Maybe a great benefit came through for you in times of need, or perhaps you really liked the friendly and warm service you received. Whatever it is, please submit your reason or reasons to housecall@thecheesehasmoved.com so we can share them with all our members.

This month's extract from a member's e-mail to us:
THANK YOU FEDHEALTH, I have your sticker advert on my 2 vehicles, & promote your company
whenever the conversation comes about, & happy to say I have "sold" (since December 2008) 3 x
FEDHEALTH New Members, by just being honest, about your Organization, in explaining how you assisted me. THANK YOU is not enough, Thanks for your fantastic feedback and for being a Fedhealth Ambassador.

In order to access this benefit it is imperative that you declare your travel dates to Europ Assistance
before departure on 011 991 8600 or via e-mail at assist@europassistance.co.za.

How much savings do I have available for the year?
This depends on your option and the number of dependants that you have.

What happens when my OHEB and savings have both been depleted?
The Safety Net Benefit pays for day-to-day expenses once OHEB and savings have been depleted and your claims have accumulated up to the required level. Your Safety Net Level is calculated according to the option you are on as well as the number and type of dependants you have on the scheme (adult and child). You can obtain this information from the 2009 Benefit and Rate Schedules or Member Guides available on the website, www.fedhealth.co.za or refer to the Renewal Edition of HouseCall!, Issue no. 9, that was sent to all our members in October last year.

Your Safety Net Level is reached through the accumulation of your claims paid from OHEB and savings and your own pocket through the year at MPL rates and NHRPL tariffs. Where limits apply, expenses will only accumulate up to this limit and this limit will also apply to refunds from Safety Net. However, further claims will be paid if savings are available.

What happens if both my OHEB and savings have been depleted before I have reached my Safety Net Level?
This is referred to as a self-payment gap. You will now continue to pay for day-to-day expenses from your own pocket. In order to close this self-payment gap, you need to continue to submit these expenses to Fedhealth. These claims will not be refunded, but will accumulate towards your Safety Net Level. (Please refer to previous point for detail on accumulation limits).

Once you have reached the required Safety Net Level, your day-to-day expenses will now be refunded from the Safety Net Benefit.

As next month's issue is the AGM edition of HouseCall!, we will continue with To Your Benefit in the June issue and will feature the Safety Net Benefit.

Quitting smoking is hard, there's no doubt about it. However, if you can tough it out for at least two years, chances are good you'll never light another cigarette again, according to a recent study. Health experts found that two years after quitting smoking, only 2% to 4% of ex-smokers picked up the habit again each year.

"Once [ex-smokers] got past 10 years, relapse rates fell to very low amounts, less than 1%," says study author Elizabeth Krall, an associate professor of health policy and health services at Boston University's School of Dental Medicine.

The benefits of quitting are immediate. Just 20 minutes after your last cigarette, your blood pressure and heart rate start to return to normal. After only a day, the risk of a heart attack begins to diminish, the Lung Association says.

However, those who reap the most benefits are those who stay off cigarettes long-term. Fifteen years after the last puff, an ex-smoker's rate of heart disease and cancer is close to that of someone who never smoked.

Smokers trying to quit are most likely to relapse in the first few days, because that's when withdrawal symptoms are strongest. It takes about 4 to 6 weeks to get over most of the symptoms.

Those who were able to stay off cigarettes for more than 2 years dramatically increased their chances of staying off for good, the study found. Between the second and sixth year of quitting, only two to four percent of smokers went back to cigarettes each year. Those who stayed off for 10 years or more had the biggest success rates; less than one percent went back to smoking annually.

The researchers also discovered men who drank more than five alcoholic drinks a day were more likely to relapse. Another factor that appeared to influence relapse was drinking more than six cups of coffee daily.

What to do
Most people try to quit smoking five to seven times before they're successful. Smokers need to be aware they're making a long-term commitment and the longer they can stay off cigarettes, the better their chances for success. They must have confidence in their ability to quit, and nicotine-replacement products can be very helpful.

Certain groups disapprove of vaccinating a child against a sexually transmitted infection (STI) out of fear that it could promote promiscuous behaviour - even if this STI is responsible for 80 percent of cervical cancer cases and more than a quarter of a million deaths each year.

The new vaccine against the Human Papillomavirus (HPV), that guards against cervical cancer, has been a topic of debate between medical professionals and certain conservative groups since its release in 2006. The latest objection to this life-saving drug was revealed in a US study that found only half of American mothers intend to have their teenage daughters vaccinated against HPV.

