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New research suggests that taking antioxidants may prevent bone loss in menopausal women, one of the primary health concerns associated with this condition.

Every year, 500,000 American women suffer at least one fracture of the vertebrae, and 300,000 sustain hip fractures. Fractures related to osteoporosis, or the thinning and weakening of bones, amounts to $10 billion every year in national healthcare costs, and approximately $977 million in Texas alone. In fact, 1.9 million Texans suffer from osteoporosis or bone loss at any given moment -- and they're not all menopausal women. That means in every city and small town -- from Dallas, to Houston, to Austin, to the Eastern plains -- someone is significantly affected by weakening bones. The repercussions this has for not only the personal health of these individuals and their families, but also on the health insurance and healthcare industries, are huge.

The past ten years of study have indicated that prevention early on in life is the best medicine. Menopausal women are, indeed, the most affected, and ladies in their premenopausal years do themselves a favor when they watch their calcium and vitamin D intake, as well as their levels of physical exercise and sunlight exposure -- all factors believed to affect the formation of bone. Menopausal osteoporosis, then, is the result of bone levels achieved before menopause, and the rate at which bone tissue deteriorates afterwards. The stronger and denser the skeleton becomes in youth, the more material the body has to work with later on in life.

While levels of calcium, vitamin D, exercise, and sunlight exposure are key factors affecting skeletal health, pregnancy, nursing, immobility, and low estrogen levels may also weaken bones. Contrary to appearance, bones are not inanimate structures, but are living tissues, constantly undergoing a cycle of breakdown and regeneration. This process must be balanced; if breakdown of cells occurs at a faster rate than the body can rebuild and replace them, then thinning of the tissues occurs. Therefore, processes to ensure healthy regeneration are essential.

All that hard work shoring up on bone tissue shows its greatest benefit during menopause, when estrogen levels plummet. Estrogen, or oestrogen, appears to inhibit the activity of osteoclasts, cells that reabsorb bone tissue during the process of osteoclasis. Normally, this reabsorption is an essential part of the body's inner workings. Bones cannot continually generate unchecked, after all, or we would soon literally be swallowed by our own skeletons. But once estrogen levels decrease, and osteoclast activity increases, osteoblasts cells that develop bone simply cannot keep pace.

One advantage of estrogen therapies has been to keep the activity of the osteoclasts at bay. Such therapies are controversial, though. While maintaining levels of estrogen may reduce some of the uncomfortable symptoms of menopause and decrease chances of heart disease and osteoporosis, they have also been linked with certain cancers. So what if bone loss could be minimized, or better yet halted, by a different method?

The Sir Joseph Hotung Centre for Musculoskeletal Disorders, at St. George's University of London, believes it may have a way. In other tissues, estrogen "opposes the activity of reactive oxygen species," or ROS, which, in turn stimulate NfKB -- a major intracellular signal that activates osteoclasts. In experimental mice with ovariectomies, antioxidant defenses in bone marrow decreased, while administering estrogen to them increased these defenses. "What," you say. "Come again?"

The theory states that estrogen may inhibit the activity of the osteoclasts by "opposing" the activity of ROS, which stimulate NfKB, which then activates osteoclasts. By increasing antioxidant defenses in bone marrow (done through estrogen or the administration of certain antioxidants), the degeneration process of bone may be halted or slowed. In other words, antioxidants may, in the end, have the same effect as estrogen therapy. Giving ascorbate or N-acetylcysteine (types of antioxidants) to ovariectomised mice, actually prevented bone loss, a significant finding considering that most treatments can only slow bone loss, at best.

The implication is that bone loss may be treated with antioxidants, versus other synthetic therapies. While further experimentation is needed, it's a phenomenal breakthrough in Western medicine. Indeed, boneset -- a plant believed to be high in antioxidants -- has been used by Native American peoples to treat and speed the healing of broken bones. The growing friendship between natural medicine and Western science just may produce treatment options in the coming years we never would have thought possible.

Optimizing bone health in your younger years can have a tremendous affect on you later in life. How you take care of yourself will certainly affect you as you age, and eventually your wallet, as well. If youre a young individual who tries to keep informed and maintain a healthy condition and lifestyle, you should take a look at the revolutionary, comprehensive and highly-affordable individual health insurance solutions created by Precedent specifically for you. Visit our website, www.precedent.com, for more information. We offer a unique and innovative suite of individual health insurance solutions, including highly-competitive HSA-qualified plans, and an unparalleled "real time" application and acceptance process.

Precedent puts a new spin on health insurance. Learn more at http://www.precedent.com

Sooner or later every student, whether home schooled or not, will ask the same question when they are ready to give up on a concept that theyve been struggling with; Why do have to know this? Ill never use it in the real world. It can be especially difficult to find a good answer to this question. Deep down you know that in real life a person usually will not have to sit down and answer a written math problem, yet the concepts that they are learning will be used daily in their adult life. A good solution to this problem is to take your child on field trips that will help show them how they will be using these concepts. The following are five tips as to how you can help your child realize that the concepts they are learning will be useful in every day life as they get older.

Tip #1: A field trip to the grocery store can be very useful as a real life lesson. There is a lot of math involved when going to the grocery store. You have to figure out portion sizes that youll be using when serving your family. Youll have to decide weights that youll be ordering from a butcher. Youll have to know how to figure in tax when you decide if youre staying within your budget for the groceries.

