Inside . . .

Heading offheadaches

There are many different approaches to nutrition,such as low-carb, low-fat and glycemic index,just to name a few. But it’s hard to know what’sthe best strategy for feeling and looking yourhealthy best. While a lot of these approaches canwork, a good, old-fashioned balanced diet withthoughtful food choices is an easy way to makenutrients work in your favor. All you need are afew helpful ideas to incorporate into your dailylifestyle and you’ll be well on your way to betterhealth. Set a goal today to make nutrition a toppriority by making smart choices that can boostyour vitality and longevity.

Get a Taste of HealthWhen you put good nutrition first, you’ll betreating yourself to increased energy, improvedmental alertness and optimal health.

Nutrition TipsYou have the power to make healthy nutritionchoices every day. Remember these basicbuilding blocks for taking care of your health:

• Drink enough water each day• Choose healthy snacks in 100-calorie or less

servings• Opt for healthy, low-fat meals at fast-food

restaurants • Check food labels for serving size/number of

servings and nutritional content • Use monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats

in your diet

Choices you can make every day:Go with the grain — when choosing grains, gowith whole grains, which are higher in nutritionand fiber and lower in fat than refined grains,such as white rice or white flour. A high-fiberdiet can help lower your risk of heart disease,cancer, diabetes and other disorders related toyour digestive system. Some good choicesinclude: bran flakes, oatmeal, whole-wheattoast, wild rice or barley, whole-grain breads,kasha and whole-wheat tortillas.

How to manage

stress

Actions speak louder than words

June 2007Consumer Markets

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas

A Division of Health Care Service Corporation, a Mutual Legal Reserve Company, an Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

Blue Messenger:

For Your HealthA newsletter designed and written for you - our member. We care about you.

The key to controlling asthma is knowing howto spot the early warning signs of an asthmaepisode. This is not always easy becausewarning signs are not the same for everyone andthey may change from episode to episode.Warning signs may include:

• Drop in your peak flow reading• Chronic cough, especially at night• Difficult or fast breathing• Feeling of chest tightness or discomfort• Becoming short of breath more easily than usual• Fatigue• Itchy, watery or glassy eyes• Itchy, scratchy or sore throat• Tendency to rub or stroke your throat• Sneezing• Sinus congestion• Headache, fever

• Restlessness• Runny nose• Flushed face• Dark circles under your eyes• Other symptoms identified by you and your

physician

These tips are intended as general informationonly. Please consult your physician for specificadvice.

Make nutrition your ambition

Continued below

Take control of your asthmaWarning signs of asthma episodes

The best of all possible

worlds

Coming soon…Blue Care®’

Connection

“Oh, my aching head!” It’s somethingall of us have felt at some point in ourlives when dealing with headache pain.An occasional headache is one thing,but the regular pain of unrelentingheadaches poses a tremendous burdenin terms of lost productivity andquality of life. Consider that headachedisorders currently affect two-thirds ofadult men and more than 80 percent ofwomen in developed countries, andfour to five percent of the generalpopulation suffer from chronic, dailyheadaches.*

Use your headLearning about the different types ofheadaches and getting treatment cango a long way in managing the painassociated with them. First of all,headache types can be divided intothree categories: tension, vascular andthose resulting from seriousconditions. Tension headaches accountfor about 80 percent of all headaches.Treated mostly with over-the-countermedications, people with tensionheadaches usually only see a doctorwhen they occur on a daily basis.Migraines and cluster headaches,which fall into the vascular headachecategory, can be extremely debilitating.

These types of headaches involveblood vessels and sometimes thenervous system. There are currently avariety of treatment options availablethrough your physician. Less than twopercent of symptoms fall into the thirdcategory of headaches, which includesmore serious maladies such as a braintumor or aneurysm. To rule out anypossibility of a serious condition, besure to contact your doctor right awayif your headache pattern or symptomschange or suddenly worsen.

Pain lesson

Want to take the pain out of yourheadaches? Follow these 10 steps: • Seek help and be a self-advocate.• Educate yourself about headaches

so you can better communicate withyour doctor.

• Visit a doctor who specializes inheadache treatment.

• Prepare for a dialogue with yourphysician by keeping a headachediary.

• Have reasonable expectationsabout treatment and be patientenough to see it through.

• Tell your doctor about anymedications you are taking andmedical or psychological conditionsyou may have.

• Focus on solutions and keep apositive attitude.

• Ask for detailed instructions fortaking medication, and follow them.

• Partner with your physician fortreatment success.

• Follow up regularly with yourphysician.

Heading off headaches

How to manage stressStress is a response brought about bychange, and it may include physicaland mental tension. Many daily lifeoccurrences can cause tension,including work pressures, financialworries and relationship problems.Muscle tension, headaches and illnesscan often be attributed to stress.

There are many ways to cope with,manage and even prevent stress:

• Recognizing that you are notresponsible for everything

• Balancing personal andprofessional issues

• Eating nutritionally balanced meals• Limiting the amount of life changes

at one time

These tips are intended as generalinformation only. Please consult yourphysician for specific advice.

* U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,National Headache Foundation

Healthy kids start with positive role modeling

It’s not always what you say but what youdo that gets kids’ attention. Do you insistthat they eat their green beans and notwatch too much TV while you regularlychug down soda and “veg out” in front ofthe TV for hours? Kids watch what we do,so setting a positive example is animportant action that parents can take tohelp children adopt healthy habits for alifetime.

