Countdown to Philly! Friday, February 24, 2012
Posted by savvyconsumer in LifeSmarts, Lisa Hertzberg.add a comment
By Lisa Hertzberg, LifeSmarts Program Director
It’s a busy time for all things LifeSmarts. Online competitions are still open in a few states through this weekend, state competitions are in full-swing (good luck to all of our teams competing this month and next), and we are counting down to nationals (59 days to Philly!).
I had the opportunity to attend the Wisconsin state LifeSmarts competition a couple of weeks ago. Seeing my first live competition of the year reminded me just why this program is such a winner. Students were attending from all corners of Wisconsin. Competition was strong, but sportsmanship ruled the day (the two final teams shook hands and congratulated one another while awaiting the judges’ scores on their final activity), and the adult coordinators, volunteers, and coaches supported the teams and cheered for everyone as the students demonstrated their consumer smarts.
I was recently explaining the impetus for the LifeSmarts program and I mentioned that LifeSmarts was the “carrot” or fun element to encourage students to learn as much about real-world consumer issues as they could while still in High School. Watching the Wisconsin competitors reminded me that LifeSmarts does exactly that – spices up consumer education and teaches us all something in the process.
How did the Wisconsin state competition turn out? As is often the case, the state championship went down to the wire – the top two teams were tied with only the team activity to go. By knowing more about deficiency diseases, the Oconto team bested Westfield by 10 points to win the state title.
It was a great day, and it got me jazzed up for Nationals! I hope to see you there.
AFL-CIO negotiates a great contract for hotel workers in New York Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Posted by savvyconsumer in worker's rights issues.Tags: AFL-CIO, contract negotiations, hotel workers, panic button, unions
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By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director
I was delighted recently to read some good news about hotel housekeepers in New York City, who were very ably represented by the AFL-CIO in recent negotiations. Hotel housekeepers will be getting raises – some will be making up to $59,000 a year – with full medical and dental benefits, no co-pays, and generous pension contributions. Representatives from the hotel industry observed that while their profits are not so fat, they are doing well enough to share the wealth with the workers. Many have rooms booked out at reasonably high rates and have had very good returns all last year.
By all accounts, the negotiations were fair and amicable. The icing on the cake is that these hotel maids – who suffer a lot of pulled muscles and other maladies related to lifting mattresses, moving heavy furniture while vacuuming and cleaning bathrooms – – are also subject to sexual come-ons from hotel guests who are often in a position corner these hotel workers and take advantage of them. In response, these hotel workers will be getting a “panic button” they can use in the event a guest tries to take advantage of them. Most hotels in New York City are organized. This was good news indeed.
A public health victory and challenge Thursday, February 16, 2012
Posted by savvyconsumer in food and nutrition, Teresa Green.Tags: american diet, health, sodium intake, trans fat
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By Teresa Green, Linda Golodner Food Safety & Nutrition Fellow
Finally! There is some good news about the way that Americans are eating. The CDC announced recently that blood levels of trans-fats decreased by 58% between 2000 and 2008. This reduction means that Americans are consuming far less trans-fats than they were 10 years ago.
Why this dramatic change? One reason is that FDA began requiring trans-fat labeling on foods in 2003. Because the fat had garnered a nasty reputation for causing heart disease, many food producers reformulated their products so that they now contain less trans-fat. Additionally, some local governments, such as New York City, put limits on the use of trans-fats in cooking at restaurants.
What this dramatic reduction proves is that government regulations, in this case food labeling, work. Despite the good news about trans-fats, there are still many areas of the American diet which could use improvement, and salt consumption is chief among them.
As we’ve mentioned before, the government recommends that Americans consume only 2300 mg of sodium per day. For African Americans, those with chronic health conditions and those who are 51 year older and above, that recommended level is even lower at 1500 mg per day. The average American consumes around 3300 mg of sodium per day, far outstripping even the most generous recommendations.
One of the reasons that Americans consume so much sodium is that it has become ubiquitous in processed and restaurant foods. It is often present at much higher levels than the average consumer would assume. Bread, for example, is the number one source of sodium in the American diet, according to the CDC. Many consumers may not be aware that they are consuming large amounts of sodium when they eat a slice of bread.
As the case of trans-fats suggests, government oversight is likely to be the most effective vehicle for reducing sodium intake. One such type of enforcement would be to regulate the amount of sodium allowed in foods, based on category appropriate guidelines which account for naturally occurring sodium. By limiting the amount of sodium, the government would protect consumers and encourage companies to reformulate their products so that they contain less sodium.
The reduction of trans-fat in the American diet is a public health victory but we shouldn’t stop there. Going forward, reducing sodium consumption to the recommended levels should be one of public health’s top priorities.
Give your Valentine the gift of a healthier ‘Future’ Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Posted by savvyconsumer in health, Script Your Future.Tags: american heart month, Valentine's Day
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Did you know cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, with one in every three deaths caused by heart disease or stroke—2,200 American deaths each day? With heart health in the spotlight in February for American Heart Month, consumer health advocates are saying there’s never been a better time for individuals to recognize the leading cause of death in America and give the gift of education, prevention, and treatment to their loved ones this Valentine’s Day.