Tip #2: If you have recently purchased any item that broke quickly or didnt work the way it was supposed to, this is a prime opportunity for you to teach your child the fine art of writing a business letter expressing your unhappiness and taking him/her to the post office. While at the post office you can ask the postmaster to give a quick tour so that he/she can see how the post office works. This will help them understand how the entire process of sending and receiving mail works including the time it will take for a letter to reach its destination, be read, and some answer given.

Tip #3: Of course a museum is a wealth of information. There are several types of museums all of which are educational gems. A historical museum will help support lessons in history that have been taught.

Tip #4: A farm is another good place to take a child. This will teach them how agriculture works. Even if agriculture is nowhere in their personal future, it is its an integral part of society. This will show them that and show them how the things that they eat and drink can come from nature. This will also show them how foods that have less chemicals are better for them.

Tip#5: Trips to parks and other areas of physical exertion are important too. Though these do have little to do with the actual subject matter being taught, it has been shown that physical exertion helps to keep the mind focused and that is equally important as trips that will support the material.

There are all kinds of places that you can take your homeschooled child to show them that the lessons they learn will have an impact on them in real life. Sometimes constant books studies can become overwhelming. Taking a break from them to take a trip that will show them the importance of their lessons will bring them back to their lessons in a focused way. They will refocus and both of you will be energized so that the studies can continue for both of you.

There is much more to learn about home school curriculum at http://homeschool.get-the-info.net

Running a successful business is definitely a hard thing to do in today's world. One of the most important parts of succeeding in today's business world is keeping track of your employees, your product, and your equipment.

At one time, keeping track of everything meant making frequent phone calls, relying on others to give you accurate information, and even some late nights dealing with the changing time zones to follow up on deliveries around the world.

Luckily, the advent of technology and something called a GPS tracking device has made the job of keeping track of things a little bit easier. Here are a few reasons why investing in a GPS tracking device might be a great idea.

Reason # 1: Keep Track of Your Company Vehicles

With the prices of gasoline on today's market, going on the most efficient delivery route is essential. Prior to the introduction of a GPS tracking device, whether or not your employees strayed on those routes was completely unknown.

Now, by installing a GPS tracking device, you'll be able to see in an instant where your delivery is, and approximately how long it will take him to get to the destination

Reason # 2: The Safety of Your Employees

Traveling is part of the business world; everyone knows that. In addition, depending on where your employee is going, and what they are carrying, the potential danger might increase accordingly. The ability to keep track of the location of your employee in real time means that you can be there to offer help if needed quickly.

No one likes to think that an accident could happen to one of their employees, but if it does happen, having a GPS tracking device on the vehicle can truly be a life saving device.

Reason # 3: Recovery of Stolen Merchandise

Like it or not, there probably will be a time when a company vehicle is stolen. Most police will tell you that without a GPS tracking device, the likelihood of finding the vehicle before it has been stripped for parts is pretty unlikely.

A GPS tracking device is a great help to police and other criminal authorities in finding and obtaining the stolen vehicle before too much damage has been done.

These are but a few of the reasons why investing in a GPS tracking device for your next company vehicle might be a good idea. The best course of action would be to sit down and consider the different options available to your company, and decide which device is best for you.

If you are considering purchasing a GPS system, and you would like to read about some of the latest GPS devices on the market then you need to visit: http://www.GpsTrackingWorld.com

If you type in the words home business in any major search engine youll quickly reach the following conclusion: There are no shortages of work at home opportunities available in todays marketplace. That being the case, deciding among them obviously requires an objective comparison of one company to the next. I wont list all the possible criteria for measuring a business or income opportunity here, but I will list one of the major ones--the compensation plan.

Now when you start comparing the comp plans of all the different companies you soon reach another conclusion--not all work at home opportunities are created equal. Perhaps the single greatest difference among them is whether or not they offer whats undoubtedly the most lucrative pay out plan ever devised. Im referring, of course, to residual income.

One of the more obvious reasons that residual income is superior to all other plans is that it allows one to work smarter rather than harder. Meaning, no matter what business youre involved in, the only way to earn a profit is to first make an investment in the form of personal effort, time and capital. Theres simply no way around that fact. So since youre going to make the investment anyway, why not work a business that will continually pay you month after month for that investment instead of one that will only pay you once?

This all seems simple enough, right? However, despite its simplicity and unmatched earning potential, its not uncommon for people to balk at how time consuming or difficult it can be to earn a significant residual income, especially in network marketing.

Now Im not hear to say that generating large residual checks is quick and easy, or that it requires little or no effort. Quite frankly, such a claim would be absurd, but its equally absurd to object to the fact that earning a residual income is not this way. After all, one of the most basic laws of business is the proportionate relationship between risk and reward i.e. the greater the potential for reward, the greater the risk involved.

All this to say that, yes, in order to achieve the great benefit of receiving a sizeable residual check each and every month--regardless of whether or not you decided to work during those 30 days--requires that you first invest the necessary time and money into building a large enough client base to generate it. This may seem like a daunting task now, but once done, the rewards will last a lifetime.

In summary, no other form of compensation in the home based business world offers the long term security, freedom and independence as residual income. So if you have the opportunity to earn residual income in your home based business, then I encourage you to commit yourself to doing whatever it takes, for as long as it takes, to grow your monthly residual checks until they at least cover all of your monthly expenses. Trust me, theres no greater feeling than the one you get from knowing youre working because you want to, and not because you have to.