Here are some healthy routines you canmodel at home:

• Buy and try new fruits and vegetables• Drink water between meals• Set an eating routine at home for meals

and snacks• Make a game of reading food labels• Plan physical activities that the family

enjoys like nature walks or bicycling

• Celebrate successes with praise, smilesand hugs rather than food

Another way to be a good role model is bylimiting portions and not overeating. Talkabout your feelings of fullness, especiallywith younger children. You can commenthow good the food is, and then let themknow you are full and are going to stopeating. And, repeal the clean plate rule.Children know when they are full. On theother hand, parents who are always dietingor complaining about their bodies mayfoster the same negative feelings inchildren. Try to keep a positive outlookabout food.

When it comes to being a good role modellet your actions speak for themselves. Yourchildren will be the healthier for it.

Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;American Heart Association

Wake up to breakfastWhen the alarm clock goes off, yourbody’s alarm also signals the need fornourishment. Make sure you refuel in themorning with a wholesome breakfast thatprovides complex carbohydrates, proteinand a small amount of fat—a combinationthat delays hunger symptoms for hours.Whether you opt for traditional fare, suchas yogurt, whole-grain muffins or ready-to-eat cereal, or less typical foods likeleftover vegetable pizza or a fruitsmoothie, you can get the nutrients andenergy you need to start your day.

Claim a healthy frame Calcium plays an important role inmaintaining bone. Calcium alone cannotprevent or cure osteoporosis, but it is animportant part of an overall prevention ortreatment program. You can increase theamount of calcium in your diet by eatingcalcium-rich foods like low-fat milk,cheese, broccoli and others. Many foodsare fortified with calcium and readilyavailable and affordable.

Shake the salt habitThe average American consumes about 6to 18 grams of salt daily. Your bodyactually needs only about 0.5 grams eachday. Reducing the amount of sodium youconsume may help you reduce or avoidhigh blood pressure. Some helpful tips toreduce your salt intake include removingthe salt shaker from the table, opting forlow-sodium foods when eating out, usinga salt substitute or other salt-freeseasonings, and adding fresh lemon juiceto fish and vegetables instead of salt.

Make five your winning numberDiets rich in fruits and vegetables mayreduce the risk of cancer and other chronicdiseases. Fruits and vegetables provideessential vitamins and minerals, fiber andother substances that are important forgood health. To get your five a day, drinkjuice with breakfast or top your cereal withfruit, eat fruit or carrot sticks as a mid-morning snack, add a salad to your lunch,snack on a piece of fruit in the afternoonand include a vegetable at dinner.

Sources: National Osteoporosis Foundation; MayoFoundation for Education and Research; Centers forDisease Control and Prevention

Nutrition...

Actions speak louder than words

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The best of all possible worldsHow to eat healthy when dining out at ethnic restaurants

There’s no shortage of ethnic restaurants to satisfy your taste buds. Whether Chinese,Italian or Mexican, different types of ethnic cuisine can offer you a tasty treat even if you

are counting calories and fat. The key to healthydining out at ethnic restaurants is to be menu-savvy.

For example, when choosing Chinesefare, look for options that are

steamed, jum (poached), kow(roasted), or shu (barbequed). Also, it’sbest to choose steamed rice or brown rice

rather than fried and to look for disheswithout MSG added. Healthy Italian entrees to

look for include red sauces, primavera (no cream),piccata (lemon), or sun-dried or crushed tomatoes. Try menu items

that are lightly sautéed or grilled. It’s hard to resist Mexican food, and it is possible to dineout while avoiding fat-laden, high-calorie foods. Add spice to your meal with choices likesalsa or picante, spicy chicken, rice, black beans and soft corn tortillas.

If you want to eat healthy and still have lots of different choices, take a taste adventure withethnic foods. It will do you a world of good.

Anytime tips for eating out

Try these ideas to help make anyrestaurant dining experience bothappetizing and good for you:

• Use margarine rather than butter• Request skim milk instead of whole

milk or cream• Trim visible fat from poultry and

other meats• Omit butter, gravy or sauces from

a dish• Ask for salad dressing on the side• Consider making special requests,

such as less cooking oil

Source:The National Heart, Lung and BloodInstitute Obesity Guidelines

Coming soon…Blue Care®’ ConnectionComing in July, Blue Cross and BlueShield of Texas will provide our memberswith additional resources through the BlueCare Connection program.

Blue Care Connection offers a suite ofresources and support services whichprovide members with personalizedattention, health advocacy and health andcondition-specific information. What’smore – it was designed with YOU, themember, in mind. It’s easy to access andsimple to use – members will simply go towww.bcbstx.com and log in to Blue Accessfor Members. Once logged in, an array oftools will be available, including:

• Personal Health Manager – This resourceof online tools and information atwww.bcbstx.com allows members to

track and manage their healthinformation.

• Blue PointsSM – Members can earn BluePoints each time they track a fitnessworkout, report a meal or use otherfeatures within Personal Health Manager.Blue Points are redeemable for healthimprovement and other products.

• “Ask a” Feature – An online tool throughwhich members can send a nurse, trainer,dietician, or life coach health-relatedquestions.

• 24/7 Nurseline – Twenty-four hours aday, and seven days a week, memberscan call a toll-free number and speakdirectly to a Registered Nurse.