According to a poll, most patients never talk about price when getting a drug prescription from their doctor. This means that very few confront the actual price of their drugs before it's time to pay at the pharmacy.

Consumers Union is urging doctors and patients to factor in the price of drugs when deciding on treatments. The group notes that generics are in many cases just as effective and safe, for the fraction of the price.

The poll of roughly 2,000 adults showed that just 4 percent discussed price when getting a drug prescription from their doctor.

Folks, that’s a whopping 96 percent of prescription recipients who have not discussed the cost of the prescribed drug with their doctor. It’s rare to find a health market statistic so overwhelmingly one-sided.

Patrick Ritchie is the author of The Credit Road Map, an in-depth look into how the credit world works. In the interview linked below, he discusses credit ratings, identity theft, and productivity.

According to Ritchie, the main reasons to have a good credit rating are to borrow money or to seek employment. Employers, more and more, are looking at credit reports as a judge of character in the hiring process. In a tight job market, it literally can pay to have a better credit report than the next applicant.

To improve your credit, the single most important aspect is to understand what is going on in the credit report. There are five factors that go into calculating your credit score:

1. Payment History: 35 percent
2. Balances 30 percent
3. Inquiries and New Debt: 10 percent
4. Types of Credit: 10 percent
5. Length of History: 15 percent

With these set of factors the ideal account would be a major credit card (Types of Credit) always paid on-time (Payment), with a balance under 50 percent of the available limit (Balances) that you’ve had open for over seven years (Length of History).

For more insights, a giant helping of useful advice, you can click on the link below.

An article by J.B. Williams in the Canadian Free Press paints a stark portrait of the actions of the current U.S. government -- actions that have been met with silence by the bulk of the U.S. populace.

According to Williams, “After trillions in taxpayer debt has been foolishly poured into the bottomless black hole ... Geithner asks Congress for even broader power to seize private firms as the average American stumbles through their daily routine as if nothing is happening.”

He notes that the new administration has taken the nation from a trillion in debt to over $4 trillion in debt in the first sixty days, with even more federal spending promised.

“I don’t know what it will take to wake up the average American,” writes Williams, “but whatever it is, it hasn’t happened yet.”

For some allergy sufferers, the neti pot, a nasal irrigator that resembles a small teapot, has become an alternative remedy. Several recent studies have found that nasal irrigation can reduce symptoms of allergies and other nasal problems.

One benefit is that irrigation can clear nasal passages without dryness or “rebound” congestion, which occurs when overuse of decongestants leads to dependence and irritated tissue.

In one study, researchers examined a group of children with severe allergies. They found that regular nasal irrigation with a mild saline solution significantly eased symptoms and helped reduce the need for steroid nasal sprays. Another study looked at adults with chronic nasal and sinus problems. Over two months, the scientists found that those treated with nasal irrigation reported greater improvements than those treated with a spray.

People who take aspirin, or similar medications that prevent blood clotting by inhibiting the accumulation of platelets, appear more likely to have tiny, asymptomatic areas of bleeding in the brain.

These cerebral microbleeds can be a sign of cerebral small-vessel disease. This condition occurs when the walls of blood vessels in the brain become weakened. When microbleeds occur in certain brain areas, they can indicate a type of small vessel disease known as cerebral amyloid angiopathy, in which the accumulation of amyloid -- a protein often associated with Alzheimer's disease -- causes degeneration of smooth muscle cells and increases the susceptibility of blood vessels to ruptures and hemorrhages.

Scientists investigated the relationship between cerebral microbleeds and the use of anti-clotting medications in more than 1,000 individuals. Participants underwent magnetic resonance imaging examinations, and pharmacy records were used to assess whether any of the individuals took anti-clotting drugs. Those who took aspirin or carbasalate calcium were more likely to have cerebral microbleeds visible on MRI.

The new science of epigenetics explains how genes can be modified by the environment. A prime result of epigenetic inquiry has just been revealed -- a research report shows that rat fetuses receiving poor nutrition in the womb become genetically primed to be born into a nutrition-poor environment.

As a result of this genetic adaptation, the rats were likely to grow to smaller sizes, and they were also at higher risk for a host of health problems throughout their lives, such as diabetes, growth retardation, cardiovascular disease, obesity, and neurodevelopmental delays.

Although the study involved rats, the genes and cellular mechanisms involved are the same as those in humans.

Failure to control type 2 diabetes may have a long-term impact on your brain.

Severe hypoglycemic episodes occur when blood sugar levels drop dangerously low. A research team found that they may lead to poorer memory and diminished brain power.

More than 1,000 volunteers with type 2 diabetes completed seven tests assessing mental abilities such as memory, logic and concentration. The 113 people who had previously experienced severe hypoglycemic episodes scored lower than the rest of the group.

They performed poorly in tests of their general mental ability and vocabulary.