Visit www.easyMLMriches.com to learn more about starting an internet-based home business.

Involved in MLM? Learn how to generate more leads than you can contact, while also creating instant income regardless if anyone joins your business. Visit www.autoMLMrecruiting.com

Food addiction is a disorder characterized by preoccupation with food, the availability of food and the anticipation of pleasure from the ingestion of food. Food addiction involves the repetitive consumption of food against the individuals better judgment resulting in loss of control and preoccupation or the restriction of food and preoccupation with body weight and image.

Anorexia Nervosa is characterized by intense fear of gaining weight.
Behavior includes excessive weighing, excessive measuring of body parts, and persistently using a mirror to check body size. Self-esteem is dependent upon body shape and weight. Weight loss is viewed as an impressive achievement and an example of extraordinary self discipline.

Physical implications may include disruption of the menstrual cycle, signs of starvation, thinning of hair or hair loss, bloated feeling, yellowish palms/soles of feet, dry, pasty skin.

Bulimia Nervosa is described as binge eating and compensatory behavior to prevent weight gain. Individuals become ashamed of their eating behavior and attempt to conceal symptoms through rapid consumption of food. They will eat until painfully full and stop if intruded upon. 80-90% of bulimics will induce vomiting. Other behaviors include, misuse of laxatives, fasting and excessive exercise.

Physical implications include, loss of dental enamel, increase of cavities, swollen saliva glands, calluses, scars on hands, irregular menstrual cycle, dependency on laxatives for bowel movements, fluid and electrolyte disturbance.

compulsive Overeaters use food inappropriately and eventually become addicted to it and lose control over the amount of food they eat. Overeaters demonstrate uncontrollable binge eating without extreme weight control and see that behavior as normal. Overeaters present with moderate to severe obesity, with an average binge eater being 60% overweight. Bingeing episodes consist of carbohydrates and junk food with most binges done in scheduled secrecy.

Every newborn child is a born scientist continually making discoveries. Nursing mothers also discover more about themselves as they care for their wonderful little bundle of trouble and joy. Your power to suck and swallow made you at one with mother. Her heartbeat was music to you. Psycho-sexual pleasure flowed, as a mother??s reward for guiding you from hunger pain, and dependence, to ??oneness?? and a feeling of contentment and satisfaction and sleep.

Very soon you discover play with mother that was all clean and wonderful until you discovered potato, gravy, peas and spoons that were a mystery until the first one found a hungry mouth. A new connection was made Food-Addiction. New connections were being made in your brain as it developed new cells at the rate of 250,000 per minute. Your adult brain would be four times larger.

Food and mother is caring guidance balanced your pain and pleasure. You play and sleep in peace and contentment. With growing maturity you demanded more of your own space. Parents and family discovered that a crying child could not cry holler or swaller food at the same time. Food was pushed onto you as a pacifier. Someone wanted to control you and your behavior.

Your emotions were quickly connected with food and control issues and your willingness to eat, or your defiance not to eat. As a born scientist, wanting to enquire about taste and feeling and power, you began to do as adults and others were doing. You discovered substances such as caffeine, beverage alcohol, all symptoms of food addiction.

Your emotional desire for independence, new relationships, significance and meaning for your life was often attached to food. Mother??s care was now a restricting power. Food and emotions and you may be an unmanageable mix.

How can you balance pain and pleasure, dis-satisfaction and contentment, frustration and fulfillment, emptiness and serenity? Only by caring for myself and over coming food addiction?

http://www.whatorwho.com/what/20070607/3916.htm

When people are asked about what they think about aluminum patio furniture, their answers can sometimes be less than flattering. Some think that it is too flimsy. Others think that it is easily breakable while some just say that it is think it is unattractive and how they would never buy it for their outdoor space. However, these people are all sadly mistaken because in the past, that might have been the case, but now outdoor furniture made from aluminum is extremely heavy-duty and appealing to the eye, which really makes it an ideal way to furnish any outdoor area.

What makes aluminum patio furniture so strong and durable is that the aluminum itself is actually a very sturdy material that is extremely resistant to rusting. The furniture that is made out of it really holds up well under different weather conditions, which means you can leave yours out all year long, along with the everyday wear and tear of being used during the summer months in your outdoor space. So, because of this sturdiness, it will last for quite a long time in your outdoor space. Along with being very durable, another great feature of furniture made from aluminum is that it is extremely light weight, which means that you could easily move yours around if you feel like rearranging your outdoor space. With other types of materials, like wood, sometimes you do not have that option because it is extremely heavy and once it is on your deck or patio, it is there to stay because it takes too much time and effort to even think about moving it around.

The most common type of aluminum patio furniture is cast aluminum furniture, which is made utilizing the practice of pouring hot, melted aluminum into molds. Through this practice, many kinds of furniture can be made with different styles, shapes, and designs. For the everyday consumer, that means that there is a wide variety of options to choose from, allowing you to create any kind of look and feel that you want when furnishing your outdoor space. For a clean, sophisticated look, you can turn to an outdoor furniture line that has a contemporary design, featuring bold, sleek lines.

With this kind of line, not only can you get chairs that have this look, but tables, chaise lounges, deep seated sofas, even bar tables and bar stools to match. So, your entire space will have the same motif, which is sure fire way to impress your guests, family, and friends with your sense of style and taste. The contemporary furniture lines are not the only ones that are available and others can have a very antique feel with intricate detailing and designs. And, these are just two of the style available, to see all kinds of this patio furniture option, head to your local store. Or, better yet do not even leave the comfort of your home and do some online shopping. You will not only find the best quality, but you will also end up finding the best prices.