The HPV vaccine (which has been available in the US since 2006) was approved in South Africa earlier this year and has received a positive response from South Africans, according to Mr Elvis Mokoena from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) South Africa - a manufacturer of one of the two brands of the newly released HPV vaccine. "The response confirms our views that cervical cancer is a significant problem to many South Africans,' he said.

Cervical cancer is the main cancer affecting South African women. "One in every 31 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer in her lifetime and it kills over 3 400 women in South Africa each year," says Martha Molete from the Cancer Association of South Africa (CANSA).

In over 80 percent of cases, cervical cancer is caused by HPV, which is a very common sexually transmitted infection. It is estimated that between 60 and 80 percent of all sexually active individuals may be infected.

Therefore the HPV vaccine is targeted at young girls from the age of 10 years and up, as most girls of this age are not sexually active, have not yet been exposed to HPV, and will therefore achieve maximum protection.

A recent study by the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Centre in the US found that some mothers believe the vaccination would cause a child to engage in riskier sexual behaviour because of the protection it offers. Local experts discredit this comment saying that risky sexual behaviour among teenagers already exists. "It (risky sexual behaviour) is something young people will participate in, with or without the protection of the vaccine," remarked Rosalyne Jacobs from CANSA. "If I could prevent my daughter from getting cancer, why wouldn't I?" she argues. Dr Haynes van der Merwe from the Tygerberg Hospital's Gynaecology Department feels that such an argument is an emotional response that holds no weight. In fact, he believes it is a parent's responsibility to ensure that his/her daughter is protected against this potential killer disease. Dr Carol Thomas, a gynaecologist from Claremont who is also associated with the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the Groote Schuur Hospital believes that this life-saving vaccine is generally well-received. "I think that is because the culture of vaccination is extremely well developed in South Africa," says Thomas. Except for a minority of non-mainstream, but remarkably visible and vocal groups and individuals, the general consensus worldwide is that HPV vaccines herald a new era and a phenomenal advance in the fight against cervical cancer..." Thomas reported in the South African Medical Journal.

Furthermore she argues that South Africa's high prevalence of HIV/Aids has made parents more aware of the danger of sexually transmitted diseases "making parents in favour of anything that may protect their children against the onslaught of any virus." Makoena from GSK confirmed that this pharmaceutical manufacturer has not received any objections or complaints about their product and they are in fact "pleased with the healthcare professionals and public response." CANSA has expressed their belief that the HPV vaccine should be made compulsory to all girls in South Africa. At present, however, it is only available in the private sector and the course of three injections comes at a price of just over R2 000 - making it unaffordable for most low-income households in South Africa. Until present, government has not expressed any intention of providing this vaccine to the public health sector.

Cervical cancer - a background
Cervical cancer is a common disease in the developing world. Pap smears are currently the recommended method of screening, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).

Although it is a preventable disease that is curable if detected and treated in its early stages, it remains the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in South African women, according to the Medical Research Council.

Factors that increase a woman's risk for developing cervical cancer include early sexual activity, multiple sexual partners and smoking.

Turbo-charge your immune system
If you dread those frequent trips to the GP during winter then here are some easy yet effective tips to improve your immunity and help you fight the cold blues:

How to include 3 or 4 portions of fruit into your daily diet:

Exercise Tip: Turn up the heat
We tend to eat more, and richer or stodgier food during the winter months, so it becomes vitally important to make sure you exercise frequently. One reason why exercise is so beneficial is that it helps the body to reduce the harmful stress hormones - adrenalin and cortisol. Both these hormones suppress the body's natural fighting response - resulting in frequent colds and flu.

Added benefit of training: exercise increases core temperature - which suppress appetite effectively.

Exercise after the age of 30 is an essential weight management tool. Do you know we gain 30g a day; every single day from the age of 27?

Quick Tip!
Garden for 30- 40 minutes a week, Or invest in a tandem bike - this provides exercise and loads of fun!

Interesting Fact:
Did you know overeating very often occurs NOT because we are hungry, but because we are:

One way to effectively assess why and what we eat is to keep a detailed food journal. After a week or three, you'll see that an obvious pattern will emerge which may answer many food questions like:
What time of the day do I experience cravings or overeat?
What is the first thing I reach for when I get home from work?
What can I do to prevent eating sweet things after dinner?
When and why do I over indulge on alcohol, chocolates, etc?

Remember:- Stock a drawer at the office with the correct snacks - low fat tinned soup, some biltong strips, some mango strips, some ryvitas and pretzels.

A quick guide to what happens from the time you submit your claim to Fedhealth to the time we make a
payment, which is determined by the benefits you have available: