tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87704313638800332282011-12-31T23:59:00.229-07:00An ongoing expose of my mis-adventures and occasional successes in the world of Wellness, Nutrition and Network Marketing. And hopefully a good place to share information, tips and unvarnished opinions on all three.Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.comBlogger601100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-25921770684133865042011-12-31T23:59:00.000-07:002011-12-31T23:59:00.264-07:00

When I was in the 4th Grade, and dinosaurs walked the earth, there was a boy in my class named Robert. Now Robert had a tough life. He wasn't very popular. He was fat, not especially good looking, or smart, and not blessed with any talent or sports. His social skills were, to be kind, non-existent. Unsurprisingly, he was painfully shy. Fourth graders being who they are, Robert was the victim of

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com09580 Bennison Terrace, Black Forest, CO 80808, USA38.94232097947902 -104.6118164062537.36176797947902 -107.13867190625 40.52287397947902 -102.08496090625tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-71330762287790383042011-12-07T15:07:00.001-07:002011-12-07T15:33:49.653-07:00

It's a scam. It's a pyramid scheme. Its overpriced products. It's a "get rich quick" scheme. They just want to sell you a garage full of stuff and cut you lose.The products are usually either bogus or are available somewhere else to the public at the same or lesser prices. The idea is recruiting new people to either buy into the program or else

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-2140162864713930142011-11-16T10:46:00.001-07:002011-11-16T12:42:33.687-07:00

Most of the time I discuss issues related to health and nutrition here. That is my passion and the place that I believe I can have the greatest positive impact on people's lives. I don't intend to change that. But the way I chose to be involved in the nutrition problem in America is through Reliv International, a network marketing company. I know many of you are involved in network marketing,

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-55071233352977403942011-09-19T16:39:00.000-06:002011-09-19T16:39:18.487-06:00

A recent study in the journal Nature Neuroscience seems to indicate that junk food may not simply be bad for us, but may also be highly addictive - producing brain chemistry changes that are similar to those observed in people addicted to nicotine, cocaine and other drugs. The study by Paul Kenny and Paul M Johnson of of Scripps Research Institute, offered rats a choice between healthy,

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-3579598436901548352011-09-12T13:10:00.004-06:002011-09-12T13:14:18.603-06:00

Noting that nearly 2/3 of all deaths worldwide are now caused by "lifestyle" diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart and lung disease, UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon announced a UN-sponsored summit in September to bring focus to the need to combat these diseases. The "big four" non-communicable diseases "have emerged relatively unnoticed in the developing world and are now becoming a global

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-88016882614854590462011-05-31T10:05:00.009-06:002011-05-31T14:58:09.052-06:00

Its not unusual for the makers of natural vitamins to tout their superiority over synthetic alternatives. There are undoubted advantages to organic, "naturally" grown produce and animal products. But do the same considerations apply to vitamins and nutritional supplements? Are "natural" vitamins worth paying a price premium for?In reality, the question of what is "natural" and what is not can be

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-27115964860083335362011-02-02T21:17:00.002-07:002011-02-02T21:19:52.693-07:00

Ok, so you haven't. I know that.But I am back so you can start tuning in again for news, opinion and information about wellness and nutrition that you need to have and won't find elsewhere.(You missed me a little, right?)

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-4186181493568002162010-11-08T13:37:00.007-07:002010-11-08T13:48:31.798-07:00

As if heart disease, diabetes and arthritis were not reason enough to watch your weight, an American Institute for Cancer Research research study concludes that more than 100,000 new cancers per year in the USA can be attributed to excess body fat and obesity.“The most striking finding in the report is that excess body fat increases risk for numerous cancers. That is why body weight is the

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-44657549797424588262010-08-18T08:54:00.008-06:002010-08-18T09:21:57.789-06:00

Last Saturday, August 14th, over 2,000 Reliv Distributors from around the world swarmed downtown St Louis for the annual Reliv Kalogris Foundation Walk for the Mission. The weather was cooperative, cooling off all the way down to the high 80s for the 8am event. Founded in 1995 in honor of Reliv co-founder Dr. Theodore Kalogris, the foundation provides nutrition and community support to over

