The bath and shower sector was significantly affected by price competition in 2009. Price competition in the form of free products or increased volumes at the same price became a fierce battle for consumers. although these products are perceived and used as basic personal care, the recession encouraged price-sensitive consumers to seek out bargains. as a result, volume sales remained intact, while value sales were driven downwards leading to a unit price decline.the Bath and Shower Products in Slovenia report offers a comprehensive guide to the size and shape of the market at a national level. It provides the latest retail sales data 2005-2009, allowing you to identify the sectors driving growth. Forecasts to 2014 illustrate how the market is set to change.Product coverage: Bar Soap, Bath Additives, Body Wash/Shower Gel, Intimate Hygiene, Liquid Soap, Talcum Powder. Data coverage: market sizes (historic and forecasts), company shares, brand shares and distribution data.Why buy this report? * get a detailed picture of the Beauty and Personal Care industry; * Pinpoint growth sectors and identify factors driving change; * Understand the competitive environment, the market's major players and leading brands; * Use five-year forecasts to assess how the market is predicted to develop.Table of ContentsBath and Shower in SloveniaJuly 2010List of Contents and TablesExecutive SummaryChanging Trends Impact Retail value SalesRecession Causes changes in Companies Advertising and Promotional FormatsPrice Competition IntensifiesHealth and Beauty Retailers Remain the Leading ChannelStagnation likely Over the Forecast PeriodMarket DataTable 1 Sales of Beauty and Personal Care by Sector: value 2004-2009Table 2 Sales of Beauty and Personal Care by Sector: % value Growth 2004-2009Table 3 Sales of Premium Cosmetics by Sector: value 2004-2009Table 4 Sales of Premium Cosmetics by Sector: % value Growth 2004-2009Table 5 Beauty and Personal Care Company Shares by NBO 2005-2009Table 6 Beauty and Personal Care Company Shares by GBO 2005-2009Table 7 Beauty and Personal Care Brand Shares by GBN 2006-2009Table 8 Penetration of Private label by Sector 2004-2009Table 9 Sales of Beauty and Personal Care by Distribution Format: % Analysis 2004-2009Table 10 Sales of Beauty and Personal Care by Sector and by Distribution Format: % Analysis 2009Table 11 Forecast Sales of Beauty and Personal Care by Sector: value 2009-2014Table 12 Forecast Sales of Beauty and Personal Care by Sector: % value Growth 2009-2014Table 13 Forecast Sales of Premium Cosmetics by Sector: value 2009-2014Table 14 Forecast Sales of Premium Cosmetics by Sector: % value Growth 2009-2014DefinitionsSourcesSummary 1 Research SourcesEveret International DooStrategic DirectionKey FactsSummary 2 Everet International doo: Key FactsSummary 3 Everet International doo: Operational IndicatorsCompany BackgroundProductionCompetitive PositioningSummary 4 Everet International doo: Competitive Position 2009Ilirija DdStrategic DirectionKey FactsSummary 5 Ilirija dd: Key FactsSummary 6 Ilirija dd: Operational IndicatorsCompany BackgroundProductionSummary 7 Ilirija dd: Production Statistics 2007Competitive PositioningSummary 8 Ilirija dd: Competitive Position 2009Kozmetika Afrodita DooStrategic DirectionKey FactsSummary 9 Kozmetika Afrodita doo: Key FactsSummary 10 Kozmetika Afrodita doo: Operational IndicatorsCompany BackgroundProductionCompetitive PositioningSummary 11 Kozmetika Afrodita doo: Competitive Position 2009Orbico DooStrategic DirectionKey FactsSummary 12 Orbico doo: Key FactsSummary 13 Orbico doo: Operational IndicatorsCompany BackgroundProductionCompetitive PositioningSummary 14 Orbico doo: Competitive Position 2009HeadlinesTrendsCompetitive LandscapeProspectsCategory DataTable 15 Sales of Bath and Shower Products by Subsector: value 2004-2009Table 16 Sales of Bath and Shower Products by Subsector: % value Growth 2004-2009Table 17 Bath and Shower Products Premium Vs Mass % Analysis 2004-2009Table 18 Bath and Shower Products Company Shares 2005-2009Table 19 Bath and Shower Products Brand Shares by GBN 2006-2009Table 20 Forecast Sales of Bath and Shower Products by Subsector: value 2009-2014Table 21 Forecast Sales of Bath and Shower Products by Subsector: % value Growth 2009-2014Table 22 Forecast Bath and Shower Products Premium Vs Mass % Analysis 2009-2014Browse all Consumer Goods Market Research Reportscompaniesandmarkets.com/consumer-goods-market-research-reports-p71.aspx?prk=7e096524b15a8e698df14feb34955806Browse all Consumer Goods Company Profile Reportscompaniesandmarkets.com/consumer-goods-company-profiles-p98.aspx?prk=7e096524b15a8e698df14feb34955806Browse all Latest Market Research Reportscompaniesandmarkets.com/market-reports-trends-and-industry-statistics-p9.aspx?prk=7e096524b15a8e698df14feb34955806About UsCompaniesandmarkets.com is a leading online business information aggregator with over 500,000 market reports and company profiles available to our clients. Our extensive range of reports are sourced from the leading publishers of business information and provide clients with the widest range of information available. In terms of company profiles, Companiesandmarkets.com's online database allows clients access to market and corporate information to over 100,000 different companies. we provide clients with a fully indexed database of information where clients can find specific market reports on their niche industry sectors of interest. Companiesandmarkets.com is focused on providing clients with exemplary customer service and a flexible approach to accessing business information. Our team have extensive expertise in the market research industry and are keen to provide clients advice on their research requirements and possible alternative sources of information; a model which provides clients a value for money solution to research.

Bath and Shower - Slovenia - Market Report: companiesandmarkets.com/r.ashx?id=C456W7JR0335338&prk=7e096524b15a8e698df14feb34955806

Glowing with Healthy Skin - Svilen Milev, with permissionSimple steps to the skin you've always dreamed of. This easy and effective skin care routine is inexpensive and uncomplicated.

These days, there are literally hundreds of different skincare products on the shelves of the local chemist. It can be confusing to know exactly what you're supposed to use. fear not, because with this tried and tested facial skin care routine, you’ll be gleaming from March to November; and it doesn’t have to cost you the earth!

Cleanse the Skin

This one should not be too difficult. It’s important to find a simple cleanser to which your skin responds well. You’ll never have to think about it again, then. just use it twice daily to do what it says on the tin; cleanse and revitalise.

Buying an expensive cleanser is not necessary. as long as your skin responds well to the one you’ve chosen, the price-tag isn’t important.

It is recommended not to use bars of soap, as these tend to dry out the skin. The Simple range is highly recommended, as they include no harsh ingredients, and you’ll be using it regularly.

Exfoliat

There are different ways in which to do this, the cheapest of which is a simple scrub. You can get weekly chemical peels at local beauty parlours, but for many people this is too expensive and inconvenient. The same rule applies as with cleanser; if you find one that your skin reacts well to, stick with it. some cheaper exfoliating scrubs may have grains which are too large, and harsher on the skin. If you don’t feel good after using an exfoliating scrub, switch to a different one.

Because it’s a harsher treatment, it is only necessary to exfoliate the skin once a week.

Tone

Toner is essentially a top up for cleanser. It works to ensure that every bit of dirt, oil and make-up is removed from the skin. If you feel that your cleanser does a good enough job of this anyway, save your money. however, if you feel cleaner and more refreshed after using it, there’s no harm.

Apply toner on a piece of cotton wool and apply it all over the face, including all the cracks and crevices. Do this as part of your daily skincare routine for added vitality.

Moisturise

This is one item no woman should be without. Moisturisers lock moisture into the skin, and leave it soft, supple and healthy looking. as a standard rule, use it as part of your daily routine, however, there are tell-tale signs as to whether its use should be increased or decreased. Dry, taut skin is crying out for some moisturiser but if your skin looks too supple, cut down your usage.

In summation, to have healthy, happy skin does not need to be a complicated, painful or expensive. with these simple steps, combined with using sun lotion whenever it's necessary (UV rays are singularly the most damaging thing for skin), you'll be glowing as though you were ten years younger.