Ray Kurzweil, inventor and technology theorist, foresees a future in which advances in nanotechnology, genetics, and robotics provide immortality, clean free energy, and a completely new definition of mobility.

In the fascinating interview linked below, Kurzweil predicts that a good deal of actual transportation will be replaced with the ability to meet in virtual reality. He argues that ultimately, virtual reality will be extremely realistic and incorporate all of the senses. By 2030, it might be possible to send an information file that will “print” it out in three dimensions, creating virtually any three-dimensional object -- such as a computer, a solar panel, a module to build housing, food, or clothing. This could replace most of the transportation needed to ship products.

Kurzweil is also looking forward to high-resolution image beamers in glasses that beam images directly to the retina, and not long after, in-brain nanobots that create full-immersion virtual-reality environments from within the nervous system.

To read more about the future of transportation, and how little it may resemble what that word means today, click the link below.

According to a recent study, 75 percent of Americans do not get enough Vitamin D. A vitamin D deficiency can negatively impact immune function and cardiovascular health, and increase cancer risk.

Now, a nutritional sciences researcher has found that vitamin D deficiency is associated with inflammation, a negative response of the immune system, in healthy women. Increased concentrations of serum TNF-α, an inflammatory marker, were found in women who had insufficient vitamin D levels. This study is the first to find such a relationship in a healthy, non-diseased population.

This could explain the vitamin's role in the prevention and treatment of inflammatory diseases, including heart disease, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis.

A combination of capsaicin and green tea could promote the feeling of fullness and sustain satiety, according to a new study. Sweet pepper may also have a similar effect.

The results suggest that they could therefore be helpful in reducing energy intake to prevent weight gain, and could support weight loss by suppressing hunger.

Researchers recruited 27 people and randomized them to three weeks of negative energy balance (fewer calories consumed than used) and three weeks of positive energy balance (more calories consumed than used). During these periods ten separate test days were used to test the effects of capsaicin, green tea, sweet pepper, capsaicin plus green tea, or a placebo on appetite, energy intake, body weight and heart rate.

Only the CH-19 and the capsaicin plus green tea combinations produced a reduction in energy intake during the positive energy balance period. The combined supplement produced suppressed hunger and increased satiety.

The largest study of its kind has found that for most women, giving birth at home is as safe as doing so in hospital with a midwife.

The research found no difference in death rates of either mothers or babies in 530,000 births.

The research was carried out in the Netherlands after figures showed the country had one of the highest rates in Europe of babies dying during or just after birth. It was suggested that home births could be a factor, as Dutch women are encouraged to choose this option.

However, a comparison of "low-risk" women who planned to give birth at home with those who planned to give birth in hospital with a midwife found no difference in death or serious illness among either baby or mother.

Cases of oral allergies to fruit and vegetables are rapidly increasing, according to a specialist.

Dr. Pamela Ewan, an allergy consultant at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, England, said the rise in cases appears to be outstripping even peanut allergies. Dr. Ewan, who sees more than 8,000 people with allergies a year, said that most patients with reactions to fruit and vegetables were youngsters.

Symptoms can include swelling in the mouth and throat, and breathing difficulties.

A review of previously published studies suggests that vegetable and nut intake and a Mediterranean dietary pattern are associated with a lower risk for heart disease. However, intake of trans-fatty acids and simple carbohydrates may be harmful to heart health.

Researchers conducted a systematic search for articles investigating dietary factors in relation to heart disease published between 1950 and June 2007. A total of 189 studies were identified and included in the review.

Modest relationships were also found supporting a causal relationship between intake of several other foods and vitamins and reduced heart disease risk, including fish, omega-3 fatty acids from marine sources, folate, whole grains, alcohol, fruits, fiber and dietary vitamins E and C and beta carotene.

An astonishing experiment has shown that your mental state can actually change your effective age. Harvard psychologist Ellen Langer performed a study some years ago with a group of elderly men. She retrofitted an isolated old New England hotel so that every visible sign said it was 20 years earlier. The men were told not to reminisce about the past, but to actually act as if they had traveled back in time.

The findings were stunning -- after just one week, the men in the experimental group had more joint flexibility, increased dexterity and less arthritis in their hands. Their mental acuity had risen measurably, and they had improved gait and posture. Outsiders who were shown the men's photographs judged them to be significantly younger than the controls. In other words, the aging process had in some measure been reversed.

Langer’s theory, argued in her new book "Counterclockwise," is that everyone is a victim of their own stereotypes about aging and health. People mindlessly accept negative cultural cues about disease and old age, and these cues shape self-concepts and behavior.

You are surrounded every day by subtle signals that aging is an undesirable period of decline. These signals make it difficult to age gracefully. With a little mindfulness, you just might be able to reverse to process and wake up feeling 20 years younger.