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-11547466985237547682010-08-17T09:30:00.010-06:002010-08-17T10:13:02.415-06:00

For about the last 10 years it has been known in scientific circles that our plant-based foods contain declining nutrient levels. There are many reasons for this: chemical fertilizers designed to speed growth, genetic manipulation for the purpose of making fruits and vegetables more "attractive", picking produce before it is ripe to ensure that it looks ripe when it arrives in the supermarket,

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-3590583805277534242010-08-06T11:37:00.014-06:002010-08-06T12:09:31.547-06:00

The "elevator speech". That well rehearsed 30-second response to "So, what is it that you do?" We've heard hundreds of them - most of them appallingly bad. We've sought advice from books, webinars, coaches and trainers. We've practiced in front of the mirror with a timer. We've cringed as people recited with a straight face "I make people rich every day!". Its hard to love the elevator speech.But

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-61690357311037255642010-08-05T08:00:00.001-06:002010-08-05T08:00:01.874-06:00

Ten years ago the Federal government set a national goal of reducing the rate of obesity in the US to 15%. Not a single state has met that goal; in fact, we are rapidly heading in the opposite direction. Instead of declining the rate has doubled and the rate of increase is accelerating. Obesity is strongly linked to numerous chronic and life threatening diseases such as cancer, heart disease and

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-72511439175222788492010-08-04T08:57:00.004-06:002010-08-04T09:10:55.220-06:00

By a margin of 3::1 voters in Missouri yesterday approved Proposition C, which changes state law to bar any government entity from fining a person for failing to buy health insurance - a key provision of the "healthcare reform" bill passed by Congress and signed by president Obama in March. Since the mandate does not take effect until 2014, there will be no immediate impact from the MO vote. If

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-10589330280762099492010-08-02T09:28:00.008-06:002010-08-02T09:44:19.690-06:00

Back in April I alerted readers to the FDA's approval for AstraZeneca to begin marketing its best selling statin drug Crestor to an estimated 6.5 million Americans who have no cholesterol problems and no sign of heart problems (as a "preventive" measure). But a new study published in the British Medical Journal this past May may put the brakes on AstraZeneca's ambitious plans to move as many as

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-62046137111681494222010-06-17T08:05:00.006-06:002010-06-17T08:40:01.451-06:00

Obesity is epidemic in America. More than one in three of us are obese today and another third of us are overweight and "growing" in the wrong direction. Being severely overweight leads to diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, cancers and a host of other chronic problems. Besides the well established negative consequences of obesity on our health, the sheer scope of the problem

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-10385321003418008002010-05-05T15:29:00.007-06:002010-05-05T15:45:01.733-06:00

In the corporate world, Miller-Heiman is among a very few companies that represent the gold standard of sales training. They bill themselves as "the sales performance company", but they aren't about closing tricks, manipulation or plaid jackets. The Miller-Heiman approach to selling is all about building solid, long-term relationships based on mutual win-win transactions. And while their system

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-6862092697167655302010-05-03T11:13:00.021-06:002010-05-03T12:32:03.929-06:00

In a textbook example of why you need to pay attention to where you get your supplements, who makes them and how, health guru Gary Null has filed a lawsuit claiming that he nearly died from taking his own product. Who, you may well ask, is Gary suing? It turns out that, as is the case with the vast majority of nutritional supplements, Gary Null's Ultimate Power Meal is manufactured not by his own

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-37681342003117698172010-04-25T13:34:00.014-06:002010-04-25T14:32:24.113-06:00

On March 30th, the New York Times reported that the FDA had approved new criteria suggesting that an estimated 6.5 million Americans who have no cholesterol problems and no sign of heart problems be considered candidates for long-term use of cholesterol-lowering statin drugs. Specifically, the nation's drug watchdog agency approved the new criteria for Crestor, which is made by AstraZeneca and

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-44243846810532613492010-04-05T12:36:00.007-06:002010-04-05T13:13:08.782-06:00

Early last month, NPR ran a series exploring the impact of the stock market crash and subsequent recession on Americans' retirement plans and resources. The need to rebuild retirement nest-eggs that have fallen 40% or more in value was understandably daunting. "It was really frustrating and (my husband and I) discussed, well should we stop investing and invest all the money in a vacation home,"

