National Diabetes Awareness Month rallies Americans together to recognize diabetes health risks and raise awareness for diabetic self-testing.

Every November, the American Diabetes Association encourages the public to learn more about diabetes and the risks associated with the disease. American Diabetes Services, which provides low cost or free diabetic self-testing supplies to those with Medicare or qualifying insurance, supports these efforts.

"We commend the efforts of the American Diabetes Association and National Diabetes Awareness Month for bringing attention to diabetes health risks," said Lorne Yaffe, Vice President of Marketing for American Diabetes.

Diabetes is a disease in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin. Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. The cause of diabetes is not known, however genetics and environmental factors such as lack of exercise and obesity tend to play a role.

The restaurant

When Carl’s Seafood Restaurant on State Road 7 was opened in 1999, it was not because Carl Dixon listened to the people around him; it was because he had a vision and he was going to see it through.

The restaurant business is second nature to Dixon who grew up working in the Sugar Plum Bar & Restaurant, which his parents owned in his native St. Elizabeth, Jamaica. Since it was something he had to do, he was lucky to have liked working in the restaurant. Confident of his knowledge of the business, he used money from his savings to open the first restaurant.

But it didn’t start with his entry into the U.S. in 1985. When Carl arrived in the U.S. he worked at the city of Davie water plant, then he worked as a truck driver. Those jobs weren’t fulfilling enough especially as it relates to money. Carl started selling fish out of his van and soon people started requesting cooked fish, which opened the gateway for Carl’s Seafood Restaurant. “It was easy,” said a smiling, jovial Carl. “I already know the business.”  He added that at that time, he didn’t know of any other Jamaican seafood places around the area.

Imagine getting paid to test the latest software or computer game Free!!. Imagine even getting paid and also be one of the first to have a copy of any new program, which will be very expensive when it’s released!!

This is all available if you sign up with a technology developer with a beta testing program. 

Programs are released in beta form before they have been 100% completed. While you might expect jost of the code to work jost of the time, they come with no guarantee. Applications, such as Microsoft Word, Intuit’s TurboTax or QuickBooks are distributed in this way to give the public time to test and evaluate them so that bugs and other issues can be worked out, and with this in mind the vast majority of beta releases are free. Even commercial packages or game programs are sometimes released in a free beta form, so it is a great way of testing out powerful software without paying a penny.

You can download beta software from a wide range of sources, primarily the software companies themselves.

Kidney health is aided by drinking a lot of water, but a majority of people aren't drinking the recommended daily amount of water, according to a new survey conducted by morefocus, an online research organization.

Only 15 percent of people drink as much water daily as many in the medical field recommend to maintain overall good health and particularly kidney health, according to the survey. 

It is widely suggested by the medical community that drinking at least eight glasses of water per day is beneficial to overall health, and is particularly helpful for kidney function. However, 85 percent of those surveyed said they do not drink the recommended daily amount. Thirty-eight percent of respondents said they only drink half or less of the recommended amount of water each day.

"That's a pretty significant number of people who are really not even coming close to the recommended daily water intake," said Dr. Regan Carey, morefocus Research Director. "This may, in part, contribute to the high instances of kidney issues that were reported by the people who took the survey."

Seventy-one percent of those surveyed said they have experienced kidney pain. Thirty-six percent said they've had a kidney stone, while a majority, 68 percent have had a urinary tract infection.

Everywhere it seems people share their concerns about "what the world has come to." With battles raging both across the sea in far-off lands and here on our own streets, it seems that more and more people are looking to the government to make them more safe and secure.

This, however, is the wrong place to be looking. As harsh as it sounds, when it comes to self-defense and so-called "homeland security," the responsibility for personal security and safety rests with the individual -- not with the government.

While we can only look from a distance on what his happening in the many battles around the world, we need to take a more proactive role in dealing with the hostilities and assaults that are going on all around us right here at home. Here's a list of 5 tips for anyone who wants to make themselves more safe and secure, regardless of whether they're traveling or staying at home. This list is part of the "10 Tips for Increasing Your Level of Safety and Self-Defense," available from Warrior Concepts International's website.