So, the next time that someone asks you about aluminum patio furniture, instead of saying why you would not buy it, now you can say why you would because all the features and benefits that it has. Not only is it heavy-duty and long lasting, but it is very beautiful with its many designs and styles, which makes it at excellent choice for any outdoor area.

Jennifer Akre, owner of many home decorating sites focusing on outdoor patio furniture, gives the consumer a chance to find elegant teak patio furniture and teak outdoor furniture. Learn how to decorate you home with class. Click today - Shop: patio furniture

There is no one game or one version of poker. There are many variations of poker that are played. Each variation of poker is usually played with a standard deck of fifty two cards. A standard set of cards consists of thirteen different ranks. The ranks are: Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. These cards come in four suits that: Diamonds, Spades, Clubs, Hearts.

Some poker games will have a wild or joker card. These games are often times found in private residencies and not in casinos. Every type of poker game requires players to make a bet into the pot during the initial start of the game and then in-between rounds of receiving and replacing cards. The number of rounds that the players bet will be determined by the version of poker that you are playing. During the game players will be able to ante. This means that the players will place bets into the community pot. At the end of a betting round all of the players will have had to contribute to the pot an equal amount.

At the end of the betting round the playing may choose to perform one of the following actions. To check which means that if a bet is not on the table already then the player bets zero and passes the action on. The player may decide to call which means that if there is a bet on the table then the player can match that bet. A raise is when there is already a bet on the table and the player decides to increase the amount of the bet. The last action is a fold. A fold is when the player chooses not to bet and drops out of the game. This action is recommended for someone who has a weak hand.

Written by Chuck Masterson. Find the latest information on Poker Basics as well as Online Poker

If you're thinking about a family vacation to Alaska, and you're wondering if your kids would enjoy a cruise to "The Last Frontier," wonder no more. Young family members from tykes and toddlers through teens have a blast on big ships and small as their vessels sail through the protected waters of Alaska's Inside Passage. Aboard ship or ashore, there are lots of kid-friendly, parent-friendly, and grandparent- friendly places to see and fun things to do.

It's true, only a short decade or two ago families with kids aboard Alaska cruiseships were as scarce as Alaskan Dall sheep lambs in a grizzly bear's lair. But the times have changed -- big time. Today you will find, in addition to the traditional hefty contingent of seniors and near-seniors aboard each ship, a growing number of families. Sometimes these groups are multi-generational, with gramps and grandmas, moms and dads, and kids that range from gangly teens to babes literally in arms.

The reason? Word is out that Alaska's attractions are sure-fire hits for travelers of any age: attractions like humongous whales breaching full length out of the water, grizzly bears chasing salmon along forest creeks and rivers, icebergs (sometimes as big as a tour bus) crashing, splashing, and thundering off the faces of miles-long glaciers.

Too, there are opportunities to mush in a dog sled behind a team of charging huskies - after helicoptering to a lofty mountain-top glacier no less! Kids and parents can ride bikes through towering forests or down mountain paths and trails. They can also kayak among whales and sea lions. Whole families can fish for lunker king salmon. Or try their luck at gold-panning in creeks and streams.

Newest craze for the young and the young-at-heart is riding a zip-line through the upper canopies of towering spruce and hemlock forests in Ketchikan and Juneau -- hanging safe and secure in a harness as they "zip" along a steel cable some 130 feet or more above the forest floor.

Or, less daunting, while visiting museums up and down the coast families can absorb the totemic culture and the history of Alaska's Native peoples. They can learn about the period when Alaska was "Russian America." And they can view mementos of the tumultuous gold stampede to the Klondike during the late 1800s,

No question about it, Alaska has something exciting to offer every family member, regardless of age.

But what about life aboard the cruiseships? Will young people find the experience dullsville?

Hardly. The mid- to mega-sized ships in particular are literally resorts afloat with swimming pools, spas, snack shops, ice cream parlors, outdoor game courts, video arcades, and movie theaters. Special staff members aboard these vessels -- with one exception -- include trained youth counselors. These crew members arrange age-appropriate social activities, organize games and sports events, supervise arts and crafts, take youngsters on shipwide treasure hunts, and generally see to it that cruisers from tykes through teens enjoy their cruise as much as their parents and grandparents.

Although smallship cruiselines in Alaska do not staff their vessels with special counselors for young cruisers, the ships are no less family-welcoming. These vessels can enter small bays and inlets where guests can view wildlife on close-by forest shores, explore waterways by kayak or in spiffy powered Zodiacs, hike remote island beaches, perhaps even stop for a natural hot springs dip in forested surroundings.

One smallship cruiseline even schedules three Alaska cruises each year especially geared for family travel.

Regardless of vessel size, and with only a couple of exceptions, cruiselines in the Alaska trade actively court family cruisers. Few such travelers, young or old, find the experience anything other than "cool." And they're not referring to the weather.

Following is a cruiseline by cruiseline summary of family programs and kids' things-to-do on an Alaska cruise. The information was supplied by the cruiselines or taken from company websites.

Large and Mega Size Cruiseships

CARNIVAL CRUISE LINE's 2006 Alaska voyages aboard the 2,124-passenger Carnival Spirit offer youngsters age 2 through 17 a variety of continuous supervised activities as part of the line's "Camp Carnival" program.

