Articles on Health and Beauty

Will A Dental Discount Plan Save You Money?

Those of us without traditional dental insurance may have been tempted to buy a dental “discount” plan. On paper, it looks good. In practicality, it could save you some, or more

Why I (Heart) My High Deductible Health Insurance Plan

I was a born and raised HMO baby. Health insurance had always meant plopping down a $15 co-pay at each appointment and letting my insurer pay the rest. Since insurance was a bene

How to Dress for Success and Still Spend Less

Ladies, are any of you out there like me? I hate buying clothes for work, because I know that work is the only place I'll wear them. They aren't particularly comfortable, and they

6 Ways to Get your Toiletries for Cheap or Even Free!

With my budget straining at the increase in the cost of milk, I can’t always justify buying my favorite shampoo, the best razor, or that luxurious body wash I crave. I have found

Do plastic baby bottles cause diabetes and heart disease?

What? Poisonous infant formula wasn't enough? Plastic baby bottles and the linings of canned food may be linked to diabetes, heart disease, and altered development in infants' brai

Health insurance: Two other numbers to look at

Most people, of course, have almost no control over their health insurance: They get what their employer provides (if they have a good job) or else they get nothing. Whether they

Small, Cheap Steps to Weight Loss

If you prefer baby steps to great strides, try these tips and tricks for cutting calories from your diet and burning off some extra pounds.

Stay Thin and Save

We've all been warned of the increased health care costs resulting from obesity. But what about all those other things you pay more for, like transportation, utitilities and clothi

Trim Costs with Cheaper Kid's Haircuts

A recent tabloid article compares the homemade hairstyle of Brangelina's toddler with the designer salon-style of Tom and Katie Cruise's kid. Is there a happy and frugal medium fo

So, You Think You're a Carnivore?

Does your voice get slightly deeper and more husky as you discuss the pleasure of biting into a medium-rare steak? Do you proudly declare that you could never be a vegetarian becau

I'd Rather Be A Brunette: 10 Tips To Save On Hair Care

In high school, I watched a friend drop over $100 on a trip to her favorite salon. I'd always known that her hair looked better than mine, but I couldn't believe that it was simply

7 Beauty Secrets that Cost Almost Nothing

Forget Cosmo. Put away your Oprah Magazine. Turn off the microdermabrasion informercial and toss the $75 ultra-rich moisturizer. There are the cheap ways to look and feel beauti

50 Ways To Squeeze Value From Your Healthcare Dollar Without Killing Yourself

Healthcare will most likely be my family's largest expense in a couple of years, when we've finished paying our home mortgage. We're not heavy users of the healthcare system, so wh

The Ultimate "Green" Workout

Recently our own Xin Lu wrote a post on a motivating way to lose weight (a very interesting piece.) Imagine my surprise when a commenter spoke my mind by sharing the ultimate in “

Do You Really Need “Soft” Water?

Water is a necessity. Soft water may not be. Depending on where you live and how you use water, the cost of processing your water may not be worth it.

Is the Wii Fit a cheap workout?

I’ll be honest, I’m not a fitness nut. I don’t like exercising, it always seems like a chore. But what if it wasn’t? What if it were, dare I say it, almost a game? That’s what Wii

Need To Lose Some Weight? Put Some Money On It!

Recently I wrote about the incentive my husband gave me to lose some weight . Basically he is willing to forgo half of his entertainment budget if I lose the fat I gained post co

Relax And Conquer

A recruiter friend once told me that a good manager is one who gets things done and honors appointments or at least calls and reschedules, but a true executive makes time for prior

Cheap and Simple Sunburn Remedies That Really Work

what do you do when you return home from an outing and you resemble a well-done lobster bake? Try one of these time-tested home remedies for sunburns.

Healthy, frugal eating

Every so often, I get hit in the face with two facts.  First, Americans (even poor Americans) are unbelievably rich.  Second, Americans (as a group) utterly lack a cultural traditi