This Valentine’s Day, NCL and its Script Your Future campaign are calling on consumers to bypass the box of chocolates or bouquet of flowers in favor of the much more meaningful gift of a pledge to a healthier future, achieved through the close monitoring of chronic conditions, taking medications as directed, and engaging in productive two-way dialogue with health care professionals.
Script Your Future is challenging consumers to give the gift of a healthier future to their special someone this year. Script Your Future offers many ways to help loved ones stay on top of their new commitment to health and well-being:
- Take the pledge to take medication as directed as a first step to a healthier life in 2012. Take the pledge for yourself, or create one for your Valentine here.
- Download a medication wallet card to help keep track of medication(s) and get useful questions and conversation starters for your health care professional. Sit down with your Valentine and fill out the wallet card with your medicines, dosages, and refill dates together.
- Sign up for free text message medication reminders at ScriptYourFuture.org. You set the start date, time, and frequency of dosages.
- Commit to engage in conversations about medication with health care professionals during doctor visits and at the pharmacy. Talk to your Valentine about your health concerns, and take advantage of sample questions for health care professionals, and videos and fact sheets on common chronic conditions at ScriptYourFuture.org.
Birth control and the Obama Administration Monday, February 13, 2012
Posted by savvyconsumer in health, Sally Greenberg.Tags: contraceptives, health insurance, President Obama, women's health
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By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director
This has been a tumultuous week for the politics surrounding women and their reproductive choices. We support women’s right to reproductive health care as an overall good practice for women’s health. Providing women access to birth control should not be a political issue, though it seems to be. Contraception has proven health benefits both for women and their children. Controlling the frequency of pregnancies can prevent a range of complications that can endanger a woman’s health, including gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, and placental problems, among others. Also, women who wait for a period of time after delivery to conceive again lower the risk of adverse perinatal outcomes, including low birth weight, pre-term birth, and small-for-size gestational age. Contraception means healthier mothers and families.
Ninety-eight percent of sexually active women in the United States, regardless of their religious beliefs, use contraception at some point in their lives. This includes Catholic women and women working in the Catholic institutions that are seeking an exemption from having to provide contraceptive services to employees. While we can respect that the Bishops and others who run these religious institutions have strong religious convictions, this shouldn’t be about the institution, it should be first and foremost focused on the health of the women they insure, who, by the way, pay a lot of out-of-pocket money for their own health care and deserve access to the same services everyone else receives. It seems the Obama Administration has arrived at a satisfactory compromise.
And since many women skip such preventive health care due to cost, it’s vital that we ensure that this contraceptive care be affordable. NCL supports women’s access to basic health care services, including access to birth control – and we support HHS’s determination that these services be available without a co-pay or deductible, regardless of where women work.
Just Label It! Americans have the right to know what’s in their food Thursday, February 9, 2012
Posted by savvyconsumer in food and nutrition, Teresa Green.Tags: food safety, genetically modified food, Just Label It, nutrition
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By Teresa Green, Linda Golodner Food Safety & Nutrition Fellow
Here at NCL we believe that consumers have a basic right to know what is in their food. Knowing what’s in your food means you can make informed choices about what to eat and what to avoid, a right that is fundamental. Unfortunately, this still isn’t possible in some cases.
Enter genetically engineered (GE) foods. Some see GE foods as “frankenfoods,” a dangerous scientific development that can put our health at risk. Others see GE foods as the only answer to feeding a growing world population. Regardless of where you stand on the issue, most people agree about one thing; People have the right to decide whether or not they eat GE foods.
NCL agrees with the 93% of American consumers who say that they want genetically engineered foods to be labeled. The right to choose what you and your family put in your bodies is a basic one. Without labels, it’s impossible to avoid genetically engineered foods unless you eat only organic foods, which not every family wants or can afford to do. Labels would allow consumers to make informed choices about whether or not to feed their family a certain food. Nearly 50 countries, including the European Union, Australia, Brazil, and China, already have law mandating the labeling of GE foods.
NCL has joined with more than 450 other organizations as part of the Just Label It campaign to urge the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to mandate the labeling of GE foods. The campaign has issued a petition urging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to require that all genetically engineered foods be clearly labeled. So far, more than 600,000 people have signed on to the petition.
If you believe that consumers have the right to both know what is in their food and choose what they consume, add your signature to the Just Label It petition and urge the FDA to mandate labeling of GE foods!
NCL joins ThinkB4U digital literacy partnership Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Posted by savvyconsumer in fraud, John Breyault, LifeSmarts.Tags: Common Sense Media, ConnectSafely, Google, Safer Internet Day, ThinkB4U.com
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By John Breyault, Vice President of Public Policy, Telecommunications and Fraud
In recognition of Safer Internet Day, NCL is proud to announce a new consumer education partnership with Common Sense Media, ConnectSafely, and Google. The centerpiece of the campaign is a new digital literacy education Web site – ThinkB4U.com – that seeks to educate students, parents and educators about the importance of making the right decisions online.