Included in the line's Alaska sailings are a number of "just for Alaska" projects where kids can make their own dream catchers and totem poles and learn about the region's fascinating Native Alaskan cultures.

The Carnival Spirit offers other kid- and family-friendly amenities as well, including a spacious indoor play room featuring an arts and crafts center, a 16- monitor video wall, climbing mazes, an outdoor play area, and a computer lab.

When it comes to dining, says Carnival, "Youngsters get the full 'Fun Ship' treatment with expanded children's menus offering a variety of kids' favorites as well as a daily junior special." The menus are included on the back of a coloring and activity book featuring word finds, mazes, tic-tac-toe, crossword puzzles, connect- the-dots, and other games.

Young cruiser age groups include 2- through 5-year-olds, 6 through 8, 9 through 11, and for teens 15 through 17 a program called "Club 02." (http:// www.carnival.com)

CELEBRITY CRUISES' "Family Cruising Program" offers young peoples' activities in four age groups:

On any given day Ship Mates (for 3- through 6-year-olds) may enjoy a clown party, treasure hunt, T-shirt painting, Legos, talent time, finger painting, dancing games, summer stock theater, cartoon time, computers, play stations, musical games, movies, ship tours, and ice cream sundae making.

Many of these same activities are on the agenda for older children as well, but are undertaken on an older-age level.

Celebrity Cadets (for youngsters 7-9) might also include pool olympics, scavenger hunts, charades, a fitness program, board games, relays, and team trivia. Ensigns (for pre-teens 10-12) additionally enjoy karaoke, relay races, ship tours, and pizza parties.

Admiral T's takes in two classes of teenagers, 13-15 and 16-17. Members can frequent the Teen Club, engage in basketball tournaments, enjoy pool parties, and help put on talent shows.

Celebrity vessels also offer a "Parents Night Out" program. On the two formal nights of a seven-night voyage, Celebrity treats parents to free babysitting when counselors take the children to a pizza party for dinner. (http://www.celebrity.com)

HOLLAND AMERICA LINE's "Club HAL" provides a variety of kid-friendly facilities and age-appropriate activities. Programs for children ages 3-12 may be found aboard 2006 Alaska-bound ships Ryndam, Statendam, Zaandam, Zuiderdam, Oosterdam, and Westerdam and for ages 5-12 aboard Volendam and Veendam. All eight ships have a teen program for ages 13-17. (http://www.hollandamerica.com)

Club HAL activities are designed to be age appropriate. For example, daily activities planned for children ages 3 to 7 may include arts and crafts, face- painting, camp-out night, candy bar Bingo, outdoor fun, and a pajama party.

"Tweens," the in-between travelers 8 through 12, may learn golf putting, attend dance parties and theme nights, compete in on-deck sports events and scavenger hunts, play arcade games, tie-dye t-shirts, or simply play ping-pong with a friend.

Teens 13-17 enjoy The Loft designed to resemble a New York artist's loft; there's also The Oasis, a private deck where teens can soak up the rays then cool off in a one-of-a-kind waterfall. The Loft and Oasis are currently available on 2006 Alaska- bound vessels Ryndam, Statendam, Veendam, Volendam, and Zaandam. Teens will especially enjoy the teen disco, dance lessons, arcade games, teen sports tournaments, karaoke, trivia contests, bingo, play stations, movies and hot tub parties.

On most itineraries, Holland America provides at least one full-time Youth Program Director and one or more youth staff members. The ratio of Club HAL staff to children on board is 1:30.

Additionally there's a wide variety of kid-pleasing food, including special sandwiches, tacos, burgers, hot dogs and pizza. For the very young baby food, high chairs and booster seats may be requested in advance of boarding. Baby-sitting services are available for a small surcharge and special birthday parties can also be arranged.

NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE notes on its web pages that the line's Kid's Crew and Teen's Crew programs are filled with age-appropriate activities for youngsters 2 through 17. For Kid's Crew members aged 2-12, NCL offers everything from arts and crafts to pajama parties. Teens Crew, for cruisers 13-17 provides options like pool parties, a teen disco, a video arcade, and more.

But don't, says NCL, think of these programs as "babysitting." There's very little "sitting" involved, notes the cruiseline. The programs are active, energetic, educational and, most importantly, fun. (http://www.ncl.com)

PRINCESS CRUISES' junior cruisers (ages 3 to 17) can enjoy a boatload of exciting onboard activities. All of the line's Alaska-bound ships have special kids and youth centers staffed by counselors who put on a program of age-specific activities each day. Group babysitting is available in the late evenings.

Among a number of programs for youngsters is one specific to Alaska. Produced with the National Park Service, Princess' sub-teen "Junior Ranger" program is designed to bring Glacier Bay and the Alaska wilderness to life for thousands of children each summer. The program features interactive games, activity books, and presentation by rangers. The corresponding "Teen Explorer" program features similar learning activities geared for older youngsters.

In a cruise industry exclusive, the Los Angeles-based California Science Center provides entertaining interactive activities. Princess youth staff have undergone extensive training at the center, designed to enthrall young passengers with award- winning science projects. Whale watching, building and racing sailboats, marine biology studies and squid dissection are a few of the activities available.