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-1374560354967372072010-03-29T16:21:00.014-06:002010-03-30T17:39:10.336-06:00

A study just published in the New England Journal of Medicine estimates that if Americans would reduce their consumption of table salt by only 1/2 a teaspoon daily (3 grams), overall US spending on healthcare could be reduced by as much as $24 billion annually. And cutting only 1 gram per day would be far more cost effective in reducing blood pressure among hypertensive individuals than common

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-42188664583786833182010-03-29T10:38:00.008-06:002010-03-29T11:55:47.292-06:00

As the obesity rate among Americans climbs past 1-in-3 (with over 2-in-3 of us classified as overweight) several initiatives are exploring the nature of our relationship with food..... physically, emotionally and socially. In one study done on rats and published in the research journal Nature Neuroscience, scientists at Scripps Research Institute in Florida concluded that eating a lot of junk

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-59987852164975235512010-02-21T10:23:00.011-07:002010-02-21T11:48:16.671-07:00

Google "agave syrup" and you will get pages of returns of articles with titles like "All About Agave" and "Agave Nectar" touting the supposed nutritional benefits of this natural sweetener made mostly in Mexico from the agave plant. (Yes, the same agave plant used to produce pulque and tequilla. That's neither good nor bad, just a factoid.) The syrup produced from the agave has been promoted for

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-23382817281548457042010-02-20T16:06:00.022-07:002010-02-21T12:07:13.496-07:00

A 2007 study by Joel Mason, MD, amply illustrates that creating your own "supplement cocktail" based upon supermarket supplements and an incomplete understanding of nutrition science can have unexpected or even dangerous consequences.Folic Acid (also known by Folate and Vitamin B9) is an important nutrient that assists the body to produce healthy new cells, prevent some forms of anemia, reduce

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-41222448554756848622010-02-19T11:22:00.009-07:002010-02-19T14:04:47.322-07:00

I never forget a face. Names however, are another matter. They are a challenge for me. One I need to work on because it matters. Network marketing, by definition, is a people business. It depends upon our ability for form lasting relationships with people, many of whom start out as strangers to us. And one of the most powerful tools for building a large circle of friends is simply remembering and

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-89105129219939833472010-02-15T09:12:00.019-07:002010-02-15T09:52:24.822-07:00

This is the month set aside to call our attention to heart health, and a good time to take stock of where we are and where we are going. Are you in charge of your heart health? Or are you just along for the ride? Heart attacks are still the #1 killer of Americans, men AND women, and there is a lot we can do to avoid becoming one of those gruesome statistics.Here is what the American Heart

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-61189910098418665322010-02-08T15:44:00.005-07:002010-02-08T15:57:05.692-07:00

The Council for Responsible Nutrition has undertaken a broad-based consumer wellness campaign designed to increase awareness of the impact of diet and lifestyle on our health, provide a quick, easy to take online assessment of our present wellness status, and offer practical advice (beyond the usual "improve your diet and exercise more" platitudes) to help people step on up the wellness scale.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-8198580098632873882010-01-21T09:27:00.004-07:002010-01-21T10:01:26.432-07:00

This November 2004 report from Consumer Reports (Feb2006, Vol. 71 Issue 2, p19-20) contains a wealth of unbiased, straightforward information about nutritional supplements. Among the topics it addresses are:Who should be using nutritional supplements and why.Why multivitamins may not be enough.Why you should avoid "bargain brand" supplements and buying supplements in "dollar stores".The dangers

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-68522734095556592512010-01-20T15:44:00.008-07:002010-01-20T17:15:05.140-07:00

Most people are familiar with the RDA, the Recommended Dietary (Daily) Allowance of various nutrients. Many people assume that an RDA is, well, a recommended allowance for those nutrients. The amount we should be consuming each day. It turns out that this is almost but not quite true.The RDA were first developed in 1941 to establish minimum nutritional standards for the US military and for

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-13293606079809471252010-01-15T14:36:00.003-07:002010-01-15T14:44:05.794-07:00

Reliv International already had a pre-earthquake presence in Haiti, feeding some 8,000 Haitians - mostly children - each day through its network of 26 community feeding stations. Thankfully most of these were spared the devastation, although some few still remain unaccounted for. Distributor donations made through the Reliv Kalogris Foundation web site in January will all be directed to aid in

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-16397585765414824992010-01-05T08:42:00.002-07:002010-01-05T08:51:59.647-07:00

Journalist and food quality activist Michael Pollan of the University of California at Berkeley discusses his new book "Food Rules: An Eater's Manual" with Jon Stuart of The Daily Show. Some interesting comments on the trade-offs between cheap, abundant food and nutritious food, and on how the requirement to refrain from denying health insurance based on pre-existing conditions may change the

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-668170203590321792009-12-30T09:31:00.003-07:002009-12-30T09:37:08.608-07:00

Good news for coffee drinkers. Its a health drink again! Or at least a beverage you can enjoy guilt free.A review of recent studies from the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests that consumption of coffee and tea significantly reduces the risk of developing Type-2 diabetes.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-88633147860993280932009-12-29T10:10:00.004-07:002009-12-29T10:29:02.485-07:00

If you are in sales (and all network marketers are in sales) and you are not yet a fan of Jeffrey Gitomer, you should be. What are you waiting for?In this article he offers 11 1/2 winning ways to deal with this classic pre-holiday stalling tactic. Try them out yourself, they really work.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-28730308112092198372009-12-24T09:22:00.004-07:002009-12-24T09:32:55.435-07:00

Wishing everyone a happy Holiday season and a healthy and prosperous New Year.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-63758765893581292182009-12-24T09:11:00.000-07:002009-12-24T09:11:05.665-07:00

Despite what often seems like reluctance and resistance from established network marking companies, NETWORK Marketing and Social NETWORKS are natural partners. As businesses of all stripes pile onto the social networking bandwagon, will 2010 be the year that Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, etc. finally go mainstream in the network marketing ecosystem?

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-20782757554595680562009-12-18T10:21:00.002-07:002009-12-18T10:25:43.650-07:00

A study published by The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition casts doubt on the importance of the contribution of genetic heritage to the growing incidence of obesity. The study suggests that as little as 1% of obesity may be due to genetic pre-disposition, with diet and lifestyle choices accounting for the rest. “The obesity epidemic we are facing today unfolded over the past few decades and

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-18191886748006356212009-12-17T09:07:00.000-07:002009-12-17T09:07:30.086-07:00

Network marketing being, well, network marketing, social media tools like Facebook and Twitter can be incredibly useful for expanding and growing your business. They can also be an utter waste of your time and energy. Partly this is a matter of how well and appropriately you put these tools to work for you. And partly it is a matter of how these social networking communities perceive you. Here is

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-9700428383193778502009-12-15T10:09:00.007-07:002009-12-15T10:25:26.714-07:00

One of the reactions I often get from people when I bring up my Reliv MLM nutrition business is "Oh. Oh no. Steve! I thought you were smarter than that. You're not involved in one of THOSE!" "Those" being the pyramid scams that everyone knows MLM businesses to be. The idea that the MLM industry is a giant Ponzi scheme is deeply rooted and nourished by self-righteously ill-informed pundits, and

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-44438540794191467092009-12-09T17:52:00.002-07:002009-12-09T17:56:49.128-07:00

Increased intakes of soy and soy products may reduce the risk of death and breast cancer recurrence, says a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Another cautionary tale against too quickly extrapolating results from mice to humans.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-8977548357829367222009-12-08T09:12:00.000-07:002009-12-08T09:12:56.050-07:00

NPR reported this morning on its Morning Edition show that cancer deaths in the United States have been dropping since the 1990s. Researchers say that the decades-long effort to improve diets and reduce bad habits, like smoking, have begun to pay off. On the other hand, increasing obesity rates are contributing to increases in certain cancers. Listen to the entire segment here.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-31911107747493849972009-12-07T11:06:00.000-07:002009-12-07T11:06:09.978-07:00

