Issue Date: November 11, 2006
Fewer rewards for credit cards
Big changes to some credit card rewards programs may make charging basics less attractive. Last month, American Express Membership Rewards discontinued double rewards points for "everyday spending" at gas stations, grocers and pharmacies. Instead, cardholders receive double points for each dollar spent at AmEx's Bonus Points Mall with 100-plus online retailers. And Citigroup cut its cash rewards to Citi Dividend MasterCard holders on everyday purchases from 5% cash back to just 2%. "There definitely has been a scaling back," says Curtis Arnold, of CardRatings.com.
Transferring the balance from a reward card to another type of card also has become pricier. AmEx has raised the fixed rate on any balances transferred to its "Blue" card by 1 percentage point to 4.995%. And Bank of America eliminated ceilings on its balance-transfer fees for some new accounts. "On a $10,000 balance transfer, you could have a 3% fee ($300), but there was a cap of $75. Now you're paying that $300 fee -- you're in the hole an extra $225," Arnold says.
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Back to the Big Easy
Don't be deterred by the images still shown on the national news. More than a year after Hurricane Katrina tore through New Orleans, the Big Easy is back in business.
"The historic and tourism core of the city is alive and thriving," says Mary Beth Romig of the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau.
In fact, the French Quarter -- home to the beignets of Café Du Monde and nightlife of Bourbon Street -- wasn't harmed by the floods. The Garden District, Uptown and Warehouse District were largely spared, too.
Parts of the city that didn't fare so well have become attractions in themselves, albeit morbid ones. The 2007 Fodor's guide to New Orleans includes a six-page "Remembering Katrina" section with a map of the destruction, a driving tour and a detailed timeline of the disaster.
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You can be too thin
A study by the University of Missouri- St. Louis found that 87% of college-age women and 36% of college-age men wanted to lose weight. Yet only 4% of the women and 12% of the men had a body mass index in the overweight category.
"This is evidence of the pressure in our society to be too thin," says lead study author Susan Kashubeck-West. "There is an emphasis on dieting [instead of] healthy eating and exercise."
She says we'll be a less obese society if we focus on health instead of how we look. Learn what is a healthy weight for your size and strive to reach it with good eating and exercise habits, not the latest diet craze. Find your target BMI at www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/bmi/.
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5 brain food tips for baby boomers
Recent research shows diet makes a big difference in how your brain performs, especially as you age.
Tuna's omega-3 fat helps to reduce your odds of getting Alzheimer's.
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Eat Fish: Nothing preserves brain power like the omega-3 fat in fish. Eating fish just once a week cuts odds of Alzheimer's an amazing 60%, according to research at Chicago's Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center. Fish oil also may help fight toxic plaque and stimulate communication between brain cells.
Get Fruits and Vegetables: Drinking any fruit or vegetable juice at least three times a week may cut your odds of Alzheimer's 76%, compared with drinking it less than once a week, says Vanderbilt University research. In Tufts University research, a daily serving of strawberries, blueberries or spinach helped to prevent, even reverse, brain aging in animals.
Drink Green Tea: In one large study, drinking at least 2 cups of green tea a day cut the risk of cognitive impairment in older people by 54%. Drinking black or oolong tea or coffee had little impact. Researchers credit EGCG, a potent antioxidant.
Eat Curry: A new Singapore study says even a very small dose is a brain booster. The secret: curcumin, an antioxidant shown to improve memory in animals and reduce a brain toxin that's linked to Alzheimer's.
Trim Animal Fat and Calories: People who ate more saturated animal fat in midlife doubled their Alzheimer's risk, especially those genetically vulnerable, says a new Swedish study. Many studies suggest that restricting calories and avoiding obesity cuts risk of dementia and Alzheimer's.
Contact Jean Carper at stopagingnow.com. Scientific sources are at usaweekend.com.
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