• Glowing with Healthy Skin - Svilen Milev, with permission

A year after the release of the eau de toilette version of ‘a scent by issey miyake’, the designer is now presenting a more floral and feminine reinterpretation of the fragrance. The eau de parfum is not just a more concentrated version of the eau de toilette, but a true rewriting of a scent’s olfactory theme. While taking inspiration from the original version, the eau de parfum is more floral and less citrussy, a true alternative to the eau de toilette’s freshness. The perfume’s color code, also more feminine, has evolved from pastel green to an almost peachy pink.

The tone is given right from the start: the eau de parfum is unquestionably floral, with an opening dominated by jasmine notes. The heart goes on to offer a floral bouquet that is still centered on jasmine, with peach-skin effects. it reprises the vibrant green side of galbanum, which was present in the eau de toilette version, but this one is gentler, and less crunchy. The trail delicately sketches in woodsy tonalities of patchouli, mousse and ambrox (an ambergris/skin note). All in all, it’s fair to say that the eau de parfum introduces us to a gentler, more floral, less green and chypry fragrance than the eau de toilette. Perfumer: Annick Menardo, Firmenich.

Eau de Parfum 1.3 and 2.7 oz.

The sleek, minimalist eau de toilette bottle, like a chunk of raw glass, is reprised here, but in a peachy pink hue. The ‘a scent by issey miyake eau de parfum florale’ bottle offers, on the other hand, greater density, as the glass is ever so slightly thicker than for its predecessor.

A Trolley Laptop Bag:Casepax is a leading exporter of backpack, CD marker pen, trolley bag, and notebook bag. They have variety of designs and innovative product line under its credit. Casepax TR-8206L-5 16 inch Trolley laptop bag made with more spacious compartment and really

=============Article Content:

A Trolley Laptop Bag:

Casepax is a leading exporter of backpack, CD marker pen, trolley bag, and notebook bag. They have variety of designs and innovative product line under its credit. Casepax TR-8206L-5 16 inch Trolley laptop bag made with more spacious compartment and really meant for carrying all types of associated items of notebook. though it looks like a big trolley travel bag it is well built with light weight design and has smooth and strong wheels, which enables you to easily drag the bag on the floor for a long walk without any problem. this trolley laptop bag has comparable high end features and designed in such a way that it provides greater control during your long trip. It gives freedom to carry all the accessories and peripherals such as external hard disc, pen drives, external mouse, business organizer, BlackBerry, keys and even some books and magazines. You can safely keep the 16 inch laptop in the main compartment along with important documents and papers.

The front compartment is also equally designed similar to main compartment for keeping all the peripherals and laptop related accessories. Both these compartment has good space management system with inner small pockets, wide pouch, pen holder and card holder. this Casepax TR-8206L-5 16 inch laptop bag is completely made with co skin leather material and nicely finished to give sophisticated look for business person. It is available in black colour that gives rich look and comes with detachable shoulder strap. but you cannot use the shoulder strap for longer time and you might feel the irritation on your shoulder if you carry heavy loads. this leather laptop bag is a complete travel system with height adjustable handle and has extendable arm facility, which suits taller person. when compared to other model this trolley laptop bag seems to be small in its range.

Well Built Compartments:

Casepax co Skin 16 inch Trolley laptop bag is an affordable product range with cushioned and well padded main compartment and front compartment. apart from large main compartment and front compartment there is also a small back and front pouch with cover flap. all the compartments are built with zipper and made with Velcro fastener for greater security for keeping your important documents and costly laptop. The main laptop compartment is padded with soft foam material that firmly holds the 16 inch laptop and protects it from accidental bumps and twist while gliding on the floor. You cannot keep anything in the main compartment apart from laptop that is why Casepax has provided separate front and back pocket pouch to keep accessories and peripherals.You can use the front pocket pouch for keeping frequently used document and keys for easy access. Additional the cover flap would give full safety and does not allow the item fall from the pocket pouch. when you open this trolley bag you could find document pouch, small pockets, pen holder and card holder on the open flap. but this is missing in main laptop compartment may be Casepax created this 16 inch trolley laptop bag with fully dedicated laptop space. Casepax trolley laptop bag has soft padded carry handle in case you would not use the shoulder strap. It is also made with long height adjustable pulling handle.

Casepax TR-8206L-5 16 inch Trolley Laptop – Technical Specification Table

Model NameTR-8206L-5 16 inch Trolley Laptop Bag

Type of BagTrolley

Internal size395 L x 305 H x 55 W mm

External size410 L x 360 H x 180 W mm

Anti shock protectionYes

Removable pouch for adaptor and cablesNo

Features16 inch screen size space, outer pocket pouch with flap,back pocket pouch, main compartment, Velcro Fastener zipper

Inner storage pocketsYes

Outer storage pocketsYes

Inner compartmentsYes

Outer compartmentsYes

Gents or ladies Laptop bagGents

Business organiserYes

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I love… when a guy (that you usually wouldn’t go for) walks past and you smell his cologne/aftershave. He, in that moment seems more attractive, more alluring and as he’s finally past you, you turn to look and your opinion on this guy is completely different. interesting, but what is it about fragrance that changes moods and generally makes the moment fabulous?

We’ve all seen the adverts, a gorgeous sun tanned blond strutting down a corridor, 5 inch Louboutins, everyone’s eyes follow her and as she stares at you with the over the shoulder ‘come hither’ look, whispering... ‘Seduction’ the newest fragrance by John Doe.

I might add it’s not as superficial as that, forgive the mockery, but there is a process to finding ones signature fragrance. It’s like finding your favourite drink in Starbucks, it’s a case of trial and error, you may not like a blended coffee Frappuccino but later on down the line you’ll try a caramel macchiato and really like it!

Coco once said a woman without fragrance has no future. this is not an excuse to go crazy in Bloomingdales or House of Fraser, but understand her logic. You’ll be remembered for your brilliant personality and also the stuff that you just ‘happened to throw on’ that morning.

Try finding fragrances for different occasions to start with for interviews, evenings out, holidays/vacations, special date. being a ‘fragrance guru’ I shall part with a few words of wisdom for choosing one and also suggesting the ones that won’t decline your Visa (by RRP)

workwear

Just got paid- DKNY 100ml- £45/$69

Quick treat- Paul Smith Extreme 50ml- £31/$47

Money dwindling- Ghost Luminous 30ml- £22/$34

interviewear

Just got paid- D&G Light Blue 100ml-£55/$85

Quick treat-Gucci Envy me 30ml-£33/$51

Money dwindling-Boss Femme 30ml-£26/$40

meetingwithfriendswear

Just got paid-Stella by Stella McCartney 100ml-£59.50/$92

Quick treat-Boss Orange 30ml-£26/$40

Money dwindling-Burberry original 30ml-£29/$45

firstdatewear

Just got paid- Gucci Flora 75ml EDT-£58/$89

Quick treat-Nina 50ml-£34/$52

Money dwindling-Amor Amor by Cacharel 30ml-£23/$35

weddingwear

Just got paid- Marc Jacobs Daisy 100ml EDT- £53/$82

Quick treat-DKNY Fresh Blossom 30ml EDP- £30/$46

Money dwindling-Christina Inspire 100ml- £23/$36

eveningwear

Just got paid-Armani Code EDP 75ml- £64/$98

Quick treat-Kenzo Amour 30ml- £36/$55

Money dwindling-Ghost Deep Night 30ml- £22/$34

alloftheabovewearinvestments

*Carolina Herrera 212

Viktor&Rolf Flowerbomb

what's your can-do perfume, what
makes you go ooorrhh yeshhh?
Does price matter? Cheap and
cheerful, or pricey and...
you get the point

I know there's still almost a month of summer left. but for me, even with the weather still hot, it always starts feeling like autumn when the kids go back to school.

And then it's time to start thinking about serving the family nourishing, satisfying home-cooked meals.

I'm talking about the kind of food that will make everyone in the family happy, while it especially sustains the children, whether they're grade-schoolers or teens, for homework, sports or whatever other school-related or extracurricular activities they might have.

One of the best dishes I know to accomplish those goals is potpie. Some of my friends tell me that, in their own childhoods, they often ate the individual frozen variety that you popped into the oven. but it's surprisingly easy to prepare a real homemade potpie.

My recipe for a classic chicken potpie is packed with vegetables and chunks of white-meat chicken, all bound together in a thick, creamy sauce.