A 2009 study by researchers for the American Academy of Neurology concluded that high diastolic blood pressure (the lower/second number in a blood pressure reading) was associated with cognitive impairment and memory problems. In the study, hypertensive people (diastolic pressure of 90 or greater) were found to be more likely to have problems with reasoning and recollection than those with normal

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-64663144651599211122009-12-03T09:41:00.001-07:002009-12-03T09:42:57.951-07:00

I've been exploring Twitter for about a month now, and, frankly, doing so to evaluate it as a marketing tool. It seems to me to be a natural sort of tool to use in promoting a network marketing business, which really is a business that is built upon the strength of your real-life social networks. It was also highly recommended as a useful tool by Jonathan Budd in his (IMHO) excellent MLM Internet

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-654903641656583912009-11-25T11:17:00.000-07:002009-11-25T11:17:54.921-07:00

I am taking off to Wyoming for a holiday clan gathering. So best wishes to everyone for a great Thanksgiving (or whatever you celebrate) and I will be back on Sunday.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-24812461340781810232009-11-24T20:25:00.000-07:002009-11-24T20:25:17.404-07:00

Here is the secret code: N8EX9MJFC5SS If you aren't Technorati you can just ignore this. So there.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-33026196611527612822009-11-22T14:38:00.000-07:002009-11-22T14:38:54.864-07:00

While I personally do not see any essential conflict between science and faith, it sometimes seems like the two have been at loggerheads since long before the Catholic Church locked up Galileo Galilee for supporting the Copernican heresy that the earth revolved around the sun. We see this all the time today, from the unproductive argument among Creationism, Intelligent Design and Darwinism to the

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-5271769102804596242009-11-18T16:53:00.001-07:002009-11-18T16:55:47.165-07:00

One often observes a spirited debate between proponents of pill/capsule nutrient delivery systems and those who favor a liquid form. All too often the arguments are made and presented by those offering supplement products in one form or the other, promoting their own products and debunking the alternative. Here is an excellent discussion of the issue by Dr. Richard Drucker, a naturopath, and Dr.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-21149642782168473252009-11-15T08:57:00.002-07:002009-11-15T08:58:43.963-07:00

NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday host Liane Hansen speaks with Republican governor Jim Douglas of Vermont about that states experience with heathcare reform. He says Vermont's own state-initiated reforms could serve as a model for national changes in health care policy. Listen to the entire interview, then contact your Federal representatives and demand to know why nothing like this is even being

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-65059061068590433232009-11-13T15:14:00.004-07:002009-11-13T15:19:55.945-07:00

Following up on my earlier discussion of drug advertising on television, yesterday the FDA opened a two day hearing to begin the process of  establishing rules and guidelines for how pharmaceutical companies should be allowed to utilize online information sources such as Twitter, Facebook and MySpace to "distribute information" online. Over 800 people showed up to make their opinions heard,

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-35433884879653910162009-11-09T11:13:00.000-07:002009-11-09T11:13:38.979-07:00

If you have never contacted your US Senator to express your opinion on impending legislation, this might be the time to take the plunge. The US House of Representatives on Saturday passed its "healthcare reform" bill by the narrow margin of 5 votes (220 - 215), only 3 votes more than needed for passage. Regardless of your opinion on healtcare reform or this bill in particular, its fair to say

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-82299127839945088362009-11-06T12:01:00.000-07:002009-11-06T12:01:28.756-07:00

Between 1996 and 2000 US pharmaceutical companies spent nearly $2.5 billion dollars on advertising aimed at consumers, a seven-fold increase in spending. Then it nearly doubled again, reaching $4.5 billion in 2006. Criticism of direct-to-consumer advertising has intensified since 2004, after Merck withdrew Vioxx, a heavily advertised painkiller, when a clinical trial showed that it sharply

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-38283111701187402982009-11-04T16:10:00.000-07:002009-11-04T16:10:46.600-07:00

The following link is must reading for anyone in network marketing who finds it challenging to handle the common objections that we hear all the time. I didn't know there were 13 of them, but a few of them I hear every day. Kudos to Network Marketing Review for posting this gem.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-6037258375096921102009-10-30T10:22:00.000-06:002009-10-30T10:22:14.324-06:00