The line's website notes that preteens are divided into two groups: Princess Pelicans ages 3-7 and Princess Pirateers, 8-12. Both groups are entertained with age-rated arts and crafts, discos, movies and cartoons, exclusive kids-only dining, hunts, karaoke and lip-sync shows, afternoon ice cream parties, pizza parties, backstage and galley tours, pajama parties, and T-shirt coloring.

Says Princess' website: "Our astounding teen centers are packed with Nintendo, movies, karaoke, giant screen TVs, card and board games, ping-pong and juke boxes." The site also notes that the Alaska-bound Sun, Dawn, Coral, Island, and Diamond Princess ships also offer a toddler's play area. (http://www.princess.com)

ROYAL CARIBBEAN INTERNATIONAL provides a young peoples' program called "Adventure Ocean" serving and entertaining travelers 3 to 17 in five different categories.

Youngest group (ages 3 through 5) are called Aquanauts and do finger painting, building blocks, play dough, music activities, dot dancing, and "shape Bingo." Explorers (6-8) have a Pirate Night, go on a backstage tour, enjoy nutty nicknames, and engage in autograph hunts. Nine to 11-year-old Voyagers do karaoke singing, have a Ga-Ga Ball, enjoy H20 Thunder Races, and do an art walk.

Navigators (12-14) play in sports tournaments, have pool parties, enjoy a college night, engage in video games, and attend disco dancing sessions as well as a formal night. Older teens,15-17 and called Guests, also enjoy dancing, pool parties, DJ training, Battle of the Sexes, plus a formal night and a Survivor Series.

RCI's Edu-tainment programming offers:

Adventure Science, a blend of hands-on experiments and wacky entertainment (example: Staggering Through the Stars, and a Wacky Water Workshop);

Adventure Art, the opportunity to exercise creativity with crafts;

Sail Into Story Time and Adventure Family. The latter is a free, onboard program that allows children 3-11 and their parents to spend quality time together doing projects that range from shipbuilding regattas to talent shows and scavenger hunts. (http://www.royalcaribbean.com)

Mid-Size Vessels

RADISSON SEVEN SEAS CRUISES' youth program, "Club Mariner," provides adults who want to share Alaska's wonders with their children or grandchildren a complimentary children's program. "The program," says the company, "offers the opportunity for every member of the family to experience Alaska in a meaningful, enriching way."

The cruiseline's youth program is designed for three age groups: 5-9, 10-13 and 14-17. Throughout each voyage, trained counselors offer young cruisers the opportunity to participate in a variety of interactive adventures focusing on Alaska. Children will exercise their creativity with crafts while gaining knowledge about Alaska's diverse wildlife, its unique geography, its indigenous crafts, and its rich artistic heritage.

Kids will learn about whales, salmon, glaciers and totem poles. They might draw and write about their adventures in their special Club Mariner scrapbook, bake chocolate "moose" cookies, go whale watching out on deck or learn all about eagles, dolphins, bears and sea lions.

Notes RSSC: "Club Mariner not only makes it easier for families to travel together, it helps kids broaden their cultural and educational horizons. And they'll return home knowing more about Alaska than all the other 49 states combined!" (http:// www.rssc.com)

SILVERSEA CRUISES advises that, due to the sophisticated nature of its cruises and programs, the company does not encourage travel with young children. (http:// www.silverseacruises.com)

Smaller Ships

AMERICAN SAFARI CRUISES' Kids in Nature (KIN) cruises, include a luxury yacht as the schoolhouse, an Expedition Leader/Naturalist as the teacher, and the wildlife- rich waters of Alaska's Inside Passage as the laboratory. KIN convenes in Alaska aboard the upscale 22-passenger yacht Safari Quest with the first of two seven- night cruises from Sitka June 17. The voyage takes in various wilderness sites and communities throughout Southeast Alaska. and ends in Juneau June 17. Another seven-night Safari Quest sailing commences July 29 while an eight-night voyage from Prince Rupert, B.C. to Juneau embarks June 26 aboard the equally luxurious 12-guest Safari Escape.

Activities abound for all ages: kayaking, hiking on a remote island followed by a full-scale picnic, hopping shore-to-shore by Zodiac, viewing whales directly off the bow or dolphins right below, collecting shells to study, and more. Kids and adults alike are accompanied on a variety of personal-choice excursions while their yacht is at anchor.

At the end of a cruise each child receives a Kids in Nature backpack filled with mementos of their various explorations: a certificate of achievement signed by the Captain and Expedition Leader, a tee shirt and cap, a pair of binoculars, disposable camera and a typed list of all of the flora and fauna observed during the cruise. The program offers kid-size pricing -- two kids under 12 for one adult fare.

Aboard other sailings during the season American Safaris Cruises' three yachts offer very upscale amenities and cuisine best appreciated by sophisticated adults. For these cruises the line normally discourages guests from bringing young children and does not offer specifically child-oriented services. (http:// www.americansafaricruises.com)

AMERICAN WEST STEAMBOAT COMPANY advises, "We tend to cater to mature adults and therefore offer no special programs to kids and teens." (http:// www.americanweststeamboat.com)

THE BOAT COMPANY offers special rates for young cruisers traveling with parents: 50 percent off the usual fare if occupying a stateroom with a parent, 20 percent off if occupying a separate cabin.