Unlike those frozen pies, it has only a top crust, leaving out the bottom layer of pastry that can often turn soggy. And the crust has a special ingredient: shredded sharp cheddar cheese, which helps turn the crust a beautiful golden color and adds rich, tangy flavor.

Even though everything in this recipe is made from scratch, you can still have it ready to serve in not much more than an hour. want to make it even more quickly? Make the pastry the night before and keep it in the refrigerator. You could also make the filling a day ahead and refrigerate it, leaving just assembly and baking the evening you plan to serve it. And feel free to substitute a round of refrigerated, ready-to-use pie pastry dough from the supermarket and chopped-up precooked rotisserie chicken instead of sauteing the chicken yourself.

Speaking of substitutions, try replacing the chicken with chunks of turkey, beef, pork, lamb or seafood. use different vegetables you enjoy. And by all means exchange the cream in the sauce for half-and-half or regular, low-fat or nonfat milk.

When you start to look at all the possibilities, you'll realize that this potpie isn't just a single recipe but a basic formula for many different kinds of delicious main courses. And that's just the sort of recipe you need for the start of the busy back-to-school season — one you can go on enjoying into fall and winter!

CLASSIC CHICKEN POTPIE

Makes 6 servings.

Pastry:

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons snipped fresh chives

6 ounces unsalted butter, chilled, cut into small pieces

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar

6 tablespoons heavy cream

Chicken and vegetables:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 pound skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 medium carrots, cut into 1/2-inch slices

1 rib celery, cut into 1/2-inch slices

1/2 pound cremini or shiitake mushrooms, sliced

1 package (10 ounces) frozen pearl onions, thawed

3/4 cup frozen petite peas, thawed

Sauce:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme

1 large egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water

To make pastry: Put flour and chives in bowl. Add chilled butter pieces. Using pastry blender or fingertips, work butter into dry ingredients until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add cheese. Work it in just until blended. in small bowl, whisk together egg yolks and 5 tablespoons cream. While stirring with fork, sprinkle in yolk-cream mixture a little at a time until pastry comes together, adding remaining cream if necessary. Knead lightly just until combined. On lightly floured surface, press dough into circle. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until needed.

To prepare chicken-vegetables mixture: Heat large skillet over medium-high heat. Add butter and vegetable oil. Add chicken. Saute for 2 to 3 minutes or until lightly browned but not fully cooked through. Using slotted spoon, remove chicken to a bowl. in same pan over medium-high heat, saute carrots, celery and mushrooms for 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon, remove vegetables to another bowl. Stir thawed pearl onions and peas into sauteed vegetables.

To make sauce: Melt butter in same pan over medium heat. Add flour. Whisk for 2 minutes or until bubbling and smooth. Remove pan from heat. Gradually whisk in broth, cream and thyme. Return skillet to heat. Bring sauce to a simmer, stirring constantly. Cook for 2 minutes or until thickened and smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in reserved chicken and vegetables. Set aside to cool for 20 minutes.

To assemble and bake potpie: meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spoon cooled chicken-vegetable mixture into 10-inch deep-dish pie plate. On lightly floured surface, roll out pastry into circle 11 inches in diameter. Place pastry on top. Fold overhang underneath itself. Using thumb and forefinger, press gently all around baking dish to make decorative pastry edge. Brush pastry with beaten egg-and-water mixture. Using tip of small, sharp knife, cut 3 vent slits in pastry at center of pie. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until filling is bubbling and pastry is deep golden brown.

To serve: Using large serving spoon, scoop filling and pastry onto individual serving plates or into large shallow serving bowls.

When the military realized a sergeant stationed at McConnell Air Force Base may have knowingly exposed people to HIV at "swinger events" in the Wichita area, it contacted Mayor Carl Brewer's office and the Sedgwick County Department of Health.

It does that whenever a communicable disease may have been spread.

So far, county health officials haven't started tracking down people who may have been exposed.

They are still getting information from officials at McConnell that should help them track down people who may have been exposed, said Jason Ybarra, the county's senior disease intervention specialist.

"Obviously, we want to do this quickly," he said. "If someone feels they may have been exposed through this incident or any other incident, get tested rather than sit back and not get tested."

Court documents indicate that one profile on an adult website shows that the Air Force sergeant attended 21 "swinger parties" from January 2009 to July this year. such parties typically involve promiscuous sex, sometimes with multiple partners.

It's unclear how many people the man may have exposed to the virus, but if one person were exposed at each of the parties he is said to have attended, it could lead to a spike in the number of new HIV cases in Sedgwick County.

Last year, 33 new HIV cases were confirmed.

Overall, 729 people in the county are known to have HIV or AIDS.

County officials say that the sergeant's activities may represent the largest HIV exposure in recent memory.

But they said the use of adult web sites to meet strangers for sex encounters or parties has become commonplace.

Ybarra said it can be frustrating for officials to track because many people use screen names or false names, and many people aren't forthcoming about their activity.

"A lot of this stuff is underground," he said. "A lot of people don't openly say 'yeah we're swingers. We hit these parties all the time.' "

The emerging case

The allegations facing the sergeant surfaced last Friday when TheSmokingGun.com, a site that specializes in posting exclusive documents, released a story accompanied by U.S. District Court search warrant documents.

The documents, which the military confirmed are authentic, were briefly available online without redactions.

They allege that the HIV-positive sergeant "had engaged in numerous, unprotected sexual acts with a multitude of sexual partners over the course of three years."

The affidavit says the sergeant's spouse said he contacted people overseas he may have exposed to HIV while he was stationed there. but she said he hasn't told men and women he has been with since arriving at McConnell in 2008.

A woman from Winfield that authorities interviewed said she had met the sergeant through an adult web site and later met him at a swinger party at "the barn" in Goddard.

Another woman from Wichita said she met the man, who is in his 40s, on another adult website and went to his Wichita home on Thanksgiving in 2009 and had unprotected sex with him.

Court documents say that he did not disclose that he is HIV-positive.

In Kansas, it is a felony to knowingly expose someone to a life-threatening communicable disease by having sex, donating body fluids or sharing needles.

The sergeant was arrested on Aug. 9 after military investigators conducted an undercover operation.

He was ordered to pretrial confinement at McConnell Air Force Base and remains there, but he has not been charged, according to Linda J. Card, chief of public affairs with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.

He awaits a hearing in September.

Outreach

AIDS is a chronic, and potentially deadly, condition caused by HIV. it interferes with your body's ability to fight off disease.

It's transmitted by sex, blood contact or from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth or breast-feeding.

It can take up to six months after exposure for the virus to show up in tests.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention doesn't have any specific guidelines on how to investigate and deal with the type of exposure that may have happened in Wichita, said spokeswoman Jennifer Ruth Horvath.

Ybarra, Sedgwick County's senior disease intervention specialist, said that whenever someone tests positive for HIV, AIDS, syphilis or other diseases, it strongly encourages them to contact anyone who may have been exposed.

The county will help people track down past partners that infected people may have met online or otherwise.

If the newly-diagnosed person doesn't want to do that, the county will ask for names or other identifying information so it can try to contact people who may have been exposed.

It strongly encourages those people to be tested.

The county works with local drug treatment facilities, colleges and other groups. it also targets specific groups that are more likely to carry and transmit HIV.

It offers free testing to them or anyone who wants it.

Recently, the county has focused on syphilis, the potentially deadly sexually transmitted disease that has been on the rise in Sedgwick County for about three years.

Last year, 30 new cases were reported. Twenty-nine new cases have already been reported this year.

Ybarra said the county is trying to find new ways to work with the state and get its message out online, where many people now go to find sexual partners.

His message is simple for both the emerging case in Wichita and in general: "If you think you've been put at risk, get tested."

Reach Brent D. Wistrom at 316-268-6228 or bwistrom@wichitaeagle.com.

By the Canadian Press

ADVERTISEMENT

MONTREAL - Publisher and commercial printer Transcontinental Inc. (TSX:TCL.A) said Wednesday it had a third-quarter profit of $30.6 million and expects to make targeted acquisitions in digital technology.

The profit in the company's latest quarter compares with $25.5 million in the same period a year ago. Revenues were $500.3 million, down from $504.4 million.

Chief executive Francois Olivier said higher operating income and a decrease in capital expenditures will continue to improve Transcontinental's financial position.

"We will thus be in an excellent position to make targeted strategic acquisitions in new media and digital technology," Olivier said in a news release.

"We will also continue to develop our offering to meet the growing demand from our customers for custom marketing programs tied in with one-to-one advertising and mobile technology," he said.

Earnings per share were 35 cents versus 31 cents in the same period a year ago, stripping out the effect of dividends paid on preferred shares.

Adjusted net income applicable to participating shares was up 8.2 per cent from $31.8 million in 2009 to $34.4 million. On a per-share basis it rose to 43 cents from 39 cents.

Olivier also said Transcontinental will continue to identify possibilities for synergies across the company, notably by integrating its service offering and getting the most out of its equipment.

"I am optimistic about the coming quarters, even though the economic context is still unstable," Olivier said.

If you want to get a darker tan and you want to make sure that you know how evenly Tan Tan in a bed that is the first step to find the best tanning beds and Sunquest others. no need to buy seats to get sun, but it is possible, however, the sun at home. This is a great idea because the time on it and then build a great looking tan. you just have to figure out which option is more favorable. many people swear by the> Tanning Beds, including the Lumina or Sunquest tanning beds, but others prefer to use spray and suntan lotion instead of TAN.

This tan beds are quite large, so if you have at home, you have to be sure that you are not somewhere I need the species. you can get different types and some have a rounded shape to them, others contain only one UV lamp on a flat surface. Some beds are made of acrylic sheets and some beds made with LED lightsmake it safer.

If you have an idea where you should get home beds tan then you should make a price and quality comparison online. you can easily find everything you are the best and do not lie if the Sunquest tanning or above the lights or other marks. you should not look only at the price, but also to compare, quality, functionality and usability. also, make sure that you can use the lamps for the tanning, otherwiseis with one that can not be used for pasting.

Solarium are usually used here in a room and is monitored and measured the frequency of use. At home, you are under control and you can easily forget time and burn. they are also at risk of cancer if you expose yourself to UVA and UVB rays for too long. therefore, the recommended time for a session of less than 30 minutes when using the recommended should not be more than once a week.

If you want atan and do not want to go through a long and complicated process, it is perhaps better to consider the various options and spray tanning spray tan. Get the indoor tanning lotion is better than you did a great tan and you need not fear, streaks or orange when professionally.

you can also benefit greatly from using the Tan spray booths, where you get the best color and do not care more about tan lines.When comparing these alternatives for Sunquest tanning beds or tanning beds are the TAN Airbrush Lumina are beautiful, but the sun can work better and offer better quality tan.

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 18th, 2010 at 6:13 am and is filed under tanning lamps. you can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

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A designer handbag is the ultimate accessory for any outfit, and Bluedg.com offers you a huge selection from the most famous fashion designers. huge markdowns are easy to find on stylish leather handbags, canvas totes, clutch purses and so much more. with so many discount designer handbags, you can dress like a celebrity without having to spend like one. In fact, Bluedg’s designer handbags are so inexpensive, you really could buy a different bag to go with each outfit.you can’t overlook the designer when purchasing a handbag. with Bluedg’s beautiful Fendi handbags, Prada purses and other designer ladies handbags, you can afford to be a trendsetter.If you like the simplicity of something small, you will love the assortment of stylish clutch purses in Bluedg’s clothing store. some are perfect for your casual day-to-day living, while others make elegant evening handbags. For those who need more space, canvas totes are large enough to hold your pocket book, cell phone, current paperback, all your makeup and more. Overstock has plenty of attractive tote handbags, so you can be simultaneously stylish and practical.Purchasing clothing and accessories online has never been so easy! each handbag description on Bluedg.com provides you with the purse’s dimensions, materials and a detailed photograph, so you can shop with confidence. while you’re at it, pick up some shoes and sunglasses to match your new designer handbag. you are going to buy them anyway, why not buy at Bluedg.com, and save that much more?

• Please read all label information on delivery
• Single-blade disposable razors. ideal for gym and travel
• Lightweight and easy to use. grippable handle
• Moisture strip conditions skin while shaving
• Fun pink color. easily identifiable

User ReviewsI have the curse of every dark-haired girl with any ethnic background - profound leg hair. each hair is thick enough to string a tennis racket and I just don't feel clean unless I have thoroughly shaved my legs and no stubble is showing.

I don't care much for the hollow handle that drips water everywhere, or for the cheesy pink color and embedded flower pattern, but the blades can't be beat.

I have tried different razors, those marketed for men and women, and I've tried single, double and triple blade disposable razors, and non-disposable varieties. The smooth lubricating strip at the top and the perfect distance between the strip and the blades makes for a perfect shave that does not involve accidentally peeling off a strip of skin - carrot-peeler style, as I've had happen with other razors.

As I mentioned above, the crazy grooves all over the handle and the back of the unit catch water and then spill all over your hands and legs as you shave, rinse and continue shaving - it's enough to drive you crazy!

I like to be a smart shopper and there are many times I will opt for the "store brand" at the grocery store, but not when it comes to these razors. The store brand versions of the Daisy Razors bend too easily and you end up accidentally stripping off parts of yourself along with the hair - makes for a painful, long cut before you realize what you've done.

It's beyond me why they can't make these in black - or at least yellow, without the embedded flowers and other features that grab every droplet of water so you can spill it on yourself again... but for now, it's the best I've ever used. -- these are the best, ever!I'd say these razors are mediocre at best. I got a decent shave, but have had closer with other disposables. also, there are razors on the market with much better handles. I found these to be too short and straight. I'd recommend other brands to friends over these. -- I'd say these razors are mediocre at best. ...I have tried other disposable razors and thought that the Gillette Daisy plus was better than most. It provides a very smooth shave, especially with the double blade system. The only thing I didn't care for was the moisture strip along the top of the blade. It didn't make for a smoother shave in my opinion. in fact, I'd prefer not to have it at all. overall, a very good product that I'd definitely recommend to others. -- I have tried other disposable razors and thought ...I really like the daisy razors. I got a close shave without nicks or cuts on my legs. They stay sharp for a long time compared to other razors. I shave with soap, so the moisturizing strip helps the razor guide smoothly over my legs. I think it's kind of silly to make the razor pink. I think it should be lime green. Then it'd really look like a daisy. -- I really like the daisy razors. I got ...I really liked this product. The razors shave very well and I love the moisture strip on the top of the razor. I didn't get any razor burn with this either. I will definitely buy this razor again. -- I really liked this product. The razors shave ...

Last Update: 19 hours ago

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NOL = Nano Organic Living nanoorganicliving.com Coupon code: FUZ15 for 15% off!! Updated skincare routines using the Nano Organic Living line. My skin type: Combo – drier on cheeks (but not super dry), oilier on t-zone (but not super oily) So far my favorite item out of the Nano Organic Living line is the Firming Serum! I love how hydrating and smoothing it is, and it’s so light~ The Rejuvenation Serum stings and makes me red for about 15 mins, so I only apply it at night time. Detailed reviews to come in a few weeks. Day: NOL Anti-Aging Cleanser NOL Anti-Aging Toner NOL Acne Spray Vichy NeoVadiol Contour Lips & Eyes NOL Anti-Wrinkle Serum NOL Anti-Aging Eye Cream NOL DMAE & MSM Serum La Roche Posay Hydraphase UV Eyes SPF29 NOL Moisturizer Laura Mercier Flawless Skin Daily Face Shield SPF40+ Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Liquid Sunblock SPF55 – neck only Night: Clinique Eye Makeup Remover NOL Anti-Aging Cleanser NOL Acne Spray NOL Rejuvenation Serum Vichy NeoVadiol Contour Lips & Eyes NOL DMAE & MSM Serum NOL Anti-Aging Eye Cream NOL Firming Serum NOL Rose Night Cream Music: Fresh Woman by Rain FTC Disclaimer: all Nano Organic Living products were sent to me for free by Nano Organic Living LLC for trial and review. Everything else was purchased by myself of my own will.

I’ve always considered the Rotadent Toothbrush to be the toothbrush that your dentist recommended when your teeth were at its worst. When you showed viable signs of gingivitis or tooth decay, that is when the dentist recommended a Rotadent.

Interestingly enough, after using it a few times, the Rotadent can be used as a daily toothbrush. it is very good at giving detailed attention to each tooth as you move the brush through your mouth. although, this is a very simple toothbrush without the bells and whistles of the Oral B and Sonicare Toothbrush lines, it is still a very effective toothbrush.

Would you look for prescription drug advice on Facebook?

