Despite often being unhealthy ready meals are still very popular. In fact sales of ready meals have trebled in the past decade. Sales of Chinese, Indian and Thai meals have risen within the past five years with fast food sales growing by 73% between 1995 and 2005. Despite this more than 60% of people surveyed still cook at least one meal a day from scratch.

It appears that beer sales have suffered one of the worst months on record. Whilst this is obviously bad news for pubs it could also be a sign that consumer spending is slowing. The statistics which were compiled by the British Beer and Pub Association show that the volume of beer sold fell 9.7% in November. This followed a 7.7% drop in October and an 8.2% decline in September. The BBPA say that volumes in November were at their lowest level since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Other factors such as the smoking ban and people becoming more health conscious have also made life tough for the publican. So the message here, is drink more beer.

There is always a lot in the news about celebrities battling with drug addition. The most recent story involves Brittany Spears who was released from hospital today after being admitted two days ago allegedly for being under the influence of an unknown substance. Whilst incidents like this are widely publicised I often wonder where ordinary people go to get help when they have a drug addition problem. I was looking at this website for a drug addition treatment center that provides drug free rehab.

They are called DrugRehab.net and are one of the oldest drug rehab companies in the United States. Their rehabilitation program involves a four stage process starting with a complete sauna based detox program to cleanse the body of drug residuals so that the person no longer experiences the adverse effects of the drugs they have taken. The second phase includes a course of therapies which are designed to help the addict learn self control and focus on real life goals. Stage three addresses issues of self esteem and aims to cure the need for drugs. The final stage then works on helping the former addict back into society and helping them to lead a drug free life. Their results certainly look impressive with 76% of  their graduates going on to remain drug free and becoming productive members of society.

According to this article energy saving light bulbs could trigger migraines and even seizures in some people. The Migraine Action Association has said that the flickering and the low intensity of the light do trigger migraines in many of their members. There have also been warnings from epilepsy charities about the increased risk of seizures from energy saving bulbs. With the government pledging to prevent the sale of the conventional light bulbs within the next four years this could be worrying for sufferers of both conditions. As a migraine sufferer myself I have replaced most of the bulbs in my house with energy saving bulbs and so far have suffered no migraines. It might be prudent for the government to research this issue further before going ahead with an outright ban.

If you own a small business and are based in the US, you might want to have a look at Crest Capital. They offer help for small businesses including financing and business equipment leasing. Their aim is to help small companies finance equipment or software that is essential to the growth of their business. They offer a number of solutions including loans and leases, refinances and working capital. The advantage of their solutions is that they can be processed very quickly and can cut out a lot of the red tape which is often associated with getting a loan from a bank.

Waitrose has been criticised by human rights activists for selling fish from Zimbabwe. They say it is wrong to fly in food from a country that is on the brink of starvation. Waitrose say that the fish is sourced from a fair trade supplier which is majority owned by native Zimbabweans and which pays its worker substantially more than the minimum wage. Campaigners are planning protests at all Waitrose outlets which currently stock tilapia fillets, the fish at the centre of the debate.

I have been playing a lot of poker recently and came across this poker calculator. It is called the holdem calculator and it helps you to work out the poker odds. With the calculator you can open any online poker table and it will automatically detect your game and display the real time odds and game statistics. You can also use the tool simultaneously on multiple tables. The calculator is designed to help your decision making by giving you a clear idea of the odds and helping you to avoid making mistakes when playing. You can download a free trial version to see if it works for you but some of the larger casinos are currently offering free lifetime membership of the calculator for a limited time.

Peterborough council will start charging supermarkets for recovering abandoned shopping trolleys. Officials will fine the stores for any trolleys that their staff have to collect. They believe that this new scheme will encourage supermarkets to improve security for their trolleys and provide a better collection system.

I found this website the other day called Sloterix that allows you to play online slots. The website has several different casino slots including Eurogrand Slots that offers 10 different slots with prizes of up to $5 million You can bet anything from small amounts as little as 25 cents up to $100. All you need to do to get started and play slots is download and install the software. Many of the games also include a welcome bonus for first time users.

I read this article about a website that has been set up to reunite people with their lost gloves. The website was set up by Jennifer Gooch and so far has reunited four gloves with their owners. She is now working on four similar sites for other cities as well as a book which will show the gloves she has found.

I came across this website the other day that offers online backgammon. You can join for free and play backgammon for real money online. Prizes range from $5 up to $50,000. All you need to do is to download the free software and install it. The website offers live backgammon tournaments and also has a lot of useful information about how to play, including tips to help you improve your game. It is also available in seven languages.