The company's two vessels do not have separate personnel specifically assigned to youngsters on board, but the line does try to accommodate the desires of each passenger including kayaking, fishing, beach hikes, and other kid-friendly activities. (http://www.theboatcompany.com)

CLIPPER CRUISELINE has no specific children's programs or staff for younger travelers, but the nature of the company's routes and cruising areas (including whale sightings, bears other wildlife, and shore excursions) make it appropriate for family groups. Cabins can accommodate as many as three guests; for larger groups two cabins would be necessary. (http:// www.clippercruise.com)

CRUISE WEST offers a children's travel special aboard the Sheltered Seas Daylight Yacht Tours. Travelers 12 and under sharing a cabin with an adult save 50 percent on Family Adventure cruise fares. Youths 13 through 21 save 25 percent.

While many of the company's other cruises are of considerable interest for families with children, activities aboard ship are not specifically geared for young travelers. Cruise West is the largest of the smallship cruiselines serving Alaska and offers cruising options of family interest from Southeast Alaska with its totems, glaciers, national park lands and goldrush historical points of interest to Southcentral's Prince William Sound and beyond to Arctic waters and even Russia. (http://www.cruisewest.com)

DISCOVERY VOYAGES advises that cruises aboard the 12-passenger vessel Discovery are "definitely family friendly" and, in fact, the company offers a 25 percent discount for children 12 and under.

Notes a company spokeswoman: "Due to the intimate size of our vessel we do not have specific youth directors but our staff (including Captain Dean Rand's daughters Hannah and Heather, who grew up on board the Discovery) is diverse in working with both adults and children as well as being naturalists and kayaking guides." The company often works with agencies and outfitters who specialize in family trips. (http://www.discoveryvoyages.com)

LINDBLAD EXPEDITIONS welcomes voyagers young and old. And come September, Archie Comics illustrator Stan Goldberg will join a shipload of other Lindblad Expeditions travelers through the Inside Passage from Southeast Alaska to British Columbia. His mission: to create the second in his "Little Lin" cartoon book series of educational adventures for young people. (In his first book, Fun and Games With Little Lin, released in 2005, child explorer Little Lin discovers Peru's Galapagos Islands.)

In his second work Goldberg's young adventurer will sail to Alaska and will encounter glaciers, humpback whales, bald eagles, and all manner of other creatures and their habitats along Alaska's and British Columbia's Inside Passage. In future years, the Alaska-inspired Little Lin books will be distributed to all families traveling aboard Lindblad Inside Passage cruises. (http://www.expeditions.com)

MAPLE LEAF ADVENTURES offers families the opportunity to view Alaska's glaciers, whales, islands, bear hot spots, beaches, hot springs and towns aboard the classic tall-ship sailing vessel Maple Leaf, a beautifully restored 92-foot sailing schooner built in 1904.

The ship takes 9 or 10 guests. The vessel's on-board naturalist, chef and experienced crew can customize the trip's itinerary, menu and activities to suit family interests. Typical highlights include unparalleled proximity to ice bergs, glaciers and wildlife, sailing a tall ship, and great camaraderie between guests and crew.

Special activities for kids include sail training, fishing (with purchase of a fishing license), hikes, and a customizable itinerary.

Accommodations are comfortable but not luxurious. Because berths are limited to nine or ten passengers, it is possible for one or more families (two families of five, for instance) to jointly reserve all the berths for one of the company's 11-night Alaska voyages. Parents with teen-age children may reserve berths that are not otherwise reserved with the concurrence of prior-booked adult passengers. (http:// www.mapleleafadventures.com)

State and Provincial Ferries

ALASKA MARINE HIGHWAY SYSTEM (Alaska ferries) is made-to-order for family travel along Alaska's coast. Depending on vessel youngsters will find onboard play areas for the very young, casual meals and snack bars for any age, movies, and nature talks plus expansive glass-enclosed solariums. These are ideal for spotting orcas (killer whales), humpback whales, playful porpoises and sea lions in the water plus mountain goats on towering cliffsides, and (for the fortunate observer) the sight of black and brown (grizzly) bears on passing beaches. Families with or without vehicles may embark as far south as Bellingham, Washington or Prince Rupert, British Columbia.

Larger stateroom-equipped vessels of the fleet are the Columbia (931 passengers), Matanuska (745), Malaspina (701), Taku (370), and Kennicott (748). Depending on the season, one or two ships sail on weekly schedules all the way to/ from Bellingham while others turn around at Prince Rupert. (http:// www.FerryAlaska.com)

BC FERRIES demonstrates its kid-friendliness even before a family boards ship. Computer-savvy children or their parents have only to surf the web to http:// www.bcferries.bc.ca/kidzone/establishing_shot.html and they will meet cartoon characters Samantha ("Call me Sam") and Cal, two seagoing doggy characters who introduce young viewers to three online activities - an electronic coloring book, a "Match the Ferries" memory game, and a virtual bridge tour.

The 700-passenger provincial ferry vessel Queen of the North connects with Alaska state ferries at Prince Rupert for frequent access to Southeast Alaska ports. (http://www.bcferries.com)

Copyright (c) 2006 By Mike Miller -- All Rights Reserved

Alaskan travel writer Michael Miller lives in Juneau where he publishes the Alaska cruising website http://www.AlaskaCruisingReport.com. The site covers virtually every facet of cruiseship travel in Alaska. He also writes Alaska travel articles for newspapers, magazines and books.

Like all other types of cancer, mesothelioma is incurable. Although doctors and scientists have made a great deal of progress for diagnosing and treating these malignancies, there is still no current way to completely get rid of it.