Apparently quite a few people do, and the Food and Drug Administration is starting to take notice. the agency has sent its first warning letter about Facebook to drugmaker Novartis for the way it's been using the popular social networking site to promote a cancer drug.

But Novartis isn't alone. Drug companies have embraced social networking, and industry critics say the FDA is responding too slowly.

Novartis's sin, the FDA says, was the misuse of a widget. Specifically, on the website for the leukemia drug Tasigna, the company had one of those "Share" widgets — you click on it to promote the drug to your Facebook friends.

The problem, says the FDA's Marci Kiester, is the widget doesn't share enough information. "If they're presenting efficacy claims, then there should be a balanced presentation of risks that is reasonably comparable to those benefits," she says.

That's FDA-speak for the fact that the widget didn't give people information about the downside of the drug, used to treat certain kinds of leukemia. It doesn't include the litany of side-effects and warnings that you'd see on a drug ad on TV.

Novartis wouldn't give NPR an interview, but it has taken down the "share" widget, for now. the company still wants to promote its drugs through social media. in an email, Novartis tells NPR, "we will continue to have active discussions with regulatory authorities on the appropriate ways to use online and social channels."

Jeff Chester runs the Center for Digital Democracy, a group that's been trying to stiffen the FDA's spine on this issue. he says the agency has a lot of catching up to do, when it comes to drug companies' use of the social-media.

"Marketers are deliberately creating campaigns, and use what they call 'digital buzz' techniques" to get their message out, he says.

The approaches go way beyond Facebook widgets. Some drugmakers have set up support-group websites for certain diseases. take a look at ShareYourPain.com for people with chronic pain from cancer.  Make sure you scroll all the way to the bottom, where the small type reveals that site is sponsored drugmaker Cephalon.

Then there's YouTube, where a funny video series for the impotence drug Levitra has been making the rounds.

Jeff Chester says the drug company marketers are counting on you to forward the funny video.  And, he says, that's the idea behind all these techniques.

"The key to viral, peer-to-peer marketing is to in fact send a message to your friends, that I like this drug," he says.  "It's not Novartis sending you this widget.  I'm sending you this information.  I've endorsed it."

Viral marketing may be okay for selling sneakers, Chester says, when it's used to promote prescription drugs, he believes it can be dangerous.

Drug companies see it a little differently. Yes, they say, there are risks. but they also say social media can empower patients. At an FDA hearing last year, Jeff Francer, of the trade group PhRMA, asked regulators to facilitate drug makers' responsible use of social media.

The FDA is thinking about it.  A big issue is the "one-click" question — is it enough for widgets and other online devices to make a drug's "downside" information available one click away?  the FDA says it may have the first rules on that by the end of the year.

It’s great fun here at the Rooty Hill RSL. Downstairs, the poker machines are flashing and pinging and pulling enough electricity to power a medium-sized Chinese city. thirty or 40 semi-comatose punters are feeding the one cent slots. a good half-dozen people are watching the Keno screen as they eat their dinners in the Fred Chubb Lounge beside the netting-covered prizes for the upcoming Father’s Day raffle. The jewel in the crown is a plastic wheelbarrow filled with garden supplies, but you have to be there on the day to collect.

Upstairs in the Waratah Room, the assembled press, anonymous onlookers and assorted political phantoms are milling around the mezzanine. down in the stalls are seated Galaxy polling’s 200 swinging voters from Sydney’s western suburbs. except there aren’t 200 of them, they aren’t undecided and a lot of them aren’t from the western suburbs. Muted excitement hangs in the air like a bowl of potato wedges, lightly dusted with some unidentifiable, appetite enhancing, possibly carcinogenic substance. Julia Gillard is scheduled to begin her address in five minutes. Hubble, hubble, hubbub.

Television reporters are doing their scene-setters to camera. Blonde stick-girl and smarmy tie-boy. a heavy-hitter from The Daily Murdoch is tapping at the laptop balanced on his paunch, his jowls ponderous with received wisdom, self-importance on an expense account. Farnsworth Blagh reporting.

Bronwyn Bishop arrives, hairdo parting the flacks like the prow of a Roman trireme. she glowers at the carpet, working on her hump, until somebody takes pity and interviews her. And now a hush is falling on the Waratah Room. The show is about to begin.

Rooty Hill RSL is the last stop of my day here in western Sydney. It’s in Chifley, safe Labor by nearly 20%. My brief is the marginals and I’ve spent the afternoon in neighbouring Lindsay, where the margin is more marginal. Exactly how marginal is a moot point. Marginal enough to necessitate the removal of a Prime Minister, according to some. Certainly marginal enough to prompt the Labor candidate, David Bradbury, to mount the deck of a navy vessel off Darwin and point accusingly at the Indian Ocean.

My native informant is a state-government health bureaucrat whose remit covers the territory where the suburban sprawl bumps up into the foothills of the Blue Mountains. He picks me up in Mt Druitt, an hour by rail from Central, and we drive to Penrith, the epicentre of Lindsay. On the way, we pass through pockets of public housing. Ethnic gangs sometimes maraud westward from here, putting the wind up the citizens of Lindsay.

Penrith is a country town that has been eaten by the city. The main drag is a remnant of times past, its shops overshadowed by the three-block behemoth of the Westfield mall. almost everybody is white. Anglo white, not even wog white. Midweek lunchtime in the food court of the lower-upper-middle range shopping centre, McDonald’s is outselling Ali Baba 10 to one.

If you’re looking for a punch in the mouth, I’m told, the forecourt of the Joan Sutherland Performing Arts Centre is the place to go. a pocket park in an angle of the mall, the Joan is a beacon for adventure-seeking youths who congregate there Friday and Saturday evenings to exchange epithets and blows.

Employment is an issue. People commute to jobs elsewhere, or work in government offices, hospitals or the university. There’s an industrial area, but nothing in the way of manufacturing.

We head through Glenmore Park, a newish suburb of McMansions. three bedrooms, two-and-a-half bathrooms, built to the boundary, no eaves, no backyards, two-car garage. two parents, three jobs, crippling mortgage, kids at the local Catholic school, private education on the cheap. Labor’s BIR didn’t win any points here. The public schools are fairly new and don’t need infrastructure, but they didn’t get a say in how the money was spent.

The pulsating heart of Lindsay is the Panthers World of Entertainment, just across from the Penrith Panthers stadium. It’s a stylish joint, all black marble and white pebbles and water features. Offerings include aqua golf, beer tastings with amuse bouche and the KAOS family entertainment arcade. The car park is bigger than the entire Jafna Peninsula. Not that they don’t need it, what with the 1000 poker machines and the big Jimmy Barnes show next week.

It’s onward to Orchard Hills, heading into the rural. big sprawling houses separated by paddocks not quite big enough to farm. Italians come to mind. Family estates three generations in the making. Then, suddenly, a carved-out enclave of huge houses on huge lots on streets named for grape varieties. Cabernet Court, Bordeaux place, Muscatel Way. we take the wrong turn on Shiraz Street and hit the Chablis dead end.

Ten minutes later, we’re back across the motorway in St Marys. This is Lindsay’s wrong side of the tracks, more methadone than merlot, a strip of $2 shops and tattoo parlours. The shops have roll-down shutters, the pedestrians wear flannelette and every surface in sight is tagged. Think Shameless.

A little further up the road I see my first indication of the election, a trailer-mounted David Bradbury billboard. It’s on an intersection across from the Hog’s Breath Café. maybe the candidate is worried the curry munchers have got their eyes on our onion rings.

People around here are breeding. Lots of babies, so Abbott’s maternity leave offer is a good move. Bradbury, I’m told, is youth friendly. When he was mayor of Penrith, he rocked up to the opening of a municipal skate park with his own deck, didn’t disgrace himself either. Them skaters are voters now.

It is with a heavy heart that I bid fond farewell to marginal Lindsay and make tracks for Rooty Hill and its famed RSL.

With Julia about to take the stage, I undertake some rapid vox pops. Lawrence, a wheezing chap in his late sixties with Les Patterson teeth, has caught the train from five Dock, 40 kilometres and five electorates away. He rang Galaxy and asked if he could be one of their swinging voters. Fine, they said. Fifty dollars and all the cordial you can drink. Lawrence thinks pensioners and the unemployed are being ignored by both parties. He himself is an unemployed security guard.

