How to Manage High Prescription Prices

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Walgreens for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.
I have been fortunate enough to require very few prescriptions in my life thanks to eating well and natural remedies, but my husband requires hundreds of dollars of prescriptions each month.  Fortunately, we have medical coverage through his job, but we are moving closer to our retirement years when that will end.  It's hard to know what kind of changes will come about by that time, but thinking about it makes us aware of what those around us are going through. 

We have a pharmacy in town as well as a new Walgreens. Recently I read about the Walgreens and Express Script situation.  It appears that Walgreens was trying to renew their contract with Express Scripts to have the pharmacy provider network available to their customers.  The contract was not renewed, so Walgreens either needed a new program or customer would be forced to drive to other locations to get their prescriptions.

Fortunately, Walgreens has come up with a solution, the Walgreens Prescription Savings Club.  An individual pays $5 a year, and family pays $10 - and this even covers their pet prescriptions.  You can register now, in January, for this program.  It helps with the cost of over 8000 brand name prescriptions and all generic prescriptions, greatly reducing prices.  It is helpful with other services as well, including flu shots and diabetic supplies.

For more information, follow Walgreens on Twitter, and visit and "like" Walgreens on Facebook.

Nutrition Calculator - Make a Nutrition Label

Have you ever altered a recipe and wondered how it has affected how many calories, how much sodium, carbohydrates, etc., are now in your recipe?  There is an easy way to find out.

I enjoy the Sparkpeople site as it offers many free services.  Their recipe site has a wonderful tool that calculates the nutritional content of your food.  You can find the recipe calculator here.  Just enter the ingredients in the calculator and click on the "calculate information" button.  If you like, you can post your recipes to the site, and it will include the standard nutrition information label that you are accustomed to seeing on all foods labels.  

Calculating nutrition and making nutrition labels is not only a bit fun, but educational.  It will go a long way in helping you if you're counting calories, carbohydrates, sodium content, and more.

Help for Headlight Glare and Vision Problems

Just last week I ordered glasses online just in case something should happen to the progressive lens eyeglasses I already have.  I got one pair just for distance and another pair for reading.  I did this because I have a distance prescription from my new optometrist, and an unchanged older one for reading from my previous optometrist.  

When ordering online, it can be fun at some of the sites, especially Zenni Optical, the one I used, as you can upload your photo and "try on" the glasses, not only to see how they look, but to see how the size looks on your face.  It is helpful if not necessary to have the PD number from the prescription your eye doctor writes...and make sure he or she includes it.  That's the distance between the pupils when looking straight ahead and not focused on anything.

What I was most pleased about for the distance glasses, which will be used as my sunglasses with the clip-ons I ordered, is the anti-glare coating, also called an oleophobic coating.  It is said to help with glare when having photos taken, but I'm more excited about the help it may be when driving at night.  I have so much trouble with oncoming headlights, especially the bright ones they have now. I don't even like to drive at night, and hope that this will improve things at least a little bit.  

Best of all, I paid only a little over $30 for 2 pairs of glasses, including the frames, coating and clip-on sunglasses for each...so much less than I paid for my progressives even with the insurance. If my order had been $50 or more, shipping would have been free.  I know it would have cost a little more to purchase progressives online as well, but not close to what I paid.

I'll let you know how it all works out when the glasses arrive.

8 Facts About B12 Pantothenic Acid

Occasional I do posts about particular vitamins and minerals, and what foods contain them. Today I'd like to take a look at Vitamin B5, also known as Pantothenic Acid. And at the end of the post you'll find links to other posts done in the past about Vitamins.  

Here are some facts about Vitamin B5 

1. Vitamin B5 or Pantothenic Acid is a water soluble vitamin. This means that unlike Vitamin A, for example, it does not build up in your system, but excess is flushed out through the kidneys in the urine. 

2. Vitamin B5 is found in many things that we eat, but is most abundant in eggs, meat, legumes, avocados, whole grains, broccoli and yogurt. It is also in Royal Jelly, from a Bee of another kind. 

3. When taking B5 in supplement form, it is best when taken with other B vitamins. 

4. Since the vitamin is in so many foods and in vitamin supplements, it is rare that there be a deficiency, but if there is, the symptoms would include symptoms common to many conditions...fatigue and irritability; lack of it could lead to hypoglycemia, trouble sleeping, nausea and other common conditions...but since it is rare that it is deficient, it would not be the first thing I'd think of if suffering from any one of these symptoms. 

5. It doesn't seem to cause harm if too much is ingested, and again, it is water soluble so what is not used is flushed out of the body. 

6. According to information at Linus Pauling Inst. at Oregon State University, Pantothenic Acid is a component of Coenzyme A. They also provide a nice chart that shows how many mg. are found in several foods. 

7. Wikipedia provides a nice chart that shows daily requirements for Vitamin B5 by age and other information that may not be listed above. 

8. B5 benefits many things, but most information points towards it's benefit to the skin and hair. 

Other Vitamin Fact Lists:

Vitamin A Facts

Vitamin B12 Facts and Sources

Vitamin C Facts and Sources

Vitamin D Facts

Vitamin E Facts

Vitamin K Facts

Is the Updated Slim-Fast Program for You?

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Slim-Fast for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.


Slim-Fast has recently updated and improved their diet program by improving the packaging and the creamy richness of their shakes.  The shakes now come in a bottle that you can easily carry anywhere, which is great for the person on the go.  You can put them in your purse, in your lunch bag, or your carry bag when headed to the beach or anywhere....quick and easy portability.


I was just thinking that this might be a nice thing to help get some of us through the holiday season, and then carry us through the New Year when many are inclined to lose weight.  It is suggested that you drink a Slim-Fast  shake for 2 meals, have 3 snacks a day between meals, such as fruit, nuts, or Slim-Fast's 100 calorie snack bar.  Then eat one regular meal whenever you eat your main meal.  This could be the time that you eat your holiday dinner...with as much portion control as possible.  Your appetite will most likely be less than it would be because you have the 10 grams of protein and the fiber in Slim-Fast to carry you through.


Slim-Fast can be found at many of the major department stores like Walmart, Target, Safe-Way, Kroger, and you can even purchase online through Amazon.  I know it is available in our local supermarket as well, so you may want to check your grocery store.


Personally, I'd like to give Cappuccino Delight a try as I love Cappucino...and I'm off to visit their Facebook page.