When a group of cells mutates uncontrollably and starts invading and killing healthy cells, this is called cancer. In certain areas of the body where cells reproduce rapidly there tends to be a greater chance of risk because one cancer cell can multiply exponentially in a very quick period of time. Most cancers are caused by external stimuli and mesothelioma is no different. Mesothelioma cancer is caused by exposure to carcinogens such as asbestos.

The affected areas from mesothelioma cancer are the lining of the internal organs in the body. Because of the location of the infected cells, mesothelioma does not respond well to conventional treatments unlike most other forms of cancer. In addition, there are no blatant symptoms of the disease, so doctors cannot properly diagnose the illness until its significantly advanced. Because of these factors, the effectiveness of many conventional treatments are limited.

When treating mesothelioma, doctors use several treatment options. Surgery, radiation treatments and chemotherapy have been traditional options for slowing the growth of cancerous cells. Doctors dealing with mesothelioma have to plan an innovative method of attack to combat this condition. New treatments like angiogenesis, photodynamic and gene therapy hold new hope for victims of mesothelioma everywhere. Depending on the state and location of the cancer, doctors will choose the best course of action for the circumstances. If its discovered early enough, doctors can prolong the life of the victim, but sadly cannot cure the disease.

This article can be freely reprinted as long as this resource box is included and all links stay in-tact as hyper links. For more information on Mesothelioma cancer please visit http://www.resource4mesothelioma.com

One major reason we quit MLM is pretty obvious...the pain of rejection becomes unbearable.

Our sponsors tell us:

"Learn to love it when they say no--you're so much closer to a yes; some will, some wont, so what etc."

Yeah, right!

Unless you are a complete masochist you will never learn to love rejection. Typically the average new distributor takes two rejections and quits and frankly I dont blame them. Who needs this noise anyway.

So how are we going to get over this?

Time and again distributors say to me: "Show me a way to build my business without rejection and Ill do it."

Well my first advice is this: absolutely do not introduce your business to your family and friends or even strangers until you can show you have some success and can teach them to work efficiently and rejection free...that's what we'll talk about here today.

Often times your upline will tell you to purchase a list of leads and cold call them.

From countless hours of wasted effort (and money) I can tell you that the only people making any money from this would seem to be the Leads Brokers. I know of many MLM stars who claim to have built their business this way but I don't know anyone who is making it work in todays environment. Doesn't mean that nobody is...just that I haven't heard of them.

Everyone I talk to struggles to be successful at phoning a list of leads with minimal success; and besides, there's tons and tons of rejection.

The best way I know to build your business faster is to expose more people to your business in less time...use the internet to leverage your efforts.

Instead of showing your marketing plan to interested prospects in a meeting or a one on one presentation you direct them to your website to view a professional presentation online, usually created for you by your MLM company or one of your upline leaders.

There are countless ways of getting prospects to your website. You can put flyers in mail boxes in your neighbourhood, place notices on bulletin boards, use Pay-per-click advertising, post comments in chat rooms etc.

But the single most effective way that is almost cost free is to write articles and post them at article directories.

If you would like to learn more about how I do it and how you can build your own MLM Business Online then I have just completed a new book: "The Perfect Online MLM Business".

You can download it FREE here: "The Perfect Online MLM Business "

Plus there's a goldmine of information in my other FREE book: "How To Use The Secret Magic Of Article Writing To Start And Run A Successful Online Business"

Jim Keayes is an expert Internet and MLM Marketer. He teaches people to be successful online.

With all that is going on in todays world it makes sense that many teens would be affected and impacted in a negative way. As a result, there are more troubled teens today than ever. The problem is that they cant function in traditional schools in a way that is fair to them and the rest of the students. So, what educational alternatives exist for troubled youth? There are actually a few that might be what you are looking for your troubled teen.

Military School

Military boarding schools are very strict and known for accepting one form of behavior and one form of behavior only. This behavior is simply complying with all the rules and regulations set forth by the military schools. Those kids who do not obey will have serious punishments and their privileges taken away. Many boarding school troubled youth find their way while they are attending military school. Not to mention boarding schools for teens place kids on their own, without family and friends around, to fend for themselves.

Boot Camp

Boot camps for teens is yet another educational alternative for troubled youth. At boot camps your teen will be treated to a very strict schedule of early waking, cleaning, working out, studying, and basically fulfilling ever waking moment of the day with something constructive. There is no lying around playing video games or just being idle. Boot camp busts those teen butts into action and helps them realize how they should act on a regular basis.

Teen Treatment Center

A teen treatment center is another option for teens looking for educational alternatives. Most of the time these treatment centers are not quite as strict or as hard core as boot camps or military schools, but they are strict enough to turn a wayward teen around. Most of these centers offer tutoring to help kids catch up on their studies or learn whatever information they need to know.

These are the basic options when it comes to alternative educational opportunities for troubled teens. You may of course hire a private tutor but if you take this route it should be a very structured tutor who has the capabilities of keeping a troubled teen in line while teaching him as well. Evaluate all options before choosing one for your troubled teen and keep in mind that if one option doesnt work out you can always try another until you find something that helps your troubled teen academically.

Caitlina Fuller writes about education, health and parenting. Many boarding school troubled youth find their way while they are attending military school. Not to mention boarding schools for teens place kids on their own, without family and friends around, to fend for themselves. Boot camps for troubled teens is yet another educational alternative for troubled youth.