Trying in vain to imagine what Lawrence might conceivably have been employed to guard, I find another contestant. John, a self-managed superannuant, has travelled a mere ten kilometres to be here. He rang the club who gave him the number for Galaxy who asked him “a couple of questions” and put his name on the list. He is exercised by the lack of entitlement to the full range of government support for self-funded retirees. He and his wife are scratching by on a mere $80,000 a year, yet they don’t qualify for discount travel on public transport. Or something. Disgraceful, I mutter as I edge away.

Greyhairs such as Lawrence and Peter form a substantial cross-section of Galaxy’s sample. even the host guy from Sky News, David Speers, has grey hair. He’s still under 40, so those years at 2UE must have really taken a toll.

The prime minister has taken the stage, perched on a bar stool, her jacket the colour of a fillet of flake. The applause is polite, muted. she does her school marm thing, hands up if you’ve got a mortgage. The audience complies, but without enthusiasm. Don’t encourage her or you’ll end up doing star jumps.

The questions begin. Some of the audience are blatantly, exuberantly partisan. they don’t like her. a lard-arsed dirigible has parked himself beside the microphone stand. He huffs and snorts and shakes his dewlaps at everything Gillard says. I do a quick head count, trying to separate the pollees from the press. Quite a few married couples, judging by the matching tracksuit ensembles. About a dozen empty seats. 141. I try again. 149. There’s a line of prospective questioners, but I can’t tell the wranglers from the voters.

A teacher queries the wisdom of incentive pay for teachers, saying it is unworkable and likely to be divisive. This gets a good round of applause, but that might be because she’s nailed Gillard, not because it’s a valid point. an orange-haired, string-vested Sapphist asks about gay marriage, her legal reasoning as watertight as a surgical suture. The crowd applauds. Gillard bloviates. Lawrence the Vigilant asks his question. what about the poor pensioners? there are voting tokens on the empty chairs. I do another count. 170. The highest I’ll get all night.

It’s half time. The audience, media and assorted blow-ins mix and mingle. we get tasty things on sticks and, if you’re quick, scallops on the half-shell. Philip Ruddock is here. It must be a dull night at the cemetery. like Gary Cooper, with whom he is rarely compared, Ruddock is tiny. but his reach is long. Get between him and a tray of sushi at your own risk.

Abbott takes the stage, then jumps down onto the floor, the wide-arm, shoulder-swing strut, the toey energy. He’s like a spring, those really boingy ones in a biro. Cameras flash madly for a long time, just like they didn’t for Gillard. It adds to the action man impression.

The first question is a dead-set Dorothy Dixer about the cost of an ETS being yet another tax. The second questioner cites his Rhodes Scholar credentials. a mortgage-payer is worried about foreigners buying up our real estate. Cassie, who looks about 12 and sounds like a small bird, asks about broadband. she wants to be in the media, she says, sidelong glancing at the jackals on the mezzanine. Abbott tells her you can’t always get what you want. but she sticks his used-car analogy right back up him.

If this is an objective poll, if it’s scientific in any sense of the word, I’m thinking, then Robert Mugabe is Norwegian.

As the evening ends and the crowd dissipates, my gaze keeps drifting back to those unclaimed voting tokens. a terrible temptation is beginning to take shape.

Nobody here knows who I am. Nobody will notice if I snaffle an unattended token, mingle with the voters and drop it into one of the ballot boxes. Integrated into the mathematical models of the pollsters, magnified by the speculative mechanism of the media and interpreted by the strategists of the parties, my vote might well end up determining the course of the campaign, perhaps the result of the election itself.

I fight back the urge. It would be morally wrong to wantonly and capriciously compromise the integrity of a public opinion poll, a process fundamental to the health of our democratic system. what of my ethics, my integrity? what if I got sprung, disgraced Crikey? Is that even possible? would they still pay my bill at the Rooty Hill RSL Novotel? what would Jesus do?

As I ponder these questions, a guy with a press lanyard, credentials from the country’s finest national daily newspaper dangling around his neck, sidles up and quickly trousers a token. My ethical dilemma resolved, I do likewise. Thank you, Jesus.

On the way to the ballot box, I grab another quick vox pop. a husband and wife, he a retired public servant, she an immigrant from Eastern Europe, judging by the accent. they got a call from Galaxy last night. they were enlisted toot sweet and asked if they knew anybody else might be interested. their daughter, a university student, could’ve done with the $50 but she had a shift at her part-time job. they thought the whole thing was pretty dodgy. by way of illustration, the bloke uncurled his hand and showed me three tokens. I added mine to his collection and wished him happy rat-f-cking.

Then I go down to the Fred Chubb and blow five bucks on the Treasure Island machine. Money well spent, considering the quality of the pantomime to which I’ve just been treated.

They’re great, these town-hall meetings. All the fun of the fair. And so educational, too. there should be more of them. they definitely get my vote.

Ottawa, Ontario

Consume B vitamins and vitamins with biotin in them and Omega 3’s. Do not bleach, perm or color your hair. Do not even use a blow drier or a hair straightener on it as this will dry out your hair and cause split ends.

Use only shampoos without harsh Sodium Laureth Sulfates in them, which pretty much all of them do unless you buy all natural from Aubrey Organics like I do. even if you buy "organic" some synthetics can still be used so look for a shampoo that is 100 percent organic, they get my hair just as clean as shampoos with chemicals in them and you don’t have to worry about the chemicals seeping into the skin of your scalp, which transdermal drug patches such as Nicorette have shown, the skin DOES absorb 60 percent of what we put on it. So therefore the skin does absorb the shampoo so it’s like you’re drinking benzalkonium chloride and other chems in shampoos. And then the chemicals are absorbed into your bloodstream and kidneys so…

Shampoos with keratin, biotin and amino acids are best. they will give your hair, which is made of protein, strength.

I like : Aubrey Organic’s Swimmer’s Shampoo (balances the PH of your scalp, which should be at 4.5 and if it’s too dry you have dandruff and too oily it looks like crap, so this is a great PH balancer. Since most other shampoos and conditioners contain Cetyl Alcohol which just dries out your hair, this is a great buy.) Smells great and makes your hair so soft.

Aubrey Organics Lavendar and Primrose Scalp Soothing Shampoo (makes your scalp feel relieved after a day in the sun, like a spa for your scalp. Prevents scalp problems and as we all know, healthy hair starts with a healthy scalp.)

Aubrey Organics Rose Mosquetta Conditioner (can use on wet or dry hair! also as a deep conditioning overnight treatment. Pink, thick, luscious cream.) Hair needs moisture to prevent breakage.

For styling control, try Aubrey Organics B-5 Design Gel (.50). this gel is 100 percent chemical free and holds hair really well.

(Cost about for all three but WELL worth it if you want, long, shiny hair like Kourtney Kardashian.)

*Get regular trims too, this prevents split ends from migrating up the hair shaft and wreaking havock. Hair grows at the rate of 1/2 inch per month so getting it trimmed every 4-6 weeks would be ea good idea. if you want long hair just get 1/2 an inch trimmed off every time. That way you’ll have old growth cut off and newer, more healthy growth coming out every month.

To still get some curls or wave and body in my hair without heat styling, burning and damaging it I use pink foam curlers and sleep in them overnight and wake up with sweet, bouncy curls and undamaged hair.

My hair is going to be great once I keep using this system and grow it out as long as possible. I’m lucky it’s a great color too, a shiny chestnut brown.

and maybe more lastingIf you flip on a reality-TV show about weight loss, you can expect to see an exercise montage and get a helpful nutrition tidbit or two.

But if you ever try to emulate the participants' success at home, you'll quickly realize the cameras have forgotten to depict one critical thing: reality.

Sure, people who leave their home and the stresses of daily life and are given the services of a full-time team of diet and fitness experts will slim down. It's the same formula used at Canyon Ranch and other similarly pricey wellness retreats frequented by celebs.

But say you're not ready to become a reality "star" and don't have much dough. It's not a problem if you have a spare week of vacation time, says registered dietitian Felicia Stoler, host of the TLC reality show "Honey We're killing the Kids." Don't head to the beach, where you're more likely to burn your skin than calories, she says.

Instead, she encourages her clients in New Jersey to spend seven days focusing on their health.

It's a twist on the staycation, the idea of using free time to savor your hometown.

