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Here’s To Getting Assuredly Good Health

Plus: is it possible to lose weight quickly *and* sustainably?

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The 10almonds Team
December 07, 2024

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❝Without brain health, you do not have health❞

In A Rush?

Today’s 30-Second Summary

If you don’t have time to read the whole email today, here are some key takeaways:

  • There’s been an unusual amount of excitement in the health news world this week, with health insurance in the spotlight.

    • Today’s main feature looks at what happens when insurance claims (especially of the elderly) are denied, why that happens, and what can be done about it

    • We also look at the association between grip strength and avoidance of age-related disease and disability!"

  • Sleep is a critical part of health that's all-too-often overlooked.

  • Today’s featured book offers an evidence-based brain health action plan to reduce the risk of cognitive decline and dementia.

Read on to learn more about these things, or click here to visit our archive

A Word To The Wise

“Yeah, No”

What happens when an insurance company approves—and then rejects—your claim?

Watch and Learn

Is It Possible To Lose Weight Quickly?

Prefer text? The above video will take you to a 10almonds page with a text-overview, as well as the video!

Friday’s Health News Round-Up

Here’s To Getting Assuredly Good Health

An unusual amount of excitement in the health news world this week, with health insurance in the spotlight:

Deny, Delay, Depose?

Insurance company UnitedHealthcare, which used AI with a 90% error rate to deny insurance claims (of which, disproportionately denying insurance claims of the elderly), has come under extra public scrutiny this week for its recent-years business practices:

❝Nearly 1 in 5 insured adults experienced claim denials during a 12-month period.

Those with job-based insurance or Affordable Care Act policies ran into this problem about twice as often as those covered by Medicare or Medicaid❞

…although, the company has dramatically increased its care denials for Medicare Advantage enrollees, doubling the rate of denials as it implemented its new, automated denials process.

Anesthesiologist Dr. Brain Schmutzler noted:

❝We have a bigger issue with the insurance companies in general, who, essentially, it’s their job to make money, not to actually pay for health care❞

And in those cases where healthcare is not denied, it is often dangerously delayed, as insurance companies can stall for time to decide whether they’re going to pay or not.

One useful take-away from all of this is that if your insurance claim is denied, consider fighting it, as often they can be overturned.

Specifically, it can be good to insist on knowing who (named persons) was involved in the denial process, and their qualifications. Once upon a time, this was mostly unqualified interns, which prompted insurance companies to reverse the denial rather than admit that; nowadays it’s mostly AI, which many companies can hope will shield them from culpability—either way, fighting for one’s rights can often be successful.

Rest Easy

Health insurer Elevance Health (formerly Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield), had last month announced plans to limit its coverage for anesthesia used in operations, whereby they would pay for only a certain amount of anesthetic, and if the procedure was still ongoing when that amount had been used, then well, you were on your own.

However, on Thursday afternoon and allegedly completely coincidentally in the wake of the Wednesday assassination of the CEO who oversaw the denial of so many health insurance claims, this decision to limit paying for anesthesia was reversed, retracted, and they are now doing their best to downplay what the proposal would have meant for anesthesiologists and patients:

Getting a good grip of your health

What’s the best indicator of good health when it comes to age-related health issues? It’s not BMI! Could it be blood pressure? It could, but the news presently is about grip strength.

While training to have an amazing grip (and neglecting all else) will not necessarily increase your general healthspan, having a weak or strong grip is strongly associated with, respectively, having weak or strong general health in later years.

This is because unless someone has been training very unnaturally, grip strength is a good general measure of overall muscle strength, which in turn is a good indicator of metabolic health, as well as bodily robustness.

Take care!

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This Or That?

Vote on Which is Healthier

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Now for today’s choice:

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Bonus (Sponsored) Recommendation

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One-Minute Book Review

Brain Health Action Plan: Simple, Science-Backed Lifestyle Changes that Optimize Cognitive Function and Reduce Alzheimer's Risk – by Dr. Teryn Clarke

The author is a physician and neurologist, and she brings a lot of science with her when she sets out to Alzheimer’s-proof our brains:

  • She talks about brain nourishment, and what things in contrast sabotage our brains, and how.

  • She talks intermittent fasting, and optimal scheduling when it comes to food, sleep, exercise, and more.

  • She talks about how the rest of our health affects our brain health, and vice versa.

The “action plan” promised by the title includes all of those elements, plus such matters as ongoing education, cognitive stimulation, stress management, dealing with depression, and other mostly-brain-based factors.

As such, it’s not just a “for your information” book, and Dr. Clarke does outline suggested goals, tasks, and habits, advises the use of a streak tracker, provides suggested recipes, and in all ways does what she can to make it easy for the reader to implement the information within.

Bottom line: if you’d like to dodge dementia, this book is quite a comprehensive guide.

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May today see you well-prepared for the coming weekend,

The 10almonds Team