Macular degeneration (MD) is a leading cause of blindness among adults, especially those of European heritage. A recent study by the National Institutes of Health suggests that nutritional supplementation may be effective in reducing the onset of advanced symptoms by as much as 25%. The study noted that while there was no evidence that supplements helped to prevent MD in otherwise healthy people,

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-20617440944251273972009-10-28T15:19:00.000-06:002009-10-28T15:19:01.529-06:00

I thought I would post a few interesting links today on various related subjects. Its often a challenge finding good produce. Either its waxed and sprayed to the point that it looks almost plastic, or else it wilts and rots by the time you get it out to your car. For those of you who would like truly fresh food and want to support local producers, check out Local Harvest. Its a great directory

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-8331680133285823712009-10-26T10:35:00.000-06:002009-10-26T10:35:21.081-06:00

Nicole Woolsey Biggart is the former Dean of the Graduate School of Management at the University of California, Davis, and is an expert in "social network" industries. She recently wrote an article for the Bottom Line Personal newsletter in which she shared some interesting statistics on the network marketing industry and offered some advice to anyone considering getting seriously involved in it.

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-27595959450217790052009-10-25T12:35:00.000-06:002009-10-25T12:35:28.925-06:00

Not exactly. But if you are following Washington's "healthcare reform debate" at all you can be forgiven if the whole thing sounds more like "health insurance expansion". Proposals for, or even discussion of, actual changes to our broken healthcare delivery SYSTEM are more scarce than modesty at the Academy Awards. How about some innovation in the actual provision of medical services? Here's an

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-53682916454156330992009-10-05T15:45:00.003-06:002009-10-05T15:52:53.105-06:00

I may as well admit it. I hate salespeople. I hate being sold. I don't enjoy selling. Unsurprisingly, I have never been very good at it. Over the years I have had a lot of "sales training": Miller-Heiman, Sandler, coaches and consultants and classic selling books. I've learned all about "win-win" and relationship selling. None of it did much good. I still hate it. So I am more surprised than

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-47291408726169278232009-09-29T10:47:00.105-06:002009-10-25T12:42:31.437-06:00

According to a report on NPR this morning both the FDA and Congress are looking into the need for more government oversight and stricter regulation of the dietary supplement industry. The immediate precipitant of this renewed interest on the part of the government are the steroid abuse problems plaguing US sports, as many of the athletes caught up in it are claiming that they "didn't know" what

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-35669229498365211712009-09-28T15:54:00.005-06:002009-10-25T12:48:00.263-06:00

I am not an expert in nutrition, and don't have any plans to become one. But since I have gotten involved with a nutritional supplement business I have tried to become better informed and educated on nutrition issues. Talk about drinking from a fire-hose! I recently had the opportunity to attend a lecture on preventing and mitigating cancer through diet. The speaker was Susan Silberstein,

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-5308859034009400862009-09-22T16:10:00.001-06:002009-10-25T12:51:40.230-06:00

When I was introduced to the Reliv nutrition program in February of 2009, my personal financial situation was circling the drain. I'd been involved in an earlier entrepreneurial fiasco that had left my savings depleted, and the HR consulting business I had started in 2006 was not doing well. I was at the point of having to look for employment (a very unpalatable prospect to me as I had been self

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-35677560302529057992009-09-20T17:23:00.006-06:002009-10-25T12:58:20.969-06:00

When I was introduced to Reliv International nutritional supplements in February of 2009, I considered myself to be in fairly good health. I was perpetually trying to lose 10 pounds, but not really putting more on. I may have drank a bit too much but I ate well, exercised 5 days a week and had regular visits to my doctor and dentist to keep an eye on things. I had been struggling with borderline

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8770431363880033228.post-21085018812168878432009-09-17T10:12:00.004-06:002009-10-25T13:00:13.910-06:00

In his wonderful book about building "a lifelong community of colleagues, contacts, friends and mentors", Never Eat Alone, networking guru Keith Ferrazzi suggests that there are really only three things that most people sincerely care about. He then identifies these as: their Health and the Health of the people they care about; their Wealth, at least to the extent of providing financial security;

Steve Murtaghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01864825064380357316noreply@blogger.com0