Instead of sightseeing, you'll explore how to build more physical activity into your daily life and figure out smarter ways to shop for groceries and plan meals. It's unlikely you'll lose 10 pounds in a week like they do on TV. but by getting a jump-start on an exercise routine in your own neighborhood and cooking in your own kitchen, you're setting yourself up to continue these behaviors even when real life kicks in again.

If you're not dropping $100 or more a night on a hotel room, you can probably afford visits from a pro each day: a personal trainer, a chef, a nutritionist, a psychologist, a masseuse. Those services might seem extravagant, but they won't be pampering as much as pushing you toward healthier habits, and helping you work through obstacles.

The key is remembering that you need to make these changes part of your regular routine, says physician Arthur Frank, founder and co-director of the George Washington University Weight Management Program. "A week of working out is essentially useless unless you can continue it," he says.

And without a real itinerary, you could fall into the trap of snacking to alleviate boredom. "Most people do well much of the day until it becomes unstructured," Frank says.

Unlike other vacations that end with you feeling bloated and bleary-eyed, when this week is up, "you'll have this glow," Stoler says.

Before the week begins, you'll want to hammer out your itinerary, says Lisa Himmelfarb, a Washington-based social worker who specializes in weight management. Instead of hotel reservations, consider snagging spots in yoga and cycling classes. Schedule appointments with trainers and other experts ahead of time. and just like you'd hunt for a new bathing suit if you were headed to the beach, splurge on your exercise wardrobe and gear.

Just remember to know your workout limits: Check with your doctor before going from zero to 60, and be careful in the heat.

In seven days, retool your body and mind

DAY 1 Clean the kitchen. Dietitian and TV host Felicia Stoler commands you to find your trigger foods and dump them. While you're at it, reorganize to make sure your healthiest food is the most accessible, at eye level, and easy to pop in your mouth.

Pull out measuring cups and spoons to encourage you to dole out exact portion sizes rather than eyeballing them.

Exercise without watching the clock. if time constraints are your standard excuse for not working out enough, spend an hour or two on what you wish you could do regularly. (Don't have a clue? Consult with a personal trainer for a starter routine.)

Write it all down. Luci Gabel, a Washington-based personal trainer and wellness consultant, encourages clients to keep a log of their thoughts, daily diet and problems. For this week (instead of a journal), start keeping track through nightly postcards. You can send them to yourself at the end of the week, so you'll have a reminder once you're back to work.

DAY 2Go on a supermarket sweep. Wind your way through each aisle, examine nutrition labels, linger in the produce section and squeeze an unfamiliar veggie or two. if you live near a farmers market, that's worth a visit too, Stoler says. and bring home a few bags of healthful souvenirs.

Walk it out. even if you're sore from yesterday, that shouldn't keep you from engaging in the simplest and best forms of exercise. Grab a water bottle and see how far you can go.

Now you're cooking. Crack open those bags from this morning's shopping trip, and whip up something you've never made before.

DAY 3Change it up. Sample a form of exercise you've never tried. maybe it's those cannonball-like weights with handles, called kettlebells, at the gym. maybe it's a water aerobics class. You might just stumble on a new regular routine.

Plan a field trip. Spend the next few hours doing something you love, whether it's visiting museums or researching your family history. It'll improve your spirit, says George Washington University weight-management expert Arthur Frank, who adds that improved mental health can boost your physical health.

DAY 4Stretch your limits. Hone that mind-body connection with a yoga class. It'll feel mighty good after using those muscles the day before.

Take a hike. or a bike. or a swim. do something that reminds you how enjoyable moving your body can be.

Don't forget to pack a healthy picnic.

DAY 5 Master the music. The right tunes can energize you or help you calm down, so spend some time assembling personalized playlists. Then test out your cardio soundtrack with a workout to see how motivating your selections are.

Sample swaps. Figure out how to satisfy your favorite food cravings with less fat and fewer calories. For Stacey Capers, a Washington mom who appeared on "The biggest Loser," it's been easy to do: "If we have a hankering for French fries, I get sweet potatoes, and we bake them," she says.

Get off the couch. No plopping down and watching TV after dinner tonight. Clear the table, lace up your sneakers, and go for an evening stroll.

DAY 6 Think ahead. take stock of what you've done in terms of exercise and what you'd like to do when "reality" returns. what fitness classes fit into your work schedule? could you bike to the office? "Give it a trial run so that there are no unknowns to it," Lisa Himmelfarb says.

Prepare in advance. hopefully, you've figured out a few quick recipes you can throw together no matter how busy you are. but it can't hurt to have a few meals in the freezer ready to go. Himmelfarb says it can be more fun to plan a party around it. if your friends dig the idea, you could even set up a regular monthly date, like a book club, to prep food.

DAY 7 Finish the week with one last workout without worrying about what time it is.

But you do have another important appointment today: the spa. Gabel says there's nothing quite like a post-workout massage: "It just feels like you've earned it so much more," she says. A bubble bath at home isn't a bad idea either.

I had finished examining the female ward of the Sarojini Nagar Community Health Centre in Lucknow. Just as I was leaving the ward, my eye caught the form of a woman on a bed at the far end of the room. I don't know what it was that made me turn back.

She was lying with a 'dupatta' (long stole) wrapped around her head that partly covered her face. An elderly woman was sitting by her side. "What did she get?" I asked. All the beds were occupied by women with their newborns. I tried to spot the little bundle by her side but could not. "Bachcha mar gaya (The child died)," the elderly woman said softly. The 'dupatta' covered head turned in my direction. I saw a pair of shy eyes looking at me. a small crowd had collected around the bed. I was flanked by the young woman duty doctor and an earnest looking man, the Medical Officer. a little stir in the crowd marked the entry of the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of Lucknow, a middle-aged man whose raw silk shirt stood out in the world of uniforms.

"When did she come in?" I asked. There was silence. I asked for her register. someone handed me a sheaf of papers. I read that she had come in the previous night at 10 pm. The record of the case stated 'Intra Uterine Death'. Time of death was recorded as 7.45 am. "What stage was the pregnancy?" I asked. someone in the crowd muttered, "Six months."

I suddenly realised then that I was talking about a human being lying right before my eyes and it shamed me that we were talking above her head. "Are you her mother or mother-in-law?" I asked the older woman accompanying her. "Mother," she replied. "How many months?" I asked. "It was her ninth," was her reply. I then learnt from her that the girl was Reshma, 20 years of age, married to one Harish Yadav from the nearby village of Anaura.

I directed my next question to the duty doctor. she quickly said that she was not on duty at the time of her admission. "But now you are. Do you know this case?" I asked. There was silence. "When did you stop feeling the baby's movement?" I wanted to know from Reshma. The duty doctor supplemented my queries; she obviously had not found out on her own. "During the day there was no movement, only pain. so I came to the hospital at night," replied the young woman. I then asked her how many check-ups she had had, she replied that she had undergone three check-ups at this very facility and was told that everything was normal.

Then she added, "This was my second pregnancy. I have a girl at home. this was ... a boy." I touched the 'dupatta' covered head. I wanted to give some comfort. The crowd around me had grown. I then asked the CMO whether verbal autopsy was done there. he did not reply. I am sure he realised the import of my query but what I really wanted was to offer something concrete to this 20-year-old who had just lost her child.

"Reshma, we have just approved a 'yojana' (scheme) for new mothers; it will benefit girls like you, yes even if the child does not survive," I told the young woman. Even as I spoke I realised the futility of my words for someone who was wrapped in her grief. How long will it take before this scheme becomes mainstream in Primary Health Centres in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, one of India's poorest states, to say nothing of backward districts like Gonda, Shravasti or Ghazipur?

While glancing at Reshma's case sheet, my eye caught a line scribbled in the corner: 'Body of male child handed to parents at 7:45 am'. I felt my eyes stinging with tears. Hiding my emotions I turned to the doctors and staff. "Remember the name Indira Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojana. Make sure you implement it in the spirit in which it was conceived," I told them. Only recently in the Planning Commission we had approved the scheme and very carefully kept the provision of including mothers who had experienced stillbirths.

