remember that most home businesses take at least months before you really start seeing results off so it is important to keep within a budget until then. If you decide to join a mlm you may have the type of sponsor that says you should buy this or buy that it will really help your business. Remembers that you need to stay within your budget. If the recommended items are out of your budget ask your sponsor to rank the items by importance. This way you can stay in budget and get the items most needed first.

OK, you have your business, your product, and your budget.  Now you are ready to start your business. Just remember that it is a business and should be treated as such. Running a home based business can be more difficult than running a traditional business. Running a business from home offers many distractions; Kids, TV , your bed, etc. You could have followed this guide perfectly but mess this up and you will not succeed. If you do not take it seriously you will just be wasting money and wasting time and since how most people start up home based businesses to have more time and more money you would be defeating the purpose. Make sure the home office is secluded so that when you are working you cannot be distracted.

Now that you have your business running you must market it. Marketing is how you get customers. Now there are many forms of marketing such as newspaper ads, flyers, TV ads, mailing lists, pay-per-click ads, power-linking, and many others. How you market your business is up to you. Each technique has its own strengths and weaknesses. Obviously you will want to keep your budget in mind when picking a method of marketing.

Diversify your marketing as much as possible, and remember… the more people that see and know your business the more business you will do.

Do You Know What Is Lurking in Your Bathroom?

No matter how clean you think you are, the quantity and variety of germs that you would find on your hands at any given time would shock you.

Germs are spread every time we touch an object or a person. Not all of them are dangerous, and some bacteria are even helpful. However, your risk of getting sick is increased every time you use a public restroom, as evidenced by a 1996 study conducted by the American Society for Microbiology. They discovered that while 95% of the people surveyed said they washed their hands every time they used a public facility, only about 67% actually did.

A recent nationwide poll showed that 39% of respondents are worried about the germs lurking in public restrooms.

Is there a reason for concern?

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, infectious disease is the number three killer of Americans. They report that 40 million Americans get sick from hand-carried bacteria every year, and 80,000 people die from those germs.

Germs thrive in moist areas, and live off organic waste, which can be found in nearly every public restroom.

What can you “catch” in a public restroom?

Many illnesses that are transmitted in public restrooms include the common cold and flu bugs, intestinal illnesses, and skin infections. There is also a potential danger of picking up the bacteria that can be fatal, from streptococcus, staphylococcus, salmonella, E. coli and even hepatitis A.

People also worry about picking up STDs (Sexually Transmitted Diseases) from toilet seats. Out of all the concerns about germs in public restrooms, STD’s are actually the least likely to be a problem. This fear may be due more to urban legend than to anything else. Most of the bacteria and viruses that cause sexually transmitted diseases cannot live long enough outside the body for transfer to occur.

There is a far greater risk of coming into contact with the salmonella and shigella bacteria, which can be transferred by contact with feces. The infected person can transfer the bacteria onto any surface he touches – such as toilet handles, sink faucets and door handles.

What should you look out for?

Over-crowded restrooms, wet floors or puddles, lack of available supplies (toilet paper, soap and paper towels) and foul-smelling odors are all signs of improper maintenance and should be a cause for concern.

Often the odor in public restrooms comes from dried urine in tile grout. Once dry, regular cleaners cannot remove the uric acid salts, and bacteria feed off them. (The odor comes from the bacteria’s digestive process.)

Germs – particularly fecal bacteria, can be shot into the air every time a toilet flushes. This bacterium settles on surfaces throughout the bathroom and is often enough to spread disease.

How can you protect yourself?

First of all, your mother was right. Wash your hands frequently throughout the day, using proven methods of hand washing (see below).

Do not touch your eyes, nose, face or mouth until you’ve washed your hands.

Carry waterless antibiotic hand washing gel with you.

If you’re going to be out and using public facilities, carry your own toilet paper with you.

Try not to use toilet paper that is sitting on the top of the holder, on the back of a toilet or on a shelf.

Never use toilet paper that is wet or damp, or looks as if it might have been wet at one time.

Because the inside surfaces of sinks harbor a large concentration of germs, don’t touch them.

Do not use your hands when you flush the toilet, turn on or off a tap or open the restroom door when leaving.

What about your bathroom at home?  You look at your shiny, Price Pfister faucet and think clean, but is it really?

If your home is like millions of others all across America, germs and bacteria are thriving everywhere in your bathroom, blissfully soaking up the nutrients they need on moist surfaces – everything from countertops to cups to toothbrushes to towels.

Bacteria can grow and divide every 20 minutes. A single bacteria cell can become more than 8 million cells in less than 24 hours!

These virus-causing microorganisms can be behind as many as ten colds per year for the average school-aged child. In fact, some cold and flu viruses can linger on surfaces like non-disposable rinsing cups and the inside of sink basins for up to 72 hours – giving them plenty of time to be shared among family members.

Examples of microorganisms that live in our bathrooms are:

- Bacteria: Salmonella causes food poisoning.

- Viruses: Rhinoviruses can cause colds. Herpes Simplex causes cold sores. Influenza brings the flu.

- Fungi: Trichophyton can cause Athlete’s Foot.

- Parasites: Giardia can cause diarrhea.

So how do you fight back?

Here are some simple tips:

Use disinfectants to wipe off all hard surfaces (except for mirrors).

You can use EITHER bleach or vinegar as a safe and effective disinfectant, but do not mix them together.

Use disposable cups.

Store toothbrushes in an upright position.

Pour vinegar down your drains once a week. (Drains are usually the prime breeding ground for germs in a bathroom)

Close the toilet lid before flushing.

Use a squeegee to wipe off shower and tub walls after use to prevent mildew.

Proven hand washing techniques:

1. Wet your hands and work up a good lather, using warm water. Spend at least 20 seconds, making sure that you clean your palms, between your fingers, the back of your hands, your wrists and under your nails. (Sing a chorus of “Row, row, row your boat” to make sure you’ve spent enough time.)

2. Rinse your hands thoroughly, again using warm water.

3. When drying your hands, use a paper towel when possible; because most people do not use a hand dryer long enough to completely dry their hands. Use the air dryer only if there is no alternative, and try not to touch the surface.

4. After drying your hands, use a paper towel to turn off the faucet and open the door, so that you don’t re-contaminate yourself.

Have you been in an auto accident lately that was not your fault or perhaps you were injured at work.  If this is the case, you should consider hiring a lawyer.  However, you should not hire just any lawyer.  You need to hire someone who specializes in personal injury cases.  A personal injury attorney has experience in these cases and will be the best at representing your case.

If you live in Tennessee, check out a Morristown personal injury lawyer.  They are a family firm and have been serving their community for over 46 years.