ThinkB4U.com presents consumers with digital literacy information in a fun and interactive “choose your own adventure” style the follows the Parkers, a fictional family, as they navigate the complex always-connected digital world. As someone who grew up loving the “choose your own adventure” books (especially the Time Machine series), I was thrilled to work with some great partner organizations on this project.
ThinkB4U.com covers a range of digital literacy topics areas. Through original interactive videos, the members of the Parker family deal with the need to disconnect from the Internet, spotting and avoiding Internet scams, smart sharing online, and cyberbullying, among others issues. The decisions they have to make to stay safe and responsible online are likely to be familiar to anyone who spends time online.
NCL, through our Fraud Center and LifeSmarts programs contributed expert advice and consumer education content to the site. In addition to the videos, this content is made available through easy-to-remember tips that anyone viewing the site can access.
If you haven’t yet done so, surf on over to www.ThinkB4U.com and check out this great new resources!
Super Bowl to be held in America’s newest right-to-work (for less) state: Indiana Saturday, February 4, 2012
Posted by savvyconsumer in Sally Greenberg, state issues, worker's rights issues.Tags: NFL Players Association, right to work, Super Bowl
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By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director
Ironically the state of Indiana, whose legislators just adopted a so called “right-to-work” (should be called “right to work for less”) law, is hosting the Super Bowl tomorrow. It’s ironic because, not so long ago, NFL owners were threatening to lock out the football players. Owners wanted more games from the players and less sharing of the profits. Months ago, I attended a press conference hosted by the NFL players union, which argued forcefully on behalf of the players and was ultimately able to win rights and protections for players. The union made it possible not only for players to preserve rights but also made it possible for management and labor to come to a mutually satisfactory agreement and keep the season moving forward. So the season ensued, and now millions of football fans will be able to watch Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis.
What’s a right-to-work law anyway? Well, unions are legally required to equally represent all employees covered by a contract, whether or not they pay a cent in union fees. That representation includes contract negotiations and arbitration over grievances (in fact, unions sometimes go out of their way to pursue cases on behalf of critics, lest they file charges against the union). Barring unions from requiring employees to pay fees for these costs is an effective way to defund them and that is what right-to-work laws are intended to do.
I personally would have liked to see the NFL players union refuse to play in Indiana after it enacted this odious, anti-worker law. It could have been a great teaching moment, i.e., what is a right-to-work law and why is it anti-worker? In fairness, the National Football League Players’ Association did express strong objections to the law, but refusing to play would have really made Americans stand up and notice.
Right-to-work laws now exist in 23 states. According to the Economic Policy Institute, right-to-work laws don’t do what proponents say they do: help create jobs and raise wages. Instead, right-to-work laws reduce wages by an average of $1,500 a year, lower the likelihood that union and non-union employees receive health care coverage or pensions through their jobs, and have no positive impact on job growth in states that adopt them.
Indiana’s law new law is a sad development and aggressively anti-union. If only the millions of football fans knew what an important role the NFL players union played in negotiating a settlement on behalf of the workers – the football teams in this case – and got the players back on the field so we can all enjoy the Super Bowl Sunday night.
Serve up union-made goodies for the big game Friday, February 3, 2012
Posted by savvyconsumer in food and nutrition.Tags: Super Bowl, union-made
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With the Super Bowl nearly upon us, a lot of us are thinking about all fun food we get to indulge in at our Super Bowl parties. Everything from chips and dip to hotdogs and beer, Americans have a good time while watch the big game.
This year, with a near constant battle against unions, we look to include union-made products at our party. That list is a bit longer than one would suspect, especially with the pervasive assumption that nothing is made in the USA anymore. Consider serving some of these union-made items at your Super Bowl party.
| Snacks | Hot dogs | Beers |
| Doritos | Oscar Meyer | Anheuser Busch |
| Lays | Nathan’s | Budweiser |
| Crunch & Munch | Hebrew National | Busch |
| Corn Nuts | Ball Park | Icehouse |
| Oreos | Hormel | Labatt’s Blue |
| Ghirardelli Chocolate | Leinenkugel’s | |
| Kraft snack products | Sausages & Brats | Michelob |
| Wise snacks | Johnsonville | Miller |
| Snyder of Berlin | Armour | Molson |
| Planter’s Nuts | Eckrich | Pabst |
| Condiments | Poultry | Soft drinks |
| Heinz ketchup | Butterball | Coke products |
| French’s mustard | Healthy Choice | |
| Gulden’s mustard | Hormel | Juices |
| Land O’Lakes butter | Tyson | Welch’s |
| Open Pitt BBQ sauces | Minute Maid | |
| Pace salsa & picante sauce | ||
| Vlasic pickles |
When the big game is over or at halftime, why not take a few minutes and work off some of those calories and play catch with the same company’s game balls used in the Super Bowl – Wilson union-made footballs.