I had gone to Lucknow on August 18, to attend a Consultation organised by the Population Foundation of India (PFI) on Health, Population and Social Development in North Central States, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. The PFI was founded by Mr J.R.D. Tata and Dr Bharat Ram in 1970 as industry's effort to look at issues of population stabilisation. this was the third and last Regional Consultation - the earlier ones had been held at Bhubaneswar and Pune. All day we had discussed what the states were doing in this regard and what industry and civil society were offering. during presentations and discussions, it was clear that population stabilisation depended crucially on our ability to ensure the survival of the newborn. For achieving that, one had to begin with girl child survival, her nutrition, education, age at marriage, first pregnancy, ante-natal and post-natal care and the spacing of the children.

But Reshma of Anaura village had no idea that these were the essential ingredients of motherhood.

Feroz Abbas Khan's film, 'Hauley Hauley' (Slowly, Slowly), produced by PFI, transposes these concepts on to the canvas of life. I saw it at the end of my day in Lucknow. If only the millions of young people in this country could see this fine delineation of harmony and happiness in families that comes from according primacy to women and the girl child within society.

But Reshma, who was never taught to value herself, will now return home unhappy, unwell, unwelcome. she gave birth to a dead male child. she somehow bears the blame for that. The only way she can exonerate herself is to once again go through the ordeal and ensure that a male heir is born alive.

And thus the cycle goes on. Our policies will have to strategically change this reality by taking within their ambit the many Reshmas in the country and their families.

(The writer is a Member of thePlanning Commission.)

Womens Feature Service covers developmental, political, social and economic issues in India and around the globe. To get these articles for your publication, contact WFS at the wfsnews.org website.

Tags: pregnancy, death, infant, boy, Yojana, girls, women, population stabilization 

A humanitarian aid team from Glasgow City Council has left for Africa to help build a new Prosthetics and Orthotics Centre.

The centre will be based at Kamuzu Central Hospital and is championed by former Evening Times Scotswoman of the Year Olivia Giles and her 500 Miles Charity. Olivia, a former lawyer, lost her limbs to meningitis.

The 17-strong team, made up of staff from the Lord Provost and International Office, City Building LLP, Access LLP and Glasgow Life, will fly out as part of Lord Provost, Bob Winter’s Malawi Fund, and work on medical and educational projects.

Over 16 days, the City Building team will work in soaring temperatures to erect a new prosthetics and orthotics clinic from timber kits. the clinic will help people with false limbs and who need help with their arms and legs.

The kits are manufactured by Glasgow-based Royal Strathclyde Blindcraft Industries, which is owned by City Building. two giant containers loaded with the building materials and tools needed to build the clinic have already arrived, and from yesterday, the team began working with local people to construct the new facility which will help manufacture and fit prosthetic limbs.

The World Health Organisation estimates around 60,000 people in Malawi could use prosthetic and orthotic services.

The Lord Provost said: “This project is transforming lives. we and our partners are proud to be part of something so life changing and practical and its success is proof of the benefits of true partnership working. Our staff and those from City Building and Access, some of whom are returning to Malawi, are helping improve the opportunities and life chances of the entire population – young and old. I know the work that has been carried out so far has had a really beneficial impact.

“They travel with the best wishes of the people of Glasgow.”

Olivia Giles said: “It is truly fantastic that the Lord Provost of Glasgow and City Building Glasgow have once again stepped right up to deliver a new larger facility to a higher specification just a short distance away on the same hospital site and to help convert the existing building into an office and dormitories.”

The 10-man City Building team, made up of joiners, service engineers and electricians, will work in soaring temperatures to construct the building which will help around 40 patients per month.

Alan Burns, 35, of City Building is overseeing the construction of the centre. he said: “the team is really looking forward to the trip. City Building has been involved in Malawi for four years now and we have forged a relationship with the people and the country.

“This will be our third trip, and this year we will be bringing along three of our new trainees.

“It is a great opportunity for them to really make a difference to other communities.

“It will be challenge delivering a project like this in just 16 days but it will be worth the effort.”

Cow's milk and newborns. Is it essential? A study suggesting that a deadly cow's milk protein allergy can be avoided by feeding newborns cow's milk formula once a day in their first two weeks of life seems to think so. 

Cheers and jeers on this revelation. Of course no one wants a child to have a deadly allergy. But are there other options? What could it do to the worthy cause of exclusive breastfeeding? What about the the delicate flora of a newborn's intestinal system?

Plenty of well-known medical powerhouses such as the CDC and the World Health Organization have said that absolutely nothing should be given to babies in their first 6 months of life other than breast milk, and that failure to do so results in more than 900 preventable infant deaths a year. With that in mind, this new suggestion has infant health and breastfeeding advocates baffled.

We're trying figure out how destroying "The Virgin Gut" and risking a multitude of problems, like an increased risk of SIDS and leukemia or supply issues and nipple confusion (which could lead to breastfeeding failure), is worth avoiding one allergy to cow's milk -- a pain in the butt and terrible allergy, sure, but an allergy from something people don't even need.

Cow's milk proteins already pass through breast milk, as anyone who has had to cut out eating and drinking any dairy (including casein and whey) for their lactose-sensitive or intolerant baby knows all too well. Wouldn't it make more sense to have breastfeeding moms drink milk to pass down these proteins instead?

Moms who formula feed in the newborn stage can and should celebrate the results of this study. Having a potential medical benefit to formula-feeding is good news!

For those who don't require formula, though, I wish they'd have mentioned -- if they even acknowledged in their questionable study -- that the incredibly long list of downsides of this method are so much more significant than the single benefit, and people should absolutely not rush out to buy formula for their newborn.

What do you think about this study?

Image via carsonsmommytam/Cafemom

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Sources:

aad.org/public/publications/pamphlets/skin_dry.html

Nili, a. "Keratosis pilaris." September 2008. emedicine.medscape.com

Data on File.  Upsher-Smith Laboratories, inc.

Scotland's Housing Expo is intended to showcase the best in design and sustainability, hence the low energy costs. that an international-quality exhibition of this sort is in Inverness rather than London or Edinburgh is - well - nothing short of astonishing.

I've been to the expo. twice. if you haven't been yet, I'd suggest you get your backside along there sharpish, because it's only open until the end of this month. I think it really is well worth seeing.

Unless you're a wheelchair user, of course, in which case you only get to see half the show. Most of the houses have stairs. The main living area is upstairs in several. and not a stair-lift in sight. Disability Discrimination Act... what Disability Discrimination Act?

Let's get the rest of the bad news out of the way first.

Not all the houses are finished. One only has a basic frame. The interiors of some haven't been complete and neither has some of the landscaping. It's pretty poor and - you'd have to think - very embarrassing for Highland Housing Alliance whose brainchild the expo is.

There are mitigating circumstances though.

The economic downturn was accompanied by house prices dropping thought the floor. The expo was originally supposed to go ahead last year, but had to be postponed because of the financial crisis.

Then there was our recent winter, the harshest and lengthiest in over 30 years. It must have knocked the building programme for six.

However, the poor state of readiness is but a minor quibble when compared to the eye-opener the event is. It is, quite simply, a breath of fresh air.

It's entirely different from the standard new housing schemes we're used to seeing. instead of dozens of identical little boxes pretending to be traditional houses, you are faced with all sorts of different, modern, interesting house designs.

There is also an interesting social mix within the expo area. forty per cent of the houses are affordable and for sale or rental (the remaining 60 per cent are, presumably, unaffordable). It will be an area where rich and poor and old and young live side by side.

There's a "village green" with giant chess sets and marble benches and a children's play area. It's got a relaxed and friendly feel. As my daughter and I walked onto the site for my second visit of the week (her first), she said, "wow, I really feel I could live here!"

The houses are interesting, though not as different from each other as you might expect.

There's a lot of glass to provide passive solar heating. and, though the houses have been designed by individual architects, there are several features which are replicated in many of them.

Galleries in upstairs rooms overlooking downstairs areas are very popular. High ceilings and ceiling-to-floor windows seem to be the go, and little ankle-height lights appear on many of the staircases.

I particularly liked "The Gem" by Invergordon architect Trevor Black and my daughter's favourite was Bracewell Stirling's "The Modular House".

David Blakie's "Lios Gorm" for Albyn Housing Association is also well worth seeing, proving that low-cost housing doesn't have to be dull housing.

So will Highland Council's planning department, wedded as it is to replicating the traditional Highland cottage over and over again, give you planning permission to build any of these unashamedly modern houses on your site?

I suspect not. My guess is that the planners only allowed these designs because they were part of the Expo.

You and I will still be on a hiding to nothing if we want to build anything that isn't terminally boring.

But I'd love to be proved wrong.